The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 391 Planning All This

Chapter 391: Chapter 391 Planning All This

Handed it over to Lizheng, he counted it in front of them and then handed it to Song Chunhua.

Song Chunhua took the silver, and before she had a firm grip on it, Song Tiedan snatched it away anxiously, counted it once, and only then did he feel relieved.

Then the Letter of Severance, one copy for Song Chunhua, one for Lizheng, and one for the Wang Family.

Wang Yongzhu took the Letter of Severance, glanced at it, and then went to hand it over to Song Chongjin.

Song Chongjin had already seen it before and shook his head, indicating he didn’t want it.

Wang Yongzhu had no choice but to keep it.

Meanwhile, Wang Laozhu was making a fuss with Lizheng and the Clan Leader, arranging to treat them to a meal after the autumn harvest rush, before sending Lizheng and the Clan Leader off.

The Song Family had already grabbed the silver, fearing someone might snatch it away, and hurried off in a flurry.

Leaving Song Chunhua alone, clutching the Letter of Severance, as she watched Song Chongjin leave without a trace of sentimentality, her heart felt inexplicably empty, and tears suddenly welled up.

The onlookers, seeing no more drama to watch, shook their heads and slowly dispersed.

Hong Hua’s mother, who looked down upon Mother Song’s actions, saw Song Chunhua in tears and let out a cold laugh, "Oh dear, Aunt Chunhua, why are you crying? This is great news, isn’t it? Whose son could be sold for one hundred taels of silver? Only your Song Family! With so much silver, you won’t have worries for the rest of your life! I’m truly envious of you for having such a filial son who sold himself for your sake, to be kind to your maternal family! What a grand act of filial piety this is!"

Others, who hadn’t walked far, burst into laughter upon hearing what Hong Hua’s mother said.

Song Chunhua then came to her senses, clenching the Letter of Severance and covering her face as she walked away.

Once everyone was gone, the Wang Family members looked at each other, each taking turns to look before they all turned their gazes towards Wang Yongzhu and Song Chongjin.

Jinguan asked cautiously, "Auntie, will Uncle Chongjin really become a member of our family from now on?"

Before Wang Yongzhu could answer, Song Chongjin nodded, "Yes——"

"Shut up! I’ll settle accounts with you later!" Wang Yongzhu’s face darkened.

Then looking at Old Granny Zhang, "Mother, I’ll go back and cook first," she said before turning around to leave.

Song Chongjin followed, tidying up the bowls and dishes the Wang Family had used for lunch, and went after her.

Once the two were gone, Wang Yonggui came over with a grin and complained, "Why should our family take such a loss? One hundred taels! We could have cast Song Chongjin into a large silver statue!"

Old Granny Zhang rolled her eyes, "That silver was earned by your sister, and she can spend it however she wants. If you have so much free time, go pick up the millet. You’ve already wasted half a day; clear the field quickly, your sister’s rented land still needs to be harvested tomorrow."

The rest of the afternoon, everyone felt unsettled, and though they busied themselves in the fields, it was as if they were sleepwalking.

Even Old Granny Zhang occasionally spaced out, and when she came to, seeing everyone slacking, she’d yell twice, prompting everyone to work harder.

Before long, they were all drifting off again.

Only a few children, still not fully understanding, earnestly picked up the millet ears in the field...

Wang Yongzhu, holding back her anger, walked ahead while Song Chongjin took a while to catch up, "Yongzhu, listen to my explanation!"

Without acknowledging him, Wang Yongzhu entered the courtyard, with Wang Yongping who had overheard a few sentences from Jindou rushing to ask, but seeing the mood was amiss, he prudently held back.

Then he saw Song Chongjin hurriedly following behind, trying to speak, but Song Chongjin didn’t even glance at him and followed Wang Yongzhu into her room.

Wang Yongping, scratching the back of his head, showed some rare understanding and kept watch at the entrance of the courtyard.

As soon as Song Chongjin entered the room, Wang Yongzhu threw the Disownment Document at him: "Take it."

Having received the Letter of Severance, Song Chongjin knew that Wang Yongzhu was furious and didn’t bring up this matter. Instead, he started talking about Lady Sun.

"Lady Sun and her accomplice have already been sent to the Chief of Public Security in the town, and I’ve already slipped him some silver. He guaranteed that he would send Lady Sun and her accomplice to the Yamen’s prison in the county town."

Now addressing the serious matter, Wang Yongzhu couldn’t keep a straight face, "And the hairpin?"

Song Chongjin smiled, "Didn’t you calculate everything already? When the hairpin accidentally collided with Boss Tian’s carriage, as my uncle and I got down to check on it, the hairpin found its way into Boss Tian’s hands."

Only then did Wang Yongzhu truly relax, showing a smile.

Very good, as long as Boss Tian got the hairpin and saw the special dye recipe I prepared for him inside, the rest would just be waiting for Boss Tian to dig his own grave!

As for Lady Sun and her accomplice, they would have a miserable time in the big prison, but if they got out, their future days might be even more miserable than inside!

With this issue resolved, all that was left was to wait a few months for the results. Thinking of this made Wang Yongzhu feel much better.

"Tell me, how long have you been planning all this?" Wang Yongzhu thought it over afterwards and it became clear to her.

This matter certainly bore the hallmark of Song Chongjin’s involvement.

Song Chongjin assessed Wang Yongzhu’s expression before slowly unfolding the entire plan.

Ever since Song Chongjin told Mother Song he wanted to be the Wang Family’s live-in son-in-law, he had this idea.

Later, seeing Mother Song indeed tempted, he knew that it wasn’t just about whether the Wang family would accept it or not. Even if they did, if he didn’t handle the relationship between Mother Song and the Song family well, he feared that the Wang family might eventually be weighed down by them.

From that point on, he began to lay out his plans. The Eldest and Second Child of the Song family were idle and indulgent by nature, lazy and gluttonous, squandering any bit of silver they had in gambling at the town.

Initially, Song Chongjin had someone deliberately lose over ten taels of silver to the Eldest and Second Brother.

Feeling their luck was too good, they wished they could spend their days at the gambling house instead of home, playing day and night. Before long, their good fortune ran out, and not only did they lose all their winnings, but blinded by the thrill of gambling and spurred on by a few provocative words, they even borrowed more silver from the house to keep betting.

This was like throwing meat buns to a dog, isn’t it? They quickly found themselves sinking deeper and deeper.

By the time the two of them came to their senses, they had already accumulated debts amounting to seventy or eighty taels of silver at the gambling house.

The people from the gambling house threatened them, saying that if they didn’t return the silver within a month, they would have to pay with their arms.

The Eldest and Second Brothers of the Song family were terrified and fled home in complete disarray.

What could they do? There was no money at home, but they couldn’t just wait for the gambling house to come and chop their arms off, right?

After much deliberation, the family set their sights on Mother Song and Song Chongjin.

The idea of Song Chongjin marrying into the Wang family that Mother Song had once brought up was once again raised, and they brainwashed her daily.

One moment the brother and sister-in-law were begging Mother Song to save their lives, and the next, several nephews and nieces were crying, begging Mother Song to help or else they would be fatherless.

Furthermore, with Song Chunye incessantly nagging, Song Tiedan cursing, and the Old Lady of the Song family crying and wailing every day, pressuring her...

In just a few days, Mother Song gave in.

She took Song Chunye’s words to heart, thinking her son would still enjoy blessings by becoming the Wang Family’s live-in son-in-law, and that it wouldn’t be considered a disservice to him. But her brothers couldn’t wait. What kind of life could one live with severed arms?

Thinking along these lines, Mother Song no longer felt guilty.