The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 401: Greedy Uncle
Although Shitou didn't look strong, he was really powerful. He held the load of goods in one hand and the peddler in the other, just like an eagle catching a chick. He strode into the house without blushing or getting nervous, leaving the doorman stunned.

"Let me go! How dare you rob civilians in broad daylight? Help!" the peddler shouted while struggling.

Shitou shouted fiercely, "Shut up, if you keep making noise I will throw you to the ground. If I don't make you shit, I will consider you a clean one."

The peddler was so frightened that he dared not say a word.

Jia Huan followed him into the yard and ordered the doorman to close the door. Shitou also began to interrogate the peddler: "Who sent you here? What is your intention? You'd better tell the truth, otherwise my axe will not recognize anyone!"

The peddler was already extremely frightened when he saw the door closed, and then he saw Shitou playing with a small axe that gleamed with cold light, and he was almost frightened to death. He stammered, "No one sent me here. I... I'm just here to look for someone."

"Who are you looking for?" Shitou put the axe on the peddler's neck and asked.

The peddler was so frightened that his teeth chattered: "Looking for...looking for my daughter. Oh, be careful, or you might hurt someone."

Shitou spit and said, "Your daughter is missing and you come here to look for her? Do you think this is a place for children?"

The peddler waved his hands repeatedly and said, "No, no, no, that's not what I meant. I passed by your house yesterday and happened to meet a girl who looked a lot like my daughter. But I was far away at the time and couldn't see her very carefully, so I wanted to come and ask about her today. I didn't expect to be misunderstood. It really was a misunderstanding."

Jia Huan's heart moved, and he asked, "What's your daughter's name? How old is she?"

The peddler said cautiously, "My daughter's name is Chen Yuanyuan, and she's not even eight years old this year."

Shitou was stunned for a moment, while Jia Huan secretly thought it was a coincidence, and turned around and ordered, "Xiao Mu, go and ask Miss Yuanyuan to come over and recognize her."

Mu Ye turned around and went to the back house. After a while, Ping'er personally led Xiao Yuanyuan out. The two of them first hid behind the screen and looked at each other secretly. Ping'er asked in a low voice: "Sister Yuanyuan, is that man your father?"

Yuanyuan nodded slightly. Ping'er was surprised to see that she didn't look happy at all. She confirmed again, "Is this man really your father?"

"It's Uncle!" Yuanyuan answered in a low voice, and then she came out from behind the screen and shouted, "Uncle!"

The peddler's eyes lit up and he blurted out, "Yuanyuan, it's really you. I knew I had recognized the right person."

It turned out that the peddler was indeed Xiao Yuanyuan's uncle. His surname was Chen and his name was Chen Huowang. When Xiao Xingyuan came to live with them, he took his uncle's surname in order to settle down. This meant that he legally recognized Chen Huowang as his father, and they were in an adoption relationship.

Chen Huowang saw Xiao Yuanyuan wearing beautiful clothes, looking very fair and clean, taller and prettier than before, like a piece of jade. She also wore a string of agate beads on her wrist, which was probably worth a lot of money, showing that she was living a very comfortable life now. He was surprised and delighted, and asked with a smile: "What is your name, sir?"

Jia Huan said calmly, "It turns out to be Uncle Chen. I am Jia Huan."

Chen Huowang couldn't help but feel flattered, rubbing his hands and saying, "I dare not, Master Jia, just call me by my name. My name is Chen Huowang. Haha, this mansion belongs to Master Jia?"

Jia Huan shook his head and said, "This is the Lin Mansion, I am just a guest."

Chen Huowang was greatly disappointed when he heard this. Seeing Jia Huan's attitude and the servants in the mansion seeming to listen to him, he thought he was the owner of the house. It turned out that he was not. He said awkwardly, "Then... you are not Yuanyuan's master?"

Jia Huan shook his head and said, "Uncle Chen has misunderstood. Yuanyuan is not a servant. We are just friends."

"Friend?" Chen Huowang looked at Xiao Yuanyuan in astonishment, and the latter explained, "Uncle, this is Master Huan San whom I mentioned to you before. This time, he saved Yuanyuan and redeemed her."

Chen Huowang suddenly realized, "So this young man is Master Huan San. You are truly a living Bodhisattva who saves people from suffering. I...I kowtow to you!" After saying this, he knelt down and kowtowed.

Jia Huan hurriedly supported him and said, "Uncle Chen, you are too polite. You two father and daughter have been reunited for a long time, so you must have a lot to talk about. Please chat slowly. I'll leave you now." After saying that, he turned and left the living room.

Shi Tou hesitated for a moment, and finally left as well, leaving the space to the father and daughter.

"Third Master, Yuanyuan doesn't seem very happy to see her uncle." Ping'er whispered. Jia Huan also noticed it and nodded, "Let's wait and see."

It is said that the eyes are the windows to the soul. When Chen Huowang saw the agate beads on Yuanyuan's wrist, his eyes almost popped out. It can be seen that he must be a greedy person, and greedy people usually have no moral integrity.

As soon as Jia Huan and the others left, Chen Huowang's hunched back straightened up instantly, and even his tone of voice changed. He walked around Xiao Yuanyuan, looked her up and down, and said happily: "Look at her whole demeanor, it's obvious that she has met a rich family. At the beginning, I said that you were destined to enjoy a good life, but your aunt didn't believe it. She was worried that you would suffer and wanted to borrow money to redeem you. Hey, if you had listened to that woman at the beginning, you wouldn't have such good fortune now."

Xiao Yuanyuan stammered, "Auntie...Auntie, is she okay?"

Chen Huowang's face darkened and he said, "What's good about that? She's still sick every other day, just like your wet nurse. She doesn't have the life of a young lady, but she has a delicate body. I work so hard every day, but the money I earn is not enough to pay for her medicine."

Xiao Yuanyuan said anxiously: "Uncle, let's go home quickly."

"Why go home?"

"Go home to see my aunt."

Chen Huowang sneered twice: "You are not a doctor. Even if you see your aunt, her illness will not be cured."

Xiao Yuanyuan said with a chuckle: "I...I have money, I can hire a doctor for my aunt."

Chen Huowang's eyes lit up, and he quickly asked, "Really? How much money do you have?"

"I have..." Xiao Yuanyuan untied the purse from her waist and poured out a few pieces of silver and a handful of copper coins. Before she could count them, her uncle snatched them away.

Chen Huowang carefully counted the money and found that it was not even enough. He was disappointed and said, "This is not enough. It's not enough to fill the gaps between my teeth. I saw your clothes and thought you must have saved up at least several hundred taels of silver."

Xiao Yuanyuan's face turned red as she argued in a low voice, "This is the pocket money Sister Ping'er gave me. It's not a small amount. Even if you are a second-class maid in a wealthy family like Rongguo Mansion, you only get 500 coins a month. I'm afraid you won't be able to save up several hundred taels of silver in your lifetime."

Chen Huowang taught him a lesson: "Fool, if you can't be a maid, then you can be a maid in the house. With your outstanding appearance, I bet you will be a beauty in a few years. Master Huan San will definitely like you very much, otherwise why would he spend money to redeem you and let you wear such nice clothes and wear such expensive bracelets."

As Chen Huowang spoke, he could not help but reach out to take off the agate beads from Yuanyuan's hand. Yuanyuan quickly retracted her hand and said with a chuckle, "This was given to me by Uncle Huan San as a souvenir. You can give the others to your uncle, but not this."

Chen Huowang couldn't help but said angrily: "You little bitch, you've got a noble man by your side, so you're getting cocky now, right? Come to me now, or I'll kill you."

Little Yuanyuan shook her head and hid back in fear, her eyes full of tears, almost crying.

Chen Huowang's eyes rolled when he saw this. He probably suddenly realized that this was not a place where he could act rashly. If he pushed her too hard, this little girl would cry and people would hear her. Wouldn't that be troublesome? So he immediately put on a smile and said, "Okay, your uncle was just joking with you. Hehe, you should keep the money. When you get home, you can give it to your aunt in person. I guarantee she will be happy."

As he said this, he put the small change back into the purse and gave it back to Xiao Yuanyuan.

Xiao Yuanyuan wiped her tears, took the purse and tied it back around her waist, saying, "Then I'll go say goodbye to the Third Master first, and then go home with my uncle."

"Go ahead, go ahead. Your uncle is waiting for you here." Chen Huowang tried his best to act kind, but he was secretly planning to get the agate beads from the girl after returning home. This thing was very valuable, at least worth dozens of taels.

Xiao Yuanyuan turned around and walked back behind the screen. Seeing Ping'er still standing there waiting for her, she lowered her head in embarrassment.

Ping'er's eyes flashed with sympathy and pity. She took Xiao Yuanyuan's hand and said with a soft smile, "Let's go and see the Third Master. Don't be afraid. We are here. No one can bully you."

Xiao Yuanyuan felt warm in her heart and threw herself into Ping'er's arms and cried.

(End of this chapter)