Picking Up a General to Plow the Fields

Chapter 305: Strong logic

When Madam Qiao heard that her husband was supporting her this time, she felt that her complaints were very reasonable and immediately said in a vigorous ton: “You can rest assured that you are in charge, I have a full sense of measure!”

Saying this, Madam Qiao lifted her foot and left.
After a few steps, she stopped and turned her head to say to Lian Li: “Will you go, person in charge? Let’s go together!”

“I’m not going! You can resolve it yourself! I need to plan the banquet for when our son returns!” Lian Li quickly refused.

Let Madam Qiao go alone.
Even if something goes wrong, he will still be able to go over and end the trouble with a few good words and the sentence: “This lady is ignorant, don’t mind her!”

Madam Qiao’s heart was already too eager to wait so she didn’t say much when she say that Lian Li refused to go.
She snorted and left in a hurry.
After hearing his words, she had immediately had a new idea.

Madam Qiao stormed into Lian Fang Zhou’s house full of anger.
Lian Fang Zhou, Ah Jian, and Lian Ze, who had been about to go to the cotton field, frowned when they saw this.

Ah Jian glanced at Madam Qiao and said to Lian Fang Zhou: “I will untie the donkey and take it out to eat grass and drink water.”

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If you find this elsewhere, it has been stolen.

He did not mention how long.
Looking at Madam Qiao’s posture, it was clear that there was no way to avoid her this morning.
Ah Jian could see such a simple thing at a glance and Lian Fang Zhou understood.
She smiled at him and nodded, motioning for Lian Ze to join him.

“Is something wrong, Auntie? Come sit down and talk.” Lian Fang Zhou said, raising an eyebrow and calmly sitting down.

Madam Qiao’s nostrils flared as she sneered, saying bitterly: “Oh, I really don’t dare to sit, it’s too precious! Still calling me elder aunt, I see you’re more sensible than before!”

Madam Qiao’s spine was straight.
She felt that Lian Fang Zhou’s attitude towards her was much better this time than before— though in reality, there was no difference— and the reason was because of her son.
Now that he was a talented person, Lian Fang Zhou was afraid of her!

Lian Fang Zhou secretly rolled her eyes when she heard this, lowering her head to drink tea and ignoring her.

Anyways, just ignore people.
Since she was here, she would say whatever she wanted to say.
As for explaining reality, it just didn’t exist in some people’s hearts.

Madam Qiao waited for Lian Fang Zhou to flatter her with a few more polite words.
Seeing her with her head down, she couldn’t help but become annoyed again.
Gritting her teeth and cursing silently, she thought: “Damn girl! She’s nothing! Just wait until my son comes back, then I will see how good you look!”

“I want to talk to you Fang Zhou! Tell me, your cousin passed the provincial exam, isn’t that a happy event for our Lian family?” Madam Qiao said, gritting her teeth to endure the anger in her heart and striving to look as kindly as possible as she slowly spoke in a nice tone.

“It is.” Lian Fang Zhou nodded, remembering that after the news came back, Lian Che had solemnly promised her that he would be admitted as a talent and go on to become a jinshi* so that everyone in the village would envy his sister! Her expression softened a little.

However, as soon as she saw Madam Qiao’s resentful face, Lian Fang Zhou immediately put away those runaway thoughts and smiled, waiting for Madam Qiao’s next words.

Madam Qiao slapped her thigh and said: “It’s good if you know! Ah Hai’s studies are very good and the gentlemen scholars have all praised him, saying that he will have a good future! He will definitely be an official in the future, maybe even a high official! When that time comes, our family will follow the light together, don’t you think?”

Speaking this last sentence, Madam Qiao’s tone became unconsciously more sour.
In her heart, she thought: Why should they also follow his light? Just because of their family name, it really is too good…

But she didn’t think, if Lian Fang Zhou and her siblings didn’t have the same Lian name, how would she dare to run to act wild at their door so many times?

Lian Fang Zhou raised her head and stared fiercely at Madam Qiao: “What do you mean by this, Aunt? We have never expected anything from Cousin! We live our lives steadily and work with our own hands.
What you’ve said, I’ve never thought about it! I’m sure Ah Ze and the others have never thought about it! So Aunt, you worry too much! If you don’t believe it, lets go speak in front of Zhang Li Zheng and the village heads, will you understand it in black and white?”

Madam Qiao was so stunned she couldn’t react for a moment.

She never dreamed that Lian Fang Zhou would have such an attitude towards this matter! She actually didn’t mean to be grateful for her Aunt coming to ingratiate herself at all! Instead, she actually wanted to get rid of the relationship, was her mind flooded?

Lian Fang Zhou’s mind was not full of water but Madam Qiao was not interested in thinking further.
She suddenly felt a blank feeling of being empty, as if a fist that was supposed to connect missed its target.

“What a joke!” Madam Qiao sneered: “What’s the use of black and white words? Huh! As the saying goes, breaking the bones and connecting the tendons! Your surname is Lian and you call my Ah Hai, Cousin, so naturally, you will benefit! Dare to mention black and white to me!”

Madam Qiao’s brain had had a rare moment of clarity.
After saying this, her waist straightened again.

Lian Fang Zhou hooked the corners of her mouth and smiled softly: “So for what purpose has eldest aunt come to me for?”

She spread her hands: “My parents gave birth to my siblings and I, we had no say in this! I’m not afraid to speak clearly in front of eldest aunt! If I could choose, I would not be connected to eldest uncle.
Aunt, for what are you getting involved in? You don’t want to be exposed to this light!”

Third Aunt, who had been eavesdropping under the window sill, couldn’t help but press her chest when she heard Lian Fang Zhou’s words, her heart pounding with worry.
Oh this girl, why did you talk to Madam Qiao like that!? That woman was notoriously abusive and unreasonable, how could she make such a mistake and say something like that…

Things were different now than in the past.
There were many students but few were good at exams.
After Lian Hai passed the exam, the status of Lian Li and Madam Qiao in the village immediately changed.
In addition, Madam Qiao’s boast that her son could become an official were not unreasonable.
These words were enough to even frighten Third Aunt, making her typical arrogance disappear.

In the past, she had not been afraid of Madam Qiao at all but now, if she saw her eldest sister-in-law when she went out, she would immediately avoid her, afraid that Madam Qiao would take the opportunity to settle old accounts…

So today, when Madam Qiao had come to the door, Third Aunt didn’t dare to sit with Lian Fang Zhou as usual.
Instead, she only dared to eavesdrop near the window.

How could she not worry after hearing Lian Fang Zhou verbally slap Madam Qiao’s face!

Madam Qiao was obviously furious after hearing Lian Fang Zhou’s words and she stared at her, saying ‘you’ over and over, without knowing what to say!

TN: *A jinshi is an imperial scholar and someone who has passed the highest level of imperial exams, it is a rank above juren.
(From what I understand it goes: Shengyuan -> Juren -> Jinshi) I think you become an official after becoming a Jinshi but I’m not 100% sure if you can’t also become a lower ranked official from the juren rank as well.