Madam Xu patted Xu Wenshan's hand.

He said with a smile.

“Well, I’m not leaving. What about my husband? Let him go with my older brother. It’s not good for him to always stay at home.” Xu Wenshan’s eyes darted around as she steered the conversation toward her husband.

“What’s the point of him following along? He can’t do anything. Your elder brother doesn’t need anyone. If all else fails, let him go to the stables and take care of the horses your elder brother just bought.” Madam Xu’s words made the couple’s expressions change.

That's incredibly insulting.

Especially with Yan Xia, an outsider, present.

"Mother~ My husband is very good to me, why do you still dislike him so much?"

"Your mother wanted you to marry that Zhang boy, but you refused. If you had married him, you would have come to the capital with us, instead of only seeing him once every few years. That Zhang boy is now a fifth-rank official, while he is just a commoner, good for neither literature nor martial arts, and a deserter. If you hadn't insisted on marrying him, do you think your mother would have agreed? He has been married before! How is that any different from marrying a widower?"

Old Madam Xu felt that Yan Xia was one of her own, and since she really disliked her son-in-law, she started lecturing him in front of Yan Xia.

“Didn’t your elder brother find a way to get him out of the army and clear his name of desertion? His ex-wife thought he was dead. He’s not a widower. Shouguo, tell your mother, do you still have feelings for your ex-wife?”

Defend the country?

Xu Wenshan's words shocked Yan Xia.

No wonder she felt this man was so familiar; wasn't he the original owner's ex-husband?!

Depend on! !

The world is so small.

Why didn't Chen Shouguo die?

So it turns out they cheated on the original owner.

Yan Xia looked at the girl sitting at the round table drinking fruit tea; she was only thirteen or fourteen years old.

So Chen Shouguo only served in the army for a year or two before he and Xu Wenshan had a daughter named Jiaojiao?

Why did news of his death only reach Jiashu County when the original owner was 25 years old?

Yan Xia sat to the side, her face growing increasingly gloomy. Worried about being noticed, she lowered her head and pretended to fiddle with the fruit tea.

"Of course not, I've even forgotten what she looks like, Shan'er. You're the only one in my heart. Jiao'er is all grown up now, why keep bringing up the past? From now on, I only want to stay by your side until we grow old. If I have anyone else in my heart, may I suffer the consequences..."

Chen Shouguo swore an oath, but before he could finish speaking, Xu Wenshan covered his mouth.

"Pah, pah, pah, stop talking! I know you wouldn't dare have anyone else in your heart. Don't call me vicious. Before my elder brother went to the capital to become an official, he had someone send you a sum of money as a pension. I, Xu Wenshan, don't owe her anything. That sum of money is enough for a lowly peasant woman like her to live on for the rest of her life. Mother, please ask my elder brother to arrange a job for my husband. I beg you."

Xu Wenshan shook Old Madam Xu's arm.

His lips were pouting high.

"Alright, I only have two children. Your older brother is capable, so I'm not worried about him. I'm only thinking about you. As long as you're doing well, I'll be happier than anything else. When your older brother comes back, I'll tell him."

Madam Xu was quite helpless.

But she was completely under her daughter's thumb.

Her daughter insisted on marrying Chen Shouguo, but she disagreed. He was a deserter, and if he were caught, he would be executed. But her daughter insisted that she had already given herself to Chen Shouguo.

What could be done? The only option was to send Chen Shouguo back to the military camp as soon as possible. After pulling strings countless times, they finally managed to remove the label of deserter from his record.

In addition, his son also ran the business.

Chen Shouguo became their son-in-law.

We eat and drink at their house every day.

I don't know what's so good about him. He was quite handsome when he was young, but now he's lost all his good looks.

It's utterly useless.

Madam Xu sighed, then noticed that Yan Xia was huddled to the side, silent. She changed the subject and asked about Yan Xia.

"I'm sorry you had to see this. By the way, you mentioned an accident happened earlier. What was it?"

Yan Xia coughed lightly twice.

Suppressing his shock, he replied.

"As you know, I have several branches in Jiangnan County. I came to wish you a happy birthday, Madam, and also to visit the managers of the branches, thinking I'd ask how their business was. Unexpectedly, Manager Deng of the first branch was arrested by the county officials, who said someone falsely accused him of selling poisonous flower cakes. Isn't that strange? I've been selling flower cakes for so long, and they all come from my hands. If they were poisonous, I would have died from eating so many myself! I rushed to the county government to find the officials, wanting to ask Manager Deng in person what was going on, but who knew..."

Yan Xia raised her head and gave Old Madam Xu a meaningful look.

"Who knew that the official, not content with just taking my silver, also forced me to take away the jade pendant I was going to give you. I bought it this morning at Jinji Jewelry Shop; it's a red jade pendant with the character '福' (fortune/blessing). The shopkeeper said it was one of a kind, only one available, and once it was sold out, it was gone. I was so anxious! That '福' pendant was practically tailor-made for you; the red jade is flawless, a top-quality piece. Alas..."

Yan Xia sighed again.

"Bang--"

Old Madam Xu slammed her hand on the table.

"Outrageous! How dare you steal my things? Are you talking about the jade pendant with the character '福' (fortune) carved from red jade? I know, I wanted to buy that pendant when I was shopping, but a thousand taels was too expensive. I didn't expect you to have your eye on it too. Tell me, who stole it? I'll have my son teach him a lesson."

Madam Xu was furious.

She hadn't been willing to buy the jade pendant back then, but unexpectedly it was snatched away by a lowly official.

"Yes, yes, Xie Yan'an, Officer Xie, Madam, I have a request for you. Please make the decision."

Yan Xia knelt on the ground, pretending to wipe away tears.

"Get up and speak."

When Madam Xu heard that Yan Xia had given her a red jade, her fondness for Yan Xia grew even stronger.

I can help with small favors.

"As you know, I originally wanted to operate my shop in Jiangnan County. I just wanted to be closer to the old lady, so I opened a branch here. But if someone falsely accuses my flower cakes of being poisonous, how can any customers dare to buy them? I don't know if you have ever eaten my shop's flower cakes, but they are all made on the same day and only sold for two days. They are absolutely fresh. If they were poisonous, the first one to die would be me, the one who tried them."

"I beg you, Madam, to do me a favor. Manager Deng has been framed. If my shop goes bankrupt, how will I ever have the chance to support you? I'll probably struggle to survive. Besides, he's just a lowly government official, yet he's so arrogant! He stole the jade pendant I gave you! I wanted it back, but he said if I dared to report him to the authorities, he'd throw me in jail. He's imprisoned quite a few people before; it's terrifying, it's outrageous! I wonder if the magistrate is aware of this?"

Yan Xia was sobbing.

Wipe it with a handkerchief from time to time.