Dressed as a farmer's widow, she brought her daughter to stock up on food and reached the top

Chapter 435 Hypocrisy

Lamei frowned slightly and asked softly, "Auntie, did you just say that Dafu Dagui went to Zhushan?"

Tian Guilan was slightly startled, her eyes evasive. After hesitating for a moment, she nodded very unnaturally, but remained silent.

At this time, Little Six blinked his big watery eyes, looked at Tian Guilan with a confused look on his face, and asked crisply, "Auntie, wasn't Zhushan already allocated to my mother? What is Dafu Dagui going to do there?"

This seemingly simple question hit Tian Guilan like a huge rock in the heart. Little Laoliu tilted his head, his face full of curiosity.

Tian Guilan felt so ashamed that she wished she could find a hole to crawl into. She buried her head deep in the ground, staring at her feet, and said nothing.

Seeing Tian Guilan like this, Zhao Cunliang stiffened his neck, with a forced sense of righteousness on his face, and shouted: "What's the matter? Although the mountain was divided among you, we are all family after all. Can't we go up and dig some bamboo shoots to eat? We are all relatives and we see each other every day. If you fuss over these bamboo shoots, you won't be laughed at if the news gets out! Besides, the things in the mountain are not raised by your family. Who can't take them if they see them? Isn't this human nature?"

Little Seven, who had been standing quietly by, like a quiet little dumpling, suddenly spoke up. She tilted her rosy little face upwards and said slowly, "Uncle, didn't you just say with such pride that the Zhao family was wealthy and didn't care about relatives like us? If that's the case, how could a wealthy family, with all the delicacies they could afford, have resorted to stealing our bamboo shoots to survive? This is bizarre no matter how you think about it."

Hearing this, Zhao Cunliang felt a hot current rushing from the soles of his feet to his forehead, and in an instant, his face turned red to his heels.

He has always been extremely concerned about what others think of his family background. In his heart, being called poor is more painful than killing him.

But now, Xiao Laoqi had blatantly exposed his embarrassment and hypocrisy, making him lose face in front of everyone, and he wished he could find a hole to crawl into.

Little Six raised his chin slightly and said, "Humph, those spring bamboo shoots we didn't see before must have been stolen by you! Look, it's not even bamboo shoot season yet, so why are you so eager to go up the mountain to dig them up? Are you really thinking our bamboo mountain is your own vegetable garden?"

Little Seventh also chimed in in a baby voice, "Before we split up, every year we sisters would go up the mountain to dig spring and winter bamboo shoots. I guess uncle and auntie don't know the climate here. We can only dig bamboo shoots in spring and winter every year."

At other times, there are no bamboo shoots to dig on the mountain. My aunt said that Dafu and Dagui went to Zhushan. It's so cold, and it's not the season for bamboo shoots. What are they doing there? Maybe they went to the mountain to enjoy the breeze and the scenery?

Xiao Laoqi's words were like a needle hidden in a cotton ball, making Zhao Cunliang and Tian Guilan feel uncomfortable. Their faces turned red and white, and finally they gave up their pretense.

Zhao Cunliang lowered his head slightly, avoiding everyone's gaze, and whispered, "Now the rich and powerful have disappeared on your Zhushan Mountain. No matter what, it is still your Zhushan Mountain. Can you think of a way to help find them?"

Tian Guilan also hurriedly said in a tearful voice, "Yes, even if we have separated, we are still from the same village! We will see each other every day. You can't just watch the rich and powerful get into trouble and not help them! Can you bear to watch two children get into an accident in the mountains and do nothing?"

Lamei frowned slightly and was about to tell Tian Guilan that Zhushan had already set up a formation and that only her sisters and their mother knew the way out of the mountain. But before she could say anything, the quick-witted Xiao Laoliu spoke first.

Little Laoliu blinked his innocent eyes and said, "Uncle, aunt, it's such a coincidence that my second sister is not at home. She went to the city. We can only have an explanation after she comes back."

Tian Guilan was filled with confusion when she heard this, and couldn't help but ask, "What does this have to do with Shi Liu? What does this have to do with Shi Liu going into the city?"

Seeing this, Little Six sighed softly, pretending to be helpless, and continued, "Alas, Auntie, you don't know. There are always some random people digging up the bamboo shoots on our bamboo mountain, and the beautiful bamboo mountain is almost ruined. My second sister felt sorry for the bamboo, so she set up a formation on the mountain, hoping to catch those thieves and see who was so wicked. But who would have thought that the ones trapped by the formation this time were Dafu and Dagui. Now only my second sister can break the formation, so we can only wait for her to come back."

Tian Guilan grew increasingly flustered upon hearing Xiao Laoliu's words, and stuttered, "Formation... what's a formation?" Her eyes widened, clearly overwhelmed by the sudden mention of the word "formation." She had never encountered anything so profound before.

Upon seeing this, Xiao Laoliu showed a sly smile on his face and explained in a relaxed manner: "You can simply understand it as a maze. Once you walk in, it will be difficult to find the way out. And now, Dafu and Dagui are trapped in this maze-like formation, and only my second sister knows where the exit is. So, don't go up the mountain to steal other people's things in the future, otherwise you may encounter more troublesome things." Xiao Laoliu shook his head gently as he spoke.

After saying that, Xiao Laoliu gave Lamei a look without leaving any trace, with a hint of pride in his eyes, as if saying "Look at this trick of mine".

Then, she turned to look at Tian Guilan and emphasized again, "Yes, Auntie, given the current situation, let's just wait for Second Sister to come back. There's no point in us getting anxious here."

After hearing what Xiao Laoliu said, Zhao Cunliang and Tian Guilan's tense nerves finally relaxed a little. They looked at each other, and a hint of relief flashed in their eyes. As long as they waited for Shi Liu to come back, they would be able to find their son.

Tian Guilan murmured to herself, "Oh, my son, I'm so heartbroken."

Why was Shi Liu not home at this hour, causing her son to suffer even more? Thinking of her son trapped in that maze-like formation, she felt as if her heart was being pierced by countless needles.

At this moment, a hand suddenly landed heavily on Tian Guilan's shoulder. With this sudden movement, Tian Guilan's shoulders sank suddenly. She subconsciously turned her head.