Huang concluded that the reason why the third son was having such a miserable life was because he didn't have a wife to help him manage household affairs.

However, now that the third son has a princess as his wife, he will probably not have to struggle financially in the future.

Thinking about it, Huang felt pretty good; the third son had suffered first and then enjoyed the sweetness.

After taking a shower and enjoying a local specialty meal, the elderly couple started chatting.

Wang Caixia is extremely satisfied with her current life. Apart from the occasional troublesome clown, she is truly not dissatisfied with anything else.

Of course, Wang Caixia wasn't one to keep her mouth shut. During their casual conversation, she went on to tell everyone about how some officials' wives wanted to marry off the daughters of their extended families to Zhao Changgeng as concubines.

Even worse, they used public opinion to say that Wang Caixia was a jealous woman who, despite her advanced age and fading beauty, insisted on keeping the prefect from taking a concubine, and so on.

If they had a jealous wife like that in their family, they would have divorced her long ago.

After hearing this, Madam Huang glared at her son and said, "You can't even handle such a small matter? You're a useless prefect."

It's all your fault that these rumors have spread.

You should firmly refuse the first suggestion that you take a concubine.

Taking concubines is not allowed. This is not only a matter of ancestral precepts, but also a matter of your responsibility as a man.

Wang has been with you since your humble beginnings.

A beautiful young woman, married into our family, will work hard without complaint, bear your children, manage the household, be filial to her parents-in-law, and be friendly to her neighbors.

Such a good wife is hard to find even with a lantern.

And what have you done? Do you really think you're something special just because you've become a prefect? ​​Are you already thinking about having multiple wives?

Let me tell you, you'd better put out that little flame in your heart right now.

Don't tell me you got where you are today through hard work.

Without my dear daughter's financial support, could you have made this place, where you eat sand the whole way, as good as it is now?

Are you dreaming?

My third son is still my daughter's biological father, and he hasn't dared to be unfaithful.

When it comes to getting rid of those flashy, cheap women, you really need to learn from your third brother.

Anyone who offered to act as matchmaker was immediately turned down. There was absolutely no room for compromise.

If he hadn't met the eldest princess, and if the eldest princess hadn't had a good relationship with Gua Nan and her brother, the third son probably wouldn't have agreed to the marriage.

You say you're the oldest among your brothers, but when it comes to avoiding suspicion, you're not as good as your two younger brothers.

I need to get this matter under control for my mother by tomorrow.

"I'm giving you three days. If these rumors persist within three days, I'll be sure to give you a good beating with a feather duster."

Huang was practically saying, "If you're so capable of becoming a prefect, I'm capable of sending you back to your hometown to farm."

Zhao Changgeng felt very wronged. He was a new official and had neglected many trivial matters.

However, my mother is right. It was indeed because of him that I didn't immediately and firmly oppose taking a concubine.

Reflect on this: Have you really gotten a little too cocky? Are you thinking of taking a concubine?

The thought lingered in Zhao Changgeng's mind for a moment before he quickly dismissed it; it was too terrifying.

If a little devil really comes back into the family, not only will the family be doomed, but his old back will also suffer.

The older you get, the more you need to take care of your health, otherwise you'll have so many grandchildren waiting for you to hold them.

Now Zhao Changgeng is thinking about making more achievements during his tenure.

If he conquers that entire desert, his achievement will be immense.

Because of their contributions to desertification control, their whole family was promoted, which is the best proof of that.

While Zhao Changgeng was still trying to control the water in his head, a servant announced that there was something urgent at the front office.

The things that happened at the former government office were quite absurd.

This is a case submitted by the county magistrate.

Lin Kun, a herdsman, married a woman surnamed Hong. They have been married for over ten years and have three sons.

One day, it was unexpectedly discovered that the three sons all looked remarkably like the neighbor from Hong's maternal family.

Lin Kun became suspicious and began to observe. He discovered that Hong was indeed having an affair with her neighbor from her maternal family, and he also overheard that none of the three children were his biological children.

Overwhelmed with grief, Lin Kun argued with the two men, only to be brutally beaten and even threatened with murder.

Just as Hong and her lover were about to commit murder, a group of children heard the commotion and came running.

Seeing Lin Kun lying in the reeds by the river with his face covered in blood, they screamed and alerted the villagers.

Lin Kun escaped a terrible fate because of this.

Of course, Lin Kun couldn't just let the adulterous couple reveal their affair as soon as they were able to speak.

According to common practice, someone who commits such a morally reprehensible act should naturally be drowned in a pond or submerged in a pig cage.

However, once the report is submitted to the yamen, the county magistrate naturally cannot sentence the person to death directly.

Lin Kun did not insist on killing the adulterous couple; instead, he demanded that they pay him compensation.

Over the past ten years, every penny spent raising three children has been meticulously calculated.

Of course, this was also thanks to Lin Kun's years of private school education and his habit of keeping accounts.

Therefore, when it comes to calculating accounts, they are very logical and reasonable.

This compensation is not just money for raising someone else's son; it also includes all the gifts and betrothal gifts sent to the Hong family over the years.

Because none of the children born to Mrs. Hong were his biological children, it delayed his time to hold his son and grandson.

This also delayed his son's time to earn money to support the family, and this time difference should be compensated accordingly.

After calculating it this way, Lin Kun finally came up with a bill of over five hundred taels.

Moreover, their calculations were reasonable and well-founded, and they didn't cheat anyone at all.

The ledger is over there.

How could Hong's maternal family possibly help her pay compensation? They subsequently severed all kinship ties.

The adulterer and his entire family were involved, and the wife immediately filed for divorce, taking her dowry and returning to her parents' home.

The Qi family immediately split up, resulting in Qi Qi losing everything and ending up with nothing.

Losing money? What's the match? Does fate match?

The county magistrate didn't care whether they had severed ties or separated their families; these things all happened before they severed ties or separated their families.

Then the Hong family and the Qi family must jointly pay compensation.

If you don't have money, borrow it. If you don't want to borrow, just confiscate your property and sell your assets.

All of it was enforced. In the end, there was still a considerable amount of money missing, so the county magistrate took it upon himself to sell Hong Shi, Qi Quan, and their three illegitimate children.

After all that, the Hong family was left penniless and without any means of survival.

So, they started making a scene. The county magistrate was ruthless, so they went to the prefect to settle the matter. Everyone said the prefect was the kindest person.

This eventually led to Zhao Changgeng's involvement.

However, appealing to a higher authority would result in being punished with fifty strokes of the cane.

The drum in front of the yamen was sounded, so the stick had to be used to strike.

But who should they beat? Neither the Qi family nor the Hong family wanted to be beaten, so they started arguing in the front office.