Ugly girl only wants to farm

Meng Jiuhe stood there dumbfounded. He never expected that his grandmother would appear here and fall to the ground in such a disheveled state.

When Grandmother Meng saw that no one was paying attention to her fall, she was both anxious and angry and started wailing at Meng Jiuhe again: "Grandson, my eldest grandson, why don't you come and help your grandmother? We've come all this way to see you, are you so happy that you've gone crazy? What are you doing standing there like this?"

Zhang Xuyang gently nudged Meng Jiuhe: "Hey, snap out of it! That really is your grandmother! How come you've never mentioned her before? She's still lying on the ground like that, aren't you going to help her up?"

Meng Jiuhe still did not respond.

"There are people coming and going outside, and people are gathered everywhere. It doesn't seem right for the old lady to be lying on the ground all the time."

Seeing that Meng Jiuhe still looked dazed, he quickly spoke up to remind him.

Xu Chaoyan never expected the old woman to be so impatient to complain, and ended up falling flat on her face.

Meng Jiuhe then realized what was happening and, urged by Zhang Xuyang, went over and helped the person up, but his voice was cold and his tone was devoid of warmth.

"Grandmother, you were staying at your aunt's house perfectly fine, why did you come here? Your aunt mistreated you."

Grandmother Meng raised her hand and wiped away non-existent dust from her face. Then she spoke with a pitiful expression.

“My grandson, you’re finally back! I have something to tell you: get that ugly woman divorced right now. This is how she mistreats your grandmother. Your aunt and I struggled all the way to the county, and this is how she treats us. Waaah!”

As she continued her incessant rambling, Meng Jiuhe's brows furrowed almost imperceptibly. Looking impatient, she raised her voice slightly: "Grandmother, I'm asking what you've come here for?"

"Of course I came to see my dear grandson! You've been away from home studying for so long. You didn't even come home to see your grandmother during the New Year. I've lost weight from missing you so much."

Zhang Xuyang's lips twitched repeatedly. Was this what they called losing weight? He was as strong as an ox and had a loud voice.

Meng Xiuzhi then stumbled and walked over.

“Nephew, nephew, you have to stand up for your aunts today. This ugly woman bullied us while you were away and didn’t even give us food. Look, she almost broke my aunt’s legs. She needs to drink some bone broth and rest for a hundred days to recover.”

Seeing her twisting the truth, Xu Chaoyan really wanted to punch her a couple of times. This woman's ability to distort the truth was truly masterful. And to think she'd raise her for a hundred days? Was she dreaming?

Seeing that the mother and daughter had ruined their shop's business, Xu Chaoyan's expression wasn't much better. She walked over and pointed behind her to Meng Jiuhe.

"Take them to the backyard for a while. I need to attend to other guests right now, so don't let them interfere with business."

The two originally intended to stay on the ground and argue incessantly, but after seeing Meng Jiu's cold gaze, they sheepishly stood up.

Meng Xiuzhi, supporting her aching back, smiled obsequiously: "Nephew, we're tired too, so we'll go rest in the backyard. Have Xia bring us some food. Our stomachs are empty, and our legs are trembling from walking."

Xu Chaoyan then busied herself with greeting the regular customers: "I'm really sorry for today, everyone. I'll bring a small dish to each table as an apology. I hope you'll all understand."

The mother and daughter had been sitting in the backyard for a while, finishing two pots of tea, but no one had brought them food. Meng Xiuzhi looked on with longing, gazing at the main hall again and again.

Finally, unable to bear the hunger in his stomach any longer, he whispered, "Nephew, look how late it is. Shouldn't we have a meal? Your grandmother has been traveling all this way and isn't in good health. We can't let her get hungry."

Meng Jiu sat a distance away from them, speaking with a cold and distant expression: "My wife hasn't eaten yet. She's still working hard outside, greeting guests. Xia is also so busy that her feet are glued to the ground like a spinning top. Aunt, please bear with her for now?"

Unlike Xu Chaoyan, who was unrestrained, he originally didn't want to pay any attention to the mother and daughter. However, the concept of filial piety weighed heavily on his mind, and despite his many years of studying Confucian classics, he simply couldn't bring himself to do such a thing.

After finally seeing off the last group of customers, Xu Chaoyan walked over, her back a little sore, and pulled Meng Jiuhe outside to get straight to the point.

"What's the purpose of their visit today? How should we arrange things? What are your thoughts?"

Meng Jiuhe also looked troubled: "I don't know how they found out where we were staying here and even tracked us down. Could it be that we let it slip when we went back to sweep the tombs for Qingming Festival last time? But that shouldn't be the case, the coachman wouldn't have revealed our whereabouts."

Xu Chaoyan tilted her head and thought for a moment: "Could it be that those families in the village who don't get along with us have found out something?"

Meng Jiuhe nodded helplessly: "I remember now. When we were going up the mountain to sweep the tombs, we met the cart driver on our way down and chatted for a bit. Just then, we heard a rustling sound coming from the bushes behind us. At first, I thought it was the wind or some wild animal. I guessed that the gossipy old woman had overheard our conversation and was hiding in the back. After all, there were many people going up the mountain those days, so we were a bit careless."

When the Meng family mother and daughter came looking for Xu Chaoyan, he was a little annoyed, wondering what kind of trouble these people were up to this time. But seeing Meng Jiuhe's annoyed expression, he comforted her, saying, "Forget it, since they've come all this way, let's settle them down first. Send them back in a couple of days. This is your grandmother; don't let it give you any reason to talk about it."

Meng Jiuhe nodded: "Now that things have come to this, we have no choice but to go home first. We can clean up that woodshed and let them make do for the night. We'll send them away first thing tomorrow morning. Just give them something to eat later."

When the group returned to the courtyard, the mother and daughter kept grumbling and complaining. They said they hadn't eaten dinner and had no energy at all, and wondered why no one had hired a car to pick them up.

Xu Chaoyan held back as much as she could, afraid that she might lose her temper and punch him a couple of times.

Meng Jiu gently held her hand to comfort her: "Don't be angry, my wife. I'll send them away first thing tomorrow morning so they won't get in your way."

Grandmother stole my wife's dowry and went to live with my aunt. How long has it been since then, and she's come looking for me in such a sorry state? Judging from my aunt's condition, she certainly won't keep her promise to take care of Grandmother in her old age.

"What? We're staying in this messy woodshed tonight? Xu, are you asking for trouble? Who's the real head of the Meng family? You should at least understand that an ugly freak like you is lucky to be able to freeload in my Meng family. Get the best room ready for me right now. And bring up hot water and food right away. Can't you see how tired your grandmother is? You have no sense at all."

Xu Chaoyan ignored them, grabbed an old quilt, threw it in with a "thud," and rolled her eyes at the two of them.

"You two can stay here or not, it's up to you at the gate." After saying that, he stuffed two steamed buns into Meng Xiuzhi's hands.

"You guys can just make do with this."

Meng Jiuxia also handed a pot of warm water to her grandmother, keeping a few steps away without getting too close.

"Grandma, have some water."

With a "thud," the kettle fell to the ground, making a crisp sound.

"Are you feeding animals? At least cats and dogs have a stone trough to use. What are we? We're just a bunch of worthless creatures born of a mother but raised without one."

Meng Jiuxia was so scolded that she cried, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Grandmother Meng grabbed a cornbread and threw it at Xu Chaoyan: "Who are you trying to fool with this piece of junk? Third Sister is so much better than you. I'll have my grandson divorce you tomorrow. You're so ugly, you scare people to death in the middle of the night."