The people of Lao Zhou's family did not expect that Man Bao and the others would come back at this time. After all, they had only been out for thirteen or fourteen days, and at this time, the family was in panic and the atmosphere was very bad.

As soon as Man Bao and Zhou Lijun jumped in from the gate, the adults in the entire courtyard fell silent.

The children were very happy, especially Wutou and Liutou. They ran towards the sister-in-law on their short legs and jumped into her arms to ask for sweets.

Manbao took out a handful of candies from her pocket and gave them to them, then ran towards her father...

Lao Zhou looked at her with a headache, "Why are you back now?"

Man Bao was unhappy: "Dad, you don't want me to go home?"

Lao Zhoutou said quickly: "No, no, even you didn't say anything. Dad was a little scared."

Manbao looked at her mother.

Although Qian was also surprised, she didn't show it on her face. She nodded and said, "Go and wash up. I'll ask Daya to clean up the room for you."

"Hey, is Da Ya at home?" After Man Bao finished speaking, he saw that his sister-in-law was also at home and asked in surprise, "Sister-in-law, isn't the shop open?"

Xiao Qian glanced at her mother-in-law and said with a smile: "I'm going home to celebrate February 2nd, so the shop will be closed for a few days. Are you hungry? I'll cook for you. What kind of food do you want to eat?"

"Whatever, as long as it's made by my sister-in-law, I like to eat it."

Lao Zhou's family had already had dinner. It was getting dark now, and everyone was preparing to wash their hands and feet and go to bed. As soon as Man Bao and Zhou Lijun came back, everyone sat in the main room and watched them eat.

Qian asked: "Why are you back?"

Zhou Lijun looked at his sister-in-law and said, "On February 2, we have to come back for the temple fair, and the government schools and academies are also on holiday."

"How many days will you be back?"

Man Bao said: "Go back on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year."

Lao Zhoutou couldn't help but exclaimed, "So long?"

Man Bao turned to look at her father, becoming more and more sure that something was wrong at home.

She glanced at her brothers and sisters-in-law who were sitting in a circle, and did not ask immediately. Instead, she waited until she finished eating the noodles, washed up and changed clothes, and then ran to the courtyard.

At this time, everyone had gone back to their respective houses. The yard was quiet, except for the first time the lights were on in the parents' room.

Even though life in Lao Zhou's family is better now than before, Lao Zhou and Qian are still very frugal and will never light up lamps when they can.

Man Bao walked outside the eldest brother and sister-in-law's house, hesitated for a moment but didn't knock on the door, but went straight to the main room.

She knew that her parents were still in charge of the family. If she and Bai Shan guessed correctly, she was really not their child. Her sister-in-law knew that she would not tell her no matter how much she loved her, so she still had to ask her parents.

Manbao knocked on the door.

The couple who were whispering in the room paused. Lao Zhou got out of bed and opened the door. When he saw Man Bao outside the door, he curiously asked, "Why aren't you sleeping yet?"

"Dad, do I have something to tell you?"

"Is there anything we can't say tomorrow?" Lao Zhoutou said, "You are a big girl now, and you can't sleep with your parents anymore."

"I don't want to sleep with you," Man Bao squeezed into the room and suddenly broke through her father's stalwart body and got into the house, "Mom, I have something to do."

Qian then smiled and said, "Come here."

Man Bao immediately ran over and turned back to give her father a proud look.

Manbao sat next to her mother and hugged her arm. Qian reached out and touched her head and asked, "What's the matter? Tell me."

Man Bao hesitated for a moment. He had countless questions in his mind, but he didn't know where to start.

When Lao Zhou saw Man Bao lowering his head and saying nothing, he couldn't help but ask: "Did you get into trouble outside? Did you hit someone, or..."

"No," Man Bao raised her head to deny, glanced at her father and then took out the longevity lock she had been wearing from her collar, "Dad, mother, where did this longevity lock come from?"

Lao Zhoutou and Man Bao were stunned. They didn't understand why she asked this, so they said, "My parents gave you the injection. What's wrong?"

Man Bao lowered his eyes and asked, "How much did it cost?"

Old Zhou thought for a while and said carefully: "It's not expensive, only two or three taels. Why do you think of asking this?"

Man Bao's heart felt sour, and her eyes were a little red. She couldn't hold it back for a while, and tears started falling down. Lao Zhou was startled, and quickly went to wipe her tears distressedly, "What's wrong with you? You

Are you being bullied outside?"

She could feel the pain when her rough hands were rubbed on Manbao's tender face, but Manbao felt even more aggrieved and her tears fell even more fiercely.

Lao Zhou became anxious and quickly looked at his wife.

Qian's heart moved, her mouth moved, and finally she just reached out and hugged Man Bao.

Manbao threw herself into her mother's arms and cried. After crying for a long time, the depression in her heart dissipated a lot. When she looked up and saw her parents looking at her with concern, she pouted and said aggrievedly: "You all lied to me.

, I know everything.”

Lao Zhoutou asked: "What did we lie to you about? What do you already know?"

Man Bao wiped away the remaining tears on his face and said with a crying voice: "Dad, do you know how much this longevity lock is worth?"

Lao Zhou was stunned, "How much is it worth?"

Manbao originally wanted to say it was worth a hundred taels, but when she saw her father's appearance, she said, "It's worth a thousand taels!"

Lao Zhou's head and feet went weak, and he held her shoulders to steady himself, "This, so much?"

Qian also opened her mouth in surprise and asked quickly: "Who said this?"

Man Bao said: "Master Tang said it. He said that this longevity lock is not affordable for ordinary people. I also took it to ask the shopkeeper of the silver house. This silver lock was made by a particularly famous silversmith, so it is very expensive.

.”

"No matter how expensive this is, it's only a piece of silver. How can it be worth so much?" Old Zhoutou murmured, "They don't have that much money either..."

Man Bao heard it with sharp ears and asked: "Who are they? Yes, yes..."

Manbao's tears welled up in his eyelashes again, and he asked, "Is it them?"

As soon as Qian saw it, he knew that she knew. He was panic-stricken. He half-hugged her and asked, "Does the Tang County Magistrate also know?"

Man Bao looked at his mother and said nothing.

Mr. Qian sighed.

Man Bao tugged at her sleeves and cried, "Mom, just tell me."

Qian looked at Lao Zhoutou.

Lao Zhou sat down on a chair nearby and remained silent.

The room suddenly became quiet.

At this time, Bai Shan had just finished dinner, said goodbye to his grandmother and mother and returned to his room.

Mrs. Liu sent him away with a smile. When he was gone, the smile on her face fell.

Mrs. Zheng on the side was confused and asked cautiously, "Mom, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing, I just didn't expect them to come back now. You go back and rest first, and I will sit alone for a while."

Zheng then bowed and left.

After Mrs. Zheng left, Mrs. Liu held Grandma Liu's hand and said, "Let's go and let Daji come see me."

"yes."

Bai Shan's sudden return was also beyond Mrs. Liu's expectation. Moreover, the child seemed to keep his promise to Man Bao and didn't tell Mrs. Liu anything. Therefore, Mrs. Liu talked to him for a long time and did not understand him.
Chapter completed!