Farm Tough Girl
Chapter 278 - 278 279 I Have to Take It Back Anyway_1

Chapter 278: Chapter 279: I Have to Take It Back Anyway_1 Chapter 278: Chapter 279: I Have to Take It Back Anyway_1 Qiao Yuanzhen paused, clearly not expecting Yu Ze to offer money so readily. For a moment he found himself caught in indecision; he indeed desperately needed money, the difficult days had bent his back, and as Yu Ze had said, only Tupo Village treated him with respect. Once he left, nobody looked up to him, after all, there were plenty of Scholars in Chatu Town.

But Muniang was not pleased. She discreetly tugged at Yu Ze’s sleeve, “Why are you giving this kind of person benefits? They annoy me just by being here, why should we simply offer benefits to such scum? Besides, if we give in this time, they might just come back for more, it will never end!”

Yu Ze gave her hand a squeeze and whispered, “Just trust me.”

Muniang, seeing his confident demeanor, hesitantly nodded and allowed him to proceed.

“Have you made up your mind? Do you want your daughter, who is as much of a burden as an oil bottle, or do you want the silver that will fatten your purse?” Yu Ze asked calmly.

Before Qiao Yuanzhen could reply, Madam Zhao cut in, “We’ll take the silver!” She never had any affection for this disappointing granddaughter; wasn’t she just merchandise that lost money? Moreover, she had a bad reputation, too. To not take the silver and to choose the money-loser would be foolish!

As soon as Madam Zhao spoke, Qiao Yuanzhen’s eyes darkened and swept over her, causing Madam Zhao to shiver with fear, realizing she had been “presumptuous.” It was her son’s decision to make, after all; what right did she have to decide?

Madam Zhao quickly added, “Yuanzhen, mother is doing this for your sake. Our family doesn’t have much silver left. When you go to the prefectural city for the Scholar examination, it will cost money, right? And if you pass, you’ll have to rush to the Capital City, which will require even more expenses. Our family has raised nothing but a burden, it’s better to have some silver at hand!”

Qiao Yuanzhen snorted coldly and then asked Yu Ze, “How much are you willing to pay?”

Yu Ze scoffed internally, small abilities but a big temper, clearly a penniless Scholar trying to act all high and mighty. Such a person couldn’t truly be called a man.

“Three hundred taels.”

Muniang inhaled sharply, are they crazy, giving so much money to someone like him?

Muniang glared fiercely at Yu Ze, who cast a calming glance back at her, signaling her to be patient. Muniang gave him a warning pinch, thinking if he really dared to give that much, she would skin him!

Madam Zhao was beside herself with excitement, and was about to agree eagerly but was silenced by a stern look from Qiao Yuanzhen.

Qiao Yuanzhen was also thrilled inwardly, but he prided himself on his integrity and would not show it outwardly. Furthermore, he entertained the thought of raising the price and said bluntly, “No, I want five hundred taels!”

Yu Ze feigned difficulty, “That’s rather much, our family also finds it difficult to part with such a sum at once.”

This time, however, Qiao Yuanzhen was resolute, “That won’t do! It must be five hundred taels, otherwise, we will simply take the child back with us!”

Li Cheng anxiously said to Yu Ze, “Five hundred taels is too much, it’s always troubling to bother your family like this, perhaps we should—”

“Then five hundred it is!” Yu Ze interrupted Li Cheng directly.

Li Cheng and Song Wanwan exchanged shocked glances, both a little frightened by the arrangement. It already felt inappropriate to have the Qiao family pay them, and now to owe them such a large sum, when would they ever be able to repay it?

“However, I need a written statement from you severing the father-daughter relationship with Li Xi’er. From this point on, Li Xi’er will be entered into the Li Family’s genealogy and will have nothing to do with your Qiao family,” Yu Ze took this measure as a precaution against future troubles. If they simply agreed verbally now, it would be problematic if the Qiao family constantly used this child as a lever to squeeze money from them later on.

At this moment, Qiao Yuanzhen was also feeling relieved. After all, the price of five hundred taels was quite high. He said directly, “Let’s draft it right now, but bring out the silver first!”

Yu Ze pulled a silver note worth five hundred taels from his robe and placed it on the table. He gave Qingya a signal with his eyes, and she immediately ran to the study to fetch paper, brush, ink, and inkstone.

Once Yu Ze had written the document, he passed it to Qiao Yuanzhen to sign. Qiao Yuanzhen was slightly startled when he saw Yu Ze’s handwriting – he had not expected this man’s writing to be so good – robust and powerful, the brush strokes sharp, as if they carried an intrinsic dominance. Qiao Yuanzhen had always prided himself on his good handwriting, but now, comparing them, it was as if he was bringing shame to his craft.

Qiao Yuanzhen’s pride was stung, and he glared at Yu Ze before signing his full name on the document.

Muniang mockingly sneered, “And there you are, calling yourself ‘Mr. Scholar’. Your writing looks like a dog’s scrawl, not even close to my husband’s. It’s laughable how you paraded around as a learned man when you clearly are not. Did you perhaps buy that ‘Scholar’ title?”

Qiao Yuanzhen’s face turned crimson with anger, “Ignorant woman, what would you know?!”

Raising an eyebrow, Muniang retorted, “Oh, what I don’t know, or is it that you can’t face the truth? If you will, I could take this outside and let the real scholars compare and see what nonsense you’ve written. Tsk, all these years, so much silver wasted in vain, not even able to write a few words properly, truly an embarrassment.”

Madam Zhao naturally defended her son. Being an illiterate herself, she couldn’t really tell which writing was better, so she brandished the document, saying, “Let’s compare then! My son, a Scholar nonetheless, could hardly be inferior to your so-called ‘simpleton of a husband’, could he? Yuanzhen, let’s take this to town and let the cultured folks judge who is playing the fool here!”

Qiao Yuanzhen snatched the document from Madam Zhao’s hands, his face flushed white with anger, his eyes fierce, “Why would you meddle in this? Take care of yourself!”

With that, he stuffed the silver into his robe and stormed out.

Madam Zhao was left momentarily dumbfounded. What’s wrong with her son lately? Why was he unwilling to compare? After all, he was a Scholar, and he practiced calligraphy so diligently. How could he lose to a man from the village?

Qiao Dazhi glared fiercely at Madam Zhao, “Really, an ignorant woman. How could Yuanzhen have such a brainless mother!” He couldn’t afford to lose face either and promptly left as well.

Only then did Madam Zhao realize, maybe her son really was inferior? Her face turned beet-red with embarrassment. No wonder Yuanzhen reacted that way. She mentally chastised herself for talking too much, causing her son such a great public humiliation. Now, he would surely hold a grudge against her, and God knows how angry he would be when she got home!

Madam Zhao, frustrated, stamped her foot and hurried after him.

Muniang laughed riotously, thinking this mother and son truly made a perfect pair.

Yu Ze was also amused. His wife praising him in front of everyone made him feel quite pleased.

But Li Cheng and Song Wanwan earnestly said, “Yu Ze, Muniang, we are really sorry for making you front so much silver on our behalf. We will certainly repay you.”

Yu Ze, however, said, “No need to repay it. After all, it’s going to be taken back.”