Redeeming Her Freedom

In the low, dim laundry room, several basins were lined up in a row, and four maids responsible for washing clothes were hard at work.

There were many rules governing how the wealthy dressed. The Liu Family had money but no power, and there were no scholars in the household, so they were especially particular.

Clothes were changed not only once a day. Sometimes, after going out or visiting guests and friends, they had to change again.

It was not yet the end of the first lunar month. The well water was warm at first, but within moments, it turned bone-chillingly cold.

No matter how wealthy the Liu Family was, they could not possibly let these laundry maids wash clothes with hot water.

Many laundry maids' hands had long since turned white from soaking, and some had even developed chilblains, yet they continued washing without pause.

Even when they heard someone enter the laundry room, they did not dare raise their heads.

These maids were said to be responsible for washing clothes, but in truth, they did every kind of odd job. The Liu Family naturally did not keep them for free.

Among all the maids, they were considered the lowest class, even beneath the sweeping maids.

If they wanted to rise, they could only endure it slowly. After three to five years, once the masters placed a little trust in them, they might be allowed to do other work.

"Zhao Yu." Chen Mo recognized at a glance the companion with whom he had fled the famine back then. She had changed very little from those days; her body was still nothing but skin and bones.

At most, she had gone from being on the verge of starving to death to temporarily managing not to starve to death.

That alone showed what kind of life she led in the Liu Family—worse than when she had fed horses for him.

Hearing someone call her name, her eyes were filled with numbness. She raised her head and looked up, clearly unable to recognize Chen Mo.

"It's me, your husband, Chen Mo. I've come to redeem your freedom." As he spoke, Chen Mo took a waterskin from his robes. It was something Zhao Yu had given him back then.

"It's you?" She was stunned at first, then reacted with lightning speed, her eyes filled with disbelief.

She had once thought Chen Mo might come to redeem her. After all, only half a year had passed, and she had not yet lost hope.

But she had never imagined it would happen so soon. In a mere half-year, Chen Mo had actually managed to gather enough silver. It was truly beyond her expectations.

In fact, ever since entering the Liu residence, she had sometimes regretted selling herself through a third party instead of selling herself directly.

A third-party sale could still be redeemed, but it was difficult for the masters to trust her, so she could only wash clothes here all day long.

She had also fantasized that Chen Mo would come to redeem him—her—and turn her from a servant into an ordinary commoner.

But the experiences of the other servants sometimes made her waver in that hope.

Some had been sold into the Liu Family by their husbands or brothers. They had initially promised they would definitely redeem them, yet three, five, or even ten years passed without anyone coming.

At first, some messages still arrived, but gradually, the people themselves vanished without a trace.

Even so, she was unwilling to abandon this hope. She believed that Chen Mo had shared life and death with her back then, and surely was not someone who would betray his word.

This was the only hope she could cling to. She had to believe in it, or she would never have held on until now.

She simply had not expected it to happen so soon—to become reality just like this. Chen Mo had truly come to redeem her.

She pinched her own thigh. The clear, sharp pain reached her mind, and only then did she dare believe that everything before her was real.

The remaining laundry maids all looked toward Zhao Yu with envy tinged with jealousy.

They were all servant maids. Why was she the one whose husband could redeem her, while they could only continue working here day after day?

"Hurry up and pack. Come with me," Chen Mo instructed.

"All right." Zhao Yu nodded in agreement, her heart filled with joy.

No matter what kind of life awaited her outside, it would be better than being someone else's servant here.

The two did not spend much time reminiscing. Zhao Yu hurried off to pack her things.

They were not actually very familiar with each other. Though they had shared life and death, the total time they had spent together was less than two months, and they had spoken fewer than a hundred sentences.

But when it came to mutual trust, at least for now, both of them trusted the other completely.

Back then, Zhao Yu had handed nearly all the money from selling herself to Chen Mo without reservation. Because of that money, Chen Mo had been able to survive and enlist in the army.

And Chen Mo, for the sake of a promise made back then, had done everything he could to redeem her as soon as possible.

They were not husband and wife, yet the trust between many married couples might not compare with what existed between the two of them.

Zhao Yu packed quickly. She had nothing extra, only two changes of clothes and some money she had carefully saved.

When they washed clothes, they sometimes came across a few loose coins. The maids who delivered the clothes would search through them, but now and then, something was inevitably missed.

Thus, after all this time, not only had the money in her hands not diminished, it had even increased. Altogether, it was nearly three qian of silver.

She had carefully saved it all for the day she could get in touch with Chen Mo. With this money, she could ease his burden and make it easier for him to redeem her.

But now, it seemed this money might not be needed after all.

Even so, after packing everything, she found an opportunity to quietly stuff all the money into Chen Mo's hands.

That Chen Mo could redeem her within half a year had indeed exceeded her expectations, but she understood even better that it had been no easy feat.

If she gave him this money, then if there were other expenses later, he would not have to be so constrained.

As for what she would do after leaving without any money in her hands, she was not very worried.

That was because she trusted Chen Mo. If he truly were a greedy man, he would never have come to redeem her.

Chen Mo accepted the money without saying much. He simply waved lightly for Zhao Yu to follow behind him.

When they reached the front hall, County Commandant Li was engaged in lively conversation with Liu Wangshi.

"Keep this contract of sale safe. Later, you can take her to change her registration." Mo Dao handed Chen Mo another contract of sale, then glanced at the gaunt Zhao Yu and could not help frowning slightly.

"What about the redemption fee?" Chen Mo asked softly.

Mo Dao shook his head slightly. The Liu Family was merely a local rich man's household. Their adoptive father was redeeming someone.

Even if Liu Wangshi had eaten a tiger's penis, he would not dare demand a redemption fee from them.

"Uncle Li, since matters here are settled, we'll return to the military camp first. We won't stay here any longer." Mo Dao cupped his hands and bid his farewell on the spot.

"Why are you in such a hurry, Nephew? At the very least, you should stay for a meal." County Commandant Li tried to persuade him to stay, but the instant he saw Zhao Yu, he understood everything.

Zhao Yu was very thin. It was no longer a matter of being so weak that a gust of wind could knock her down; she was gaunt from years of toil.

If Chen Mo had not come, Zhao Yu would probably have been worked to death in the Liu Family within another year or two.

This was not normally considered a major matter. Mistreating servants was something nearly every household did; it was a trivial matter.

But it depended on whom they mistreated. If it were an ordinary person, no one would care even if they died.

Unfortunately, the person they had mistreated was Zhao Yu.

To be sure, it was because of the Liu Family that Zhao Yu had managed to cling to life.

But with his first wife treated this way, even if Chen Mo did not blame the Liu Family, it was probably impossible for him to sit at the same table with Liu Wangshi and chat amiably again.

Mo Dao had evidently thought of this as well, which was why he was taking his leave first.

"Then I'll see you off, Nephew!" County Commandant Li rose and, as he left, cast Liu Wangshi a deep glance.

"Liu Er, get your ass over here!" Liu Wangshi roared.

Butler Liu Er came running into the front hall with his head lowered.

"Didn't I tell you before? Give the servants better food. But look at you—what have you been doing?" Liu Wangshi slammed the table and glared, seemingly venting the fury in his heart.

Liu Er said nothing, though he secretly grumbled to himself. How much the servants in the compound spent on food and drink each day had been personally decided by Liu Wangshi.

With only the price of a steamed cornbread bun, even if he turned it into a flower, he could not conjure two buns. He cursed inwardly, but he did not dare say a word aloud, merely lowering his head and obediently listening to the reprimand.

"From now on, double the servants' monthly food allowance. Also, prepare a carriage for me, then go to the Hengyuan Escort Agency and hire several capable men. Prepare more silver notes and gold, and bring me the deed to our three hundred mu of prime irrigated farmland outside the city as well."

A ruthless look flashed through Liu Wangshi's eyes as he gritted his teeth and gave his orders.

He was not sure whether General Sun would learn of what happened today, or whether he would blame him over it.

But he could be certain that the Liu Family was now a piece of fat meat, and everyone would want to take a bite or two.

If he did not want to be devoured until nothing remained, he could only cut off a portion of the meat and offer it up first.

The garrison commander of Xingyuan Prefecture was an absolute high official. He had never had the opportunity to establish ties with him, but now that the opportunity had arrived, he would seize it.

With these gifts in hand, he could claim that he was calling in person to apologize and seek forgiveness.

As long as he established this connection, he would not only have to stop looking at the county magistrate's expression; his business might even double or triple in size.

As for whether showing up with gifts to force a connection was shameless—if he had cared about shame, he would never have been able to build such a large business.