Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 200 Forget Lady Li_1

Chapter 200: Chapter 200 Forget Lady Li_1

Zhulan brought Xue Han with her to the county. Ever since Lady Li knew there was no need for secrecy, she openly nagged about what to buy, and was hell-bent on making the best mooncakes for the sake of silver.

Lady Li did want to continue asking her mother for advice, but gave up on the idea once she thought about how unpalatable her mother’s cooking was. As for why her mother knew about ice skin mooncakes, she assumed it was because her mother read a lot and thus knew more.

Zhulan, however, was slow to realize and thought about explaining, but after some deliberation, she figured that Lady Li would fill in the blanks herself, and her explanation would be superfluous. So, she didn’t explain, but decided she would not offer any tips in the future either.

It wasn’t hot anymore on the cloudy day, and there were quite a number of people in the county taking advantage of the cool weather to stroll around. Zhulan didn’t accompany Lady Li to buy glutinous rice flour; instead, she took her daughter to a cloth shop because she had promised to make clothes for Chang Lian. There was no suitable fabric left at home, and she couldn’t just make clothes for Chang Lian alone; she had to be fair to all her sons so they could all feel their mother’s love. After all, a family is best held together by genuine emotions.

The shop assistants were sharp-eyed and could tell who was truly going to make a purchase and who was just looking. As soon as Zhulan walked in, one greeted her, "Please come inside. We’ve got some new patterns that only our shop carries."

Seeing that the assistant was leading her to the women’s fabrics, Zhulan quickly said, "I want to make clothes for my sons, show me your blue fabrics."

The assistant turned on his heel, "Right this way, please. This section is all fabrics for men’s clothing; the fabrics you want are all here."

Zhulan wanted to make white clothes, but in ancient times, color customs were strict, and no one wore white, especially for important occasions. She had never seen a white-clad gentleman in the ancient dramas from modern times, and even the fabric shops rarely sold white fabric. Zhulan picked out blue and green fabrics. Her skill in making clothes had become increasingly proficient; now, making several outfits a month without doing any embroidery was no trouble at all.

Sometimes she thought that if she could return to the modern world, she could open a shop selling ancient-style ready-made clothes and would definitely make a fortune.

Zhulan picked out some more fabrics to take and saw that Xue Han had chosen some fabrics for making coin purses and wanted to pay together, but Xue Han stopped her, "Mother, I want to give my brothers gifts too. I’ll pay for these fabrics myself."

Zhulan smiled, "Alright, you pay for them yourself."

Of all the Zhou family children, this girl was the richest. With the red packets from New Year’s, and the copper coins she and Zhou Shuren occasionally gave to her in Pingzhou, plus returning home with her daughter and the exchanges with Dong Chuchu, Zhulan always gave Xue Han some silver angles. Xue Han didn’t spend them and returned them, but Zhulan didn’t take them and let Xue Han keep them.

In her mind, she calculated that the girl had at least two and a half taels of silver, not including the silver coins from Rongchuan. This sum of silver was quite substantial. She recalled Lady Donglin mentioning that Dong Chuchu got fifty copper coins for her monthly allowance. On average, Xue Han received more per month than Dong Chuchu did.

After buying the fabrics, they left the cloth shop. Zhulan saw Zhou Shuren coming out of the RuYi Pastry Shop on the opposite side. Her attention was drawn to the person in front of Zhou Shuren. Ah, the male lead – he wasn’t sauntering about everywhere, so why had he gone to a pastry shop? Zhulan, with her daughter as the original female protagonist herself, didn’t want to call out and encounter the male lead. She had planned well, but she had forgotten about the eldest Zhou son.

Zhou Changli couldn’t ignore his father when he saw him; that would be unfilial. He quickly jumped off the ox cart, "Father."

Zhou Shuren looked deeply at Zhou Changli; he knew the trouble would come from the eldest. Now that Zhou Changli had called out, Zhou Shuren could not pretend he hadn’t seen, "Hmm."

Yao Zheyu, who was about to get into the carriage, withdrew his foot. He was quite interested in Scholar Zhou, and having encountered his family, naturally wanted to recognize them. This would also make it more natural for him to visit them later and avoid having to concoct a reason to go to the Zhou family village. He asked with a smile, "Scholar Zhou, is this your son?"

Upon hearing this, Zhulan knew she had no choice but to step forward. If she had hid with her daughter, it would be too deliberate. With the scheming male lead, she needed to be more cautious. Honestly, she and Zhou Shuren didn’t want to get involved with the male lead. They had everything well figured out for the move to Pingzhou, to stay out of the male lead and Wang Ru’s business. Yet contrary to their desires, they still encountered what they were meant to encounter.

Zhou Shuren began the introductions, "This is my wife, Lady Yang; this is my eldest son, Zhou Changli. My four sons were named with the virtues of propriety, righteousness, integrity, and wisdom in mind. This is my youngest daughter here."

He paused before continuing, "And this gentleman is Mr. Hou from the Hou Residence."

Yao Zheyu was surprised, for Scholar Zhou’s wife didn’t resemble the typical rural old woman he had seen. He learned she was nearly forty, yet she preserved herself so well, exuding a temperament that was unmistakable, akin to that of an official’s lady. His gaze then fell upon the young girl, who also displayed excellent upbringing. It was just unfortunate that she kept her head down, preventing him from seeing her face. Apart from Scholar Zhou’s eldest son, who appeared rustic, the rest of his family hardly seemed like they were from the countryside at all!

After paying her respects, Zhulan fell silent and stood behind Zhou Shuren with her daughter in tow. This male lead creature was better left to Zhou Shuren!

Upon hearing the introduction, Zhou’s eldest son was utterly dumbfounded. How could his father be so formidable? Even he, unaware of certain people, knew what the Hou Residence was. His father was reaching for the heavens!

Yao Zheyu courteously said to Zhou Shuren, "I’ve just arrived here and was thinking of taking a stroll in the countryside. It’s serendipitous to have met you. I apologize for the bother tomorrow."

Zhulan, "....."

The male lead really knows how to seize an opportunity; it seems a trip to the market is imminent.

Zhou Shuren maintained a smile, "Your visit graces our humble abode, Mr. Hou. There’s no bother at all."

Internally, he thought, despite the courteous words, it was clear that class status dictated the interaction, more like a notification than a request. He was inwardly relieved, thankful he had arranged his daughter’s betrothal in advance, cutting off any potential issues. Even without Wang Ru’s involvement, he would not follow the scripted plot. The male lead’s family was notorious for trouble, not to mention the male lead himself was too scheming. With love ranking so low on his list of priorities, he was not a good man. Indeed, fiction is just fiction, losing its sheen when exposed to reality and stripped of its idealistic purity.

Yao Zheyu exchanged a few more pleasantries before getting into his carriage and leaving. There would be no need for a stroll today.

Zhou Shuren helped Zhulan onto the carriage; it was not the place for conversation outside, "Let’s head to the market."

Zhulan signaled to the eldest son to turn around and head for the market. Zhou’s eldest son was in a daze, his mind reeling with the fact that Mr. Hou of the Hou Residence had visited their home, a stroke of immense fortune, and his whip cracked especially loudly.

The county had only one market. In the summer, when every household farmed vegetables, the surplus was sold at the county market, which was always bustling. However, there was nothing novel to be found, only common vegetables.

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren headed towards the hunter’s stall. Zhulan didn’t buy pheasants; considering the amount of meat on them, they’d be no longer fresh if bought dead by the end of the day. Instead, she purchased a live hare and hurried away, all due to the sight of some dead snakes at the hunter’s stall. There was only one hunter present today, and she had approached him wanting to face her fears. Making it through the transaction was her limit.

She couldn’t help reflecting on how much stronger her heart had become after the experience with Lady Li; the potential of humans truly was boundless.

They went on to buy hens. In summer, butchers were less diligent with pig slaughter—unsold meat spoiled and led to losses, and without fridges like in ancient times, even one day could affect freshness. Generally, they slaughtered only when there were large orders.

Today, there were no meat stalls at the market. When they heard there would be a pig slaughter the next morning, they decided to come early to make their purchase. Zhulan also bought a few large fish, along with a bucket to take them home, planning to keep them fresh for the next day’s use.

With nothing else to buy, it was only when their ox cart was nearing the county gate that Zhulan suddenly remembered something they had forgotten. "Did we forget Lady Li?"

Zhou’s eldest promptly pulled the ox to a halt. Having ventured out, he had completely forgotten his wife, "Lady Li should still be waiting at the grain store."

Zhou Shuren looked up at the sky, indifferent to the matter, as he was unaware of Lady Li’s presence from the beginning.

Xue Han sympathized with her sister-in-law; judging by the extent to which she listened to her mother, she must still be waiting there patiently!