stingy landlady

Chapter 211 Sending Osmanthus Fragrance to the Wasteland (1)

As Dazhu was speaking, a sudden idea struck him, and he looked at Guizhi:

"What does 'Gui Zhi' mean? Father seems a little confused."

"Father! You want to give them fifty acres of wasteland? Who will cultivate it? Who will pay the taxes? If they can't pay the taxes, those officials won't be so easy to deal with!"

Dazhu clapped his hands upon hearing this:

"Alright! Let's do it this way! Guizhi, let's go! We'll go to the Jiang family right now! It won't kill your older sister to do some work! She'll just have to suffer a little!"

Dazhu and Guizhi took Jinxiu to the Jiang family in a carriage driven by Ping An.

Gui Xiang and Jiang Xiaoyu had just returned from gathering firewood on the mountain when they saw Da Zhu and Gui Zhi. Jiang Xiaoyu whispered for them to come back.

"Master!"

Guizhi nodded and called out to Guixiang:

"Big sister! Going up the mountain to collect firewood?"

Gui Xiang hurriedly put down the firewood and replied haphazardly:

"Hmm! We don't have much firewood at home, so my little sister and I—no, it was Yu'er—went up the mountain to gather some. What brings you here, Third Sister?"

Dazhu asked with a stern face:

"What? Wang Guixiang! I've raised you all these years, and you don't even know how to call me 'Dad' anymore? Or do you not recognize me as your father?"

Gui Xiang hurriedly knelt in front of Da Zhu and shouted:

"Father! Your daughter is unfilial! Your daughter has disgraced you!"

Wang Dazhu snorted coldly:

"Wang Guixiang! I thought you'd climbed the social ladder and didn't even recognize your own father anymore!"

Gui Xiang quickly kowtowed and admitted her mistake:

"Father! Your daughter has done something wrong and is ashamed to face you and your mother! Father! I...I...I...Waaah!"

Gui Xiang cried incessantly, while Da Zhu sighed repeatedly.

"Sigh! Guixiang! All these years! Can you honestly say that your parents have treated you badly? You are the eldest child, and even though you are a girl, your grandparents have never mistreated you since you were little."

Gui Xiang! A person can't be without a conscience!

Gui Xiang simply knelt on the ground and wept, offering no words of rebuttal.

Guizhi squatted down, took Guixiang's hand, and saw that her palms were calloused and blistered. Guizhi looked at Guixiang with heartache and said:

"Big sister! Why don't you come home with us? It's so tiring here. Let's go home and be pampered like young ladies again. Your parents don't mind, and we're all looking forward to your return!"

Gui Xiang was somewhat tempted and looked up at Da Zhu. Da Zhu nodded.

"You! You're so stubborn! Come home with us! Your parents will always be your parents!"

Granny Jiang and Jiang Hongliang had been secretly listening inside the house. Upon hearing that Guixiang was to return home, Jiang Hongliang panicked. He rushed out and bowed to Dazhu.

"I was unaware of my father-in-law's arrival and have failed to greet you properly! Please come in and sit down! Guixiang! Get up and pour your father-in-law some water."

The moment Gui Xiang saw Jiang Hongliang, she was filled with shock and fear, and a lump formed in her throat. She felt like she could never go back, and sobbing, she got up to boil water.

Guizhi followed Guixiang over and watched as she skillfully chopped firewood, started a fire, washed the pot, and filled it with water. No one helped her during this time, and even Jiang Xiaoyu was nowhere to be found.

Da Zhu stared at Jiang Hongliang for a long time, until Jiang Hongliang felt his back ache and his heart pounding. Only then did he say to Jiang Hongliang:

"Young man Jiang, you don't need to call yourself my son-in-law. You're not my son-in-law. My daughter abandoned her life as a pampered young lady to come here and serve you like a slave. You're really something!"

Seeing that Dazhu hadn't gotten angry and hit anyone, Granny Jiang boldly stepped out and said in a sarcastic tone:

"Oh! My dear in-law! It's already a fait accompli! No matter how stubborn you are in denying it, Wang Guixiang is still happy to stay with us. She'll just have to work a little harder for now if she's with my Hongliang."

If my son Hongliang passes the imperial examinations and becomes a scholar or a licentiate, then she will have endless blessings! Actually, my dear father-in-law, there are ways to prevent Guixiang from doing chores.

Hehe! If only my father-in-law would lift a finger, even just a little loosen his grip, our lives would be so much better. With money, we wouldn't have to suffer so much!

Dazhu suppressed his anger, which made him want to strike someone, and thought about the purpose of his visit. He refrained from saying anything more offensive and began to sized up the Jiang family's house. It was clear that the Jiang family had been quite well-off in the past, at least owning a three-room thatched house.

There are two rooms, one on the east and one on the west, with a stove in the middle room. However, due to years of disrepair, the house is low and the thatched roof is unkempt, indicating that it has not been repaired for a long time.

Dazhu strode into the house. As soon as he entered the outer room, he saw Guixiang busy at the stove, with Guizhi also helping to stoke the fire. He asked Jiang Hongliang, who was following closely behind:

"This house leaks every time it rains! You're such a grown man, why don't you go up and fix the roof? If you fixed the house, it wouldn't leak in the summer and let in drafts in the winter!"

Jiang Hongliang hesitated, but before he could speak, Jiang's mother called out loudly from behind:

“My dear in-laws! My son is a scholar! How can he do manual labor! He can just patch up the leaks! Anyway, once he passes the imperial examination and goes to the academy, he won’t have to live here anymore!”

My daughter Xiaoyu is old enough to be married. As for me, I'll go work for a wealthy family; I'll even have a place to stay! I'm telling you, Mr. In-laws!

"I reckon Guixiang and her child will be staying here quite a lot in the future, so why don't you ask your family's hired help to fix it up?"

Da Zhu suddenly stopped in his tracks, turned to Jiang Hongliang, and asked in a deep voice:

"Is Guixiang pregnant?"

Jiang Hongliang was caught off guard when Dazhu turned around, and he almost bumped into him. He quickly took a few steps back, but Jiang's mother followed closely behind, knocking her flat on her back.

"Hey! Hongliang! How do you walk? You're not moving forward, you're falling backward!"

"Gui Xiang! Xiao Yu! Help me up! My back is killing me!"

Gui Xiang hurriedly ran out of the stove, but Gui Zhi reached out and grabbed her:

"Big sister! Are you pregnant?"

Gui Xiang was pulled back, stopped in her tracks, and shook her head, saying:

"I don't know, I haven't seen a doctor! Third Sister! Let go, I'll help Aunt Jiang up!"

Guizhi, of course, refused to let go, and pointed outside with her other finger, saying:

"There are so many people outside! Why is it that only you have to go? Don't you value yourself? Don't you care about your father and me at all?"

Gui Xiang stopped struggling and silently turned back. After a long while, she finally spoke:

"Third sister! You're still young! You don't know that once a woman's heart is given away, she can never get it back!"

Once a woman is... well, you know! Sigh! Look at your mouth, you're still a child! Alright, alright! Stop asking!

The water's boiled, let's take it to Dad! Sigh!

Guizhi looked at Guixiang, who had resigned herself to her fate, and said with a hint of resentment:

"Big sister! That Jiang guy is obviously no good! Why are you so devoted to him? I think any man you grab from Huanghua Village or Changping Village is better than him!"

"Big sister! Are you still worried about not getting married? Just let it out, and men will line up for you to choose from!"