Chapter 019 - Hiding Away
“Papa! Papa! Papa!”
“Noooo! Don't go!!”
Outside Auntie Wang’s home, two little ones were bawling their eyes out, tears rolling down their red, frozen cheeks, looking utterly pitiful.
Uncle Wang, meanwhile, had been conscripted and was trailing silently behind the bailiff.
The county needed 5,000 new recruits, all taken from the poorer villages without mercy. The bailiffs showed no hesitation in dragging people off.
Uncle Wang, a quiet and honest man, was holding back his grief and anger, but he didn’t dare look back.
Auntie Wang followed at a distance, trembling as she held out the family’s meager savings to the bailiff, forcing a smile. “Sir, our family depends on him. Can’t you make an exception...”
The bailiff dismissed her with a wave. “Go back, go back. Which family isn't like that?”
Auntie Wang struggled to keep smiling, her eyes pleading. “But the children are still so young...”
The bailiff retorted, “Isn’t that what you’re here for?”
Another bailiff snapped, “Stop wasting time. Move.”
Auntie Wang tried again, but the other bailiff impatiently reached for the hilt of his blade and slammed a hand on it, glaring fiercely.