Chapter 10 - 10 Chapter 010: Pretending (1/2)
10 Chapter 010: Pretending
Translator: 549690339
But when she thought about it carefully, she really couldn’t figure out what she had done to offend Zhuang Jingye. Zhuang Qingning could only attribute it to his possibly bad mood and became even more focused on dealing with the situation.
“Uncle, have some tea,” Zhuang Ruman said obsequiously. Instead of calling him village chief, he referred to him as uncle according to their seniority, hoping to close the gap between them.
“I’m not blind, can’t I see that I’m drinking tea? What do you think I should drink, rat poison?” Zhuang Jingye replied, irritated.
“Oh, uncle, you must be joking, haha…haha…” stammered Zhuang Ruman, completely thrown off guard. His face flushed awkwardly.
What a idiot!
Zhuang Jingye resisted the urge to kick him and glared at him, “Enough of that. What’s the matter that requires you to seek me out early in the morning?”
“Well, our hens have been laying more eggs these days. So, I was thinking, you’re always working hard managing the whole village, you must need something to replenish your strength. So, I picked a few of the freshest eggs to bring to you.”
“You can ask Mrs. Song to make egg tea for you. It’s convenient and tasty.” With a smirk on his face, Zhuang Ruman placed the basket of eggs on a small tea table.
Who really knows if these eggs are good or not, or whether they replenish strength. But one thing is for sure…you, Zhuang Ruman, you’re so cunning!
Zhuang Jingye glanced at Zhuang Ruman, “Get to the point.”
Having his motives blatantly pointed out made Zhuang Ruman flushed with embarrassment. He chuckled awkwardly and said, “Uncle, I’ll be honest with you. Two of my nieces, Qingning and Zhuang Qingsui ran away from home.”
“Oh? They ran away? Why?” Zhuang Jingye leaned back in his chair, feigning indifference.
“Ah, it’s all my fault, I didn’t pay much attention to them before. As girls, they usually stay with Mrs. Song. But unexpectedly, Mrs. Song is nice to them in front of me but treats them harshly behind my back.”
“I was aware of Mrs. Song’s bad temper. She may not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but she’s definitely hot-tempered. I was also worried about her not treating my nieces well. But, whenever I asked them how they were, they said they were well-fed and well-dressed, so I didn’t suspect anything.”
“Yesterday, I overheard Qingning arguing with Mrs. Song, saying she was unhappy about the houses and farmland being given to our family instead of her and Qingsui. I even promised to give them the profits from the farmland as their dowry.”
“It’s a rule: if the family doesn’t have a male heir, the daughter can’t inherit the property but instead, it’s passed along to the brother who has a male heir. It’s typical for me, as their uncle, to collect these things. It’s totally justified. I took away their properties, but in return, the profits are given to them as their dowry, which I think is quite reasonable.”
“However, Qingning and Qingsui wouldn’t listen to me and kept stubbornly asking for the farmland and houses. So I stopped speaking, thinking they would understand once they’ve given some thought. But instead, they quietly disappeared… ”
“The world outside the village is chaotic. These girls are inexperienced and have nothing to survive on the streets. Besides dealing with hardships, I dread the thought of them encountering any bad people out there. How am I supposed to face my deceased brother and sister-in-law?”