CH 127

Zhulan had a sullen expression on her face. She didn’t even need to speak anymore. Zhou Wang’s words were much harsher than what she wanted to say. She directly accused her of crimes, not only implicating Wang Erya but also naming Wang Ru. Zhou Wang Shi had a high reputation and a dominant position, and when she spoke, it was not just for her, but for the whole village. This dragged the entire village into the matter. The words spoken tonight would directly seal the fate of Wang Ru and Wang Erya. It was as good as labeling them as unfaithful women, and no one in the nearby villages would dare to marry them. Even if someone did marry them, they would divorce them, blaming Wang Ru and Wang Erya.

The wife of Zhou Clan’s patriarch personally delivered a stern lecture. In the future, if Wang Ru and Wang Erya have any further negative reputations, not only will the Zhou Clan completely disassociate themselves from them, but they will also take ruthless actions against the Wang family. If the girls from the Wang family cannot discipline themselves properly, it reflects poorly on the entire family’s character.

Zhulan took a deep breath, the ancients were much more ruthless than modern people. It can be seen that Wang Ru’s plan to jeopardize Changzhi’s future was no less than cutting off the prosperity of the Zhou clan. Ultimately, it all comes down to interests. Changzi’s talent was remarkable, and the entire Zhou Clan benefits from it. The clan’s academy will flourish, and they can nurture capable successors. Changzi’s matter was not just a personal issue; it involved enormous interests.

Wang Ru didn’t understand but felt that the Zhou family came to insult her on purpose. Anyway, there were a lot of rumors about her, and it didn’t hurt or itch after being angry. On the other hand, Wang Erya, Wang Rong, her pupils constricted and her face was pale, she sat on the ground weakly. It took a long time to come to her senses, her reputation was ruined, who would dare to marry her in the future, and who would respect her if she married? Even if she married, she would live in fear of being divorced at any time.

Wang Rong knelt all of a sudden, knowing that their calculations were not hidden in the eyes of these old foxes, she might as well confess, “I was wrong, I shouldn’t have been distracted when I fell, and I will strictly restrain myself in the future and never go out again “

She didn’t tell Wang Ru’s calculations, but she knew in her heart that Wang Ru felt sorry for her. So she could get some money from her, and if she had enough money, it would not be a big deal to marry far away and never come back again.

Zhulan raised her eyebrows, this was a really smart person, seeing that Wang Ru was annoyed and unconvinced, she sneered, and said to Wang Rong, “Don’t blame us for coming here today, you have to bear the burden if you want to ruin someone’s future.”

“If you want to hate or complain about the consequences, you should find the right master.”

Wang Rong was a clever person, but ironically, this made her even more afraid. She genuinely had no idea about the consequences of ruining someone’s future. Her knowledge of such matters was limited, and she was easily swayed by the desire to marry into a good family, especially one of the most prominent families in Zhou Village. Considering Zhou Changzhi’s academic abilities and being the youngest son, he was undoubtedly favored by his family. She had no inkling that her actions could ruin Zhou Changzhi’s prospects.

No wonder the Zhou Clan became so furious and directly destroyed her reputation and future. Trembling lips, she lowered her head, realizing that her perceived cleverness and limited understanding had led her to be manipulated and caught in the trap. She tightly clenched her hands, feeling the sting from the slap of her naivety.

Wang Ru pursed her lips and looked straight at Yang Shi. The whole Zhou family was not good. She was annoyed and instead of calculating, she let the Zhou Clan come and humiliate her. She dared not confront her head-on.

She can’t leave home, she’s still too young, and thinking about the purpose of Shi’s family steward’s visit this time, her eyes were a little darker. Shi Qing was greedy and had been squeezing her, how long had it been that he coaxed a recipe out of her? And he thought he could coax her with a gift.

Touching the bracelet on her wrist with her fingertips, Shi Qing couldn’t be trusted. She was afraid of being tortured and killed. The more she thought about it, the more she felt angry. Getting angry, she retracted her eyes and lowered her head to hide her hatred.

Zhulan didn’t care that the hatred in Wang Ru’s eyes has deepened. They had been antagonistic from the very beginning. If she and Zhou Shuren didn’t act, it didn’t mean that they were both good-tempered people. Zhulan preferred a straightforward approach, likely influenced by her upbringing, while Zhou Shuren, whom she had known for half a year, didn’t seem to be a person with a good heart. Zhou Shuren seemed to favor cunning tactics and schemes. Once he becomes a successful xiucai and participates in the imperial examination next year, they will be able to distance themselves from Wang Ru without fear. Wang Ru didn’t see her situation clearly, and she was the one who hurt herself.

Patriarch Zhou held a tobacco pipe and said to Fourth Wang who was standing next to the wall: “I hope you will take care of yourself and don’t blame me for being merciless. Today is the first and last time.”

It appeared that the situation with Fourth Wang’s family was complicated and challenging to handle at once. They would have preferred to expel him and his family from the village, but the fact that he now had a son complicated matters. Having a son meant having a potential heir to carry on the family legacy, making Fourth Wang less likely to leave his hometown and start anew elsewhere. This puts the village in a difficult position to deal with the situation effectively.

Fourth Wang shuddered when he heard this. Although the tone of Patriarch Zhou’s speech did not change when he was not angry, this was the most serious warning. He knew in his heart that the Zhou family had the idea of ​​driving them out of the village. Fearfully he said: “I will remember, I must control the two girls in the future.”

He had a son, and he had to think about his son. A daughter was nothing in front of his son, but Wang Ru earned all the money in the family, her eyes twinkled.

Patriarch Zhou stood up, he didn’t want to see Fourth Wang, “Okay, we’re going back too.”

Fourth Wang hurried back to the house, and when Zhulan and his party approached the gate, he chased after them. Zhulan saw Fourth Wang give the Patriarch a bulging purse, and Patriarch Zhou took it.

Fourth Wang felt a little more at ease in his heart, but also felt very pained.

Patriarch Zhou said: “Before anyone leaves, come back to my house first.”

Fourth Wang’s heart tightened again, but he didn’t dare to ask anything. However, the thought of the purse made him feel somewhat relieved. After the others had walked far away, he closed the main gate and went with a stern expression to Sanya’s room.

Wang Ru had known that Fourth Wang would come over and hated that her cheap father was selfish and irresponsible. But she wanted to live at home, so she took a deep breath, but her expression was not good. She fiddled with the bracelet on her wrist and waited for cheap father to speak first.

Fourth Wang’s hands on his back were clenched into fists. He was the head of the family. Wang Ru challenged him again and again, but he still had to endure. That little brat had backing he couldn’t afford to provoke. He softened his tone and said, “Ru Ya, don’t blame your father. Today’s act was all for the sake of showing the Zhou Clan. If I didn’t personally do it, Zhou Wang Shi would have taken matters into her own hands. If the slap landed on you, both your mother and I will be heartbroken to see you hurt.”

Wang Ru sneered in her heart as if the cheap father had never beaten her, and she didn’t want to continue listening to Fourth Wang’s speech, otherwise, she would vomit, “Tell me, how much money did you give away?”

Fourth Wang was seen through and he felt a little annoyed. But when he thought that it was his son’s silver that he gave away, he endured it again, “Twenty taels.”

Wang Ru squinted her eyes, did he think she was blind? She clearly saw a purse with ten taels, and Wang Laosi opened his mouth, it became twenty taels! And there were no small-denomination banknotes in this dynasty. “There are ten taels on the table, and you won’t get any more”

Fourth Wang noticed the purse on the table, realizing that it had been prepared in advance. He narrowed his eyes, knowing that no matter how much he said, he wouldn’t get more than what was there. Taking the purse, he turned and left, his mind now focused on how to obtain more silver from Wang Ru’s hands.

Zhulan and the rest of the people returned to Patriarch’s house, and the patriarch generously took out the purse and poured out the money in the purse, “About ten taels of broken silver, Fourth Wang gave me just now.”