Ugly girl only wants to farm

Chapter 276 The Calm Lake (16)

Zhang Xuyang and the others held back their laughter, while Shen Siheng plopped down on a low stool and said, "Laugh if you want to?"

Meng Jiuhe said with a serious face, "I'm not laughing at you. You should go and do what you need to do. If you have any difficulties, just let me know. This matter needs to be resolved as soon as possible. If it drags on any longer, it will be bad for Qi Yu."

Xu Chaoyan moved her earthenware pot over and poured it out with a "whoosh": "I left in a hurry today, so this is all I have in the shop. Take this and use it to bribe those people and give them some tea. Money makes the world go round."

"I don't want to. I can handle it myself. I'll ask Qin Xiao later. He knows more people than I do."

For now, all we can do is wait for news.

Three days have passed, and Shen Siheng has been busy like a spinning top every day. He disappears as soon as school is over. In the past few days, they have asked someone to send some food and bedding in. Although the temperature has risen, it is still a bit cool at night. The prison is also damp, and they are afraid that Qi Yu's body cannot withstand it.

These past few days, Qi's mother had been anxiously awaiting her son's return. Every day, she would wander around the prison gate hoping for a miracle. She hadn't seen her son since he went in, and he had become quite thin, which made Xu Chaoyan feel sorry for him. She would occasionally ask her sister-in-law and Yaya to cheer her up.

Although Qi's mother often laughed heartily while being teased by Ya Ya these past few days, Xu Chaoyan still noticed that she often wiped away tears in private, and her eyes were red and swollen every day when she came over.

Just when things seemed to be settling down, two unexpected guests arrived at their shop, disrupting their peaceful life of the past six months and catching them completely off guard.

These past two days, Zhang Qiao'er has been acting strangely again, coming over to talk to them from time to time. But she always seems absent-minded, occasionally glancing outside as if she's waiting for someone.

These days, because of Qi Yu's matter, Xu Chaoyan has no energy to care about her absent-mindedness.

But she always felt something was strange. These past few days, her sister-in-law had been using various excuses to get Zhang Qiao'er away whenever she came over, even for something very small, she would insist on dragging her along to do it.

"Why do you insist on dragging me out to buy some scallions?" Xu Chaoyan looked at the row of scallions she had planted in the backyard. She asked with a puzzled expression, "Didn't I scatter some scallion seeds and transplant some over there? If we really don't have time to pick a handful, it can be a lifesaver. Why rush out like this?"

Meng Jiuxia pulled her outside, her voice urgent: "Sister-in-law, come out with me! What are you doing here? Sister Yueniang is here with that woman, so come out with me. Look at my clothes and this hair accessory. Didn't you promise to buy them for me last time? All the girls are wearing red and green, and I look so shabby."

Xu Chaoyan looked her sister-in-law up and down. The dark gray clothes were a bit too big and looked like a burlap sack on her.

She had made several outfits for Meng Jiuxia to try on, but Meng Jiuxia refused them all, saying they would be more practical for work and she could wear them for another year. Her hair was also simply braided with a hair tie, quite plain indeed. The young girl was growing up and knew how to care about her appearance; everyone has a love of beauty, and she had indeed overlooked these details.

She weighed her money pouch in her hand. Fortunately, she had brought extra silver with her today. She had originally planned to pay the butcher for the pork, but Qi Yu's matter had delayed her, and she had forgotten about it in her haste.

"Let your sister keep watch over the shop by herself and toughen her up. I'll go out with you for a walk and pick up some bones from the butcher's to make some soup for your older brother and the others. They've been running around a lot these days and they're exhausted. We also need to get two more doses of Aunt Qi's medicine. I saw her coughing so badly yesterday, should we buy some fritillaria cirrhosa and stew some pear soup for her?"

Seeing that she kept talking nonstop the whole way, Meng Jiuxia started to chime in, casually asking, "Sister-in-law, did Zhang Qiao'er used to come here often? How did you two meet? That woman looks so alluring, you wouldn't happen to have ulterior motives, would you?"

She was also wondering when she had met that woman, since she had always been with her sister-in-law. She felt annoyed whenever she saw that woman. The woman might not have recognized her just now. She looked at her with a puzzled expression, casually picking up a piece of pastry and handing it to her like she was coaxing a child.

She accepted the pastries without showing any emotion, knowing that Yue Niang and the others were present. The pastries crumbled in her hands. Then she went to the backyard, where Meng Jiuxia immediately sent a flock of birds rushing over to snatch them.

Xu Chaoyan, her mind only on the nearby shops, casually replied, "It was during those few days when you went back to your hometown, right? My sister and she got along quite well, chatting away. They're even from the same hometown, so they would chat from time to time. It's rare to see my sister so happy, is there a problem?"

Meng Jiuxia then spoke up: "So, sister-in-law, what do you think of her? Do you get along with her? I think these women who come to us all have ulterior motives. They're either after my brother or Brother Zhang. We should be careful. She looks like a fox spirit from the mountains, sister-in-law. You need to be aware of the danger."

"Have you ever seen what a fox spirit looks like? Tell me."

Meng Jiuxia was earnestly trying to persuade her sister-in-law to keep a close eye on her brother, but after a long while, she suddenly said something completely unrelated.

Meng Jiuxia looked at her with exasperation: "Although I've never seen the fox spirit in the mountains, I heard many legends about her when I was little. The prettier a woman is, the more likely she is to deceive people. Sister-in-law, this time we're in the county, not Hongmiao Village anymore. What if they seduce my brother and run away with him? What will you do for the rest of your life? You have to protect your husband."

Xu Chaoyan chuckled and tapped her head lightly with her finger: "You, you're so young but you're so cunning. Don't you know what kind of person your older brother is? Even if someone is right under your nose, no matter how closely you watch over him, he'll still find a way to mess around. Why should I watch him so closely? Besides, that girl Zhang Qiao'er might not be interested in your older brother. I reckon she's interested in Zhang Xuyang. Didn't you see how well she and my sister got along?"

Meng Jiuxia was speechless at her words, thinking to herself, "Impossible! How could she possibly be interested in Brother Zhang? That woman's materialistic and snobbish nature is unacceptable, and she certainly wouldn't be interested in Brother Zhang himself. Considering the Zhang family's current situation..."

Fortunately, her brother had been incredibly busy these past few days, and thankfully, he hadn't run into any other women. No, ever since they last met, she thought she wouldn't see her again in such a large county. Who would have thought she'd be right under her nose? She had to tell her brother when she got back today, to ask him to avoid any misunderstandings.

After Xu Chaoyan and the others had been wandering around outside for about half an hour, they returned to the shop and saw Zhang Yueniang outside looking anxious. When she saw them return, she ran towards them.

“You’re finally back. Come with me to the shop right away. Someone came looking for you and gave us a very detailed account, but we don’t dare to confirm it rashly. You two have to make the decision, since your husband and Xuyang aren’t here.”

Xu Chaoyan was completely bewildered: "Whoever is looking for me, I don't know anyone in this county."

She then looked at Meng Jiuxia and teased, "You didn't come looking for you, did you? My sister-in-law has grown up and reached the age for marriage. Is someone interested in her and came here specifically to propose marriage?"

Meng Jiuxia's face flushed red with anger. She shoved the food in her hand at him and shouted angrily, "Sister-in-law, what did you say? How old am I? I don't want to get married. I said I would stay at home for the rest of my life. Are you trying to kick me out again? I'll try to eat less from now on."

She said those words with such a pitiful and aggrieved tone.