Chapter 191: Let the Li and Huang Families Tear Each Other Apart

She hadn't finished speaking when the Li elders jolted upright from the ground, terrified: "Snake!? Where? Where's the snake?"

The villagers gathered around watching the spectacle also recoiled several steps in fright.

It seemed the incident last time when Zhao the Ruffian's mother had come to cause trouble—when Jiang Wei had frightened her off with a bucket of black snakes—had spread throughout the village, leaving every person present with a vivid memory.

Now the Li elders no longer knelt to beg for sympathy; they scrambled up at once and blocked the mother and daughter from going home.

"Third daughter-in-law, I'll be honest with you—we came here today because we need your help. Shou De is now a scholar and must go to the state academy; his monthly tuition alone is two taels of silver, and our household simply has no extra silver money. Could you perhaps…"

Jiang Wei raised an eyebrow: "What does his studying have to do with me?"

"You're so rich now—you built this huge house, hired so many workers… I won't ask for much. Just give me seventy taels, and when Shou De passes the provincial exam and becomes an official, he won't forget your kindness."

"Seventy taels?!" Jiang Xiaoxiao nearly laughed in disbelief at the old man's sheer audacity.

Seventy taels? Just like that? Does she think our silver is blown in by the wind?

"No! We don't have that much money. Go borrow from someone else," Jiang Xiaoxiao replied flatly.

Even if we did, I wouldn't lend it to the Old Li Family.

Besides, Shou De's scholar title was gained illegitimately—whether he'll even pass the provincial exam is another matter entirely. Throwing that much money at him is pure waste.

"If you don't leave now, I'll release the snakes!" Jiang Wei issued a direct dismissal.

Seeing the Jiang mother and daughter refuse without mercy, Zhu Shi watched helplessly from the side, then pushed forward to say: "Oh my, Third Sister-in-law, we've been sisters-in-law for years. You've made so much money, you don't even think of honoring your in-laws—but you can't forget your roots! Here's an idea: let our family work at your soap workshop. You pay us wages, and we won't ask you for money anymore."

"Yes, yes!" Li Shoucai quickly agreed. "Third Sister-in-law, assign us to work in your soap workshop. We won't ask for much—just eight hundred wen per person per month."

He'd inquired: workers there earned up to six hundred wen monthly. As relatives, asking for eight hundred wasn't unreasonable.

"Who are you calling my sister-in-law?!" Jiang Wei glared at them. "Have you forgotten—we broke off kinship and divided the family long ago? Don't come here to milk us. Get out!"

"Why can you give jobs to villagers but not to us? We're still family—this isn't fair!"

Zhu Shi's eyes darted around Jiang's courtyard wall, but it was too high—likely three meters tall—she couldn't see a thing inside.

"If you won't give us work, we'll stay here and refuse to leave! Even if you scare us with snakes, we won't go!" Zhu Shi insisted on securing a job at the soap workshop, blocking the mother and daughter from departing.

The Li elders were already a nuisance; now with Li Shoucai and Zhu Shi added to the mix, Jiang Xiaoxiao grew even more irritated.

She glanced at Li Shoude's family standing behind them—nearly the whole clan was pressuring her mother for money and work, yet Li Shoude's branch stood quietly in the back, watching like spectators, waiting to reap benefits.

Jiang Xiaoxiao wouldn't let him get away with it.

She remembered Li Jinfeng she'd met in town, her eyes flickered, then she deliberately raised her voice: "Hmph! Your Li family clearly has more silver than you know what to do with—why come begging to us? I just saw Li Jinfeng in town, decked in gold and silver, shopping for jewelry with the Huang Family Young Master at Cui Hua Ge!"

"What? What did you say, Er Ya?" Li Old Master's eyes lit up instantly at the words "gold and silver." "You saw Feng Yatou in town today?"

"Of course I did!" Jiang Xiaoxiao puffed out her small chest. "I saw her clearly—wearing fine silk and brocade, pearls and jade piled high on her head, a gold-inlaid jade pendant around her neck, shining so bright, one piece alone was worth a fortune!"

She deliberately turned to Li Shoude: "If you're short on money, why not ask Li Jinfeng? She's your daughter—shouldn't she support you when your father needs to study at the state academy?"

Li Shoude's face darkened; he lowered his head, lost in thought.

Sun Shi immediately jumped in: "Mother, this won't do—a married daughter can't…"

Before she finished, the Li Old Matriarch cut her off: "Why not?! Feng Yatou is successful now—our family has every right to ask her for help! Especially since Shou De needs to study at the state academy—she, as a daughter, should pay!"

"Even if she's married, Jin Feng is still one of us Li," Li Old Master added. "Enough talk. It's still early—let's go to town right now. Shou De's studies can't wait."

With that, the whole family prepared to leave in a noisy group, heading for town to find Li Jinfeng.

Only Zhu Shi and Li Shoucai looked reluctant.

Li Jinfeng had prospered, but her Second Branch gained nothing from it—better to beg for a steady job at the soap workshop than to chase after a daughter who'd turned her back.

Seeing Zhu Shi still refusing to leave, Jiang Wei deliberately said: "Xiaoxiao, bring out that bucket of snakes. Let them stretch their limbs."

"Got it, Mama!"

"No! No! We're leaving, alright?!"

Hearing this, Zhu Shi and Li Shoucai didn't dare stay another second—they bolted.

Watching the entire clan finally tricked into leaving, Jiang Xiaoxiao finally exhaled.

Jiang Wei glanced at her sidelong: "You've got too many tricks. What if they find out you lied?"

Jiang Xiaoxiao grinned: "Mama, they won't. The Huang family will never let Li Jinfeng meet the Li clan—they're too busy hiding their own filth."

So even if the Li family goes, they won't find Li Jinfeng—they'll just assume she's become rich and refuses to help her own kin.

Then let the Li family's rogues and the Huang family tear each other apart. Let them dog-eat-dog.

"Still too troublesome," Jiang Wei murmured, her hand brushing the short knife hidden in her sleeve, a flash of killing intent in her eyes. "Better to end it with a single blade…"

Jiang Xiaoxiao: "…"

Her own mother—this is ancient times, not that blood-soaked Apocalypse…

What if the government comes after us if we kill the Li family?

She grabbed her mother's arm tightly, pulling her toward the house, soothing: "They're just old rogues—not worth the trouble. We'll just ignore them from now on."