ebookland Chapter 66: Not Allowed to Return
Chapter 66: Not Allowed to Return
"Your aunt has been gone for so long, she should have brought Ah Ping back by now, what took you so long?"
Mrs. Wu stood at the kitchen door, looking out into the yard from time to time and sighing subconsciously.
Song Zhi was stirring the mung bean paste with a spatula while comforting Wu, "Grandma, don't worry. Auntie has to go back to her parents' house. She might be kept there by them for a chat."
Having said that, Wu couldn't let go of her worries because she couldn't see anyone.
Another half hour passed, and when the cakes were half done, the little ones who were waiting for their eldest brother to come home at the door shouted happily into the yard, "Grandma, Mom is back!"
Mrs. Wu was waiting anxiously, and when she heard this, her heart finally settled down.
She stood up from the kitchen, dusted herself off, and walked out.
When he saw only his daughter-in-law, his smile froze, "Where's Ah Ping? Why didn't she come back with you?"
Yang said with a worried look on her face, "Mother, the Wang family won't let us go. They say they'll have to pay back the sheep they lost before they can come back. Otherwise, they'll have to work for the Wang family to pay off the debt."
"I'll give it back to them when I've paid off the debt!"
After hearing this, Mrs. Wu slapped her thigh anxiously, but she was helpless.
She sighed deeply, "The money from the last medicine sale is still with me. Tomorrow you will take the money and compensate the Wang family."
Mrs. Wu thought about how powerful the Wang family was, and wondered if her eldest son and grandson were being tortured there. She couldn't help but burst into tears for a moment!
Why is their family so difficult?
When Song Zhi heard that her elder brother had not returned from the kitchen, she hurriedly scooped up the half-fried mung bean paste and put it aside.
When she came out, she heard her grandmother asking for compensation.
Her uncle and his family lost the Wang family's sheep. She heard it from her aunt when her second grandmother came to ask for money last time. As for the details of the matter, Song Zhi really had never asked.
She hurried forward and comforted the tearful mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. After their emotions calmed down a little, Song Zhi asked, "Auntie, I haven't asked you this before. The Wang family said that the uncle lost his sheep. What's going on?"
Yang wiped her tears and said, "Your uncle and your elder brother, besides weeding the fields during the day, take advantage of the lush spring grass to go up the mountain to cut grass, feed the livestock, and clean the pens."
"In addition to these nights, we are also responsible for guarding the livestock that have been driven back to the pens."
"Somehow, the correct number of livestock was brought back that day. But the next morning, when we let them out, the tenant farmer in charge of herding the sheep said one was missing. Your uncle was responsible for this, and he was asked to pay the price."
"How can we possibly afford to pay you back? Look, the manager is asking your uncle and brother to work off the debt!"
There seemed to be nothing wrong with what he said, and the responsibility did lie with his uncle, but Song Zhi still couldn't help but frown.
With my uncle and cousin being so cautious, how could they have lost the sheep?
Song Zhi was puzzled, so she asked, "Did Uncle say anything was wrong that day? How could there be only one sheep missing?"
Yang shook her head at first. It had been several months, so how could she explain it clearly?
Song Zhi asked in a different way, "Then uncle and the others could be sure that there were quite a few sheep when they entered the pen?"
Yang nodded, "Your eldest brother said that he counted everything."
"Did anything happen while you were guarding the sheepfold that night? Did you hear any noises? Were your uncle and the others fast asleep? Or were they sent away by someone?"
After Song Zhi's guidance, Yang suddenly remembered something, "Your uncle said that he and your eldest brother both had diarrhea that day and went to the toilet three or four times at night..."
Mrs. Wu also realized it later, "Could it be that it was stolen by the tenant who lived with me?"
Song Zhi sneered, "I don't know who stole it, but it must have been someone. I even suspect that my uncle and my eldest brother were drugged. Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence that they had diarrhea not in the morning or in the evening, but at night when they had to keep watch, and what's more, they both happened to have diarrhea at the same time."
"When something is out of the ordinary, there must be something fishy going on. I don't believe in such coincidences."
"Just by such a coincidence, the sheep was lost. This makes me think a lot!"
Song Zhi even thought more, wondering if the other party did it on purpose, crying "stop thief" so that her uncle and elder brother would continue to work for the Wang family for free.
After listening to her granddaughter's analysis, Mrs. Wu could no longer sit still. She had never thought about it in this way before and just thought that the father and son had accidentally done the wrong thing.
Or maybe it was just bad luck that I encountered such a misfortune.
Mrs. Wu was a little anxious and didn't want her son and grandson to work in such an environment.
If the thief has evil intentions again and steals more sheep but the thief cannot be caught, the loss will have to be borne by their family. Wouldn't they, father and son, have to work as hard labor for the Wang family for the rest of their lives?
Thinking of this, Wu couldn't help but shudder. "Mei Niang, I'll get you the money right away. Go and give the compensation to the Wang family and bring them back."
At this moment, she no longer cared about not offending the Wang family. She couldn't let the two main laborers of the family be employed by the Wang family anyway.
Song Zhi didn't expect that after persuading her grandmother for so long, she still couldn't convince the old lady to take the child home.
If she had known that analysis was so effective, she should have started on this matter earlier.
But even if the real murderer cannot be found now and she really needs compensation, she doesn't intend to just give the money over.
Otherwise, wouldn't it appear that you are weak and incompetent, and are just a fat sheep that can be exploited at will?
Song Zhi already had an idea of how to deal with it.
She said to the two people who were already scared out of their wits, "Grandma, you're just giving money away now, and they think we're easy to bully!"
“Besides, it’s getting late now.
Leave this matter to me. Tomorrow I will go to the county town to deliver the goods and, by the way, take advantage of the county magistrate's influence and do something that is like a fox borrowing the power of a tiger."
Mrs. Wu didn't know what her granddaughter was going to do, but seeing how confident she was in what she said, she must have an idea.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law subconsciously regarded her as the backbone.
Wu said, "Then I'll leave this matter to you. I'll bring you compensation for the sheep later."
Song Zhi did not refuse. She was confident that she could bring the person back safely, but it would be difficult to refuse the compensation.
After all, the sheep was indeed lost by my uncle and eldest brother, and they have to bear the loss until the real thief is caught.
Because of this incident, Song Zhi postponed her plan to find someone. Her elder brother had not returned yet, and she had to go to the county town tomorrow to sell goods and redeem the person.
It would be better for her to be present when picking forsythia leaves for the first time. Song Zhi also needed to explain in advance what kind of leaves to pick and what the standards were.
Besides, Mrs. Wu was still a little dazed at this time, and it was not a good time to discuss things. When her granddaughter made this suggestion, she agreed without thinking!