"Why break off the engagement? Didn't Mother say she had a way to marry Qing'er off?" Chen Zhancai stood still.
Liu Fengjiao's heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly asked, "Yes, Second Brother, why should Butcher Li refund the money? Didn't Qing'er get married?"
Chen Zhanliang glanced at Chen Ruolan, who was dressed like a rich young lady, and looked down on the couple from the bottom of his heart. He said in annoyance, "Your daughter is spoiled and pampered. She is always thinking about harming Qingya. What you are doing is really inhuman. You even want to marry Qingya off."
Let me tell you, that girl Qing is like a completely different person now. Not only is she opinionated, but she is also very firm in her opinions. She is not at all like what Mother thought.
The eldest son's family not only didn't go hungry, but Qing'er even cured Master Fan's itching disease, earning him a hundred coins as a reward. Your wishful thinking has completely failed.
"You're saying it was Qing'er who cured Master Fan's itching?" Liu Fengjiao looked incredulous. "No wonder I heard yesterday that Master Fan's itching was cured. It turns out it was that brat who cured him. And why didn't she give our mother the reward money?"
"You wish! That's what Qingya earned. What does how much reward money she gets have to do with our family?"
Liu Fengjiao's sly eyes darted around. "Second brother, you can't say that. Eldest brother is still Mother's son. Their money is the same as our parents' money. Let Mother ask for it. I don't believe eldest brother won't give it to us."
"Stop your restless heart. This morning, Mother threatened to kill herself, but even my eldest brother didn't waver. You still want their money after the marriage is broken off? Do you really think Qing'er is dough—easy to mold?" Chen Zhanliang glared at her angrily. "Alright, enough nonsense. You two should hurry up and come home with me, or Mother will be so worried she'll hang herself."
"Second Brother, it's pointless for me to go back with you now!" Chen Zhancai said with a troubled expression.
Chen Zhanliang was stunned. "Third brother, what do you mean?"
Chen Zhancai frowned and rubbed his head. He didn't dare to make a decision and looked at Liu Fengjiao beside him, seeking her opinion with his eyes.
Liu Fengjiao gritted her teeth as she listened, inwardly scoffing. What kind of mess was this old woman making? She insisted on separating the family and severing ties. Now look what happened! She had a winning hand, but she played it terribly. What a useless piece of trash.
Why should they bear the consequences of the trouble she caused? Why should they spit out the meat that's already in their mouths?
Even if we had the money, we would never send it back to them.
Having made up her mind, she put on a troubled expression and said, "Second brother, here's the thing. After deducting the expenses of Zhancai Academy, rent, and other miscellaneous expenses like firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea, our family only has a few taels of silver left. It's not enough to go back with that little money, so even if we go back, we won't be of any help."
"What are you saying? That's fifty taels of silver, and you've squandered it all in less than half a month? Third brother, other people study to have a better life, but you're risking the whole family's lives by studying!"
Chen Zhanliang stared wide-eyed, somewhat incredulous.
Chen Zhancai scoffed, "Second brother, what nonsense are you spouting? If you don't understand, don't talk nonsense. Every student spends at least a hundred or eighty taels of silver a year. Compared to them, I'm actually saving money!"
"Alright, alright, stop arguing. I can't argue with you. Whether you have money or not, you have to come home with me. Go talk to your parents. Their life or death depends on you."
"Second Brother, I really can't go back with you right now. I still have to wait to entertain the guests." Chen Zhancai lied again, because he couldn't bear to part with such a big table of delicious food.
Chen Zhanliang was so angry that he wanted to slap him across the face. "Stop talking nonsense. You can invite guests anytime, but you only have one set of parents. If you make them anxious, you will be the murderer who killed your parents."
Butcher Li said that if we don't pay back the money in three days, he'll go to the yamen to file a complaint and cause trouble at your academy, making you lose face while you study. He'll even make you give your precious daughter to him as a second wife to pay off the debt. You'd better think carefully about whether you want to go back or not!
Hearing that Butcher Li was after her, Chen Ruolan felt uneasy, and her pretty face darkened with worry.
The Chen family doesn't have a single penny left, so how can they break off the engagement?
If she were really forced to pay off a debt, marrying Butcher Li would be a death sentence, and she absolutely could not let that happen.
"Father, I don't want to marry a butcher! Come back with my second uncle and see what's going on!"
Liu Fengjiao's palms were sweating. If Butcher Li really sued the authorities or caused trouble at the academy, and people found out that her husband had sold his niece to get married in order to study, thus staining his reputation and ruining his name, how could he continue to study at the academy?
No, absolutely not. Chen Zhancai is her only hope. As for having her precious daughter pay off the debt, forget about it. She will never agree to that.
"Zhancai, why don't you go back with your second brother, settle things at home, and then come back?"
"Alright, then I'll go back for a bit." Chen Zhancai looked at the table full of food and drink, but felt a little reluctant to leave. He sighed and said, "Second brother, you go ahead first, I'll be home soon."
"No rush, I'll wait for you."
"Go on your way, why are you waiting for me?"
"It's fine for me to go back. Besides, I've walked for half a day, can't I take a break?"
Seeing that he was standing still and glancing at the table, Chen Zhancai knew that he must be hungry. He quickly called out to the waiter who was watching the commotion at the door, "Waiter, bring me two meat buns quickly."
"Alright, two big, juicy steamed buns."
A moment later, the waiter brought over the meat buns.
Chen Zhancai picked it up and stuffed it into Chen Zhanliang's hand. "Second brother, you should eat as you go. Otherwise, if the teacher sees you being impolite, I'll say a few words to the teacher and then go after you."
“You scholars are so fussy.” Chen Zhanliang said, taking a big bite of his bun and walking out. He didn’t forget to turn back and remind him, “Third brother, hurry up. If you don’t go back, I’ll have to come looking for you again.”
"Okay, okay, you go ahead and go. I promise I'll be back in a bit."
"Okay, hurry up, don't dawdle." After saying that, Chen Zhanliang left the restaurant and rushed home under the scorching sun.
After seeing him leave, Chen Zhancai slumped into his chair.
Liu Fengjiao frowned and said, "Zhancai, you'd better grit your teeth when you go back to the countryside. Ruolan can't be used to pay off debts!"
"Don't worry, Madam, how could I let our daughter marry a butcher?"
"That's good. Remember, there's no money. Let your mother figure it out herself. It's her fault for severing ties with the eldest son's family."
Chen Zhancai nodded, "Madam, don't worry, I have my own plans. Once the money is in our hands, I will never take it back."
"That's good." Liu Fengjiao raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Zhancai, eat something before you get going."
"Alright, let's eat, the food's getting cold." With that command from Chen Zhancai, his wife and children began to stuff themselves...
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