Southeast asked, "Widow Zhang, didn't you do these things?"
Widow Zhang cried out in alarm: "Young Master Yan, as the saying goes, to catch a thief, you need to catch him red-handed; to catch an adulterer, you need to catch them in the act. Produce the evidence that I committed this, or I will never let you go."
Southeast nodded: "Widow Zhang, if I get the evidence, you can move these junks to your front door and leave them there for a month, okay?"
Widow Zhang chuckled coldly, "How can you prove it?"
"Grandpa Village Chief, if three people see it, it can be proven, right?" Yan Dongnan asked the village chief, who nodded.
"Dear uncles, aunts, brothers and sisters, you have all seen what happened today. Our Yan family does not bully others, nor will we allow others to bully us. If anyone sees this, please speak up, and our Yan family will give you a big meat bun as a token of our gratitude."
Big meat buns! My mouth is watering. When no one is looking, Xuemei takes out three big meat buns and walks to the southeast side.
Everyone stared at the large meat bun in Xue Mei's hand, their mouths watering. Wang Jia Danu was the first to step forward:
“Southeast, I went to dig for wild vegetables today and saw Widow Zhang and the old bachelor at the village entrance pushing this broken jar together.”
Xuemei handed over a large meat bun, and Wang Daniu took a bite without saying a word, releasing a fragrant aroma of meat and dough.
Aunt Li immediately stepped forward: "That's right, I was feeding the chickens over there when I saw the old bachelor and Widow Zhang sneaking around shoveling snow in front of the Yan family's house."
Xuemei delivered another large meat bun, but Aunt Li wasn't like Wang Daniu; she had a son of her own, so she hurriedly took the bun and rushed home.
Grandpa Ma also stepped forward: "Southeast, I don't want the meat buns anymore, but I really did see Widow Zhang and the old bachelor at your door."
Ignoring everything else, Xuemei handed him a meat bun: "Uncle Ma, thank you for your testimony. Here, take the bun. It's delicious, and there's meat inside."
The villagers shook their heads regretfully, saying that meat buns were always delicious and that the silly girl was talking nonsense.
The village chief's gaze towards Widow Zhang changed. Rural people have many taboos, especially on the important day of the Lunar New Year. Placing a broken jar at someone's doorstep would only make them feel uncomfortable.
"Widow Zhang, I order you to move these things away immediately, to your own doorstep, or I'll deduct your work points," the village chief said viciously.
Widow Zhang was no longer as smug as before. Work points were the lifeblood of farmers; if they weren't deducted, there wouldn't be enough to eat, and if they were, they would starve to death.
Startled, he nodded hurriedly, "I'll get it done right away, I'll get it done right away."
Southeast walked up to him: "You better remember to keep this piled up at your doorstep for a month."
Widow Zhang glared at Southeast with resentment, then hurried back to her house, bringing out a small cart and broom. With swift and efficient movements, she cleaned the area in front of the Yan family's house spotlessly.
"We have to be efficient," said Dongnan to Beinan. "The village chief is watching. You two keep an eye on this widow Zhang. Come back when she's finished piling up the things."
The North, South, and Southwest were warmly dressed and well-fed, so of course they listened to their elder brother and stared intently at Widow Zhang, who was practically grinding her teeth to powder.
Grandma Yan invited the village chief to her home for a chat. It was the first day of the Lunar New Year, so she figured she should at least have a cup of tea with him. Xuemei cleverly went to boil some water.
Grandma Yan took out three meat buns and put them in a small basket, along with some fruit candies bought in town, and handed them to the village chief.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, one cannot refuse gifts. The village chief marveled at the generosity of the Yan family head, who, at such a time of food shortage, handed out six large meat buns.
If Grandma Yan knew what the village chief was thinking, she would definitely scoff. "How magnanimous! I'm only feeding you because I have my precious Nan Nan here. Otherwise, you'd be eating shit!"
The village chief left with the basket. These days, baskets are not rare; anyone can easily weave one from a few branches.
The village chief's wife was already waiting at the door. Whenever the Yan family invited someone, they would always give a gift in return, especially since today was the first day of the Lunar New Year.
Sure enough, when she saw her husband coming over with a small basket, she was excited. One good thing about Ma's wife is that she's not easily fooled; she didn't realize that the basket was small and the contents inside were worthless.
On the contrary, the truly valuable items are all small and exquisite. Taking the basket and looking inside, wow, it really was meat buns, along with a dozen or so colorful fruit candies.
Take out a meat bun and share it with everyone tonight. Tomorrow, when you go back to your parents' house, bring two meat buns and eight fruit candies. That way, you'll have face.
Looking at the three little ones on the kang (heated brick bed), each with a sweet smile, she felt a gaze fixed on her. Looking over, she saw it was her husband's mournful eyes.
He chuckled and peeled a piece of candy for Village Chief Ma, saying, "This is the family's greatest contributor; he can't be wronged."
As soon as the fruit candy entered the mouth of Chief Ma, his eyes narrowed. It was so sweet and delicious.
Thinking about how the Yan family lost six meat buns in just one hour, my heart ached. The Yan family's actions... last time it was pork, this time it's candy and meat buns. We should at least give them something in return.
Mrs. Ma nodded, "That makes sense. We should be human, not like the mythical creature Pixiu, which only takes in and never gives out."
But what to give as a gift? The family has this and is missing that, nothing is complete. Then the youngest daughter of the Ma family spoke up: "Dad, Mom, I have a hair tie here, why don't we give it to their Nan Nan?"
The Yan family's doting on Yan Xiaonan was obvious to all. All the good food and drink in the house went to Yan Xiaonan, while even the three grandsons couldn't get any. Strangely, the three grandsons all agreed with this view.
Just as Sister-in-law Ma was about to praise her daughter for being sensible, a shrill scream rang out, startling her. The voice sounded like Wang's eldest daughter's.
The village chief nodded: "This little girl is not fair. She took a meat bun and ate it all by herself, leaving not a single bite for her family."
"What? Not a single bite was left? He ate such a big meat bun all by himself!" Mrs. Ma said in disbelief.
The village chief nodded: "They ate them all."
"She deserves a beating. She's not a little girl anymore. How could she be so reckless?" Sister-in-law Ma shook her head and said.
"Sigh, we can't entirely blame Wang Danu. If she takes it back, her son will take care of it all by himself, leaving no room for Wang Danu."
Sister-in-law Ma nodded. Their family was the complete opposite of the Yan family. The Yan family doted on their daughter, while their family doted on their son. However, the Yan family was an oddity; most people in the village preferred their sons.
The piercing cries echoed continuously, yet not a single household in the village went out to plead with them; they all stared wide-eyed, their eyes wide open, at such a precious meat bun.
Many children have never even smelled it before. Wang Danu finished her food in just a few bites, but she didn't want to share it with her younger siblings. Shouldn't she at least show some respect to her parents and grandparents?
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