Chapter 31: A Miserable End

“Officially becoming villagers, huh?”

“Shouldn’t the village chief reconsider?” Although the villagers no longer opposed the Xiao family staying, they were still skeptical about this decision.

“I’ve judged countless people with these eyes of mine, how could I be wrong? Besides, Xiao’s wife contributed greatly by discovering the kudzu root. Just for that alone, they deserve an official status!”

“Alright, alright, if the village chief says so, we’ll listen!”

While the villagers sometimes had minor grievances with the chief, they still followed his lead on significant matters.

“Now, what’s this situation with the Zhang family all about?”

“Let me explain, village chief,” Zhang Po Zi immediately began when asked. “Everyone knows I’ve been cooking for Xiao Huai’an’s children for so long. Even if I haven’t achieved much, I’ve worked hard! But now, for some reason, Xiao Huai’an wants to hit me, likely because of some nonsense whispered into his ears by his new wife. Surely we can’t handle things this way, can we?”

“What do you have to say?” The village chief turned to Xiao Huai’an for his opinion.

Before Xiao Huai’an could speak, Ye Xin Ran stepped out from the courtyard and said, “Zhang Po Zi, why don’t you tell the whole story?

“Xiao Huai’an did hire you to cook for the children, but why not mention the 500 wen you’re paid monthly? Don’t keep emphasizing your so-called hard work. If you don’t want the job, I’m sure many in the village would jump at the chance.”

“What? 500 wen a month? Such high pay?”

“Zhang Po Zi always complained about the trouble of cooking for Xiao’s kids. I even scolded her for meddling, but she never mentioned the 500 wen!”

“Of course she didn’t. Your cooking is better than hers, if she told you, you might’ve taken the job from her!”

“Ye’s wife is right. As long as Xiao Huai’an says the word, we’d all want to do it!”

A man could earn only about a tael of silver carrying heavy loads in the city for a month. Cooking two meals a day for children without neglecting household chores sounded like a dream job, and everyone’s eyes lit up with envy.

“Zhang Po Zi, that’s dishonest of you!”

“Exactly! Why didn’t you share such a good opportunity?”

Seeing the villagers starting to criticize her, Zhang Po Zi sneered coldly. “Now that you’ve heard there’s money involved, all of you are jealous. But back when the Xiao family first arrived, weren’t you the ones avoiding them like the plague? Have you forgotten that?”

Faced with Zhang Po Zi’s retort, the villagers fell silent.

She was right. Back then, they had indeed kept their distance from the Xiao family, wary of their background.

Still, none of them had known about the money. If they had, they might have reconsidered.

As Zhang Po Zi regained her footing, Ye Xin Ran continued, “Whether it’s about money or not, Zhang Po Zi was paid to do the job, and we’ve never been picky about her work.

“But not only did she fail to do her job properly, leaving the children starving and emaciated, she even accused them of stealing!

“They’re just little children. What do they know? Eating a bite at home gets them called thieves, and they’re too afraid to speak up when people take the family’s grain. Tell me, who could tolerate such treatment?

“We outsiders know our place, but should people from the same clan always pick on the weak?”

Following Ye Xin Ran’s words, everyone turned to look at the three children.

The children were dressed in patched clothing, each thinner than the last. They truly were pitiful, just as Ye Xin Ran had described.

“Xiao Huai’an only buys a little grain at a time. Of course, three kids can’t get enough to eat! How is that my fault?” Zhang Po Zi retorted defensively.

“Who saw me steal their grain? You can’t just accuse me without evidence!”

“Above us, there are gods watching,” Zhang Po Zi declared loudly, spitting as she spoke. She raised her right hand, swearing, “If I stole grain from the Xiao family, may I die a miserable death!”

The onlookers rolled their eyes at her dramatic display.

Everyone in the village knew Zhang Po Zi and her family were notorious for taking advantage of others. But without catching them red-handed, there was no way to prove the accusation.

Ye Xin Ran wasn’t expecting Zhang Po Zi to confess. Instead, she used the incident to let everyone know what had happened.

“We’ll swallow this loss,” she said.

“But let me give you a friendly warning. If the grain’s gone, it’s gone, I’ll just consider it as feeding stray dogs. However, if you’ve also taken the children’s medicine and eaten it, that’s a serious problem.

“Medicine from the clinic is prescribed specifically for illnesses. For a healthy person to consume it, within six months, they could end up with perforated intestines and rot from the inside out.”

“What? That serious?”

“You’re lying!” Zhang Da Shan immediately rebutted upon hearing Ye Xin Ran’s words and the murmurs of the villagers. “That’s just polygonum root, it wouldn’t kill anyone!”

“Oh? You only ate the polygonum root?” Ye Xin Ran asked pointedly.

Zhang Po Zi, sensing danger, quickly clamped a hand over her son’s mouth. “Don’t listen to her nonsense! Doctors prescribe medicine to save people, not harm them. This ‘perforated intestines’ nonsense is all made up!”

Realizing his slip, Zhang Da Shan quickly regained composure. “Right, we didn’t eat anything at all! Whatever medicine it is, it doesn’t concern us. Mother, let’s go home and stay away from these people.”

Supporting each other, the mother and son retreated into their yard.

The villagers, however, had caught on from their panicked reactions.

“Stealing even the children’s medicine? That’s just shameless!”

“Exactly. It’s disgraceful for our Yun Bian Village!”

“We should avoid dealing with their family from now on, they’re nothing but opportunists!”

“Poor Xiao Huai’an. How did he end up tangled with people like them?”

…

As the murmurs of disdain spread, the crowd gradually dispersed.

The village chief stopped Xiao Huai’an to discuss allocating him a plot of land.

Chang An, wide-eyed with concern, tugged at Ye Xin Ran’s sleeve and asked, “Auntie, will the medicine really kill someone if they eat it?”

“No, of course not,” Ye Xin Ran reassured him, patting his head.

She had deliberately made up the story to scare Zhang Po Zi and her son. Unexpectedly, Zhang Da Shan had given himself away.

While there wasn’t yet a way to deal with them directly, planting a seed of doubt in their minds was just as good.

From now on, whenever Zhang Da Shan felt unwell, he’d think of this incident and wonder if he’d been poisoned. That lingering fear was precisely Ye Xin Ran’s goal.

Little by little, they’d feel the consequences of their actions.

After sending the three children back into the yard, Ye Xin Ran joined the conversation between the village chief and Xiao Huai’an.

Pointing to the west, the village chief said, “There’s a small patch of farm land over there, about two acres. It’s some of the better land in our village. I’ll take you to see it later. It’s not much, but you can grow something on it, and at least you’ll have a harvest.”

Xiao Huai’an was indifferent about the land, he didn’t know how to farm, so it wasn’t of much use to him.

However, having land and being an official villager meant better opportunities for the children, such as attending good schools and academies.

Hearing the discussion, Ye Xin Ran chimed in, “Uncle Village Chief, I don’t want that land. Can you allocate the mountain to the east to me instead?”