Chapter 85

85

Shen Yunfeng had previously guessed that Cheng Yeran had traveled through time and space and liked him, so he made a series of plans. However, before these plans could be realized, he was locked up at home by his mother-in-law.

The reason was that after Shen Yuntang's family started selling dried tofu, his mother-in-law still asked him to bring back dried tofu from the Cheng family as he did before.

In the past, he did not get the tofu for free. Instead, he bought it with his own pocket money. He did not buy tofu every day, and it was only one cent a piece, so he did not worry about his money being spent.

But later, when he sold dried tofu, his mother-in-law asked him to bring back more every time, more than ten or twenty yuan at a time, and he also wanted the large dried tofu that cost ten cents a piece. His money could not last long.

He did the math and decided to save some money for himself. Besides, his mother-in-law had never changed her attitude towards him because of the free tofu. Once, he was a little late when he came back from buying tofu and was slapped by his mother-in-law.

He also understood that his mother-in-law was an ungrateful person who was not worth spending money on, so he told her that he couldn't get the tofu for free.

When the mother-in-law heard that he was of no use to her, she locked him up at home and told him not to go out again, to stay at home and do housework, and not to go out and seduce men.

The mother-in-law always said that her cousin was a restless person. He must have seen some advantages in the lazy man's family, so he deliberately seduced the lazy man to marry him and abandoned their Xia Xiaowu. She said that he was the same as her cousin, always running away and you never know who he would seduce.

He lived a life where he had to get up every day and wash endless dishes, clothes, and do endless housework.

Today is another exception. His mother-in-law went to visit relatives in the next village, so he could relax and sneak out for a walk.

He originally wanted to go out and relax, but he saw his cousin and Cheng Yeran coming back, dressed so brightly and beautifully, which made him so angry that his teeth itched.

Xia Xiaowu didn't take him with him when he went to the county town before, so why should his cousin have the opportunity to go to the county town to accompany Cheng Yeran to study?

Cheng Yeran didn’t study in his previous life, why did he start studying in this life?

After the Chinese New Year, Cheng Yeran said he was going to the county town to study, but he didn't believe it. Even when he saw Cheng Yeran and Shen Yuntang leaving the county town, he thought that the two were going to set up stalls to do business.

No matter how big a business is, it is not as good as being an official. In the future, he will be an official's wife, and Shen Yuntang will just be the husband of a merchant. No matter how you look at it, he is the winner.

Thinking of this, he no longer felt how hard his life was, and that he would eventually reap the rewards of his hard work.

But one time, his mother-in-law and father-in-law went to the county town to do some business and sent some things to Xia Xiaowu. Shen Yunfeng heard that his mother-in-law and father-in-law were going to see Xia Xiaowu, and he also said that he wanted to go and see him, as he hadn't seen his husband for a long time.

But his mother-in-law spat at him, saying that he was shameless and thought about men all day long, and punished him by not allowing him to eat dinner at night.

Later, after his mother-in-law and father-in-law came back, he found out that Cheng Yeran had really gone to study and was studying in the same academy as Xia Xiaowu.

The whole Xia family was shocked. They didn’t expect that the lazy man from the Cheng family would actually go to study? Is it because of him that you go to school?

If Cheng Yeran was also reborn, he should know that Xia Xiaowu was a county magistrate in his previous life. In order to surpass Xia Xiaowu and snatch him away, he also wanted to be a county magistrate, right?

But why should we take Shen Yuntang to the county town? Is it to be his substitute? After all, he looks so similar to his cousin, and he was the husband of a lazy man in his previous life. If he can't get him in this life, it is possible to get him by using his cousin, who looks similar, as a substitute.

He felt much better when he thought about it this way, but he didn't think Cheng Yeran could be an official. Based on Cheng Yeran's ability, everything would be in vain. If his cousin knew that he was just a substitute, would he go crazy? He wanted to find his cousin so much that he told him the news immediately.

But Cheng Yeran and Shen Yuntang didn't even see Shen Yunfeng in the crowd.

There was nothing big happening in the village. If something happened in someone's family, many people would go to watch the fun. When Cheng Yeran and his friends came back, they were also surrounded by people. They did not go back to their own homes, but went to Shen Yuntang's parents' home.

Their house was rented to their second brother's family. Even though he was the landlord, he couldn't kick the tenants out just because they came home to stay for a few days. The second brother also had to run a tofu business, so it would not be convenient for him to move out for a few days for them.

They returned to Shen Yuntang's home and could temporarily live in the house where Shen Yuntang lived before she got married.

Although the room is not big, it was occupied by two cousins ​​before, and now it can also accommodate him and Cheng Yeran.

There were no telephones in their time, so they had no way to notify others in advance before returning, but their parents happened to be at home, and when they saw them return, they warmly welcomed them in.

The eldest sister-in-law even killed a chicken and stewed it for them. Shen Yuntang saw that the eldest sister-in-law was already pregnant. It had been nearly five months since they got married during the Chinese New Year, and she was four months pregnant. I heard that it was twins.

Seeing that he was cooking even though he was pregnant, Shen Yuntang hurried over and said she would do it herself.

Mother also told my sister-in-law to go and rest, as there was no need for her to come to the kitchen to cook.

The eldest sister-in-law said that thanks to Cheng Yeran and Shen Yuntang giving them the tofu and soy flour business, the family's situation has improved, they have saved a lot of money, and they even renovated the house a few days ago. She would feel uncomfortable if she didn't do something.

Later, they finally persuaded their sister-in-law to rest, and Shen Yuntang and his mother went to the kitchen to cook.

Cheng Yeran was called by Shen's father to drink. Cheng Yeran quickly brewed the tea he brought back. "Every time I drink too much, Shen Yuntang has to take care of me. Let's drink tea. I brought this tea back from the county town. It smells good. I brought it back for you to taste."

"The purpose of marrying a husband is to take care of you. You don't have to worry about him." Father Shen said that he liked to drink a little on weekdays. He had a good alcohol tolerance and would not get drunk easily. If he was drunk, he would just go back to his room and sleep all night. He would not disturb others or delay his work. He could not empathize with Cheng Yeran who would act crazy when drunk.

"I feel sorry for him. I would rather quit drinking than let him suffer for me." Cheng Yeran said as he poured tea for Father Shen, "Drinking tea is healthier than drinking alcohol. At your age, it's better to drink less."

"Okay, let's have tea today." When Mr. Shen heard that he felt sorry for Shen Yuntang and that they had such a good relationship, he was happy in his heart and was willing to listen to his advice.

In the kitchen, the mother knew that Shen Yuntang was not pregnant yet as soon as she saw him. "Have you finished the medicine your father gave you last time?"

“What medicine?

Nanxi

"Shen Yuntang had forgotten that his mother suspected that Cheng Yeran had health problems and could not have children, and she went to the next village to get medicine.

After that incident, there was a rumor in the village that Cheng Yeran was in poor health and could not have children.

Even when Cheng Yeran took Shen Yuntang to the county town to study, some people speculated whether Cheng Yeran hid in the county town because he was afraid of the gossip from villagers saying that he could not have children? After all, no one in the county knew him, so the secret could be kept, and he wouldn't be embarrassed in front of others.

"My child, you are really not anxious at all. Look at your eldest sister-in-law. She got pregnant just one month after getting married. Now it's been four months. And your second sister-in-law also got pregnant last month." Mother Shen sighed, "How can you not have a child? You have to give birth to at least one. Otherwise, you can also find a doctor to see. If that doesn't work, you can adopt one."

Shen Yuntang then remembered the misunderstanding, "We are fine, we are just too busy recently and don't have time to have a child. He is in good health."

Shen Yuntang felt embarrassed to tell his mother about Cheng Yeran's health, so he went to cut vegetables with a red face to cover up his embarrassment.

"What are you busy with?" Shen's mother asked him, "What are you doing this time? You can't continue studying in the academy and want to come back, right? If you are embarrassed to ask your second brother to take back the house, I will go and talk to them this afternoon. After all, it is your house, and it is only natural for you to take it back. You also gave him the recipe for making tofu, which is a favor to them. If they don't know how to repay your kindness and still want to occupy your house, they are really bad people. I must beat this kid up."

"The house has been rented to my second brother, how can I come back?" Shen Yuntang saw his mother so excited and quickly comforted her, "I will stay for three days this time and then leave."

"Don't put yourself in a difficult position just because you're embarrassed. Even if his business in the city isn't doing well, or he's not well educated, it's okay if he wants to come back. There's nothing to be ashamed of." Mother Shen knew that he often said one thing and meant another. He was embarrassed to say what he wanted to do, and even more embarrassed to do it, so he needed her, his mother, to help him.

"We came back this time because we are short of manpower. We wanted to ask my cousins ​​from my uncle's family for help and ask them if they are willing to go to the county town with me." Shen Yuntang told his mother what had happened in the past few months.

It took the mother a long time to recover from her shock. "You said Cheng Yeran opened a noodle shop for you? He is so good to you?"

Mother Shen was even more certain that this was Cheng Yeran's compensation to Shen Yuntang for not being able to have children. If there was no child, then there was no child. At least her husband was good to her, and she had money to rely on. It would be the same to adopt a child in the future.

"What is a sausage?" Shen's mother thought of what Shen Yuntang had just mentioned, "Is it so delicious? Do you still need to come back and ask someone to help?"

"I brought back some this time." Shen Yuntang opened the sausage he brought back, cut a piece for his mother, and let her taste it.

"What is this made of? It smells really good." Mother Shen thought it was something similar to dried tofu. There were enough people to make dried tofu back then, so why don't they have enough people to make this now?

But after she tasted it, she found that this one tasted better than the previous tofu. The previous tofu tasted like meat, but this one had the taste of real meat. "It's delicious, but something happened at your uncle's house recently. I'm afraid it's not convenient for you to go there."

"What happened?" Shen Yuntang asked worriedly.

"Your cousin was molested before. Although he was only pulled on the arm and his clothes were torn off, the thug was caught and locked up by the village chief. But your cousin will never be able to get married. Unless he marries the person who molested him, he will have to stay at home for the rest of his life."

"How could such a thing happen?" Shen Yuntang was furious. On the one hand, he hated the bad guy, but on the other hand, he felt sorry for his cousin. How could he encounter such a terrible thing?

The laws here stipulate that if a person who molests a boy or a girl is sent to the government, he will be beheaded. Although the punishment is severe, the boy or girl who is molested must commit suicide for the sake of their reputation. If they do not report to the government, each village has different village rules. Shen's mother told him that they will not take people's lives, but just whip them.

If my cousin chooses to let that person be punished according to the village rules and be whipped forty times, then my cousin must promise not to marry in his life. If the matter is not pursued, he can marry, but everyone in the village will know about it, and no one will marry him, unless he marries the person who molested him.

Shen Yuntang clenched his fists in anger. This world was so unfair. It wasn't his cousin's fault, but in the end, the person who was most affected was his cousin.

The same thing happened after he was reborn. He had to marry the lazy man just because they fell into the river together. Although his final ending was good, how many people in the world can have such a good ending? Why should the fate of boys and girls be controlled by others and oppressed by chastity, as if they were put in shackles and have to live in these shackles for the rest of their lives?

He was just getting angry when he heard his mother say, "And your cousin, didn't she get married two years ago? But that short-lived girl died last month, and she didn't give birth to a child. Her fields and house were taken away by her husband's family, so she had to move back to her parents' home. Your brother and sister-in-law don't want her to live in her parents' home and want to find her a new family to remarry. She doesn't want to and is making a scene at home. Your uncle is having a headache because of your cousins, and he's a face-saver. If you go over now and see their family's ugly deeds, he'll definitely be annoyed with you. Otherwise, you should look at other people and choose someone from the Cheng family's relatives. That way, it'll look good and outsiders won't say you're subsidizing your parents' home."

"My maternal family is my family. Apart from my husband, Yuanbao and Tugen, the rest of the Cheng family are strangers who have nothing to do with me. Why should I support them?" Shen Yuntang felt that his reputation of supporting his maternal family had spread, and he was no longer afraid of anything.

In the evening, Cheng Yeran went back to his room with him. This room was the room where Shen Yuntang lived when he was a child. Cheng Yeran was very curious and couldn't help looking around. He was picking up a small cloth tiger on the windowsill and wanted to ask him if it was the doll he hugged to sleep when he was a child, when he saw Shen Yuntang with a sad face.

"What happened?" Cheng Yeran asked him, holding his hand.

Shen Yuntang told Cheng Yeran everything his mother had told him in the afternoon.

Cheng Yeran didn't expect such a big thing to happen in his uncle's family. His cousins ​​were both very pitiful, and the man who molested his cousin was disgusting. Cheng Yeran looked at the gloomy Shen Yuntang and asked him, "What do you want to do?"

"I want to take them away." Shen Yuntang asked him worriedly, "But everyone says they have a bad reputation. Are you willing to let me take them away?"

"They are victims, how can I despise them?" Cheng Yeran scolded the bad guy, "It's better not to stay in this village. The village rules are so stupid, whoever wants to abide by them can do so."

Cheng Yeran suddenly remembered that Shen Yuntang had a similar experience before. Because she lost her "reputation", she had to marry someone she didn't love. He pulled Shen Yuntang over and hugged her. "It's not my fault. It's the rules of this world that are wrong. Let's take our cousins ​​away and leave here. Let them live better and better in the future and piss off those people in the village."

When Shen Yuntang heard this, he chuckled. The first part of his words was quite serious, but the second part was a bit childish. However, he was right. It would be best for my cousins ​​to leave this village and their mother's home.