PNB Chapter 5 A woman who lives off a man.
Chapter 5 A woman who lives off a man.
She'd already spent all her money, and she'd even been hoping to trick that little vixen into giving her some more for the imperial examinations! Who would have thought it would turn out like this…
The village chief was so angry that he almost fell over, his lips trembling, unsure how to explain things to the Wen family. Wen Luozhi, understandingly, said, "Uncle Village Chief, it's alright. If we don't have it now, we'll have it later."
“I know exactly what I’ve given them and how much money I’ve paid over the years. If they don’t have any money now, then we’ll move our things and give them an IOU for the rest.” After she finished speaking, she leaned weakly against Xie He, her eyes glistening with tears, looking pitiful.
The villagers were charmed by her appearance and expressed their sympathy.
They knew very well the situation of Wen Lao Er's family in the village; they were always struggling to make ends meet! And those children were all skin and bones!
If Wen Luozhi hadn't taken that money to the Lin family back then, would they still be starving? It would be good to get it back now, but alas! It just hasn't happened yet!
“Village chief, I think this girl is right! If you don’t have money, you can use things as collateral!” Aunt Wang chimed in. She had a daughter herself, so she understood the Wen family’s feelings even better.
After a moment's thought, the village chief nodded and said to Zhang Chunhua and her son, "What is owed must be repaid. Let's do as Luo girl says!"
"Let's go! A few men, come with me to the Lin family's house and move our things!"
Several villagers stepped forward and formed a line, heading towards the Lin family's house. Zhang Chunhua pulled Lin Huaizhi up from the ground and blocked their way, saying, "You can't move them! That's all the stuff my family has!"
The village chief's face was dark. He was genuinely worried that if things continued like this, the Wen family would change their tune and report him to the authorities! After all, they were the biggest victims!
He winked at his eldest son, and Afu stepped forward and chased the mother and son away.
"Alright, stop blocking my way! Who told you to be so lazy and not earn any money!" Afu said, giving Lin Huaizhi a disdainful look.
Even Wen Zijin knew to copy some books to supplement his family's income, but Lin Huaizhi is a freeloader!
Lin Huaizhi was so angry that his teeth itched, and then he suddenly saw Wen Luozhi roll her eyes at him.
He was furious, his hands clenched into fists inside his sleeves, but the thought that someone still had leverage over him forced him to pull Zhang Chunhua aside.
A large group of people walked towards the Lin family's house, with Zhang Chunhua following at the back, stamping her feet anxiously.
"Son! How could you agree to that little hussy's request!" she said anxiously, watching as the person got closer and closer to their house.
Lin Huaizhi frowned impatiently, "It's all because that weird mother was so loud this morning and she heard it!"
His mother is really...
Zhang Chunhua was stunned for a moment and then understood. She raised her hand and slapped herself twice on the mouth. "Look at your mouth! Look at your mouth! How can you not keep your mouth shut!"
Lin Huaizhi felt a pang of pity and said helplessly, "Let's go, Mother! We can't let them dig out the last bit of our money!"
That's money he needs for the imperial examination; it can't fall into the hands of the Wen family!
Upon hearing this, Zhang Chunhua was alarmed and quickly chased after him, clutching her sore bottom.
Lin Huaizhi was also in pain, grimacing. This Wen Laoliu was really a brute! He didn't know what he ate to grow so strong, even though Wen Lao Er's family was clearly not getting enough to eat!
Once everyone arrived at the Lin family's courtyard, they began moving things. Wen Luozhi, who was directing the work from the side, still looked somewhat weak. "Auntie! That pot is ours!" she said excitedly, pointing to a brand-new iron pot.
Back then, Wen Zixun had hunted wild animals for a long time to get this pot! The original owner of this body, that idiot, turned around and gave it to Zhang Chunhua!
"Brother Fu! This chair belongs to my family too!"
"Hey, Sixth Brother! I bought that desk with my own money too!"
"Mom! I bought that mattress too!"
"Second Sister-in-law! That little pillow belongs to Little Tiger!"
……
Zhang Chunhua watched with heartache as they moved around, eventually leaving her house almost unfinished.
She was slightly comforted that no one was going to search the outhouse.
After all that, Wen Luozhi was startled.
Because "she" bought very little, but brought a lot from home! This original owner was definitely a traitor!
After taking inventory, she cleared her throat and said, "Uncle Village Chief, 90% of these things came from my house, so they definitely don't count towards the money."
The village chief stroked his beard and nodded. "Since it's your family's property, you should naturally move it back."
Wen Luozhi smiled and continued, "Apart from what we moved in from home, everything else was bought by me. I remember the prices; it only cost two taels of silver in total."
"Over the past few years, Lin Huaizhi has taken twenty-eight taels from me. After deducting two taels, he still owes my family twenty-six taels."
She reached into her sleeve, took out a piece of paper, and handed it to the village chief. It showed how much silver Lin Huaizhi had received over the years, and when.
Wen Luozhi sighed inwardly. The original owner wasn't too stupid; at least she knew what was going on.
Lin Huaizhi froze. He hadn't expected Wen Luozhi to have such a trick up her sleeve! There was no way to get away with it now!
Zhang Chunhua was furious and rushed over to snatch the paper from the village chief's hand, but Yang Guilan kicked her to the ground.
"Trying to renege on your debt?! How can you be so shameless!"
"If you hadn't tricked my little sister, that money would have ended up in your hands every few days!"
As if to vent her anger, she shoved Lin Huaizhi again, looking at him with disdain, "A grown man like you doesn't go out and earn money, you just rely on my little sister."
"You can only fool her!"
"If you hadn't tricked her into wanting a chicken to nourish her body, my second..." She suddenly stopped, because Xie He was staring coldly at her.
She stomped her foot, pushed Wen Luozhi aside, and ran home. Wen Luozhi stumbled and almost fell, but fortunately her sister-in-law Li Chunxing caught her in time.
"Hey! You scoundrel! Your little sister just woke up and she's still weak!" Xie He cursed at her from behind.
"Mother! I'm fine, don't blame my sister-in-law." Wen Luozhi pursed her lips. It was her fault anyway, so there was nothing wrong with saying it.
The villagers started gossiping about Lin Huaizhi even more. Who in the village didn't know about the incident where Wen Lao Er's second son was crippled? It was, in fact, inextricably linked to Lin Huaizhi.
Lin Huaizhi was both angry and ashamed, and rushed into the house with a flushed face.
These unruly villagers are just... just too much! And that village woman, it's outrageous! She actually dared to say in public that he was supported by a woman!
He was so angry that he wanted to overturn the desk, but when he reached out, there was nothing in front of him. So he could only sit on the bed, which was now just a bed board, and sulk.
"Alright! Quiet down!" The village chief cleared his throat and said to Zhang Chunhua with a stern face, "It's all written clearly in black and white. Today you'll sign the IOU to avoid any trouble with the authorities and affecting Lin Xiaotong!"
Zhang Chunhua scrambled to her feet, her face contorted in anger. She couldn't stand anyone insulting her son! This Wen Lao Er's wife had just insulted her son, and now she wanted her to leave an IOU? No way!
With her hands on her hips and neck stiff, she shouted loudly, "Just because she says so much doesn't mean it's all true! I could just say I never took any money from her!"
As soon as she said that, the Wen family members' expressions changed, and even the village chief felt that he couldn't bear to look at her thuggish and shameless behavior.
Instead of getting angry, Wen Luozhi smiled and walked up to Zhang Chunhua, patting her on the shoulder. She said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Aunt Zhang, I've lost my last five taels of silver..."
She said "Chun-xiang-yuan" word by word, and Zhang Chunhua took a few steps back in fear.
How could she have forgotten about that! If that little vixen were to tell anyone, it would be a disaster!