Upon hearing that Zheng Xinghai had come because of this matter, Shu Zhizhen immediately became restless.
“Village chief, even if you are highly respected, you can’t destroy our family’s reputation and force Nanzhi to sever ties with us. What kind of nonsense is this?”
Zheng Xinghai touched his nose. "You can't say that. Everyone in the village saw that Nanzhi lived a life worse than a dog in your house. I only came here after getting the villagers' consent."
There's a rule in Taile Village: if everyone in the village agrees, it has to be done, even if it's not allowed.
The villagers all disapproved of the way the Nan family treated their daughter and unanimously agreed that the matter was now a done deal. What were the Nan family hesitating about?
Of course, not everyone agreed. He didn't go to Zhao Laizi's family to ask for their opinions, and of course, only he knew about this matter.
The only reason the Nan family didn't want to do that was because they coveted Song Hanyan's wealth. After all, coming up with fifty taels of silver at once was no small feat.
Nan Zhi continued, "I heard that Hunter Song makes a living by hunting, so he must have a lot of blood on his hands. I also heard from the villagers that he killed someone, but I don't know if it's true."
Upon hearing this, the Nan family felt a pang of anxiety. They had also heard this rumor before; it had been widely circulated and many people had taken it seriously.
Seeing that it was effective, Nan Zhi continued, "If you sign it, I guarantee I will help you get your money back, send the thief to the inner prison, and make it clear to Hunter Song that I, Nan Zhi, have nothing to do with the Nan family, so that he will not cause you any trouble."
Nankai was immediately tempted. After all, he was so scared when Song Hanyan came to propose marriage that day that he almost wet his pants. He originally wanted to ask for less dowry and give his daughter to him directly, but he didn't expect the other party to ask for fifty taels of silver right away.
Nankai, who was greedy for money, naturally wouldn't refuse, and so the marriage was arranged in a muddled way.
Nankai hesitated for a long time before slowly walking to the table, dipping his fingers in ink, and pressing them onto the two documents.
Seeing him like this, Nanzhi secretly breathed a sigh of relief and immediately stepped forward to press her handprint.
With the village chief as witness, and two copies of the document made, one for each person, the relationship between Nanzhi and the Nan family was completely severed.
Zhao Hui pursed her lips to hide the smile on her face, thinking to herself, "After all these years, I finally have nothing to do with that little brat anymore."
Nanzhi folded the document and put it in her pocket, then said to Nankai, "Father, if we want to catch the thief, we'll need your help."
And so, Nankai and Nanwenxuan, who should have gone to work, did not go out today.
Before long, the news spread throughout the village that the girl from the Nan family had found a Ganoderma lucidum on the mountain and sold it for a good amount of money.
Several elderly women sat together at the entrance of the village.
Grandma Liu: "The Nan family won't have to suffer anymore."
Granny Zhao: "We've been farmers all our lives, and we never even knew what a hundred taels of silver looked like. No wonder the Nan family is blessed by heaven."
"I heard that the Nan family girl has broken off her relationship with Nan Kai. That's good."
"That girl has suffered a lot since she was a child, and now her parents have married her off to Hunter Song. I don't know how many days she will live. The Nan family has really done something terrible."
The more they talked, the more regretful they became, wishing that a bolt of lightning would strike that family, but heaven knew that it was the Nan family who found the Ganoderma lucidum.
Nanzhi talked about their family the whole way, which was great; that was exactly the effect they wanted.
"Cherry, hurry up, let Nan Wenqing know as soon as possible."
Alright.
With the system's intervention, Nan Wenqing quickly received the news while he was still lying in the arms of Xiang Honghong in the Yihong Courtyard.
"Wenlang, I entrust myself to you, you must redeem me," Honghong said softly, leaning against Nan Wenqing's chest.
Nan Wenqing touched the delicate skin beneath his hand, "Don't worry, Honghong, as long as I have the money, I will definitely redeem you."
Honghong pouted and said, "Wenlang, you just know how to lie to me. I just heard that the Nan family in Taile Village found a Ganoderma lucidum and got a hundred taels of silver for nothing. Don't I deserve that much silver?"
"What!" Nan Wenqing jumped up. "Are you telling the truth?"
Honghong got up and put on her clothes: "Of course it's true."
As she spoke, she leaned against Nan Wenqing's chest and asked, "What's wrong with Wenlang?"
Nan Wenqing pushed the person away, picked up his clothes without saying a word, put them on, and walked out.
Yesterday I won fifty taels of silver, and I was hoping to win a round or two, but I ended up losing so much that I only had five taels left.
If I had the hundred taels of silver at home, I could take it and gamble a few rounds at the casino, and maybe I could earn back yesterday's silver.
In the dead of night, in the quiet of the village, a dark figure gradually approached the Nan family's house, climbed over the courtyard wall, and landed softly on the ground.
The shadowy figure looked around to make sure all the lights in the rooms were off before tiptoeing into the main room.
By the moonlight, one could see two people sleeping on the bed, their breathing steady and accompanied by snoring. Nan Wenqing was sure that his parents were fast asleep, so he walked toward the wooden box where his mother often kept her money.
He opened the wooden box, and in the corner was a silk handkerchief. He gently opened it, and inside the handkerchief was not a hundred taels of silver. It felt rough to the touch and the pieces were of different sizes.
This wasn't silver, Nan Wenqing realized first. Then, thinking of something, he quickly closed the box and prepared to leave.
Just as he reached the door, several figures stood in front of him.
Nan Wenxuan glared at his younger brother with hatred, seemingly unable to believe it.
"Brother." Nan Wenqing didn't know how to say it, and then his parents appeared behind him.
Shu Zhizhen looked at her son: "Wenqing, this isn't true, tell your mother quickly."
Nan Wenqing stood with his hands hanging at his sides, showing no remorse whatsoever.
"As you can see, besides, this money was originally intended to be left to me by my parents, so what difference does it make if I use it sooner?"
Zhao Hui was furious when she heard this, realizing that the second son didn't respect their eldest son's family at all.
"Second brother, you can't say that. It's natural that you need money to pass the imperial examinations, but you can't take away our family's money as well."
Nan Wenxuan's face turned ugly. "Where did the money go? Give it to Father and Mother right away."
Nan Wenqing clutched his pocket. "The money, of course, is for buying writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. You don't know how expensive these things are."
Her second brother really had the nerve to say that he would spend fifty taels of silver on writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.
Nanzhi stepped forward and said, "Second brother, even though you didn't tell me, I helped you. But you actually gambled away all the money you had."
Nan Wenqing was hit where it hurt, and exclaimed, "You're talking nonsense!"
Looking at his parents' eyes, Nan Wenqing knew he couldn't hide it anymore.
The two elders of the Nan family never expected that the money was stolen by their proud son, who then used it for gambling.
Nan Zhi silently withdrew from the battlefield, feeling that this was not the time to ask for money. As for whether or not to send officials to the government, it was up to the two of them to decide. She did not want to get involved in these dirty affairs.
Nanzhi returned to her room and, taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, slipped into the space.
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