A Good Country Wife-Chapter 631 - 625_1

"Look at what the village chief is saying. We just had no other way out, and couldn’t think of any other solution before we came to ask the chief to speak to Erhu’s wife. How did that become ingratitude? The chief’s words are too harsh. We can’t bear them!" That wife is from the Zhao Wufu family. Because of the relationship between Zhao Wufu and the village chief’s family, Zhao Wufu’s wife often acted shamelessly at the chief’s house, and the village chief had no way to deal with them. The Zhao family was used to it and thus didn’t feel afraid of the chief; others wouldn’t have the guts to talk back to the chief.

The village chief was so angry at Zhao Wufu’s daughter-in-law that he was huffing and puffing, thinking to himself that this family was extremely annoying. Birds of a feather flock together; they were all shameless and insatiable. While he thought that, his tone of voice also conveyed a degree of irritation, "There’s no need to ask. With your ungrateful behavior, Erhu’s wife will not help you, and I certainly have no interest in losing face for you by saying these shameless words. Humph!"

The village chief said his piece and directly sent the people away, then slammed the door shut. Yet he felt some apprehension in his heart. Even though he had just verbally refused the group of wives’ request and was unwilling to go to Erhu’s wife, he was, after all, the chief of Lin Village. Almost all the village’s crops were destroyed, and as the chief, he had to think of a way to get through this difficult time. Right now, the only one capable was indeed Erhu’s wife, but he really couldn’t bring himself to ask her once more to do this for the village, so he had to figure it out on his own. Even if he had no choice but to ask Erhu’s wife in the end, he couldn’t let her be taken advantage of.

"Madam, you’ve already helped the village enough, and moreover, those elders pressured you too harshly last time. It was simply too much. Why would you still want to help them? I see that these people are ungrateful, as if it’s expected of you to do these things. It really angers me to see this," Xixi indignantly said, having heard Lin Yue instruct Liu Aniu to prepare some sweet potato and maize seeds to take out.

Lin Yue couldn’t help but smile at Xixi’s manner. This girl would always be straightforward, no matter how much Madam Xu trained her. To tell the truth, she wasn’t a bit less angry. When the elders pressured her back then, she wished she could have stayed out of the village affairs forever. But now, no longer as angry when she thought back, she understood why things had turned out this way.

True, those elders were selfish, but who doesn’t have their own selfish interests? As long as one’s intentions aren’t purely malicious, there’s still hope. The reason the elders acted that way was because of her own behavior. She hadn’t thought too much about it before, just doing things for the sake of convenience and a good reputation, offering the elders some benefits now and then; after all, these things were trivial to her. But she forgot that you can’t solve every issue by simply giving benefits. Showing favoritism could breed resentment; in the end, the elders’ increasingly brazen behavior was also her doing. While blaming others, she also needed to reflect on herself.

"Alright, what are you mumbling about in front of madam? Madam knows what she’s doing! There are proper limits to everything, and I’ve also taught you quite a few things. How can you still not think things through? Some matters can’t just be handled based on personal likes and dislikes. There are many other things to consider," Madam Xu knew what was in Lin Yue’s heart, so she immediately followed her instructions without a word.

Xixi didn’t quite grasp the deeper meaning in Madam Xu’s words, only hearing the superficial sense and becoming even more puzzled, "Consider what? Even if madam doesn’t give, what can those people do? At most they might just grumble a few sharp words, surely they can’t affect other people’s possessions."

"You, how should I put it... I could talk till I’m blue in the face and you might still not understand, so better not ask. Just do your work properly and stop complaining," Madam Xu said as she handed over the items in her hands to Xixi.

"Alright, I understand." Xixi actually had a good sense of self-awareness, knowing she was not the sharpest and didn’t argue, taking the items and leaving.

Nanny Xu then turned to Lin Yue with some worry, "Madam, although this servant knows that you’re doing this out of necessity, considering all aspects, these people seem to be getting more and more greedy. No wonder Xixi is so angry; if we keep indulging them like this, I’m afraid they will become even more demanding."

"Don’t worry, Nanny, I have a plan in mind. Besides, these seeds are not for free. Although I want to save face for our fellow villagers from the Zhao Family Village and sell at half the market price, anyone who needs them can come to buy, or they can offset the cost with labor if they can’t afford it. But they cannot just take them for free, and the same will apply in the future," Lin Yue replied.

Hearing Lin Yue say this, Nanny Xu felt relieved and even more convinced of Lin Yue’s wisdom, growing increasingly respectful of her mistress.

Lin Yue handed this matter over to Lin Genfa. Firstly, Lin Genfa was gradually getting to grips with these affairs, and secondly, she had tasks for Liu Aniu. It was her oversight; things were in such chaos because of the refugees that she only remembered when it was too late and the refugees had already blocked the outside. Now that the refugee issue had been resolved, Lin Yue wanted Liu Aniu to take a trip to Shanglin Village with the grain seeds to check on Lin Qing and her aunt’s family, these two being the people Lin Yue truly cared for. She hoped they hadn’t suffered due to the refugees.

Originally, Lin Genfa was more familiar with Shanglin Village, but Lin Yue knew what kind of people her foster parents were. Genfa showing up at their doorstep would definitely not receive a warm welcome, but to visit Lin Qing, they couldn’t avoid them, so it was better to leave it to Liu Aniu.

However, Lin Yue indeed thought of it a bit too late; several days had already passed by the time Liu Aniu, following Lin Yue’s orders, was on his way to Shanglin Village, only to encounter Lin Yue’s foster parents and Lin Qing en route. The family, having been robbed by the refugees, was without grain. All three were gaunt with sallow faces, and their clothes looked unwashed for many days, filthy and torn from either begging or fighting with the refugees, making them look scarcely better than the beggars on the roads. Seeing Liu Aniu driving the horse cart, which Lin Yue had used several times to visit Shanglin Village, the three recognized it as belonging to Lin Yue’s family, and they stood in the middle of the road to stop the cart.

Seeing someone blocking the road, Liu Aniu stopped cautiously, staring at them for quite a while before recognizing them. "Uncle, it’s you! Madam has just instructed me to visit you in Shanglin Village and bring some grain along."

Hearing Liu Aniu say this, Lin Qing knew that they had come to Zhao Family Village because there was no grain at home, and they couldn’t go on like that, so he wanted to seek help from Lin Yue. Now that the grain had arrived, knowing the character of his parents, he didn’t want to take them to bother Lin Yue with their troubles.