Chapter 3: IOU
Ji Zhao smiled bitterly and shook her head. “Second Sister-in-law, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pushed you like that yesterday, let alone scolded Eldest Sister-in-law. I know my mistake.”
Hearing this, Second Sister-in-law Shen was even more puzzled. She narrowed her eyes and sized up the sky.
Didn’t the sun rise from the west this morning?
“Ahem, don’t think that Eldest Sister-in-law and I will forgive you just because you apologized!” Second Sister-in-law Shen looked at her angrily and turned to leave.
She did not want to be associated with a shameless person like Ji Ah Tao!
Ji Zhao lowered her head in disappointment.
Sigh, the Host was too hateful. It seemed that it was not so easy to repair the relationship between the Host and her two sister-in-laws.
Ji Zhao walked out of the house and stood in the courtyard, carefully sizing up the surroundings.
Shen Dashan and Zhao Lanhua were famous for their diligence in Shanghe Village. The couple worked hard and built a courtyard ten years ago. The old couple lived in the main house. There were three houses parallel to the east, which were the three Shen brothers’ houses. The kitchen and woodshed were in the west, and the courtyard doors were made of red bricks and low walls.
On the west side of the courtyard, near the kitchen, were three vats, one big and two small.
Ji Zhao thought for a moment and walked to the front of the large clay vat. She stuck her head out and gasped.
A thick white band was wrapped around her head, making her look like a mummy.
She leaned closer to see her face clearly. Her willowy eyebrows were arched, and her almond-shaped eyes were like water…
“What are you doing? Are you going to throw yourself into the well? Let me tell you, even if you want to die, don’t die in the Shen family and bring us bad luck!” A scolding voice suddenly came from behind.
Ji Zhao turned around in a panic and explained carefully, “Sister-in-law…”
“Pfft! I’m a hen that doesn’t lay eggs. How am I worthy of being Big Beauty Ji’s sister-in-law?” The eldest sister-in-law of the Shen family, who was wearing a sky-blue rough dress, put her hands on her hips and retorted angrily.
“Sister-in-law, I…”
“Mother is looking for you!” The eldest sister-in-law of the Shen family left after saying this.
Ji Zhao shrugged weakly and walked into the hall with her head lowered.
The hall in the middle was very spacious. What came into view was a square table with red paint and four long dark red stools. There was a low bench made of bamboo against the wall.
At this moment, Zhao Lanhua was sitting at the square table, looking at the peach-colored figure who had entered the room with a complicated expression.
“…Mother?” Ji Zhao looked down at her toes and called out softly.
“Have a seat.” Zhao Lanhua looked at her and sighed regretfully.
Ji Zhao had a bad feeling.
She sat down obediently and carefully looked up. Her hands were nervously intertwined and she did not know what to say for a moment.
“I know it’s hard on you to marry Sanlang.” Zhao Lanhua looked into her eyes and said sincerely, “A few days ago, when I brought the matchmaker to your Pomegranate Village, I made it clear in front of your grandmother. As long as you focus on treating Sanlang well, our Shen family is not the kind of family that will be harsh on our daughter-in-laws. Now that money is tight, when you married into our family, the Shen family only gave your family two taels of silver and half a bag of flour and half a bag of sorghum.”
“If this was during a thriving year, our family wouldn’t care about these things…” Zhao Lanhua said gently. “But the current year is really too bad. There’s been a drought for an entire year. Just your Pomegranate Village alone has starved seven families to death this year… I asked Sanlang this morning. The two of you didn’t consummate your marriage last night. Since your mind isn’t with the Shen family, we won’t make things difficult for you.”
Zhao Lanhua raised her hand and knocked lightly on the table. “Including the betrothal money and the silver you took from the Shen family, it adds up to a total of twelve taels. This is an IOU. You need to repay this money within two years. The other letter is a divorce letter that Sanlang has already written and signed.”
Ji Zhao was stunned…