Li Laosi nodded and said, "Brother Liu and I chased after him for six or seven miles, and then we saw him get into a carriage. We knew something was wrong. Later, we followed the carriage to a farm near Xindu. He went into the farm owner's courtyard, and when he came out, the person waiting for him at the gate was actually Wu Gouzi's wife, and... the two of them were very intimate!"
Wu Gouzi's wife?
Everyone was stunned and remained silent for a long time, too shocked to say anything.
Madam Cui held Jiayin in her arms and whispered to Old Lady Li, "Who is Wu Gouzi's wife?"
Old Mrs. Li sighed, "We went into the mountains because we didn't have the money to pay the toll, but a family of three in the village had saved up some money and left us behind, passing through the city gate alone. Moreover, they spoke rudely and offended everyone in the village."
Madam Cui nodded, understanding the situation.
The village chief, having already guessed what was going on, asked, "How did those two get involved? Are they trying to help outsiders plot against us?"
Li Laosi nodded and said, "The owner of that manor is surnamed Jiao. It should be the farm of the general who refused to help at the dock. The farm next door originally belonged to the Marquis of Dingbi, but now it belongs to... Madam Cui."
Everyone instinctively looked at Madam Cui, not out of suspicion, but more out of surprise.
Madam Cui looked displeased. She handed Jiayin to Old Madam Li, then sat down, intending to make things clear so that they could continue their interactions in the future.
“I didn’t mean to hide it from everyone, it’s just that my identity is a bit complicated. I am the first wife of the Marquis of Dingbei, but my relationship with the Marquis of Dingbei was not good. Not long after we got married, I lived alone in a manor outside the capital. When the capital was moved, the Marquis of Dingbei deliberately abandoned me. If it weren’t for Senior Brother Wen going back to find me, if it weren’t for meeting you all, I would have died on the road.”
She took a deep breath and continued, "A few days ago, I returned to the Marquis's residence, only to find that the Marquis of Dingbei had already remarried. I threatened to file a lawsuit with the Emperor and divorced the Marquis of Dingbei, reclaiming all of his dowry properties, including that estate. The estate next door was part of the dowry of the Marquis of Dingbei's new wife, Lady Jiao, perhaps chosen for its proximity and ease of management. I never expected that I would take back the estate belonging to the Marquis's residence."
Everyone then realized that the men felt it was extremely immoral for Marquis Dingbei to deliberately abandon his wife at the critical moment of life and death.
The women gritted their teeth, exclaiming, "Why is there not a single good man in this world!"
"That's right, he abandoned his wife while fleeing for his life, but instead used her dowry to marry a new wife!"
"That's absolutely shameless!"
Seeing that no one blamed him, Madam Cui breathed a sigh of relief and shook her head with a bitter smile.
“That’s all in the past. I don’t intend to pursue it any further. I just want to live a quiet life. But it’s clear that neither the Marquis of Dingbei nor the Jiao family can resist spitting out the fat meat in their mouths.”
After saying that, she looked at Li Laosi and said, "Wasn't that Hu Laosan sent by the Jiao family to plot against me?"
Li Laosi nodded. "We sneaked into Hu Laosan's place and overheard her talking to Wu Gouzi's wife. Apparently, the Jiao family suspects that Fu Niu is your daughter and wants to find out. Hu Laosan happened to be working as a slave in the Jiao family, so he volunteered for the job and used a self-inflicted injury to try and sneak in."
Everyone was surprised and furious. "Old Hu is such a scoundrel! Is he really helping outsiders plot against us?"
"It's a good thing we were talking about it just now, and we thought their family was really pitiful."
The village chief's face was ashen. He tapped his pipe and asked, "There were more than twenty of them together. Where did they all go? Did they really get separated, just like Hu Laosan said?"
Li Laosi was furious and said through gritted teeth.
"No, those people were sold by Wu Laosan! To save his own life, Wu Laosan secretly sold Hu Laosi and Zhang Shitou's families, along with his wife and Wu Gouzi, to work as laborers. He only took his son and Wu Gouzi's wife with him when he ran away. But on the way, his son was lost, his money was stolen, and he ended up working as a servant in the Jiao family."
The crowd was stunned, then felt a chill run down their spines.
Hu Laosan is too ruthless. Those were his brother and sister's family, more than a dozen lives, and he sold them all just to save his own and his son's lives!
He even went so far as to take advantage of Wu Gouzi's young wife...!
It's fortunate that such a person was kicked out early on; if he had stayed in the team, the grass on everyone's graves would probably be very tall by now!
The Li family was mostly angry. "Fu Niu is our child, Hu Laosan knows that, so why would he come here to pry into her background?"
Liu, the镖头 (bodyguard), replied, "According to Hu Laosan and that young wife, when your family arrived in Qingshui Village, Fu Niu was already two or three months pregnant. No one saw Fu Niu being born with their own eyes. Perhaps it was really Madam Cui who gave birth to her and then entrusted her to your family to raise."
"What a load of bull!" Old Lady Li cursed angrily. "Fu Niu is my own granddaughter. She was born in a cave during our escape from famine!"
Tao Hongying's eyes were also red, wishing that Hu Laosan was right in front of her so she could bite off a piece of his flesh to vent her anger.
After thinking for a moment, Madam Cui said to the village chief, "Uncle, Hu Laosan will be coming again tomorrow. After you've explained things clearly, I'm taking him away. I'll handle the Jiao family and the Hou family. In any case, this trouble is mine, and I will definitely give everyone an explanation."
The village chief quickly waved his hand, "Don't say that. Hu Laosan also came from our village. He probably still resents us for driving him away. We also bear some responsibility for this. You're a woman, and you've already suffered enough by having such a husband's family."
Grandma Li and Tao Hongying also tried to persuade her, "Yes, Jinrou, don't overthink it. You always dote on Fu Niu and take her everywhere you go, which is why this trouble has arisen. If you really want to blame Fu Niu for being so close to you, then are you going to blame her?"
“If someone wants to find fault with you and take the estate back, even without Fu Niu, they will find other opportunities to smear you.”
Jiayin broke free from her mother's embrace and ran to hug Madam Cui's neck.
She never expected that what she did that day—just for fun, going to Madam Cui's estate to eat and drink for free—would actually cause Madam Cui such trouble.
Holding the chubby little girl, Madam Cui tried her best to hold back the tears in her eyes, and looked up with a smile as she spoke to everyone.
"Fortunately, this matter was exposed early on, otherwise I would have been too ashamed to come here again."
"Madam, please don't say that. We've had plenty of meat and grain from you. If you stop being so formal, how will we ever get a proper meal again?"
"Yes, we are one family, we came from the mountains together, so let's not talk like strangers."
The villagers comforted him and started laughing and joking, and the matter was over.
After they finished eating, Madam Cui carried Jiayin to the carriage to sleep.
Lying in the soft bedding, Madam Cui still wiped away her tears. No matter how strong-willed she was, she was still a woman.
First, she was betrayed by her beloved husband and neglected for many years. When she was on the verge of death, she was ruthlessly abandoned. After barely surviving, her husband married a new wife.
He thought that divorce would mean a complete break, but he never expected that his new wife would scheme against him and almost implicate his benefactor's family.
Even a heart made of stone would crack with pain at this moment.
Jiayin didn't know how to comfort her, so she could only obediently snuggle in Madam Cui's arms and gently pat her back with her little hands.
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