Chapter 725 A Sleazy Man
All of a sudden, Aunt Emma stopped dead in her tracks.
Immediately, Clarissa, who was walking behind her, also stopped.
Clarissa cried out in surprise, "What's wrong?"
In response, Aunt Emma turned around and faced Clarissa. She looked perturbed and asked, "Where are you from?"
It was such a simple question. Clarissa smiled and answered, "Ascijan. Do you know where that is?"
Clarissa's answer appeared to surprise Aunt Emma as her expression changed.
Aunt Emma knew that people from different countries in this Meshistan region shared common facial features.
When Clarissa and Nora first arrived, they spoke foreign language fluently. To further disguise her origins, Nora even spoke in the Ashax country language.
This led Uncle Jasper and Aunt Emma to believe that they were from Ashax Country.
Since Clarissa and Nora were good friends and were on the trip together, they were presumed to be from the same country.
When Aunt Emma heard that Clarissa was from Ascijian, her expression reflected her surprise.
Her expression looked strange to Clarissa, so Clarissa waved her hand in front of her and asked curiously, "What's wrong? Did I say anything wrong?"
When Aunt Emma snapped out of her surprise, she shook and answered, "No, it's nothing."
Then, she turned around and continued to walk, looking flustered.
Something was wrong, although Aunt Anne said otherwise.
It was obvious to Clarissa from Aunt Emma's expression and loss of concentration that Aunt Emma was more than just surprised.
What could it be?
Was it because of what she just said?
What did she say just now?
Was it the part where she mentioned the big villa, the entertainment park, the ice sculpture, or that she was from Ascijian?
What were the exact words that triggered the reaction in Aunt Emma?
Clarissa was not sure which were the words, but she was increasingly certain that just like them, Aunt Emma was a victim of human traffickers and was sold to this place.
Looking at Aunt Emma's aged slightly stooping back, Clarissa felt sympathy towards her.
However, to escape from here was no easy task.
If she succeeded in escaping, she would definitely devise a plan to return and rescue the others.
As she pondered, she followed Aunt Emma home without any further talk.
Back at home, Aunt Emma's pallor did not change. She made an excuse that she was not feeling well and needed to rest in her room. Before going into her room, she told Clarissa to stay in the house and not wander around.
As soon as Clarissa entered her room upstairs, Nora promptly asked her, "How did it go?"
Clarissa locked the door before walking over to Nora and whispering to her, "It was not smooth sailing. They are still very much on their guard towards me. Uncle Jasper was not happy that I went out. Never mind. I will find other ways to leave the house."
At the same time, she showed Nora the basket of flowers and asked, "Look, do you know what this is?"
Nora was a little surprised, "Flowers? Why did you pick so many flowers?"
With a sly grin, Clarissa answered, "Don't belittle these flowers. Who knows, they can be of great use later."
Then, she explained to Nora how these flowers could be used.
Although Nora did not know much about flowers, she was excited about how the flowers could help them.
Immediately, both of them started to work on the plan.
Needless to say, they must keep their plan a secret from Uncle Jasper and Aunt Emma.
So, Clarissa went downstairs and found some bottles as vases for the flowers. Then, she proceeded to arrange the bottles of flowers around the living room and left the rest of the flowers to dry in the sun.
When Aunt Emma asked Clarissa, she explained that the fresh flowers would soon fade. On the other hand, dried flowers would last longer.
Aunt Emma did not understand what the fuss was all about as there were plenty of these worthless flowers on the mountain.
Wilted flowers could be replaced with freshly picked ones from the mountain, so why bother to make dried flowers?
Clarissa did not take heed but did what she wanted to do.
Aunt Emma assumed that Clarissa was some snobbish city woman, so she let her be.
This minor dispute was amicably resolved.
In the evening, Uncle Jasper came back and told them with a sly smile, "There'll be guests tonight. Please prepare more dishes."
When Aunt Emma heard that, she looked a little perturbed.
Clarissa and Nora put on innocent faces and nodded, "All right."
Sure enough, as darkness approached, several men came to the house.
They looked like they were from the same village, and they treated Uncle Jasper with respect.
In the kitchen, Aunt Emma was sullen as she cooked. Meanwhile, Nora was helping her mind the stove, whereas Clarissa was sitting on the wooden bench by the door plucking vegetables.
From where Clarissa was, she could see the faces of the men sitting in the middle of the dining hall.
The men looked to be in their thirties or forties.
These men worked in the fields all year round. Exposed under the hot sun and exhausted by manual labor, they probably looked older than they were.
Their manners were crude as they talked with Uncle Jasper.
They spoke in the local dialect and used colloquial terms which were unfamiliar to Clarissa.
It was obvious from their voice tones and body language that there was some dispute in their discussion.
Clarissa tilted her head and stole a glance at Nora.
At this time, Nora was sitting behind the stove, tending the fire. Her delicate face appeared to be like a clear lake as fire reflected some shadows on it.
Clarissa's lips curled in a smirk.
She thought to herself that these old geezers had settled on her and must be now bargaining about Nora.
Sure enough, after some horse-trading, one of them stood up and walked to the kitchen.
"Busy washing vegetables?"
The man was ogling Clarissa with a lewd smile.
Clarissa did not bother to reply but smiled stoically.
However, the man interpreted that as polite bashfulness.
He sighed with a tinge of regret.
Although she was pretty, she had already given birth.
It was the village folklore that the firstborn of a woman was always the best child.
So, he must buy a bride who had not yet given birth so that his firstborn would be smart and healthy.
The woman inside the kitchen looked like a cold person, but she was pretty too. She could do too if he taught her how to behave once she was brought back to his house.
With his thoughts sorted out, he strolled confidently into the kitchen.
"Aunt Emma, do you need my help here?"
He asked as he glanced furtively now and again at Nora behind the stove.
His glances were obvious to Nora, but like Clarissa, she could not be bothered with him at all.
Aunt Emma forced a smile and said, "It's okay. There's nothing you can help here. Go and have a seat outside. Dinner will be ready soon."
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