CH 41

Bonus chapter for Heemi. Thank you for the kofi.

The person who came was Ding Yanhe. She looked furious, as if she had come to demand justice. Qiao Yuan raised an eyebrow.

Yu Dameng took a step forward and stood in front of Qiao Yuan, staring back with fierce eyes, which made Qiao Yuan burst into laughter.

Yu Dameng turned his head and looked at Qiao Yuan, as if saying, how can you still laugh at this time?

Qiao Yuan quickly surrendered, holding back his laughter, and pulled Yu Dameng behind him. He would never let the person in front of him see his silly husband again.

“What’s the matter, Miss Ding?”

Ding Yanhe had just been glared at by Yu Dameng, her aggression already diminished. She stammered, “You…if you despise Big Brother Dameng, why don’t you let him marry a concubine?”

Big Brother Dameng?

Qiao Yuan looked at Yu Dameng with great displeasure. Yu Dameng was eager to prove his innocence and immediately widened his eyes, saying anxiously, “I don’t want a concubine!”

Ding Yanhe was in a state of anger and frustration and blurted out without restraint: “Big Brother Dameng, he never had you in his heart! Have you forgotten about the night he hanged himself on your wedding night?”

Yu Dameng looked away to avoid suspicion and answered her coldly, “Whether my husband likes me or not, I like him.”

Well, it was really satisfying to knock out an opponent without having to exert any effort.

But Qiao Yuan did not want others to misunderstand his feelings for Yu Dameng. “I already explained what happened previously to the villagers, so I don’t need to explain it to Miss Ding. But you said that I don’t have my husband in my heart, I have to clarify that.”

Qiao Yuan looked at Yu Dameng with a smiling face filled with affection. “I really like him very much.”

Yu Dameng’s face turned red in an instant.

The couple looked at each other affectionately, making Ding Yanhe even more angry and resentful. She was about to say something more unpleasant, but Qiao Yuan cut her off. “Miss Ding, please respect yourself!”

“I originally thought you were too young and didn’t want to argue with you. Now that you’ve come to me, let’s make things clear. From beginning to end, neither our family nor my husband nor I have any intention of taking you as a concubine. Where did you hear such rumors?”

Ding Yanhe stopped in her tracks. She had been immersed in the humiliation of being rejected for marriage for the past few days and lost her mind. She realized after Qiao Yuan reminded her that this matter was only initiated by Xu Xiuhua, and the Yu family never expressed such interest.

“Don’t be so quick to believe others.” Qiao Yuan knew that she was most likely instigated by Qiao Yingying. “My uncle’s family has mistreated me since I was little and seized my family property. I’m not on good terms with them. Even if I really had such thoughts, I wouldn’t ask them to do it.”

“Besides, what’s so good about being a mistress?”

“It’s a concubine wife!” Ding Yanhe emphasized.

Qiao Yuan laughed, “That’s just a nice-sounding title. What’s the difference between a mistress and a concubine? Miss Ding, there’s no need to delude yourself.”

Ding Yanhe’s face turned bright red, ashamed to be pointed out so bluntly.

Qiao Yuan didn’t want to waste more words with her. “If my husband really had such thoughts…”

“I don’t!” Before Qiao Yuan could finish, Yu Dameng interrupted loudly. Qiao Yuan pinched him in annoyance and continued, “Miss Ding needn’t bother, I’ll kick him out myself.”

“I don’t have any!” Yu Dameng emphasized again nervously.

Qiao Yuan looked at him helplessly and pulled him away. He left Ding Yanhe in a mess. It turned out that Big Brother Dameng couldn’t live without Qiao Yuan? What did he do to deserve this!

Ding Yanhe returned home in a daze. Her brother Ding Da, who came back from working in the county town, noticed that something was wrong and asked, “What’s the matter with my little sister?”

Ding Lishi said angrily, “It’s all because of that Xu Xiuhua from the Qiao family!”

“Earlier she said her nephew wanted to take your sister as a concubine for Yu San. I thought the Yu family’s conditions were good and Yanhe was also interested in Yu San, so I agreed. Who knew that the matchmaker would be rejected by the Yu family when she came to their door!”

Ding Lishi wanted to go and settle accounts with Xu Xiuhua, but she calmed down and thought that this matter would affect Yanhe’s reputation if it got too big, so she held back. However, luckily, the Qiao family made a fuss about Xiao Fengxian the next day, which allowed Ding Lishi to vent her anger.

“That was foolish!” Ding Da was furious. “Mother, my sister is ignorant, how could you go along with her nonsense? It’s obvious that Yu San’s husband and Xu Xiuhua are not on good terms, can’t you see that?”

Ding Li Shi felt a little guilty. She could see that, but she thought since it was the girl taking initiative, Yu San would not refuse the good things that came his way.

“How powerful is Yu San’s husband? He runs a shop in the county town and even does business with wealthy families. Why should we offend him?”

Ding Yanhe’s spirits lifted slightly upon hearing the words, but her eyes remained confused.

Ding Da continued, “Since the ger from the Qiao family married into the Yu family, the Yu family’s days have been getting better and better. Even the new and interesting things that their iron shop produces have the ger’s contributions!”

Was Qiao Yuan really that powerful?

The shame that Ding Yanhe had finally dispersed surged up in her heart again. What could she use to compete with Qiao Yuan?

At this moment, Qiao Yuan was angry. “Big Brother Dameng, you sound so close. Has she been calling you that since you were young?”

Yu Dameng opened his mouth but didn’t know how to defend himself because it did seem like that was the case. He couldn’t control what other people called him and never paid any attention before.

His silence confirmed Qiao Yuan’s guess, making him even more jealous. He snorted, “Then do you also call her Sister Yanhe?”

“I don’t!” Yu Dameng widened his eyes and seriously reflected on himself. He only called her by name when he was young.

“Come here!” Qiao Yuan patted the spot next to him, pouting as he commanded Yu Dameng.

Yu Dameng immediately went over and was tackled into a hug by Qiao Yuan. “From now on, don’t talk to her anymore!”

“Mm!” Yu Dameng nodded in strong agreement. He didn’t want his husband to get angry again.

Seeing his attitude appeased Qiao Yuan. He suddenly pushed Yu Dameng down, teasing him, “Let me touch you.”

……

The experiment with honeycomb coal was very successful, and Qiao Yuan immediately decided to transfer Meng Bei from the dock to focus on making honeycomb coal. Meng Bei agreed happily, as he couldn’t help much at the pancake stall anyway.

“This will be tiring work, Brother Meng. I’ll increase your monthly wages by five hundred wen. Sister-in-law Meng will get the same as your original wages. What do you think?”

“That’s too much!” The wages Qiao Yuan gave were already higher than the market rate. Li Xiumei felt guilty for accepting it.

Naturally, Qiao Yuan gave them such high wages partly because they were relatives he wanted to help out. But the Meng couple were truly diligent, often helping out at the shop. Qiao Yuan felt the money was well spent. “The weather is getting colder and it’s not easy to work. Brother Meng still needs to travel back and forth every day. The wages are justified.”

The Meng couple didn’t refuse anymore. They thought to themselves that they would work harder in the future.

Honeycomb coal was in high demand, so they had to hire people in the village. The priority was naturally those who were close to the Yu family.

People from the Wu, Qian, Zhao, and Zhang families were hired. This time, they hired seven people in total. Three were responsible for pressing honeycomb coal, and four were responsible for grinding coal into powder and ash. The daily wage was fifty wen.

The people in Xianhe Village who were not hired also had something to do, because the Yu family also bought clay. They could dig a basket from the mountain and exchange it for two wen. It was a business with no cost, and everyone was busy.

Qiao Yuan discussed with Old Man Yu that they would start selling stoves and honeycomb coal at the big market on the fifteenth of next month.

But before that, there was still something he had to resolve first.

That was to take back the family property that the original owner deserved! And get rid of Qiao Guangzhi’s job!

That day, Qiao Yuan held a banquet at home and invited the village chief and several clan leaders of Xianhe Village.

Everyone knew that he was extraordinary now, but they were a bit confused when he gathered them all together. “Yuan Ge’er, why did you invite us here?”

Qiao Yuan wanted to settle the Qiao family’s matter as soon as possible, so he didn’t beat around the bush and said directly, “The village head and the elders must have heard about the matter between me and my uncle’s family.”

It wasn’t a secret, with several incidents happening already. But in the end, they weren’t considered proper elders of the Qiao family, so it wasn’t suitable for them to intervene.

“After I got married, I didn’t want to bother with these things, but they came to my door to trouble me repeatedly. Recently, I learned that he was able to get a job at the dock, and he got it by taking advantage of my father. When I think about the past, it’s difficult for me to remain calm, so I have decided to take back the family property that belonged to my father!”

His words shocked everyone. They were all stunned.

Before they could say anything, Qiao Yuan dropped another bombshell. “I will donate this property to the village in silver and build a school with very low tuition fees to accumulate merit for my parents!”

Not only that, but he would also distribute porridge in the future, open free clinics, and help more people in need. He wanted to accumulate merit for the original owner’s family and pray for their well-being in the next life.

“Yuan Ge’er, are you speaking the truth?” This was a great deed that would benefit the future generations. The elders were all excited.

If the villagers wanted their children to study, they had to go to the school in the county town. The tuition was expensive, not to mention the distance. It took more than an hour to go back and forth, which was very inconvenient.

If Xianhe Village had its own school, it would be different. The children would be able to study right under their noses, and Xianhe Village’s status in the surrounding area would surely rise as well.

Qiao Yuan nodded, “Not only that, but if there are any additional costs in the future, I can also bear them. I only ask for one thing, I hope the village chief and the elders can help me retrieve my parents’ property.”

The temptation of a village school was really moving. After careful consideration, the patriarch of the Zhou family stood up. “Then let me take the lead and express my stance. We will definitely make this happen.”

In this feudal society, the clan power in the village was still very effective. Besides, the law clearly stated that the gers could inherit the property. Qiao Guangzhi cared about his reputation and also worried about his job at the dock. Qiao Yuan was confident that he would agree in the end.

That day, the news that Qiao Yuan would donate money to build a school for the village as long as he could obtain his parents’ property spread through Xianhe Village, causing much discussion.

“Why can’t a ger inherit the family property? He is the only one left in the family. Should the family property be given to outsiders?”

“If there is a school in the village, I will send my son too. It’s good to know a few words!”

People tended to be attracted by benefits. Knowing Qiao Yuan getting the property would benefit them, groups of two or three would go to the Qiao house to “advise”.

Xu Xiuhua was furious over this. “Is he trying to force me to death?”

Qiao Yuan was unmoved. He just wanted to get back what rightfully belonged to the original owner. Xu Xiuhua and Qiao Guangzhi should have thought of the words karma and retribution when they mistreated the original owner.

As Qiao Yuan expected, it only took three days for Qiao Guangzhi to give in. He returned the property that the original owner’s father left behind, which included ten acres of high-quality land, ten taels of silver, and a house worth twenty taels.

At the end, Qiao Guangzhi still wanted to spite Qiao Yuan. “As for the silver I spent raising Yuan Ge’er all these years, I won’t calculate it.”

Qiao Yuan was not very polite either. He sneered, “The work I did in your house was enough to pay for it. If you really want to calculate it carefully, Uncle, maybe you still owe me money!”

“You!” Qiao Guangzhi glared angrily at Qiao Yuan but was pushed unceremoniously by Yu Dameng.

It was really the strength of a bull. Qiao Guangzhi fell on his butt and couldn’t recover for a long time.

He suddenly felt that ever since Qiao Yuan married into the Yu family, things had gone downhill for him. But he didn’t realize this was still just the beginning of what awaited him.

I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. If you want to show your support, you can buy me a coffee. It would make my day! For every five coffees I get, I will release a bonus chapter.