At this moment, the driver carried something out of the carriage and said in a muffled voice.

"Get out of the way, don't block the way."

That tone was so forceful that the villagers involuntarily made way for it.

Someone mustered up the courage to ask, "Excuse me, sir, who is that woman? What is her relationship with Zhang Tingyu?"

The driver stopped and glanced at the villagers with disdain.

"The woman you asked about is my young lady, and the man is my son-in-law who has moved into our household, understand?"

The driver chuckled and carried several gift boxes into the Zhang family's house.

The villagers erupted in an uproar: "What? Zhang Lao Er married into a rich family?"

"Good heavens, why is he so desperate? He's about to take the imperial examination. If he passes, the court will give him money and food every month. Marrying such an ugly woman, he'll be sickening to look at her every day."

At this moment, the village chief walked over and, upon hearing the story, did not find it strange.

People die for wealth, birds die for food; he must have his reasons for marrying into the family, things that farmers can't possibly understand.

He sighed; he had been feeling very down ever since Mrs. Feng died.

Looking back at Wang Po's house, he gritted his teeth, sighed again, and then stared blankly at the carriage.

He pinned all his hopes on Zhang Tingyu. He hadn't wanted Zhang Lao Er to amount to anything before, but now he desperately wanted Zhang Tingyu to pass the imperial examination, rise through the ranks to become a high-ranking official, and avenge the murder of his wife.

Regardless of whether it was related to Wang Po's family or not, he attributed all of this to them.

It's a fight to the death! But he won't stop until Xiao Nan and the others die, not him.

Now, he sees everyone as his wife's killer, his eyes filled with a sinister light.

Inside the main room of the Zhang family, Zhang Dashan and Madam Qian sat at the head of the table, looking at Madam Fang, unsure of what to say.

He wanted to maintain the airs of an elder, but didn't dare. He hoped his daughter-in-law would be more sensible and proactive.

Madam Fang sat to one side, with a maid standing behind her. Even the maid was dressed better than the Zhang family members.

She simply nodded gently to the two elders without calling them "father" or "mother."

This displeased Zhang Dashan and Qian Shi, but when the driver brought the gifts into the house and placed them on the table, smiles appeared on their faces.

Ms. Qian couldn't wait to open the box and see what was inside.

Madam Fang gave a soft snort and said, "Husband, go and open those boxes and see if they like them."

Zhao, holding her child, sat down next to Qian, her eyes fixed on Zhang Lao Er.

Fang looked at her, and Zhao quickly lowered her head when she noticed.

Zhang Lao Er never glanced at Zhao Shi. After he entered the Fang family and became a son-in-law, he discovered that although Fang Shi was ugly, she was exceptionally intelligent.

They controlled his every move, forcing him to be extremely careful.

Because he can't afford to offend the Fang family, not now, and not even after he becomes a scholar.

He couldn't help but regret agreeing to marry into the Fang family; now, it was impossible for him to get out.

He thought the Fang family was easy to manipulate, but he never expected to be manipulated. Now he's suffering in silence.

Zhang Lao Er was indeed shrewd and calculating. On the surface, he obeyed Fang Shi's every word, but in his heart, he secretly vowed that there would be a day when he would take control of the Fang family.

He took out the gifts he had brought, one by one.

"Father, this is a white jade pipe for you; Mother, this is a jade bracelet for you; Sister-in-law, this is a silver-inlaid jade bracelet for you; these two silver locks are for the children, all personally selected by my wife."

Qian happily put the jade bracelet on her wrist, her mouth agape. She thanked Fang repeatedly, completely forgetting that she was Fang's mother-in-law.

Zhang Dashan's eyes were also curved, and the wrinkles on his face deepened.

Zhao accepted the gifts and thanked the child softly. She put the silver lock on the child's wrist and then the silver bracelet on her wrist. Although she looked happy, she wasn't as pleased as Qian.

She got up and pushed the two children toward Zhang Dashan, saying.

"Dad, could you watch the child for me? It's almost noon, I'm going to cook."

"Yes, they came suddenly, and the family wasn't prepared. Go to the village chief's house and borrow some."

"Ok!"

Fang called out to her, "Sister-in-law, no need to borrow. Let's sit down and leave. I'm not used to staying in a place like this for long."

Zhao glanced at her, then looked at her parents-in-law and asked.

"Father, Mother, are we still going?"

"Since they don't eat at home, we won't go. You just need to cook our meal."

Zhao obediently left; in the past, it would have been impossible to ask her to cook.

As she turned around, she glanced at Zhang Tingyu.

Zhang Lao Er remained seated upright, sitting quietly next to Fang Shi. When Fang Shi turned to look at Zhao Shi, Zhao Shi immediately turned her head away. She did not go to the kitchen but went to the backyard.

She waited anxiously in the backyard, but Zhang Lao Er never showed up, and she stomped her feet in frustration.

In the past, whenever Zhang Lao Er came home, he would follow her with just a glance.

But now, he doesn't even look at her. Zhao wipes away her tears in the backyard. She knows that the second son has no choice, but she just feels inexplicably wronged.

It's been so long, and the two haven't met at all. She just doesn't believe that Zhang Lao Er will keep bothering with that ugly woman.

She was prettier and had a better figure than Fang, and she knew how to flirt with him. How could he not be attracted to her body?

After waiting for a while without seeing the person she longed for, Zhao had no choice but to go to the kitchen and pretend to cook.

In truth, Zhang Tingyu felt a pang of unease, like being scratched by a cat. He really wanted to chase after her, pull Zhao into his arms, and thoroughly ravage her.

However, Fang seemed to know about his affair with Zhao and kept a close eye on him.

Zhang Lao Er finally got up and said to Fang Shi, "Wife, I want to go to the outhouse in the backyard. You stay here and talk with Father and Mother for a while. I will be back soon."

Fang smiled and said, "Perfect, I want to go too, let's go together."

Zhang Lao Er smiled awkwardly: "Okay, let's go together then."

As soon as they stepped out of the house, Zhang Dashan poked Qian Shi hard: "Is the bracelet all you care about?"

As Qian was admiring the jade bracelet, she rolled her eyes in disdain when she heard Zhang Dashan say that.

"I've never even owned a silver bracelet in my entire life. Now that I have a jade one, I don't care if I'm stupid."

"You're all talk and no action. Didn't you see that the second son wanted to go see Zhao Shi, and Fang Shi was keeping a close eye on him?"

Zhang was taken aback, then frowned and said, "You mean Fang knows about the second son and Zhao?"

"She shouldn't know about this, and that bitch doesn't even know the Fang family."

"Maybe it's just a coincidence. Look at our son, he's good-looking and well-educated. She's so ugly, of course she'll keep a close eye on him. Don't overthink it."

Zhang Dashan nodded: "What you said makes sense. However, we should warn Zhao Shi not to be too blatant. If Fang Shi finds out, it will be difficult to handle. Judging from her appearance, she is not easy to deal with."

"Don't worry, the Zhao family knows what they're doing."

"Don't be careless, we can't ruin Erzi's important plans."

Qian kept touching the jade bracelet and didn't take Zhang Dashan's words to heart at all.

As soon as Erzi and Fangshi returned, they immediately took their leave, got into their carriage, and left.

Originally, the two sons wanted to stay at home for another night, but Fang insisted that they leave and wouldn't even let them eat.

He had no choice but to go with them.

As she left, Fang glanced at Zhao, who was tending the fire, and called out to her.

"Big sister, we're leaving."

After getting into the carriage, she deliberately stared at the two children for a while.

Her actions made the Zhang family uneasy.

After everyone left, the village chief came to the Zhang family's house. He sat down with Zhang Dashan and asked him questions.

"Why didn't you mention that the second son is getting married?"

"What are you talking about? It's just a marriage into the family. If I told you, you'd all laugh at me," Madam Qian said, pursing her lips.

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