Chapter 172: Chapter 172: This Wasn’t a Loss
"You should go to the village chief about this, talking to me is useless. I have nothing to do with the Meng Family now," Meng Yao said flatly.
"I was just too scared and thought of you, Auntie," Meng Rongjin said with a pause.
Judging from his reaction, Meng Yao knew that coming to her wasn’t instinctual but deliberate.
Considering the Meng Family’s recent reputation in the village, everyone around must be minding their own business and keeping out of it.
Ju Xiang must have found some fierce people, and the onlookers must feel powerless.
If they went directly to the village chief, he would arrive quickly and arrange to block the attackers and save Meng Qingshan.
So this kid was deliberately dragging time, letting Meng Qingshan get beaten.
Indeed, it’s easy to guess that after Ju Xiang moved into the Meng Family with her son, Meng Rongjin, the eldest grandson of the Meng Family, must have lived uncomfortably without the protection of his parents and the Sun family.
Especially compared to the treatment Ju Xiang and her son received, Meng Rongjin couldn’t possibly feel good.
Meng Qingshan getting beaten doesn’t bother Meng Yao.
"Isn’t Ju Xiang supposed to stay with the Meng Family? Why does she want to leave all of a sudden?" Meng Yao asked.
"Today, she wanted something from Grandpa, but when Grandpa went to give it to her, he couldn’t find the silver," Meng Rongjin said. "Grandpa asked her if she took it. She said no, but Grandpa insisted it was impossible! They started arguing! Grandpa got furious and ended up hitting Ju Xiang."
Meng Rongjin was very clear and coherent.
"And then?" Meng Yao asked.
"Then Ju Xiang ran out and came back with a man, saying she was going to pack and leave. Ju Xiang said she couldn’t just leave after these days without some compensation, like taking the household’s grains instead of silver. Grandpa stopped her, and they got into a fight with the man."
"Ju Xiang said she wouldn’t have come to the Meng Family if she hadn’t known Grandpa had silver, and she also said Grandpa wasted her time."
"Grandpa wanted Ju Xiang to return the fifty pieces of silver she swindled from her previous engagement, and Ju Xiang said it had nothing to do with her, that Grandpa didn’t do his due diligence, and deserved it."
After asking about the ins and outs, Meng Yao gave heartfelt advice, "Rongjin, I can’t help you with this matter, you better go to the village chief. By the way, you better hide your grandpa’s silver carefully. Otherwise, if he finds out, it will be trouble for you."
He could neglect even Sun who bore him children and his sons and daughters-in-law.
It shows Meng Qingshan is the most ruthless and absolute in the Meng Family.
Meng Rongjin looked up at Meng Yao sharply, then bowed his head, "Auntie, I don’t understand what you’re saying."
"Nothing much, just think it over yourself. Also, an advice, don’t show off your wealth. Furthermore, with your parents and grandmother not here, it’s essential to have an adult in the Meng Family. Otherwise, your days may not be smooth," Meng Yao said.
Meng Rongjin gave Meng Yao a deep look, "Then Auntie, I’ll go find Village Chief Uncle."
After speaking, he turned and ran off.
"Mom, what did you mean by what you said to Rongjin just now?" Zhao Xiaohua asked curiously.
"Where do you think Old Meng’s silver went?" Meng Yao asked.
"Wasn’t it stolen?"
"The place where Old Meng hides his silver must be well-hidden, even that Ju Xiang doesn’t know where it is, do you think a thief could find it precisely?" Meng Yao tapped Zhao Xiaohua’s head.
Zhao Xiaohua suddenly realized, "So, Meng Rongjin is the thief crying ’stop thief’?"
"What you heard when digging shepherd’s purse today probably wasn’t far from the truth. Meng Rongjin was forced by circumstances, fearing his grandfather would foolishly give away all the household’s silver," Meng Yao said.
His actions aren’t admirable, but given the current situation, it seemed to be the best solution Meng Rongjin could think of.
He was preserving himself without anyone to protect him.
"Used to find Meng Rongjin quite annoying, but now, I kind of pity him," Zhao Xiaohua sighed.
"This is basically the wickedness of the elder being borne by the younger," Meng Yao said, "Come on, enough talk about them, let’s get back and eat."
Meng Rongjin isn’t dumb; he must have already found the village chief. Even if he doesn’t care for Meng Qingshan, he won’t ignore him.
Meng Yao latched the door and led Zhao Xiaohua back inside to continue eating.
Meng Yao’s dipping sauce was tasty, and everyone ate to their heart’s content.
Even Teacher Wang frankly said it was better than what he used to have at the restaurant, praising the sauce as so delicious it made him want to bite his tongue.
Meng Yao modestly smiled. In her mind, the dipping sauce is the soul of hotpot. The base can be random, but the dipping sauce cannot.
With clearly defined roles, they tidied up after the meal, and everyone went to their respective rooms to rest.
Early in the morning, Meng Yao and Song Xiu’er were preparing breakfast when Zheng Chunhua arrived without waiting to eat.
First, she knew Meng Yao was heading to Qingzhou Prefecture today, and second, she hurried to discuss last night’s incident at the Meng Family with Meng Yao.
"My big brother summoned a few strong men to tie them up and send them to the authorities, which scared Ju Xiang, who kept begging for mercy. Later, the village chief from her family’s village also came and promised to take her back for proper discipline to prevent her from ruining the village’s reputation. As for the man, he’s a cousin or something of Ju Xiang’s previous man,"
Zheng Chunhua gestured to Zhao Xiaohua and the others, "Adults are talking, you kids don’t need to eavesdrop."
Zhao Xiaohua pouted but obediently left with Wen Nuan and Zhao Xiaoshu.
"Ju Xiang’s relations are quite unclear," Zheng Chunhua continued.
Meng Yao wasn’t at all surprised, as it was expected.
"Anyway, it wasn’t an honorable incident. Rongjin also said the family has had too much trouble recently and didn’t want to make things bigger. They asked Ju Xiang and the man to cover the medical expenses, and they wouldn’t take them to court," Zheng Chunhua said, "In the end, Ju Xiang actually produced thirty pieces of silver."
"Wow, who would have thought Ju Xiang would really bring out thirty pieces of silver!" Zheng Chunhua exclaimed.
How could she not? Swindling for a marriage got her fifty, after all.
"When we got there, Old Meng had already fainted, but my brother-in-law checked him over, and it wasn’t too serious. Rongjin wasn’t panicking at all, handling everything methodically. He might turn out to be quite promising after all!" Zheng Chunhua said.
Meng Rongjin is indeed clever. Report the case, and there’ll be no hiding the fact he took the silver. Who knows what chaos would follow then?
By not reporting it, they could discuss Old Meng’s injuries and got some silver back, successfully getting rid of Ju Xiang and her son from the Meng Family.
The price of Old Meng taking a beating wasn’t too high.
Whether or not he turns out promising is up to the future.
Walk the right path, and he’ll have a good future.
But if his cleverness leads him astray, he could end up a troublemaker.
"It’s because none of the family can be relied on that he was forced to act this way," Meng Yao said.
Zheng Chunhua sighed, "You know, if the Meng Family didn’t stir up trouble, they could live so well?"
How could that be? Some people have trouble in their bones. Without causing trouble, they feel uncomfortable.
After sharing the news, Zheng Chunhua didn’t linger, wishing Meng Yao a safe journey and leaving.
Once she left, Meng Yao finally sat down to eat.
Halfway through the meal, Meng Rongjin returned.