Nu Woer sent troops to capture the two, and the young man became her husband. He was brought back to the Kechar tribe, but the man as dark as charcoal wasn’t so lucky; he was demoted by Nu Woer to a lowly slave and sold off.
At this point, Tuoya wiped her face, "Chun Liu," the name of that young man. "He was very guarded, rarely spoke to me. After I brought him back to Kechar, he also tried to escape many times. In the early years, our days mainly consisted of him fleeing and me chasing, over and over again."
"Later, we had a daughter. Not long after Tu Ya was born, Chun Liu fell ill and died."
"Before he died, he told me that he hated me. The man who had tried to escape with him was his elder brother. The two of them had different statuses within the Nu Woer tribe, and if it hadn’t been for my desire to change husbands, perhaps they would have already escaped successfully. But because of me, they were captured by Nu Woer after their escape."
Tuoya gave a bitter laugh, "Chun Liu thought of Chun Qiao until his death, longing for his brother who had been reduced to a slave. After his death, I tried to find people, but people from The Outside do not easily step into the Central Plains’ territory, especially someone with my status. Though I may seem glorious, my influence is confined to the Desert."
Dong Huiying fell silent for a moment, then turned to look at Liang Haoming beside her. Seeing that Liang Haoming was looking down, she couldn’t tell what he was thinking.
She gently held his hand.
She had already known that several of the Liang family fathers were descendants of criminal officials turned Official Slaves, but she had never expected that Haoming’s father would be involved with The Outside.
Tuoya said that Chun Liu was skilled with his hands, especially at carpentry.
She also said that Chun Liu hated her, always had. That silent young man’s gaze was always cold towards her, and in his heart, he completely rejected her.
Tuoya had had many men in her life, but that delicate, beautiful boy who was as weak as a potted plant had always been the most special.
In the years following the young man’s death, she thought she could forget him. She tried to accept other men, but every night, in her dreams, what she remembered was always the young man from those days.
As Tuoya continued to speak, her voice grew hoarser until finally, she stood up to prevent the situation from deteriorating and said, "You two can stay here in peace. I will help you find the ’Witch.’ As for Tu Ya, I won’t let her bother you again."
Dong Huiying saw off Tuoya and returned to the felt tent, where she saw Haoming still sitting quietly. He sat there, expressionless and silent, not crying or laughing, like a piece of emotionless Wood.
She crouched in front of Haoming, her small hand resting on his knee. "What are you thinking about, hmm?"
Haoming reached out, touching her face. She tilted her head slightly, gently rubbing her cheek against the palm of his hand.
"Big Brother said, Dad always ran away." He hadn’t been born yet, and every time Dad ran off, he would always be caught and brought back. The one who laid hands on him wasn’t their mother, who didn’t really care about their fathers anyway; it was the marriage broker. But Dad was persistent, running away again and again, and the worst time, a marriage broker had broken one of his legs.
It wasn’t until he was born, and after his birth, that Dad never ran away again.
The young matriarch stood up and took him into her embrace: "You, such a tall fellow, but always like a child," like a fragile child.
He wrapped his arms around her waist, nuzzling his face into her bosom, "Don’t abandon me, don’t leave me."
His voice was hoarse. The matters of the previous generation were in the past. But probably because he received so little since childhood, there were so few people who were kind to him that he learned to cherish them all the more.
What he feared most was her not wanting him.
What he feared most was her leaving him.