Chapter 431: Cannot

Chapter 431: Chapter 431: Cannot

"Wuan..." Ji Qingshan sighed before he even spoke.

"You’ve suffered so much out here on your own all this time. It’s all our fault. Your grandmother and I are old and muddled. We never should have listened to that fortune teller..."

The hired hands exchanged glances.

’So the old Ji Family has finally come to their senses!’

If even someone like Ji Huan was considered a jinx with an ill-fated destiny, then you really couldn’t find anyone in the village with better fortune than hers.

They had clearly been duped before. What fortune teller? He was obviously a charlatan.

He spouted a few lines of nonsense about fate, not only bringing misery to Ji Huan but also causing the Ji Family to personally drive away a Golden Phoenix.

Ji Huan couldn’t help but laugh.

’What’s the point? Still playing games at a time like this.’

If Ji Qingshan could have truly swallowed his pride and sincerely admitted his mistake, Ji Huan might have even respected him a little for it.

The way he was acting now seemed like an apology, but in reality, he was just blaming the fortune teller’s words. He and Granny Kang were merely "old and muddled" and had been "deceived." Did he really think everyone else was an idiot?

"Grandfather, what are you talking about? I’m doing great! I have enough to eat and warm clothes to wear, I don’t get beaten or scolded... If you don’t believe me, ask our fellow villagers. Aren’t I much better off than when I was with the Ji Family? Oh, I’m not saying it was that bad with the Ji Family. Perhaps my luck just turned around.

Also, let me remind you, I’m not alone anymore. I have a younger brother and a husband. We just got married last month... Oh, silly me. On my wedding day, not a single person from the Ji Family came. You probably didn’t know, did you?"

’Didn’t know? Only a ghost would believe that.’

"If Old Man Ji really felt so guilty, why didn’t he show up for his own granddaughter’s wedding?"

"Doesn’t showing up mean you have to give a gift? He and Granny Kang are as shrewd as they come!"

"Anyone can say nice things. Just watch..."

After Ji Huan’s abrupt laugh, Ji Qingshan was already struggling to maintain his benevolent expression.

Coupled with the villagers’ unreserved discussion, the corner of his eye twitched again and again as he tried his best not to let his expression crack.

"I know, you’re still angry with us... The reason no one from the old house showed up on your wedding day was because of your worthless fourth uncle. His own wedding was a bit unpleasant, and we were afraid he’d bring you bad luck..."

That part was actually true.

Many of the people present had gone to watch the spectacle of Ji Liantang’s wedding. After Du Caizhu got out of the bridal sedan, Ji Liantang’s face was as long as if he were visiting a grave. It was indeed inauspicious.

"It was also our fault for being too proud to show our faces. But you’re a stubborn child, too! Even if your grandmother and I were in the wrong, you should have just talked to us properly. Why did you have to be so stubborn about separating from the family? Your grandmother and I were both furious at the time..."

An old man in his twilight years, his face full of reluctance and his heart seemingly full of untold grievances—how could anyone bear to be harsh with him?

Ji Huan was speechless at the performance.

"It seems people really do get forgetful when they get old. How did this become about *me* wanting to separate from the family? When I was carried to that broken-down shack, I was half-dead. I was lucky enough to survive, and when I went back the next morning, you wouldn’t even give me a bite to eat. It was Grandma who first brought up the separation. She was the one who said we’d have nothing to do with each other, in life or in death. All the uncles, aunts, and elders in the village, including the village chief, saw everything that happened. Grandfather, if you really can’t remember, I don’t mind you going back and reading the separation agreement again."

Hearing Ji Huan pin the blame on her, Granny Kang could no longer hold back.

"Don’t make yourself sound so pitiful! You were clearly faking it back then, pretending to be on your last breath to fool us! Otherwise, why would we have thrown you out that night? If you were really about to die from your injuries, how could you possibly be up and about the next day...?"

Ji Qingshan desperately tried to pull Granny Kang back, but her mouth was faster.

He stomped his foot in anger. "You old woman, what nonsense are you spouting! Wuan was never in any real danger. She just went to stay in the shack for a night because she was upset with the family. When did she ever pretend to be dying...?"

"Husband, have you forgotten? She covered herself in blood and was barely breathing! Of course she was faking..."

Ji Huan cut her off, a look of sudden realization on her face.

"So I pretended to be on my last breath, and you believed me. You thought I wasn’t going to make it, so you sent me to the broken-down shack in the middle of the night... How cruel. No wonder when I showed up at your door the next day, Grandma, you looked like you’d seen a ghost."

"No..." Granny Kang sensed something was wrong and immediately tried to change her story. "We saw that you were faking it, that’s why we took you..."

Ji Huan shook her head even more emphatically.

"Even if I *was* faking it and you saw right through my act, you are still my elders. If you had even a shred of concern for me, how could you let a young girl spend the night in a place like that? Besides, I really was gravely injured and on the verge of death. If I hadn’t dreamed of my mother that night, I probably would have lost my life..."

A buzz of discussion erupted from the crowd once more.

"I remember what she looked like then. How could she have possibly faked that?"

"And it was Granny Kang who brought up the separation..."

"Sigh, it’s a good thing she dreamed of her mother. Mrs. Wei must have been worried about her daughter..."

Ji Huan sighed. "Grandfather, Grandmother, why don’t you two go back and get your stories straight before you come back? It’ll save us all the embarrassment."

Ji Qingshan was so angry with Granny Kang that his vision started to go dark. Facing Ji Huan’s open and veiled barbs, he felt the coppery taste of blood rise in his throat.

"Fine, let’s just say it was all our fault. All our fault... Wuan, your grandmother and I came here today to sincerely apologize. For the sake of our old age, please, just forgive us two old fools."

The murmur of discussion suddenly died down.

Seeing the Ji Family fall to their current state, some were enjoying the spectacle, but many also felt a stir of pity for the weak.

Ji Qingshan seized on this, humbling himself again and again, putting on an exquisite performance of heartbreak and remorse, all to gain as many sympathy points as possible.

But he had misjudged the situation.

Never mind that the villagers had a completely new understanding of Ji Huan; just from working under Ji Xuelan these past days, they had seen enough. Although Ji Xuelan had never explicitly bad-mouthed the Ji Family, her attitude toward them, combined with what she and her mother and sister had once suffered—the more they learned, the more clearly they saw the Ji Family for what they were.

Seeing Old Man Ji and Granny Kang, at their advanced age, bowing to a junior was indeed enough to soften one’s heart, but only a small minority felt that way.

Besides, feeling soft-hearted didn’t mean they couldn’t distinguish right from wrong. At most, they felt a bit of regret for them, sighing over why they had to be so ruthless back then.

There was no way they could be incited by a few words from Ji Qingshan and turn their spears on Ji Huan again, like they had during the family separation.

Taking a step back, even if he did win the sympathy of everyone present, what good would it do?

These people were drawing wages from Ji Huan now, and they wanted to keep their jobs with her in the future. Who would be foolish enough to side with him?

When Ji Qingshan saw that even after he had humbled himself to this extent, the onlooking villagers remained unmoved, his heart grew colder and colder.

While he was still pondering his next move, Ji Huan decided she had wasted enough time.

"Stop beating around the bush. If you have something to say, just say it. I don’t know if you’re busy, but I am. Or did you actually just come for the kill-pig feast? If so, you’ll have to wait. It was bought for the hired hands, after all. There are a lot of people and not much meat, so there isn’t enough to go around. I’m not even planning on having any myself... If you’re really that desperate for a taste, I can have someone see if they can spare a bowl for you."

These words were so humiliating that even Ji Qingshan couldn’t maintain his composure any longer.

"We didn’t come for the kill-pig feast."

Mrs. Zhu was not happy about that. "What do you mean we didn’t, Father? You might not be eating, but Mingmao and I are!"

"Shut your mouth!"

Ji Qingshan’s face was purple with rage, and he wheezed heavily.

"Wuan, if you’re angry and hateful, then direct it at your grandmother and me. Your fourth uncle has done nothing to wrong you. I’ve thrown away my old face today, just hoping... hoping that since you can give the other villagers a way to live, you could also give your fourth uncle a hand."

’Shouldn’t he have just said that from the start?’

’They clearly came to beg for a job, yet they had to put on an act and try to seize the moral high ground.’

’They probably even hoped Ji Huan would offer a job to Ji the Fourth on her own initiative, and then Ji the Fourth could put on some airs before reluctantly accepting.’

’What a beautiful daydream.’

Seeing Ji Huan’s smiling face, Ji Qingshan breathed a sigh of relief. Even Ji Liantang, who had been feeling awkward and ashamed the whole time, looked a bit more hopeful.

Who would have thought that in the next second, the smile on Ji Huan’s face would vanish completely.

"No," she said flatly.