The Lady Butcher and the Delicate Bride - Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Mother Mu, having suffered a setback with her eldest daughter, turned back with a darkened face. She was furious that her eldest daughter sided with outsiders over her own mother, and equally incensed that Chu Yu had snatched San-ya away. Otherwise, if San-ya had married Widower Zhang, the two families would be so close that San-ya could have managed her own family’s fields. There would have been no need to worry about those few mu of land at all.

Having hit a wall, her eyes darted around as another plan formed in her mind.

Chu Yu was a butcher, and when she came to marry San-ya, she was able to produce twenty taels of silver at once, which showed she had a substantial family fortune. At this hour, she probably hadn’t returned from slaughtering pigs yet; if Mother Mu went to their home to take a look, she might find some other gains.

With this thought, her feet seemed to catch the wind, and she actually started running, hurrying toward the end of Furong Village.

There were few people at the edge of Furong Village, and Mother Mu had never crossed to the opposite bank of the river before. Now, having crossed the stone bridge and looking at the unfamiliar place before her without a single house in sight, she couldn’t help but feel a bit apprehensive.

She had heard that Chu Yu had moved back to live in the village, so why wasn’t there even a house? Could she really be living in a cave?

Thinking this, her feet still moved toward the ruins of the former Chu family home. Slowly, she began to see some signs of life. After walking up a few more steps, she indeed saw a thatched shack built in front of a cave entrance, with various household utensils scattered nearby.

Mother Mu hadn’t expected her guess to be correct, and her heart instantly turned cold. San-ya had married someone who didn’t even have a house; obtaining any “benefits” in the future would likely be harder than ascending to heaven.

Despite these thoughts, her footsteps did not stop as she walked straight into the cave.

Once inside, she discovered it was a whole different world. Everything was arranged neatly. Although it was a bit humble, it had everything one should have.

She couldn’t resist rummaging here and there. When she saw the seven or eight sets of new clothes made of high-quality fabric, she couldn’t help but let out a series of “tsk tsk tsk” sounds.

What a jinx, how much money must have been spent on so many clothes.

Unfortunately, these were all clothes for young women, and she couldn’t wear them herself. Moreover, not knowing if they were Chu Yu’s own clothes, Mother Mu didn’t dare lay a hand on them to take them back.

After a circuit and finding nothing worth taking, she looked toward the bed and was delighted to see a money pouch at the head of the bed. Opening it, she found five hundred copper coins.

Mother Mu’s heart raced. She stuffed the money pouch into her bosom and, heedless of anything else, hurried outside. In her haste, she accidentally tripped and fell to the ground.

Scrambling up, she took three steps in two as she fled the cave, running toward the stone bridge with quick, short steps. she was deathly afraid that Chu Yu and the girl would return and catch her; then she would have to give back the five hundred wen before they even got warm in her pocket.

Everything was going smoothly. Seeing the stone bridge right before her eyes, Mother Mu was overjoyed. Once she crossed the bridge, no one would know she had been there. This money pouch was essentially a gift from heaven—it was equivalent to nearly a month’s wages for her old man.

But just as she reached the riverbank, a vine suddenly reached out from nowhere and tripped her. Mother Mu couldn’t check her momentum and lunged forward, falling flat on her face.

Her chin was painfully bruised, but she didn’t care about that. She felt her bosom it was hard; the money pouch was still there.

She hurriedly scrambled up to continue forward.

However, the vine around her foot seemed to have a mind of its own, clinging tight and refusing to let go.

Mother Mu had no choice. She kicked several times but couldn’t shake it off, so she had to sit down and pull the tendrils of the vine off one by one.

The vine was tough and resilient, impossible to snap. It was only with great effort that she tore a few strands and managed to pull her foot out.

But after only two steps, another vine coiled around from the other side as if it were alive. Mother Mu accidentally took another heavy tumble. Furious, she couldn’t help but curse the clinging, wretched vines. In her struggle, even the sharp leaves of the roadside grass cut several gashes into her hands.

Mother Mu repeatedly cursed her bad luck, unable to understand why her walk today was so cursed. She had fallen several times in a row, even losing a shoe. After finally retrieving her shoe and breaking free, she ran toward the opposite side of the bridge in a panic, as if pursued by floods or savage beasts.

At least she had picked up some money; otherwise, the trip would have been for nothing, especially after falling so many times. If she really had to buy medicine, half of those five hundred wen would be gone.

Grumbling and cursing her way home, she felt her waist and discovered the money pouch was gone. In an instant, she was fuming with rage, cursing Chu Yu and Mu Dingxiang, claiming there were ghosts over at the Chu family’s place.

Old Man Mu happened to return just then. Seeing his old woman muttering about gods and ghosts, he felt a surge of annoyance.

He had married this woman originally because her family had a bit of money and she looked decent enough. But who knew that after the marriage, trouble would strike her natal family, and his hidden schemes were completely ruined. Fortunately, this woman’s womb was productive, bearing him three daughters and two sons to continue the Mu family line. Furthermore, as the daughters grew, they began to share the household chores, so Old Man Mu turned a blind eye to her behavior.

However, now that San-ya had married out, there was no one to do many of the farm chores. Especially the work in the fields had begun to fall behind. The youngest son was idle and lazy; once in the field, he would throw down his hoe and run under a tree to sleep. This woman wouldn’t go out to work and wouldn’t discipline him either, which made Old Man Mu very dissatisfied.

Now, seeing her acting startled and suspicious, he was beyond annoyed. Before Mother Mu could even speak, he impatiently told her to get lost.

Seeing that no one would listen to her, Mother Mu found it difficult to tell anyone else. After all, stealing money from a son-in-law’s house would not sound good if it got out. She could only “swallow her broken teeth” and keep it to herself.

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