Carefree Farmwife: Training the Husband, Raising the Bun - Chapter 8

“I went down to the underworld and met a ghost. He kept calling me ‘wife.’ When he realized I had been murdered, his expression changed, and he said he would send ghost messengers to drag my murderer down for punishment. But the moment I thought of my poor little child, I told him I wanted to return to the living to raise the child to adulthood.”

“That ghost said my child was pitiful, his father had died the moment he was born and had never fulfilled his duty as a father. Now that even I had been killed, the child was truly pitiable. He told me to return and raise the child properly.”

“He also said he’s now an official in the underworld, and if anyone dares to bully me again, he’ll personally invite that person down for tea to chat about life and dreams.”

Ying Su recited all this with an air of truth and falsehood interwoven. Her expression was calm, making it impossible to tell if she was lying or if it really happened.

“The ghost you mentioned… could it be my family’s Erlang?” Madam Li’s eyes turned red. She clutched Ying Su’s hand tightly, her voice trembling with disbelief.

“Let me think… That ghost looked about twenty-two or twenty-three years old, dressed in a blue robe. As for his face, I didn’t see it clearly…”

“Erlang was twenty-two when he died, and he wore a blue robe! That matches, it matches! It’s my Erlang, it must be him!” Madam Li was so excited she shook all over, gripping Ying Su’s hand tightly.

Even Li Jinfeng’s face lit up with joy. Holding the baby bun, she rushed to Ying Su’s side. “You really saw Second Brother? What else did he say?”

Ying Su made a show of thinking hard. “I don’t quite remember… Oh, right. He also said it was Li Ergou who harmed me. He said Ergou must be punished, his arms and legs broken, his neck strangled. That wasn’t me. I’m just a weak woman, where would I get that kind of strength? Just now I suddenly lost control, and when I came to, his arms and legs were already broken…”

She looked utterly innocent as she lowered her head. But in her eyes, hidden beneath her lashes, a strange light flashed and vanished. “For the sake of my child and me having an easier life from now on, Li Erlang, I’ll just borrow your name. Besides, I never actually said that ghost was you, they were the ones who decided it was.”

Madam Li and Li Jinfeng were overjoyed, but the rest of the villagers looked at one another, their gazes at Shen Cuihua tinged with fear.

Mountain folk held deep reverence for gods and spirits. Moreover, Li Ergou himself had confessed to strangling Shen Cuihua and throwing her into the river. Yet here she was, standing whole and alive before them, fresh, vivid, resurrected. How could they not believe?

Village head Zhang knew better than to take Ying Su’s words at face value, but there was nothing he could do. He realized he had truly underestimated this woman. From now on, he would have to be more cautious. 

After a long pause, he finally said, “By rights, for the evil Ergou committed today, he should be severely punished. But blessings come hand in hand with misfortune. Cuihua, you’ve also gained a blessing from disaster, your madness has been cured. Ergou’s limbs are already broken, which is punishment enough. Let’s consider the matter settled, shall we?”

“So, by your reasoning, should I actually be thanking Li Ergou?” Ying Su’s lips curved in mockery.

“That… that’s not necessary,” Old Zhang muttered, his face turning dark.

“I know I’m not originally from Dongjun Village. It’s only natural for you to side with Li Ergou. But… my child and I are truly pitiful. Oh, husband, why did you have to leave so early? You left us, an orphaned mother and child, to be bullied in this world…” Ying Su covered her face with her hands and began to cry pitifully.

Madam Li held the baby bun and cried out, “Who says you’re not from Dongjun Village? Back then you and my Erlang bowed in the hall. You’re Erlang’s wife, and that makes you one of us in Dongjun Village!”

Village head Zhang’s face darkened to iron blue. He knew Ying Su was putting on an act, but there was nothing he could do. Fuming, he said, “Fine then, you tell me, how should we punish Li Ergou?”

“I’m not one to press too hard. Just have him and his wife kneel and apologize sincerely to me, and I’ll consider it done.” Ying Su’s voice was light, almost casual.

“You heartless little whore! You call that not pressing hard? You… you want me and Ergou to kneel and apologize to you? Bah! With that foxy face, aren’t you afraid of dying a miserable death?”

“Li Ergou did something utterly heartless, and he wasn’t afraid of a miserable death. So why should I be? I remember every single thing from these five years. Heaven sees what men do. Don’t think me, Shen Cuihua, a fool to be trampled on!”

Ying Su’s gaze was cold and sharp, her phoenix eyes gleaming with brilliance. The flirtatious softness between her brows faded, replaced by a clear and striking elegance.

The villagers of Dongjun Village, seeing this change in her, all thought the same thing, “The Shen Cuihua before us is no longer the madwoman she once was.”

Old Zhang, shrewd as ever after years as village head, could see through most things. He didn’t really believe Shen Cuihua had met Li Erlang. But seeing how she had come back from death, even her madness cured, he thought of the saying, “Those who survive great disaster will surely have future blessings.” Perhaps Shen Cuihua truly did have great fortune awaiting her.

With that thought, Old Zhang realized in alarm that he must not make an enemy of her. So he quickly changed his expression, smiling. “Cuihua’s proposal is a good one. Ergou has indeed committed a grave mistake today. We’ll do as you say.”

Hearing this, Zhang Duomei exploded in rage. “Uncle, how can you side with this little whore—”

“Silence!” Old Zhang’s face turned thunderous. He knew this niece of his all too well, short-sighted, greedy, and prone to trouble. For her to shout at him in front of the whole village stirred his ire.

“I am the village head. I cannot be biased. With Ergou’s crime today, if this went to the county office and the magistrate judged it, Ergou would spend the rest of his life in prison! Cuihua is being magnanimous. She only asks for you two to kowtow and apologize. Duomei, what more do you want to shout about?”

Ying Su’s lips curved in a faint smile. For Old Zhang to suddenly speak in her favor, she summed it up in her heart with one phrase, “A wise man submits to circumstances.”

Zhang Duomei, cowed by his shout, dared not protest further, though her heart boiled with resentment. She had always feared her uncle when she was younger, knowing that when he got serious, there was no room for opposition.

But the thought of kneeling to that little slut made her blood surge to her head. If she bowed to her now, how could she ever show her face in the village again? She shot a venomous glare at Li Ergou, who lay half-dead and pale on the ground, and ground her teeth until she nearly cracked them.

Today she had gained nothing but filth, all thanks to Li Ergou shaming their entire family. Furious, she steeled herself. Even under her uncle’s glare, she unwillingly stepped forward to Ying Su. Grinding her teeth, she knelt, her heart filled with hatred, and spat out the words, “I apologize to you.”

Ying Su’s smile deepened. Her phoenix eyes, black as lacquer, gleamed with charm as she feigned surprise. “Oh my, you actually kneeled to me? We’re all neighbors, surely I was only joking. Besides, with you kneeling like this, I can’t bear it. It’ll shorten my life! Quickly, get up!”

Zhang Duomei nearly fainted from rage at those words. Blood surged in her head, her lungs felt as if they’d burst, and her vision went black as she collapsed to the ground in a dead faint.