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Chapter 11: 100 Taels of Silver\n“Widow Zhang, now that Scholar Zhang has broken off his engagement, has he taking a liking to anyone in particular?” Liu Meijun, the Eldest Madam, had put on a sincere and kind expression, but every few seconds, her eyes shifted slyly to look at the birth card in Widow Zhang’s hand.\n
Widow Zhang noticed the Eldest Madam’s meaningful glances and swiftly stuffed Zhang Youen’s birth card into her sleeve.\n
“Youen thinks that he should wait a bit more before he is married, after all he is still young and will have plenty of time to choose a suitable marriage. As for liking someone, he doesn’t have anyone in his heart right now.” Widow Zhang coldly replied, and deliberately put a stop to Meijun’s obvious desire.\n
Everyone in the Li Family was truly too outrageous! On the surface, they seemed to be a learned and very well-off scholarly family who practiced propriety, but the family wasn’t actually that wealthy. Their manners and etiquette more resembled petty bumpkins from the countryside, lacking the refined dignity of true noble families. It made one want to look at them from afar but not get close. \n
Her only son had just been rescued from Bailian and her lowly family! There was no way that he would be associated with the Li Family in the future.\n
She knew that the Eldest Young Miss, Li Xuehua was an outstanding beauty, the delicate and frail type that men liked. She possessed a pretty figure and her demeanor was like that of a young miss of a noble family.\n
However, they were all merely girls from a commoner family in the village. The Li Family’s haughty and vain pretense was truly too embarrassing! Her son would be a future high-ranking official, there was no way that he would marry such a short-sighted and small-minded wife.\n
Yes, Widow Zhang was just a widow, but for her to be able to grit her teeth and tirelessly provide for her son to become a scholar was something that a mere village woman wouldn’t be able to understand.\n
“Scholar Zhang is truly an admirable young talent! Which girl in the village wouldn’t like him? Even my Xuehua commented that your son’s capability is far superior to her father’s!”\n
Liu Meijun subtly shifted the conversation towards her daughter, carefully probing for any reaction from Widow Zhang.\n
“Haha…” Widow Zhang drily chuckled and said nothing.\n
In her heart, she secretly cursed that this Li Meijun was being unreasonable and pushy. One could only imagine that she was extremely tenacious and willing to do whatever for her daughter. If she squabbled with her here, others might misunderstand and lump Zhang Youen and Li Xuehua together!\n
Wouldn’t I just be implicating my son’s future ah?!\n
Liu Meijun sat still in thought and pursed her lips when she saw that her fat sister-in-law had entered the main hall.\n
Although she truly believed that Scholar Zhang and her daughter would make a perfect match, she couldn’t just outright tell that to Widow Zhang. It would have to come out of someone’s mouth.\n
Her fat and plump sister-in-law loved to watch the fun unfold in front of her and wasn’t afraid to gossip about others. Since she was already such a chatterbox and spoke rather tactlessly, so Liu Meijun decided to stay quiet to watch the show.\n
“Oh! Isn’t this Scholar Zhang’s mother?” The plump sister-in-law’s face turned into one of pure fawning as she lumbered to Widow Zhang’s side.\n
There was not a person in Wuming Village who didn’t know that Zhang Youen, at such a young and tender age, had placed top in the county level imperial examination. Even the Magistrate and several influential officials in the village had personally congratulated him. The obese sister-in-law wouldn’t just let go of this once-in-a-lifetime chance!\n
As for the silently scheming Liu Meijin, it wasn’t like she hadn’t already noticed her sister-in-law’s hidden intentions. After all, Zhang Youen’s future looked extremely bright and the most prospective. The Eldest Master, who already had three children, had just passed this year. It seemed that they would be stuck as a mere scholar’s wife for the rest of her life!\n
Of course, except for the overly arrogant Li Family, everyone else thought that Zhang Youen was the most promising between the two.\n
“Have you eaten yet?” Widow Zhang gently asked the obese woman in front of her.\n
“I already ate!” The plump woman’s double chin jiggled as she nodded. Seeing that Widow Zhang and Liu Meijun seemed to be in the middle of talking, she asked with a gossiping look: “This is?”\n
In Wuming Village, most believed that the rumor of Bailian trying to seduce the old bachelor was merely an accident, but the fat woman loved to gossip. Her mouth constantly flapped and her tongue was always wagging with the other village women. Seeing the two women together, her antenna perked up, something must be up!\n
“It’s nothing, I came to casually chat with Matriarch Wang.” Widow Zhang pulled back her sleeve to quietly reveal the birth card hidden in her hands.\n
“Oh? What is this?”\n
The fat woman’s eyes lit up, her plump and obese fingers nimbly snatching the birth card out from Widow Zhang’s sleeve.\n
Widow Zhang calmly looked on and actually felt quite relieved. She had been worried how to let the villagers know that the engagement with Bailian had been broken, and now the perfect person showed up at her doorstep!\n
Unfortunately, the plump woman was illiterate and couldn’t understand what the characters on the red paper meant, but with just a perceptive glance, she had more or so guessed the purpose behind Widow Zhang’s sudden visit.\n
“Is this for annulling the…?” The woman conspiratorially leaned closer to Madam Zhang and with a gossipy look, asked Widow Zhang.\n
“No….it’s nothing, my family has a gratitude debt to pay back, Bailian is such a good girl, I’ve already…compensated her” Widow Zhang slowly drew out this phrase before grabbing the birth card from the woman’s fat fingers.\n
“What? Compensation? Are you giving the betrothal gifts back?” incredulously asked the fat sister-in-law.\n
“That was nothing, I…have something urgent to attend to, sister-in-law and Widow Zhang, when you have time, feel free to come over and chat.” Liu Meijun said hurriedly, before leaving the hall with a rather strained expression.\n
The fat woman was already delightedly conversing with Widow Zhang, she swam like a fish under water and chattered nonstop. She pulled Widow Zhang close and asked, “How much compensation?\n
“Not too much, just two taels of silver.” Widow Zhang outwardly looked embarrassed, but inwardly she felt at ease.\n
In this way, as long as the fat sister-in-law of the Li Family knew something, it would only take a few days for the entire village to know. Her son would finally be free!\n
Widow Zhang had always disliked the gossipy and lazy woman, but for some reason, she seemed like a sight for sore eyes instead. They talked very happily for the next few hours.\n
…..\n
Downtown, in a rundown and dark alley\n
“Hit! Hit hard!” A very obese man barked orders to several men as they ferociously beat and kicked a handsome man, who was currently cowering on the ground. \n
“Ah, I was wrong! I was unlucky this time around, I’ll definitely pay you back in the future!”\n
Li Fourth Master was miserably curled up on the ground with a look of fear and dismay. He had been beaten and kicked by so many people. He desperately protected his face, but he was only one person, how long could he last when the other side had so many people?\n
Last night, he had planned on gambling with Er Gouzi and striking it rich. He didn’t expect to lose, and so much all at once! Er Gouzi had left right after he lost his money, but the Fourth Master wanted to make a comeback and ended up borrowing a lot of money from his Brother Qiang. Unfortunately….he lost it all.\n
“Hmph, you don’t have any money or capital on your body, lost this much and still wanna repay me? How?!” Brother Qiang cradled a woman at his side and brandished his chubby hands about in the air in the direction of the thugs. The mercenary thugs immediately stopped and looked at the Li Fourth Master in disdain.\n
“I’ll…I’ll go get the money from home..” The Fourth Master struggled to control his shivering body, stretching out three trembling fingers to vow, “and I’ll pay it back with interest!”\n
“Fine, I’ll give you five hours/days, make sure to pay those hundred taels of silver with interest, otherwise…” The obese Brother Qiang harrumphed.\n
“But…I only borrowed fifty taels from you…” said the dumbstruck Fourth Master.\n
“Men, hit him!” Brother Qiang ordered, his face contorting into an evil sneer.\n
“Don’t, don’t!” instantly begged the Li Fourth Master, “I’ll make sure to pay it back!”\n
“Well, if you should fail to return with the money on time, I’ll send someone to your house and see just how much money your family has! I don’t know about other people.” Brother Qiang patronizedly tutted and clucked while grinning maliciously into the Fourth Master’s face, “Look at your fair looks, I guarantee some noble master or prince would like to keep you as a plaything!”\n
“I…No!” The Li Fourth Master gritted his teeth.\n
He knew himself to be quite foolish, liked to gamble and occasionally play with women, but he really had no interest in men!\n
Moreover, his Eldest Brother had just recently become a scholar. If people caught wind of his gambling scandal, it would stain his brother’s reputation! If the Patriarch Li could save his Eldest son’s reputation, he would definitely give up his Fourth son without a second thought! \n
He didn’t want to be given up on! He was supposed to take the high road in life with his Eldest Brother!\n
The Fourth Master slowly limped back home from downtown, but rather than going home directly, went to find Er Gouzi. No matter how much he thought about it, there was no way that Matriarch Wang would fork over a hundred of taels, even if it was to save her son’s life!\n