Carefree Farmwife: Training the Husband, Raising the Bun - Chapter 150

After Huzi went to the school, Ying Su went to Madam Li’s house to continue learning how to tailor clothes. Not long ago, they heard a commotion in the village. Li Jinfeng stepped out to take a look and saw that everyone was heading toward the east side of the village. She deliberately went to ask at Heizi’s house. Heizi’s mother, looking rather embarrassed, told her what was happening.

As soon as Li Jinfeng heard, she hurried home, and only then did Ying Su rush over.

The crowd made way, opening a path. Ying Su walked through and stood before Feng Dayou. Her dark eyes were cold and heavy. So yesterday’s beating still hadn’t discouraged some people; instead, they had become even more brazen.

The moment Feng Dayou saw Ying Su, his eyes went straight, lecherously staring at her for a long time before remembering to put on his act. With a falsely sincere face, he said, “Cuihua, I’ve saved enough silver to marry you. How can you turn your back and deny me now?”

Before Ying Su could speak, he continued, “Back then you said you wanted a proper marriage, one that would keep your reputation intact, so others wouldn’t look down on you. I went out of my way to prepare a betrothal gift of five taels of silver and went to the Li family to propose, all for the sake of your good name. But now you refuse to marry me, why? Have you found another man?”

Seeing the man’s pained expression and heartfelt tone, the onlookers immediately began whispering, “By the way he’s speaking, it doesn’t sound like a lie. That little widow really is fickle!”

“Our village is unlucky to have such a woman! She’s disgracing all of us!”

“A woman with such rotten morals should be stuffed into a pig cage and drowned!”

The villagers were one after another filled with righteous indignation, as if they had personally seen Ying Su sneak around with another man, all posturing as though they were the embodiment of justice.

Madam Li, who had spent every day lately with Ying Su, knew her character better than anyone. She was sure Ying Su would never do such a thing. Furious, she said, “This nobody of a man is deliberately slandering Cuihua’s reputation! How vicious he is, since he couldn’t marry her, now he wants to ruin her name!”

“I’m telling the truth, elders and neighbors!” Feng Dayou put on a pitiful look. “Whether it’s true or not, you all have a scale in your hearts. You’ve all seen it with your own eyes!”

Wang Lanhua cut in sharply, “Plenty of us saw this man coming to the east side of the village. If there wasn’t something between them, why would anyone spend five taels of silver to marry a widow?”

“That’s right! A proper maiden’s dowry isn’t even that much. If there wasn’t some affair, why would he go to such lengths?” another person said.

“A slut like Shen Cuihua is a disgrace to our village. Why didn’t she just drown in the Dongjun River back then!”

Ying Su listened to all the condemnations, her pitch-black eyes cold as ice. She looked at Feng Dayou, who was still putting on a show, but said nothing.

The villagers watching the scene muttered, “See? She’s guilty. Now that she’s been exposed face to face, she’s got nothing left to say.”

Just then, the village head finally arrived. The crowd rushed to tell him, “Village head, you’re here! This little widow Shen Cuihua’s lover has come knocking! We can’t let such corruption exist in our village!”

The village head looked at Feng Dayou and Shen Cuihua with a headache. He already knew what had happened before coming. Since he had often accepted small favors from Shen Cuihua, the situation was now rather awkward for him.

“Cuihua, do you have anything to say?” He still wanted to help her a little.

Ying Su’s lips curled with icy disdain. Even her fine brows sharpened like blades as she fixed her gaze on Feng Dayou and said, “I don’t know this man at all. Early this morning I went to my mother-in-law’s house to learn tailoring. I only rushed over when I heard someone was ruining my reputation in front of my home. Before this, I had never met this man.”

She turned to the village head, a touch of uprightness in her expression. “I ask you to uphold justice for me! For him to slander my reputation this way, his intentions are vile!”

“Words alone mean nothing,” said the village head. “One of you claims to have had an affair, the other denies ever meeting. Is there any actual proof?”

Among the crowd, Li Zhi, pretending to just be watching, subtly stepped closer to Feng Dayou, brushed past his side, then quickly retreated back into the crowd.

Feng Dayou’s eyes lit up. With excitement, he declared, “I have proof! When we were in bed together, she once gave me a handkerchief she embroidered herself!”

As he spoke, Feng Dayou pulled out a handkerchief from his sleeve. It was of very ordinary material, decorated with plain white flowers, with the character Hua stitched in one corner.

The moment the handkerchief appeared, the crowd erupted in an uproar. Several shouted, “That’s such a personal item! What face does she have left to stay in Dongjun Village?”

“Shameless woman! To have such a scourge in our village is disgraceful!”

The village head could no longer openly shield Ying Su and turned to Madam Li. “What do you think? After all, Shen Cuihua has been widowed for your son Erlang’s sake. Do you intend to pursue this or not?”

If Madam Li pressed the matter, Shen Cuihua’s life would basically be over. She had originally been bought by Madam Li. Calling her a daughter-in-law was nice, but the blunt truth was she had been bought as a servant girl. The crime of adultery carried a heavy weight.

Twenty or thirty years ago, the daughter-in-law of Zhang Li’s family in the village was caught in adultery and drowned in the pond.

Madam Li spoke to the village head, “May I take a look at this handkerchief?”

The village head nodded. Feng Dayou panicked, but quickly reassured himself that the handkerchief had come from Li Zhi. Who knew how he’d gotten hold of that widow’s belongings? After a moment’s hesitation, he still handed it over.

Madam Li took one look and immediately frowned. She turned her gaze toward Feng Qiufang, who was hiding in the crowd. Feeling exposed, Feng Qiufang shrank back further.

Someone impatient shouted, “Auntie Li, why are you hesitating? For a woman like her who throws herself at any man, you’re being too softhearted! You bought her with money, cared for her even after she went mad, but she never appreciated it! Widowed and still sneaking around, she’s making a fool of your Erlang’s memory!”

Madam Li’s face turned cold. She stepped forward, hurled the handkerchief at Feng Dayou’s face, and said angrily, “This embroidery isn’t Cuihua’s work at all! You heartless cur, how vicious must you be to try and ruin her reputation like this!”

Feng Dayou was stunned but quickly recovered and shouted, “She embroidered this herself! If I’m lying, let Heaven strike me with thunder and kill me where I stand!”

The villagers were very superstitious and took such oaths seriously. Seeing him swear so, they thought Madam Li was only trying to protect Ying Su. They tried to persuade her, “Auntie Li, we know this is shameful, but you can’t keep shielding a wanton woman. Do you really want Erlang to wear a green hat even in the grave?”

Madam Li hated when anyone used Erlang’s name to pressure her. Her face darkened as she swept her gaze over them. “If Shen Cuihua truly did something disgraceful, I, Madam Li, would never protect her!”