Chapter 75 Plotting Treachery
In addition to the daughters-in-law's families, the two elders of the Chen family also planned to invite the village head, the two clan elders of the Chen family, the mother's brother and sister-in-law, the father's two brothers and one cousin to help witness the event.
In the surrounding villages and towns around Mingfu Village, it is common to find families who invite the village head, clan elders, and elders of the family to act as witnesses. However, it is quite rare for families to invite their sons' maternal uncles and their daughters-in-law's families, even though the etiquette is impeccable.
On one hand, societal customs favoring sons over daughters exist; on the other hand, every family has troublesome relatives. Many patriarchs, thinking it's better to avoid trouble, would rather be impolite than have their in-laws present when their family divides its assets.
The reason why Old Master Chen dared to do this was because he not only tried his best to be fair and just when dividing the family property, but also because he had so many people in the Chen clan to keep him in check, so that those who wanted to cause trouble could not make any waves.
Compared to her sisters-in-law, Wang Xiaozhi had quite a few family members, but the only one she was willing to invite to be a witness for her family was Jiang Yuan, who was not actually related to her by blood.
She couldn't afford to offend her uncles, aunts, cousins, and the like.
Although Xie Wanniang had a good relationship with her, it was not appropriate for her to attend as her maternal family member. So after hearing Wang Xiaozhi finish telling her about it, she just smiled and said to her, "Then on the eighth day, sister, please send Yuanyuan to me. Since it's cold now and we can't gather herbs, I can spend more time teaching her and Xiaoyang how to do needlework."
Upon hearing this, Wang Xiaozhi's sense of loss and melancholy, stemming from the fact that Jiang Yuan was the only family member she could rely on, vanished instantly.
She's even starting to look forward to the day when the family will separate, because after that, her daughter will be able to learn a trade from Xie Wanniang.
She asked Xie Wanniang, "What do I need to prepare for Yuanyuan? Fabric, needles and thread, embroidery hoop, and anything else?"
Xie Wanniang smiled, "I've prepared all of these. If you really want to prepare something, sister, then prepare some food rations for Uncle Hao."
She was joking, but Hao Yu immediately waved her hand, "Don't be like that, how much can a little baby like Yuanyuan eat? I can't afford to raise her."
Wang Xiaozhi laughed, "Even if I could afford to raise her, I wouldn't let you do it, would I? I'm her mother, it's only right that I take care of her food and drink."
If Hao Yu hadn't proposed marriage, Wang Xiaozhi probably wouldn't have sent food over. But Hao Yu already has a fiancée he's about to be betrothed to, and Wang Xiaozhi doesn't want her daughter to be eating for free here, lest it cause resentment for that Miss Chen later.
Hao Yu and her father had always had a good relationship. Not to mention, he taught Jiang Yuan how to hunt and took him in when Jiang Yuan was homeless. If it weren't for a last resort, Wang Xiaozhi would have preferred to maintain a friendly relationship with Hao Yu's family after Hao Yu got married.
In order to realize this wish, Wang Xiaozhi felt that it was necessary to be more cautious and thorough in her work.
***
Time quickly came to the sixth day of the first lunar month, the day the Chen family divided their property.
After breakfast, Jiang Yuan went to the Chen family to act as a witness, while Hao Yu took an oxcart to the county town to prepare for their trip to see the lanterns on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.
He had previously planned to give the house to Jiang Yuan, but Jiang Yuan didn't want it, so he decided to clean it up now.
By the time he finished tidying up, almost all the shops in the county town had reopened. He could then go and buy some bedding, firewood, bowls, chopsticks, earthenware pots, and the like, so that when they moved in, they wouldn't be unable to sleep well or have water to drink because they had nothing.
After the two left, Xie Wanniang continued to close the doors and windows, and sat in the house with Xiaoyang, sewing away.
The two sat facing each other, busy for less than fifteen minutes, when Xie Wanniang suddenly heard a faint but slightly disordered sound of footsteps coming from the backyard.
She frowned slightly, and her right hand instinctively stuck the embroidery needle into the fabric.
She listened intently for a moment, then quickly stood up straight. "Xiaoyang, stay inside and don't go out."
She whispered these words of advice, and before Xiao Yang could react, she had already leaned over and pulled out the boning knife that she had asked Jiang Yuan to buy for her at the blacksmith's shop in town before the New Year, which she had kept under the bedding.
Xiao Yang was so startled when she suddenly pulled a boning knife from under the covers that she didn't even realize she had dropped the embroidery hoop she was holding.
With a blank stare in her eyes, Xie Wanniang picked up the sturdy wooden stick she had placed at the door of the house with her right hand, then lifted the curtain, ran out of the main room, and decisively met the young man who had already bypassed the main house and arrived in the front yard.
The young man was a short, stocky youth with toad-like eyes. Xie Wanniang had a good memory and recognized him at a glance as Wang Xiaozhi's cousin, Wang Sanhu.
When Xie Wanniang drifted downstream to the riverbank near Mingfu Village, this man loudly proclaimed that he would take her home as his wife.
Because Jiang Yuan rescued Xie Wanniang first, thwarting his plans, he and his family even went to Hao Yu's house to try to take Xie Wanniang away. In the end, the village headman got angry and drove them away.
Now that Hao Yu has gone to the county town and Jiang Yuan has gone to the Chen family, he has sneaked over the wall to get in, which clearly means he has no good intentions.
Having already peeked around furtively for a while and not seeing Xie Wanniang and Xiao Yang in the courtyard, Wang Sanhu thought he had moved very quietly and secretly, so without thinking, he went straight to the main room.
When Xie Wanniang rushed out by pulling open the wooden door of the east wing, she saw Wang Sanhu trying to open the two wooden doors of the main room.
Hearing the noise, Wang Sanhu subconsciously turned his head, and then he saw Xie Wanniang rushing out of the house with a wooden stick in her hand.
Xie Wanniang's birth mother was exceptionally beautiful, and Xie Wanniang, who resembled her, naturally also possessed a beautiful and charming face.
Wang Sanhu, who originally only considered marrying Xie Wanniang because of her good family background, completely forgot about money the moment he saw her outstanding appearance.
He withdrew his hand, which was originally about to push the two wooden doors, stared straight at Xie Wanniang, and his feet seemed to have their own will, striding towards Xie Wanniang.
When he got closer, he instinctively opened his arms to hug the graceful Xie Wanniang.
Wang Sanhu had no recollection of his original plan: to steal the money first, then open the Hao family's gate, rush into Xie Wanniang's house, tear Xie Wanniang's clothes, and shout to attract his parents, brothers, and other villagers.
He only wanted to capture Xie Wanniang and then do this and that to her.
Blinded by lust, he even overlooked the fact that Xie Wanniang was holding a wooden stick.
Or perhaps he didn't overlook it, but subconsciously felt that a delicate woman like Xie Wanniang, even if she held a wooden stick, was mostly just doing it to bolster her courage. If it came down to a real fight, she definitely couldn't beat him, a grown man.
However, in the next instant, Xie Wanniang made him pay a heavy price for his lustful infatuation.
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