Zuo Junmo's meaningful gaze lingered on Yang Ruohua's face, and he slowly said: "I envy him for being able to marry a wife who understands him, sharing the same aspirations, living in harmony, and supporting each other through thick and thin."

"If marriage is only for procreation and lineage, I would rather choose solitude."

Let me know if you have any other text you'd like me to translate! ?

Upon hearing Left Junmo's words, Yang Ruoqing was speechless and didn't know how to persuade him.

Indeed, a man like Left Brother, who is both intelligent and ambitious, his wife should be more than just someone who bears children. He's different from those vulgar men; he needs a soulmate.

"Fate is predetermined, everything goes with the flow. Left Brother, your sister won't persuade you any further. If it's not meant to be, persuasion won't work. Just let things take their course!" Yang Ruqing smiled sweetly, her eyes curving into two crescents.

Left Junmo saw her smiling, her brows and eyes curving upwards, a touch of bitterness flashed in his eyes, gone as quickly as it appeared.

Destiny was right before his eyes, but it wasn't meant for him.

It can only be said that fate is cruel, love runs deep, but alas, our bond is shallow.

Then it's settled.

"Left Big Brother, please have a seat first. I'll go call my uncle and father to chat with you. I have to prepare lunch, and you must try the home-cooked dishes made by your younger sister at noon!" Yang Ruqing stood up and said excitedly.

Left Junmo also stood up and said, "Uncle Luo and Uncle Yang are both busy, so we don't need to bother them. I'll go for a walk around the village, anyway, I'm very familiar with this area."

Yang Ruqing thought about it for a moment and nodded readily, "Okay, don't go too far, dinner will be ready in at most an hour."

One hour is two hours, and two hours are enough for her to cook a lot of dishes.

Zuo Junmo smiled faintly, leaving the main hall with Yang Ruqing. One went to the backyard, and the other headed towards the front gate.

That day, the transport team finally returned to the village.

>

The transport team's return seemed to bring back the festive atmosphere of the New Year. Members of the transport team were greeted at the village entrance by their families. They received parcels of goods bought from the south, and everyone, young and old, was overjoyed. After greeting Yang Ruqing, they embraced each other and hurried home to reunite with their families.

The osmanthus tree also came to Yang Ruqing's house with her young son to look for Changgen. The woman didn't come to pick up the New Year's goods, but hurried over to get news about her daughter Xiaoyu.

At this time, Changgen and Baozhu were with Yang Ruqing, reporting to her truthfully about their trip to Xiushui Town to deliver goods.

Just now I was talking about what happened when we left, at the dock in Jiujiang County.

“Because the official road ahead was blocked by mud and rock slides for several miles, we had no choice but to send this message back to you. Then we rented two merchant ships and hired a well-respected bodyguard company from Jiujiang County to escort us. We plan to travel directly to Xiushui Town by water.”

“The ship in front was used to carry people and goods, while the one behind was used to transport vehicles and animals.”

Taking up the teacup before him, Baozhu sipped his tea and then spoke.

Yang Ruqing and Zuo Junmo both sat there, listening intently with serious expressions.

Bao Zhu said: "The day before yesterday, the journey by water was alright. Except for a few people feeling seasick, everyone else was fine."

But the next afternoon, as we approached Bai Di Valley, the sun was setting and the river surface was red and fishy.

Even I, who don't usually get seasick, felt like throwing up standing at the bow of the ship.

Hearing Baozhu say this, Yang Ruoqing's brows furrowed, and a sense of foreboding crept into her heart.

The boat continued on, slowing down. At this point, we saw a body floating down the river.

Hearing this, Mrs. Sun and Guihua both gasped, their faces paling several shades.

Yang Huazhong and Luo Tiejiang also frowned.

If no one interrupted Baozhu, her voice continued echoing in the main hall: “We originally thought it was just an occasional floating corpse, but then, two more corpses floated past us. And ahead, the river surface was littered with corpses – men, women, young and old, everywhere! Goodness, the water itself had turned red…”

“Oh my goodness!” Guihua cried out in fright, covering her face and leaning against Mrs. Sun beside her.

Mrs. Sun was also frightened, but she still stretched out one hand to gently clasp Guihua's shoulder and patted her lightly to comfort her.

Here, Yang Ruoheng couldn't help but speak up: "Could it be that we ran into river pirates?"

Bao Zhu nodded, "That's right, we encountered bandits."

"People say that even thieves have their own code, and if you take money from someone, you shouldn't harm them. But those bandits in Bai Di Valley are simply inhumane and lawless!"

“We rescued a man from the merchant ship ahead of us. Just two days ago, several of our ships encountered them on the waterways near Jiujiang County and sailed together for a while!”

>Later, someone on our ship got seasick, so we intentionally slowed down to let them come forward. As soon as they came up, out of the ten people on deck, only one jumped into the water and escaped, while the other nine were killed.

The person we rescued introduced himself as a businessman from Sichuan who dealt in tea leaves and silk. Their ships passed through the Bai Di Valley every quarter.

In previous years, the leader of those river bandits was a man called "Cat Brother." He would collect their tolls and let them pass without harming them.

But this time, those river bandits have a new leader. Cat Brother is dead, and he's replaced by someone called Old Six He.

“He Lao Liu took their money and possessions, and even wanted to kill them to silence them,”

>I heard that ahead of them, there was also a funeral procession, supposedly the passing of an old master from a certain official family in the capital. The whole family, young and old, men and women, were escorting the body back to their ancestral home in Sichuan.

“When passing through Bai Di Valley, I encountered Lao Liu and his group. All the men were killed, and the women were first humiliated and then killed. There was even an eight-year-old girl on the boat, who also didn't escape the clutches of evil…”

"Bang!"

Yang Ruoqing slapped the table with a resounding boom, "Damn it! That bastard He Lao Liu deserves to be hacked to pieces a thousand times!"

Zuo Junmo's brows were also tightly furrowed, his face covered in a chill.

The faces of the others were all grim. Some were solemn, some terrified, some filled with regret, and some lamented the innocent victims, especially that eight-year-old noble girl...

What a terrible torment he suffered before his death!

She has experienced the worst and darkest aspects of humanity. I hope that in her next life, she will be reborn into an ordinary family and grow up peacefully.

“Uncle Changgen, Brother Bazhu, what about you two? Have you met Lao Liu He?”

Despite her anger, Yang Ruoqing did not forget to ask about this.

Baozhu glanced at Changgen, who said, "You're tired too, aren't you? Let me take over."

Bao Zhu nodded and sat back down, taking large gulps of tea. After talking so much, his mouth was indeed dry.

Chang Gen continued, “At that time, the bodyguards on our ship said that something was wrong, and the ship couldn't go any further. We planned to return by the original route, but before we could turn around, arrows flew over from both sides of the river.”

Then someone shouted, saying that we should stop the boat and pay them, or they would kill us.