Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Huai Zi stood up and said solemnly to Zhang Dashuan, "Dad, Grandpa Wu and Seventh Grandfather have finished eating. I’ll see them out. Our family’s affairs are no one else’s business. Ever since Grandpa died, no one has bothered to check on us, and we certainly don’t expect them to start now."

Zhang Dashuan nodded, his face impassive. "We have to go to the wheat fields this afternoon," he said. "We’re busy. Let Grandpa Wu and Seventh Grandfather see themselves out—they’re still spry, and their legs work just fine. They don’t need anyone to escort them." With that, he went back to drinking his water.

The two old men were stunned. They pointed a trembling finger at Zhang Dashuan and his son, sputtering and shouting but unable to form a complete sentence. They clearly hadn’t expected the Zhang family’s father and son to dare treat their own clan elders in such a manner.

Huai Zi turned to the two old men, his face taut. He was so tall that they had to crane their necks to look up at his face, a fact that made them feel all the more oppressed and furious.

Grandpa Wu was the first to come to his senses. He wanted to argue with the father and son, but just as he opened his mouth, Huai Zi said coldly, "Grandpa Wu, you must be busy at home, so we won’t keep you. Dad and I still have to get to work in the fields."

The old man was furious. "This is outrageous..."

Huai Zi cut him off. "We farm our land and live our lives honestly. We don’t go running to other people’s homes to wag our tongues. No matter how big a deal it is, it’s still our own business, and it’s no concern of yours, Grandpa Wu. Let me see you out."

He kept urging them to leave, but the two men refused to budge, stubbornly standing their ground. He wanted nothing more than to physically drag them out, but he didn’t want to be too forceful. That would just give them an excuse to accuse a junior like him of being insolent and disrespectful to his elders.

Zhang Dashuan frowned. ’These two are utterly shameless.’ Suddenly, he looked past Huai Zi, and his expression turned cold. He stood, grabbed Grandpa Wu, and started dragging him toward the door, ignoring the old man’s sputtering protests. Seventh Grandfather froze, but seeing the dark look on Huai Zi’s face, he had no choice but to follow resentfully.

When Huai Zi turned around, he saw Juhua standing in the doorway, her eyes fixed on them. She had obviously heard the entire exchange. He was standing beside her, whispering something. This made him even angrier. After Zhang Dashuan pushed the men out of the courtyard, Huai Zi told Liu Heipi to watch the gate and not let any busybodies in.

Heipi puffed out his chest and agreed.

Having been thrown out, Grandpa Wu couldn’t stand the humiliation. He stood outside and yelled curses at the courtyard. "You unfilial whelps! If the Zhang family ancestors were still alive, they’d die all over again from pure anger at you!"

Zhang Huai refused to let him stand there blocking their gate and shouting curses, but he also didn’t want anyone to think his father was disrespectful. He said in a low, dangerous voice, "Those are words I should be saying to you. Aren’t you afraid of the shame if we speak about the things you’ve done? We can spread it all around and let everyone else be the judge." He clenched his fists, his gaze menacing. The two old men were thoroughly intimidated. They stopped their posturing and scurried away dejectedly, their hands clasped behind their backs.

Huai Zi instructed Heipi to follow them and only return once he had seen them leave the village.

Inside, Juhua listened as He explained the events of yesterday and today. She didn’t say much, only thanking He and Zhang Dashuan before returning to her room. This left both He and Zhang Dashuan quite worried.

Juhua went back to her room and sat down. The more she thought about it, the more ridiculous it seemed. ’Heh! So it’s true. You can’t escape conflict, no matter where you are.’

’The Zhang family hasn’t even struck it rich. We’re just farmers, a little better off than average. And just because Zhang Yang became a Scholar and suddenly has "prospects" in everyone’s eyes, all this nonsense comes knocking at our door.’

’Taking a concubine? The nerve of those people. We’ve only just managed to secure enough food and clothing—we can’t even be considered moderately well-off—and they’re already talking about concubines!’

She couldn’t help but wonder, ’Do they think my life is just too peaceful?’

’Fine. Grandpa Wu, Seventh Grandfather... I’ll just add their families to the list of people we won’t associate with. To be honest, in all the time I’ve been married into this family, this is the first I’ve ever even heard of these relatives.’

’I need to pull myself together. If I just passively enjoy this peaceful life, it’ll eventually be turned into a complete mess, and then it won’t be peaceful at all!’

When Huai Zi got back, He shot him a look and jutted her chin toward the bedroom door.

Huai Zi hurried into the room to find Juhua sitting quietly at the table doing needlework. He sat down beside her and asked directly, "Juhua, are you angry?"

Juhua glanced up at him. "Angry about what? Didn’t you already run them off?"

Huai Zi was left speechless. It felt wrong for Juhua to be so calm. He wanted to say something but didn’t know what. After a long moment, he finally managed, "Don’t worry. It doesn’t matter if we ever have spare money or not, I’m not going to cause trouble. I like our life just the way it is with you."

Juhua looked at him in surprise. ’What does this have to do with money?’

Huai Zi sighed and, with a faint, wry smile, told her what he had said to Qingmu that morning. "I don’t care what other people think; I like our life this way. When Banli and Cong can walk, they’ll be running all over the courtyard. I’ll take them to pick peaches and find birds’ nests. What could be better? And take a concubine? Just dealing with these relatives is already a huge headache. I have no idea what those men who take concubines are thinking. It might look glamorous, having a house full of wives and concubines, but it’s obvious their lives are a chaotic mess. They’re just asking for trouble. You just have to look at the Tang family that Liu’er married into to know that."