Divorced woman with child travels through time

So Chen Wenfang, along with Boss Li and the others, were taken to the county government office. Of course, there were also a bunch of onlookers who liked to watch the excitement. Aunt Liu and Uncle Liu Hai continued to sell rice candy at their stall.

Wang Shuxian, feigning illness, spoke first, saying, "Sir, this Madam Chen has snatched my son and is treating him as her own. She's a terrible person; how could she do such a thing? Doesn't she? She already has a son of her own; why would she steal someone else's?"

Chen Wenfang found this man's foolishness somewhat amusing, repeating the same few sentences over and over again. So she spoke up, "Please, Your Honor, understand. Chu Yi and Chu Shi are my close friends. That day, the villains poisoned many people, and these two were left unattended and without anyone to help them. I saw how pitiful they were and that's why I stepped in to help them, which did cost me a lot of money. Chu Yi is sensible and voluntarily sold himself to pay for the money. He's too young to do much, and as a widow, it's quite a burden for me to raise them. But seeing how difficult their situation was, and out of consideration for their mother, I helped them. They've been living in my house for so long, and I've taken very good care of them. I just consider it an act of kindness."

Ouyang Junyan looked the two children up and down. They did look well and were dressed nicely. He already had a good idea of ​​what was going on and asked, "Do you have a written contract of sale?" Wang Erniu quickly chimed in, "Yes, we do!" Chen Wenfang then took out the contract of sale she had made from her inner clothes. Luckily, she had brought it with her beforehand, thinking that the Wang family lady would come and make trouble.

He further explained, "With village chief Wang Fugui as guarantor, the village seal, and many witnesses at the time, we can ask them to testify if needed." Ouyang Junyan sent someone forward to examine it carefully, nodded, and then asked, "What does that Boss Li have to do with you? You tell me."

Mr. Li said, "I only helped Madam Wang because I saw how pitiful she was. She willingly sold her two children to me." He then presented the indenture he was holding, "It has Madam Wang's fingerprint on it."

Unexpectedly, Wang Shuxian changed her tune, saying, "Who said you felt sorry for me? You just want to steal Chen Niangzi's rice candy secret, that's why you want my two sons to take it. Do you think I don't know? But I don't mind, as long as you pay." The onlookers were all furious, whispering among themselves, "Shameless!" "Exactly!"

Mr. Li was embarrassed when Chen Wenfang saw that she had exposed his little scheme so bluntly, and she truly hadn't expected him to be so shameless. Now that the matter was clear, Mr. Li was somewhat embarrassed and didn't know what to say. Ouyang Junyan then spoke up, "What else do you have to say?" The boss shamelessly replied, "Regardless of my purpose, this contract of servitude has been signed, the two children must be given to me, and I've already paid five taels of silver, half of it."

After pondering for a moment, Ouyang Junyan said, "Then, Madam Chen, how about you ask for how much money you want, and let Boss Li pay you in exchange for you giving him the child?"

Chen Wenfang said, “I bought Wang Niangzi’s children. Here’s what we’ll do, Wang Niangzi. I spent about ten taels of silver on their medical treatment, including buying them clothes. If you want to take these two children away, it won’t be much. Thirty taels of silver will be enough for me. I’ve been taking care of them for so long these past few days, feeding and nourishing them very well.”

Wang Shuxian immediately exclaimed, "That won't do! How can that child be worth so much money?"

Chu Yi, standing nearby, was almost in tears. Without a word, he knelt down and said, "Sir, I'm willing to sell myself to Madam Chen, please. Please, give me justice." With that, he ripped off his clothes. He was wearing a padded jacket and a coat because it was winter, and his movements were so fast that no one had time to see clearly before he had removed his upper garment, revealing deep scars on his back—burns, whip marks—a truly frightening sight. Chu Yi sobbed, "My stepmother doesn't want to take good care of us. Look, she beats us whenever she's angry. I can't take it anymore!"

Ouyang Junyan glared angrily at Wang Shuxian. He couldn't stand this. Wang Shuxian sensed it and lowered her head meekly without saying a word. Even Ma Liu next to her felt the atmosphere was a bit cold.

Ouyang Junyan paused for a moment and said, "Put your clothes on properly, Mr. Li. Would you be willing to pay thirty taels of silver to Madam Chen to buy these two children?"

"This is too much. A normal tael of silver can buy a child, and they can't do anything with it!" Boss Li muttered, feeling a pang of regret. "I'm not willing to do this."

Ouyang Junyan continued, "Madam Chen, although a written agreement is effective sooner it is signed, these two children still have a mother, so you can't sell yourself. How about this, you give Madam Wang five taels of silver, and these two children will be considered sold to you. The months of raising them will be used to offset the silver. What do you say?"

Chen Wenfang said, "I am willing to follow your orders, sir."

Ouyang Junyan glanced at Wang Shuxian again and asked, "What does Madam Wang think?"

Wang Shuxian said softly, "I think it's acceptable."

Mr. Li was still somewhat unconvinced, but he dared not speak out in the face of Ouyang Junyan's official authority, so he said, "Then Madam Wang must return the deposit she took from me."

Ouyang Junyan glanced at Wang Shuxian, who immediately took out the hard silver from her sleeve and returned it to Boss Li.

Chen Wenfang took out five taels of silver and handed it to Wang Shuxian. The clerk next to them wrote a contract of indenture, and both parties pressed their fingerprints on it. The matter was settled.

After the group left the county government office, Boss Li saw them gathered together, spat out a curse, and turned away.

Wang Shuxian didn't know what to say, and she also walked away quickly.

Chen Wenfang and the others returned to their stall to sell rice candy until after the Lantern Festival. Then Chen Wenfang packed up and took some meat and money. He sent Wang Erniu and the children to Wang Xiucai's house to study. He and Wang Erniu stayed home to prepare for land reclamation. Aunt Liu and Uncle Liu Hai were also turning over the land. It was right after the beginning of spring, and every household was clearing land or turning over the land in preparation for planting wheat.

However, after only one morning of work, Chen Wenfang was exhausted and couldn't even straighten her back. She realized that clearing land was not something just anyone could do. She also realized that there were so many stones of all sizes buried underground, and that a single tree trunk could cover a large area. After confirming that she really couldn't do it, Chen Wenfang decided to give up and let Wang Erniu do it slowly by himself. If all else failed, should she buy a cow? Chen Wenfang was thinking about this when she saw Wang Erniu, who was usually strong enough to carry a wild boar, so tired that he couldn't straighten his back. Chen Wenfang felt sorry for him and made up her mind to go to the market with Wang Erniu early the next morning to buy a cow.

Wang Erniu couldn't contain his joy. Chen Niangzi felt sorry for him; the look of concern in her eyes during dinner last night made him wish he could go back to cultivate two more acres of land.