“Village head, her son is no good, but my eldest daughter-in-law is. She does all the work in our fields. She can do the work of two people. She is stronger than Li Xing’er. You should let her work in the workshop.”
Meng Zhao listened from the side and felt that the voice was somewhat familiar.
The village head said, "Old woman Fang, how dare you say that? Your eldest daughter-in-law is capable, so why don't you hire her? Isn't it because she has you as her mother-in-law? You are cunning and deceitful, doing all sorts of immoral things. Who would dare hire your family?"
Granny Fang was cornered, but just then she saw Meng Zhao returning with a donkey and quickly came over.
“Qing’an’s wife, I was blinded by greed and confused last time, but you can’t refuse to take in our family because of that. My eldest daughter-in-law is very capable, so please let her work in the workshop.”
As she spoke, she grabbed Li Yunxiang, who was standing next to her, and shoved her towards Meng Zhao, her grip so strong that she almost knocked her over.
Meng Zhao glanced at Li Yunxiang. She was tall enough, but she seemed awkward and shy, keeping her head down and not looking at anyone. She was being carried around by Granny Fang.
"Grandma Fang, I'm just a junior. It's not up to me to decide who to hire for the workshop. Besides, we have enough staff right now, so we don't need to hire anyone else." Meng Zhao didn't want to get involved in their family's affairs and turned to leave.
Seeing that she was about to leave, the old woman was still unwilling to let her go and even tried to pull her away, but she was pushed away by an elder who had been standing next to her with his cane.
The clan elder looked quite old, but his voice was booming. He stood directly in front of Meng Zhao, preventing Granny Fang from getting close.
"Old woman Fang, stop going crazy here. It was my decision not to invite your eldest daughter-in-law. If you have any problems, come find me."
Granny Fang stumbled from the push and sat down on the ground. After a moment of stunned silence, she burst into tears, crying, "He's hitting someone! He's hitting someone! Second Uncle is hitting someone! Everyone come and see!"
After she finished crying and wailing, she realized that no one paid any attention to her. Even those who had come with her to find the village head were still clinging to him, not giving him a second glance.
"Village head, please let us know when the workshop needs manpower."
“Village head, it’s not that my son doesn’t want to do it, it’s that I don’t let him. But my son is very smart, so you can rest assured and let him go. I guarantee he can be of help to you.”
Granny Fang was furious that no one was willing to talk to her. She looked around and realized that only her eldest daughter-in-law could give her the chance to vent her anger.
"What are you standing there for? Hurry up and help me up, you blind fool! How could my son have married such a useless piece of trash like you?"
Li Yuanxiang had just seen her mother-in-law crying on the ground and only dared to shrink to the side and pretend she didn't exist. Now that she had been called out, she had no choice but to go up and help her.
As soon as she was helped up, Granny Fang pointed at her and cursed, "It's all your fault, you jinx! Ever since you came into the house, we haven't had a good day."
Li Yuanxiang dared not resist and could only lower her head and continue to be scolded.
Meng Zhao's ears were hurt by her sharp voice. She wanted to go straight home, but suddenly a gust of wind blew up beside her and a thin, dark figure pounced on Granny Fang like a spinning top, biting her wrist.
Granny Fang immediately let out a pig-like scream.
When Li Yunxiang saw who it was, she was startled and quickly went to stop them.
"Er Ya, what are you doing? Let go of me right now."
After the pain subsided, Granny Fang recognized who had come from the crowd and flew into a rage. As a hardworking peasant woman, she was no match for a young girl and kicked the girl twice.
Because of the intense pain, Li Erya had no choice but to let go and fall to the ground.
Granny Fang was still not satisfied, so she went to the roadside, picked up a thick stick, and was about to hit her again when Li Yunxiang stepped forward and grabbed her leg.
"Mother, it's all my fault. If you want to hit me, then hit me. Er Ya is still too young to take it."
Granny Fang ignored what she said and raised her stick to hit her. Meng Zhao couldn't stand it anymore.
The old woman was beating Li Yunxiang. She didn't fight back because she didn't want to interfere, but Li Erya looked so thin and weak, how could she withstand a few blows from her?
Meng Zhao grabbed Granny Fang's arm and said, "Granny Fang, she's still a child. You hit her so hard, are you trying to kill her?"
The old woman, who was originally furious, saw Meng Zhao come up to speak, her eyes shifted, and she said:
“If you let my eldest daughter-in-law work in the workshop, I won’t beat that brat.”
These words shocked Meng Zhao. She had never seen anyone so shameless, using her own granddaughter's life to threaten others into doing things.
Meng Zhao naturally wouldn't go along with her wishes. "It's your business to discipline your child, and it's none of anyone else's business. But you used such a heavy hand, which is a crime of malicious injury. If this is reported to the county government, you'll at least get a few lashes."
Upon hearing that she was to be taken to the yamen (government office), Granny Fang became frightened, but still stubbornly said, "The county magistrate has no time to deal with this. Besides, it's none of anyone else's business how I discipline my own child."
Meng Zhao sneered, "Heh, you can try it and see if the county magistrate will say you did a good job disciplining the child or if you deliberately injured him and put you in jail after seeing the injuries on his body."
Upon hearing what Meng Zhao said, Li Erya, who was standing nearby, immediately shouted at the top of her lungs, "I want to report this to the authorities! I want to go see the county magistrate!"
Granny Fang didn't have time to pay attention to Meng Zhao anymore and hurriedly pulled her away, "Little brat, what are you shouting about? Hurry up and go home."
"I want to report this to the authorities and have the county magistrate decide the matter."
Granny Fang, unable to resist the shouting, could only say, "I'm your grandmother. I was just trying to scare you. I wouldn't really hit you."
As he spoke, he pulled Li Erya and Li Yuanxiang home. Watching the child's staggering figure, Meng Zhao could do nothing to help.
What she just said was all made up. She hasn't read many books since she came here, let alone legal articles. She's just taking advantage of the fact that this old woman knows even less than she does.
She's an outsider and can't help with anything. What will become of the child in the future depends on what her mother decides to do.
As soon as Granny Fang left, the rest of the people gradually dispersed, and the clan elder who had been leaning on his cane came to Meng Zhao.
“Qing’an’s wife, if these people come to you again, just tell them that these are all my decisions. I’m old and I’m not afraid to argue with them.”
"Thank you for your help, Second Grandfather. Otherwise, I'm afraid I really wouldn't have been able to handle so many people."
"What's the big deal? Just focus on your business and leave the rest to us old folks."
Meng Zhao smiled and nodded. Seeing that everything was alright with the village head, he led the donkey home.
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