Carefree Farmwife: Training the Husband, Raising the Bun - Chapter 154

Ying Su gave a cold laugh, her dark eyes locking on Zhang Duomei as she said icily, “Zhang Duomei! You insist on calling me a calamity star? What’s your true motive? Let me guess…”

She pinched her chin with her fingers as if deep in thought, then suddenly put on an expression of sudden realization. “Could it be that you are the calamity star? Deliberately framing someone blessed with fortune, your intentions are truly vicious!”

Zhang Duomei shook her head violently, desperate to deny it, but before she could speak, Ying Su’s aura shifted, sharp as a blade, her gaze piercing into her as she said slowly, “If you can make a withered tree bloom, I’ll believe you’re not the calamity star. But if you cannot…”

Her lips curled into a cold smile. “Then you are the calamity star! And not only that, you’ve been spreading lies to confuse the people, stirring chaos, and plotting to kill me! Fail to prove yourself, and these three crimes will be nailed to you!”

She swept her gaze over the villagers, her lips lifting into a faint smile. “Fellow villagers, what do you all think?”

That miraculous blooming tree had already silenced and awed them. In their hearts, they believed she had been enlightened by an immortal and was destined for great fortune. 

Who would still believe Zhang Duomei’s earlier claims? After all, no one had ever actually seen that so-called monk. Perhaps Zhang Duomei had just made it up.

“Miss Shen speaks the truth! Zhang Duomei’s thoughts are venomous!” Someone said first, and more soon chimed in agreement.

The old woman who had claimed earlier that her cow was cursed to death by Ying Su now bared her few yellow teeth at Feng Qiufang viciously. “So it was you all along! Living next to me brought calamity, no wonder my cow died! If I had known, I would have moved east, next to Cuihua, and basked in her fortune. Maybe my cow would still be alive!”

Someone shouted at Zhang Duomei, “If you can’t make the withered tree bloom, then you’re the calamity star!” Soon the whole crowd echoed the sentiment, turning their accusations squarely on her.

Zhang Duomei saw everyone siding with Ying Su. Alone, powerless, and completely incapable of performing such a miracle, she panicked, trembling in fear, mumbling over and over, “She’s using witchcraft! She’s using witchcraft!”

Ying Su raised her hand to silence the villagers. At once the restless crowd quieted, still immersed in the wonder of the blooming tree, their hearts filled with respect for her.

Feng Qiufang and her husband exchanged worried glances among the crowd. Shen Cuihua had been enlightened by an immortal, and yet they had schemed against her. What if she turned her wrath on them?

“Today Zhang Duomei went too far. If I hadn’t proven my innocence, I might have ended up burned alive on a pyre, a wronged soul! For this, I will never swallow my anger or let the insult pass unchallenged!”

Her voice rang like the clear cry of a sword, striking straight into the villagers’ hearts and stirring their conviction.

Feng Qiufang’s face turned deathly pale, drained of blood. She looked at Ying Su with terror, not knowing how she would exact her punishment.

Ying Su bowed solemnly to the villagers and said earnestly, “I ask all of you to bear witness, and confirm her three crimes. The old immortal once told me not to speak of my enlightenment before outsiders, but today I was forced to reveal it. As for the miracle of the withered tree blooming, this must not be spread beyond us. I beg everyone to keep it secret.”

The villagers all nodded quickly. Matters involving immortals could not be casually spoken of, what if the immortal grew angry and withdrew his blessing, leaving Dongjun Village unprotected?

Sensing the tide turning, Feng Dayou panicked. He never expected this young widow to be so formidable. Fear gripped him, and he tried to slink away unnoticed.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Ying Su’s phoenix eyes locked onto him like blades. With a few swift strides, she was in front of him. Feng Dayou tried to dodge, but Ying Su seized his collar, drove her knee into his stomach, and with her left hand, twisted his wrist sharply. A scream tore from his throat.

Spinning him around by his collar, she kicked his legs from behind. His knees buckled, and he collapsed to the ground.

The villagers watched her decisive, commanding moves, awe deepening in their hearts. None dared to ever underestimate her again.

“You slandered my name, defiled my reputation! And now you want to run? Isn’t it too late for that?” Ying Su leaned down slightly, her phoenix eyes gleaming with a casual, icy light. She whispered into his ear, “When you accused me of adultery, you should have thought of your own fate! I repay every grudge, return every slight, my heart is smaller than the tip of a needle!”

Feng Dayou shuddered violently. To him, the woman before him was no longer human, she was a vengeful spirit, a demoness he could never provoke. He realized too late that he had kicked a hornet’s nest, and Feng Qiufang had pushed him straight into the fire pit!

Just then, a voice called from afar, “Sister-in-law Cuihua, I’m back!”

It was Li Jinfeng, leading a group of people. Beside her were Liu Chuncao and her husband, followed by Officer Zhou at the front, with yamen runners in dark uniforms behind him. Ying Su’s sharp eyes also spotted Shen Changyun at his side, along with another man whose face looked somewhat familiar.

The group marched forward with authority, their presence overwhelming. Ying Su narrowed her eyes. When she had learned of the commotion at her door, she had no intention of letting the troublemakers off easily. She had sent Li Jinfeng to the shop in town to find Li Dalang, and through him, report the matter to Officer Zhou.

The moment Zhang Duomei saw the officials, her heart gave out. Tears and snot streamed down her face as her legs buckled, and she collapsed to her knees in terror. Grabbing desperately at Village Head Zhang’s trousers, she wailed, “Uncle, save me! Uncle, please save me!”

Village Head Zhang’s face twisted with hesitation. After all, Zhang Duomei was his own niece. Though she was unlikable, blood was still blood. Could he really just stand by and watch her be taken away by the authorities?

He was about to plead with Ying Su when she cut him off, as if she had already seen through his thoughts. “Village Head, the pitiful always have something detestable about them! If everyone had believed her lies, what do you think my fate would be right now? She tried to harm others and ended up harming herself. She brought this on herself!”

By then, Officer Zhou and his men had reached them. His dark eyes scanned Ying Su, holding a barely perceptible flicker of concern. Seeing that she was unharmed, he said, “Miss Shen, your in-law came to the yamen to report that someone tried to ruin your reputation. Is it this man?”

He pointed at Feng Dayou, still kneeling on the ground.

Ying Su nodded. “It is him! Please allow me to explain.” She bowed respectfully and said, “This man thought a widow like me would be easy to bully. When I refused his attempt to force marriage, he turned malicious. He came here to my home, in front of the whole village, to slander my name and defile my reputation. If not for the child I must raise, I would already have thrown myself into the Dongjun River to prove my innocence!”