"Shen family's daughter-in-law, what are you doing!"
At this moment, the village chief, who was on the outermost periphery, had to step forward.
It was nothing for a couple to argue and curse, but if they resorted to physical violence, Qiao Ci would be at a disadvantage. If Shen Si were truly enraged, he wouldn't be able to protect Qiao Ci.
"Village chief, they are pushing their luck too far. They've brought a mistress right into the house, and I'm truly at my wit's end. Today, it's either we both suffer, or I will get to the bottom of this with them." Qiao Ci knew that the people in this village were not inherently bad. They had always helped the original owner when she was difficult to deal with because of the children, and to some extent, they would assist the original owner.
She was also willing to show them some respect and give them an explanation.
"What mistress? I can report you to the authorities for such slander!" Lou Qing looked at Qiao Ci with disdain. Her current status was that of a princess; crushing an ignorant woman was as easy as crushing an ant.
Qiao Ci shrugged her shoulders, "Then go ahead and report it. That way, the authorities can see whether you are still a virgin. You gave yourself to a married man before you were even wed. You're quite something, aren't you." Qiao Ci scanned her up and down meaningfully.
As soon as she finished speaking, the entire village turned to point and whisper at Lou Qing, their gazes as if they were stripping Lou Qing naked.
"You're talking nonsense!" Lou Qing retorted instinctively.
"I don't have time for your nonsense. Let's get to the main point," Qiao Ci said, looking at Shen Si, who had been helped to sit in a wheelchair.
"When I married into the Shen family, I diligently took care of you and the children, even better than their own mother. Is that not true?"
Shen Si's eyes flickered, but everyone had witnessed Qiao Ci's actions. He couldn't lie and could only suppress his mockery, nodding, "What exactly are you going to say today?"
"Every day, I wake up early to cook, stay up late to mend clothes, and do it all without complaint. However, your children are a pack of ungrateful wolves. No matter how much I pour my heart into caring for them, they still look down on me, thinking I'm not good enough for you. Is that not true?" Qiao Ci turned to the children and asked.
"Hmph, you're not good enough for my father! My father was a great general before! You're just a village girl, and Father just bought you to serve us six siblings!" Shen Er felt he knew the answer and quickly chimed in.
Shen Yi, standing beside him, couldn't stop him in time.
Shen Si also glanced at Shen Er. Although his eyes held a warning, there was no blame.
It was good. They could settle everything today, and then he could divorce this wicked woman, giving Lou Qing an explanation.
Lou Qing had already given herself to him. He couldn't let her remain in this ambiguous state with him.
"Oh? You also think I'm not good enough for you, Shen Si?" Qiao Ci looked at Shen Si.
Shen Si observed Qiao Ci with a scrutinizing gaze, feeling that she was different from before.
Could it be that being with Lou Qing for these three days had stimulated her?
"Whether you're good enough or not, don't you know in your heart?" He didn't answer directly, but everyone could hear the disdain in his tone.
"I am a pure maiden from a respectable family. I'm not worthy of you, a crippled scumbag with six ungrateful burdens? Do you have a misunderstanding of yourself?" Qiao Ci said, glancing dismissively at his leg.
"Qiao Ci, how can you be so malicious? Shen Si's leg injury was sustained in battle. He is a hero, a God of War, our protector!" Lou Qing did not want Qiao Ci to know that Shen Si's leg injury would heal, so she didn't mention it.
Shen Si straightened his back with Lou Qing's words!
He was once a God of War, and he would become a God of War again after his injuries recovered!
Qiao Ci knew the original plot and couldn't help but laugh, "A God of War who, for his own selfish gain, pursued the enemy relentlessly, causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of soldiers? A protector?"
Shen Si's pupils contracted. How could Qiao Ci know this!!!
Thinking about it, he blurted out, "How do you know?"
After speaking, he realized he had said too much and looked at Qiao Ci resentfully, labeling her, "Speak! Are you a spy sent by the Di people?!"
Qiao Ci was almost amused to death, "From the time I was born until now, everyone in the neighboring village and our village knows. What, have I touched a nerve, and you're lashing out in anger?"
The villagers knew that Shen Si had been a high official in the capital. They couldn't imagine how high, and the figure of one hundred thousand was a astronomical number to them. Upon hearing this, they all looked at Qiao Ci in astonishment.
The village chief stepped forward, his expression stern, "Qiao Ci, some things can be said, and some things cannot. Do not let jealousy cloud your mind."
"Thank you for your concern, village chief. I am speaking the truth. One day, Shen Si's old illness flared up, and he had a fever all night. I served him without rest for the entire night. He himself told me that his impulsiveness had caused the deaths of those hundred thousand soldiers," Qiao Ci explained.
By clarifying everything and making the original owner's suffering public, it would be easier to proceed with the next steps.
"Village chief, I have another matter here, and I would like everyone to bear witness," Qiao Ci said again.
"Speak," the village chief had a good impression of Qiao Ci, especially after hearing that Shen Si might bear the responsibility for the lives of a hundred thousand soldiers. He felt even more pity for Qiao Ci.
It was fine if the royal family did not pursue the matter, but if they did, Qiao Ci, as his subsequent wife, would not escape.
"Since marrying Shen Si, I have managed the household frugally and taken good care of my stepchildren, yet I have not received any kindness from them. The children are ungrateful wretches, slandering me everywhere. It's bad enough that my husband is useless, but he also behaves inappropriately with other women in front of me, even engaging in illicit acts."
Shen Si glared at Qiao Ci upon hearing this, "Qiao Ci, if you continue to speak nonsense, I will kill you!"
The village chief's face immediately turned serious, "Who do you want to kill? Our village does not harbor murderers!"
"Shen family's wife, please continue. I'll see how he kills you!"
The village chief was always upright and worked hard to lead the village to prosperity. He was not afraid of Shen Si!
Qiao Ci's eyes twinkled with a smile, "I've also thought it through recently. Rather than staying here and disgusting myself, I might as well divorce him. From now on, we will go our separate ways, and I would like everyone to bear witness."
Lou Qing's eyes lit up with joy, thinking that Qiao Ci was sensible after all.
Shen Si, with his male chauvinism, disagreed, "No! I do not agree to a divorce! I will divorce her!"
"You disagree to a divorce? That's fine too," Qiao Ci nodded very amiably, "Then I will divorce you. Although there has never been an instance of a woman divorcing a man, I will set this precedent."
"You!" Shen Si was so angry that his leg, which had just undergone surgery, started to bleed.
Qiao Ci didn't want to listen to him. She walked back into the house, scribbled a few strokes, wrote a divorce letter, and threw it at Shen Si's face, "I, Qiao Ci, hereby divorce Shen Si, who fails to fulfill his husbandly duties and is always lecherous!"
Lou Qing definitely couldn't let Shen Si endure this humiliation and stepped forward to protest, "This is invalid! How can a woman divorce a man?"
"Then how can it be valid? Is it only valid if everyone sees you and Shen Si engaging in illicit acts?" Qiao Ci didn't show her any respect.