Chapter 30

Today’s events aren’t as simple as they seem.

As a lady of the household who had spent many years managing the inner chambers, Lin Wànróng was no fool. She had always hoped to get along with the villagers, especially since she was exiled here and had good intentions toward them. When they extended their kindness to her, she didn’t overthink it.

But now, as she reflected on what had happened today, the woman’s words seemed increasingly suspicious.

The woman had said that the fish was especially good for nourishing the body, particularly for the elderly and children. Had Lin Wànróng not encountered Xiǎo Wǎn on the way, she would have certainly used the fish to make soup for her children and father-in-law once she got home.

The adults in the house were still in good health, and everyone generally agreed that good food should be shared with the children and elderly. But to think that just one spoonful could be fatal…

Lin Wànróng felt her hands tremble.

She had nearly, nearly caused harm to her children and father-in-law. By the time she reached her doorstep, her back was soaked in cold sweat, and her face had turned pale.

“Mother!”

Her two young sons rushed to help her, clearly worried. Hearing their voices, the twins ran over to open the door.

“Auntie’s back!”

“Big brother and second brother are back!”

The two children, who were very clingy but well-behaved, immediately noticed their aunt’s pale complexion. Seeing her needing support, they quickly fetched a small stool for her, while one ran to the kitchen to call for their mother.

“Sister-in-law! What’s wrong with you?!”

The second wife, Xu Mingwei, had always been close to her elder sister-in-law. On the journey of exile, her two children had been saved thanks to the help of her brother and sister-in-law. After enduring hardships together, their bond had become as close as that of real sisters. Seeing her sister-in-law so unwell, Xu Mingwei’s eyes turned red with worry.

“I’m fine, just a little shaken up.”

Lin Wànróng had her sons take the younger ones to play in the yard and then quietly told her sister-in-law what had happened.

Xu Mingwei wasn’t naive either; after thinking it through, she quickly understood the twists and turns of the situation.

“The fact that she didn’t let me see her face shows she was prepared. I was foolish to take something from a stranger.”

Lin Wànróng deeply etched this lesson into her mind. Even in a small fishing village, one couldn’t underestimate the people here.

“Today’s incident was really thanks to Xiǎo Wǎn. We need to thank her properly. When Big Brother and Ahé get back, we must tell them about this. We should also observe who’s coming and going in the village, see if we can uncover anything about that woman.”

The motive behind today’s events was easy to guess; it was clear who would benefit in the end.

If her father-in-law and children had died today, both she and her sister-in-law would have suffered immense losses. While she might have survived, her sister-in-law would never have been able to forgive herself for bringing back the poison. She wouldn’t be able to live with that guilt.

If that happened, Big Brother would lose his wife.

Heh.

Xu Mingwei was almost certain of her suspicions. As for her next move, she planned to find out which unmarried girls and widows lived in the village.

She would pay special attention to those with marriage difficulties or bad reputations. Of course, other women could be involved too.

Although Big Brother had been exiled, he was tall, strong, and handsome. It was possible that someone thought he was a good catch.

If anyone dared to harm her children, she would make sure that person paid.

Meanwhile, Jiang Wan had returned home, bringing with her three small pufferfish. Yīn Níng loved the cute little fish in the bucket and couldn’t help asking her.

“Cousin, are we going to have fish soup for lunch?”

Jiang Wan raised an eyebrow and smiled.

“Cousin, do you think I would cook this fish? Are you brave enough to drink it? It’s highly poisonous!”

“Ah? Poisonous!”

Yīn Níng immediately withdrew her hand, her eyes wide with shock.

Jiang Wan laughed, poking the three pufferfish, making them puff up, and briefly explained about their toxicity.

“You really know a lot, cousin…”

The more time Yīn Níng spent with her cousin, the more she felt that the years she had spent reading those books were wasted. The books she read were all about rules and romantic tales. Now, she knew nothing, and it was her cousin who had to teach her.

“Cousin, what kind of books do you read? I’ll write them down. When the family has money, I want to buy some and read them too.”

Jiang Wan: “…”

How could she answer this?

“Ahem… it’s been so long, I’ve forgotten the names of the books. When we can afford paper, I’ll make a little booklet for you.”

“Alright, alright! Cousin, you’re so kind!”

Yīn Níng hugged Jiang Wan happily, not letting go. At that moment, Jiang Wanwanted to slap herself two times.

Did she really just promise to make a booklet?

Can you even read? How could you agree to that!

You don’t even have the original memories! You’re just a literate fool here…

Jiang Wan swallowed her saliva. It seemed like she’d have to go back to the little stone house with her mother after lunch. She needed to learn to read, or she’d eventually be exposed. Moreover, if she couldn’t read, she wouldn’t be able to understand any contracts if she ever did business.

It was too hard. Why didn’t she get the memories when she transmigrated? She had just escaped from school, and now she had to learn everything from scratch—wasn’t that torturing her?

Thinking about the complicated and hard-to-write characters of this time made her scalp tingle.

Jiang Wan tried to make light of the situation, poking the pufferfish until they were nearly out of air.

Half an hour later, the two women returned from gathering herbs on the mountain, carrying a large basket of medicinal plants. As soon as they entered the door, Yīn Huáixī saw that Jiang Wan was poking at the pufferfish.

“Xiǎo Wǎn, why did you bring pufferfish back?”

“Ah? I thought it might be useful for you.”

Jiang Wan looked at her mother in confusion—hadn’t her mother always kept some poisonous substances for medicinal purposes in the past?

“Silly girl, don’t you see what our family’s situation is now…”

“Nothing at all.”

The medicinal value of pufferfish is quite good—it can be used for anesthesia, pain relief, diuresis, and reducing swelling. Any doctor would likely appreciate it. But with their current situation, how could they extract the poison from the pufferfish? They didn’t have the proper equipment, so they could only watch it go to waste.

“Well then, I’ll just have to throw them back into the sea.”

Jiang Wan didn’t dare to just throw them away carelessly. What if someone who didn’t know better found them, fed them to ducks, or even ate them? The consequences would be dire, so she decided to throw them into the ocean to be safe.

Yīn Huáixī suddenly felt something was off as she looked at the bucket.

“Xiǎo Wǎn, did you only catch pufferfish today?”

It wasn’t that she minded that her daughter hadn’t brought back much; she knew her daughter too well. In this fishing village, there was an abundance of resources, and given how diligent her daughter was at beachcombing, it was unlikely she’d only catch this much.

“Mm… there was a little accident.”

Jiang Wan then told her mother about Lin Wànróng’s encounter with the pufferfish.

“Poor Aunt Lin, she’s only been in the village for a few days and already has someone targeting her.”

Yīn Huáixī sat down and rubbed her waist, remaining silent.

As expected, where there are people, there’s bound to be intrigue. This small fishing village wasn’t necessarily as peaceful as it seemed.