Looking at the two quilts on the kang (a heated brick bed), Old Man Chen frowned.
Could it be that the old woman hid roast chicken, roast duck, and braised pork knuckle inside...?
That can't be right. There's a strong smell of stinky feet in the bed. How can I eat anything that's been put in there?
Curious, she abruptly pulled back the covers, only to find half a half-eaten sesame seed cake stuffed inside. Her spirits immediately deflated.
"Old woman, is this what you mean?"
Grandma Chen nodded and smiled, "Yes, that's it. You've definitely never eaten it before!"
Although disappointed, Old Man Chen couldn't help but smack his lips. "These sesame cakes aren't cheap. They cost two coins each. I don't have the spare money to buy them."
Grandma Chen sighed, "Before, when the village came to sell sesame cakes, I could exchange them for eggs to satisfy my cravings. But later, when the sesame cake seller found out that I was taking rotten eggs, he would avoid me whenever he saw me. Even if we bumped into each other, he wouldn't return them to me."
"You're really shameless. That peddler is making a living by walking the streets and alleys, and you're giving him rotten eggs?"
"Do you think I wanted this?" Old Mrs. Chen rolled her eyes at him. "When the third son wasn't home, I kept the eggs the hens laid. But it got too hot in the summer, and they went bad after a while. I couldn't let them go to waste, so I traded them for sesame cakes. That way, I avoided a little loss."
"Where did this half-eaten sesame seed cake come from? Is it spoiled?!"
"How could it be bad? This was secretly given to me by the third brother when he came back last time. I couldn't bear to eat it, so I left half for you to try. As the saying goes, the more you drink, the better. Hurry up and eat it!"
"Alright, I'll try this sesame seed cake and see what it tastes like." Old Chen couldn't resist taking a bite, but it felt like biting into a lump of iron, and he immediately winced in pain. "Why is this thing so hard? I can't even bite into it!"
Grandma Chen couldn't help but laugh out loud, "You silly thing, I've kept this sesame seed cake in my bed for over ten days, it's definitely too tough to bite. Break off a piece and eat it slowly."
"Since you saved it for me, why didn't you take it out sooner? It's been sitting for so long, is it still edible?" Although Old Chen was a little disgusted, he still couldn't resist breaking off a piece, putting it in his mouth, chewing it carefully, frowning, and swallowing it down.
"This sesame seed cake doesn't taste right. It feels a bit pungent in my throat!"
"If there's anything wrong with the taste, just eat yours."
"No, I can't enjoy this stuff, I'd rather drink!" Old Chen felt his mouth was full of the smell of bedding, which made him so nauseous that he almost threw up. He casually put the half-eaten sesame seed cake on the kang table.
Grandma Chen shook her head and smiled dismissively, "You really don't have the luck to eat. If you don't eat, I will."
The two talked and drank until they had finished half a bottle of wine, then lay down to rest.
When Old Mrs. Chen opened her eyes again, it was already broad daylight. She hurriedly put on her shoes and got out of bed, saying, "Old man, hurry up, get up quickly."
Old Chen rubbed his head, which was still a little groggy from sleep, and sat up. "Old woman, what's the rush?"
"I think you're really asleep. You think that once you let Master Fan get his way, everything is set in stone? It's not that simple."
Don't forget, that brat is incredibly wicked. If we don't catch her in the act, she probably wouldn't admit it even if we beat her to death.
If that happens, and she acts like a scoundrel, denying that Fan Tong slept with her, we'll have no proof. How can we possibly sway that brat?"
"Yes, yes, you're right! How come I didn't think of that?" Old Chen nodded vigorously. "Old woman, what do you think we should do about this?"
Old Mrs. Chen's eyes turned cold, and a sinister sneer appeared on her lips.
"As the saying goes, gossip can kill. We have to make a scene, make a huge fuss, let everyone in the village know that that damned girl is having an affair, make her lose face, and only then will she obediently agree to the marriage in order to survive."
"Old woman, what's wrong with your brain? Why are you so convoluted? Your move is ruthless and ingenious!"
Old Chen scratched his head, looking somewhat embarrassed.
"That's the situation, but if we really make a big fuss, won't Master Fan also lose face? Would he be willing to do that?"
Old Mrs. Chen scoffed, "Master Fan is a big tycoon in Qingshui Town. He's done countless shameless things in the past. Why would he care about these things?"
Old Chen smiled knowingly, “Yes, what you said makes sense. The poorer people are, the more they care about face, while the richer people are, the less shameless they are. Why would Master Fan care about such things?”
"Alright, enough nonsense, hurry up and pack your things. If that brat wakes up, things will get complicated!"
"Then let's hurry up and go." Old Chen hurriedly left the house, craning his neck to look into the neighboring yard, where he heard rhythmic sounds coming from inside.
His eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but click his tongue a few times, "This rich man Fan is really something else, still up so early in the morning, isn't he afraid of dying on a woman..."
Old Mrs. Chen breathed a sigh of relief and chuckled coldly, "That's good. We've caught her red-handed and ruined this brat's reputation. Let's see how she tries to argue now."
"So what should we do next?"
"Now you start yelling and cursing at the top of your lungs, the more offensive and disgusting the better. Try to get all the men in our village, young and old, to come over within half an incense stick's time. Then we'll go into the house and catch them in the act."
"That won't work. If I shout, everyone in the room will hear me. How am I supposed to catch them in the act?"
“That’s easy to handle.” Old Mrs. Chen said, pulling Old Mr. Chen towards the yard, “Let’s go outside and yell at him.”
Old Chen was dumbfounded. "Old woman, you know I've never cursed before. I don't think I can do this. You used to be a master of cursing. Why don't you do it?"
Old Mrs. Chen glared at him, pouting, somewhat angry, "Just curse when I tell you to, why all the nonsense?"
"Alright, I'll give it a try." Old Chen hesitated, then muttered, "Help! Something's happened at my house! Come and see what's going on!..."
"Stop, stop, stop! Shut up!" Old Mrs. Chen's face darkened with displeasure. "What kind of nonsense are you spouting? Can't you be a little harsher?"
"How much more ruthless? I don't know how!"
"You're so stupid, you need someone to teach you how to swear. Just say whatever you want to say. If you really don't know what to say, just shout out the words you usually use to curse me in your mind."
"Old woman, you're joking. When have I ever scolded you? You should do it!"
"Alright, stop pretending and go ahead and start yelling at me."
"Alright, alright, I'll go right now." Old Chen arrived at the gate, gathered his emotions slightly, and remembering the grievances he had suffered in the past, he began to curse at the top of his lungs.
"You wretched, disrespectful slut! Don't think that just because I'm not angry, I'm a pushover. If you really piss me off, I'll whip you, skin you alive, beat you until you're crawling on the ground, and make you kneel and kowtow to me. If you dare to be disobedient again, I'll divorce you, you damned old woman..."
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