Chapter 415: Buying a House and Land

Fourth Son He said, "We better be honest, the village chief has changed, now whoever dares to cause trouble, he will deal with them accordingly."

The few destitute households of the He family were frightened out of their wits by the incident involving He Cui’er’s family. They all kept a low profile, not daring to make waves in the village anymore.

The wife of He Daqian dismissed the idea of bringing her niece from her maternal family over.

How was the He Cui’er family expelled from the clan? Wasn’t it because they tried to climb the social ladder by associating with Brother Ping from the Qi Family, and in the end, the whole family was driven out?

The sons of the Qin, Gu, and Lu families were indeed not bad, but if by any chance they failed to form the connection and instead caused their own families to be expelled from the clan, it wouldn’t be worth it.

He Dacang heard all their mutterings and went home to report to Village Chief He.

After listening, Village Chief He finally nodded in relief, "It’s good that they know to be afraid. If they don’t fear the consequences, and still dare to cause trouble, then they can’t blame this old man."

How did the Qin, Gu, and Lu families become wealthy? It was because of their unity. If the He Family People wanted to prosper, they needed to get rid of a few thorns; otherwise, they would never live a good life.

"Dad, are we really not going to care for He Cui’er’s family?" He Dacang expressed his difficulty, "After all, they are our clan. Casting them out is one thing, but if it leads to loss of life, it’s hard to justify to our ancestors."

Village Chief He fell silent for a moment, then said, "Let’s wait and see. The He Cui’er family will surely come back to beg us."

Sure enough, before evening, He Cui’er’s family returned, but they couldn’t enter the village. Ever since they were driven out, Village Chief He had the He family men guard the village entrance in shifts, ready to block them if they tried to come back.

When He Cui’er’s family was stopped, they could only kneel at the entrance of the village and cry bitterly, uttering words of regret, but it was already too late for regrets.

Village Chief He intended to use their family as a deterrent to the entire He family, resolute in not letting them return. If he relented now, all his previous efforts would be in vain.

However, Village Chief He didn’t let He Cui’er’s family die; he sent someone to fetch He Dashu’s elder sister.

He Dashu’s sister was already closing in on sixty, living in Baishu Gully. Although it was a poor ravine four hours away from Da Feng Village, Mrs. Fang He still hurried over with her three sons by the next afternoon.

It was He Dasu who went to Baishu Gully to inform Mrs. Fang He. He relayed what He Cui’er’s family had done and the words of Village Chief He, and in the end, he handed Mrs. Fang He five taels of silver, clearly stating that this was the last of Village Chief He’s kindness. If Mrs. Fang He could not take them away, even if He Cui’er’s family died at the village gate, Village Chief He would no longer intervene.

Mrs. Fang He was quite sensible. After learning of what He Cui’er’s family had done, she was filled with shame. Originally, she didn’t want to accept the five taels of silver from Village Chief He, but money was needed to settle He Cui’er’s family, and her own family was not affluent, so she had no choice but to take the silver, promising to make sure she fetched He Cui’er’s family away.

As soon as Mrs. Fang He arrived at the entrance of Da Feng Village, she immediately grabbed He Cui’er’s mother by the hair and beat her furiously, "You poisonous woman, bringing disaster upon the family, I warned back then that you were not a suitable bride. But relying on your looks, you bewitched my little brother until he lost all sense, stubbornly marrying a restless woman like you. Truly, marrying a wife who is not virtuous brings calamity for three generations; you’ve ruined what was a good family. I’ll beat you to death!"

He Cui’er’s mother was very afraid of this aunt by marriage and dodged while Mrs. Fang He attacked, arguing, "Big auntie, you can’t wrong me, it was Big Soy who ran the household."

"Spit on that, you still try to fool me. If it wasn’t for you pushing Big Soy, if it wasn’t for your own wicked nature, would the children turn out like this? You’ve ruined our family so much that we’re expelled from the clan, how can Big Soy face our parents after death? I’ll beat you to death, you poisonous woman!"

After giving He Cui’er’s mother a fierce beating, Mrs. Fang He also cursed He Dashu for being lazy and inept at managing the household, criticized He Minzi and He Liangzi, and finally grabbed He Cui’er and beat him as well before she stopped.

Unable to enter the village, and having fainted from anger twice, He Dashu’s health was far from good. Mrs. Fang He took He Cui’er’s family to the town to stay for a night and found a doctor to treat He Dashu.

The next morning, they set off to return to Baishu Gully.

He Dashu still wanted to return to Da Feng Village, and with tears pleaded with Mrs. Fang He: "Big sister, please go back and beg the village chief to let our family return to the village. We know we were wrong and will never dare to harbor crooked thoughts again."

Mrs. Fang He sighed and said: "Little brother, historically, once a family is expelled from the clan, unless they perform a great service for the clan, they cannot return. The village chief has already done a lot for your family. Be content, the village doesn’t owe your family anything."

Mrs. Fang He then spoke of how Village Chief He sent someone to find her and gave her five taels of silver.

After hearing this, He Dashu was overcome with tears: "I deserve to die, for entertaining the thought of relying on connections with the Qi Family to prosper."

Mrs. Fang He let him cry for a moment, then consoled him: "It’s good you realize your mistake. From now on, settle down in Baishu Gully and make it your home."

This was also possible because Mrs. Fang He’s husband was dead, and as she had now become a grandmother, her voice carried weight in the household. That’s the only reason she could take He Cui’er’s family into Baishu Gully. If Mrs. Fang He’s husband was still alive or her in-laws were still around, He Cui’er’s family wouldn’t even dream of entering Baishu Gully.

Mrs. Fang He was a fierce woman. After learning that He Dashu’s family lost their silver note at the Liu Family, she led people from Baishu Gully to confront them, and the two villages truly had a couple of brawls.

But the Liu Family adamantly denied taking the fifty taels silver note. Yet, they were so rattled by Mrs. Fang He’s disturbances that they decided on a compromise by offering to compensate He Cui’er’s family with five taels of silver.

Mrs. Fang He was not satisfied, finding the silver too little. She continued to create a commotion until, in the end, she recuperated fifteen taels of silver, and the matter was settled.

Mrs. Fang He knew how to deal with people; she took out five taels of silver and gave it to the villagers as compensation for their troubles.

And because the people of Gui Liu Village also helped in the brawl, Mrs. Huang could only give out five taels of silver to reward the villagers. In the end, of the fifty taels of silver, her family only got thirty taels.

Mrs. Huang was nearly furious. The ten taels of silver she had promised for Liu Xiaofen’s dowry were gone, and she began to beat and scold Liu Xiaofen. Not long after, she found a widower in the hills for her to marry.

Liu Xiaofen almost cried herself to death, threatening her natal family to reveal their collusion in stealing the silver note. But Mrs. Huang was fearless and counter-threatened her, saying that Liu Xiaofen was also involved—if this got out, she would be the first to go to jail.

With no other option, Liu Xiaofen gave in. Wearing a semi-new outfit and carrying a worn bundle, she sobbed as she was married off into the hills.

...

Gu Jinli watched this whole drama unfold and was still left wanting more. While counting her own silver, she exclaimed, "Indeed, you reap what you sow."

Third Grandma sighed: "Isn’t that the truth. They had a good family and could have had a decent life if they had been honest. But no, they had to create trouble and ended up ruining themselves."

"Enough, stop talking about their family. It’s bad luck," said Third Grandpa, not wanting to discuss He Cui’er’s family. He turned to Gu Jinli and asked, "Xiao Yu, do you have enough silver to buy the Lu Family’s house and land?"