Chapter 73 The second time!
When Vice Minister Song saw Li Nanke, he became even more furious.
"What nonsense are you spouting now?"
Li Nanke ignored him, handed a stack of papers to Song Yi, and said loudly, "Mother, look quickly, this is what I asked Lord Wei to help me investigate at the Bianjing government office."
Of the ten shops left by my maternal grandmother, five were registered under the name of my maternal grandmother in the Zhang family, and the other five were registered under the name of my aunt.
The same goes for the hundred mu of paddy fields; half are under my aunt's name, and the other half are under my maternal grandmother's name.
As soon as the words were spoken, both Madam Zhang and Vice Minister Song's expressions changed.
The chatter of the onlookers abruptly ceased, and everyone turned to look at Zhang, which then sparked an even louder discussion.
"Good heavens, isn't this tantamount to embezzling someone else's mother's dowry?"
"Not only did he keep it for himself, but he also gave half to his own daughter and kept the other half for himself."
"Everyone says stepmothers are wicked, and that's certainly true."
“Since ancient times, if there is a stepmother, there will be a stepfather. I don’t believe that Minister Song is completely unaware of this matter.”
The chatter among the crowd reached the ears of Vice Minister Song, whose expression immediately turned even more unpleasant.
He glared at Li Nanke as if he wanted to devour her alive.
Li Nanke cried out in surprise and hid behind Song Yi, timidly peeking out half of her head, her voice trembling with tears.
"Mommy, I'm so scared! Grandpa's eyes are so frightening!"
All eyes turned to Minister Song.
Minister Song was so angry that his chest felt like it was about to explode.
This brat is scared?
If she had known she was afraid, she wouldn't have taken out those things.
Song Yi instinctively shielded her daughter behind her, her hands clenched into fists.
The voice had lost some of its sobbing and gained a touch of coldness.
"Now that the evidence is laid out before us, what explanation does Father have? It was clearly my mother's shop and land, how did it become my sister's dowry?"
Could it be that Madam Zhang bought my mother's shop with her own money?
Song Shilang's expression shifted constantly, his hands trembling with anger as they were hidden in his sleeves.
The more we try to explain, the more confused things become; we absolutely cannot let this affect his reputation.
He quickly weighed the options in his mind, and without any hesitation, he slapped Zhang across the face.
"You vile woman, what exactly happened? Tell me!"
"You told me back then that all these shops were losing money and couldn't keep operating, and that the village head was causing trouble. Were you lying to me all of that?"
With a roar, Vice Minister Song slammed his hand, brimming with anger, onto Madam Zhang's face.
*Smack*
The sudden slap knocked Zhang's head to the side, causing her to stagger twice before falling heavily onto the steps in front of the Song family's house with a thud.
Her hair was disheveled and fell across her face, obscuring half of her shocked and aggrieved gaze.
Her eyes widened as she stared at Minister Song in disbelief.
Are they pushing her out to take the blame again?
This is the second time!
This matter was clearly decided after the two of them discussed it back then.
He said that since Han had married into the Song family and was now dead, her dowry should belong to the Song family.
He said that Song Yi was dull and not shrewd enough, and that if she married into the Marquis's family, the Song family would have little leverage over her, and giving them too much dowry would be a waste.
He said that Hui'er was marrying into a poor family, and since the Zhao family was poor, they should give Hui'er more dowry so that she wouldn't suffer in her husband's family.
It was clearly him who brought it up first; otherwise, as her second wife, even if she wanted to, she wouldn't dare to do it openly.
Now they're making her bear the consequences alone, why should she?
Once again, Madam Zhang experienced the frustration and anger that Madam Qian felt before her death, and with trembling hands, she pointed at Vice Minister Song.
Her voice was shrill, "Song Cheng, it's clearly you..."
"Shut up!"
Vice Minister Song stepped forward and slapped him again, shouting angrily.
"You viperous woman, if I had known you were so heartless, I should never have married you in the first place."
"If I had known you would do such a thing, I would never have entrusted you with the dowry left by the Han family."
I never imagined you would take advantage of my trust and deceive me. I... I was so blind!
Zhang's cheeks swelled up at a visible speed, with five clear finger marks on each side of her face.
The burning sensation not only made her face hurt, but also deeply pierced her heart.
She never expected that her husband would let her take all the blame without any hesitation at this moment.
This is different from the other day when they coaxed Song Cheng into forcing Song Yi to write a letter of repentance and demand money.
If something happens at home, she can just accept it; if it gets out, there's still room for explanation.
But now, under the watchful eyes of everyone, if she admits to embezzling the original wife's dowry, her reputation will plummet, and Song Cheng will divorce her without hesitation.
Zhang was unwilling to take the blame, but she didn't dare to accuse Song Cheng as angrily as she had before.
She could only cover her face, swallow her grievances and resentment, and vehemently deny it.
"No, that's not how it works. Who knows if the contract she brought is real or fake?"
Song Yi sneered.
"If Madam has any doubts, we can go directly to the Bianjing government office to verify it again, but I wonder if Madam dares to do so?"
Zhang's eyes flickered; of course, she dared not.
Just then, a slightly hurried voice came from behind.
"What happened? Mother, what's wrong?"
Song Hui pushed through the crowd and walked in. When she saw Zhang Shi, who was in a disheveled state, her expression changed.
He quickly stepped forward to help Zhang up.
When Zhang saw Song Hui, it was as if she had found her pillar of support, and she immediately collapsed.
While crying, she said aggrievedly, "You've come at the right time. Quickly, try to persuade your sister."
She somehow found a dowry list and contract, and with no evidence whatsoever, she tried to falsely accuse me of misappropriating her own mother's dowry.
Your father... he misunderstands me too, this... this is practically driving me to my death.
Madam Zhang wept bitterly.
Song Hui's pupils contracted slightly as she turned to meet Song Yi's cold, icy gaze, and her heart skipped a beat.
In just a few days, Song Yi seemed to have become a different person, causing the unease that had surfaced in her a few days ago to resurface.
She forced herself to suppress her unease, gently squeezed Zhang's hand, sighed, and explained to Song Yi.
"Sister, you've really wronged Mother. You were raised by Mother, and her love for you has always been evident to everyone."
How could your mother possibly keep your own mother's dowry?
After Song Hui arrived, Song Yi tensed up and subconsciously gripped Li Nanke's hand tightly.
She hadn't forgotten that she had been poisoned by strychnine, and that Zhou's mother had hanged herself as soon as she found out about it.
She had thought about it a lot these past two days, and with Ke'er's guidance, she now knew that the one who really wanted to harm her was Song Hui.
Song Hui was even more ruthless than she had imagined.
So she was a little panicked, but she took a deep breath to calm herself down and shook the contract in her hand.
"Then how do you explain these deeds? Why did half of my mother's dowry become your dowry and the other half became your mother's dowry?"
Song Hui blinked and smiled calmly.
"These were all gifts that my sister voluntarily gave to Mother and me. Sister, have you forgotten them?"
Song Yi's expression changed.
"You're talking nonsense. When did I voluntarily give it to you?"
Song Hui sighed and began to speak with an air of seriousness.
"That was eight years ago..."
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