The Peasant Wife: The Prime Minister's Beloved

After she finished speaking, there was a glimmer of hope in her eyes, and she looked at Old Mrs. Chen expectantly, hoping to get a positive answer.

"What! This girl actually spends money like that and doesn't say a word about her own family affairs. She is simply ungrateful and has no regard for family ties!" There was a layer of anger and disappointment in Old Mrs. Chen's voice that was hard to conceal.

"Mom, you see, you can't confront Chen Xi head-on. She is just like her mother in terms of stubbornness. Once she makes up her mind, even ten cows can't pull her back." Zhou Xuemei advised, with a hint of helplessness in her tone.

When Old Lady Chen heard this, her brows furrowed. Chen Xi's stubborn look flashed through her mind, and she couldn't help but sigh in her heart.

Indeed, a hard attack would not work. Since the money in the family had disappeared and he could not even afford one or two taels of silver, he could only try to touch Chen Xi's heart with gentle means.

Old Mrs. Chen silently guessed that the child must have a lot of money hidden in his pockets.

Now that you have decided to use soft and hard methods, you have to plan it carefully.

After conspiring with Zhou Xuemei, the two decided to visit Chen Xi in person and have a conversation with him.

At this time, Chen Xi was accompanying Mrs. Xiong home. As soon as he entered the yard, he saw the clothes he had taken off after taking a bath last night still piled there, with no one paying attention to them.

Without saying a word, she picked up her clothes and walked straight to the river, intending to finish her housework as soon as possible.

Zhou Xuemei and Old Lady Chen supported each other all the way, and walked unsteadily to the door of the Xie family, knocking on the door with great anticipation.

Unexpectedly, the person who opened the door was Xie Tianyi. He briefly explained that Chen Xi was washing clothes by the river at the moment, and then politely but firmly closed the door, leaving them with a resolute back.

Chen Xi once privately warned Xie Tianyi that it would be better to keep a distance from the complicated relatives of the Chen family. They were like a plague that was difficult to get rid of and should be avoided as much as possible.

Zhou Xuemei and Old Lady Chen, who were refused entry, were unwilling to leave. They spat at the closed door, cursed, and left with complaints.

Along the river bank, the clear water sparkles in the sun, making it a great place for villagers to wash clothes.

Chen Xi's arrival caused a small excitement. Neighbors stopped what they were doing, greeted her, and admired her generosity in helping Mrs. Xiong.

Everyone secretly regretted why they didn't establish a friendly relationship with Chen Xi earlier, so as to avoid being envied now.

Chen Xi was scrubbing the clothes intently, his eyes accidentally sweeping across the river bank, just in time to catch the sight of Zhou Xuemei and Old Lady Chen supporting each other and walking slowly towards them.

She pretended not to see it and turned her head slightly to the side.

An auntie nearby noticed this scene and whispered in Chen Xi's ear: "Chen Xi, Old Madam Chen and your sister-in-law are here to see you. I see they look strange. They must be looking for you for something."

Chen Xi nodded gently, with a faint smile on his face, "I saw it, but I just don't want to pay attention to them."

Zhou Xuemei squeezed next to Chen Xi, with a kind smile on her face: "Hey, Chen Xi, you are here. We just went to your house to look for you, but found that you were not there. It was Xiao Xie who told us that you might be by the river."

Chen Xi raised his eyebrows slightly, secretly praising Xie Tianyi's clever move. This was the most appropriate way to deal with such an uninvited interruption.

Seeing that Chen Xi was unmoved, Zhou Xuemei became anxious and quickly winked at Old Lady Chen, indicating that it was time for her to take the stage, intending to weaken Chen Xi's defenses through a tender offensive.

"Girl, it looks like your clothes are almost done, do you need us to help you?"

Old Mrs. Chen spoke in a gentle tone, and her attitude as a kindly grandmother was quite realistic. Unfortunately, only she herself knew what her intentions were.

"No need for that. I really can't accept such 'kindness'. Besides, there is no relationship between you and me, nor a deep friendship. Why force it?"

Chen Xi's words clearly drew the line, and each word revealed determination. A reasonable person could understand the measure and distance between them.

"Oh, child, how can you say that? We share the same blood. Even if we encounter a storm, the bond between our families will not be easily broken. This is a fact that no one can change."

Seeing that direct requests failed, Old Lady Chen adopted a more emotional strategy, trying to use the rope of family affection to pull Chen Xi into her camp.

There was a hint of eagerness in her eyes and her tone was full of expectation. She seemed to firmly believe that as long as the emotional card was played well, everything was possible.

At this moment, Chen Xi was no longer the silly girl who accepted everything as she wished.

"Just speak frankly. What new tricks do you have today? My time is extremely valuable and I don't have the energy to waste it on meaningless small talk." Chen Xi's eyes were calm and sharp, and he obviously knew their purpose.

He secretly guessed that since the family was in financial difficulty, they would not be able to scrape together even a tiny amount of the fifty taels of silver that Old Lady Chen had lost, and that was why he had to ask her for help.

Seeing that Chen Xi's attitude had not changed, Old Lady Chen approached again, with a bit of flattery in her words: "Chen Xi, look at the current situation. Although we are not close on weekdays, blood is thicker than water after all. A mere tael of silver is just a small favor to you. Why don't you help the Chen family through this difficult time? When we meet in the future, we can respect each other like guests and live in harmony. Isn't it better?"

Old Mrs. Chen knew very well that Chen Xi was now financially independent, and if he could improve his relationship with her, there would naturally be many benefits in the future.

There is a bit of shrewdness in weighing the pros and cons in this calculation.

"I have always been a solitary person, and I don't need others to deliberately show me kindness. I will naturally lend a hand to those who are willing to help; and for those who don't want to help, no matter how many sweet words I say, it will be in vain. For example, even if you kneel down and beg, I will not be moved."

Chen Xi's words were full of determination. The shameless behavior of the Chen family over the years, especially the ugly appearance at the time of the split, was still vivid in his mind.

At that time, she had to give up everything in exchange for the peaceful life she has today.

Being publicly rejected once again, Old Mrs. Chen felt utterly humiliated. There seemed to be no place to hide her embarrassment and shame. This scene undoubtedly announced to everyone that as an elder, she was not as dignified as an outsider.

"Chen Xi, I gave you a way out but you refused to take it. Why not exchange one tael of silver for peace? This tael of silver may be very valuable in our eyes, but to you, it's just a few hoes in the weed bush. You don't want us to be at loggerheads every day, do you?" There was a hint of helplessness and a hint of threat in Mrs. Chen's words.

Chen Xi just sneered, "Don't try to bind me with the shackles of morality. One tael of silver is indeed not much, but I won't give it away casually."