Chapter 7: Not afraid of someone being ruthless, but afraid of someone going mad.

Song Yuntang felt a wave of fear; if she had truly fallen off the cart, given her fragile body, she could have sustained a superficial injury at the least or worse, a serious fracture.

Although she had the ability to heal herself, she would undoubtedly experience some pain.

Song Jinsheng, realizing what had happened, grabbed her other arm, his face filled with concern as he looked her up and down.

“Tang’er, are you alright?”

“I’m fine.” Song Yuntang looked at Xu Qingye. “Thanks to Mr. Xu for catching me just now.”

Xu Qingye remained as indifferent as ever.

“It was just a small effort, nothing to mention.”

Song Jinsheng also thanked Xu Qingye. For the rest of the journey, he held onto Song Yuntang’s arm, fearful she might fall again.

After about half an hour, when the ox cart passed Rongshu Village, Song Yuntang, Song Jinsheng, and Xu Qingye all got off.

Song Jinsheng carried the rice, Song Yuntang held the carrying pole, and Xu Qingye carried his Xuan paper and bags of herbs as they rounded the large banyan tree, coming into view of the villagers.

Upon seeing the trio, the villagers couldn’t help but whisper among themselves.

“Why is Mr. Xu walking with Song Laosan’s girl?”

“Didn’t we hear that girl from the Song family tried to take her own life yesterday? Just a night later, she’s already running to town. Looks like she’s fine now.”

“Having returned to her own family, she still yearns for the Lin family’s wealth. Does she really think she’s still that pampered young lady, not considering how much burden she’s added to Song Laosan’s family over the years?”

“If it were me, the Huang family’s marriage proposal wouldn’t be bad. For us poor families, as long as we can fill our bellies, being a concubine is nothing.”

“Who says otherwise? But she just won’t appreciate it. This morning, Song Laosan took his son Jinyuan to Shili Village, and when they returned, he had a bruised face. I’m afraid they went to break off the engagement.”

“This girl is truly a handful. Ma has put a lot of effort into this marriage proposal, and it seems it might be for naught.”

As the three approached, some villagers greeted Xu Qingye, especially those with children studying in the village school, showing extra courtesy in their demeanor.

Song Jinsheng and Song Yuntang had no time to pay attention to the villagers’ gazes.

Upon hearing the words “bruised face,” they exchanged a glance and, disregarding everything else, quickened their pace home after bidding farewell to Xu Qingye.

Their home was located at the far end of the village.

When they returned home, the courtyard door was open, and there was no one around. As soon as they appeared at the entrance, several pairs of eyes in the main room turned to look.

There was Song Jinbao and Song Jinyuan, both with bruised faces, Zhao Qiao’e with red-rimmed eyes, and Liu Xiangyun, who was tending to Song Jinyuan’s injuries with a pained expression.

There were also Ma Zhaolan, who had been chased out by Song Yuntang with a broom the day before, and the elderly Song couple with their hair half gray.

Seeing that there were outsiders at home, Song Jinsheng didn’t ask much and took the bag of rice to the kitchen first.

Ma Zhaolan looked at Song Yuntang as she walked into the main room, a smug expression on her face.

“What did I say yesterday? I told you that Young Master Huang wouldn’t be easy to deal with, right? The fact that he found me as a middleman to talk about this marriage is already giving you face after you spent so many years in the Lin family. Otherwise, he would have sent someone to carry you back directly. If it were me, I’d say you should just marry him; otherwise, our whole family will suffer with you.”

After saying this, she rolled her eyes at her in disdain.

Song Yuntang’s gaze turned cold. She first checked the injuries on Song Jinbao and Song Jinyuan, seeing that they were just superficial wounds and seemed to be fine before turning her attention to the smug Ma Zhaolan.

“People like Second Aunt are really annoying. If you can’t speak properly, just donate your mouth!”

Ma Zhaolan’s eyes widened, and she pointed at Song Yuntang as she looked at the elderly Song couple.

“Father, Mother, did you hear how this ungrateful girl speaks to her elders? Yesterday, she even hit me with a broom! She has no manners whatsoever! At this rate, where is the law?”

“Tang’er, even if your Second Aunt speaks unpleasantly, you should still respect your elders. Hurry and apologize to your Second Aunt,” Song Xingye ^[1]Grandfather said sternly.

“I did nothing wrong, and I won’t apologize.” Song Yuntang straightened her back. “The situation has reached a deadlock, and Second Aunt cannot be absolved of responsibility. If anyone should apologize, it should be her.”

Ma Zhaolan’s voice turned sharp. “I kindly introduced you to a good marriage proposal, and you’re blaming me instead? You’re just a dog biting Lu Dongbin, unable to recognize good intentions!”

Song Yuntang coldly glared at her. “How can being a concubine be considered a good marriage? If you think it’s so great, you should take it yourself! You’d make a profit from the matchmaking fees and bride price!”

Ma Zhaolan was furious, feeling blood rush to her head.

Song Xingye stood up, raising his hand to stop the impending explosion from Ma Zhaolan, and turned his serious gaze to Song Yuntang.

“No matter what, she is your elder!”

Song Yuntang seemed indifferent.

“I said yesterday, if you want to be my elder, you must look the part. After all, I’ve died once already; I’m not afraid of anything. If you continue to force me to do what I don’t want, I’m prepared to break everything. If I’m unhappy, don’t expect to be comfortable either.”

Her tone was light, and a chilling smile adorned her face, making her appear quite eerie.

Song Xingye wanted to reprimand her a few words but feared that she might go truly mad, leaving his face flushed but unable to utter a single word.

Not afraid of someone being ruthless, but afraid of someone going mad.

Zhao Qiao’e, hearing Song Yuntang’s words, was startled and hurriedly stepped forward to protect her, trying to mediate.

“Father, Tang’er is still a child. Don’t take her words seriously; you shouldn’t argue with her.”

Eldest brother Song Jinyuan, with his bruised mouth, added, “Father, you know Tang’er is straightforward and has no ulterior motives. She’s actually a good person.”

“You all keep saying she’s still young and has just returned to the Song family, so we shouldn’t make things difficult for her. But she’s sixteen now, and she can’t even compare to Zhaozhao’s little finger! You all keep protecting her; I wonder what kind of person you’re raising her to be!” Song Xingye felt frustrated. “I’m getting old; as for the Huang family matter, I can’t manage it, nor do I want to. Just don’t bring trouble to the families of Eldest and Second.”

After saying this, he left with his hands behind his back.

When Lin Guifen saw her husband walk away, she turned to Zhao Qiao’e and Song Jinbao. “You’re really foolish to change everything for a girl who can’t be raised, even to the point of abandoning your family.”

With a sigh, she shook her head and left.

Seeing that the elderly couple had left, Ma Zhaolan also lost the nerve to stay, especially after seeing the cold gaze from Song Yuntang. She hurriedly followed behind Song Xingye and the others, fleeing in embarrassment.

Once the outsiders had all left, Song Yuntang turned her attention to Song Jinbao.

“What did the Huang family say?”

Song Jinbao sighed. “They said since we already agreed, bringing it up now to back out would be a slap in the face to them. Either you go over, or we pay them fifty taels of silver for damages to their reputation; otherwise, we won’t be able to stand in Rongshu Village.”

Song Jinsheng, who had just entered the main room and heard this, was extremely agitated. “Fifty taels? Even if we sold ourselves, we couldn’t gather fifty taels! This is unreasonable!”

Liu Shi looked at everyone, her eyes filled with confusion and fear. She had only been married for a year, and now, with a child in her womb, her family was facing such a dire situation.

How would they live in the future?

With a sob, she looked helplessly at Song Yuntang. “Tang’er, why don’t you reconsider?”