The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 300: Beggar Old 3

Chapter 300: Chapter 300: Beggar Old 3

Old Liu, his face covered in pockmarks, coughed into his hand. "Earn some virtue with your words, will you? No matter what, Lady Sun is a pitiful person. Old Sun has been dead for several years now. She’s rather decent these days, why must you incessantly dredge up her past..."

"Pah! What do you mean, ’incessantly dredge up her past’? That young woman is naturally promiscuous. Since Old Sun died, how many men do you think she’s had? Everyone knows. The line of men at her back door each night is probably not shorter than the one at Auspicious Fabric Store."

Upon hearing this, the women one by one frowned in disdain, while the men’s smiles carried a hint of lewdness. Among them were many who had been guests in Lady Sun’s chamber. Remembering how seductive she could be, they couldn’t help but get excited again.

Just then, from a corner of the crowd, a destitute beggar in rags suddenly dashed to the front of Liu Ji Baozi Shop.

While everyone was distracted, he reached out his filthy hand, grabbed two large meat buns, and bolted.

His movements were exceedingly quick.

The owner of the baozi shop, Old Liu, grabbed a rolling pin and charged out: "Stop right there! Where did this stinking beggar come from, gutsy enough to steal from your master Liu... Stand still for me!"

He hurled insults as he gave chase.

Those who had been doing business in this area for years, had seen many such incidents.

Jing County flourished in river trade, with all kinds of mountain goods passing through here. All sorts of people converged in this place, including plenty of gambling dens. Countless merchants arrived flush with cash, only to be stripped of every last penny in these dens and left on the streets.

For those truly driven to desperation by hunger without a penny to their name, what choice did they have but to steal or rob?

Business owners in the vicinity, especially those who sold food, had all been victims of theft or robbery at some point.

Thus, when Old Liu bellowed, the other nearby shopkeepers grabbed whatever tools they had at hand and joined the chase in a shared fury.

A crowd experienced in chasing after such thieving beggars quickly caught the one who had stolen the buns.

The beggar seemed quite practiced himself, stealing buns and shoving them into his mouth as he ran. Now caught, the remaining half bun left in his hand was stuffed into his mouth without a second thought, as people surrounded him.

He choked on the bun due to his rushed eating, his eyelids flipping wildly, but he did not stop.

Old Liu Tou watched, fuming, as the six copper coins’ worth of meat buns disappeared in the blink of an eye.

God knows, these breakfast vendors worked from dawn till dusk for their meager earnings; that six copper coins was still money.

Infuriated, he kicked the beggar. "You filthy beggar, stealing my buns! Think it’s fine just ’cause you swallowed them? You may have ingested them, but I’ll punch you until you vomit it out!"

The beggar, at Old Liu’s kick, not yet fully struck, rolled on the ground and started wailing.

"Ow, it’s murder! Someone’s getting killed! It was just a couple of bites of a bun, and I didn’t say I wouldn’t pay—why beat me to death? Ouch, my fellow villagers, save me!"

Soon, a circle of onlookers gathered to watch the commotion.

Old Liu tried kicking a few times, missing each time, and with people murmuring and pointing, he became frantic. "Alright, since you say you’ll pay, then give me the money."

The beggar then sat up from the ground, brushing back the long hair that covered his face, revealing a grimy visage.

He was of an age strong and sturdy, with regular features, yet his brows and eyes were filled with the unruly air of a scoundrel, careless and slack in his demeanor.

"Are they not just two meat buns? Six copper coins, right? To be so vicious over this? I might not have money, but my second brother’s family is loaded. My second brother lives in Jing County, by the Academy, as a teacher. It’s possible your children are students under my second brother, so don’t look down on people..."

Old Liu spat, saying impatiently, "Who is your second brother that teaches at which Academy? What’s his name? Being a teacher still requires payment!"

"Well, pay attention then, my second brother’s name is Wang Yongan, and he’s taught in Jing County for many years. I’m here to seek refuge with my second brother; everybody faces difficulties..."

The beggar, with his rogue’s appearance, was gloating as he spoke, when suddenly someone spat out a mouthful of phlegm, almost landing on his face.

"Pah! Wang Yongan! I know him; he’s the one who swindled my mother’s coffin savings, sold all the family land. He’s the heartless wretch that left my parents and siblings, nieces, and nephews out in the cold at home..."

"Right, I remember too. Some time ago, people from his old home came looking for him only to find out he had sold the house and gone off to live the good life as an official, leaving our father with a stroke bed-ridden, completely neglecting our disabled elder brother, heartless as a beast with no family morals, still acting as a teacher at the Academy, utterly misleading the youth."

"Exactly, he’s become quite the celebrity in Jing County now, hasn’t he? So he’s your second brother? Are you from the Old Wang Family?"

...

The beggar Wang Yonggui was dumbfounded. He had dropped Wang Yongan’s name, thinking it would compel the proprietor to seek out Wang Yongan, who would then have to settle his account, unwilling to disown his own younger brother in front of others, right?

By then, he could potentially ask for some extra travel money to get home.

He had thought that as soon as he mentioned it, someone would naturally go find him, and he could lazily wait for it to happen.

But listening now, it seemed like things weren’t quite right?

Wang Yonggui had spent the past year gallivanting outside, squandering all his money until he was broke. After a tough journey of begging and wandering, he finally made it back to Jing County.

He went to Wang Yongan’s residence, intending to scrounge some money for travel expenses to return to Qilidun.

But when he arrived at where Wang Yongan was supposed to live, he discovered that the person who came to the door was not Wang Yongan’s father-in-law or mother-in-law but a stranger.

After asking just a few questions and mentioning he was looking for Wang Yongan, the stranger sicced a vicious dog on him, chasing him for miles and biting him several times.

Bewildered and starving, he walked a few steps and was enticed by the smell of steamed buns. Unable to resist, he conjured up a plan that would kill two birds with one stone.

After stealing two buns, he finally felt his spirit return.

Thinking of his second brother, who didn’t come to the door when his own brother arrived and instead let a vicious dog bite him... He truly was despicable.

Under normal circumstances, he might still protect his second brother’s reputation since he was the hope and mainstay of their family. He couldn’t afford to tarnish his second brother’s reputation outside, letting others know his second brother had such a brother.

But since his second brother was cruel, he could not be blamed for being unrighteous. He might as well let everyone know he was Wang Yongan’s brother and see what they would say about his second brother, undoubtedly criticizing him for living well while his own brother lacked even the money for buns.

He had hardly mentioned Wang Yongan’s name when such news reached his ears.