A Good Country Wife

"What are you thanking me for?" Chunxi was somewhat confused and didn’t know what the You Family was up to again, her gaze suspicious and defensive as she stared at them.

"Brother Gui, Chunxi is part of our family, after all. She exchanged silver with Zhao Lingxiang, didn’t she? I heard those bean sprouts weren’t cheap either. This bean sprouting technique must surely be worth quite a bit! Plus, our family could also grow bean sprouts to sell. There’s no rule saying that only a certain family can sell them, as long as we can produce the sprouts."

The You Family was indeed sharp-witted, realizing the value of Chunxi’s bean sprouting technique right away. Currently, control over the household’s silver lay in her hands, along with what was left by her late good-for-nothing husband. However, combined, it amounted to less than fifty taels of silver, otherwise she wouldn’t have ended up with a man like Zhao Jingui in this remote ravine.

Listening to the You Family’s words, Chunxi felt old blood ready to spurt from her chest; she was upset. The You Family was too shameless, coveting not only the silver she obtained from Zhao Lingxiang but also her bean sprouting technique. It was despicable. Yet, she seemed to forget that the bean sprouting technique was something she had sneakily observed from Lin Yue. In that aspect, the You Family was somewhat more aboveboard than her.

Chunxi hated the You Family inwardly, but she still had to deal with them pretentiously. She would never hand over the hard-earned items to the You Family and Zhao Jingui. "You Family Sister, what are you talking about? Didn’t I say those were just rumors? I really have no idea how to sprout beans, nor did I get any silver from Zhao Lingxiang. All of that is nonsense, you have to believe me."

Believe you? That would be a joke. Seeing Chunxi so determined, the You Family knew this woman was not going to cooperate without a fight. Since that was the case, why bother talking? She turned to Zhao Jingui, "Brother Gui, it looks like you’ve hurt Chunxi’s feelings, which is why she refuses to hand over the silver to help out our family, as well as the bean sprouting technique. I was thinking of our family’s welfare. You toil away doing hard labor for the landlord every day, how exhausting. If we had the bean sprouting technique, we could sell the sprouts ourselves in the market. That way, you wouldn’t have to work so hard. But Chunxi doesn’t understand my good intentions."

"Wife, don’t be upset. That wretch Chunxi is ungrateful and foolish. It’s no use talking nicely to her. If she doesn’t hand over the silver and the bean sprouting recipe today, I will beat this wretched woman to death. Let’s see if she values the silver more or her life." Zhao Jingui was always prone to violence and preferred solving problems through force, and soon, cries of agony from Chunxi filled the courtyard.

Zhao Jingui was brutally interrogating Chunxi in the courtyard while the You Family searched her room. Chunxi’s current room had previously been a cattle shed since the main rooms had been taken by Zhao Erhu and the You Family, leaving no spare rooms in the house. Already poor, their main living quarters were dilapidated, not to mention the cattle shed. Scorching in summer, freezing in winter, it was barely shelter from wind and rain. Her only bedding was the faded one she had brought from her previous home.

The You Family was quite adept at hiding money. All the current household silver was under her control, with even Zhao Jingui unaware of its whereabouts. One time, in a rush to find money, Zhao Jingui searched the room many times over but didn’t find a single copper. That showed how well the You Family could hide things. Not only did she guard against Chunxi, but she was also wary of Zhao Jingui and the Ceng Family. Those silver coins were her greatest leverage in the household; if anyone else got their hands on them, she might end up like Chunxi, which she would never allow.