Chapter 109: Not a Wasted Effort
When so many people suddenly arrived, Cheng Yuan and the three officers were so startled that they broke out in a cold sweat.
Seeing that these people were neatly dressed, had upright faces, and possessed the demeanor of scholars, Cheng Yuan immediately thought of the recent rumors.
Rumor has it that the newly appointed prefect sent a civil official incognito to secretly investigate the collection of grain taxes.
Could it be these people in front of us?
Li Jingyi stood far away under the big willow tree, looking at the imposing man at the head of the group, and thought to himself: This is hopeless.
He originally just wanted to watch the excitement, but now he's become part of it too.
How can I sever ties with Cheng Yuan and his gang as quickly as possible?
Without a moment to think, he quickly stepped forward, cupped his hands in greeting to the leading man, and said, "Greetings, sir."
The man in the lead was around thirty years old, tall, with a thin face, a short beard, and piercing eyes as he calmly surveyed the scene before him.
His sharp gaze swept over Li Jingyi, and he stepped forward.
Song Chunxue was lying on the ground when she saw the pair of black official boots walking towards her, and she quickly propped herself up to sit up.
She was kicked in the ribs several times, and the pain made her gasp for breath.
"mother."
The fourth brother kicked away the guards holding him down and ran to Song Chunxue's side.
"Where does it hurt, Mother?"
The fourth brother glared angrily at Cheng Yuan, "We've always known you're no good, but we never expected you to bully the weak like this. You didn't get any meat yesterday, so you're taking revenge on us like this today."
"You're spouting nonsense!" Cheng Yuan exclaimed angrily, "You're turning black into white!"
"My lord," Cheng Yuan bowed to the approaching man, "please understand, we did not bully the weak; it was they who openly assaulted and verbally abused the officials..."
Are you alright?
The man in the greyish-white clothes had a handsome face and looked at Song Chunxue and her son with gentle concern.
"What happened just now? I want you to tell me yourselves."
"This official?" The fourth son looked at Song Chunxue in surprise. "Mother, he really is an official, and a high-ranking one at that!"
Song Chunxue lowered her head, touched her swollen fingers, and a tear slid down her cheek.
She got the beating she deserved; she made the right gamble.
In both her past and present lives, she didn't argue with Cheng Yuan. Instead, she foolishly handed over a lot of grain, even the grain for her eldest son's family of three, leaving only one bag for the New Year.
Before long, people in the village shouted that a high-ranking official had arrived, and they all went to Li Jingyi's house for a meal.
"Don't be afraid, sister-in-law. Tell me the truth about what grievances you have suffered, and I will help you."
A deep voice came from above, and the next moment, a clean white handkerchief was handed to her.
Song Chunxue quickly waved her hand, "No need, no need, thank you very much, sir."
"My lord, let me explain."
The fourth brother pointed angrily at Cheng Yuan, "He hit my mother on the head just now, and she's not thinking straight right now."
"..." Song Chunxue's breath hitched. You certainly know how to talk!
The fourth brother spoke very quickly, and in just a few words, he succinctly recounted how Cheng Yuan came to their house yesterday wanting meat, and how they had repeatedly put themselves in a difficult position today.
Cheng Yuan was so shocked that he knelt down on the ground with a "plop".
"Your Honor, please investigate! This boy is clearly making false accusations. I absolutely did not deliberately make things difficult for them. Yesterday's events were a misunderstanding..."
"Whether he's making false accusations or not, there are witnesses to testify," he ordered in a deep voice. "Take him away, and I will interrogate him personally."
"My lord, I'm innocent, my lord!" Cheng Yuan knelt on the ground and cried out, his forehead hitting the ground repeatedly as he kowtowed.
Song Chunxue stared coldly at him, then looked up and saw Cheng Yuan's father, Old Man Cheng, pointing at her with his cane, trembling, on the embankment across the road in the distance.
It's obvious without even thinking that he was cursing her ancestors.
Song Chunxue looked away and subconsciously raised her hand to scratch her forehead.
"Don't move her yet, your sister-in-law's forehead is bleeding," the adult in front of him said, handing him a handkerchief again. "Wipe it off first. Is there anything else to add about what happened earlier?"
Song Chunxue took the handkerchief and blurted out, "Of course, please check this grain measure, sir. The grain inside has long exceeded the limit, but it is not yet full."
As she spoke, Song Chunxue, feeling both angry and aggrieved, knelt down and cried out:
“My husband passed away many years ago. Cheng Yuan knew that it was hard for me to grow grain, but in previous years he tricked me into processing the grain to the point that it was good enough to be ground into flour. He even kicked the grain hopper hard. Over the years, we have harvested more than enough grain…”
"No, no, I am ashamed. If I had come earlier, my sister-in-law would not have suffered such injustice."
As he spoke, he helped Song Chunxue up.
"My name is Xie Zheng, and I am the supervising inspector of this land tax. I will give you an explanation for what you have said, sister-in-law."
As he spoke, his gaze fell on the grain container. "Bring the scales and put the grain inside into bags to weigh it."
A group of people stepped forward and emptied the grain from the grain bins to weigh it.
The three officers who had just taken action now stood trembling beside Li Jingyi.
The area around the Jiang family's house was filled with people from the village.
Song Chunxue exhaled a breath of stale air, her whole body trembling slightly with excitement.
It really worked!
She finally accomplished what she had dreamed of doing in her past life, after forty-two years of delay.
She leaned against the courtyard wall, smiling as she wiped away the tears in her eyes.
If nothing goes wrong, her outburst will mean that all the people in Zhuanglang County won't have to pay extra grain.
"Mother, your head..."
Song Chunxue turned to look at the eldest brother, "Go and take good care of your wife and children."
The eldest brother lowered his head and stood still.
The fourth son held Song Chunxue's arm and said softly, "Mother, come inside and rest for a while."
"Hmm." She felt weak all over and definitely needed to rest.
She was overjoyed; she had never been so happy before.
After drinking some water and eating a few bites of steamed bun, her legs stopped shaking, but she still felt weak all over.
Not long after, the fourth brother came in from outside.
"Mother, those people are gone. Lord Xie heard you weren't feeling well, so he sent me and my eldest brother to verify the facts. We'll be back by noon." The fourth son smiled and praised, "Mother, they say you should look at someone with new eyes after three days of separation. You're really amazing today."
As he spoke, he gave a thumbs up.
Song Chunxue's light brown almond-shaped eyes gleamed. "I'm doing this to save my food; it's my life."
The fourth son's smile faded. "Yes, I will get back the grain that Cheng Yuan and his men have taken from us over the years for Mother."
Watching her fourth son step out of the courtyard, Song Chunxue felt extremely gratified.
Her fourth child used to be obedient, and she used to blame the teacher for not teaching him well.
In retrospect, it was her poor parenting that led to this.
It is said that women should adhere to the three obediences and four virtues and uphold the proper wifely way, but no one has ever said that women should also learn something in order to teach their children well.
She used to be a hardworking and diligent old woman, unaware that her words and actions were a role model for her children.
Tired from the day, she went to the vegetable garden to weed. She heard Old Man Cheng cursing at her, and his son and daughter-in-law echoed him, spewing all sorts of vulgarities.
Song Chunxue didn't care at all. This time, she was determined to hold Cheng Yuan accountable, so that the Cheng family would never be able to act so domineeringly as before.
What does it matter if they curse a few times? The harsher their curses are, the more at ease Song Chunxue feels.
"Mother, why are you sitting here? Where is the fourth son?"
When Sanwa saw Song Chunxue turn her head, he couldn't help but gasp. "Why is Mother's head bleeding?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
