Chapter 282 - 274: Come Live at My House
Chapter 282: Chapter 274: Come Live at My House
"I hear it’s a family of three. With food and lodging included, how much is it for a month?" Mrs. Li asked, looking at them from the corner of her eye.
The village chief said, "One tael of silver a month. Zhi is the one paying. A Wu is working for her family, and his food and lodging are covered. Once her new house is built, he won’t be living here anymore."
’One tael of silver?’ Mrs. Li’s eyes instantly lit up. ’Just for renting out this rundown house for a month, you get one tael of silver?’
Who in the village didn’t know that Bai Zhi was rich? Last time, the County Magistrate’s Wife had rewarded her with one hundred taels of silver. That was one hundred taels of silver—the villagers had all seen it with their own eyes.
Now, her earth melons had yielded a bumper harvest. Everyone had originally thought she’d never be able to sell them, but word was that early this morning, the Diner Inn had sent a cart to haul them away. They took a hundred catties in one go and said they’d be back in a couple of days. This was basically like making money without leaving the house. No wonder she was so generous.
The look of contempt on Mrs. Li’s face vanished without a trace, and her harsh features were suddenly plastered with a fake smile. "Father, you and Mother are getting on in years. This house is so small and old. It must be inconvenient for a whole family to live here. Why don’t you let them stay with us instead?"
The village chief said, "Stay at your place? Didn’t you say you have no spare rooms?" During the last heavy rainstorm, this house leaked so badly that the bed and bedding were soaked through. Shu Gen had wanted his parents to stay at his house for a couple of days until the weather cleared and they could sun-dry their bedding and clean up, but what did Mrs. Li say? She flatly rejected Shu Gen’s suggestion, claiming they had no empty rooms and couldn’t squeeze in so many people.
Shu Gen was a coward. Whatever his wife said, went. No matter how bad he felt about it, he didn’t dare say no to her.
The old couple didn’t want to cause trouble for Shu Gen, so they didn’t say anything more. They made do in the leaky house for two nights. As soon as the sky cleared, they hired a craftsman from town to repair the house, replacing the entire thatched roof with tiles, which cost a considerable amount of money.
Because of this, Mrs. Li had thrown more than a few tantrums at her husband, accusing the old couple of not caring about their own son and grandson and just squandering their money.
The old couple had come to a clear understanding. In this world, they couldn’t rely on anyone but themselves. What was the point of saving money? You can’t take it with you when you die. As long as the money could buy them a few good days while they were still alive, then it was money well spent.
Mrs. Li said without batting an eye, "Of course we do. There’s a spare room. It’s a bit messy, but it can be cleaned up for someone to live in."
The village chief snorted coldly to himself. ’If it weren’t for Shu Gen’s sake, for his grandson’s sake, he would have grabbed a broom and driven this wicked woman out right then and there.’
The village chief turned to Shu Gen and asked, "What do you say?"
Shu Gen looked conflicted. What could he say? If he said no, there was no telling what kind of scene his wife would make when they got home.
"I... I think... I think it’s fine," Shu Gen stammered, his eyes fixed on his wife’s expression.
Mrs. Li clapped her hands. "Then it’s settled! A Wu, you and your family can come with us. You’ll eat and live at our place from now on."
The village chief glanced sideways at A Wu and said, "A Wu, you decide for yourselves. It’s your freedom to choose where you live. The choice is yours."
A Wu was already thirty years old. He had been through things he should have and things he shouldn’t have. He understood the fickle nature of people and the ways of the world better than anyone.
He was crystal clear on Mrs. Li’s motives and the village chief’s position.
A Wu smiled and said, "Thank you, Sister-in-law, but my family and I are quite happy here. It’s close to our employer’s house, which makes it more convenient for me to get to work."