Chapter 155 The Gossipy Second Sister

Song Chunxue was taken aback, then burst out laughing.

"Second sister, what are you thinking? What could possibly happen to me that would make me so stupid as to not want to live? It's better to live a miserable life than to die. As long as we're alive, there's hope."

She scolded playfully, "If you don't want it, I'll give it to my second and third sisters. Don't talk nonsense."

The second sister quickly grabbed the peacock blue cloth and put it in her arms, saying, "Who said I don't want it? I like it very much."

Song Chunxue couldn't help but laugh. She took out one or two taels of silver from inside, tied the bundle up, and placed it on the kang cabinet.

"Sister, take this two taels of silver. Don't let anyone know. Keep it for emergencies. If you ever have a headache or fever, don't be stingy with the money. Buy medicine whenever you feel unwell, especially when you have a fever. Don't delay."

She originally wanted to give her more, but she was afraid that her second sister would overthink it and cause unwarranted speculation.

Two taels of silver is actually a lot of money; for someone who spends his days digging in the soil, it's a huge sum of money.

Sure enough, the second sister's eyes widened again. She looked at the silver in her hand, then at Song Chunxue, and rubbed her eyes vigorously from time to time to see if the thing in her hand was real.

"You..." The second sister glanced at the door and lowered her voice, "You didn't go somewhere to rob someone, did you? Why are you suddenly being so generous?"

"Shh, sister, don't tell anyone, don't let your husband and the kids know. Keep the money for yourself, it could save your life in a pinch." Song Chunxue stuffed the silver into her arms. "Put it away as soon as possible, don't let anyone find out."

"Okay."

The second sister quickly stood up, rummaged through the corner of the cabinet, pulled out a worn-out little wooden box, and locked the silver away.

Afterwards, she sat on the kang (a heated brick bed), staring blankly at Song Chunxue, as if she was wondering if what had just happened was a dream.

"Tell me, are you with a rich man?"

"Were you two secretly having an affair?"

She climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed) and asked excitedly, "Was it Lord Xie who gave you the silver? It's said that when he saw you being beaten, he was furious and planned to uproot all the corrupt officials in Zhuanglang County."

"..." How did Lord Xie get involved?

Although the money was indeed given by Lord Xie, the rumors are far too outrageous.

"I had no idea before that you were the one who dared to go against the officials, allowing Lord Xie to happen to be there, and saving some of the grain for the people of Zhuanglang County, and even Longxi Prefecture." Second Sister clenched her fist like an excited squirrel. "Most people have seen Lord Xie come to the village to supervise the grain harvest. Someone went to the county and said they saw you two eating noodles together..."

Song Chunxue's mind went blank; there are no secrets that cannot be kept forever.

I never expected that the news of her eating noodles with Lord Xie would reach my second sister's ears.

She couldn't understand why those people, with nothing better to do, would love to spread rumors!

They didn't even consider that the high and mighty Lord Xie was from the capital. Why would he possibly be interested in a woman who had given birth to five children and was old and faded?

People who spread lies really dare to think anything.

"Hey, Fifth Brother, are you listening? Are you having an affair with Lord Xie?"

The second sister, who was talking enthusiastically, noticed that Song Chunxue was lost in thought at this crucial moment, so she hurriedly pulled her aside.

Song Chunxue pulled over a pillow and covered herself with the nearly new quilt. "Do you believe I have two legs?"

"Ah..." Second Sister suddenly let out a low scream, "Oh my god, you two wouldn't be having an affair in bed...?"

Song Chunxue blushed and slapped her in an annoyed tone, "Keep your voice down. There's nothing between me and Lord Xie. You believe what others are saying? You've gone crazy from farming. You dare to dream anything. Don't you know how different our social statuses are?"

The second sister blinked her big eyes, pulled the buckwheat hull pillow under her chin, and looked on with curiosity.

"Oh, really not? Then where did you get the money?"

"..." If she were to reveal that the money was indeed given by Lord Xie, would her second sister assume that she and Lord Xie were definitely having an affair, or rather, that they were having an affair together?

"A few days ago, I bought some wealth-attracting talismans from a Taoist priest without really understanding what was going on, and then my family really started to have wealth coming in." Song Chunxue said irritably, "Just spend what I give you, why all the nonsense?"

"What kind of lucky charm? Do you have any more? Why didn't you give me some?"

"I'll give it to you tomorrow." Song Chunxue pulled the blanket over herself. "I'm so sleepy, I'm going to sleep."

"No, wait until tomorrow! The sooner you wear it, the sooner you'll be rich!" Her second sister grabbed her arm and pulled her up. "Hurry, hurry! Having a lucky charm is better than anything else. All the ones we've met before were scammers, but seeing how generous you are now, it must be real."

Helpless, Song Chunxue could only get up and take out a lucky charm from her bundle and give it to her second sister.

The second sister excitedly held it in her hands, and without needing any explanation, turned around to find the red cloth and needle and thread.

A short while later, she folded the lucky charm into a triangle, sewed it up, and then sewed it onto the outside of her undergarment, wearing it close to her body.

Song Chunxue smiled with satisfaction, hoping that her second sister would have a prosperous future.

But it's clear that the second sister hasn't given up yet.

"Fifth brother, you and that Lord Xie..."

"Really, no. If anyone says it later, clarify it. Don't let me cause trouble for Lord Xie. He's an official of the imperial court. He's got all sorts of rich young ladies. Don't let it get to his ears and make me tarnish my reputation."

Hearing this made Song Chunxue feel a little upset.

It seems I can't have dinner with Lord Xie in the county next time, and I certainly can't shamelessly ask him for help. I also can't trouble him with the matter of buying the courtyard in the future.

Second Sister sighed, "That's true. Although you're about the same age as Lord Xie, and you're pretty, and your five children haven't made you look old, he's an official of the imperial court. I knew it! Those people are just lusting after him. They're using you as a pretext to say you're with Lord Xie. In private, those farm women must think they can have a passionate affair with him."

"..." Song Chunxue was extremely embarrassed. Women with men are different; they can just spout lewd remarks without batting an eye.

"Hey, you know what, even though Lord Xie looks old with his stubble, he's quite a handsome man. Since you're a widow anyway, why don't you give it a try next time, maybe..."

"Second sister, what nonsense are you talking about? I have been living a life of purity and abstinence for so many years. Second sister, don't say such unrealistic things that will disturb my Dao heart."

Her second sister laughed at her, "You're trying to confuse my mind! Where did you learn all this crazy talk?"

“I forgot to tell you, I actually took a Taoist priest as my senior brother. I have to get up and meditate every day. Don’t be afraid when you get up tomorrow morning.”

"What?" Second Sister sat up from the kang, her dry hair disheveled behind her head, and twisted Song Chunxue's ear, saying, "Get up! What's going on? Are you really going to go up the mountain to become a nun?"

Song Chunxue winced in pain, grimacing as she said, "It hurts, it hurts! Nuns are Buddhists, and Taoist nuns are Taoists. I don't want to shave my head."

Her second sister slapped her on the shoulder angrily, "What's the difference? Aren't we all monks?"

"I knew it! Why did you suddenly start giving me cloth and money? After all this trouble, you're actually going to become a monk?"

"Why would you acknowledge a Taoist priest as your senior brother? It turns out you've been thoroughly deceived by him."

Song Chunxue rubbed her burning ears. It had been many years since she had been scolded by her older sister, and it felt quite good.

"Tell me, did that Taoist priest take your body?"

"..." Seeing her second sister's expression of excitement, even more so than seeing meat, Song Chunxue couldn't help but roll her eyes.