Chapter Sixteen

Having only eaten breakfast all day, Mu Jin took the half-eaten rough bread she had secretly saved for Zhou Si and gently knocked on his door.

"Si'er, no matter what happens, your own health is the most important thing. If it gets damaged, your enemies will be happy and your loved ones will hate you."

There was no response from inside, so Mu Jin continued to persuade her.

"How about opening the door? Many hands make light work. Tell me what you think, and I'll give you some ideas. Let's think of a solution together."

"There is no hurdle in the world that cannot be overcome. The way you are torturing yourself is only hurting yourself and it does nothing to help you."

"If you don't open the door, I'm going back inside. It's really cold outside."

"I'm leaving, really leaving."

The door creaked open from the inside, and Zhou Si's eyes were still red and swollen.

After crying and taking a nap, Zhou Si's mind calmed down considerably.

He said in a hoarse voice, "Big brother, please come in first."

Mu Jin entered the house, closed the door, and handed the coarse flour pancake in her hand to Zhou Si.

"It's a bit cold, but you'll have to make do with this."

Zhou Si stared at the half-eaten pancake in her hand, and tears welled up in her eyes again.

Mu Jin sighed, "You eat first. We can talk about it later. Your older brother is worried about you. It's late at night, and he can't easily come into your room. He's so anxious."

With tears in her eyes, Zhou Si took a bite of the slightly hardened rough bread to suppress the acid in her stomach.

Zhou Si finished half a pancake in no time.

Mu Jin sat on the edge of the bed and waited for a while. After Zhou Siping calmed down, he told Mu Jin about the grievances he had suffered.

"Brother, I feel truly wronged. Ever since our engagement, I've felt I haven't done anything wrong. I haven't neglected him, and I've saved up money that I wouldn't even spend on myself, only buying him things he likes. I've always been gentle and considerate towards him, but I never expected..."

As Zhou Si spoke, she choked up again.

Mu Jin understood immediately; it turned out that Zhou Si had suffered a broken heart, and she guessed that her fiancé must have done something heartless.

Before marrying into the Zhou family, Mu Jin had inquired about their background, both openly and secretly.

Zhou Si's fiancé shares the same surname as him, named Mu Liang. However, there are many families with the surname Mu in Mu Family Village, and they are intertwined and have no close kinship with his family.

However, upon closer examination, they are indeed somewhat related, perhaps even acquainted.

My family are typical farmers, and we manage to get by.

Mu Jin had met him before. He was a bit fatter than Zhou Lin, about the same height, and had thick eyebrows and big eyes; he was quite handsome.

Zhou Si paused for a moment, her voice tinged with tears.

"Today I went to my uncle's house to look for dried chili peppers, and Brother Lingyun stopped me. When he told me, I didn't believe him. So I went with him to the foot of the mountain to take a look. It turned out that Mu Liang had gotten together with the Qian family's son from the village. When I got there, the two of them were... I'm afraid I'll get my mouth dirty if I say it out loud."

As Zhou Si spoke, she started crying again.

Mu Liang was good-looking, one of the best-looking men in the village, and he naturally liked him.

Mu Jin wiped away his tears with a handkerchief and sighed, "Then what do you plan to do?"

"I...I..."

Zhou Si's eyes were red, and her face showed a hint of struggle.

"Mu Liang apologized to me right away. It was that Qian family boy... he... he..."

Zhou Si was at a loss for words. He knew in his heart that no matter how much Mu Liang admitted his mistake, he was the one who had seduced him by that Qian family boy. He was a pure and innocent man who had lost control and made the mistake that most men would make.

None of them are trustworthy. It takes two to tango, and flies don't land on eggs without cracks. Mu Liang is not a good man to entrust one's life to.

But if the young master breaks off the engagement, people will definitely gossip about him. His marriage to someone else might not be as good as Mu Liang's, and his parents might not agree to it either.

Mu Jin gently poked his forehead. "You're usually such a shrewd guy, why are you so confused now?"

However, Zhou Si cannot be blamed. Outsiders have a clearer perspective, but those in the thick of it are bound to make mistakes.

“When our son gets married, it’s like being reborn. His parents’ orders and the matchmaker’s words mean he has no choice in the matter. If he didn’t know before the marriage, that’s fine. He’s already jumped into that fire pit, and there’s nothing he can do about it. But now that he knows he’s not a good man, if he still jumps into the pit, then he’s blind.”

Zhou Si wiped away her tears. "But brother, you said it yourself, my marriage is not up to me. Even if I break off the engagement, what then? I'm not young anymore. Plus, with the stigma of breaking off the engagement, how can I find someone better?"

"You can't knowingly jump into a fire pit. Besides, who knows what will happen in the future? You're not even married yet and he's already acting like this. Once he gets what he wants, how will he cherish it? With his looks, you might end up raising someone else's child."

The villagers value bloodline inheritance. If Mu Liang really had an affair and had a child, regardless of what would happen to the young man, they would definitely want to take the child home.

Zhou Si thought about what Mu Jin said and suddenly felt hopeless. That chaotic life was not what he wanted.

"Big brother, whatever you say, I'll do it."

Mu Jin thought for a moment, "If we miss the best opportunity today, we should break off the engagement. We should try our best to get the bad reputation onto him."

Zhou Si immediately felt a pang of regret. She shouldn't have been so soft-hearted and helpless back then; she should have made a bigger scene.

"However, this thieving cat will do it again once. He can endure it for a day or two, but he can't endure it for three or five days. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to sneak into the grove at the foot of the mountain during the New Year."

Mu Jin had an idea. "I'll have your older brother keep an eye out for him these next few days and make sure he catches him red-handed. Then, we'll get a dowry from our parents for free, and you can get another sum of money when you get engaged. I think he'll break off the engagement."

After Mu Jin finished speaking, Zhou Si felt more at ease. Although she was still a little sad, she had made up her mind that the engagement was definitely off.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, brother."

"Why be so polite? We're all family."

Having made the agreement, Mu Jin didn't stay in Zhou Si's room any longer. After offering a few more words of comfort, she went back to her room.

Zhou Lin values ​​his family highly, and you can imagine how angry he was after hearing what Mu Jin said.

"If I catch him, I'll chop him up!"

Zhou Lin actually had a decent relationship with Mu Liangqian. The two families lived close by, and because of Zhou Si, he would help them out whenever he had free time after finishing his work.

All these things were done so that after Zhou Si married into the family, her husband's family would treat her younger brother better.

Now look what's happened! Before she's even married into the family, Zhou Si has already suffered such a great injustice.

No wonder he was so upset that he didn't come out all day and couldn't even bother with the proper etiquette for entertaining relatives.

Mu Jin patted his back and said, "Don't be angry. It's a good thing that Si'er found out before she got married."

Zhou Lin nodded, "Next time Si'er gets engaged, we must be more careful in choosing a partner."

Mu Jin chuckled. This man truly cared about his family, but unfortunately, Zhou Wushi and the others didn't appreciate it and only treated him like an old ox.

Early the next morning, when Zhou Si went out, Zhou Wu's eyes were not eyes, and her mouth was not mouth.

"You still know how to come out! With so many relatives around yesterday, is this how I've always taught you manners?! I wonder what your aunt and the others will say when they get back. You've really embarrassed me!"

As he spoke, he grabbed a broom and started hitting Zhou Si with it.

Mu Jin hurriedly called Zhou Lin to stop him, knowing that Zhou Si's actions were indeed inappropriate.

But people aren't plants or trees; when faced with such a situation, few can remain calm, unless the two people have no feelings for each other to begin with.

However, we cannot tell Zhou Wushi and the others about this yet. If they find out first, the engagement might not be able to be called off.

Last night, Mu Jin gave Zhou Lin a long list of instructions, but because he was busy stopping the broom, he didn't let anything slip.

Having taken several blows, Zhou Wu Shi showed no mercy to Zhou Lin, each move carrying a sharp force.

When Mu Jin saw that Zhou Lin's face had been scratched, she became anxious and glanced at Zhou Qiang, who remained unmoved to the side.

"Fourth brother, although your third brother was wrong yesterday, as the younger brother, I can't just watch my older brother get beaten, can I? If this commotion gets out, others will think that our family is in turmoil. If it reaches the ears of the teacher, he will inevitably misunderstand you, fourth brother."

Zhou Qiang naturally believed whatever the beauty said, especially since Mu Jin's words were all in his favor.

She hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Alright, Mother, Third Brother knows he was wrong. Please calm down."

When Zhou Wu saw Zhou Qiang standing in front of Zhou Si, she vented her anger and, fearing that her beloved youngest son would get hurt, she finally stopped.

"I'll let you off this time for your fourth brother's sake, but if you do it again, I'll beat you to death."

She glared at Zhou Qiang and said, "What are you doing blocking the way? What if you get hurt? The county exam is coming up soon. Go back to your room and study. I'll make you a bowl of steamed egg custard."

Mu Jin then remembered the wooden boat. Zhou Wu Shi knew what the eggs and meat were, so she wasn't worried about them stealing them. She called Mu Jin to get them.

Once the steamed egg custard was ready, Mu Jin personally brought it into the house, and the door was always open.

He smiled broadly at Zhou Qiang and said, "Fourth brother, try your eldest brother's cooking. When we were at my parents' house, my younger brother loved this the most."

The steamed egg custard melted in his mouth, and Zhou Qiangmei was completely bewildered. "Thank you for your hard work, brother."

Mu Jin smiled and said, "Speaking of which, my younger brother is also preparing to take the imperial examination this spring. Unlike you, he doesn't have a teacher in town to teach him. He only received a few pointers from an old scholar in the village. He's young, and I'm afraid that he won't be able to answer many of the questions in the examination, which might damage his confidence. I know you're busy and don't have time to teach him. Why don't you tell me what books you're reading, and I'll have him buy them and take a look? It's better than him wandering around aimlessly."

After finishing his steamed egg custard, Zhou Qiang waved his hand and said, "Brother, you can take it. I've seen enough, I don't need it anymore."

As Zhou Qiang spoke, he took out several brand-new books and handed them to Mu Jin.

Mu Jin hurriedly waved her hand, he dared not accept it, the book hadn't even been turned over, Zhou Qiang must not have read much of it.

If he takes it and fails the exam, then it will all be his fault.

He smiled and said, "Just remember the book title for me. I'll have him buy it after the fifteenth."

Zhou Qiang didn't insist. He carefully wrote down the book title, patted his chest, and said, "Big brother, if there's anything I don't understand, just come and ask me."

Mu Jin thought to herself, "Forget it then. If I learn from you, I'll just end up learning the same things again."

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Fourth Brother."

He carefully put the papers away and hurriedly went back to the room to examine Zhou Lin's face and body for a closer look.

Fortunately, I was wearing thick clothes in winter, so the redness and swelling were a bit bad, and there were some minor cuts on my face, but the wounds weren't deep.

Mu Jin breathed a sigh of relief. "Be careful not to get it dirty these next few days."

Zhou Lin didn't care; the wounds from the sickle during the wheat harvest were much deeper.

But he looked at Mu Jin's slightly furrowed brows and quietly nodded.