Reborn as a Landlord-Chapter 733 - 375: Revealing_2
Lady Zhao had stood there stupefied inside the door, but at Lian Manman’s words, she finally came to her senses. She hurried over and fell to her knees beside Lian Yeye, embracing her and weeping silently.
Both mother and daughter had blood seeping through the bandages wrapped around their foreheads, a sight that was indeed heart-wrenchingly sorrowful.
"This is a sin, they are all kin, how can, how can they be so heartless?" Those with warm hearts and soft dispositions began to shed tears as well.
"The third daughter-in-law of the Lian Family has a hard fate; she is a person soaked in hardships."
"The old beggar-woman of the Lian Family is the best at cursing people. The third daughter-in-law has suffered a lot of injustices. And there’s also the old fourth daughter-in-law, who didn’t suffer little in the past, a life retrieved from the clutches of Yama Raja himself. Now that they have separated from the family, her days have improved, and she stands as the head of her own household, with both sons and daughters, gaining respect. But every now and then, they call her back and curse her as if cursing an enemy—nothing she does is ever right."
"What was that you said about Lian Manman just now, about something threatening her life? What was that about?"
"You don’t know about that? We’d better speak about this in hushed tones..."
The crowd at the Lian Family’s gate grew larger and larger, becoming too tight to stand in, and some people climbed onto the opposite pile of firewood, some even climbed onto the wall, and those who couldn’t squeeze through simply climbed up the trees for a better view; while those who couldn’t find a spot outside the gate saw that it was open with Lady Zhang standing at the doorway, and simply squeezed inside, filling up half the courtyard.
Lady Zhou’s cursing and wailing echoed from the Upper Room, her voice sounding as though she sought death.
Clearly, Lady Zhou had by now found out what happened outside and was burning with shame and anger.
But no one came out to stop Lian Manman and Lian Yeye.
Lian Manman knew in her heart that it wasn’t that they didn’t want to come out to stop them; they simply couldn’t. Only Old Master Lian could have, and judging by the time, Old Master Lian should have been on his way over. Any words that needed to be said had to be said quickly.
"...To save my father and my Third Uncle, I ask everyone for help," Lian Manman called out loudly, "The eighteen acres of land, farmed for three years, the garden behind this house for three years, the chickens in the chicken coop, the pigs in the pigsty, whoever is willing to buy them, give us a fair price. The six acres of land and the two rooms that we got from the separation, and my right-hand vegetable garden, are also for sale. Also, the house, land, and vegetable garden that my Third Uncle’s family just divided—those are for sale too. Everyone, please give us a fair price."
At that moment, faint footsteps of Old Master Lian could already be heard approaching.
"I do not know if these things can fetch four hundred taels, but whatever amount we get is what we have. If it’s not enough, we’ll sell the shop; if that’s still not enough, we’ll sell the land; and if the worst comes to worst, we’ll sell ourselves." When she spoke of selling people, Lian Manman remembered the days when she had just arrived, anxious about being sold, living in fear day and night, and she couldn’t help but cry.
Lady Zhang, Wu Lang, and Xiao Qi all came over, embracing and weeping together. Along with Lian Yeye and Lady Zhao, including those onlookers who were wiping their tears, the sound of crying carried from the gate of the Lian Family, following the wind, all the way to the entrance of the village.
People passing by on the official road, from Zhao Family Village, West Village, and even those from Xiao Shen Tun, all came after hearing the news.
"What’s going on here, what’s going on?" Old Master Lian, supported by Lian Shouren and Lian Shouyi, with Lady He, Lady Gu, and a group of others following, hurried over from inside the courtyard.
"The child speaks without understanding, making everyone laugh. It’s just a bit of household business; everyone should go about your own business." Old Master Lian forced a smile on his face and waved to the onlookers.
"Help everyone up, let’s go back inside to talk," Old Master Lian then said to the female members of the Lian Family following him.
"Old Master Lian, is what these children are saying true?" someone in the crowd asked. "It doesn’t sound like mere childish ignorance to us."
"Speaking of family matters, it seems that we, the outsiders, shouldn’t interfere. But if this involves a life, then when the time comes, we, the neighbors, will also suffer the consequences. Old Master Lian, you should give us an explanation."
For a moment, the voices of interrogation rose from all sides. These people, none of them moved forward, all speaking from within the crowd. But they had finally spoken up.
Lian Manman felt relieved. She could understand the common people’s fear of officials, but she also believed that justice resides in the hearts of people. Moreover, Lian Shouren was to be an official hundreds of miles away, whereas the goodwill and prestige of Lian Shouxin and Lady Zhang were built in Thirty Mile Camp and Qingyang Town.
They could refrain from resisting, but once they made a stand, surely others would respond.
"Old Master, your eldest son is about to become an official. Even if you don’t want to favor other brothers, don’t push people to their death. Our village has never seen such outrageous behavior," someone emerged from the crowd, laughing as he spoke.
Lian Manman looked up and saw the person was Old Jin.
Xi Bao followed right behind Old Jin.
"Manman, if your family is going to sell someone, who will it be?" Xi Bao asked, his large eyes rolling as he gazed at Lian Manman.
Lian Manman was suddenly embarrassed and wished she could trample Xi Bao into the ground.
Old Jin coughed twice, glaring at Xi Bao to silence him. Fortunately, they were close to Lian Manman, and Xi Bao had spoken in a lowered voice, so not many people noticed.
Old Master Lian hadn’t heard either, his face ashen from the questioning. He had been called to the back courtyard by Lian Shouren just before, and then Lian Shouyi came looking for him, saying that Lian Manman and Lian Yeye had gone to the main gate to bang on iron pots and set off firecrackers, drawing a crowd and airing their dirty laundry. At that moment, he felt a surge of anger rush to his head. However, he wasn’t confused and knew there had to be a reason for this. He asked Lian Shouyi what had happened, and why he hadn’t stopped them.
Lian Shouyi stammered, but he still managed to reveal most of the truth. At that moment, Old Master nearly passed out from anger, furious at Lady Zhou for going too far, and of course, his two sons, Lian Shouren and Lian Shouyi, clearly hadn’t played any positive role.
But no matter how angry he was, he had to salvage the Lian Family’s face; he alone had to come forward to clean up this mess.
Luckily, the ones who had caused the commotion were Manman and Yeye, two young girls. First, he had to disperse the onlookers, then, once the family members returned inside, everything could be discussed and settled.
He hadn’t expected the villagers to speak up and question him. Looking back, he saw that Lian Shouyi had already backed away a few steps, and Lian Shouren’s family was nowhere to be seen.
Old Master Lian felt his throat go dry, just as he was about to speak, he heard the sound of sedan chairs, and the onlookers began to disperse.
Old Master Lian’s body swayed slightly.
*****
First update, there will be a second one tonight. Please support with pink tickets. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to vote for it with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
