Becoming the Cannon Fodder Wife of Crazy and Powerful Official - Chapter 31

Meng Ruxin clenched her hands tightly, listening as Shang Heng described Xin Yueying’s attire. She looked down at her own plain white long gown and was instantly so furious her whole body trembled, “Brother Shen is so gravely ill, and she has the nerve to dress herself up like that, all flowery and showy!”

Shang Heng,”By the way, these past few days, hasn’t Guan Waishan given you any trouble?”

Meng Ruxin, “No. That woman must have said something to him. That woman is deeply cunning. I always feel uneasy; I’m afraid something will happen.”

Shang Heng, “If something happens, it might actually be for the best.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Shang Heng, “The yamen has received news that in a few months, officials from above will be coming down for an inspection. If a big stir is caused, then, we can mobilize the people to draft a blood petition and accuse Guan Waishan.” Shang Heng said gravely, “But Guan Waishan has been acting completely out of character lately. He’s stopped collecting ‘tributes’ from all those small vendors. It’s most likely that the woman is giving him ideas!”

Meng Ruxin, “But how would she know?”

Shang Heng said solemnly, “She’s a clever one. She must have seen that if Guan Waishan continues playing the tyrant like this, he’ll eventually reap what he sows. We aren’t afraid of Guan Waishan’s brutality; he’s a fool. But I fear this vicious, cunning woman will collude with Guan Waishan, and then they’ll use underhanded tricks against us.”

He looked at Meng Ruxin, his expression grave, “Moreover, Guan Waishan has been very wary of me lately. He might even have discovered that I know you.”

Meng Ruxin covered her mouth, “That Xin woman is simply too terrible! We can’t let her run rampant like this. Having such a cunning and malicious person by Brother Shen’s side is absolutely unacceptable. Can you think of a way to have her tied up and taken away using some pretext that doesn’t implicate our families or the Shen family?” She said darkly, “A wicked woman like her really deserves to be dunked in a pig cage. Dressing up like that, she must be trying to seduce other men. How dare she.”

Shang Heng shook his head, “If she’s in cahoots with Guan Waishan, it will be difficult.” He thought for a moment, then said seriously, “But I did find out something. Her maiden family is in Xinjia Village. Her parents died long ago. Her eldest brother is a gambling addict. It seems she was sold by him.” Shang Heng paused here, then said, “If all else fails, I’ll summon her good-for-nothing gambler brother and have him cause trouble for her.”

“Would summoning him implicate our family?”

“It won’t. I’ll instruct him beforehand. He should be afraid of me.”

Meng Ruxin nodded, “So her family background is that complicated. No wonder.”

“Yes. The more someone comes from the gritty streets, the more cunning they are. There’s a saying: ‘Barren mountains and vicious waters breed troublemakers.'” He looked at Meng Ruxin with sorrow, “You are just too good, too kind-hearted.”

Meng Ruxin clenched her fists, “You’re right. I can’t let her run wild either. If I’m too easy to bully, she’ll only become more arrogant.”

Shen Household.

Xin Yueying looked at herself in the mirror, at Shen Qingqi standing behind her, “Can we try a different one? It’s always twin spiral buns.”

Shen Qingqi looked calmly at Xin Yueying’s reflection in the mirror, “Xin Yueying.”

“Hmm?” She tilted her head.

Shen Qingqi, “Tell me the truth. Have you already started treating me like a little maid who does your hair and makeup?”

Tch, a little maid would be much more obedient than you.

She grinned, flattering him obsequiously, “Of course not! It’s just that seeing how smart you are, I thought you could do anything.” She reached up and touched her twin spiral buns, looking at Shen Qingqi, “Didn’t you learn any other hairstyles from Auntie Song?”

Shen Qingqi frowned, muttered “so troublesome,” and undid Xin Yueying’s twin spiral buns.

Under Xin Yueying’s expectant gaze, he styled her hair into a single spiral bun.

She stared straight at the mirror, “Why is it another spiral bun?”

Shen Qingqi told her, “Makes you look taller.”

Xin Yueying, “……”

Shen Qingqi pressed his lips together, smiled faintly, and wheeled himself out.

Xin Yueying planned to see Lame Ma today.

But before that, she intended to go to the market.

Shen Qingqi had bought her clothes, and she wanted to buy some for him too.

She changed into a light pink pomegranate skirt, looking satisfied at the peach blossom hairpin Shen Qingqi had placed in her hair, ate breakfast, and then drove the donkey cart down the mountain.

She went to a clothing store. It was around noon, so not many people were around. She looked left and right, buying quite a few clothes and shoes for him.

Buying only for Shen Qingqi felt a bit strange, so she bought a couple of items for Huo Qi and Xie Asheng too. When she was paying, two women stood at the doorway, pointing and whispering about her. At first, she didn’t notice, until the shopkeeper frowned at them outside and said coldly, “What are you looking at?!”

Only then did she notice. She turned to look, and the several women left.

She placed the bundle on the cart board, went to a wine shop to buy a jug of wine, and seeing the market was lively, tied the donkey cart to a tree, planning to buy some meat and vegetables.

In the bustling crowd, people were staring at her.

Pairs of eyes were like knives, openly scrutinizing her face. Those people were brazenly sizing her up.

Xin Yueying raised her hand, touched her cheek, and looked at her palm. No dirt.

She arrived at a vegetable stall. Seeing the bamboo shoots were fresh and tender, she bent down and asked, “Auntie, how much for the bamboo shoots?”

“For others, one coin. For a bad seed, ten coins.”

Xin Yueying’s hand froze. She straightened up and looked at the old woman selling vegetables. “Who are you throwing sarcasm at?”

The footsteps of the crowd stopped abruptly. People surrounded Xin Yueying and the vegetable seller, forming a circle.

“Are you a bad seed and you won’t admit it?” someone in the crowd spoke up.

Xin Yueying looked back and saw a middle-aged man.

Xin Yueying, “I am your father, I admit it. Bad seed? Where is your father bad? Bad for giving birth to a worthless son like you?”

The man glared at her. Quickly, a woman in the crowd spoke, “Look at her. Her man is paralyzed, and she’s dressed up all fancy. Who knows which man she’s trying to seduce?”

Xin Yueying put down her vegetable basket, put her hands on her hips, and said with a tone full of vigor, “Did your old mother run out to seduce men all the time, giving you psychological trauma? So, everyone looks like a seductress to you, is that it?”

The woman was stung into silence. Another woman immediately chimed in, “Sharp-tongued! Actually, just a little slut! Pah!”

“Haha! You’re defending her so much? It seems her old mother seduced your old man back in the day, huh? Ah? So you’re family, huh?”

That Woman immediately retorted, “Look at your virtue! You’re no good person! Serves you right to marry a cripple!”

“I don’t care about marrying a cripple. You’ll be a widow sooner or later. Just wait for wild men to come kicking down your widow’s door then!”

Five or six middle-aged women failed to gain any advantage from Xin Yueying verbally. Someone, exasperated, yelled, “Xin Jinlian! She’s Xin Jinlian! Probably her man was paralyzed by her poison!”

She turned her head to retort, but someone in the crowd threw a handful of vegetables at her.

It hit her right in the face.

One person started, many responded. The voices of men and women intertwined, furiously cursing her as “Xin Jinlian.”

“Get out! We won’t sell you vegetables!”

The carpenter Yang suddenly appeared from somewhere, holding a straw hat that completely covered his face. He took off his outer garment and wrapped it around Xin Yueying’s head, pulling her through the crowd all the way back to Carpenter Yang’s shop.

The door panel closed, but people outside were still cursing,

“So she’s having an affair with Carpenter Yang!”

Xin Yueying threw the vegetable scraps from her hair and said darkly, “Why did I hide? There was nothing wrong, but now it seems like there is. I’ve implicated you.” She fumed, “Move aside. I’m not afraid at all! Let me curse them to death.”

“Don’t be impulsive, don’t be impulsive.” He stood up and made Xin Yueying sit down, “You only have one mouth. There are so many out there!”

Carpenter Yang said solemnly, “I’ve heard quite a few rumors about you these days. Do you know who they’re all hearing it from?”