"Aunt Zhang, you should quickly pack up the important items on your stall so that no one notices," Xi Chun said in a low voice, anticipating what was about to happen.
"Okay, I'll receive it myself."
Xi Chun continued with her business. After thinking for a moment, she realized she also needed to remind Qiangzi, so she pulled Taozi over and whispered something to him, telling him to hurry up and go see his brother.
Once everything was arranged, Xichun calmly continued frying things. The neighbors around him shook their heads and sighed. They thought Xichun was definitely going to get into trouble with that family. They said, "Really, we never realized the county magistrate was such an unreasonable person. All the things he did before were done openly, and there were even local gentry to stop him."
Chen Lixiao arrived with his older brother and two followers. Upon seeing Xichun's appearance, Chen Lizhong was furious.
"You insulted my brother? You little bitch, don't push your luck! Men, let's show her today whether I can handle her or not! Smash it!" After gaining power, Chen Lizhong became even more arrogant. Seeing Xichun reminded him of the suffering his family had endured. If she hadn't refused to help, things might not have gone so badly this year.
"You really are a cursed father. Everyone who's near you is bound to have bad luck. I think I was tricked last time because I ate at your stall. Humph, if you know what's good for you, apologize to us brothers. Otherwise, you can forget about running this stall."
"Paying for meals is just like paying back debts, isn't it a matter of course? You didn't help us when we were in trouble, and now you're going too far. What kind of logic is that? Do you expect the whole county to revolve around you? Everyone works hard to make a living, getting up early and working late. Why should we feed you for free?"
"Hey, I think this young lady has some backbone. Brother Chen, she looks down on you, why don't you take her as your concubine?" The two hotheads were only focused on praising Chen Lizhong and hadn't bothered to understand the relationship between the two families.
"Get out of my way! Do you know what our relationship is? You're taking a concubine, Chen Xichun. Let me tell you, I only refrained from taking your stall because you're my uncle's daughter. If you don't apologize to us brothers today, you can forget about setting up your stall in the future."
Hearing his words, everyone understood. So that's what their relationship was. They didn't look like cousins at all; they looked more like enemies.
“I set up this stall with the government’s permission and paid the stall fee. If you don’t let me set up the stall, then let the county government come forward and give me the reason why I can’t set up the stall. As for the so-called relatives, don’t forget that our two families have severed ties in the presence of the village chief and the villagers. We will not have any contact with each other in the future. I will not be involved in any of your family’s happy events, and you have no right to decide anything that happens to my family.”
"Hmph, you just wait, smash her stall!" In just a few days, Chen Lizhong had already grown to enjoy the feeling of ordering people around, and now he felt that he was far from having enough manpower. He wished he had more.
"You dare? This is a stall that I worked so hard to set up. It cost so much money to get it to where it is today. Without any evidence, do you think you can smash things just because you are the county magistrate's brother-in-law?"
Did you get the county magistrate's permission? You all need to come and see for yourselves. When my father was seriously ill, my mother and I knelt at my grandmother's door all day begging, but they wouldn't open the door to see him, nor would they lend us a single penny to treat him. We sold all the land we owned, but it was too late for my father to get treatment. If he continued to live, he would only be a burden.
Later, to avoid becoming a burden on us, he hanged himself in the middle of the night with a hemp rope he had braided himself, leaving us, a widow and her child, barely able to survive in the village. I finally managed to earn some money and moved my stall from the town to the county seat, all so that I could get protection from the county government in the city.
Otherwise, I had only set up a stall in town for a few months when someone broke into my house and robbed me. Fortunately, my neighbor from the same village helped me. It was a truly bitter experience.
Even so, I still couldn't escape the persecution from my cousin's family. They wanted me to marry a mentally challenged man and collect a dowry. Fortunately, the villagers found out, otherwise I would probably be suffering in my husband's family now. Now that I'm in the city, I've finally gained a foothold and things are looking a little better, but my cousin's family has come knocking on my door again, threatening me at every turn.
"Look closely, everyone. These are the two of them, and that one is my uncle's son. They're the ones who started bullying me. I've never bullied anyone. Father, you died so tragically, leaving us to suffer so much in this world. Why didn't you take me with you?"
Seeing that they were going to continue to overturn the stalls, Xichun simply grabbed a stool and started crying on the street, telling her about her hardships. She was so moved by her story that several emotional old women were already shedding tears.
"I watched this girl do business with a smile, I never imagined she had such a tragic background. No wonder, it's really not easy for a girl to do business alone when her parents are not around."
"Exactly. Her grandmother and uncle's family are really awful. What they've ever done is commendable. You can't cure someone who's poor at heart. That's the point."
"What brother-in-law or brother-in-law? He's just a concubine's family member. How dare he call himself the county magistrate's brother-in-law? I think the county magistrate must be blind."
"In short, this family is no good. Do you remember Chen Lizhong? He was the one who got cheated out of gambling. He was such a pathetic guy back then, but now he's all high and mighty because he has a girl."
"You heartless, treacherous bastard, you'll get your comeuppance sooner or later!"
The onlookers were all indignant, but dared not speak out for fear of retaliation. An old man who often ate at Xichun's stall shook his head and thought to himself that the world was going to the dogs.
"Brother, I think we should stop smashing it. Look at the way people around us are looking at us, like they want to tear us apart." Chen Lixiao also felt the gazes of the people around him and couldn't help but call out to his brother.
"Hmph, consider yourself lucky. If you dare to mess with us again, we won't let you off so easily this time. Brothers, let's go!" Chen Lizhong was also a little afraid of the people's gazes. Seeing that his lackeys were annoyed by the small stove and had even overturned the cold pot, he quickly called for a stop.
"Miss Chen, I never imagined your background was so pitiful. Come, let's all help them collect your belongings." Everyone stepped forward to comfort her.
"Thank you everyone. With the stall in this state, we can't do business today. Please share some of the cooked food. I won't charge you. Let's pack up early, go back and rest, and set up the stall again tomorrow."
Xichun forced a smile, then asked Aunt Zhang and the others to distribute the food to everyone before leaving with her people amidst everyone's sighs.
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