Chapter 27

That alluring voice had already said, "Oh, Aunt Chu, you’re talking nonsense. Who said I’m pushing Su Niang into the fire? This is a good thing that she should be grateful for. The Feng family has a big house in the village, and I heard they have a residence in the county town as well. They live a life of luxury, better than the wealthy families in the city. Feng Ergou genuinely likes Su Niang. If you put your fingerprint on it, you can expel Su Niang from the Chu family. She can return to her natal home, and without her parents, her eldest brother will be the head of the family. When Feng Ergou goes to his elder brother’s house to propose, with his elder brother in charge, it will be a good match. Once Su Niang enters their home, she will live a life of luxury, with fine silk and brocade, and won’t have to work day and night embroidering flowers and birds to make a living, often going hungry."

The room fell silent, and Aunt Li did not speak.

Chu Huan’s face turned cold. He had already harbored a deep dislike for Feng Ergou, and now, hearing these words, he understood that Feng Ergou had set his sights on Su Niang.

After a while, the alluring voice spoke again, "Aunt Chu, Su Niang’s marriage was to bring good fortune to the eldest son, but he passed away within a month of the wedding. Over the past two years, Su Niang has been very filial to you, and everyone in the village has seen it. Can you bear to see Su Niang suffer with you? To put it bluntly, after you pass away, do you want Su Niang to remain a widow for the Chu family all her life? I’m worried for her, and if you insist on refusing, you will ruin Su Niang’s life. Can you really bear it?"

Chu Huan heard his mother sigh deeply and was about to enter the room to see what was happening. At that moment, he saw Su Niang returning with a wooden basin. Seeing Chu Huan from a distance, she called out, "You didn’t even come back for a meal while chopping wood. I left some porridge on the stove for you...!"

As she finished speaking, Chu Huan heard a commotion inside the room. Then he heard the alluring voice in a panic, "Aunt Chu, think about it carefully. I’ll come back to talk to you later!" A figure rushed out of the door in a hurry. Chu Huan was standing at the door, and the person almost collided with him if not for Chu Huan’s quick reflexes.

The person almost bumped into someone and exclaimed, "Oh!" She stopped, looked up, and saw a young man standing in front of her. Though he wasn’t handsome, he was dressed simply and had a heroic look on his face. Her eyes narrowed, and they seemed to be brimming with water.

Chu Huan glanced at the woman, who was clearly the one with the alluring voice. She was about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, with almond-shaped eyes, thin lips, and high cheekbones. Though she looked somewhat shrewish, she was quite attractive, with a seductive and flirtatious demeanor. Her black hair was styled in a falling horse bun, and a silk chrysanthemum flower was pinned in her hair. She was a middle-aged beauty with lingering charm.

Chu Huan frowned. When Su Niang saw the woman, she dropped the wooden basin and took out a pair of scissors, shouting, "I told you, if you come again, I’ll break your legs. You’re truly shameless. Watch me deal with you!" As she shouted, she raised the scissors and charged at the woman.

Chu Huan was shocked to see that Su Niang was carrying scissors with her.

Though he had already seen Su Niang’s fierce side the previous night, he now realized that when she was angry, she was like a tigress. As she ran, her ample chest bounced, creating a mesmerizing sight.

Though Su Niang’s face looked fierce, her running posture was not crude but rather graceful, though very fast and intimidating. She shouted, "I’ll cut out your tongue today, and see how you’ll gossip in the future."

The middle-aged woman was terrified and ran away, screaming, "She’s going to kill me, she’s going to kill me...!" A few villagers passing by saw the scene but did not intervene, just watching the drama unfold.

Su Niang chased after the woman, who ran like she was being pursued by a demon, losing one of her embroidered red shoes. She wanted to stop to pick it up but, seeing Su Niang still chasing her, she didn’t dare to and ran even faster. Su Niang chased her for a short distance and then stopped, placing her hands on her hips and shouting, "Don’t let me see you again. If you come back, I’ll chase you to the county town and cut your tongue out!"

Chu Huan watched in shock and amazement.

When Su Niang returned, swaying her hips, Chu Huan finally came to his senses. Su Niang glared at him and said irritably, "Next time, don’t let that woman in. Her gossiping mouth will get her into trouble. I told you many times not to let her in, but you still let her in. She’s been gossiping again, hasn’t she? Don’t listen to her lies...!"

Aunt Li hesitated and then sighed.

Chu Huan frowned and asked, "Mother, Sister Su Niang, what’s going on? I just heard that woman mention Feng Ergou. What does he want?"

Su Niang immediately said, "Why mention that heartless beast?" She looked at the two bundles of firewood Chu Huan had put down and said, "If you have time, drink your porridge and go chop more wood. Winter is coming, and we’ll need more firewood!" Without waiting for Chu Huan to respond, she turned around and saw the wooden basin on the ground, the clothes she had just washed scattered. She hurried over, picking them up and muttering, "I knew that woman would cause trouble. Now I have to wash them again...!" She looked up and said, "Mother, these clothes are dirty. I’ll go wash them by the river. If that woman comes again, don’t let her in...!" She glanced at Chu Huan and left without saying more.

Chu Huan watched Su Niang’s alluring figure and understood that her fierce demeanor was a result of her difficult life. With an elderly woman and a young girl in the household, and no men, and Su Niang being a beautiful widow, it was hard to believe that no one had ulterior motives. Her fierce behavior was a way to show those with ill intentions that the Chu family wasn’t easy to bully.

Chu Huan helped his mother into the house and asked again, "Mother, what’s going on? When I passed by the Feng family’s house, I saw the Hu family’s boy shouting...!"

Aunt Li was surprised, "Xiao Shuan went to the Feng family’s house to shout?" The old woman’s eyes showed fear, "What... What happened to Xiao Shuan? Oh...!"

Chu Huan saw his mother’s fear when he mentioned the Feng family and felt a surge of anger. He knew Feng Ergou must have bullied his family before. Suppressing his anger in front of his mother, he said softly, "Xiao Shuan was taken away by Uncle Liu, but... but I heard him shouting that Da Shuan was killed by a bear."

Aunt Li was shocked and then sighed sadly, "What a sin... What a sin...!" Her eyes turned red, and Chu Huan helped her back to the room, his expression serious. From what he had seen and heard today, Feng Ergou had brought great misfortune to the entire Liu family village.

"Da Shuan’s parents passed away early, and the brothers relied on each other. They had a few acres of land left by their ancestors, which was enough to make a living. Unfortunately... sigh, Feng Ergou has been buying land and bullying tenants for years...!" Seeing Chu Huan’s cold expression, she, being more experienced, was worried that his youthful impetuosity might cause trouble. She sighed, "Forget it, let’s not talk about this. Your uncle is coming to visit me soon. When he arrives, I’ll ask him to help find you a job!"

Chu Huan’s uncle was Aunt Li’s elder brother, who was in his sixties. He had passed the scholar examination in his twenties, but that was during the previous dynasty.

The history of this world was very different from what Chu Huan remembered. According to his knowledge, at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the world was divided into three, and ultimately, the Sima clan established the Jin Dynasty.

However, in this era, the history had changed. The Three Kingdoms of Wei, Shu, and Wu were ultimately unified by the Sun clan of Wu, who established the Great Wu Kingdom, which lasted for over two hundred years before being replaced by the Hu Kingdom. The Hu Kingdom lasted for over a hundred and fifty years, but the last two emperors favored eunuchs and corrupt officials, leading to chaos and the rise of warlords.

The current emperor was originally the ruler of a small state, Qin. He took advantage of the chaos, and with his well-trained Qin cavalry, he unified the land in less than twenty years, defeating the eighteen warlord states. The Great Qin Empire has been unified for only sixteen years, and the founding emperor still reigns.

Though Chu Huan’s uncle was a scholar during the Hu Kingdom, the chaos lasted for many years. By the time the Great Qin Empire established the imperial examination system, his uncle was over fifty and had no interest in taking the exams. He became a teacher, earning a living to support his family, but life was not easy. He now lived in the Qingliu county town.

Chu Huan was very concerned about Feng Ergou’s actions. The fact that Feng Ergou bullied the villagers made him deeply resentful, and now knowing that his own family had also been bullied, he could not ignore it. He asked, "Mother, I just returned and don’t know much. What exactly did Feng Ergou do? Tell me. He buys land and bullies tenants... What does that mean?"

Aunt Li hesitated for a moment, thinking that Chu Huan would eventually find out about Feng Ergou. Telling him now would help him be more cautious. She said softly, "After Feng Ergou’s father died, he became even more reckless, stealing chickens and dogs in the village. Later, the villagers saw him as a menace and drove him out of the village!"

"Such a scoundrel should be driven away!" Chu Huan nodded slightly, then frowned and asked, "If he was driven away, how did he return and start bullying the villagers?"