Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

When Zhou Xiaonian saw the look in his father’s and uncle’s eyes, he knew this was bad. Although he was furious with his wife for causing trouble, an old saying goes that a single day as husband and wife warrants a hundred days of grace. They had been married for several years, and their child was already two. ’How can we just divorce her at the drop of a hat?’

He braced himself and said to Li Gengtian, "Uncle Li, everything requires evidence. We can’t just definitively say my wife did this..."

"Shut up!" Zhou Baozhu roared, cutting him off before he could finish.

Of course he knew what his son was thinking. ’But so what if there’s no evidence?’ he thought. ’Even if this investigation goes nowhere and we have to let it go, everyone will know Xiaonian’s wife was the one who did it. Do you think you’ll have an easy time after that? They might not be able to punish you openly, but they can certainly curse you behind your back!’

’Besides, that woman was acting strange when she came back last night, constantly smirking to herself like she’d struck gold. He’d been confused at the time, but after hearing what Li Gengtian had to say, he finally understood. She’d been playing her petty little games to harm someone again, foolishly thinking she was smart enough to get away with it. If he didn’t divorce her, was he supposed to wait for someone else to come to their door and curse his grandson, just like Big Mouth Zhao did?!’

Seeing his nephew’s reluctance, Shorty Zhou shot him a look as sharp as a knife. "Your wife is like this, and you think you have any dignity left? Is that it? If you want to stay with her, fine. Then you can both get the hell out! Save the Zhou family from being cursed to have no descendants behind our backs. No, I’m afraid they’ll curse us to our faces! Didn’t Big Mouth Zhao already do it once?"

These words struck a chord with Zhou Baozhu. He said to his son, "It’s not that we’re being heartless. Who would dare keep a troublemaking wife like her? You’re only thinking about your marital bond, but if she keeps this up, she’ll end up taking our whole family down with her."

It wasn’t just the Zheng and Li families Xiaonian’s wife had offended. By pulling this stunt in the workshop, she had enraged everyone. All the people who had their pay docked or had fallen under suspicion—every single one of them hated her.

And so, their family headed to the workshop with Li Gengtian, encountering Zheng Changhe, Li Mingtang, and their group along the way. The moment they met, a fresh round of vicious insults erupted. The raw, brawling energy of villagers arguing was on full display, making for quite a scene and drawing a crowd of idle spectators.

As it turned out, when Li Mingtang had shown up early that morning demanding an explanation, Zheng Changhe had no idea what was going on. After hearing the story, he asked angrily, "It wasn’t my Qingmu who locked the door, was it? Third Uncle, you come to me for an explanation, but who am I supposed to go to for one? My Qingmu is an engaged man! His reputation is very important. If his future in-laws hear about this, they’ll be furious!"

Li Mingtang was furious and roared back, "Who put him in charge of the workshop, then? When something like this happens, shouldn’t he take responsibility? If he’s not capable of managing it, then he shouldn’t! There are plenty of other people in the village who can!"

Yang Family, standing nearby, heard this and wouldn’t have it. "Who do you think wanted to be in charge? I was doing just fine making and selling my own sausages! This is a case of a dog trying to catch mice—meddling in things that aren’t your business! We tried to help everyone make money, and what do we get? Not a good reputation, just a load of trouble!"

Li Mingtang then berated Yang Family, saying it was improper for a woman to be interrupting with her opinions and gestures when men were talking instead of keeping her distance.

Yang Family retorted that she, a woman, also knew to stay at home, but Third Uncle, for a paltry wage, had sent his unmarried granddaughter to work in the workshop, and now her Qingmu was taking the blame for it.

This left Li Mingtang sputtering with rage!

When Li Mingrui arrived, panting, he barely caught his breath before scolding Li Mingtang, saying that for a man his age to be involved in such a shameful affair, he must be getting senile. He told him to go home at once and let the young ones sort it out themselves.

But Li Mingtang was dead set on it today and wouldn’t listen to his older brother’s advice at all. The two of them started arguing again, with Zheng Changhe and Yang Family jumping in to bicker from time to time. The chaotic scene of everyone talking past each other gave Juhua a headache. ’I just don’t get it,’ she thought. ’Both sides should be looking for the person who locked the door, so why are they arguing with each other instead?’

’Also, even after living here for so many years, I still can’t fathom Li Mingtang’s thinking. Is he trying to marry Jinling off to Qingmu, or is he trying to get Qingmu kicked out of his steward position? In my opinion, either way, the Li Family won’t come out ahead—they would have to sacrifice Jinling’s reputation.’

Feeling helpless, she reminded her parents to go to the workshop for a face-to-face confrontation and find the troublemaker first. Meanwhile, she herself went to find Liu Xiaomei and called for Jinxiang to go help console Jinling.

And so, in the dead of winter, with a biting wind scouring the outdoors, the crowd marched toward the workshop. They strode with arms swinging, eyes spitting fire, sucking cold air into their noses and puffing hot breath from their mouths. Their valiant, forward-charging momentum was so fierce it seemed the bitter cold itself would retreat in deference, not daring to assail them.

Arriving at the workshop courtyard, they said a word to Big Mouth Zhao, who was guarding the gate as ordered, and went inside. They could hear that inside the workshop, Qingmu was investigating last night’s events. The suspects were arguing heatedly, and as they talked, tempers flared, and they were about to start swearing on their sons’ lives again.

Zhou Baozhu, trembling with rage, could no longer hold back. He burst in and roared at his daughter-in-law to stop.

’Are there really gods watching from just three feet above? He didn’t know if that was true or not, but he only had one grandson, and he absolutely could not allow anyone to curse him.’

Qingmu, his face taut, had Big Mouth Zhao and the others bring out stools and arrange for the elders to sit. He then turned and stared coldly at Zhou Xiaonian, his gaze sweeping over Shorty Zhou and Zhou Baozhu, his expression one of a man who would not rest until this was settled.

Everyone in the workshop stared at the Zhou family, waiting to see what they would say.

Zhou Baozhu’s face was ashen, Shorty Zhou’s was dark with rage. Both of them glared at Xiaonian’s wife, whose face was the color of dead ash. Their murderous gazes were too much for her to bear, and she turned a terrified, pleading look to Zhou Xiaonian.

Zhou Xiaonian, heartbroken and crestfallen, lowered his head in helpless sorrow.

Xiaonian’s wife despaired, her eyes begging the two Zhou brothers not to punish her too severely.

Zhou Baozhu said with a wooden expression, "Caihua, you’re really something else! The Zhou family can’t afford a daughter-in-law like you—you should just go back to your parents’ home! Xiaonian!" He gestured for his son to go pull his wife up, then turned to Qingmu and said, "Is Steward Zheng satisfied now?" (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian.com to vote with recommendation tickets or monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)