Inside the main hall, the old woman was being denounced by the villagers, who all told her what they knew. Qingyan listened and admired the woman from the bottom of her heart; it was truly remarkable that she had endured for so long.
As the woman listened to what the villagers were saying, she could only cry silently. Her father had regretted his poor judgment of people, but it was too late to change anything.
"Go, Bayan, go and find everything from the dowries of those two sisters-in-law according to the list. It's strange to have sisters-in-law like this, managing to scheme to get their dowry from their sister-in-law!" Qingyan was furious.
She is also considered the sister-in-law. If the sister-in-law is willing to contribute to the dowry when her husband's younger sister gets married, that's fine. But if the mother-in-law and the younger sister-in-law conspire to take advantage of the sister-in-law's dowry, that's quite a strange story.
In a simple village, if there is a wicked mother-in-law, the marriages of the entire village will be affected. Even the two sisters-in-law who have already married are from good families arranged by their sister-in-law.
“My lord, this is too ugly. Do you want to get back the dowry?” The village chief thought this was a family disgrace.
"If it were your daughter who was framed, what would you do?!" Qingyan held up her teacup and took a sip.
She glanced at Yin, who looked as if she were in charge.
"We're definitely coming back, and we won't let them get away with this!" the village chief's son declared righteously. "How could my sister be tricked like this!"
Pfft!
Qingyan chuckled: "See? Even your own son has said it. Do you think this is wrong?"
The village chief fell silent, and the villagers all felt that Qingyan's actions were perfectly acceptable.
"And you three? As sons, what do you want to do?" Qingyan looked at his eldest son, who kept his head down. Judging from his clothes, he was a scholar with official rank.
“I have already passed the provincial examination. This matter is a stain on my reputation. However, I hope my mother will divorce him. If my mother does not meet my father’s demands, she will be beaten. From childhood to adulthood, I have tried my best to rescue my mother.” The eldest son’s tears fell. “A son should not speak ill of his father. I will support my father and I do not want my mother who raised me to suffer.”
The eldest son shed tears, and the village chiefs sighed as well. He was the only scholar in the village, but he had not stayed in the village for long; he had been raised by his maternal family.
“From the age of 3 when I started my education, I was taken to my maternal grandparents’ home. Every time I returned home for a break, I would see that my mother was injured. Guo Luo Ma Fa raised me from the age of 3 until he passed away. For more than ten years, I never used a single tael of silver or ate a single grain of rice from the family. Every time I came back, Guo Luo Ma Fa would bring a lot of things with him before I could return home!” The eldest son is not afraid of the family’s shame. Now he hopes that his mother can live comfortably, so he directly exposes the family’s shame.
Yin frowned slightly. This kind of child was too straightforward and honest; he would not be suitable for officialdom.
"Master, I think this person has a good moral compass. If he can get into Yuelai Inn, he should be a good helper!" Qingyan thought this person was useful.
He was able to protect his mother and live on despite all the criticism.
"You live in Guo Luoma's house?" Qingyan asked curiously.
“The three of us brothers all lived at Guo Luoma’s house. This spring, Guo Luoma passed away, and we only returned home to observe mourning.” The three echoed each other.
This statement caused an uproar in the village. It turned out that the old woman said that her family had paid for the children to go to school, but they wouldn't be living at home.
So, the in-laws raised the child, only to be schemed against. Everyone in the village has daughters, and some of them love their daughters dearly. They thought that if the situation were reversed, the in-laws would definitely not let it go.
"Village chief, this is shameful!" Several village elders, their faces flushed, exclaimed. "Even if they divorce, this wife should still be treated like one of the village's daughters. Really!"
"If we had a daughter-in-law like that, we'd be too busy treating her like this, not mistreating her like this!" Several people who were very close to the old woman felt that she had gone too far.
"This humble woman has no other requests. I hope that you gentlemen and sir can grant me a divorce. I will take my three sons with me. Although this is already unconventional, my three sons have already embarked on their official careers. If they were left in their husband's family, their futures might be ruined." The woman looked at Qingyan with red eyes, pleading.
"My lord, I wish to stay with my mother. I will support my grandmother and father. My mother's household cannot function without a man to hold it together!" The eldest son felt sorry for his mother's situation and did not want anyone in the village to scheme against her anymore. "I implore the elders and the village chief to calculate the amount of money required for her upbringing and to write a contract in this court, so that they will no longer cause trouble for my mother!"
The eldest son knelt on the ground and cried out that his mother had suffered so much. Guo Luoma felt heartache and made the eldest son understand how much his mother had endured for them all these years.
The elders and village chiefs looked at the three children and began to discuss the matter outside the hall.
“If your parents divorce, your career path will be cut short!” Yin said coldly after listening for a while.
“My lord, I am willing. Besides my studies, Guo Luo Ma Fa has also taught me some business skills. In my spare time, I have been running the dowry shop that Guo Luo Ma Fa gave to my mother. So, even if I don’t pursue an official career, I can support my mother and raise my younger brothers with my own two hands!” The eldest son had already thought about his future path when he accompanied his mother here.
Yin looked at his eldest son and thought he was a good person; Qingyan had good judgment.
Inside the courtyard, the man being gagged and beaten was filled with resentment. The old woman understood that her eldest son had been sent to his maternal family for upbringing, which meant his life was completely ruined.
"Is there no justice left? My daughter-in-law and grandson have betrayed me!" The old woman wailed, sitting on the ground.
"Master, the dowry has been fully inventoried. One-third of the valuable jewelry was found in the jewelry boxes of the two sisters-in-law!" Bayan returned, and his two married sisters-in-law and their husbands were also brought along.
Qingyan sat down in the chair and looked at the two younger sisters-in-law. Sure enough, they looked like the old woman. Before they got married, they were definitely not good people.
"This humble woman thanks you two esteemed gentlemen and sirs. All the dowry has been packed. The children will not change their surnames and hope to leave home with this humble woman to live in another residence." The woman knew that her eldest son could no longer pursue an official career, and the other two were still too young.
"Alright, there's a precedent in the county. They also ruled for divorce and allowed the couple to move out of the county with their children. Elders, village chiefs, what are your opinions?" The prefect was relieved that there was a precedent, so he decided to grant the fourth princess's wish, which wouldn't be too much.
The village chiefs understood that the previous verdict had prevented any women from marrying into high-ranking families in the neighboring village for over a decade, a situation their village had secretly mocked. Now, their village was also experiencing this.
“What you say is very true, sir. The village will allow this mother and child to leave!” The village chief did as the neighboring village had done.
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