NOVEL NEXT Chapter 207: Unpresentable Affairs
"You, a heartless wretch, had the audacity to borrow money and not repay it, instead resorting to crooked schemes," she accused, waving a wooden stick in her hand and glaring at Xu Fangfang as if ready to devour her. "You propose offering your own sister as a bride to my son in exchange for the debt? My son is handsome and wealthy, admired by everyone from miles around. Why would he ever worry about finding a bride? If it weren't for family ties, would my son ever lower himself to marry a girl from a family on the verge of extinction?" The old lady's words were as ugly as her twisted account of the facts.
She was truly exalting her son to the heavens, comparing him to a peony bloom!
"Aunt, what nonsense are you spouting?" Xu Fangfang shouted, frowning deeply, clearly objecting to what Feng Laidi had said. "I have already explained the situation to you, you must not spread false rumors and tarnish my sister's reputation." Xu Fangfang was furious, seeing that Feng Laidi's noisy rants had attracted the attention of neighboring bystanders.
Filled with guilt, she instinctively feared for a further spoiling of Xu Jingjing's reputation, and dreaded everyone discovering her involvement in selling her sister. How could she face anyone knowing she traded her sister for money? Even her own Doudou would likely be mocked by everyone in the nearby villages when he grew up.
"I'm speaking nonsense? The shameless little harlot here is you, and yes, your shameless sister Xu Jingjing, that woman everyone despises. I told you the first time I saw her that she was no decent girl, and, indeed, before even entering my Song family's threshold, she was already pregnant! It's clear—she must have seduced my son Wenshu, bedded him, who knows whose bastard child she might be carrying," Feng Laidi's talents did not extend beyond shameless brawling and spewing distasteful remarks.
"You're slinging mud at our Old Xu Family! You're old and still use such venomous words against a young girl, Aunt Song, aren't you afraid that lying and slandering my sister will bring divine retribution?" Xu Fangfang angrily cursed out to Aunt Song.
"Heaven should strike down a shameless, disgusting lot like you first. Think about it, my old Song family overlooked your family's wicked ways, disregarded the notorious end of your lineage, and weren't disgusted by your daughter's impurity, yet you had my son thrown in prison? Injured my son? You ungrateful wretches, I might as well tell you, our old Song family may lack a man to take charge, but I, Feng Laidi, am not some old woman you can push around. You've harmed my son Wenshu, and even at the cost of my own life, I will make your doomed family miserable. You, fetch that little wretch Xu Jingjing out here; I am going to kill her today to avenge my son," Wenshu's mother, Feng Laidi, clutched the wooden stick, shouting. Seeing a crowd of neighbors gathering, she became even more enraged and menacingly swung the stick toward Xu Fangfang, her intention to threaten and intimidate blatantly clear.
Xu Fangfang watched as Feng Laidi from Wenshu's house swung the stick at her, intending to dodge, but before she could react, a forceful blow from Feng Laidi struck her squarely. Suddenly, everything went dark, and blood instantly began streaming down her forehead. She staggered, nearly fainting on the spot. Fortunately, Mrs. Xu was beside her, holding on to her hand, or Xu Fangfang might have already collapsed.
Feng Laidi, seeing she had actually hit Xu Fangfang with a stick, felt somewhat proud at first, but as she saw blood flowing from Xu Fangfang's forehead, she suddenly became fearful and guilty. Therefore, she abandoned the idea of swinging the stick a second time, fearing that she might seriously hurt or even kill the person, which wouldn't end well for her.
"Quick, get that vile wench Xu Jingjing out here..." This time Feng Laidi was yelling at Mrs. Xu, her narrow eyes revealing the harshness of an old village woman.
And because of Feng Laidi's sudden commotion, quite a few nosy neighbors had gathered to watch the drama unfold. When they heard Feng Laidi claiming Xu Jingjing was behaving improperly and had fallen pregnant before marriage, they immediately started murmuring, with some gossipy old women already whispering among themselves.
"I knew it! The Xu family's fourth daughter really didn't seem like a decent, honest girl. Initially, I heard she fancied that college student from the next village, right? She solicitously did chores for him, but I don't know what happened; she came back a few days later. I heard the college student rejected her! And with such a wild nature, she even went off to Z city alone for a while. I mean, who knows what she did out there? Otherwise, with Z city being such a big place, why would she willingly come back to this rural area for an arranged marriage? She could easily find a city guy with closed eyes, much better than us farmers here!" an old wife from a nearby house was gabbing, utterly convinced of the truth in Feng Laidi's words. She had already begun inciting the crowd, the chatty old woman clearly not afraid of making a fuss.
"I was saying! It turns out that girl did something shameful!" another wife said, looking as if she'd just solved a puzzle.
Xu Xiuxiu frowned as she watched Song Wenshu's loud and obnoxious mother, then glanced at Xu Fangfang who had been struck by the stick, and finally at the old ladies around who were enjoying the show. She was utterly speechless—clearly, the rural areas of this era lacked many things, but not shrewish gossips, and it seemed she had encountered the worst of them.
"Why are you calling for my fourth sister? You know what sort of person your son is, don't you? Or do you think the surrounding villages don't know either? It's funny that you praise him as if he's some prized flower when everyone knows your son is nothing but a pile of disgusting cow dung, an expert in eating, drinking, and gambling, idly spending his days stealing and cheating. And you have the nerve to come shouting at my Xu family's door? Are you aware of why your son was taken away by the Police Station? He must have done something crooked; otherwise, why would the Police Station take him? They are strict and just, and certainly don't act without evidence. Here you are, playing the victim first. Ha, it's strange. We, the Xu family, never approached you to discuss how your son has tarnished my sister Jingjing's reputation, yet you have the audacity to create such a scene here. Do you believe I won't go to the police right now and have them take you away too?" Xu Qingqing scoffed coldly, speaking with a confident tone filled with mockery, managing to shame Feng Laidi of the Song family in just a few sentences.
"What nonsense are you talking about! My son Wenshu is well-mannered, educated, culturally refined, and polite. If it weren't for that indecent Xu Jingjing..." Feng Laidi began defending her son unhappily, heaping praises upon him while simultaneously slandering Xu Jingjing.