Traveling Through Those Years Of Farming (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 24

“You should see how fierce they are fighting during the day. Your first aunt nearly ruins your third aunt’s face; it is quite brutal! And your third aunt, to make the old man soften up, keeps slapping her own face, not holding back at all. She ends up with a swollen, bruised face, looking like a fermented bun. Those two women are as fierce as they come.”

Lu Jiafu stuffs the remaining two peanuts and a small handful of sunflower seeds into Tang Dingyuan’s hands to prove that he is a fair and just patriarch.

It would be even better if he could take his eyes off the peanuts and melon seeds.

“I don’t like these.”

Tang Dingyuan returns the snacks, and in response, Lu Jiafu smiles at him, thinking, ‘You are a very good kid.’

“Why don’t you like this good stuff? It smells so good.” Lu Jiafu happily finishes the remaining snacks and continues to talk.

“When the youngest third son wants to marry your third aunt, I am not optimistic about it. What kind of family is the Liu family? It’s not an exaggeration to say they are the kind who pick the feathers from migrating geese or skin the beasts that run away. If you marry a girl from such a family, doesn’t that mean you have to support the whole family behind her? Unlike your mother-in-law, she is gentle and considerate and never fights with her sisters-in-law. And your mother-in-law’s family, hehehe…”

Lu Jiafu thinks of the big fat chicken he eats at his wife’s family that day; it is so delicious it makes his mouth water.

Tang Dingyuan looks thoughtfully at Xu Jiaoniang, who shows a proud expression on the other side. Why does he feel that it’s not that this mother-in-law is unwilling to fight with her sisters-in-law, but simply feels that fighting is too tiring and is too lazy to do it?

Of course, this guess can only be kept to himself and must not be said directly.

“But your third aunt is clever in her own way, coming up with the idea to use the eldest girl’s recipe to make money. Why didn’t I think of that sooner?”

Lu Jiafu sighs. If he had thought of it earlier and secretly sold the recipe to others, wouldn’t his own treasury be fuller again? Unfortunately, with Liu Lanhua’s example in front of him, if he makes the same mistake, his parents won’t let him off easily.

“I don’t think it’s that you didn’t think of it, but that you are smarter than the third aunt and think more carefully.” Tang Dingyuan’s eyes flicker. 

“Before the third aunt makes a fuss, four-tenths of the money earned by cousin Xiuyu has to be handed over to the family. It is the eldest cousin who works hard, but the whole family benefits. The second uncle and the second aunt enjoy the benefits brought by cousin Xiuyu’s money without lifting a finger. On the contrary, what does the third aunt get? A beating and scolding, a warning, and the benefits that could have been enjoyed are lost. In my opinion, the third aunt’s vision is really shallow, unlike you, second uncle, who is very wise.” After saying that, Tang Dingyuan expresses his admiration.

“Really? Hahaha, yes, I thought so from the beginning.” Lu Jiafu scratches the back of his head. He doesn’t think that deeply, but with a few words from his future son-in-law, he feels as though he has become a strategist of great renown, which sounds quite impressive.

“Did you see that? In this family, Yuan Ge’er is still the one who understands me best.” Lu Jiafu shouts proudly at his wife and daughter, feeling increasingly that he has chosen the right son-in-law.

“Are you silly? Why are you telling Yuan Ge’er all this? Don’t forget, we’re still waiting for Yuan Ge’er to pass the exam and show us filial piety! I want to eat the old hen he brings as a student and drink duck soup.” Xu Jiaoniang leans in close to Lu Jiafu’s ear to whisper.

She thinks her voice is low, not realizing that Tang Dingyuan, who has been eavesdropping with his ears perked up, hears everything.

“You’re talking about how bad Liu Lanhua’s family is, but don’t you think about us? In the future, we’ll also have to rely on our good son to take advantage of him by using Lu Baobao.”

Xu Jiaoniang feels that her husband is quite foolish, not as smart as she is.

Lu Baobao covers her face. She doesn’t dare to look at Tang Dingyuan’s expression and doesn’t want to admit that these two foolish people are her parents. Can they avoid mentioning her when they sell their daughter for glory?

“Third Aunt has indeed gone too far.” Tang Dingyuan pretends not to hear the couple’s “whispers,” frowning as if he is still immersed in the story he has just heard.

“Look!” Xu Jiaoniang pinches her husband’s waist in annoyance, causing Lu Jiafu to grimace in pain and bend over in a C shape to evade his wife’s grasp.

“However, those Liu family members are undeserving. Such unkind relatives and elders are not worth sacrificing her own interests to please,” Tang Dingyuan continues speaking to himself. “Unlike second Uncle and Aunt, who request Grandfather and Grandmother to send me to school, that’s a great kindness. Besides my deceased father and mother, there are no elders as generous and kind as you two. In the future, everything Dingyuan has will be shared with second Uncle, second Aunt, and Sister Baobao.”

Every word is so heartfelt and deeply moving that Lu Jiafu and Xu Jiaoniang burst into tears.

Yes, they are so kind and amiable, and there are no better elders than them.

Xu Jiaoniang silently despises herself. How can they be compared to the Liu family? Yuan Ge’er is nothing like Liu Lanhua; it simply isn’t a fair comparison.

Tang Dingyuan knows that he has once again gained favor, but his words truly come from the heart.

In this world, apart from blood relatives, why should someone who has nothing to do with you treat you well unconditionally? The Lu Jiafu couple seems to have their own little calculations, but they don’t harm Tang Dingyuan’s interests. In fact, the benefits they fight for him could change his future.

Tang Dingyuan feels that the couple has done him a great favor.

He isn’t sure if it is because he has included this family in his own circle, but to him, Lu Jiafu and Xu Jiaoniang’s little schemes seem a bit silly and cute.

“Yuan Ge’er is right. I am different from your mother-in-law and the people in the Liu family. All the good things in our family are shared by everyone. It’s impossible for us to hide things from one another.” After hearing his future son-in-law’s words, Lu Jiafu is so happy that he can’t help but slap the table in excitement.

This low table is placed on the kang bed, and when he strikes it with such force, the kang bed vibrates slightly, affecting the walls nearby.

“Bang—”

A tattered cloth bag falls from the beam, scattering the coins all over the floor.

Goodness gracious, Lu Jiafu’s mind races with a thousand curses. He never expects that his earlier action will cause the bag, which has been placed on the beam, to fall.

It seems he hasn’t put the bag back properly after counting his secret stash last time. The fabric is relatively smooth, and combined with the weight of the coins, it naturally drops after a little tremor.

“What’s this?” Xu Jiaoniang points at the coins and asks.

“Yeah, what is this?” Lu Jiafu feigns ignorance and asks, tears streaming down his face inside; this is his secret stash he has saved for many years.

Tang Dingyuan doesn’t know how much willpower he uses to suppress his laughter. His new family is just too amusing; how can anyone claim they don’t hide wealth only to inadvertently expose their secret stash right after?

“Lu Jiafu!” Xu Jiaoniang exclaims, hands on her hips, accentuating her belly.

Normally, she calls him “Jiafu” in a delicate tone, but she uses his full name only when she is extremely angry. “You actually hid private money behind my back! Tell me honestly, do you have any other secret stash?”

Without waiting for Lu Jiafu to respond, Xu Jiaoniang confiscates the copper coins and swiftly climbs down from the kang, her movements surprisingly nimble for a pregnant woman. She begins a thorough search of the area.

Lu Baobao has just covered her mouth to stifle her laughter, but her face turns pale at this sight.

Oh no, this is bad!

As expected, after Xu Jiaoniang’s careful search, she uncovers a loose brick hidden under the camphorwood box. From it, she pulls out a cloth bag containing several pieces of silver.

“Lu Jiafu, you’re quite something! You’ve hidden so much money from me!” Xu Jiaoniang’s anger intensifies. There is no silver in her own private stash.

(Translator’s notes: So she also has her own private stash??)

“This is really not mine.”

“This really isn’t mine!” Lu Jiafu protests, genuinely wronged. His private money is hidden in the beams of the house. The silver she finds is definitely not his.

If it isn’t him, then who could it be?

Lu Jiafu glances at his daughter, but Lu Baobao looks back at him with innocent eyes.

What’s going on? Baobao doesn’t understand.

He then looks at Yuan Ge’er. The Tang family is so poor they have mortgaged their house and fields; how could the silver possibly belong to Yuan Ge’er? He certainly wouldn’t have hidden silver in their house.

Could it be that someone from another branch of the family hid their private money in their home?

Lu Jiafu feels completely baffled.