Chapter 207

"This kid, really a careless eye." Cao Shi muttered.

The liquor in the main house was all prepared for Jiang Zongbao; this person, besides being lustful, just likes liquor.

Now that lust has been given up, only liquor remains.

Granny Yan worried that her grandson's stomach was cold, so she demanded that her granddaughter Jiang Lian'er warm the wine every night before taking it to the east wing for her brother.

Probably Lian'er was in a bad mood tonight, so she didn't notice she'd delivered it to the wrong place…

Cao Shi fumbled to light the oil lamp, got up intending to take that bowl of wine to her son, but after thinking, she sat back down.

At this hour, if she went over to knock, Old Lady Hao's big black bear would surely find an excuse to pick a fight, and in the end it would be her son who's embarrassed.

Forget it, I'm not going.

Thinking of the resentment she'd suffered during the day, Cao Shi simply tipped her head back and gulped the whole thing down.

Burp, a taste of horse urine.

What liquor, it's simply undrinkable…

Gurgle, the throat of Jiang Dabo beside her made a hurried sound, his body shaking more violently, his eyes wide open like copper bells.

Cao Shi turned her head to glance at him, then hurriedly got out of bed, "All right, Father, I know you want water, wait, I'll go pour it right away!"

After saying that, she took the empty bowl outside, poured a bowl of clear water, and fed it to Jiang Dabo to drink.

Jiang Dabo's jaws were clenched tight, the water trickled down the corner of his mouth, dripping onto the sheets.

"Not thirsty?" Cao Shi puzzled, set the bowl down, lifted the blanket, and reached out to feel.

It was dry, no urine or feces.

"What's wrong with you, Father? Are you hungry, uncomfortable, or seeing ghosts?"

Jiang Dabo wearily closed his eyes, feeling that life was worse than death.

He regretted it deeply—why had he been bewitched to provoke Mei Niang, that evil spirit, ending up in such a miserable state?

Forget it, whatever will be will be; he couldn't control it anymore.

Seeing her husband regain his calm, Cao Shi assumed he'd had a nightmare, muttered a couple of sentences, blew out the oil lamp, and lay down as well.

Though she'd been dog-tired, for some reason she just couldn't fall asleep.

Suddenly she really wanted…

Cao Shi suddenly shuddered—how could this be? Could it be because she'd drunk the wine?

She tossed and turned with the flatbread, then sat up and gulped down that bowl of clear water, yet she still couldn't suppress that thought.

Cao Shi's hand couldn't help reaching over to touch Jiang Dabo's body…

In the darkness, Jiang Dabo's face flushed red.

What a fool—does she even know what she's doing? She clearly knows he's already a cripple, yet she does something like that; it's practically humiliating him!

Jiang Dabo couldn't move his body or speak; he could only emit a dissatisfied protest from his throat.

Cao Shi came to her senses a little, she pulled her hand back and explained embarrassedly, "Father, I… I just wanted to see if you'd urinated…"

Saying this awkwardly, she got out of bed, "You keep sleeping; I'm going out to cool off."

Cao Shi fled the room like an escapee, walking back and forth in the courtyard; the night breeze was gentle and cool, yet she felt burning hot.

Possessed by some impulse, she opened the courtyard gate and walked onto the village lane.

The night in Longquan Village was not peaceful; there were bound to be a few chicken-crowing, dog-stealing types—families so poor they couldn't lift their pots, or lazy gluttons who, under cover of darkness, went to steal vegetables from others' fields.

The vegetables being stolen is a small matter; what's feared is…

"Hey, isn't that from the Qingniu family? What are you doing out so late?" Three shadowy figures swayed into view ahead, one of them being Gou Laoqi.

Gou Laoqi was a well-known idler in the village.

His parents had died early; his several older brothers were all married with kids, while he remained a lone bachelor.

His sisters-in-law saw him lazy and slovenly, still showing up every few days to borrow grain and rice; they took a strong dislike to this little brother-in-law and simply cut off all relations with him.

Fortunately, when the family split, he got over an acre of land, so at least he didn't starve to death.

He had a tile to shield his head, a peck of rice to get by, and Gou Laoqi just scraped by like that; his only regret was never marrying a wife to warm his bed.

Earlier he had taken a fancy to the Zheng Clan, thinking that if he could win her, he'd have a wife and money would naturally follow.

Unfortunately, the Gou clan elder splashed a basin of water on him to wake him up, letting him look in the mirror—a toad wishing to eat swan meat.

Gou Laoqi didn't dare offend the clan chief, so he abandoned that idea and turned his gaze to the village's young ladies and newlywed wives; at least he could get an eyeful.

Well, tonight he was just as usual, wandering the village with two other like-minded idlers, even peeping at a widow bathing through the window—only to be spotted by her, nearly getting his skull split by an iron hoe!

The three bachelors walked back with hands behind their backs, heads down.

Coincidentally, they bumped into Cao Shi midway.

Hearing Gou Laoqi's voice, Cao Shi swallowed, then involuntarily leaned toward them.

Gou Laoqi and his two fox‑friend companions stared at each other.

The night was pitch black, but with the faint moonlight they could still see the shock and doubt in each other's eyes.

"What are you up to?" Gou Laoqi's eyes flashed green as he eagerly asked.

Cao Shi could no longer bear it, gave up on everything else, and pressed herself against them, "Sleep…"

That idler hurriedly shoved her away, "No way, no way—your man's still alive, I wouldn't dare."

Seeing his refusal, Cao Shi then pressed herself against the other idler.

That idler was completely stunned.

He was always the one sneaking around to take advantage of women; suddenly a woman threw herself at him so eagerly, he didn't know what to do.

"Old Seven…" he cried out for help to Gou Laoqi.

Gou Laoqi had always been the backbone of their little group; now what should they do in this situation?

Gou Laoqi gave a hehe laugh, "What's there to fear? She came on her own—let's just call it a good deed."

Although she's old, ugly, and a bit withered, she's still a woman after all!

The three of them gleefully dragged Cao Shi behind a pile of firewood...

After rock-paper-scissors, Gou Laoqi luckily came first, while the other two patrolled nearby to avoid being spotted.

Listening to the commotion over there, the two idlers exchanged a glance.

"I wouldn't have guessed, but this old woman is pretty... that."

"Indeed, with such a loud voice, what if we attract someone?"

Just as they were about to go over and warn them, a lantern suddenly appeared ahead, rushing toward them.

Uh-oh, someone really is coming!

It's too late to go warn them now; to avoid total disaster, the two of them shamelessly slipped away and hid behind trees nearby to observe the situation.

The lantern moved quickly, arriving near the firewood pile in a moment, then stopped.

The person holding the lantern was none other than the newly appointed village head, Jiang Tong.

Jiang Tong is warm-hearted; since becoming village head, he has been diligent and responsible, helping any family in trouble and mediating any disputes.

Even at night, he often runs around the village with a lantern, preventing anyone from stealing chickens or dogs and damaging villagers' interests.

I had thought it would be another peaceful night, but upon reaching this spot, I heard an unusual noise.

He followed the sound, swinging his lantern forward to illuminate the area.

"What are you doing!" Jiang Tong shouted.

Gou Laoqi jumped in fright, scrambled up, panicked, and said, "I, I didn't do anything... I was just, just doing a good deed..."

"A good deed?" Jiang Tong looked at the woman on the ground.

After all that commotion, Cao Shi's mind had cleared considerably; thinking about what she had just done, her vision went dark and she almost collapsed.

"Ahhh... you beast, you'll die a horrible death! I'll fight you to the death!"

Cao Shi lunged at Gou Laoqi, her muddy nails scratching and clawing at his face and neck as she wept and cursed.

Gou Laoqi, caught off guard, was scratched bloody across the face, grew angry, and slapped back.

"You're the one who said you wanted it and begged me! Now you're pretending to be innocent?"

Cao Shi sat down, slapping her thigh and wailing, "I can't go on! Gou Laoqi has defied heaven and reason, harming an upstanding woman!"

Gou Laoqi was fuming, about to retort, when Jiang Tong grabbed him and sternly said, "Come with me to the ancestral hall to sort this out!"

Jiang Tong was tall and strong; Gou Laoqi couldn't break free.

In the end, he was dragged to the village ancestral hall and made to kneel, awaiting judgment.

The incident quickly stirred all of Dragon Spring Village; in an instant, the village dogs began barking, oil lamps lit up one by one, and people came out one after another.

Naturally, the Jiang family's old residence also heard the commotion; Jiang Lian'er wanted to go see, but Yan Pozi sternly stopped her.

"How many times must I tell you? Late at night, an unmarried young lady has no business joining the fun. Don't always take after your mother." Yan Pozi pulled a long face as she lectured.

After thinking, she suddenly felt something was off: "Where's your mother?"

Given Cao Shi's character, she should have come rushing out of the room by now.

Yan Pozi was about to go check when someone outside shouted, "Grandma Zongbao, hurry to the ancestral hall—something big has happened!"

Outside the ancestral hall, a crowd had already gathered, seven or eight torches were lit, bathing the large open space in daylight-like brightness.

Who would have thought that in a single day we could watch two spectacles?

And both are thanks to the Jiang family!

Everyone's excitement was plain to see; although they were all just watching the fun, their moods varied greatly.

The daytime spectacle put on by the Second Branch of the Jiang family was filled with awe and curiosity;

while this one before us elicited only contempt and scorn.

"Pah, sneaking around with a man in the dead of night—utterly shameless."

"Earlier Cao Shi was going around saying Jiang Li's mother-in-law was fooling around, but it turns out she herself is the one doing the fooling around!"

"Exactly, and she's been smearing the Zheng clan—clearly she can't survive without a man."

"A bunch of disgraceful people—old and young alike—this main branch of the Jiang family is practically begging for ruin."

The reputation of the Jiang family's main branch is now thoroughly ruined.

Alas, poor Cao Shi's daughter Jiang Lian'er will likely never marry into a decent family...

When Yan Pozi arrived, she happened to overhear this gossip and immediately felt dizzy, barely able to stay on her feet.

She steadied herself, walked up to the clan head, and said, "Clan chief, what exactly is going on?"

"I've been wondering the same thing!"

The clan head struck his cane against the ground repeatedly, snarling, "Can't your main branch behave? Today this, tomorrow that—you're dragging the Jiang family's face through the mud. Won't you rest until you've lost all face?"

Yan Pozi forced a weak smile, saying, "Please don't get angry yet—we don't know how things will turn out."

She glanced at Cao Shi kneeling at the ancestral hall's gate.

Cao Shi was crying while spitting at the tightly bound Gou Laoqi and cursing.

"Cao Shi has been married into our family for over twenty years; the clan head should know her nature well. She's a bit slow, but to say she lacks womanly virtue is impossible." Yan Pozi continued.

The clan head glanced at her and asked, "You mean Jiang Tong is slandering your daughter-in-law?"

"... I didn't mean that." Yan Pozi quickly denied.

Jiang Tong, standing nearby, interjected, "Second Madam, I swear on heaven that I saw the two of them messing around in the firewood pile. Whether Cousin Cao consented or was forced, we need to ask."

The two natures are different.

If it was consensual, both should be punished.

But if Gou Laoqi forced her, then Cao Shi is also a victim, and his trouble would be great.

Yan Pozi's face turned ashen; she nodded and said, "Fine, let's ask."

Jiang Tong walked to the entrance of the ancestral hall.

Everyone fell silent, including Cao Shi and Gou Laoqi, who were kneeling.

"You tell me yourselves, what's going on?"

Cao Shi wiped away a tear, pointed at Gou Laoqi and loudly accused: "He took advantage of me when I was drunk and forced me!"

"Bullshit!" Gou Laoqi objected, "With you being old and ugly, would I even force you? It's clearly you who came on to me, right? I felt sorry for you, so I reluctantly helped you. And now you've pulled up your pants and denied it, even biting back at me. You repay kindness with enmity—watch out for heavenly thunder!"