Chapter 288: Misunderstanding
Chapter 288: Chapter 288: Misunderstanding
Shen Ningning had just left.
Moments later, Dong Aniu arrived in Xiangyun Village once again, this time with Lifen and her mother, Aunt Ma.
The group sat in Grandma Qin’s village house while Chen Ye chopped firewood in the courtyard, occasionally glancing coldly into the room.
Lifen grew displeased under his gaze.
"Shouldn’t we close the door to talk? Is it proper to let an outsider listen in?" she said.
Aunt Ma lifted her chin, acting as if she owned the place. "You, go close the door."
But Grandma Qin spoke up. "There’s no need. I’m representing Ah Niu’s mother to discuss the marriage with you. This is a happy occasion. Why would we need to close the door? Is there something that can’t be seen in the light of day?"
Aunt Ma crossed her arms, her gaze sharp. "Grandma Qin, you’re the one who said it."
"Back home, Ah Niu said you promised to discuss the marriage properly. Since you’re being so frank, I’ll get straight to the point."
"Originally, marrying our Lifen only required fifty taels of silver, which Ah Niu has already paid."
"However, I have another condition now. If you can’t meet it, then our two families don’t need to be joined by marriage."
Grandma Qin glanced at Dong Aniu, her brow furrowing slightly.
’Why is the Ma Family so full of trouble?’
Afraid that Grandma Qin would refuse to help, Dong Aniu walked over to her side, smiling apologetically and speaking in a low voice.
"Aunt, this is serious. The last time my mother-in-law and Lifen came to the village, they were beaten by a strange little girl."
"My mother-in-law was bedridden for days after she went back, complaining of pain every day. So, they’re just hoping you can help find out who in the village was audacious enough to attack them that day."
Lifen chimed in, "And the person we find has to compensate for my mother’s and my brother’s medical expenses."
Grandma Qin frowned. "You’re saying a child beat someone up? That sounds impossible."
Aunt Ma slammed her hand on the table. "The child didn’t do it herself! She had her maidservant do it!"
"And the attack was vicious. I asked around, and I never knew Xiangyun Village had such a ruthless person."
"Grandma Qin, if you know who it is, you’d better tell us right away. Don’t show favoritism just because she’s from the same village."
Grandma Qin asked, "What did this little girl you’re talking about look like?"
Aunt Ma replied, "She had big eyes and fair skin. You could tell at a glance she was a pampered child."
Grandma Qin’s heart sank.
’It couldn’t be Ningning, could it?’
"Her maidservant attacked you? Are you sure?" Grandma Qin asked probingly.
Aunt Ma scoffed mockingly. "Would I lie to you? Our whole family saw it with our own eyes, and we all got beaten by her!"
"In the end, that maidservant forced us to jump into a pigsty just to protect ourselves! No matter the times, there shouldn’t be such a tyrant, right?"
Grandma Qin relaxed.
’It probably isn’t our Ningning.’
Ningning was always with the Black Wolf King.
Grandma Qin had also met the two maids from the Xie Mansion, and neither of them looked like they knew martial arts.
Her tone became calm. "If you were truly beaten for no reason, as you say, then I certainly won’t cover for anyone."
"However, if you have a problem, you should go to the government. Coming here to hold court is useless!"
Aunt Ma shot to her feet.
"So, Grandma Qin, you mean you have no intention of helping?"
"We’re about to become in-laws, yet I never imagined you were such a selfish person, Grandma Qin."
"Lifen, we’re leaving." Aunt Ma dragged Lifen and headed outside.
Dong Aniu panicked. "Lifen, don’t go! Hey!"
Grandma Qin called out, "Ah Niu, you stay right there."
Dong Aniu turned back, stomping his foot. "If I don’t go after her, Lifen will be gone."
"Let her go. Her family didn’t come with any sincerity to discuss the marriage. If you break up with her, I’ll find you a girl from a good family." Grandma Qin’s voice wasn’t loud, but it was just loud enough for Lifen and her mother, who hadn’t gone far, to hear.
Lifen immediately stopped in her tracks, ready to turn around with suspicion.
Her mother, Aunt Ma, reacted faster, grabbing Lifen’s arm. "Let’s go!"
The mother and daughter got back onto their ox cart.
Lifen was a little panicked. "Mother, Grandma Qin wouldn’t really arrange another marriage for Dong Aniu, would she?"
"She can’t," Aunt Ma said, full of confidence. "Even if she tries to, Dong Aniu is already wrapped around your little finger. Just you watch. He’ll come chasing after us any minute now."
Hearing this, Lifen sat still.
However, the two of them waited for a long time, but there was no sign of Dong Aniu.
Lifen cursed in anger, "That bastard! I really misjudged him! He actually dared to let Grandma Qin find him another wife. He’s probably so happy he can’t even walk straight."
Aunt Ma’s face was livid. "Let’s go. We’ll see how many days he can hold out!"
Back in the courtyard of the village house, Dong Aniu had actually rushed out to chase after them but had been held back by Chen Ye.
Grandma Qin gestured for Chen Ye to bring him back into the house.
"Aunt, what are you doing? If I don’t go now, Lifen will really be gone."
"She won’t get away!" Grandma Qin said, exasperated with him. "She’s just banking on the fact that you’re determined to marry her, so she keeps testing my limits."
Dong Aniu was confused.
Grandma Qin’s usually kind and loving eyes now held a deep, hidden wisdom.
"She claims she was wronged in Xiangyun Village, yet she wants *me* to find the person responsible."
"It’s obvious she provoked a person of high status, and she can’t swallow the insult, but she’s also afraid to offend them."
"So, she wants me to stand up for her. It looks like she’s asking for my help, but in reality, she wants to use Ningning’s reputation as a Commandery Princess to intimidate the other party."
Grandma Qin’s tone gradually grew stern. "I’m soft-hearted, and most things can be negotiated."
"But when it comes to Ningning, it’s absolutely not allowed. That child has been through enough. No one, including myself, is allowed to cause her any trouble!"
Dong Aniu had rarely seen Grandma Qin so authoritative.
Especially now, dressed in fine brocade and quilted clothes, she looked just like a titled lady from the Capital City.
She had the air of a matriarch from a great house.
Dong Aniu nodded tremblingly. "Aunt, don’t worry. I will never trouble Ningning."
He rubbed his hands together and asked tentatively, "So... what you said just now, about introducing me to a girl from a good family... does that offer still stand?"
Grandma Qin glanced at him, her eyes a mixture of resignation and disgust at his incompetence.
In the end, Grandma Qin could only let out a heavy sigh.
「Meanwhile.」
Xie Ming’an’s carriage was passing by the Wolf’s Sweet Water Shop.
The driver was a servant from the Xie Mansion and didn’t know that Xie Ming’an and Shen Ningning were on bad terms.
He introduced it excitedly, "Second Young Master, if you look to your left, that shop was the first one in the Capital City to do good deeds during the cold disaster."
"And the owner of the shop is our very own young mistress, Princess Funing!"
Xie Ming’an lifted the carriage curtain and looked out coldly.
He saw Shen Ningning with her hands on her hips, surrounded by a group of servants, viciously scolding a beggar who was kneeling on the ground.
"If I ever see you again, I’ll break both your legs!" Shen Ningning’s soft scolding still carried the naivety of a child’s voice.
Yet it was delivered with such force that it drew a crowd of onlookers.
Xie Ming’an frowned in displeasure and urged the driver, "How can she be considered a young mistress of the Xie family? Let’s go!"
Not long after his carriage departed,
The beggar kneeling before Shen Ningning said with immense regret, "Commandery Princess, I was wrong!"
"I shouldn’t have tried to remove your carriage wheel. I disregarded your safety just for a bite to eat."
"But... but I was just so hungry!"
Shen Ningning had finished her scolding, and Aunt Yun, still indignant, had even hit him a few times.
The little girl glared at the beggar, huffing. "If you want food, you can come line up for the free soup."
"And so many restaurants in the city are setting up stalls to give out congee. If you had lined up properly, how could you be starving?"
After saying this, she still had Wuer bring him a bowl of hot soup.
The beggar was incredibly grateful, kowtowing repeatedly before sitting by the entrance and gulping down the soup.
Shen Ningning turned and went into the shop.
Aunt Yun and Uncle Zhong followed behind her.
"Owner," Aunt Yun said with a frown, "You shouldn’t pity a person like that, and you certainly shouldn’t give him charity."
"Otherwise, next time, he’ll definitely put you in danger again without a second thought, all for a bite to eat."
Shen Ningning picked up the latest account book, looking at the records of their massive daily income.
She took a bite of a red fruit and said softly, "He knew who I was and still dared to tamper with my carriage. He must have been desperately hungry."
"The world is harsh, and the people are suffering. If we can give a bowl of soup, we shouldn’t force someone to a dead end."
"Just wait a little longer. I have a feeling my sweet potatoes are going to have a bountiful harvest!"
Aunt Yun nodded and withdrew.
Uncle Zhong stepped forward with a writing brush. "Owner, last time you mentioned wanting to withdraw one thousand taels of silver from the accounts to buy a Jade Pendant."
"There wasn’t enough silver in the accounts before, but we have enough liquid silver today. Would you like to withdraw it?"
Shen Ningning’s expression froze. Her small hand gripped the brush holder, rubbing it a couple of times.
’At first, I wanted the silver to buy a gift for Xie Ming’an.’
’But now...’
"No need. I’m not buying anything anymore."
For several days in a row, Shen Ningning helped out at the shop.
Even Wuer laughed, "Sister Ningning suddenly isn’t leaving anymore. It feels so strange!"
"Before, whenever Sister Ningning had free time, she would either go back to Wolf Mountain or head to the Xie Mansion."
Shen Ningning pinched Wuer’s cheek with her small hand, making the little boy squeal in pain.
"I’m staying in the shop to watch you, just in case you try to slack off. Hmph!"
"Wuer would never slack off! I’m the most hardworking!"
Just as the two little ones were playing around,
a gentle voice came from the entrance—
"Ningning."
Shen Ningning looked back and saw Xie Suzhi’s tall figure standing outside the shop.
His smile was as warm and doting as a father’s, making it seem as if he had simply come to pick up his child to go home.
"Will you come back for dinner tonight?" he asked.