Adorable Kids in Space: Lucky Wife is So Carefree

"Doctor, please calculate how much it will cost for several months of medicine, and how much for acupuncture afterwards." Since she had taken over the original owner's body, she had to be responsible for her children. Ru Xiu had no intention of letting the murder go unpunished, especially after learning that Jiang was going to sell her grandchildren and even herself. She could no longer live in this house, so she decided to take this opportunity to sever all ties.

The village chief and clan chief were quite impressed with Ru Xiu this time, as were the busybodies in the village. In the past, the village chief and clan chief had mediated many disputes concerning the second branch of the family, especially considering Er Shi's consistent helpfulness and the many things he had done for the village and clan. They had all wanted to help the orphan and widow, but each time they were thwarted by Ru Xiu's submissive and compliant nature, leaving them still furious.

"It would cost at least twenty taels of silver, and that's for the most common medicinal herbs." That's no small sum; in those days, it would take an average family two or three years to save up, even if they didn't eat or drink.

"My son is mine, and he is also the flesh and blood of your Tang family. The Tang family must save him even if it means going bankrupt. Otherwise, how can we face his deceased father? Whoever committed the cruel act must take responsibility. Otherwise, let the government decide. I don't know what the punishment is for killing a military family member. I beg the village chief, clan chief, and fellow villagers to stand up for me." Ru Xiu kowtowed several times to the village chief, clan chief, and the elders and villagers who were watching, and finally kowtowed three times to Tang Laoqi.

Sister Shi and Brother Le naturally understood the implications. The village chief and clan head were the village's officials, the only people the arrogant and domineering Jiang family feared. The three children followed suit and kowtowed several times. Even Ge'er, who only half understood, kowtowed quite well. The whole family was covered in blood, looking pitiful.

Without everyone's support and the help of the village chief and clan head, even if they made a huge fuss at home, the Jiang family wouldn't contribute a single copper coin. That's why Ruxiu asked Sister Shi and Brother Le to make a big scene and invite the village chief and clan head to their door. If they don't seize this opportunity, it will be difficult to come back later.

The original owner of this body was too weak-willed. Ru Xiu was worried that if she said something too outrageous, it might arouse suspicion, so she didn't say much and just got to the point.

"Oh dear, what a quack doctor! He charges twenty taels of silver for a single consultation! Why don't you just rob someone?!" Jiang was startled. The imperial court had regulations protecting military families; if that fool died, she would at least be exiled. But she was also worried about the money—twenty taels was no small sum. Everyone was staring at her with indignant eyes, as if they wanted to dig the money out of her, and she felt a little apprehensive. However, Jiang had no intention of backing down. She was stubborn as ever, spewing insults at Doctor Yao.

"Heh heh, I know, you teamed up with the village chief's son, Tang Zijie, to swindle me out of my money, didn't you! You're dreaming! You've got nothing to lose!" Tang Zijie complained bitterly about how he had brought the doctor over, implying that nothing would have happened if he hadn't.

Such slanderous words made even the usually upright village chief tremble with anger. He had always tolerated her and never bothered to confront such a wicked woman directly. This time, however, his face turned a deep shade of liver: "You—you—you shrew! How could the Tang family have married such a troublemaker? Everyone knows exactly what happened. If you keep pestering me and making false accusations, I'll have you tied up and taken to the government office tomorrow."

"You can find another doctor to diagnose you. I am quite well-known in the county. If there are any discrepancies between my diagnosis and the doctor's, you can pay an extra consultation fee." Doctor Tao has been practicing medicine for decades and is not afraid of being unreasonable. Jiang is being unreasonable and is definitely unwilling to pay a second time.

"Tang Laoqi, find the silver right now, or I'll drag Jiang Shi to the authorities tomorrow. Murderers pay with their lives, and the yamen will settle this matter." The clan chief was always upright and just, always helping those in the right and not his own. He couldn't stand it anymore and had to give him a warning. Since ancient times, people have been afraid of officials. It was common for people to kneel for several hours and then be beaten dozens of times, whether they were in the right or not.

The villagers knew about Tang Laoqi's family's wealth; they certainly had at least twenty taels of silver. Before Tang Ershi joined the army, he and Tao Laoqi cultivated over ten acres of land, yielding the highest harvest in the village. Ershi was also a skilled hunter, frequently catching large game that sold for several taels of silver, often benefiting from his catches. Tang Dashi and Jiang Shi only persuaded him to serve in the army because of his burly build.

"Jiang, if you don't give me the money, I—I—I—I'll…divorce you." Tang Laoqi finally let out a fart, though it wasn't very loud. But Jiang didn't listen to him at all, thinking that who would divorce whom was still unknown! But seeing the expressions of the village chief and clan head, she had no choice but to do it. After all, she was the one who hit him and felt guilty. If she were really dragged to the yamen, it would be half her life. She searched around in the main room for a long time before finally taking out a few taels of silver, which she threw in front of Ruxiu and the children.

"All my possessions are worth five taels. Take it or leave it. I still have to pay my two grandsons' tuition." Her face was filled with disgust, as if the people kneeling before her were not her grandsons: "You debt collector, you'll suffer a terrible death for eating my money."

“This is our brother Xi’s life-saving money, it absolutely cannot be less, otherwise brother Xi’s life will be in danger. Since his parents-in-law can’t raise the money, please ask the village chief and clan head to lend it to them from the village treasury. They can repay it at the interest rate of a pawnshop. Thank you, village chief and clan head, and I hope the villagers can understand.” Ru Xiu kowtowed again. In ancient times and in modern times, the village treasury always had some emergency funds, all for the public good of the village. As long as you’re not afraid of repaying the interest, Jiang Shi, you can do whatever you want.

The village chief and clan head had long been disgusted by Jiang's ugly face. If Tang Laoqi hadn't condoned and encouraged Jiang, they wouldn't have become so arrogant. And look at Ruxiu now, although she looks pitiful, she's gained momentum and come up with such a good idea. How could they not help her? They should just go along with it.

“That works too, Tang Laoqi. You sign and put your fingerprint here. The clan will lend you fifteen taels of silver for a one-year term, with a monthly interest of three percent.” The clan chief didn’t mince words and pretended to ask Tang Zijie to get pen and ink.

"No, no, village chief, clan chief, I have it, I have it, Jiang doesn't know where I put it. I'll go get it right now, I'll get it." When farmers hear about interest, they think of usurious loans that kill people, which terrifies them. Tang Laoqi naturally dared not sign the document. He pretended to push Jiang and went up to the roof to get the money.

After this whole charade, everyone finally saw through it. They all thought Tang Laoqi was being bullied and even felt sorry for him! Turns out, one was playing the good cop and the other the bad cop, their goal was simply to avoid taking the money—they're incredibly wicked!

Before long, Tang Laoqi came out slowly and respectfully handed two ten-tael silver ingots to the village chief. Jiang Shi also hurriedly shoved the loose silver into her pocket and picked up a layer of mud from the ground, afraid that someone else would pick it up.

"Ershi's family, take the money and use it to treat Xige's illness properly. Xige will definitely recover. Just take good care of him." The villager sighed. The doctor's words were quite straightforward. It was unclear whether Xiuniang understood. All she could do was offer words of comfort. Whether it would work or not depended on Xige's fate.

"Village chief and clan chief, I'd like to trouble you to keep this money safe for me. I'm just a widow and her orphan, and I'm afraid I can't handle it. Today, I'll also need to trouble Brother Zijie to take Doctor Tao back and pick up Brother Xi's medicine. You all have oxcarts, so I'll need to trouble you again for things like changing medicine in the future! I trust you to keep the money. You can use the money for buying the medicine and the money for taking the doctor back together. Anyway, this money is only for Brother Xi's treatment and won't be used for anything else." Ru Xiu pushed the money back after she had it in her hands.

Ru Xiu's thoughts became much clearer, and she also knew that Jiang Shi would not give up easily. The village chief and clan chief were happy for her. The two of them discussed it and proposed a system in which the village chief would manage the money and the clan chief would manage the accounts, which was witnessed by all the villagers.

Jiang was so angry she was half-dead, it was worse than eating shit. She had originally planned to force Ruxiu to spit out the silver later, but who knew that this little harlot would suddenly change her mind and become clever all of a sudden.