The Evil Mother-in-law: Torment Children, Work Hard, Be Rich!-Chapter 310: An Autumn Encounter

Tong Huaqiong said, "Since Man Er mentioned that there are cries in the pine forest, let’s go check it out."

Tong Huaqiong called for a halt, got off the carriage, and casually picked up a stick to hold in her hand.

"Mom, I’ll go with you," Gu Taohua and Chen Sufen said in unison.

Tong Huaqiong said, "Just Taohua accompanying me is enough. Sufen, you and Yue Er stay with the injured young man."

Qin Qingyou wanted to go along, but Tong Huaqiong told him to stay put.

She feared that if Qin Qingyou left, the horses might get startled, which could injure Chen Sufen, Man Er, and the others.

Tong Huaqiong instructed Qin Qingyou that if she and Taohua encountered danger, he should not linger and should instead take Chen Sufen, Man Er, and the others away with the carriage.

Tong Huaqiong and Gu Taohua walked towards the pine forest under the moonlight.

The mother and daughter were concerned about possible dangers in the pine forest, but still, they went, not out of recklessness, but because they knew they were the only ones able to evade risks if any arose.

Because if they were ever in danger, they could always hide in the space to avoid trouble.

The whirring wind passed by their ears, sending a slight chill through Tong Huaqiong.

"Grandma, there really are cries."

A soft child’s voice startled Tong Huaqiong. Man Er had somehow followed them.

"What are you doing here," Tong Huaqiong asked.

"I was afraid you and Aunt couldn’t find where the cries were, so I sneaked along," Man Er said.

"The cries are up ahead," Man Er pointed forward.

Tong Huaqiong listened closely and indeed heard faint cries amidst the wind.

Like a cat, like a child.

Tong Huaqiong held Man Er’s hand, and Gu Taohua followed behind, holding a stick and staying alert to the surroundings.

The further they walked forward, the clearer the cries became.

Tong Huaqiong stood in the dense forest but couldn’t locate the source of the cries.

Suddenly, Man Er let go of Tong Huaqiong’s hand and darted into a patch of grass to the left, with Tong Huaqiong and Gu Taohua closely following.

Man Er parted the grass and found a stone cave.

"The cries were coming from here," Man Er said, "They were crying just now, why have they stopped now."

Tong Huaqiong hadn’t had the chance to speak when Man Er already had her head down, peering into the stone cave.

In the bright moonlight, Man Er met a pair of shiny wet eyes.

"Who are you?"

"Was it you who was crying?"

"Come out."

Man Er began calling into the cave.

While calling, she reached in with her hand.

Soon, Man Er grasped a pair of small hands, giving a firm tug and pulling out a child.

A child was pulled out from the tree cave.

Tong Huaqiong and Gu Taohua were startled.

"Was it you who was crying?" Tong Huaqiong asked.

The child nodded.

Tong Huaqiong asked, "Is there anyone else inside?"

The child shook his head.

Well, they had saved two people in one night.

It was truly an autumn adventure.

"Taohua... the delicious pastries..." the child exclaimed excitedly upon seeing Gu Taohua.

He had seen this sister beating people up in the alley, and the pastries she sold were even better than those in Shengjing.

This sister had a bad temper but was a good person.

"Do you know Taohua?" Tong Huaqiong asked.

The child nodded then shook his head.

Gu Taohua frowned; she didn’t recognize the child at all.

"It’s not surprising he knows me; any child from Yan Guan Town and the nearby villages who goes to the market with their parents would come to Taohua Dessert to buy pastries," Gu Taohua said.

What Taohua said made sense.

But this child’s accent clearly wasn’t local.

Perhaps the child was here visiting relatives or for business with his parents.

Tong Huaqiong asked the child, "Where are you from?"

The child remained silent.

Tong Huaqiong asked again, "Where are your parents? Who put you in the cave?"

The child shook his head.

Gu Taohua asked, "Could it be that someone abducted you?"

No matter how they asked, the child remained silent.

Tong Huaqiong could only sigh and lead Man Er while holding the child back to the carriage.

Halfway there, the child suddenly stopped and refused to budge.

"My foot hurts, I can’t walk."

With a grumble, Gu Taohua reluctantly lifted the child onto her shoulder.

"Man Er, where did you go? You scared me to death," Chen Sufen said, almost in tears upon realizing Man Er was missing.

Qin Qingyou accompanied Chen Sufen to search for Man Er, and she only relaxed upon seeing Man Er with Tong Huaqiong.

"Man Er wasn’t wrong; there was indeed someone crying in the forest," Tong Huaqiong pointed to the child on Gu Taohua’s back, "We found a child."

As a mother, Chen Sufen’s heart softened upon seeing the child’s muddy face in the moonlight.

Who would leave a child in the mountains in the middle of the night?

It was heartless.

Tong Huaqiong got into the carriage and took the child from Gu Taohua.

Seeing the injured young man lying in the carriage and the child in her arms, Tong Huaqiong felt a moment of heaviness.

This could be troublesome!

"Mom, how did you end up with a child?" Liu Yueer asked.

Tong Huaqiong said, "I don’t know who abandoned the child. Seeing him crying so pitifully, we brought him along."

The child snuggled tightly against Man Er, eyes fixed on the pastries in Yaozu’s hand, eagerly swallowing his saliva under the wind lamp’s light.

"There’s shredded pork cake here for you to eat." Man Er opened a food box and handed a pork cake to the child.

The child gobbled it up hungrily, stuffing it into his mouth.

"Take it easy, there’s more."

Chen Sufen spoke as she handed water to the child and took a cloth to clean the child’s face thoroughly.

Under the wind lamp, a bright and clean child’s face appeared.

"It’s a girl," Yaozu said.

"No, I’m not a girl," the child’s face blushed bright red.

The child’s voice drew everyone’s attention.

It turned out this remarkably beautiful child was actually a boy.

With the wind lamp’s light, Tong Huaqiong carefully examined the boy: delicate skin, dark shiny hair, and though the clothes were torn, the material was silk with glistening golden threads.

He was obviously a child raised with care by a wealthy family.

In these times, people may abandon daughters but never sons.

Tong Huaqiong speculated that the boy’s parents likely met with misfortune.

To protect him, they hid him in the bush’s cave.

Just like how Mrs. Hong’s parents protected her back then.

No wonder he didn’t respond when asked about his parents earlier.

"Mom, the person on the ground just woke up, groaned twice, and then passed out again," Liu Yueer pointed at the man on the blanket and said.

An idea struck Tong Huaqiong; the material of the boy’s clothes resembled that of the injured young man. Could they be together?

The older one as the older brother and the younger as the younger brother; perhaps they were attacked by enemies. The older brother hid the younger one in the mountain cave to avoid danger and then led the enemies away, resulting in his own injuries from cuts and arrows.

Tong Huaqiong gently asked the boy, "Do you recognize the person on the ground?"

The child had noticed the person on the ground immediately.

His mind was in turmoil.

His uncle had told him to claim he didn’t recognize anyone.

But this family wasn’t bad; they gave him pastries and water and had bandaged his uncle’s wounds.

His uncle had a head injury and a leg injury.

All because he was protecting him.

The boy’s eyes welled up with tears, and he tightly pursed his lips.

"Is he your brother?" Tong Huaqiong asked confidently.

The boy’s expression betrayed him; it seemed they were indeed brothers.

"He’s my uncle."