Aunt Fang had no choice but to walk up to her clan leader with a fawning smile, and said:
"Chief, now that I've made up for the investment, could I also get a share of the profits? Could you go and talk to the village head about it?"
Lin Lizheng and the heads of several major families were watching the situation together, so they naturally heard what Aunt Fangtou said.
His face immediately showed both disgust and contempt. This woman from Fangtou had previously publicly contradicted the village head about Lin's second aunt, but now that she had something to gain, she shamelessly said such things. This Liu Fangtou woman's skin was thicker than a rock.
When Chief Liu saw the looks he received from the other clan leaders and village heads, he felt extremely ashamed. How could their Liu family have produced such a shameless person?
He said rudely, "You son of a bitch, what kind of daydreaming are you having! Go away, go away, don't come out here unless you have to, you only embarrass the Liu family!"
"No, Chieftain, I..."
Aunt Fang still wanted to argue for herself, but when she saw the clan chief suddenly glare at her with a dark face, she had no choice but to shut her mouth in a huff. However, she was still resentful in her heart. Why was the clan chief so fierce? Really, he didn't even call her family members at the persimmon cake workshop, and now he wouldn't even help her with such a small favor.
She thought about going directly to the village head to ask for help, but her family patriarch was glaring at her, making it seem like he would kill her if she said another word. The village head also had a cold face, so she backed down.
Forget it, it's better to go back than to stay here and suffer. Xiuhong has been living a miserable life since she finished her postpartum period. I need to go back and keep an eye on her so she doesn't do anything rash.
After receiving the money, Song Mei chatted with a familiar woman for a while before leaving with Granny Sun. When she arrived at the gate of her own house, she saw two people standing at the gate, looking rather suspicious.
Granny Sun walked over and shouted, "Who goes there? How dare you sneak around at Madam Hui's door!"
The two were startled. These two were Zhang Daniu's parents from Dawu Village. They were delighted to see Song Mei approaching and said:
"Plum, plum, you're finally back."
Zhang Daniu's mother said to Granny Sun, "What are you yelling about, you old woman? We are Meizi's biological parents. You're just a servant in the courtyard, aren't you? You should show some respect to your in-laws, the old lady!"
Granny Sun was taken aback. Were these two people dressed in tattered clothes really the eldest young mistress's parents?! The eldest young mistress was so humble, how could these two people act so arrogantly? She looked at her eldest young mistress with suspicion, seeking confirmation.
Seeing the elderly couple Zhang putting on such smug, domineering airs, Song Mei almost laughed in exasperation. She felt nothing in their presence; they were no longer connected to her.
She said, "They are no longer my parents, Granny Sun, drive them away."
Granny Sun, being very knowledgeable, didn't ask any questions and immediately replied, "Yes, young mistress, where are Qingshan and Qingfeng?"
"Green hills and gentle breezes are here!"
Qingshan and Qingfeng suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
"Quickly get these two away, lest they offend the young mistress's eyes," said Granny Sun.
The elderly couple, Mr. and Mrs. Zhang, were terrified by the sudden appearance of the two large men. Seeing that they were about to grab them, they quickly said:
“Meizi, Meizi, your parents have wronged you before. Please don’t treat your parents like this. Your parents didn’t come here to cause trouble. We just want to borrow some money from you. Da Niu was arrested and your sister-in-law ran away a long time ago. Your mother and I are struggling to make ends meet with our two teenagers. The New Year is just around the corner, and we are so poor that we don’t even have a penny to buy New Year’s goods. We had no choice but to come to you for help!”
The elderly couple, Mr. and Mrs. Zhang, cried and wailed, slapping their thighs in despair, hoping that Song Mei would soften her heart and take pity on them.
The two had been warned by the county government not to cause trouble again, so they hadn't dared to come. Da Niu was gone, and his wife had run away. The family was entirely supported by the two elderly people, and they were so poor that they had no choice but to come and try to borrow some money.
They had heard from Da Niu that Mei Zi's in-laws had made a lot of money and built several houses. But after inquiring today, they found out that Mei Zi's mother-in-law was actually the seventh-rank lady whom the Emperor had recently bestowed upon her. Mei Zi's in-laws had become an official family. They were filled with regret. If only they had treated Mei Zi better back then, they could still act like proper in-laws, and their lives would not be like this now. Da Niu would not have been arrested either. The two of them were so regretful that they felt like their livers were about to burst.
Song Mei's face was indifferent. Did they think that begging her would make her act as naive and soft-hearted as before? She was Song Mei now, not Zhang Mei. The old Zhang Mei was long dead. She spoke coldly:
"What does that have to do with me? Let me tell you, my name is Song Mei now, and I have no connection with your Zhang family anymore."
She instructed, "Qingshan and Qingfeng, throw these two out of Linjia Village, and never allow them to come near the house again."
Without saying much, Qingshan and Qingfeng immediately grabbed the elderly couple and made them lose face. They did so so quickly that the elderly couple didn't even have time to scream.
When Song Anxin heard about this at home, he felt that Meizi had really grown up. Seeing that she was not affected by this matter at all, Song Anxin knew that his daughter-in-law had completely stood up for herself, and he was more at ease with her.
On the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, almost the entire village of Linjia Village set out before dawn. Yesterday, they had made early appointments with their acquaintances, and in groups of three or five, they went to the county town to go to the market to buy New Year's goods. Of course, some of them also took oxcarts.
However, several oxcarts in the village were full. More importantly, everyone was used to saving money. Even though they had money in their pockets now, they were still willing to save the money for the trip and buy things on the way back before taking the oxcart back.
Song Anxin also got up early to practice her skills in her room. Ever since that cold, she has never dared to be lazy again. It really hurts to be told that someone looks old.
After she finished her practice, Granny Wei brought in hot water. After she washed up briefly, her two maids, Xile and Wuyou, came in to help her with her hair and makeup. Song Anxin was initially reluctant, but Xile's hairstyling skills were really good. She could style her hair in different ways every day, which looked much better than her own casually put-together hair.
Wuyou has a great eye for clothing. Although she usually prefers simple clothes, every time she puts something together, it looks amazing and suits her perfectly. Women dress up for those they love, and seeing herself looking so good in their outfits always puts her in a good mood all day.
Since combing her hair would take time, Granny Wei brought her a small bowl of red bean soup to tide her over. Song Anxin squinted and enjoyed it. She was wrong. She hadn't tasted "fine chaff" before, so she didn't know how good it was. Being served was really too nice.
However, Xile and the others only served her for a short time in the morning. Most of the time, the mistress didn't need their service, so they had time to go to Granny Tao's to learn embroidery. This was the only time they could show off their skills. Xile and Wuyou, the two little maids, racked their brains to come up with creative ways to dress Song Anxin. They were both happy and worried about being servants in the mistress's household. They were worried about what would happen if they were too useless and were kicked out by the mistress!
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