The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 294: Eavesdropping

Chapter 294: Chapter 294: Eavesdropping

"Xiao Tiantian, how big is the intermediate form of this storage box? Is there a way to upgrade it? What’s the principle behind this storage box? Where exactly does it exist? Inside my head..." A barrage of questions left Xiao Tiantian dizzy.

"Host, I can only tell you now that the intermediate form of the storage box is ten cubic, the advanced level is a hundred cubic, and the way to upgrade is to complete tasks and level up. After the System upgrades, new tasks will be issued, and you will have the chance to obtain the intermediate or advanced level of this storage box! As for the principle, you don’t have the necessary clearance to receive an answer," Xiao Tiantian replied methodically.

"When will I have enough clearance?" Wang Yongzhu’s eyes sparkled with anticipation.

A storage space, the divine tool in so many novels for plundering homes, showing off one’s superiority, and making a fortune!

"Host, if you can complete all the tasks and reach the Pinnacle of Farming, you will then have an opportunity. So, let’s put in the effort to complete the tasks!"

Wang Yongzhu sighed, although it seemed far off, at least there was hope. She resolved to take on more tasks in the future!

※※※

The news of the Wang Family Young Lady receiving a reward from the lady in the palace, and Wang Yongfu’s ability to stand, spread like wildfire in the small village of Qilidun.

The villagers couldn’t help but marvel, the Wang Family must have accumulated an incredible amount of good karma from their ancestors, what an auspicious position their ancestral graves must be in!

How is it that the best of Qilidun are all born into the Wang Family?

Never mind Wang Yongan, the Scholar, even that dim-witted, gluttonous, and lazy young lady—whose family had fallen on hard times—somehow managed to hold up the family.

Receiving reward from the lady in the palace, it was something the people of Qilidun had never even dreamt of in their lives.

Not even in the lifetime of the County Magistrate would they have the opportunity to see, let alone the ladies in the palace of the Capital City, the Emperor’s consort!

Had it been previously said that the presence of Scholar Wang Yongan earned the Wang Family some respect,

Now, in Qilidun, the Wang Family has become untouchable, the object of favor that every household seeks to curry favor with.

Some people even recalled what Old Granny Zhang had said, although they had thought Old Granny Zhang was overstepping her bounds at the time.

Now, thinking about those conditions, they were spot on!

Marrying the Wang Family Young Lady and becoming a son-in-law at the Wang Family’s home would be a remarkable bargain!

Thus, numerous people became restless with anticipation.

※※※

At the Lin Family’s home.

Lady Lin was wearing an old dress, patched up next to patches, washed to the point where its original color was indistinguishable.

She was squatting in the kitchen, cooking.

Then she heard her eldest sister-in-law’s astonished cry from inside the house, "Are you for real?"

After which the voice hushed down.

A thought struck Lady Lin, and she looked around to see that no one was in the kitchen, nor in the courtyard. It was midday, and the children of the Lin Family were still outside and hadn’t returned; the courtyard door was locked with no one in sight.

Lady Lin hesitated for a moment but couldn’t contain her curiosity. She tiptoed to her eldest sister-in-law’s window and crouched down outside, eavesdropping on the voices within.

"You serious? That little maid from the Wang family actually received a reward from the palace? You’re not pulling my leg?"

"Why would I pull your leg? I was startled when I heard it too. I made sure to ask around, and people were describing it in detail. They said they saw it with their own eyes in the town, a group of guards with swords escorting a palace official, who personally presented the reward to the Wang Family Young Lady. I heard there was a huge platter of gold, and lots of jewelry set with gold and gemstones, dazzling everyone’s eyes!"

"How come the Wang family is so lucky? Wang Family’s Second Child just brought the Wangs to ruin, and now this little maid pops up. If we’d known, we never should have let the girl return home in the first place! We’ve lost big time!"

"Exactly, if that dead girl Xinghua were still with the Wangs, wouldn’t we have a perfect claim? Nevermind the rest, but just stepping out and saying we’re relatives of the Wang family would’ve brought us quite some benefits!"

"All said and done, it’s all this girl’s fault, can’t keep her legs shut, can she? Is a man really that indispensable? She just had to Divorse and come back! It would’ve been fine if she just got remarried after the Divorse, but no, she’s been remarried twice, and still she’s so picky, this and that isn’t right, does she still think she’s a virgin or what?"

"Thinking about it now, bringing our younger sister back home was such a loss! A grown woman, can’t get married off, and just staying at home, think about how much she eats in a day—"

"It infuriates me just to think about it, she’s not getting any rice today!"

...

Upon hearing this, Lady Lin shivered and hurriedly tiptoed back to the kitchen.

Looking at the food in the pot, tears suddenly well up in her eyes.

Back then, she had left the Wang family with defiance, holding her Divorse letter, thinking she was finally free.

Although she felt somewhat uneasy inside, it was too late to turn back. She just needed to find a good man to marry and forget about everything else, content just living a quiet life.

But at night, she started having nightmares. In them, her three sons cursed her, and even the late Old Granny Zhang cursed her for being inhumane, for letting her down.

Upon waking, remembering her sons’ attitudes made Lady Lin’s heart ache.

After several nights of poor sleep, when it was time for her to meet a prospective suitor again, her complexion was naturally pallid. Previously, it was always she who wasn’t satisfied with the suitors, but that time, it was the suitor who wasn’t satisfied with her.

They said her complexion was off, suggesting she might be infertile. The suitors were looking for a woman who could bear sons; they didn’t want anyone whose health was suspect.

This man was willing to offer the highest bride price yet, and yet he rejected Lady Lin, infuriating Eldest Sister-in-law Lin who cursed at her all night.

Afterwards, they kept on scouting, eventually circling back to the man who was willing to accept Jinguan and Jindou as his sons.

Apparently, when he was young, he was rendered impotent and thus childless. He wanted to marry a woman who could bring sons into his life, to gain an heir without any effort.

Now that Lin couldn’t bring her sons into the marriage, who would want an old woman like that?

Another opportunity lost.

They continued to arrange several more meetings, but for some reason, none were successful. If it wasn’t one problem, it was another.

In the end, even Lady Lin herself was on the verge of despair. She didn’t expect to find someone like Wang Yongfu before things went downhill for him, but at the very least, she expected to marry into a family with a roof over their heads and a plot of land, right?

Eldest Sister-in-law Lin couldn’t stand it anymore. The previous suitors at least talked of a dowry, or were outright willing to pay for a wife.

But ever since the girl got her Divorse, none of these men worked out. The slightly decent ones with some assets didn’t want her.

Those who were interested couldn’t come up with a single coin - why would they marry off the girl to them? That’s practically giving her away for free!

It’s better to keep her at home to work. The Lin family did own land, after all. She and her husband, along with her younger brother-in-law and his wife, were too lazy to do any farming. Now, with Lady Lin back and unable to fetch any price, putting her to work in the fields actually saved them the money they would’ve spent on hired help.