Chapter 46: Driving Them Out the Door

Besides Chi Ting Song, the expressions of the other Chi Family members also changed.

In the eyes of the Ruan Family, Chi Zhiqiu had always been an honest and dutiful man, and the Chi Family thought the same. Marrying Ruan Qin into the Chi Family was so they could continuously extract benefits from the Chi Family in the future, and the Chi Family had indeed been as they expected—swallowing their losses without ever making a fuss. Yesterday they had taken quite a lot of food from the Chi Family, even lard and pork, things they had never before seen at the Chi Family's place. Zhao Huilan and the Ruan Family brothers thought about it all night after returning, and concluded that it must be because of the daughter who had just come back to the Chi Family. The Chi Family doted on their daughter—there was not a village nearby that didn't know it. If they could marry the Chi Family's daughter into their household, they could have her go back to the Chi Family to demand things in the future. Wouldn't those two old ones end up emptying out everything they had?

It was precisely because of this idea that Zhao Huilan came to their door again in such a short time.

"In-laws, since the talk has come to this, I'll just say it plainly. You know our family has two sons, each and every one a fine specimen. Whether in looks or character, they're more than a match for your daughter. When our eldest went to town to work, even the young ladies of the town took a fancy to him. But I thought that since our two families are closer, after all, and know each other inside out, our family will condescend to let her marry in. It's just that the dowry—you'll need to prepare a bit more. After all, my son…"

"Zhao Huilan! Shut your mouth!" Chi Ting Song gripped the iron shovel beside him tightly, his eyes glaring with fury, looking as though he was ready to fight her to the death.

"In-laws, I…"

"If you keep spouting nonsense, I'll fight you to the death today!" Chi Ting Song said angrily. "Let my daughter marry your son? He should take a piss and look at his own reflection—what kind of thing is he? How dare he covet my daughter? I'll swat him dead!"

"You—you—you, you're crazy!" Zhao Huilan retreated a few steps. "My son is a fine-looking man, how is he not good enough for…"

"Bah!" Wen Zhilan spat at her. "Zhao, what kind of trash is your son that he dares to set his sights on my daughter? I'm warning you—stop scheming after my daughter, or I'll fight you to the death!"

The Chi Family members all shielded Chi Nan Yi behind them like a mother hen protecting her chicks.

Chi Huai Qian curled his lip. "I noticed yesterday that you lot were up to no good. First you demanded food and supplies, and now you start demanding a person. Who gave you the nerve?" He raised the door bolt in his hand. "Get out! Get out right now!"

"You! You!" Ruan Dong and Ruan Jing hid behind Zhao Huilan. "You have the numbers—do you want to hit people too?" They looked at Ruan Qin. "You ungrateful wretch, they're going to hit your own mother and brother, and you're just going to stand there and watch?"

Ruan Qin retreated a few steps, head lowered, saying nothing.

"Fine, fine!" Zhao Huilan spat and said angrily, "Just you wait! You lot wait for me!" With that, she tugged at her sleeve and headed outside.

Ruan Dong and Ruan Jing, two spineless cowards, scurried after her.

Only when the three of them had walked far away did Chi Ting Song throw the iron shovel to the ground, breathing heavily. "Bullying people too far!"

Ruan Qin's face was somewhat unpleasant. "Father, Mother, I'm sorry."

"This has nothing to do with you." Wen Zhilan reined in her anger and said softly, "Now that you're carrying a child, you should have your family visit less."

"I understand, Mother."

"Ruan Qin, all these years, how much advantage has your family taken of us—I won't say more. But now they've set their sights on your little sister, and that is absolutely unacceptable." Chi Ting Song's tone left no room for argument. "If they still harbor such notions, then from now on, we simply cut off all contact."

The Chi Family had never been this forceful before. Everyone in the village knew the Chi Family were all pushovers. Driving their in-laws out the door today was a first.

But watching the Ruan Family flee in panic, they felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.

Chi Huai Qian's chest was puffed out straight.

"Little Sister, this feeling is really quite nice!"

Chi Nan Yi heard this and said with a smile, "The so-called 'being understanding' means wronging yourself to make others happy. Everyone's living life for the first time—why should it always be you who endures? Third Brother, remember: as long as I have no morals, morals can't hold me hostage."

Chi Huai Qian nodded, half-understanding.

He seemed to understand, yet also seemed not to quite understand.

But none of that mattered anymore. What mattered most was that they had finally driven the Ruan Family away today!

Only, the food at home was gone too.

Chi Huai Qian hitched up the cart again and took Chi Nan Yi to town.

They had barely left when several figures appeared beneath a large tree not far away.

"Mother, that little wench is uncanny. Ever since she arrived, the Chi Family has a horse cart and can even eat meat—they're living quite well!" Ruan Dong's eyes gleamed. "If you ask me, the Chi Family must have quite a bit of silver now."

"Hmph, that little slut, she actually dared to ruin our plans." Zhao Huilan said angrily, "Once she marries into our family, I'll make sure to grind her down good."

"Mother, the Chi Family's meaning seems to be that they won't marry her in."

Zhao Huilan scoffed coldly. "Whether she marries or not isn't for them to decide. But what are they going to town for?" Recalling Chi Huai Qian loading two baskets onto the cart, her eyes lit up—could they be going to town to buy things again?

If that were truly the case, the Chi Family was now well-off, which meant that brat of the Chi Family absolutely had to enter their Ruan Family's door.

"Day after tomorrow, while the Chi Family isn't around, bring that dead girl Ruan Qin out. I need to have a good ask about where exactly the Chi Family's silver is coming from." Zhao Huilan thought for a moment. "We're going to town too."

Selling the medicinal herbs at Bai cao tang—this time she had prepared over sixty jin. Shopkeeper Li looked at the cinnabar root, even better than before, and his face was covered in smiles.

"Thank you, miss! Thank you, miss!" He took out eight taels of silver. "This is the silver for the herbs."

"Eight taels?"

"As I said before, cinnabar root is one hundred wen per jin, but the quality of what you've brought today is better and the age is older, so naturally the payment should be a bit more."

Chi Nan Yi didn't decline. After all, herbs grown in her space had efficacy that ordinary herbs couldn't compare to.

Chi Huai Qian looked at the silver, his grin stretching nearly to his ears.

Silver! Gleaming white silver!

Eight taels plus the two remaining from yesterday—that was ten taels of silver!

Good heavens! This was a huge sum!

He blinked in disbelief. No matter how many times he closed and opened his eyes, the money pouch still hung at Chi Nan Yi's waist.

It wasn't a dream. This was real.

They left Bai cao tang with the silver. In the Liu ji yao pu across the way, Shopkeeper Liu wet his finger with saliva, smoothed his mustache, and his eyes were full of calculation. "Have someone follow them and see where those medicinal herbs are really coming from."