Chapter 127 - 127 Hinting Widow Wang
127 Hinting Widow Wang
Everyone nodded when they heard Aunt Guihua’s words. Xue Duojin’s wife, Zhang Chunhua, whispered, “We only have one wok right now. It’s impossible to find another one.”
The cart got chatty as Xie Tieniu led the ox to Qili Town.
Everyone chatted inside the cart except Widow Wang. Lu Jiao, however, knew that the woman stole glances at her. At times, Widow Wang couldn’t hide the annoyance in her eyes.
Lu Jiao ignored her.
Just then, Aunt Guihua caringly asked, “Jiaojiao, did that mother-in-law of yours cause any more trouble?”
Lu Jiao was ecstatic. She was having a hard time bringing up the Xie family.
“Who knows? I doubt she’ll stay seated for long. I’m sure she’ll cause trouble soon.”
Everyone started to judge Lady Ruan.
Aunt Guihua angrily cursed, “That wicked woman had it good yet she never stays friendly. Karma will get her one day.”
Everyone nodded in agreement. The Village Leader’s wife, Lady Zhao raised an eyebrow, “The Fourth Grandma is the luckiest woman in town. After marrying the Fourth Grandpa, she hasn’t had to work hard. The Fourth Grandpa’s always protected her. Their children are very filial and all listened to her. Despite all that, she refuses to be friendly. If she keeps this up, she will taste her own medicine.”
Lady Jiang nodded, “Yunjin is such a good kid. Others pray for a child like that and don’t get one. Yet she treats him like a burden. Out of all the kids she bore, Yunjin’s the best one. Yunjin’s wife is the best too.”
Lu Jiao scanned around and sighed, “Sadly, my mother-in-law is determined to say we are unfilial. We do what we do and the gods are watching. I am okay as long as I know I am doing my best.”
Lu Jiao then added, “Honestly, this is all because my father-in-law dotes on her. If he didn’t, there’s no way she would have grown so arrogant. Truthfully speaking, my grandpa is really nice to people. No matter what my mother-in-law does, he never tells her off.”
Everyone nodded, “Xie Laogen truly does dote on his wife. He’s been like that since they were young. I never understood it. Laogen’s wife isn’t pretty and is a very sour person. Why does Xie Laogen treat her like she’s a treasure?”
Aunt Guihua chimed in, “I don’t understand either. See, if she’s a beautiful woman, we can claim that it’s because the Fourth is perverted. But that’s just not the case. On the contrary, it was the Fourth who was tall and good-looking when he was young. Yunjin didn’t grow up looking like his mother or father. I wonder who he took after.”
Lady Jiang answered, “I heard my father-in-law say that Yunjin is most like his grandpa. His grandpa was the best-looking man in the village back then. When he left the village, a pile of young women pursued him. However, his health had never been good. Yunjin’s grandma was tall and stocky and was very in love with Yunjin’s grandpa. Though they didn’t have that couple look, they were in love all their lives. Right after Yunjin’s grandpa passed away, Yunjin’s grandma passed away. They didn’t know how to live without each other.”
Lu Jiao shot Lady Wang a look and found her eavesdropping.
Lu Jiao said, “My mother-in-law was born to enjoy luxury. Once Yunjin passes the imperial exam and becomes an official, she’s going to be an official’s mother.”
Many people sighed at that, “That infuriates me.”
“How can someone so wicked get so lucky? The world isn’t fair.”
Lu Jiao added, “She better not go too far and make my father-in-law angry. If she angers my father-in-law too much, and he finds another woman he likes, her good days will be over.”
The women inside the cart all shook their heads, “No way.”
“Your grandpa’s going to die in that woman’s hand.”
“I think it’s impossible. I respect whoever manages to steal the Fourth from Lady Ruan.”
Widow Wang’s eyes flashed a little, but she didn’t comment.
Lu Jiao smiled gently and stopped discussing this matter.
The conversation moved on to harvesting herbs. Aunt Guihua said, “I’m going into town today to buy horse chestnuts. I’m going to put them in my pouch to shield away snakes and bugs. Once I have that, I can start going into the mountains.”
Lady Zhang also smiled, “I’m doing the same thing. This afternoon, Xiaojun will start to harvest herbs. I’m worried she’ll get bitten by a snake so I asked her to only roam around the outskirts of the mountains. Once I get her the chestnuts, she can go up the mountain.”
Aunt Guihua grinned, “I’ve asked my daughter-in-law to do the same. Tomorrow, we’ll go into the mountains.”
Everyone once again felt appreciative, “Thank you, Yunjin’s wife.”
Lu Jiao shook her head, “It’s okay. Everyone, be careful. If you get bitten by a snake, rub the horse chestnut against the wound immediately. It’ll help with the inflammation.”
“Okay.”
The ox cart soon arrived in Qili Town. Lu Jiao went straight to Baohe Tang with her basket.
There, Dr. Qi was looking around by the door. When he saw Lu Jiao, he greeted her, “Master, you’re here.”
The two villagers inside looked over at them in awe. Did they hear him wrong? That young woman was Dr. Qi’s master? How skilled did that make her?
The manager and the other workers didn’t pause. They already knew about this.
Though they found it hard to believe, they didn’t say anything. After all, this was Dr. Qi’s business.
Dr. Qi led Lu Jiao through Baohe Tang and into the backyard. As he walked, he announced, “Linfeng is waiting for you.”
Lu Jiao asked, “Are you good friends with Owner Zhao?”
The way Qi Lei talked about him and addressed him made her think that Qi Lei wasn’t simply Owner Zhao’s employee.
Since Lu Jiao was his Master, he didn’t try to conceal anything, “Our families are friends. We grew up together. We may not be brothers, but we are close to that. He chose to come into this town to start a business and I followed him.”
Lu Jiao raised an eyebrow, “The way you talk and act makes it clear that you two are not ordinary people. Why would you come to a place as poor as Qili? What’s the purpose behind your trip?”
Qi Lei froze up. He wasn’t sure how to answer her.
Lu Jiao realized that the background story likely involved the owner and Qi Lei couldn’t speak on his behalf.
By now, they had arrived in the backyard. There, Baohe Tang’s owner, Zhao Linfeng, was studying her with a profound gaze.
Lu Jiao wasn’t afraid, “Greetings.”
Zhao Linfeng nodded and gestured for them to sit. Before Lu Jiao could say anything, he asked her straight away, “Qi Lei said you have a lot of money-making ideas?”
Lu Jiao didn’t follow etiquette either, “Yes, I have ideas for both short-term and long-term businesses. I wonder, do you plan on partnering up with me on these ventures?”