Chapter 1550 - 1545: Mrs. Jin’s Scheming (Sixteen Updates)

Qin Xianglan was utterly shocked, although this secret was a huge help to her.

"Believe me, it’s true! I heard it with my own ears from my brother and sister-in-law; they did spend a hefty sum in the county to buy the Autumn Examination papers.

My brother became a scholar in his teens, and he passed the exam in one go! But in the following years, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t pass the scholar exams.

It took as long as ten years, and every time he took the exam, he failed! What does this prove? My brother simply doesn’t have what it takes to pass the exams!

If things go wrong, he must have only passed the scholar exam by luck! That one time, luck worked out, but since then, not a ripple.

Until I overheard him and my sister-in-law talking about buying the exam papers, our family prepared quite a sum of silver for them, and it’s all spent! And then, my brother became a scholar!"

Mu Danyan spilled out everything he knew to Qin Xianglan in one breath.

Qin Xianglan’s face finally showed a smile.

This is great; if Mu Dade’s scholar status was obtained by buying exam papers, then it’s his leverage.

She just needs to wait for Mu Dade to get that cushy position, and she can directly use this secret to blackmail him for a sum of money.

But to be safe, it’s best to let Mu Danyan handle it.

When the time comes, even if Mu Dade retaliates with deadly force, it would be Mu Danyan who takes the fall, not her!

"Danyan, rest assured, the secret you’ve told me, I’ll definitely keep it safe and won’t tell a soul!" Qin Xianglan raised her hand, making a vow.

...

Mrs. Jin lay in bed for two full days, and by the twenty-ninth day of the month, she finally managed to get out of bed.

Although she still looked like a pighead, her face didn’t hurt as much.

The urgency to get out of bed stemmed from two matters that needed handling.

Selling Mu Xiaxia and Xiao Chu’s affair couldn’t be delayed; the buyer on the other side was pressing, and the offered price wasn’t low either.

As for the other matter, the old hag was about to leave her house for the countryside; she had to come out and provoke the dead hag.

Just like Mu Dade’s thought, Mrs. Jin also felt the beating she received was worth it.

The old hag was forced to leave because of the beating and probably felt devastated inside.

Compared to her minor external injuries that would heal quickly, the old hag probably saw this as her end!

At breakfast, Mrs. Jin didn’t see Old Mrs. Mu. Upon inquiry, she found out that Mr. Mu tied her up with hemp rope in the room, and she would only be released tomorrow morning to join the others for celebrating the New Year and the New Year’s Eve dinner.

Rarely rising without seeing that annoying old hag, Mrs. Jin was in a great mood.

At the dining table, Mr. Mu proactively greeted Mrs. Jin, "Eldest daughter-in-law, how are you feeling?"

Mrs. Jin opened her mouth and said, "Pain, my face hurt terribly!"

Mr. Mu heard this and felt extremely sorry.

"Eldest daughter-in-law, this matter, it’s me and your mother who’ve wronged you! Take care of yourself, and during this time, if you want anything to eat, let me know, I’ll go to the market to buy it for you! You don’t need to pay, I’ll do it myself!"

If it were usual, Mrs. Jin might pretend to be polite, but now, knowing that Mr. Mu was leaving the old hag felt guilty for hitting her, she was straightforward with her demands.

"Dad, I want to eat dishes from Jiu Si Xuan! How about you give three liang of silver to Da De to bring back a portion, and later I’ll call the fourth house family to come over for a meal!"

With just one request amounting to three liang of silver, Mr. Mu felt a sting in his flesh.

But what choice did he have, he’s at fault.

His wife unjustly beat people and heavily at that, shouldn’t he take the loss?

"Alright, do you want anything else?"

"Thanks, Dad, ever since being hit by Mom, I haven’t had much appetite; I want to eat candied haw."

Just as Mrs. Jin spoke, Mu Xiangxiang, who had been silently eating, chimed in, "Dad, I want some too!"

Unexpectedly, as soon as the words left her mouth, Mr. Mu scolded, "Shut up! Your mother made a mistake, compensating your sister-in-law by letting her eat what she wants! Has anyone in this house wronged you?"

"Dad, I’m just craving it!" Mu Xiangxiang opened her mouth, looking on the verge of tears.

"Shit for you to eat? Go to the latrine and dig for it! Your mother spoiled you, no decorum at all!

Next time if I hear you dare speak about what to eat, watch me not beat you!" Mr. Mu raised his dry tobacco pipe in his hand.

Mu Xiangxiang recalled being hit with that thing and was too scared to breathe.

At this point, Mrs. Lin chimed in, "Dad, Xiangxiang’s getting to the age of being a young lady, surely shouldn’t eat, but Gou Dan is still growing, can’t he have some?"

As soon as Mrs. Lin’s voice fell, Mrs. Jin said, "Dad, Xiao Zao is right; why not buy for the fourth house’s Xiao Chu and Xiaxia together! Including mine, buy twenty sticks in total."

"Tw...twenty sticks?" Mr. Mu was stunned.

"Hmm! Also, get meat buns, I want Dafeng Gate’s buns; their buns are two coins each, buy twenty! As for where Dafeng Gate is, you’ll have to ask around, everyone in the county knows about their buns!"

Mrs. Jin said all in one breath, seeing Mr. Mu almost drool out his mouth.

She secretly laughed to herself for a long eternity.

Finally turned the tables!

Having been oppressed so harshly in the past, she almost forgot what this joy of turning the tables felt like.

"Al...alright!" With a flushed face, Mr. Mu nodded.

He did a rough calculation in his heart; this outing would cost over three liang of silver.

The spending pace was fast; if this continued, even with a mountain of gold and silver, it would be squandered.

Other members of Old Mu Family had never seen Mr. Mu suffer such a loss before; they were all thrilled, forgetting that they were also a part of spending.

After breakfast, Mr. Mu went outside to buy the candied haw and large buns that Mrs. Jin wanted.

As for Mrs. Jin, she dressed properly to go to the place where the fourth house currently resides to find Mu Xiaxia.

The place wasn’t just ordinary; it was desolate and miserably poor.

Mrs. Jin had been there once; afterwards, she’d rather die than go again.

She found a soft sedan chair, and the bearers brought Mrs. Jin to the courtyard where Mu Xiaxia lived.

Getting off the sedan, Mrs. Jin walked into the courtyard; upon entering, she was hit with a stench, probably someone clueless peed at the entrance.

Mrs. Jin dressed magnificently; her arrival unsurprisingly drew a crowd in the courtyard.

People pointed at her and whispered—

"Whose relative is this, dressed so finely?"

"Who knows! Could she have gotten lost?"

"Doesn’t look like it, seems like she’s one of us!"

"Hopefully, she’s come looking for me, haha, giving me some money would be great!"

The various discussions reached Mrs. Jin’s ears.

Mrs. Jin appeared calm, fortunate enough to cover her face with a silk scarf when she left; otherwise, her bruised face would have become a joke.

How fortunate!