Chapter 11: They Got the Land Back
Jiang's face darkened, and she looked at her incredulously, "You've come here to ask me for land?"
When she first returned from the capital, Aunt Zhou wasn't exactly weak-willed, but she was quite different from the shrewish Jiang.
To avoid trouble, Aunt Zhou usually endures things as much as possible and rarely comes directly to Jiang's house to ask for land like she does now.
With a cold face, Aunt Zhou raised her voice and said, "I bought that land with my own money, and I should have come to claim it long ago."
"Pah!" Jiang Shi squinted her narrow eyes, puffed out her cheeks, and spat a mouthful of water at Aunt Zhou, angrily shouting, "This land was given to us by my parents-in-law, who said it belongs to you!"
Aunt Zhou had anticipated this response, so she immediately pulled out the land deed from her bosom and declared loudly, "Now that the land deed is with me, shall we go to the county government to see the officials and see if this land is truly ours!"
Jiang was stunned when she saw the land deed. She remembered that she had stolen the land deed and burned it. How come it was still there now!
Aunt Zhou spread out the land deed and waved it in front of her, "Take a look, is this really real?"
The original land deed was indeed burned. This one was a forgery made by Zhou Ruiyuan from memory. He not only has excellent handwriting, but he can also imitate handwriting and seals so well that it can be mistaken for the real thing.
Jiang was illiterate, but upon seeing the red seal on it, she assumed it was genuine and her face turned deathly pale. "How could this be? Was the previous one a fake?"
Aunt Zhou didn't let her catch her breath and continued, "Jiang Qiuju, we're relatives after all. It's not good to end up in court. Your family has more land than us, so you won't miss out on this one or two plots. Why don't you just give it back to us?"
Jiang's mind was in complete turmoil. Her chickens had just died, her piglets had run away, and now someone was demanding her land. She couldn't swallow the anger that was stuck in her chest, and she shouted, "You slutty widow, you want to take this land from me? You'll only get it if I die!"
After saying that, she turned around, went into the house, grabbed a pair of pliers, and waved them at Aunt Zhou, saying, "Get out of here, or I'll get rough!"
The land that Aunt Zhou bought was next to a pond, and it was very fertile black soil. Jiang planted rice on one half and vegetables on the other half.
Although they had enough to eat before, they became much wealthier after acquiring this land, so naturally they were unwilling to return it.
Just as the iron pliers were about to swing, Zhou Zhao, who was behind Aunt Zhou, rushed forward quickly, grabbed the pliers, and shouted, "Is there no law? Beating people in the street is an attempt to kill someone!"
Although Zhou Zhao was only thirteen or fourteen years old, he was a head taller than Aunt Zhou. Standing in front of Aunt Zhou, he was like an imposing wall, which made Jiang Shi feel a bit intimidated.
She was so shocked that she didn't dare to go forward, muttering to herself, "How come I never realized this little deaf kid was so fierce before?"
"Aunt, have you forgotten what I said? I'm not deaf anymore!" Zhou Zhao pushed Jiang Shi and flung the iron pliers in her hand forward.
"Ouch!" Jiang Shi lost her balance and fell to the ground, groaning in pain. Holding her sore bottom, she looked at Zhou Zhao with a horrified expression, speechless: "You brat, you're getting more and more unruly, even hitting your aunt!"
When Zhou Zhao first came to Changliu Village, he had just become deaf and felt inferior for a long time, so he often stayed at home with Zhou Feng and didn't go out. Now that his hearing has recovered, he has naturally changed.
"Aunt?" Zhou Zhao sneered, "You don't deserve that title!"
"You...you..." Jiang was so angry that she was trembling with clenched teeth.
Aunt Zhou glanced into the house and called out to Chen Tieniu, who was hiding by the door, "Brother, come out and say something fair! Is the land still going to be returned?"
Chen Tieniu glanced timidly at Jiang Shi, then shrank back and didn't dare to say a word.
Just then, Old Chen suddenly returned. He had just come back from the fields and was running this way, shouting, "Dad, Mom, something terrible has happened!"
Mrs. Jiang was startled. She had been having too many bad luckes lately, and hearing her son say this made her panic.
Aunt Zhou was very curious, so she took Du Wanchun's arm and stepped back two paces.
Chen Laoda was in such a hurry that he didn't have time to pay attention to Zhou Da Niang. He went straight past them to Jiang Shi and said, "Father, Mother, something has happened in our fields!"
“What could possibly happen if there are rice and vegetables growing in the field?!” Jiang asked him as she stood up, supporting her back.
Chen Laoda's face was full of panic and he was so anxious that he stammered and couldn't say anything for a moment. Finally, he stamped his foot and pulled Jiang Shi towards the field, "Father, Mother, come with me quickly and see!"
Jiang was confused and let her son pull her outside. Chen Tieniu, who was inside the house, also jogged after them.
Aunt Zhou frowned as she watched the Chen family members leave in a panic, momentarily at a loss. "What's going on?"
Du Wanchun took her arm and said with a smile, "Mother, why don't we go and take a look too?"
Aunt Zhou thought it made sense and nodded. Then she called to Zhou Zhao beside her, "Zhao'er, let's go and see what has happened."
“Alright, Mother, let’s hurry up and follow.” Zhou Zhao replied and strode forward to lead the way for them.
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