The fat woman's husband also had the surname Zhou, and was from the same clan as Dean Zhou. In fact, Dean Zhou had to call him his fifth uncle.
But they don't interact much on a daily basis; it's just a formality.
The dean's wife was preparing tea and snacks with her maid. Her husband had just acquired a beautiful flower, and in her excitement, she wanted to show it off.
Just now, the pageboy went out to invite several gentlemen who are friends with him and also love flowers.
The guests are about to arrive, and as the matriarch of the household, she has no choice but to make arrangements for their hospitality.
Remembering how her husband had been as happy as a child, holding her and spinning her around halfway, she still couldn't hide her blush.
We're an old married couple; it would be so awkward for the servants to see us like this.
Just then, the plump woman arrived. Without waiting for the gatekeeper to announce her arrival, she cried from the gate into the courtyard as if the sky had fallen.
Mrs. Zhou was filled with sweet joy, but it was all ruined.
Even so, she still had to patiently invite the plump woman into the house and gently inquire, "Fifth Aunt, what happened? Why are you crying so hard?"
The plump woman felt even more aggrieved. She turned her head to show Madam Zhou her swollen cheeks and cried with extreme distress.
“My dear niece-in-law, you have to stand up for me! That Li family is bullying us too much! They've taken over the canteen and want to use their own people. They're looking down on us who were originally here.”
“They’ve been harassing us for the past few days, and we’ve tolerated it. But today they actually attacked me, pinning me to the ground and beating me! I only managed to run here for help because I was desperate; otherwise, I probably wouldn’t be alive by now.”
Madam Zhou frowned, unwilling to believe what the plump woman was saying, but the handprint was clearly visible. So she poured tea for the plump woman and whispered, "Fifth Aunt, speak slowly. We're already home, no rush."
As she spoke, her personal maid gave her a wink, and the maid immediately withdrew.
The plump woman thought that Madam Zhou had believed her, and she felt even more aggrieved. She cried with snot and tears streaming down her face and continued to complain.
"They knew I was a member of the Zhou family, but they still picked on me to bully. Out of the four of them, they targeted me and beat me to death. They just didn't respect the Zhou family at all!"
"But don't they realize whose academy it is? They're coming to our house to bully our family!"
Mrs. Zhou listened without interrupting. When the gentlemen arrived, she went out to exchange a few pleasantries with them.
After the plump woman had finished crying, she gradually began to sense that something was amiss.
It seemed that Madam Zhou kept nodding in agreement, but didn't say anything to support her.
Unable to contain herself any longer, she tugged at Madam Zhou's sleeve and asked, "Niece-in-law, did you send someone to drive the Li family away? How can a family like that take over the canteen!"
Madam Zhou subtly pulled her sleeve back, replying perfunctorily, "Letting the Li family take over the cafeteria was the dean's decision; I have no right to kick them out. We still have guests today; why don't you wait until they leave and then speak to the dean personally?"
The plump woman instinctively lowered her head.
Dean Zhou is highly respected and extremely wise among the clansmen. Her petty tricks might fool Madam Zhou, but they would immediately be exposed in front of the Dean.
Unfortunately, what she didn't know was that she hadn't even fooled Madam Zhou.
Soon, the maid returned from outside, glanced at the plump woman discreetly, and reported, "Madam, I went to the entrance of the dining hall and asked around the neighborhood. The Li family did indeed beat someone and chased away all the laborers."
The plump woman seemed to have been injected with chicken blood, immediately perking up, but before she could speak, the maid continued, "It's said that it was because the handymen were too lazy; four people spent three days washing only one basin of dishes, and even that was filthy. The Li family was so angry that they kicked them out."
"That bowl is still in front of the canteen. I looked closely and it seems it wasn't washed at all. The leftover food on it has dried out and looks like it's been there for at least ten days or half a month."
Madam Zhou's face turned cold as she looked at the plump woman.
The plump woman, feeling guilty, whispered her explanation, "I had diarrhea and wasn't feeling well, that's why I missed that one day of work..."
The maidservant, however, mercilessly tore off her veil of modesty, saying, "Even if it's diarrhea, four people shouldn't have diarrhea at the same time, and for three consecutive days. If it were that serious, they would probably be bedridden and unable to get up, not jumping around like this."
The plump woman became enraged and shouted, "Yes, I didn't do any work, so what? The workload is four or five times more than before. Am I wrong to ask for a raise? Besides, even if I don't agree to a raise, they can't beat me up!"
The maid secretly pursed her lips and said, "I found out that it was the fourth madam of the Li family who hit her, and you were the one who called the fourth madam a slut first!"
"Not to mention that Fourth Madam's husband is an official, the Li family also has a title, so not just anyone can insult them! Even if they slap you or beat you with a board, you'll have to take it!"
Madam Zhou nodded and said, "Fifth Aunt, I originally thought you were being bullied, and since we're all from the same clan, I couldn't just stand by and watch. But now that you refused to work, wanted a raise, and then started cursing when you weren't allowed to, there's nothing I can do about it."
"You should find another job. If this gets out of hand, the dean will find out that you've disgraced the Zhou family. There will probably be other punishments. By then, even if Aunt Wu regrets it, it will be too late."
The plump woman was dumbfounded and wanted to say something, but Madam Zhou brought up her son again, "Chang'er has some talent for studying, and he might be able to pass the imperial examinations in the future. Fifth Aunt, you'd better be more restrained in your daily behavior, and don't ruin your child's bright future for a moment of pleasure."
The plump woman immediately shut her mouth, not daring to say another word.
Her son, who was studying, was her Achilles' heel...
The three handymen waited for more than an hour at the entrance of the canteen courtyard, but the fat woman did not return. Even a fool would know that there was no hope.
They wanted to go into the canteen to plead again, but Dazhuang and Sun Erge stared at them coldly, and chopped down hard with their axes, splitting the thick logs into pieces.
They dared not linger any longer and turned to run away.
They have no choice but to run; their heads might be the next ones to be chopped off.
In the courtyard, Sun Erge and Dazhuang couldn't help but laugh. Dazhuang muttered under his breath, "These cowards, they thought they were so capable, but they ran away as soon as they were scared."
"If you sent them into the woods, they'd probably wet their pants at the sight of a single wolf hair."
“Exactly,” Brother Sun shook his head in agreement, “They only dare to be arrogant because they have someone backing them up. In reality, they have no real skills at all.”
Inside the house, Granny He, Shui Ling, Aunt Wu, Da Zhuang's wife, Sister-in-law Sun, Tao Hongying, and Zhao Yuru were all busy.
As the sun was about to reach its zenith, Tao Hongying began preparing the meal. She had promised that all the children would be eating here today, so she needed to prepare extra food.
Seeing her sister-in-law sweating profusely and about to cook, Zhao Yuru felt bad and said, "Hongying, you take a break, I'll do it."
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