CH 12.1

Chapter 12: The Man in Carriage (1) Original translation is from tenderflower's blog.

After Shu Lan ran out of Shu’s yard crying, she didn’t know where to go.

Her mother said she was picked up. Shu Lan’s first thought was that she didn’t believe it. Her mother used to be so kind to her. She was even better to her than to her older sister. How could she pick her up?

But now because she was lazy and didn’t work, her mother didn’t like her anymore, and she even beat her. Could it be that her mother picked her up just to raise her to work?

Yes, it must be so.

Shu Lan thought sadly and aggrievedly. Since this was the case, then where was her mother? If she returned to her mother now, her mother would not beat her, right?

If Shu Lan hadn’t slept when she was reincarnated, she would have known that Qin-shi was talking in anger. But she slept so sweetly when she was born, and even the birth mother wondered why the child didn’t cry when she was born. Since then, Xiao Lang, who bit someone when he was born, and Shu Lan, who didn’t cry or make trouble, were regarded as two strange babies.

She stumbled into the forest. Shu Lan suddenly heard her stomach growl and lost her strength.

The lunch was spicy with pepper, and then she was beaten by her mother. She didn’t eat much at all. Shu Lan thought aggrievedly. She looked up and found an elm tree with a thick waist. The elm seeds under the elm tree were picked, and only the top of the tree was still hanging with clusters of tender elm seeds.

Since she became a human, her appetite had also changed. The leaves that she loved to eat couldn’t be swallowed at all, only sophora japonica and elm seeds were delicious.

Shu Lan rubbed her eyes and climbed up swiftly with her hands and feet. The higher the top, the thinner the branches. When she finally reached a cluster of elm seeds, the branches below her started to sway from side to side but Shu Lan wasn’t very afraid. When she was steady, she stuffed the elm seeds directly into her mouth and started chewing. This simple green food made her feel like she was back in the jungle, and her thoughts slowly drifted back to the happy life she once ate, slept, ate, and slept. If she hadn’t met that evil wolf, how could she have become a human being? If she didn’t become an adult, she wouldn’t be beaten, scolded, and saddened!

Chewing the fragrant food in her mouth hatefully, Shu Lan looked boringly at the east end of the village, the dirt road led to the town, and a carriage was slowly approaching in the distance...

Shu Lan’s eyes lit up. In the past, when she went to the town, her father stopped a carriage on that road. The old man who drove the carriage would kindly invite them up and drag them all the way to the town. Now that her mother didn’t like her anymore, why didn’t she go to her uncle’s house?

Of course, Shu Lan certainly didn’t see Shu Maoting giving the coachman money to ride, and also forgot that if she really wasn’t Qin-shi’s daughter, then the uncle in the town would no longer be her uncle.

The lazy girl didn’t think too much. She broke off a branch full of elm seeds, happily climbed down the tree, and ran towards the dirt road.

……

Wei Da was sitting on the carriage seat like a wooden sculpture, motionless. He would only move his lips when he occasionally waved his whip or when someone in the carriage was talking to him, but he was still concise.

In front of him was a dirt road in the countryside. The wheat fields on both sides have turned yellow, like golden waves. Looking at it, he could imagine that when the harvest was full, the villagers were tired and sweaty, but their faces were filled with the happiness of the harvest. Wei Da suddenly felt like he understood the reason why the master liked to live in the countryside.

Suddenly, a pink figure ran out from the side road, holding a branch of elm seeds in one hand, and clutching her waist with the other hand. She was gasping as she stood there and looked at him from a distance. Maybe some playful kid ran out. Wei Da didn’t think much about it.

Who would have thought that when the carriage arrived in front of the little girl, the little girl carved in pink jade jumped into the middle of the dirt road? Wei Da was shocked and stopped the carriage quickly. Just as he was about to scold her, he saw the little girl raise her neck and looked up at him. Her small pink mouth said something that made him inexplicable and dumbfounded: “Uncle, I want to take a carriage, please give me a ride!”

Did she think of them as carriages that specialize in pulling people on the road and collecting money? Uncle? He was only 16 years old, okay? But just because he didn’t smile, and he looked older than his actual age, he shouldn’t be called uncle, right?

If this was an adult, Wei Da would ignore her with a reason, but facing the little girl who had walked in front of him with those innocent black eyes, Wei Da’s heart softened and explained as softly as possible: “Little girl, our horse-drawn carriage doesn’t pull people, so you should go home quickly.” Although the villagers were simple, there were several cases of child kidnapping and trafficking every year. Especially if such a beautiful girl was seen by the traffickers, she would definitely be deceived.

Shu Lan blinked suspiciously and glanced at the green-embroidered bamboo curtain. She turned her head and said, “Don’t pull people? Then what’s in there?” Actually, it didn't matter if they didn’t pull people. As long as there was still room inside, it didn’t matter if you squeezed in it.

What?

Wei Da was sweating coldly on his back. Just as he was about to reprimand Shu Lan to leave, he heard the sound of clothes rubbing from inside, then, a slender and fair hand reached out and lifted the curtain of the carriage.