Thinking of this, he stopped what he was doing and looked Cheng Qingyan and Jiang Jiang up and down.

I breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that there were no signs of a fight between the two women.

Cheng Qingyan stepped forward, threw the rag in Ye Lingyu's hand onto the stool, and led her aside.

“Do you know about Meng Aji’s family? I went to look for him today, and neither he nor Chen Sheng received their wages.”

"Moreover, Meng Aji got beaten up for helping us carry things!"

These words startled Ye Lingyu. Had her relationship with Cheng Qingyan and the villagers deteriorated to this extent?

It wasn't until Cheng Qingyan recounted the general events to her that she understood.

Things weren't as she thought, which made things much easier.

As far as she knew, there must be a reason why Meng Aji didn't cause trouble with those scoundrels.

"I had heard before that his mother was bedridden. I suppose he was worried about her and wanted to settle things peacefully."

No wonder the village chief wanted her to take care of Meng Aji; it turns out his family was struggling financially.

However, the village chief was also at fault for not explaining things clearly. It was also her own fault for being careless and forgetting about this matter.

"Then, my wife, are we just going to let this matter go like this?"

Ye Lingyu looked up at Cheng Qingyan: "Count? Count what? Meng Aji was hired by you, and now he's been beaten up for no reason. Isn't that a slap in your face?"

"If we didn't know who did it, that would be one thing. But now that we know, do you think just anyone can slap your face?"

Cheng Qingyan grinned mischievously, "Hehehe, my face is only for my wife to slap~"

Ye Lingyu pinched her: "What nonsense are you talking about? Jiang Jiang and Hongyu are here, be careful~"

"Okay, I got it~"

Now that her wife has spoken, she can lead her men to cause trouble!

They found Meng Jia and Meng Dazhuang at the patrol team, and then brought five other people, making a group of eight, and headed towards Meng Aji's house.

While the injury is still on my face and so severe, of course I want as many people as possible to know.

Upon arriving at Meng Aji's house, Cheng Qingyan knocked on the door and went inside alone.

The small courtyard was much smaller than her and Ye Lingyu's small courtyard.

It was cleaned up fairly well, and a vegetable patch was planted.

There was a medicinal smell in the yard, which wasn't pleasant.

On the stove next to the kitchen, medicine was still simmering, bubbling and emitting white smoke.

"Sorry to bother you, Brother Aji. I've come back this time to talk to you about something."

Meng Aji was a little flustered, and even forgot to invite Cheng Qingyan into the house: "What is it you want?"

"I wonder if Brother Aji would be willing to come and help me look after the fishpond. The daily wage is the same as what you get working in town."

Meng Aji licked his lips and asked uncertainly, "You want me to watch over the fishpond? The pay is the same as working in town?"

"Yes, but I don't know if Brother Aji is willing."

Meng Aji asked with some doubt, "Are you sure? Do you know about my family situation? I—"

Cheng Qingyan raised her hand to interrupt him: "I know all that. I happen to have a friend who is a doctor. She is highly skilled in medicine. I will have someone bring her over tomorrow."

"Perhaps she has a way to treat your mother."

Meng Aji did not immediately agree; there's no such thing as a free lunch.

Based on his experience working there for so long, it's highly likely that what fell down was a trap.

If he agrees to Cheng Qingyan's request, and Cheng Qingyan no longer needs him, he can go back to work in town, and those old customers will leave.

He needed to weigh the pros and cons, since it concerned his mother's money for medicine.

Seeing that he was still hesitating, Cheng Qingyan brought up Meng Qiuliang.

"If you don't trust me, you can ask the village chief to act as guarantor, and I can also pay you a year's wages in advance."

"As long as you don't make any mistakes during your work, the fishpond will remain, and you'll stay."

Chen Sheng's voice came from the doorway: "Aji, say yes to her."

"I'll pay you a year's wages upfront. What's there to hesitate about with such a good deal?"

Meng Aji looked at Chen Sheng with difficulty: "Brother Sheng..."

Chen Sheng patted Meng Aji on the shoulder: "Cheng San, she can't just fill in her own fishpond just to fire you."

Cheng Qingyan nodded to Chen Sheng: "Brother Chen, how about you and Brother Aji come work at the fishpond together? Your wages will be the same as Aji's for the time being."

Unexpectedly, he only heard from his wife that there were some people standing at the door of Meng Aji's house. When he came to take a look, he met Cheng Qingyan who brought him the work.

After a moment's thought, Chen Sheng rejected Cheng Qingyan's proposal: "Cheng San, if you're only hiring me because you feel bad about Aji's matter and think I'm on good terms with him, then I can't accept this job."

"Although I, Chen Sheng, am not literate, I do understand some fundamental principles."

"I'm sorry I can't be a burden to my brother."

Unexpectedly, Chen Sheng thought that way, and Cheng Qingyan smiled: "Brother Chen, you didn't quarrel with your sister-in-law just now, did you?"

Chen Sheng frowned: "Of course not, she asked me to come and check on Aji."

Cheng Qingyan nodded: "That's it. You and your husband are both good people. I hired you to work at the fishpond not entirely because of Meng Aji."

“I have more than one fishpond, and I need to patrol at night. It’s not enough for Meng Aji to do it all by himself.”

"Instead of hiring someone who doesn't know Brother Aji very well, it would be more suitable for you, Brother Chen."

“You’ve known each other for a long time, and you know about Aji’s family situation. You two shouldn’t have any conflicts.”

Convinced, Chen Sheng subconsciously nodded in agreement: "That's true. Aji and I have known each other since we were kids."

"So, you two brothers, this means you agree?"

Working near home and being able to take care of her elderly mother, Meng Aji was naturally willing to do so.

Needless to say, Chen Sheng looked at Meng Aji, who smiled, and he nodded in response.

That's settled then.

This resolved a troublesome matter and fulfilled the village chief's instructions.

The village chief once praised Meng Aji, saying that the boy was kind and good-natured.

Cheng Qingyan also expressed his approval of what had happened in the past two days.

"By the way, what are those people standing at the door doing? They seem quite menacing."

When Chen Sheng asked, Meng Aji didn't know either, so they could only look at Cheng Qingyan.

Cheng Qingyan slapped his forehead, realizing he had almost forgotten the important matter.

"Brother Aji, wash off the plaster on your face first, then I'll take you to vent your anger."

Meng Aji blinked and said timidly, "Maybe we should just forget about it, they've already started fighting."

Chen Sheng slapped him: "You little rascal, you don't have to be afraid now. Come on, let's go beat him up!"

Previously, he had no one to support him and was also worried that his mother would be bullied.

Now that I have someone to back me up, why should I swallow my anger?

Cheng Qingyan, along with Meng Aji and Chen Sheng, plus several members of the patrol team, set off in a large group to find the men who had beaten Meng Aji.