Chapter 42 No Face
Zhang Guangzong didn't know that Gu Mingda had not gone out for the past two days to avoid the disaster, but he believed it. Although he was jealous of Gu Mingda, he had always recognized Gu Mingda's abilities and felt that with Gu Mingda's communication skills, he might be able to find a tenant easily.
"I'll rent this house. No need to look for anyone else!" Zhang Guangzong no longer had his previous leisurely look and rushed to book the house.
Mrs. Qian was frightened by the couple's nitpicking, and still a little worried, she said: "Young man, have you really thought it through? I won't reduce the rent, nor will I provide you with hot water and meals. If you agree, you can't regret it!"
Zhang Guangzong was tired, but still said, "I won't regret it."
Gu Mingda watched from the side. Zhang Guangzong paid the rent reluctantly and then ran as fast as he could as if there was a ghost chasing him.
As soon as Zhang Guangzong entered the room, he immediately sat down on a chair and acted like a hands-off boss.
Little Cai had long been accustomed to his behavior and began to pack her luggage with all her heart.
The previous tenant of this house was Wang Yaozu. When he and Mrs. Wang left, they made the house a mess. Mrs. Qian just cleaned it up casually and went out to look for a new tenant.
When making the bed, Xiao Cai was tidying up the messy sheets when she suddenly found a piece of paper sticking out of the bed board. She lifted the bed board with force and took up the paper. She was illiterate, so she handed it to Zhang Guangzong as if offering a treasure: "My husband, there is a piece of paper on the bed. Take a look at what is written on it."
Unexpectedly, Zhang Guangzong flew into a rage when he saw the paper: "You left such vicious words after checking out! You won't be able to pass the exam, and neither will your whole family!"
There were only six words written on the paper, but they hurt Zhang Guangzong's eyes.
"Those who live in this house will fail in the imperial examination."
For a scholar taking an imperial examination, such words were almost equivalent to cursing the entire family and could create a mortal enemy.
The previous tenant of this house, Wang Yaozu, left with resentment. He not only resented Liu Xiaoru, but also resented the landlord Qian Pozi. Before leaving, he deliberately left this piece of paper to disgust people, hoping that the new tenant would have a quarrel with Qian Pozi.
Zhang Guangzong was so angry that he tore the paper into pieces. Still not satisfied, he slapped Xiao Cai in the face and scolded her, "You give me everything to look at, you stupid woman!"
Little Cai covered her face and trembled. Out of fear for her husband, she could only apologize pitifully and asked, "After seeing this kind of thing, shouldn't we go and settle the score with Mrs. Qian?"
Zhang Guangzong was stunned, but looking at the torn papers on the ground, he realized that the important evidence had been destroyed, so what could he figure out now?
Zhang Guangzong acted impulsively, but he never blamed himself. Instead, he kicked Little Cai hard and scolded, "Why didn't you remind me earlier? What's the point of saying this now?"
Xiao Cai was beaten but dared not say anything. After Niuniu passed away, she became Zhang Guangzong's punching bag.
They were kicked out of the inn before, and it was clearly Zhang Guangzong's fault, but Zhang Guangzong scolded her all the way and thought it was all her fault.
"What are you still standing there for? The bed hasn't been made yet? You, woman, just know how to be lazy every day. You can't even do such a small thing! I'm tired after a day's work. Can't you let me rest early?" Zhang Guangzong scolded.
Little Cai didn't dare to continue thinking about it, she lowered her head and quickly made the bed.
Zhang Guangzong lay down on the bed, pulled the quilt over him, and before going to sleep he instructed, "Make some meat soup. My mouth is very dry, so I want to have some soup."
Thinking of the couple's almost empty wallets, Xiao Cai wanted to persuade them, but she was afraid that Zhang Guangzong would take action, so she could only nod aggrievedly.
Zhang Guangzong felt that everything had gone wrong since he entered this courtyard. If he were in the past, he would definitely not be foolish enough to tear up the paper. He would definitely make a big fuss and blackmail the old woman.
He was obviously very tired, but he couldn't fall asleep because he was thinking about all these messy things.
Little Cai was packing her luggage very quietly, but every move she made sounded like the beating of drums and gongs to his ears.
"You stupid woman, are you going to stop me until I die? Get out!" Zhang Guangzong cursed.
Little Cai paused. Although she felt aggrieved, she did not dare to refute. After grabbing a handful of copper coins, she walked out carefully.
Without his wife's voice, the room became quiet, but Zhang Guangzong still tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep.
Sometimes he felt that the window was too bright, sometimes he felt that there was a musty smell in the room, and even the noise of people playing in the yard sounded like needles pricking his ears.
"It would be great if I hadn't been kicked out of the inn." Zhang Guangzong muttered to himself. He still felt that the inn was more comfortable than a private house.
Thinking of this, his expression became fierce again, and he said, "When I pass the exam to become a scholar, I will severely punish that family in the inn!"
Since he couldn't sleep, he simply sat up from the bed, picked up a book and started reading.
Coincidentally, the person who had been unable to fall asleep before suddenly felt sleepy after picking up the book.
Zhang Guangzong, who had originally planned to read a book, lay down again after he felt sleepy, and skillfully coaxed himself in his heart: "I am too tired from moving today, I will read the book seriously after I wake up."
Little Cai was walking out of the house carrying an empty basket. She happened to meet a few women walking together at the gate. She saw at a glance that the person surrounded by the women in the center was Zhang Yunniang with Niuniu.
Little Cai had just arrived at the house and was completely clueless about the surrounding situation. She was worried about where to buy vegetables and meat.
She immediately forgot the painful memories of being beaten up by her elder sister-in-law several times, and approached with a shameless face: "Sister, do you want to go out to buy groceries? I'll go with you!"
Madam Qi lived next door to Madam Cai, and she was unaware of the rift between the two. Upon hearing this, she smiled and said, "Aren't you the newcomer? It's such a coincidence that you and Madam Yun are related."
Little Cai also had a smile on her face, and she looked very friendly, saying to everyone: "It's rare for me to meet my elder sister in the capital, so we must take care of each other."
Little Cai was still thinking in her mind whether she could take advantage of Zhang Yunniang when buying vegetables and meat later. It would be inappropriate for an elder sister-in-law to be so stingy in front of so many outsiders.
The moment Xiao Cai approached, Niu Niu was so scared that she turned her head away and buried her little head in Zhang Yunniang's shoulder. Her little body began to tremble. Obviously, because of her past in the Zhang family, Niu Niu was very afraid of seeing Xiao Cai, her former adoptive mother.
This made Zhang Yuniang very sad.
Zhang Yunniang was too lazy to care about Xiao Caishi at first, and she didn't intend to expose her family's shame. But now that Xiao Caishi was getting closer and closer, she finally couldn't help it and said, "Your husband has already said that he doesn't have a sister like me."
When the other women heard this, they all widened their eyes and looked at each other in surprise. They had not expected such a thing to happen.
Little Cai didn't expect Zhang Yunniang to be so rude. She said, "Sister, look at what you said. You can't write two Zhang characters with one stroke. My husband is your brother. It was just two angry words. Why did you keep remembering it for so long?"
Zhang Yunniang was usually gentle to her husband and children, but she never gave face to outsiders whom she looked down upon. She had wanted to save some face for Xiao Cai, but she didn't expect that this person was so rude. Her eyes fell on the red and swollen half of Xiao Cai's face:
"I'm a bit stingy. I'll remember a sentence for years, unlike you who can forget it as soon as you turn your head after getting hit on the face."
(End of this chapter)
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