An Jing almost vomited from disgust. If she hadn't felt good about getting ten taels of silver, Lin's mother, who usually either beat or cursed Lin Anjing, definitely wouldn't have acted this way.
"If you want to watch the drama, just stay here," An Jing leaned a bit towards Xiao Changyi, and whispered this to him before hopping into the yard on one foot.
Xiao Changyi's eyes flickered once again.
Aunt Liu Hua really wanted to scold Lin's mother, but since this was the Lin family's private matter and she was an outsider, it wasn't appropriate for her to interject. She could only follow them into the yard and stand on the side, anxiously.
It seemed that word had spread about the Lin family selling their daughter, as quite a crowd had gathered at the gate of the yard to watch the spectacle.
"Mother, what's the happy occasion?" People were playing along with her, so of course, An Jing would too. She smiled even more brilliantly than Lin's mother.
Lin's mother was stunned, completely not expecting her usually timid and weak daughter, who never dared to look her in the eye, to now be boldly gazing at her and smiling more beautifully than a flower.
The onlookers were also stunned, finding it hard to believe that the person standing with her back straight, her small face radiating a dazzling light despite its usual sallowness, was the same Lin Anjing who always hung her head low and wallowed in inferiority.
"It's that you can finally get married!" Lin's mother snapped back to reality and said with a smile, "Aren't you happy?"
An Jing played along, "Happy."
"That's it? You're just happy? There's something even happier. Not only can you get married now, but you will also be marrying into a prominent family." Lin's mother pointed at the two house servants from the Wang Family in the yard, "These are the men your husband's family has sent over. They are here to take you home today."
The villagers watching around gave Lin's mother scornful looks, knowing full well it wasn't a marriage but a sale.
The two house servants from the Wang Family walked up to An Jing, and one of them pulled out a servitude contract, saying, "Your parents have already sold you to our master. This is your servitude contract. Quickly go and pack your things and come with us. We don't have all day to wait for you."
An Jing ignored the house servant, her smile unwavering, as she looked at Lin's mother, "Mother, didn't you say I was getting married?"
Lin's mother's face heated up as if she had been slapped. Dropping the act, her voice turned stern, "You should be grateful that someone wants you at all. You can't even bear children, so what's there to be picky about? You don't need to pack anything. Just go with them quickly!"
An Jing didn't respond but just looked over the so-called family members of Lin Anjing in the yard. Father Lin was sitting in a bamboo chair, smoking his dry pipe; Lin Anjing's brother, Lin An Dong, was sitting on the doorstep playing with a child; Lin Anjing's sister-in-law, Mrs. Gu, was washing vegetables at the kitchen door. Although all three occasionally glanced over at her, she knew it wasn't out of concern, but annoyance about why she hadn't left with the two servants yet.
After so many years of slaving away for this family, Lin Anjing had ended up being sold. How tragic.
In that moment, An Jing truly felt deep sympathy for Lin Anjing. It would be better for her to be dead and at peace; otherwise, she would be jumping into another pit of fire.
But she wasn't Lin Anjing!
She felt no affection for this family at all. To obediently follow those two house servants? Not a chance!
An Jing's gaze returned to Lin's mother, and she said with a smile, "Mother, by selling me like this, I'll have nothing to do with this family in the future, you know."
Lin's mother, who had never really seen her daughter smile before, was irritated by the continuous smiles today, snapping, "What, you think you'll be able to make something of yourself in the future? Don't dream. You can't bear children, and you'll only suffer in your later years."
It's better to have no mother at all than one like this!