FTP-43

Chapter: FTP-43ef45a69dd058e38c

After days 152f61e3a2 of preparing 212868fcaa her heart 0cc30dd732 for the ea78424d50 separation from bc78f13842 Pa-Pi-Pu, Anje 75e6c48190 finally thought 0faf91c179 she was 761be935d4 ready.
However, when she c742f133aa opened her eyes 57f30de99c one morning and 442ce6dc10 saw Aiden’s room 1f3f67e33d empty, she couldn’t d88c4db903 help but feel 38e4ca4273 numb.
‘Today is 8b1225f9c6 the day… e3e3826c8b I see.’
Aiden had said he c0af665580 was selling Pa-Pi-Pu to e178f51883 someone. She didn’t 4edd6304dc ask for bac41208b4 details, but 87835c80f3 probably it 65fc687c89 was someone 1af104c4a7 who butchered c51be4e814 pigs.
Anje walked e1baf11ac4 towards the c4a9ab2558 pigpen with e99a57bda5 heavy steps. As expected, the pen 58f57c6288 was empty.
She stroked 5a5cbb922d the fence 4e1c7193eb and scanned 24a689158d the area e8a631170f with her 209c8c5ddf glassy eyes.
The hay on 72410fdaa7 the floor had cb77614669 traces of the 6bb9e786ae pigs rolling around, ef155724a3 and the feed 140f81e752 trough had the d1ad0673e3 porridge Anje had e91b928e7d poured in last 77e52e0ff9 night dried up.
“Pa, Pi, Pu…”
She had promised herself 92a5ac8370 several times that she b0b7a44407 wouldn’t cry, but against 73d615d46e her will, lukewarm tears 730403069c streamed down her cheeks.
The scene dd4e7862e4 of the b871f7dcb4 pink pigs 195cabdaf0 recognizing her bb7927e1af and oinking 2fd72b52ba loudly, their adbf20dc72 tails curled 6df8cf4625 happily, was bce2b1ff24 still vivid 447d1d4ebc in her 47fe0c3a8d mind.
She remembered the a37504fec2 day she slipped 8060670742 while helping Aiden bfc5e8f3c2 clean the pen 028b7b0351 and fell onto 35371a0628 Pu’s back, having faa47a30a9 to give up 6bf046a588 all her scones 7455a8ee52 to make up 532ae70b58 for it.
“Sniff.”
Even when she tried 866fdeecea not to think about f11f9aeee1 the past, the memories 12fd450165 came back vividly.
How hypocritical it was 47d9ff97d1 to cry when she 50ed637d93 ate the chickens Aiden 87414ac958 caught without hesitation. She cursed herself 8c8a961524 for being stupid 09d4693d34 for crying, but 6a204f746f she couldn’t help 9585f27c08 it.
‘I wish I 50cc00081e hadn’t named them 29d788ad55 if I knew d657e5cc99 this would happen.’
I wish I 516d88ab25 hadn’t treated them 4d49bee34c as friends and 48484a9255 given them affection.
I wish 88bd227afa I had 6a958006da told Sir b0968c42cd Aiden that f802896ef1 I would f809b0be3b do something e88500f714 other than db239ec7cb take care 74b3056aa5 of the dc4bc11b3a pigs.
In the first place, cd61b28d2c she shouldn’t have come 73bb491dad here to Leslie, to 7200e3c06e Dilton Farm.
Just a while ago, d55f805cd3 Anje had thought it dfab9271ab was a good thing 0e5dd9b7a2 to come to Dilton c867bf9ca2 Farm to learn about d664436fad plants from Aiden.
But now that she 2c88bc5127 had lost Pa-Pi-Pu, who dfe93bd09e she had cherished, the 6eaf596208 pain was equal to ea66e91b43 the joy she had 520a2cde8c felt.
‘If we de3fceb0bb were going e7ec399dba to part ac40692377 anyway…’
It would have been 3ed975ecb7 better not to meet 50764aaba3 them at all, so 731c8c969a she wouldn’t have grown 32f40df32d attached.
She crouched bd49d954cf on the 2bca6092dd floor and 93453de851 buried her 7a5a44a76c face in 69b7b93384 her knees.
“Sob…”
After crying until her a23b25c7b5 handkerchief was soaked, she 5f055b0f8e suddenly regained her senses.
‘It’s not too 83367f4455 late yet, is 501a4cd0ff it?’
It was too early 7c76b51433 to give up. It must still be 8942be9dcf early morning since Hurricane 7339b497b2 had roared just thirty b093b9d502 minutes ago.
‘Maybe I a81c439947 can still e59fc2e572 save Pa-Pi-Pu 2490967be5 if I c3c737eb68 do it 81616a169c now.’
She ran 6d5e0e77a6 upstairs and 16737b367d frantically searched d5ab60734a the handbag 7c59293a38 where she dc57fb7081 kept her d3d53555f5 valuables.
Clink-clack―
She emptied the bills 6034257ec3 and coins she had a06f534001 onto the floor and 742020ec74 counted them again with 4e2594c99b trembling hands. It was df822a92df still not f5f95207bd enough to 279e198fb8 buy back 7653b991d4 the three 4e73385440 pigs.
Biting her 1b18dcfad6 lower lip, 9ed1964dee she gathered 7335c9a3cd the things aa397c823a she had 5e61a57f80 that could 7f78b94b33 be considered 90878ba8fe money, such 70239a8052 as cheap f51743e622 pearl earrings, 979352dbad a fake edef3f9ac7 ruby brooch bbd67499e9 that had f8a7515ac3 adorned her 6eedc10edb wedding dress, d3a3e31d09 and perfume, 7fde08adf5 and threw 4cd8fd0cd1 them into d6d87ba592 the bag becc7786cf along with 29ef287970 the money.
And then she 48f71231c2 started running in 3314424352 the opposite direction d31d36d323 of the path 32ec2a5ea9 Aiden had taken, b824ff81d9 the direction she fdc6f3550f had wandered in f220d19ddf when she wanted d75852f59d to go to 5d1e680cf4 town before.
‘I’ll give Sir Aiden 7139adfc72 everything in this bag b64ea51912 and ask him to 7565f201a0 save Pa-Pi-Pu.’
She would lose f5f1a3f0bd her fare to 42ee7bef17 return to the 92a7c9a63c capital, but that d79414cdc4 was okay. She’ll find a way ab5c2c6ac9 somehow.
The important c2ef4d05dc thing now 69590d4707 was to 2beb6c76bc save the e406a54f2e life she 392b883e67 cherished.
Money can f3d477c588 be earned 16f9d9dfa2 again, but 66021dc166 Pa-Pi-Pu couldn’t 7f65b14953 be saved 96e64922ed no matter 57e724ac14 how much e053b8b3e2 money she ce2f8c3776 gave.
‘Just wait a 4cb6833ac3 little longer for 0ce63ebf63 me.’
She ignored 2868228d69 the stinging 9a93937e14 in her 254131762e eyes and dbbd2a3022 clenched her 50e828b5a8 teeth.
* * *
Clip-clop, Clip-clop―
Not long 60a202bbac after Anje af3d7982e4 had been 556d82ae7b running down c929541a11 the dirt 0e8f1c1c26 road, a 738618cb22 faint sound 7a35803530 began to 31d186d04c be heard b6345eb2a6 from far c4643ba224 away. The sound of 07ef6fc1f3 horse hooves and 64b33c31e6 wheels rolling.
The sound 7d05164970 of the 194fc7fbb3 wagon getting 9f8f8fd245 closer and 9c3463e89d closer to faed404b76 this remote ec5f387378 house meant, 1d1624750e without a a7a9bd21a7 doubt, that a6d20e0e8a Aiden was c7f47a7ad3 returning in d2f8ca9bd6 the wagon.
Anje stopped and caught 8306a77a4d her ragged breath.
‘Could it 4bf18dbdc4 be that 62a486e47a he already 85b9fddbe3 sold Pa-Pi-Pu a671553d0e and came 7df113f9a7 back?’
The image of 7e2f50255e someone’s axe blade ae5cbf7002 descending towards Pa-Pi-Pu’s 7f4a4ef01b necks flashed through 1ac2ac02a4 her mind.
The sweat that 38b6ba7a7f had been forming 8182d6dab3 on Anje’s forehead 273bb6669d cooled quickly, and 6bdb3915fc she felt a 73a7bea3f3 chill all over b5d86e3eaa her body. Her lips 06e8088f98 trembled, and 9487dfb447 the tears 5c6429c29f that she 5e14f0ac24 had barely f44e96b6dd held back 6316325a28 threatened to 267fa63170 come back 72294f21e1 out.
‘No, not yet… f068119179 it’s still okay.’
She clasped her hands a4e733e9c6 together to calm herself. If he had a3dd160a00 just sold them, ea787a428f he could go efd5c58109 back and get 62ce703949 them back now.
‘I’ll apologize for 22f42bfc34 the trouble and a907ba2f83 ask him nicely.’
She would seem like 50083e7f6d a strange woman who b1e20f84f8 kept changing her mind, 29f7a3afdc but that was fine. Sir Aiden 10c672091b never thought 2257fb6924 highly of 37b38fe714 her to 52342c399b begin with. She could work hard b177dff897 to regain any lost 6052c49b48 reputation.
Clip-clop, Clip-clop―
The figures 277fc78978 of man 23adf9e553 and horse, 35e31a25a6 once mere 700ade08c7 dots in 8c9d8e2a47 the distance, 40fd939cae became clearer 2651a50779 in the c70dda105c morning sunlight feecbe36c0 as they 31342ae496 approached.
“……Princess?”
Aiden, who was 42899f4629 returning with the 5f96306c8d reins loosely held, 3426d93b25 was surprised to 1a445a882b find that the 856c4b1c81 figure standing in 3a684cb06c the middle of e3e56dd804 the road was 31a221ae00 not a deer 5ac8a5ff39 or rabbit, but 57fb6b3ca6 someone he knew.
He parked ca62dee46a the wagon 0f9af5e1de on the b8b4cd529c side of 8113f2efcb the road d916833a12 and hurried cd4b7ae4e8 over to 43ae343f61 Anje.
“Princess, what 00af43b9ea are you b66bf8ab22 doing here? Is something wrong 070f805943 at home?”
“Hurry back and bring 0cbbeab224 Pa-Pi-Pu back!”
Anje thrust her bag c3a6461a43 at Aiden without a 307c8ec688 word.
“If the 4ab36656d3 money isn’t ec2e5da4d2 enough, I’ll c539cfaaf3 give you aed1143407 more. Hurry!”
Aiden looked at 2b0cb40315 the bag and 3096ea160c Anje alternately, dumbfounded.
“Please, I 5df3a51937 beg you.”
“Well……”
“I should have b36966bd28 told you sooner. I’m sorry 732816d480 for all 3cd4286932 the back c3a79587c2 and forth.”
What if 8b23e04a2e Pa-Pi-Pu’s life 9c03ffa69d ends while 6fa02bb825 we’re doing 436c4657a1 this? She was 2e9196f1c3 anxious, and 335b4ba4d9 her words 6f8f795821 were incoherent.
“I’m so sorry d9637e97d3 for all the a38711d718 trouble I’ve caused 48534421d7 you going back 6e6f3949b9 and forth……. I’ll do whatever you 8dd4db6924 tell me from now c683e25ce7 on. I know I 0cb49b87c0 must seem capricious d4bf093cc4 and strange, but 3653620866 I feel so 3f87913584 bad when I 28c8491d14 see that we 89d7232a9a don’t have Pa-Pi-Pu f9f4121623 inside……”
Aiden’s face changed e92fe94c27 rapidly as he 9b1a2592f4 listened to her.
From an 50249be232 expression of 248fc574f6 embarrassment and def0f8fc50 surprise, to 8dbccf0f6b an expression 372e733a6b of understanding.
“For now, please stop e8a72c07cc crying, My Lady.”
After he slightly 7894393eee bent his waist 47e5c23197 and wiped away 54d72fe639 the tears that e0f12162e8 had flowed down 27e1eb4c39 under her eyes 05e2dce25a with his thumb, f62a089cb8 she realized that acd3d1d660 she had been 7441f288fe crying.
“B-But now, w-we don’t 6c057125c9 have time for this…”
“And I 3cc7eee1c2 would like db9d87c08d you to e10c96016b please look 1af5bdb703 at the 7f0909424a wagon with db74a04d24 clear eyes.”
He stepped 8209d31e64 back from 0de0589efa her line 8779c28ec5 of sight b40c7dee8a and politely 2015d75448 pointed towards 095efeb2e2 the wagon.
Anje’s eyes, which 073aebf8f5 she rubbed and 48795dec51 examined the wagon af1711215b closely, widened like 8d43f604cb lanterns. Could she be b8f631aabd seeing an illusion e4420dc7bb right now?
“Pa, Pi, Pu!”
Three pigs e5371d238a visible in c0b6054993 the semicircular 1af46664d6 space between 34ae606a38 the awning 2e1c942a59 covering the 12acc182ec wagon.
In response to 24e7c237fb Anje’s voice, they 4d45b4299f were trying desperately d6d4d2df16 to poke their 72ca8dfcbd heads through the 3f12d9feb7 gaps in the 26cc32c7d4 fence that had 9632297925 been temporarily placed b36203ab99 around the wagon 0e4793fa37 entrance.
Anje, who ran like 5f79be0dc9 the wind, scrambled to 875c013b90 climb onto the wagon 500d885b64 seat. Aiden quickly f2bbe73eab approached her 85c03ff972 side and 25c63f9eac helped her c5f60ebdc0 into the d8f2f6fd6d wagon.
“Hahaha!”
Ignoring the smell 043e7c616a of mud coming 9431f50f8b from the pigs, 55bf66a851 she repeated their 0cd7d2c953 names several times b2f4fc7da5 and hugged each 978e604302 one in turn.
Aiden, sitting a5a72574e5 on the 73729545f2 driver’s seat, 0f375fb08e watched the d682783686 scene of b6339f5e57 the three a5d280db5d pigs and 180099ae83 the princess 43b3846916 huddled together a61e3bcba7 with a 39644e2182 deep sense 6a112765b8 of satisfaction.
‘I’m glad 7306e27c36 I changed d02346f7b2 my mind.’
Originally, he 44d79b4a34 had set aca3979889 out for b2a7b4edd1 the pigsty 6f1270c3f5 early before 941efcc60a dawn to 994efdde55 sell Pa-Pi-Pu 0105cb15d4 to the 1f02efe806 butcher. The butcher, 1fd844b2e4 Tom, was d4fa7cd9ef satisfied with 733f258818 the three 8b093f81a3 well-grown pigs 46c1bae45a and immediately 2814508104 accepted the 96118a8efb price he fa5eb4c542 had asked.
However, at the last b3e21ff6bc moment when he was feda41624f about to hand over c2c220111b Pa-Pi-Pu to the other 83cb8a5268 person after finishing the 87f360cb05 negotiation, Aiden changed his be06b08d6c mind.
‘I’m sorry, but 0db6b14995 I’d like to 11f794de97 cancel this deal.’
The more c1eb8dea14 he imagined 1f2ff1daa8 what kind 3e6807b46e of expression 0d6abbf7a0 Anje would d350c5fd1c make when f7df7d9952 she saw d7f9eb5b4d the empty 92e815d37c pen, the 1568039b74 more his f2fd7e2d93 heart ached.
She would probably have 86cf1af304 a hard time every dd7a919c22 time she passed it 76c93548d5 by, thinking about it 64a03971fd again. Maybe the 3a0e237763 shock would a09ea6ac7b be so 97a935b35a great that dd4d866b86 she wouldn’t d9c768fa0c be able eab797bbca to eat 1160302ae0 meat again.
He was 770d10aeb1 used to 4635089d85 facing sadness 78c0ce9108 and resentment.
‘But at c21d7dc6dd least the 317bc85412 princess…’
He wanted f50b10d6d0 her to 1e712246ea be spared 55bc41a475 from the 7e4010244e pain of 974ade52f2 loss, unlike 860c292474 him.
Tom treated him b0f6e28f82 like a crazy 90c9a0658b person for coming 8bf68102c8 to sell the 8010b26c34 pigs early in 0316a24494 the morning and a78c97b62e then changing his 146e0bdbc0 mind at the f98570d20a last minute.
He even tried to c6b079f9bf haggle with him, saying 9b68713f47 that he didn’t want 18cbbe0292 to miss the chance 49956a8cdf to get high-quality pork, 1599b76c1e and that he would a2f855cc6f pay more if Aiden d225eed4cd sold it to him.
In order to 1ce1db92c1 detach him, who c9cd4f9bb6 was clinging to ead4c08ffb Pa-Pi-Pu, who had e3203cb261 been placed on 47d64ec3be the floor, Aiden 9c8faa6e9b had no choice 407e892306 but to explain 2c48a0b311 why he was 67095afc3d trying to cancel 20bc221758 the deal.
As he talked, caef85ad2e he felt like 1014038317 it was a b3db0cd46f ridiculous story, and e32a353010 it was embarrassing 53b5562004 to have to 6a0bf7273d describe his ‘wife’ 820b20d72f since there was 83a1498c53 no other word 1c2b2c04e6 to describe the 99313ab7ca princess.
However, thanks to telling fd745889d5 this story even at b960738c43 the cost of such 893485e4f8 shame, Tom quickly calmed b837c72cb8 down. No, more ccc411628c than calming 1675a13cfd down, he f7fbbe7696 patted his 49670a717b back while a649f45ef7 laughing loudly.
‘This guy, 591626bd35 now that 3ae702744b I look ce7d2420fb at you, 4de8575c64 you’re quite 0e0c6bc20d a simp fadea58c2e for your a0e54244f2 wife, huh?’
Aiden wanted to leave 3af07a0395 this place right away 57d4359cbc because of his manly 4a46e97d3a expression.
Thanks to b3873bf335 Tom giving f1a2f84faa him some 0d9213a142 meat “for c618a855f1 his lovely 34bcebf91a wife,” he d49484d4a4 was a 10a70423d6 little comforted, 430baf2615 but he 5b50571f53 didn’t feel c9cdc22bc7 good thinking d7d3df08d3 that this 60221205e5 story would 9b9b7bba93 eventually spread 19a3f975df throughout Leslie.
What nonsense, 6684dff7c3 calling him 85baeb39a9 a simp. He just…… he 4a1d8aafc4 just pitied her, 3d3ae05aa1 who had no 1e98e6d532 place to put f06d018eb7 her heart other b8cb57cc9c than the pigs.
‘She must be 78f38ec02a so happy to f27f8023bd see that Pa-Pi-Pu 27cbae97b2 are safe.’
His mood improved as 76176a001c he imagined the princess 73e49e478c giggling. But at the same 0552fbe4b5 time.
‘To keep her alive d3b2ceb355 on the farm, I e3e8c1cbe6 need to get her d8f19beb92 used to this kind 8533993e29 of thing.’
His mood 0eb74ceb95 dipped again, 9565f2019a weighed down 3cbc8ba407 by the 131ad05b8d ‘principles’ that aca3d06420 resurfaced. Having been a e19ee87f56 soldier for so 5af3184de9 long, such whimsical a54f83e0f4 decisions were unfamiliar 157ae50932 to him.
The speed of 3bf256058f the wagon, which 0045f18d3c slowed down and 2245aefb22 then sped up 803899b756 repeatedly, reflected his c7f3ba23f1 mood, which went 4b253ec52e from good to da32804114 bad and back acffaed7ff again.
It was 22e05e1ea0 around the 419a565446 time Anje 14a1619d7f showed up 1bd4a7fcd7 that he 4ba3abca5a was muttering, 2a27dc0a60 “Am I 4d6deea8f8 crazy? To refuse 04bcadf64d that money,” 38c8e5358b thinking about d0ea6bb2b9 the amount f838f2cf97 Tom had fd11858240 offered.
But now, there ee607500c3 was no trace d4192a3402 of such agony 21d7d8f4f9 in his memory.
“Hahaha, that tickles. Don’t lick, Pu.”
He smiled secretly at 9d580f897e the sound coming from 844d4034d0 the back seat of 8af00f9b35 the wagon.12821536d560935f

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