Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Juhua smiled faintly. "’The tree wishes for calm, but the wind will not cease.’ Some things you just can’t avoid, no matter how much you want to. Grandpa Wu was right about one thing, though. We need to be both firm and flexible in how we handle things, otherwise anyone and everyone will feel they can come and stick their nose in our business. Today it was Grandpa Wu and Seventh Grandfather, but who’s to say some great-aunt won’t show up tomorrow? Besides, our family’s affairs are getting more and more complicated. We have more tenants, and they all need to be managed properly. Being too harsh isn’t our way, but being too lenient will cause problems sooner or later."

Huai Zi tapped his fingers on the table. "I know all this. You just focus on getting better and let me handle it. Even the village has been full of trouble lately. There have been several arguments over gathering acorns this year. Our village is still relatively fine. We have the Village Head to keep things in check, and since his son is a scholar, his words carry some weight. Uncle Liu told me that people in Qingbei Village have actually gotten into fights and injured each other over it. Some families don’t have enough food, so they’re gathering acorns to eat. Naturally, they’re fighting to the death for them."

Juhua asked, "Never mind Qingbei Village. In our village, we’ve always done it the same way—everyone gathers their own. What’s there to argue about?"

Huai Zi sneered. "Who else but the Li Family? They’re so arrogant. Changyu himself doesn’t put on any airs, but his relatives are acting like an Emperor was born into their family, trying to get the upper hand in everything. All I did was have Uncle Liu help me carry two baskets of acorns, and Li Mingtang accused me of hiring laborers to gather them. Then he started saying that if the Village Head’s family did the same as me and brought all their tenants to gather acorns, there wouldn’t be a single one left for the other villagers. I couldn’t be bothered with him. He’s got one foot in the grave and still spends all day looking for trouble. In the end, the Village Head had to call Changyu’s grandfather to drag him away."

Juhua said, "Every family has difficult relatives. He’s just like our Grandpa Wu, completely clueless about his own standing. It was Li Changfeng who became a scholar, not his grandson. Yet he’s the one running around making a fuss all day."

Huai Zi let out a breath. "There are plenty of other people in the Li Family who are just as bad. During the drought, they fought endlessly over water, only ever picking on families with different surnames. It’s a good thing our Yangzi became a Scholar; otherwise, this incident probably wouldn’t have ended so easily. Even with the Village Head stopping him, he wouldn’t have dared to do anything openly, but he would’ve definitely tried to trip us up behind our backs."

Juhua frowned. "He doesn’t know what’s good for him. Sure, three generations of the Village Head’s family have been reasonable, but that’s also what makes them smart—they see the situation in this village for what it truly is. Not like that old fool, who still thinks this is the same old village where the Li Family reigns supreme. Hmph. Back then, if it wasn’t because the Li clan had so many people, why would we have told them how to process the acorns? But fine, let that slide. After all, everyone benefited, and you could say we did a good deed. But the workshop? We could have started that entirely on our own and brought in whoever we wanted. Weren’t we forced to include everyone and tie our fates together because we were weak and isolated in the village, afraid they’d get jealous and try to sabotage us? He’s completely ungrateful and thinks he’s entitled to all of it."

Huai Zi nodded. "Things are different now. The villagers aren’t afraid of them anymore. At the very least, they have our family, the Zhao family, and the Liu Family to rely on. You have no idea, if it weren’t for the Village Head being relatively fair in his dealings, this village would have split into four factions, almost like the imperial court."

The comparison was vivid, but so deeply ironic that Juhua couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

’It was true; this little village had its own political landscape. Since Zhang Yang and two others had become Scholars, the Zhang, Zhao, and Liu families had risen to prominence in Qingnan Village. The village was undergoing great changes, a far cry from what it used to be. At least now, if she had another money-making venture, she wouldn’t have to worry so much. She could just partner with her birth family instead of having to drag outsiders into it.’

’Because of Li Changfeng, the Village Head, Li Gengtian, would definitely want to stay on good terms with these families. But his good-for-nothing relatives were only holding him back.’

The more she thought about it, the more amusing it seemed. She said lazily, "We’re not trying to be the local tyrants of the village. There’s no need to compete with them. Just gather what we need to gather and let them make a fuss. But from now on, if we come up with any other money-making ventures, we don’t need to involve anyone else. If they think we’re going to help them again, they can dream on!"

Huai Zi nodded and smiled. "The Village Head has a headache over it too. His father is the Clan Leader, and he recently punished a few people, which has quieted things down a bit."

As the couple was talking, Banli suddenly started to cry. Juhua quickly turned to take care of him.

Pu Pao came in from outside. "Let me, Young Madam. After I change his diaper, you can feed them."

Juhua nodded and let her change both babies’ diapers. Then, she picked up Cong to start nursing, while Banli was taken by Pu Pao to Aunt Liu—Aunt Liu had a much more plentiful milk supply, far more than her own baby, Jing’er, could ever drink. This was why Juhua only ever nursed one baby at a time, to avoid one of them being left half-fed and crying. Since Cong was the more well-behaved of the two, her mother played favorites, always sending Banli to be fed by Aunt Liu while she nursed her little daughter herself.

Huai Zi was also more partial to his daughter. He leaned closer to Juhua, watching his daughter’s delicate chin and the way she nursed with all her might. He couldn’t resist gently stroking her little head. Her newborn hair was soft to the touch, and his heart melted.

He watched the mother and daughter for a while, reluctant to leave. But when he glanced outside, he saw that the delay had caused the sun to start setting in the west. He stood up and said, "I’m heading to the fields. You should get some sleep later. Don’t worry about a thing. In another two months of recovery, you’ll be able to go out."

Juhua nodded, watching him as he left.

’In truth, she was being very cautious and didn’t dare to be careless in the slightest. Forget about doing any work; even with food, she was on a very strict diet to ensure a speedy recovery. Her mouth felt so bland it was as if she were tasting water. It had gotten to the point where she didn’t even dare to sit at the dinner table, afraid of the torment of seeing a table full of dishes she couldn’t eat.’ (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to qidian.com to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)