Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 169: Ruthless Person_1

Chapter 169: Chapter 169: Ruthless Person_1

Lady Li felt a chill down her back, always fearing the worst. She stole a glance at her mother before cautiously saying, "Old Wang from the fourth household agreed to the adoption, but Wang Ru has to give the Wang family twenty taels of silver each month. My goodness, twenty taels a month, two hundred and forty taels a year. Wang Ru really is quite wealthy."

Zhao’s interjected, "Wang Ru didn’t agree, did she? Sister-in-law, just tell us the outcome!"

The more she understood her mother, the more she knew her mother disliked pointless chatter!

Lady Li didn’t dare to retort Zhao’s, as she had just irritated her mother, "Wang Ru paid two hundred taels of silver in one go, and also gave a set of gold jewelry to Sun’s. Old Wang from the fourth household agreed, and Wang Ru moved to the Qian family’s home. She’ll move out once her new house is ready."

Zhulan commented coolly, "Wang Ru is really ruthless!"

Lady Li didn’t understand, "Mother, how is Wang Ru ruthless?"

She did give a large sum of silver after all, yes, and even gold jewelry; she herself has never even worn a single piece of gold jewelry. Sun’s will surely flaunt it around the whole village!

Having lived through natural disasters and flight, Zhao’s deeply understood how terrifying people’s hearts could be. Her heart clenched, "Wang Ru has severed ties with Old Wang from the fourth household’s family. Without Mr. Shi from his family to protect them, and having been disowned by their main house, nearby thieves will surely pay a visit to Old Wang’s home. Wang Ru gave two hundred taels in front of everyone; how many families in the village even have a hundred taels saved up? This money will bring disaster!"

Lady Li realized the grim truth, "Wang Ru has a wicked heart."

Zhulan, seeing that Lady Li had grown wiser, decided to scare her further, "In the future, be more cautious and don’t trust everyone. You can’t see a person’s heart through their belly. Who knows if someone is plotting against you? You might be harmed without even knowing."

Lady Li had long recognized that she was not clever, and she was truly frightened now. How could such a small child be so cruel? She shrank back, "Mother, I’ll remember."

Zhulan was satisfied and added somberly, "I’m just afraid some might do more than just steal silver."

Zhao’s felt a tightness in her chest, "I’m worried someone might take advantage of the situation. The Wang family’s eldest daughter has been raised for nearly a year now; she’s grown up, and though she’s not beautiful, she looks quite presentable when dressed up properly. If someone took advantage and ruined her, it would be for life."

Lady Li trembled. In her mother’s village, a girl had been taken advantage of by a scoundrel who caused an uproar by showing up at her door. For the sake of the entire family’s daughters, they made a cruel decision and drowned the girl in the river. At that time, she was only six years old and had nightmares about it for a long time, "For her own sake, Wang Ru is going to ruin her two sisters."

Zhulan felt contempt for Wang Ru, too selfish and utterly heartless.

At noon, Zhou Shuren came back, not only with gifts for visiting, but also brought back a bundle. Zhulan was very curious, "What’s inside?"

Zhou Shuren tried to appease her, "Take a guess."

Zhulan carefully observed the bundle’s shape, "Clothes?"

Zhou Shuren knew he couldn’t deceive Zhulan, and swiftly unwrapped the bundle, "Since you are joining me for the visit this time, I passed by a ready-made clothing shop and spotted this outfit. I think it would fit you perfectly, so I bought it. Why don’t you try it on?"

Zhulan looked at the deep blue dress with patterns embroidered in yellow thread accentuating the details, making the dress less somber. She fell in love with it at first sight, and holding the dress she said, "I’ll change into it right now and show you."

Zhou Shuren sat outside, his eyes filled with anticipation as he watched the bedroom door. It took less than two minutes for Zhulan to emerge from the house. Zhou Shuren’s eyes shone with astonishment; he had long realized that Zhulan was particularly suited to blue, but he hadn’t anticipated just how much. Staring at her face, which had become more youthful after nearly a year of care, especially since their cow had calved and they had milk. She washed her face with milk every day and bathed in it every now and then, which had made her skin incredibly smooth.

He still remembered when he had first arrived, Zhulan’s complexion was sallow, her hair coarse and dry, her skin rough. She didn’t look thirty-six but rather over forty.

The current Zhulan, with her soft hair and smooth skin, touched up with a layer of powder, looked like a woman in her early thirties. The transformation was indeed significant. If it weren’t for Wang Ru’s presence, requiring Zhulan to disguise herself each day, she would have already become famous in the village.

Zhulan felt embarrassed under Zhou Shuren’s intense gaze. "Why are you staring at me endlessly?" she said.

Zhou Shuren smiled, "I could never get enough of looking at you in a lifetime."

Suppressing a laugh, Zhulan twirled around, "How about it, do I look good?"

Admiration filled Zhou Shuren’s eyes, "You look beautiful, as if this outfit was custom-made just for you."

Zhulan had already prepared an outfit for her upcoming visit, but now with a more suitable one available, she, too, loved to look beautiful and said with a smile, "Then I’ll wear this set the day after tomorrow."

"Good," Zhou Shuren replied.

Zhulan went back to change her clothes, not wanting them to get dirty, as they would never look the same after being washed.

Following her into the house, Zhou Shuren saw Zhulan sitting in contemplation after changing her clothes, "Thinking about something?"

Zhulan shared her thoughts about Wang Ru’s adoption and the possible lifelong misery of the two young girls from the Wang family, "I can’t be as heartless as Wang Ru. For ancient women, losing their chastity was more terrifying than death. I’m no saint; after all, deep down I am from the modern world, and I find some things hard to accept."

In her eyes, Wang Ru wasn’t a genuine child, besides, it was Wang Ru’s own doing that led to her downfall. No matter how pitiful Wang Ru made herself, it wouldn’t affect Zhulan. But the two younger girls were too young; they were merely middle schoolers in the modern world. Thinking about the various abuses reported in modern news, it made her even more uncomfortable. No era was kind to women.

Seeing Zhulan’s gaze, Zhou Shuren’s heart melted. He was someone whose heart had hardened due to his environment, which was quite small and reserved only for those who mattered to him. He didn’t care about anyone else. Yet now, he felt happy knowing that Zhulan always retained her kindness. "What do you want to say to me?"

Zhulan knew she couldn’t keep anything from Zhou Shuren and, tracing her finger along his, said, "I just want to give you a heads up. Look, both you and I are angry at Wang Ru, but we have to tolerate her antics because she’s weak. Why not give the two girls from the Wang family a heads up? Second daughter Wang is clever; she’ll naturally restrain and scheme against Wang Ru. If Wang Ru knows people are keeping an eye on her, she might behave better. What do you think about two birds with one stone?"

Zhou Shuren pinched Zhulan’s nose, his eyes full of doting. Indeed, it was a plan that served two purposes. "I’ll remind them subtly, without exposing us."

Zhulan wrapped her arms around Zhou Shuren’s arm, "Then I’ll leave it to you."

Zhou Shuren, seeking benefits for himself, touched Zhulan’s skin with his fingertip—so tender. He didn’t even like to touch his own rough, manly skin. He felt down for a moment; if it weren’t for his beard masking his face, given Zhulan’s care, the difference between their looks would soon be like that of different generations. No, he had to start caring for his skin as well!

The next morning, Zhou Shuren went out and quickly returned, informing Zhulan, "It’s done."

Zhulan was extremely curious, "How did you manage that?"

Zhou Shuren raised an eyebrow, "Simple. I just made a visit to Clan Leader’s home for a chat, and when the conversation turned to the bustling events of the evening, the Clan Leader mentioned Wang Ru’s visit to the Lizheng to set up a woman’s household registration, offering ten taels of silver as a bribe. The Clan Leader’s wife was present and commented on how ruthless Wang Ru was. So I casually mentioned that the reputation of Zhou’s village shouldn’t be affected and that with the younger generations on the rise, the village’s overall reputation was critical. We couldn’t let one bad apple spoil the bunch. The Clan Leader’s wife rushed out immediately."

Giving Zhou Shuren a thumbs up, Zhulan was impressed. Without knowledge of the insider, no one would suspect Zhou Shuren had guided the conversation. He had approached it from a position of great righteousness. Not only was the Clan Leader also the leader of the Zhou family, but his son was the Lizheng, and if any real trouble arose, the Clan Leader’s family would have to intervene. Getting tangled up in a mess would be bad, so it was better to nip the problem in the bud, "Nicely done."

Zhou Shuren was gleefully anticipating the drama, "Just wait and watch the show!"