The Peasant Wife: The Prime Minister's Beloved

I had hoped to collect more mushrooms from the mountains during the harvest season to add a touch of warmth to my difficult days, but I never imagined that this meager hope would become a heavy stone weighing on my heart, and I couldn't even meet the minimum requirement to pay it into the national treasury.

"Alas, the difficulties in this day and age are even more rugged than a mountain road. Where can we find such a large piece of silver?" said an old lady, with a voice full of helplessness and lamentation.

"That's right. If we don't pay the money, the land that our ancestors have cultivated for generations will be taken back. Isn't this obviously leaving us starving?" The uncle next to him took over the conversation, his tone full of indignation.

"I originally thought that these mushrooms could help my family feel more relaxed, but who would have thought that such a Cheng Yaojin would appear halfway and disrupt all my plans."

People walked and talked, and dissatisfaction and anxiety quietly spread among the crowd.

The old lady of the Chen family lagged behind a few steps due to her difficulty walking. She listened quietly to the discussion of the crowd with a barely perceptible bitter smile on her lips, but did not participate in it.

Zhou Xuemei caught these words and turned to ask Mrs. Chen: "Mom, I heard that every household in the village has to take out one or two taels of silver. Can everyone take out that?"

Old Mrs. Chen curled her lips slightly. "Whether you can take it or not, what can we do? The village chief has made it clear. If you can't take it out, you will be thrown away. Would you rather suffer the loss of one tael of silver now, or have a stomachache every day in the future?"

Zhou Xuemei nodded as if she understood, and then asked with a slight roll of her eyes, "Then can our family gather together this tael of silver?"

Old Mrs. Chen's mind was as clear as a mirror, so how could she not understand Zhou Xuemei's inner thoughts.

"All the money in the family has been spent on the most important things, so how can there be any extra money? I can only wait for Zhenwen and Zhenwu to get their wages, and see if I can make up the difference. Anyway, I can't squeeze out a penny."

As Old Mrs. Chen spoke, she was secretly proud of herself. She kept the fifty taels of silver she had hidden away a secret and always cried poor on weekdays.

Even if she didn't take out the money, it would be useless, but she knew it.

Zhou Xuemei naturally didn't believe that Old Lady Chen hadn't prepared a way out for her, but the old lady just didn't want to reveal it.

As for the specific amount of the pension money, although Zhou Xuemei couldn't guess it, but from the clues occasionally revealed by Old Mrs. Chen, she vaguely felt that it must be enough to prepare a decent coffin.

As the sun sets, Zhou Xuemei supports old lady Chen and slowly walks home step by step.

The two men sat on old wooden chairs, breathing heavily.

"Mom, why hasn't my sister-in-law come back yet? I'm taking care of the family by myself, and I really can't hold on any longer. If I collapse from exhaustion, who will you rely on?" Zhou Xuemei's voice was filled with fatigue and resentment.

Old Mrs. Chen sighed in pretended distress: "I'm not too sure. Didn't I ask Zhenwu to pick them up a few days ago? Cuicui said she hadn't had enough fun and didn't want to come back. I was helpless."

"What should I do now? There are so many things to do at home. How can I handle them all by myself? My old back pain comes back. I can't straighten my back if I get a little tired."

Tears welled up in Zhou Xuemei's eyes. Her aggrieved look was enough to make anyone feel pity for her.

When Mrs. Chen heard this, a trace of calculation flashed in her eyes, and then she gently comforted her, "Mother knows how hard it is for you, and I will find a way to make it up to you. On your birthday, I will give you the gold bracelet that I have been hiding."

This promise made the little flower in Zhou Xuemei's heart bloom instantly.

She had long coveted that heavy gold bracelet, but Chen Zhenwen always refused, saying that he had to save money for Dabao's future schooling and asked her to save money.

Now, hearing what Old Mrs. Chen said, my heart suddenly filled with joy, as if the glittering golden bracelet was already on my wrist.

Her face maintained its usual gentleness, with the corners of her mouth slightly raised, brilliant and with a hint of secret joy.

"Then I will work harder and do a few more days to save enough money as soon as possible. Zheng Cuihua can't always be like this, running back to her parents' home from time to time and staying there for several days."

"That's right. I'll have to have a good talk with her later and make her understand. Please bear with me for a few more days. I know clearly who is sincere for this family and who is just talking big. I will never let your hard work go to waste."

Old Mrs. Chen was best at using her gentle words to soothe Zhou Xuemei's heart, but Zhou Xuemei had no resistance to this and was always easily comforted.

Zhou Xuemei's eyes rolled, and she suddenly came up with an idea: "Mom, if we really can't gather the money by then, why don't we go to the Xie family and try? They are well-off and may be able to help."

"I have thought about this a long time ago, but I am afraid that Chen Xi has been avoiding our family since the misunderstanding at the clinic. I am embarrassed to bother her again, after all, I have already promised not to cause her any more trouble."

When Mrs. Chen said this, a trace of embarrassment flashed across her cheeks. It was obvious that the unfinished request made her feel quite embarrassed.

"That's what I said, but this matter concerns our family's livelihood. Chen Xi is a relative after all, and she should lend us a hand. Blood ties are not something that can be severed so easily."

"Well, let's wait for some time, and I'll shamelessly give it a try to see if she can help us out of our old friendship."

At this moment, Old Mrs. Chen still did not reveal the fifty taels of silver she had hidden away.

On the other side, Xu Gaoping hurried home after the meeting. As soon as he stepped into the yard, he couldn't wait to hold his little granddaughter Qiaoer in his arms.

Qiao'er is the apple of his eye. Whenever he is at home, he always holds her in his arms lovingly, fearing that this little girl will suffer any injustice.

After her daughter Xu Jing divorced, she moved back to her parents' home with Qiao'er.

When I saw my father today, I couldn't help but share the latest news in the village: "Dad, do you know? I saw Xie Tianyi at the entrance of the village today. His leg looks completely recovered, and he walks as smoothly as before."

Xu Gaoping knew his daughter's thoughts very well. When he heard this, he had already guessed some of Xu Jing's intentions.

"Don't let your imagination run wild. Xie Tianyi is already married. She's the Chen Xi I mentioned, the girl you met when you went mushroom picking. You're not even a little bit inferior to her."

Xu Gaoping was eager to throw cold water on his daughter to prevent her from getting deeper and deeper into trouble and ultimately embarrassing everyone.

"She? Why is she worthy of Xie Tianyi!"

"She's not worthy of him, so how can you be any better? You're divorced with your child, and Chen Xi is still an unmarried girl. The difference is huge."

Faced with his daughter's reluctance, Xu Gaoping was merciless, because he understood that only by pointing it out frankly could he make Xu Jing give up that unrealistic idea.