Chapter 1534 - 1529: Mu Dade and Mrs. Jin, the Heartless Scoundrels

"Xiangxiang, ah, my girl, you... how did you end up like this?"

Old Mrs. Mu let out a roar, rushed out, cupped Mu Xiangxiang’s face, looking her over from left to right, afraid Mu Xiangxiang was missing half a piece of flesh.

"Mom, I’m hungry..."

Seeing Old Mrs. Mu, Mu Xiangxiang was like a fish returned to Da Hai; any request she made, as long as she voiced it, Old Mrs. Mu would satisfy it.

"Mom’s little darling, don’t cry, Mom will go get you something to eat right now!" Old Mrs. Mu answered very simply and crisply.

Mu Xiangxiang sobbed twice, pointed at Mu Dazhong and Mu Danian, and said, "Mom, just now Second Brother and Fifth Brother said I’m a beggar and wanted to drive me out! You help me teach them a lesson!"

Right in front of Mu Dazhong and Mu Danian, Mu Xiangxiang started to lodge her complaint.

Mu Dazhong and Mu Danian were extremely shrewd; hearing Mu Xiangxiang’s words, they immediately lowered themselves and acted humble.

"Xiangxiang, good little sister, you can’t put it that way. Old Fifth and I just got here to Big Brother’s place, we didn’t look carefully, didn’t realize it was you. If we’d known it was you, wouldn’t we have held you up in our palms, treated you like a treasure and worshipped you!" Mu Dazhong said.

Mu Danian also grinned obsequiously, "Exactly, we two are still your brothers, how could we ever target you? Xiangxiang, you tell Mom, let this matter slide, yeah? Second Brother and I promise we won’t curse you again in future!"

"No way, you already cursed me, and you think one sentence of apology is enough? Mom, hit them!" Mu Xiangxiang refused to give an inch, stubbornly egging Old Mrs. Mu on to beat them.

Old Mrs. Mu doted on her daughter; without another word, she snatched up the door bar from the latch and swung it at Mu Dazhong and Mu Danian.

That kind of thick, heavy thing, if it landed on your body it would definitely hurt like hell.

Mu Dazhong and Mu Danian both ran for their lives, running while shouting, "Dad, save us, my mom’s going to beat us to death, Dad..."

...

The news that Mu Dazhong, Mu Danian, and Mu Xiangxiang had all arrived spread to Mrs. Jin and Mu Dade’s ears; the couple were in their own room, trembling all over with anger.

Especially Mrs. Jin—she’d endured that whole big Old Mu Family for so long, finally managed to get one branch, the Fourth House, out of here, and now the rest had all come.

Do they really think her place is a charity hall, anyone who wants to come just comes?

Mrs. Jin was so angry she didn’t even bother to talk; Mu Dade felt the same.

"I don’t think we can go on like this. The old hag hasn’t been driven out yet, and here come a few more freeloaders!

At this rate, that bit of salary you get will all end up spent on them!"

Mrs. Jin’s heart seethed with resentment, and the words coming out of her mouth grew ever harsher.

But Mu Dade didn’t think they were harsh; he felt she was absolutely right.

"Didn’t you say last time you wanted to sell that girl from the Fourth House to a brothel? How’s that going?" Mu Dade asked.

Previously Mu Dade hadn’t gotten involved, after all she was his own niece; personally sending her into a brothel—if people found out, who knows what they’d say about him.

But times were different now. Every last one of the Old Mu Family had come here to fleece him; if he didn’t skim some extra water off somewhere, he feared he’d be sucked dry before he could drive this bunch out.

"That girl looks like she obeys me in everything, but in reality she’s awfully guarded.

Especially after that time with Landlord Yang—though I apologized in time, that girl’s been unwilling to go meet those rich men with me since, which has left me in a very passive position!"

Speaking of Mu Xiaxia, Mrs. Jin actually felt full of grievance.

"We can’t just let it go like that, can we? I do have a way to make that girl yield, and it won’t get blamed on us!" Mu Dade said.

"What way?" Mrs. Jin grew interested.

"Doesn’t Old Fourth still have a son? You lure him out, then tell that girl Xiao Chu’s been kidnapped and the kidnappers want money!

That girl will definitely scramble to raise money. Then you say you’ve got no money, and I’ll say I haven’t either. For the sake of saving her younger brother, she’ll definitely sell herself!" Mu Dade said.

After hearing Mu Dade’s plan, Mrs. Jin’s eyes lit up.

"How did I not think of such a good idea? When the whole thing blows up later, it’ll still be that girl herself who was willing to sell!

We can add a few lines on the side, say that saving her brother was just an excuse, that in fact she doesn’t want to live a poor life and wants to go to that brothel to be a young lady! People to wait on her every day, and clothes to wear!" Mrs. Jin said.

"But since we’re already deceiving that boy out, why don’t we simply sell him too?

I know quite a few landlords who don’t have sons and have always wanted to adopt a godson.

The price for selling a son might even be higher than selling that girl. Shouldn’t we also..."

Mu Dade winked at Mrs. Jin; the rest went without saying.

Mrs. Jin nodded busily; for these matters, it was enough that the two of them tacitly understood each other!

"Are you going to check on Xiangxiang?" Mrs. Jin asked.

"Of course I have to go. Old Second and Old Fifth aren’t easy to deal with, and Xiangxiang’s a trouble magnet.

We can’t get rid of them for now, but I can at least give a simple warning, at least keep them from going too far!" Mu Dade said.

Mu Dade didn’t hold much affection for these younger brothers and sisters.

They were all a bunch of mud-legged peasants, hadn’t seen much of the world on ordinary days; kept around, they were nothing but a menace.

Hearing Mu Dade’s words, Mrs. Jin let out a long sigh and said:

"I won’t go. Xiangxiang and I don’t get along, and seeing Old Second and Old Fifth makes me even more uncomfortable!"

Among the three, the one Mrs. Jin loathed most was Mu Danian; that beast always looked at her like he wanted to eat her.

Mrs. Jin wasn’t a three-year-old; she knew perfectly well what that beast’s gaze meant.

"Fine. I’ll tell Father and Mother later that you’re not feeling well. You just stay in the room and rest properly! Whatever you feel like eating, tell me; I’ll go out and buy it tomorrow and bring it back for you!"

Mu Dade said to Mrs. Jin in a considerate tone.

Hearing Mu Dade’s words, Mrs. Jin’s heart warmed.

At least she hadn’t married in vain; her man knew how to cherish her.

"Alright, go on then, don’t dawdle. Those few are all tough customers!" Mrs. Jin urged.

"Mm! I’m going!" Mu Dade stood up and headed out of the room.

In the backyard, he happened to run into Qin Xianglan, who’d come home to wait on Old Mrs. Mu since there was nothing to do because of the New Year.

The two of them exchanged a tacit look, then acted like strangers and turned their heads away.

If other people were present, they’d never suspect anything between them. But who would know that, aside from staying in Mrs. Jin’s room, Mu Dade basically spent his nights in Qin Xianglan’s quarters.

Mu Dade adjusted his facial expression, trying his best to look kind and magnanimous.

Feeling he could handle whatever came next, Mu Dade puffed out his chest and strode toward the main hall.

As soon as he entered, he heard Mu Xiangxiang’s crying and fussing.

Every now and then, Old Mrs. Mu’s cooing calls of "my precious girl" to soothe Mu Xiangxiang were mixed in.

A look of disgust flashed across Mu Dade’s face, but he quickly returned to normal!

[ps: After midnight there’ll be a mass update, tentatively eighty to a hundred thousand characters! Stay tuned!]

[Solemnly recommending Fengfeng’s new farming novel "The Fiery Little Farm Wife: Husband, the Wolf Is Here," my good buddy Ah Ru’s excellent farming story "Abandoned Farm Wife: Raising a Cute Kid and Farming Well," my good buddy Mengmeng’s Yanyan’s "Green Plums and Time Still Warm," and my good buddy Zhou Qiqi’s "Rebirth Hidden Marriage: Cold Mu Shao, Addicted to Pampering."]