Chapter 7: Someone Comes Looking for Trouble

Five minutes later, a short, plump woman walked in.

Her whole body was round like a ball, with a face as wide as a dinner plate and a mole the size of a black bean at the corner of her mouth.

Zhang Xiulian looked up at her and, after thinking for a while, remembered that this woman was Li Meixia — the wife of the village chief.

In her past life, she had been one of Zhang Xiulian’s few good friends.

As soon as Li Meixia entered, Zhao Lili immediately turned and ran back to her room, carefully bolting the door behind her.

Zhang Xiulian curled her lips into a slight smile. “Meixia, what brings you here so early in the morning? Come, have a seat.”

Liu Dani, seeing the furious look on Li Meixia’s face, was inwardly delighted.

She had originally hoped to exchange her granddaughter for the grandson’s bride price, but Zhang Xiulian’s sudden “madness” had ruined her plan.

Now that someone had come to settle the matter, she was eager to see how her “good daughter-in-law” would handle it.

“What wind? A devil wind! I came to ask you face-to-face — just who do you plan to marry your daughter off to?!” Li Meixia raised an eyebrow and slapped the table as she spoke.

Zhang Xiulian twisted the hem of her clothes, thinking to herself:
“Li Meixia came looking for trouble first thing in the morning — she must’ve heard some gossip.
Whoever’s been talking behind my back, once I find out, I’ll rip their mouth apart!”

“Meixia, oh come on, did you swallow a firecracker this morning? A man should marry when he comes of age, and so should a woman.
As long as my daughter likes the guy, I’ve got no objection to whoever she wants to marry.”

Zhang Xiulian pretended not to understand, deliberately dodging the question.

“Great, Zhang Xiulian, so you really have gone back on your word!

Didn’t we agree before that your daughter would marry into my family and become my daughter-in-law?

Now you suddenly want to change that?” Li Meixia shouted, eyes wide.

“Meixia, come on, that was just playful talk between sisters. You really took it seriously?

This is a new society now — marriage is based on freedom and love.
We can’t be the kind of feudal parents who arrange marriages.

Besides, you’re the wife of a village official. Your thinking should be more progressive too.”

What Zhang Xiulian really meant was:
The agreement they made before doesn’t count anymore.
If Li Meixia’s family keeps pressing the issue, she’ll use current policy against them — after all, the village chief shouldn’t be leading by example in feudal, arranged marriages.
Even if he agrees, the higher-ups certainly won’t.

Li Meixia hadn’t expected the usually tongue-tied Zhang Xiulian to suddenly speak so sharply today.

In just a few sentences, she left her speechless.

Back then, they had only discussed the marriage privately — there was no signed agreement and no betrothal gift.

Now that the Zhao family was denying it, there was nothing they could do but suffer the loss in silence.

But Li Meixia was still unwilling to give up Zhao Lili, who was such a gentle and kind girl.

She pretended to act casually, fixed her hair, and pointed at Zhang Xiulian, saying,
“Everyone in Zhaojiacun knows you don’t make the decisions in your household. Let Zhao Debao — the real head of the family — come out and talk.”

Li Meixia’s husband had once told her that Zhao Debao had been terribly worried about scraping together the betrothal money for his second son.

When he heard that marrying off his eldest daughter could bring in a 500 yuan bride price, he immediately agreed to the match.

Now that Zhang Xiulian wanted to back out, it was surely her acting on her own.

Liu Dani added fuel to the fire and said,
“This is a major life decision for the children. How can a woman make the call? It should be my son who decides.”

This old hag — she always has something to say.

Just wait till I have the time… we’ll see how I deal with you!

Zhang Xiulian dug her nails into her palm to suppress her growing anger.
“Fine then, I’ll go call Debao.”

“Let’s make things clear. Meixia, just wait here for a bit.”

“That won’t do. I’m going with you. Who knows if you and your husband will collude behind closed doors!”

“If you don’t trust me, then come along.”

Zhang Xiulian stood up and led Li Meixia toward the west room.

How could Liu Dani miss such a juicy scene? She quietly followed behind.

Zhang Xiulian reached the door and pushed it, only to find it tightly locked from the inside.

Bang, bang, bang!

She knocked hard and shouted at the top of her lungs, “Debao, open the door! Meixia’s here to talk about Lili’s marriage.

This is a good time for you to explain things clearly. The kids are grown now, and all these rumors flying around aren’t good for anyone.”

Inside, Zhao Debao was woken by the noise. Already furious, the burning pain on his face and back made him even more irritable. “It’s early in the morning, why the hell are you banging on the door? Can’t a man get some sleep?”

Zhang Xiulian turned to Li Meixia and shrugged helplessly. “See? That’s how he is—nothing matters more than his sleep.”

Li Meixia wasn’t buying it. She tugged Zhang Xiulian aside and marched to the front, raising her voice, “Brother Debao, didn’t you and my eldest brother agree to marry Lili to my son? You even discussed the bride price! Isn’t that true?”

As long as Zhao Debao admitted it, she didn’t believe Zhang Xiulian could turn the situation around.

A woman who doesn’t even run the household—how could she control her children’s marriage?

At the mention of a bride price, Zhao Debao immediately sobered up.

The village chief had promised that if he married off Lili, he’d get a 500-yuan bride price.

That money would be perfect to help the second son get a wife.

But after getting beaten twice yesterday, Zhao Debao knew very well—this marriage was off the table.

Now, Zhang Xiulian was acting like a mother tiger protecting her cubs, biting anyone who got close.

If he insisted on this marriage, he might not live to see another day.

He pulled the blanket down to reveal his head and cleared his throat. “The kids are grown now. Let them decide their own futures. Whether they suffer or enjoy life—it’s their choice. We won’t be blamed.”

“At least you know what’s good for you!” Zhang Xiulian smirked toward the closed door.

Liu Dani (thinking): What a disgraceful fool!

Li Meixia’s face instantly turned black like the bottom of a pot. Her hands trembled as she stood stunned for two full minutes, then turned around and stormed out without a word.

The moment she left, Zhao Lili couldn’t wait anymore. She rushed out of the room and, seeing her mother at the doorway, frowned and ran over quickly.

As she passed by Grandma Liu Dani, the old woman gave her a fierce glare. Lili lowered her head and kept walking.

“Mom, what did Aunt Meixia say?”

Her tone was full of anxiety.

“With me here, don’t worry!”

Zhao Lili patted her chest and let out a huge sigh of relief. Tears welled up in her eyes, each drop filled with deep gratitude for her mother.

“Let a woman run the house, and it’ll collapse! Just wait and see!” Liu Dani shouted loudly toward the west room on purpose.

She knew her useless son inside would hear it.

He used to listen to her the most—how come one kick from his wife and he changed?

Did she kick his manhood, or his brain?

Sigh… infuriating!

“No! I can’t let her get too cocky. I need to come up with a way to deal with her. I won’t let my daughter-in-law ride on my head!”

Taking advantage of the fact that Zhang Xiulian and her daughters weren’t paying attention, Liu Dani hunched over and quietly snuck out the door.