Jasper smiled complacently. He looked at Celia and said, "I do business both in the retail and wholesale industry. Do you want to buy some of my stuff to sell them?"
"It was just a question."
Even if she was crazy enough to do that, she'd never say it outright. After all, money was tight and she needed the money to support her brother, Wade's education. That was of the utmost importance.
"It was a pleasure to meet you. If you need anything, please let me know. I will try my best to help you." Jasper said, smiling. He seemed to read her mind.
He felt like he knew her for ages. It was like old friends catching up.
After their negotiations and Jasper's insistence, Celia ended up accepting the fifty dollar deposit from Jasper. It was a promise to them.
To show her sincerity, Celia proposed to pay the bill after breakfast. However, Jasper was quick to inform them that he owned this little cafe as well. There was no need to pay after all, much to the surprise of Celia and Wendy.
After concluding their discussion, Celia and Wendy went over to the department store to get some groceries. They headed back with a sense of satisfaction.
Although they were very tired, they were both ecstatic. For them, they now had a sure way to make money. It was incredibly comforting that they met such a kind and generous man. It seemed that their future had been secured.
"Before I came here, I was worried that no one wanted to buy the vegetable baskets and fruit plates. I had never dreamed that they would sell out so quickly. We made a much larger profit than we would in our hometown as well. The trip isn't in vain after all. It is far but for the money we earned, it is worth it. I'm so happy, Celia!" holding Celia's hand, Wendy exclaimed gleefully.
It didn't take much to make her happy. Just making an honest living was enough for her.
"Well, as long as we try our best, we'll definitely get the success we need!" Celia had been feeling nothing but heartache in the past few years. She watched her mother slave away making those baskets. It was time that she just lived out a happy life.
"You know we got really lucky meeting a kind man like Jasper. We don't have to worry about selling anymore and the price he offered is perfect." Looking at Celia, Wendy was exhilarated. After all, they were making a living by themselves. They could live without grandma now and finally take care of themselves.
They chatted while continuing their walk. Celia was more insightful than her mother. As Jasper suspected, she wanted to purchase goods and run a small shop. After all, their village didn't have any place to buy these things. The nearest market town was about ten miles away, so if she could open a small shop, that would be yet another place to capitalize.
Of course that was just a plan for now though. They didn't have the money to do any of that right now. Right now, they had to concentrate on generating some income.
Half an hour later, they walked out of the town to a path in the mountain. Suddenly, two young men with yellow hair rushed out into middle of the road and blocked their way. The men looked at them with a sneer across their faces.
There was venom in their eyes which expose
d their wicked intent.
"Celia, what shall we do?" Noticing that there was something wrong, Wendy pulled Celia closer to her, terrified.
"Let's go back."
There was no point trying to fight them with the odds so steeply stacked against her. Celia could sense the danger. She held her mother's hand and was ready to turn around.
However, they turned to see a yellow haired hooligan standing there with a shiny knife in his hand. The cold blade caught the light, glinting as he swayed it.
The moment she saw the knife, Celia couldn't help taking a sharp breath. It would be such a waste to die so quickly after her rebirth.
"We just want your money and we will spare your lives. Give us all your money you have and we will let you go. Otherwise, hehe..." the young man with tattoos on his arm threatened. However, when he saw Celia, his eyes lit up and he said excitedly, "Wow! She's quite beautiful. So delicate, just like a princess. We're lucky today!"
They just wanted money, but after seeing Celia's sheer beauty, they couldn't pass up the opportunity. They were obsessed with her and the temptation became too much to handle. The money didn't matter anymore. The only thing that mattered was her.
"Stop!" Wendy instinctively stood in front of her daughter to protect her. She was a timid woman but she wouldn't let anyone hurt her Celia.
When Celia looked at them, it felt like she was staring into the eyes of the devil. Even though she was in danger, there was a silver lining. In her past life she was ugly and to be threatened just because of how beautiful she was, seemed bitter sweet.
However, the three hooligans didn't really care. They were like dogs in heat. They rushed forward, pulled Wendy away, and kicked her to the ground. They pulled Celia into the woods beside the path and were going to do some dastardly deeds.
"If you dare touch my daughter, I will kill you!" With a rock in her hand, Wendy got up from the ground and glared at the men. She hurled herself forward, desperate to save her daughter.
She was often bullied for being so feeble. It seemed that everyone was stronger than she was but when it came to something she loved, she had a newfound strength.
Nothing was more important than her daughter since her husband had died. She would fight tooth and nail to protect her.
"Fuck off!"
One of the hooligans watched her run over and stepped up to restrain her. He walked over with a knife in his hand and threw her to the ground saying, "Try to mess up our plans again and I will kill you!"
Not too far behind, the other men had already started defiling Celia. They pressed her against the ground, touched her body and started trying to take her clothes off.
Celia got more and more distraught, watching her mother repeatedly get flung to the ground. To make matters more horrific, these men didn't stop with her. As much as Celia resisted, they carried on doing as they pleased.
"What should I do? Am I really going to get raped? Is this how my new life starts?" Celia was petrified at this point. So engulfed by fear, she couldn't move.
"Stop!"
Just as all hope was lost, a military vehicle stopped at the roadside with a hulking soldier stepping out.