Farm Tough Girl-Chapter 227 - 228 A Word Awakens the Dreamer_1

Chapter 227: Chapter 228: A Word Awakens the Dreamer_1

Chapter 227 -228: A Word Awakens the Dreamer_1

Mrs. Liang cursed, “What do you mean by that? So, our Shitou skipped school once? Which kid doesn’t yearn for a bit of play? What’s the big deal? As for stealing, why speak so harshly? We’re all from the same village. He just asked Li Qinghe for some food. Why be so petty with a child? Do you have no tolerance at all? No wonder the Qiao family kicked her out. Qiao Yuanzhen is going to pursue a career in government in the future. With a wife like her who lacks any grace of a noble family, who knows how people will mock him in the future?”

Li Qinghe’s eyes widened, and she felt like her lungs were about to explode with anger. Feeling wronged and on the verge of tears, Mrs. Liang could make excuses for her son and she wouldn’t say a word, but she stepped on her with every sentence and even used the fact that she was divorced by the Qiao family to ridicule her.

Even though Qiao Yuanzhen was in the past, he was still like a thorn in Li Qinghe’s heart, hurting every time it was touched. It was not just heartache but also a blow to her pride because from beginning to end, he had never looked up to her, just because she was a hunter’s daughter and not a lady from a prominent family.

Muniang squeezed her hand, offering a little comfort and shook her head at her. Qinghe held back her emotions, but her eyes were still a little red.

Muniang didn’t want to continue arguing with Mrs. Liang and went straight to the point, “Let’s confront each other and see who is right and who is wrong. I hope you don’t end up slapping your own face when the time comes.”

Turning to the Village Head, she said, “Mr. Village Head, even if he had a fever last night, he should be better by now, just resting in bed. Asking him a few questions shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

The Village Head thought for a moment and felt that it made sense, so he nodded, “Mrs. Liang, let Qinghe go in and ask Shitou a few questions. Don’t stop her.”

Mrs. Liang immediately jumped to her feet, “Why should she? My son hasn’t committed any crimes. Why question him? We should interrogate Li Qinghe and her illicit lover. Who knows if they’ve already conceived a child?”

“Enough!” The Village Head roared, “Mrs. Liang, when will you stop? Either have Shitou come out and clarify things, or shut your mouth and stop slandering others. You are a woman too. Don’t you know that reputation is more important than life to a woman?!”

Mrs. Liang was stunned by the shouting, then sat down on the doorstep, wailing, “Oh, I can’t live like this! Everyone is bullying my son! What sins did our Shitou commit to be so pressured by others? Yesterday, he was so traumatized he got sick, and today people are coming to our door to provoke us, saying they just want to ask a few questions. He’s just a child; what lies could he tell?”

Then she latched onto Village Head’s pant leg, smearing snot and tears all over it, “Mr. Village Head, you have to stand up for me. Shitou was scared yesterday and he’s still sick. If he sees Li Qinghe again and she threatens him with her harsh words, his illness may worsen. Our Wang family has only this one precious child. If something happened to him because of Li Qinghe, I couldn’t go on living!”

The Village Head tugged at his own pant leg in a struggle to escape but couldn’t get free. Seeing Mrs. Liang wiping her snot and tears all over him was utterly disgusting. He looked helplessly at Muniang, seemingly at a loss for what to do.

But Muniang wasn’t buying her act and shouted, “If you’re so confident your child can’t lie, what are you worried about? On one hand, you relentlessly smear Qinghe, and on the other, you won’t let your son confront her. You make baseless accusations without providing any evidence. Do you really think the villagers are so foolish to be misled by your words?”

It was a wakeup call for the villagers, who had been led astray by Mrs. Liang’s words. Suddenly, they all felt as if they were being played. Mrs. Liang clearly had no evidence and was just speculating, and she wouldn’t even let the only eyewitness, Shitou, be seen. Why should her word be taken as the truth?!

Mrs. Liang had originally prepared a bitter trick, but she didn’t expect it to be exposed by Qiao Muniang so abruptly. For a moment, she was caught off guard, yet she still stood her ground and clamored, “What nonsense are you spouting? My son is missing now! A child, what does he know? Why must you insist on using such filthy issues to press an innocent child? Do you have no conscience at all?”

The villagers had already gathered around by this time and naturally wouldn’t fall for this ruse anymore. They said one after another, “Who is truly filthy remains to be seen! Stop spouting unchecked accusations, and let Shitou come out and confront us about what really happened yesterday!”

“Exactly, exactly, we can’t wrong your son, but what about Qinghe and her child? Why should she have to endure such injustice? If you dare not let your son speak out, then stop fabricating lies about others!”

The Wang family’s daughter-in-law, who lived next to Mrs. Liang, said, “You claim your son fell ill last night and tossed and turned all night, but I didn’t hear a peep. You even said you summoned a doctor from town, so shouldn’t there have been some noise from the carriage at least? I got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and didn’t see a single light on in your house. Were you treating your son in the dark?”

Upon hearing this, an immediate burst of laughter ensued.

Mrs. Liang’s face turned beet red as she retorted, “By that time, the doctor had already left. Should we have kept the light on for nothing, wasting oil? I was watching over my son until I fell asleep myself, so naturally, there was no noise!”

Qiao Muniang chuckled softly, “If you managed to fall asleep while keeping vigil in the middle of the night, I’m afraid the fever must have subsided. Otherwise, with him being your only child, shouldn’t you have kept a careful watch? He should be able to speak a few words now, shouldn’t he?”

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Mrs. Liang’s complexion changed, feeling as though she had fallen into a pit, “No way! My Shitou is unwilling to see Li Qinghe right now! Why are you all forcing him?!”

By now, her confidence had waned, and she was aware that the villagers no longer believed her. But she had to keep them at bay, for if Li Qinghe really confronted Shitou, her entire ruse would be exposed. If it were proven true that Shitou had knocked into Qinghe’s belly, then it wouldn’t just be a matter of ruining their reputation. Mr. Village Head might deem it appropriate to drag them out for a paddling, and Shitou was the apple of her eye—how could she bear it?

Qiao Muniang huffed coldly, if he won’t show himself, then so be it, the villagers already have a clear idea of the truth anyway.

Qiao Muniang felt the timing was now ripe and gave Qinghe a knowing wink. Qinghe, who had been holding back her tears for so long, finally let them fall freely, eliciting sympathy as if they were priceless, “I know my life is hard, getting sent away from my husband’s family less than half a year after marriage, but I have always been wholeheartedly devoted to the Qiao family. If my husband wants to divorce me, I have endured it.

Being kicked out while pregnant, I have accepted that too. All I wanted was to spend my life peacefully with my child, but fate wouldn’t allow me peace. Yesterday I was almost knocked over by Shitou, but fortunately, Master Zeng lent a hand. I hadn’t even had the chance to confront Shitou about his wrongdoing before he turned around and accused me first, ruining my reputation completely. If it weren’t for this child, I would have ended my life long ago.”

With that, she broke into heart-wrenching sobs. Qinghe wasn’t faking her tears; they were the result of long-suppressed emotions that erupted today. She had always felt wronged but kept it to herself. Today, provoked by Mrs. Liang, she could no longer hold back her grievances.