Transmigration: A Farm Girl’s Brocade
Chapter 206 - 152 Conditional Separation_2

Chapter 206: Chapter 152 Conditional Separation_2

Wan Dazhong took out a silver coin and sent a nephew of the Wang family out to buy sixty braised meat buns. Because of the large purchase, he even received a winnowing basket as a free gift.

When that person entered the courtyard carrying the basket full of buns, the aroma of the braised meat immediately filled the air. Wan Dazhong had him deliver a dozen or so to the house and invited several onlookers at the entrance to have one each, then he placed the basket on the stone table in the courtyard, and everyone gathered around to enjoy the fragrant buns.

Qian Mandie handed one to Yang Youfu, who was crying in the corner, but he refused to take it, only looking at Mandie and pleading, "Wife, don’t leave my family, let’s live a good life together..."

Lady Wang, furious, came over and forcefully pulled away the tearful Mandie.

Yang Youcai’s wife had also prepared lunch, which she brought into the side room on a tray. It consisted of several bowls of corn and sweet potato porridge, a bowl of boiled white radish, and a big bowl of salty vegetable dumplings.

The rich scent of the braised meat was so enticing that Yang Youcai and Yang Youzhi couldn’t stop themselves from nibbling on the salty vegetable dumplings while peering out the window at the basket. A little boy, over three years old, came out and licked his lips incessantly, watching the people eating the buns.

Children are innocent by nature, and besides, his sister-in-law was a kind-hearted person who often helped him out when no one else was looking. Mandie handed another bun to the little boy, whispering, "Good boy, take this and go eat it under the tree."

The little boy accepted the bun and said, "Thank you, Auntie," then obediently went to sit under the tree, gobbling it down. A piece of meat from the bun accidentally dropped to the ground, but the boy quickly picked it up, blew off the dust, and continued to eat it with relish.

The old Yang family had a good amount of family wealth, but to live this way was truly rare.

Lady Wang’s intestines turned with regret. How could she have let her dear daughter marry into such a crude family, one that was even worse than the local families? At the time, she had thought her daughter was marrying up, and when people spoke ill of the Yang family, she had thought it was out of jealousy. In reality, her heart and eyes were completely blinded.

In the afternoon, the negotiations concluded. The couple would go their separate ways, but the dowry was not completely retrieved—the jewelry and fabrics given away were all kept by the Yang family, in addition to paying a separate divorce fee of three taels of silver.

Yang Laokou had gone from being an impoverished country boy without a penny to owning a successful oil shop. He was not only stingy but also shrewd and shameless.

He resolutely refused to let Mandie leave the Yang family, neither willing to agree to a separation nor to a divorce.

Because his family had a poor reputation for being stingy, nobody in town wanted to marry into his family. If he had to find another girl from the countryside, the dowry would definitely not be as substantial. It didn’t matter if his wife and daughter had to return the items—so long as the daughter-in-law stayed with the Yang family, the dowry would remain theirs, and who knows, it might even increase. But if they separated, the dowry would be lost to another family completely.

The thought of losing so much silver made his heart ache as if it was being hollowed out.

Yang Laokou lowered his pride and spoke earnestly. "I failed to supervise properly and wronged my second son’s wife. I will have my wife and daughter return her dowry right away. But, we are determined not to separate, let alone divorce. My son and his wife get along as sweetly as oil in honey. How could you bear to tear apart such a loving couple? You can go to the County Government Office and file a complaint if you must. My wife and I would rather endure a flogging than give up our daughter-in-law. I don’t believe the Master County Magistrate would order a separation for such a loving couple over a minor fault of the mother-in-law..."

The Old Qian Family disagreed with anything but the separation.

Landlord Li advised, "Brother Yang, whatever affection your son and the Qian girl had, it was in the past. Do you think, after this fight, they could still be as sweet as honey in oil as before? Impossible. Keeping her here now would only create a couple filled with resentment. Let it be, consent to the separation."

Wong Liang also urged Yang Laokou to agree to his son’s divorce.

Unable to confront Landlord Li and Wong Liang, Yang Laokou showed weakness and said all the kind words he could muster. But the Old Qian Family was adamant about the separation, and Landlord Li and Wong Liang supported them.

Yang Laokou did not dare to utterly infuriate the two men, so he clenched his teeth and agreed to the separation, yet still thick-facedly demanded money. In addition to keeping the entirety of Mandie’s dowry, he also asked for an additional five taels of silver as a divorce fee. When the conversation touched a sore spot, he burst into tears and even knelt down.

Landlord Li and Wong Liang were exasperated by his persistence, having never before seen such brazen greed for money. Wong Liang said, "A man’s knees house gold; how can you demean yourself for the sake of money? Are you even a man?"