"Quickly take off your clothes. If you wear them out, where can you get the money to buy new ones?"
As soon as they entered the door, Teacher Lu urged Shen Qingqing.
The light was dim, but Shen Qingqing's expression was clearly seen by Yun Que'er.
She reluctantly undid the buttons, revealing the shabby undershirt inside.
Teacher Lu was even more dissatisfied with Shen Qingqing after seeing this.
"Why did you mess it up like this again? I still have to wash it for you!"
Shen Qingqing moved her lips. "It was so hot wearing such a thick coat during the day. I sweated a lot."
Teacher Lu gave Shen Qingqing a fierce glare and reached out to strip her clothes off.
Ji Chengxuan quickly turned his head away and didn't turn back for a while.
Shen Qingqing had already changed into a coarse cloth dress, which was obviously not her size.
The dark gray cloth had turned white from washing. It should be a boy's clothes, but it was one size bigger.
It was very cold at night and the wind was a bit strong. Such a thin dress couldn't keep out the cold at all.
As soon as Shen Qingqing went out, she shivered violently.
Teacher Lu followed Shen Qingqing out closely. "What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and feed the chickens, then take dinner to your brother!"
Shen Qingqing quickly ran to one side to pick up the knife for chopping vegetables for the chickens.
Actually, Shen Qingqing was very thin. The knife looked heavy and bulky. Shen Qingqing held it shakily. Yun Que'er was worried from afar that the knife would fall on Shen Qingqing's feet.
The so - called chicken feed was just wild vegetables mixed with coarse cornmeal. The wild vegetables were probably picked the day before and looked dry.
Shen Qingqing chopped the vegetables with great effort, fed the chickens, and then carried the basin towards the sheepfold.
Yun Que'er opened her eyes in surprise. It seemed that there was someone living inside, and that person was Shen Qingqing's legendary elder brother.
He actually lived in such a shabby place and ate chicken feed!
Just when Yun Que'er thought she might have guessed wrong, Shen Qingqing's scolding came from there.
"Damn it, why aren't you dead yet? Hurry up and eat your dinner!"
Shen Qingqing shone the flashlight on the person inside. Only then did Yun Que'er vaguely see a bamboo bed placed in the dilapidated door, on which lay a weak young man.
He was very thin, almost emaciated. He had a pair of big eyes and should have been a handsome young man, but because he was so thin, his eye sockets were sunken and his eyeballs protruded, looking very scary.
Yun Que'er subconsciously took a step back and was a bit afraid to look directly at the scene.
Shen Qingqing was still scolding here, as if she wanted to vent all her hatred on the young man.
She fed the young man the chicken feed spoonful by spoonful, or rather, stuffed it into his mouth.
Maybe Shen Qingqing's actions were too rough. The spoon cut the corner of the young man's mouth.
Blood was flowing from his mouth. Since he was mentally handicapped and couldn't speak, he could only make whining sounds and then spat out the chicken feed all over the floor.
Shen Qingqing got even more angry. She slapped the young man off the bed and then punched and kicked him.
"Die! Die!"
The young man howled and cried like a baby in swaddling clothes.
Teacher Lu in the room seemed to be used to such things. She just came out and gave a cold look, then turned back.
Yun Que'er really couldn't bear to watch anymore. Her own family was also in a mess, and she had no time to care about other people's affairs. So she pulled Ji Chengxuan and was about to leave.
Who would have known that just as they were about to turn around, they saw a man walking into the dilapidated small courtyard.
Teacher Lu greeted him with a smile. This was the first time Yun Que'er had seen such a gentle look on her face.
She held the man's hand and pulled him into the house.
"Is that Shen Qingqing's father?" Yun Que'er asked doubtfully.
"Doesn't seem like it." Ji Chengxuan frowned. "Although it was just a glance, I feel that he doesn't look like Shen Qingqing at all. And just because they live in a shabby place doesn't mean they don't have any influence behind them. Since they dared to make such a fuss at school, it means there's someone backing them up. That person just doesn't provide them with material help."
This was interesting.
If this backer might be the father, then why did the father turn a blind eye to the miserable situation of his wife and daughter?
And why didn't he care about his eldest son who had been paralyzed since childhood?
What happened inside the house well verified Ji Chengxuan's speculation.
They even turned off the lights and drew the curtains.
Shen Qingqing stood at the door, as if she was already used to it.
After a while, she slowly moved her steps, went to one side, moved a small stool and sat down, and took out a cold pancake from somewhere and started chewing.
Not long after, the man walked out of the house, looking very dissatisfied.
Teacher Lu followed behind, smiling apologetically. She didn't know what she said to the man. Anyway, after dawdling for a while, the man reluctantly took out two small - denomination bills from his pocket.
Yun Que'er finally understood what had happened inside this time. Her face flushed red instantly.
"Let's go quickly!"
This was just the first man. There might be more after that, and that was not something Yun Que'er and Ji Chengxuan could watch.
On the way back, Yun Que'er remained silent all the time.
Originally, she thought that by following the mother - daughter duo, she could find the backer behind them and see what they were up to. Unexpectedly, what she saw was such a scene.
Why was their life so difficult?
Why was the father absent from this family?
Why was Shen Qingqing's elder brother born with cerebral palsy?
Why did a proper teacher end up in such a situation?
The more Yun Que'er thought about it, the more confused she felt, but she had no clue at all about the matters of Teacher Lu and her daughter.
"Don't care what you see." Ji Chengxuan put his hand on Yun Que'er's shoulder and said softly.
"Our main purpose is to rescue Teacher Yun. How their lives are has nothing to do with us."
Yun Que'er nodded. Yes, what did it matter to her whether others were doing well or not?
After all, Yun Motan was harmed by them.
"It seems that we not only have to start from Shen Qingqing's side, but also take a look at Li Lan's side." Yun Que'er said.
Since Teacher Lu and her daughter were in such a situation, whether they were harming others or whatever, they wouldn't stop easily.
Because people were already at the end of their ropes. It was either you die or I die, and they wouldn't turn back.
So if they wanted to get a retrial, they could only place their hopes on Li Lan's side.
With a heavy heart, Yun Que'er returned home.
However, there was good news at home.
Yun Fujin and Old Doctor Ji had been busy all day and had visited many of Yun Motan's former colleagues.
Although they were now scattered, they still remembered their former friendship. So as soon as Yun Fujin and the other mentioned it, they agreed to redress Yun Motan's grievances.
They even took the initiative to help contact other teachers who were in other places, which saved a lot of trouble.