Chapter 018: Kneel down and wash my feet
Mrs. Qiao remembered that when the old man was alive, he said that places like teahouses and taverns were full of people from all walks of life and were the most well-informed.
With the mentality of trying everything possible, Mrs. Qiao went to a tavern.
As a man, after three cups of horse urine, he will say everything he wants to say and shouldn't say.
She was reluctant to buy any wine, so she pretended to be looking for someone and walked around the tavern twice, and finally heard people talking about the Wen family.
"Hey, have you heard about what happened in the Wen family? Because of the stupid things done by his adopted daughter, His Majesty personally ordered that Master Wen be suspended from his duties and be allowed to reflect at home for three months."
"Master Wen is truly unlucky. There are so many people eyeing his position. He's been away for three months, and there won't be a place for him when he returns."
"Once the storm has died down, he will definitely deal with that adopted daughter. I'm afraid it will also implicate her husband's family."
"Don't forget, the Wen family has produced an imperial tutor for three generations. Their foundation is very strong! With just one word from Master Wen, that unlucky guy in the family won't be able to make a breakthrough in the next fifty years."
"It's okay that the poor scholar was implicated. Who made him marry the adopted daughter of the Wen family? If you want to climb up the social ladder, you have to take risks. It's pitiful that his cousin was also implicated by him."
"If that family is smart, they should split up now and cut off all ties. Otherwise, they won't even know how they died!"
"How dare the Wen family silence us? Aren't they afraid that their political enemies will find evidence against them, and that exposure will affect their reputation?"
Mrs. Qiao was already so frightened that her hands and feet were cold, and now she couldn't help but prick up her ears.
Then they lowered their voices and said, "Haven't you seen the methods of the women in the harem? They can kill an entire family silently for just a few taels of silver. Even if they are exposed, they can push two servants out to take the blame and gain the reputation of sacrificing relatives for a righteous cause."
"I'm starting to sympathize with my adopted daughter's in-laws now. They thought marrying a rich girl would bring prosperity to the family, but they didn't expect to marry someone who would bring disaster!"
Mrs. Qiao shuddered with fear, her head buzzing.
Across the street, in a private room on the second floor of the teahouse, Wen Yan watched as Mrs. Qiao walked out with a pale face.
She knew it was almost over.
As she left the box, she ran into a group of young men coming down the stairs.
The person being guarded in the center was none other than the eldest son of the Wen family, Wen Zeduan, Wen Yan's former elder brother.
She quickly took a step back and hid.
Then, she heard those people talking about her: "Zeduan, your fake sister is too ignorant of the seriousness of the matter. She actually did that kind of thing and even implicated your father!"
"Even if we're not blood relatives, after more than a decade of raising you, I shouldn't be slandering you like that outside."
The young men traveling with them all stood up for the Wen family.
Wen Zeduan frowned slightly and said disapprovingly, "Don't talk about my second sister like that. She just got married and was feeling uneasy. She wanted to get her mother's attention, so she did those things in a panic. She didn't mean it."
"Zeduan, you are too sentimental, that's why she controls you so tightly."
Wen Zeduan: "After all, she is my sister whom I have loved for fifteen years. It is impossible for me not to have any feelings for her."
After talking for a while, they left the teahouse.
Wen Zeduan's words just now seemed to be defending Wen Yan, but in fact they put all the blame on her.
Thinking of the excessive demands of this good brother in her previous life, she could only sneer.
Wen Yan watched them disappear at the end of the street with cold eyes before leaving the restaurant.
She had only taken a few steps when she suddenly turned around alertly and looked towards the second floor of the teahouse.
Empty.
It was right next to the private room she had booked.
"Miss Wen Yan is so perceptive." The servant patted his chest and breathed a sigh of relief. He asked doubtfully, "Master, if you like her so much, why didn't you propose to her in the first place?
You are a young master of the Bo family, with first-class talent, learning, character and appearance. Lord Wen will definitely betroth Miss Wen Yan to you."
The man smiled bitterly. He had done this before.
After receiving the news of the marriage exchange, she immediately begged her father to go to the Wen family to propose marriage.
But what is the result?
Not only did his father not agree, but he locked him in a secret room and did not release him until Wen Yan Sanchao returned home.
The marriage of children is the best tool for marriage alliances. How could his father fall in love with the unfavored adopted daughter of a second-rate official?
The man watched Wen Yan gradually disappear in the crowd, his eyes extremely gentle and affectionate.
It's a pity that they are not destined to be together in this life.
If Wen Yan was present, he would be able to recognize that the man was the prince of the Bo family, Qingchuan, who had helped him a lot in his previous life.
**
When Wen Yan took the carriage back to the foot of the academy mountain, it was already dark.
Ying Zhilin had been waiting at the inn for a long time.
"Have you been waiting here?" Wen Yan held his hand and jumped out of the carriage.
Seeing that she was safe and sound, Ying Zhilin secretly breathed a sigh of relief and handed her a glass of warm water: "You must be tired after running around all day. Sit down and rest for a while before going home."
"It's okay, I've been sitting here all day." Wen Yan finished her tea, and Ying Zhilin handed her a small bag of mung bean cake.
"Let's go back quickly. It will be dark if we don't leave now." Wen Yan was really hungry, so she ate the snacks while walking.
They chatted as they walked.
Wen Yan told him what happened today in detail.
Everything the little beggar said to the people in the teahouse was arranged by her in advance.
After hearing this, Ying Zhilin remained silent for a long time.
Wen Yan thought he was feeling sorry for Mrs. Qiao.
Then he heard a low sigh: "It turns out that getting rid of them is not as difficult as I thought."
If his mother and father had been more decisive, perhaps they would not have left him and his younger siblings behind and passed away so early.
Seeing that he was in a bad mood, Wen Yan changed the subject and asked him how the work at the academy was going.
Ying Zhilin submitted his resignation to the academy today and registered for Class A.
I can start formal classes tomorrow.
Wen Yan comforted him, "The provincial examination is still four or five months away. You don't have to put too much pressure on yourself. If you can't do it this year, you can take it again next year."
Wen Yan was not clear about Ying Zhilin's talent. Anyway, he did not pass the exam in his previous life.
The reason why I still support him in his studies is that I don’t want him to leave this world with regrets in two or three years.
Ying Zhilin didn't know what Wen Yan was thinking, but he secretly made up his mind that he must get a good ranking in this provincial examination so that Wen Yan's funding would not go to waste.
They chatted all the way back home.
As soon as I entered the village, I heard Qiao Dashuang cursing: "Haha, those who know, that's the servant bought by our Ying family. Those who don't know, might think it's Ying Zhilin showing his filial piety to you, an old vegetable farmer.
Widow Liu, if you have any dignity, you should find a rope to hang yourself on the beam and go to meet the ancestors of the Sun family as soon as possible!
And Hui Niang, you lowly whore, are just a slave bought by the Ying family. I asked you to do some work, so why are you so arrogant? Not to mention ordering you around, even if Wen Yan comes, you have to kneel down and wash my feet. "
I walked closer and took a look.
I saw Qiao Dashuang standing at the door of Liu's house like a big bucket, cursing non-stop.
There was no voice of rebuttal in the Liu family's yard.
"Hey, who do you want to wash your feet, Auntie?"
Wen Yan had a smile on her face, throwing a stone in her hand, and looking straight at Qiao Dashuang.
When Qiao Dashuang saw the stone, she remembered that Wen Yan hit her mouth with the stone, and she immediately felt a dull pain in her lips.
"I want...I want you to care!" Qiao Dashuang said sternly but weakly, then he went back to Ying's house with his waist as stiff as a bucket.
Wen Yan and his wife also followed him back to the yard, but did not see Mrs. Qiao.
Wen Yan and Ying Zhilin didn't ask any more questions and went back to the house to rest.
The night deepens.
But Mrs. Qiao still didn't come back.
Wen Yan went to the yard to look, and Ying Zhilin also looked at the door twice.
"I personally watched her get on the ox cart before I came back. I didn't hope something happened to her on the way." Wen Yan was worried.
If something happened to Mrs. Qiao, not only would Lin not be able to take part in the provincial examination, he wouldn't even be able to go to school.
My granddaughter-in-law also has to stay at home in mourning, so it is inconvenient for her to do anything.
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