The man looked eagerly at the village head. His family was very poor, and these dishes were bought with silver. To repurchase them would be a considerable expense, and he couldn’t afford it. Naturally, he hoped to receive compensation so he could go to town to replace them.
The village head certainly didn’t want to be taken advantage of, especially since the other party involved was Madam Ruan. So, he said to the man, "Who broke them? Let that person pay."
Upon hearing this, Madam Ruan imdiately jumped up, "I won’t pay, I won’t pay! Why should I pay?"
The man looked at the village head and then at Madam Ruan. Suddenly, he kicked over the table beside him and shouted frantically, "I was peacefully sitting here eating, who did I provoke? They smashed all the utensils we use to eat with, and you expect us to survive?"
"Not my problem."
"You foul woman, you say it’s none of your business, but you’re the one who smashed our dishes."
"Even so, it’s not my fault. The village chief did sothing wicked that upset . If you want compensation, ask him."
Village Head: "You’re just being unreasonable, aren’t you?"
Madam Ruan: "You forced into it."
"Don’t think I can’t deal with you. I advise you to obediently pay the silver for the dishes, or else you’ll regret it."
"I’d like to see how you plan to make regret it?"
"If you don’t pay the silver by tomorrow morning, get out of Mo Family Village and never co back."
The village head got angry, making Madam Ruan finally afraid. She was genuinely fearful that the village head, in his anger, would expel her from Mo Family Village, and she would beco a wandering ghost, unable to be buried in the family grave.
Mo Family Village has rules—anyone expelled by the village head can never return to the village, and even in death, their body cannot enter the village, let alone be buried in the family grave.
Madam Ruan was frightened upon hearing this, and in the end, had no choice but to agree to compensate the man, originally planning to give him the silver a couple of days later.
Who knew the man was afraid she’d renege, naturally unwilling to let her delay.
With no options left, Madam Ruan agreed to give the money imdiately and asked the man to follow her ho to get it, finally resolving the matter.
Madam Ruan resentfully led the pregnant Mo Xiuzhi ho, planning to think of other ways to force Mo Shaoxing to give in. Her daughter’s pregnancy had ensured a bleak future; she’d certainly find no other good family. As a Juren, marrying Mo Shaoxing was much better than others. At worst, he would be a governnt official master soday.
After a trip to the Capital, Madam Ruan and her daughter considered themselves much more learned and looked down on the poor people in this place. They forgot that they themselves were even less than others and had no right to look down on them.
The man was strong and energetic, walking briskly and quickly leaving Madam Ruan and her daughter far behind. He would walk a bit and then stop to wait for them, walk a bit more, and then stop again to wait.
Madam Ruan supported her pregnant daughter, walking particularly slowly.
"Sister-in-law Ruan, could you hurry up a bit? After this, I need to go eat again! I didn’t even get to eat more than a few pieces of at before you overturned the table." The man licked his lips, savoring the taste, "Oh wow! Pork is truly delicious!"
"Look at you, like you haven’t eaten at in eight lifetis." Madam Ruan secretly swallowed a bit of saliva, then disdainfully said.
"Our family is poor. Throughout the year, we barely eat at twice. Not like your family, having at every day, of course, you don’t find it precious."
Who said she didn’t find it precious? Eating coarse grains and wild vegetables every day, without a trace of oiliness, almost starving to death! But for the sake of pride, Madam Ruan stubbornly held on.
In her heart, she couldn’t help feeling regret. She should have eaten her fill before arguing with the village head. Thinking of the palm-sized piece of at she had angrily overturned earlier, she drooled with greed and thought, this ti, she had truly lost out.
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