Becoming the Villain's Discarded Wife
Chapter 416 Continuation

Chapter 416: Chapter 416 Continuation

Nanzhi wasn’t afraid that Hen Xiang would leak the recipe for the jam.

Upon their purchase, they had signed a contract.

They were not to disclose the recipe for three years; even if they paid to cancel their contracts, they’d have to wait the full three years. Otherwise, the offender would pay a penalty of one hundred taels of silver.

Nanzhi still kept that contract.

One hundred taels was the income of an ordinary family of three for five years. The other wealthy families in Yan City wouldn’t be interested in the recipe for the jam, and the lesser families wouldn’t be willing to risk one hundred taels of silver.

Ice drink shops may make money, but only for about three months out of the year.

For causing trouble, Qian Er was beaten with twenty planks and locked up for seven days before being released.

Nanzhi was in the women’s tower chatting with Miss Zeng when she heard this news.

"Madam, Hen Xiang came back yesterday..." Ling Long leaned over and whispered in Nanzhi’s ear.

"What did she say?"

Nanzhi smiled, handed Miss Zeng a piece of cake, and then casually asked.

Ling Long furrowed her eyebrows, pondered for a moment, then whispered back, "She came to borrow money, saying Qian Er was beaten up and needed money for medical treatment."

During this exchange, Ling Long blushed slightly. They initially wondered what happened, but as soon as Hen Xiang blurted out that Qian Er had been "damaged", they felt awkward, especially with Miss Zeng present.

"Did you lend it to her?"

Nanzhi raised an eyebrow, somewhat curious.

After all, Hen Xiang had bluntly stated that she didn’t want to continue being a lowly servant.

If the girls were still soft enough to loan her money, Nanzhi would be speechless.

"No, she had already said so much, we’re not as soft-hearted as tofu, no one lent her the money.

When she left, she was crying."

Ling Long was also angry.

They were of similar ages and lived together. Although not sisters, they previously had a good relationship.

Then Hen Xiang said such words; it really hurt them.

If she hadn’t said those things, they would have given her some due to past friendship.

"She chose her own path. She can only bear the consequences."

Nanzhi responded indifferently.

Qian Er’s home was in a rundown house on the outskirts of the Southern City. There were barely two small rooms inside.

His father was the only senior member of the family, and with Qian Er in jail and Hen Xiang having nowhere to go, she had no choice but to move into that dilapidated house.

It wasn’t hard to imagine how tough her life had been these past few days without employment.

Although she had taken her wages for the past few months with her when she left, given the kind of father-in-law she ended up with, she would be lucky to have any money left in her hands.

If Hen Xiang was unwilling to stay here, then let her live the "good life" she wanted elsewhere.

This made quite a stir in Yan City. Some privately said that Nanzhi, as the wife of the city master, purposely made life difficult for Qian Er and Hen Xiang. Even Lin Family’s two shops were surrounded by people who wanted to watch the show.

Chen Qiulan found the gossiping women annoying, but Lin’s mother wasn’t fazed.

She only sent her elder daughter-in-law to rest.

"Why get annoyed? They come here all day, eat something, and we make money. Don’t stress yourself out over them," Lin’s mother comforted, patting Chen Qiulan’s shoulder.

"Yeah, sister-in-law, just ignore them and think of their visits as delivering silver to us," said Sun Cui, who was pregnant and sitting aside helping peel garlic.

She’d felt unwell during her first two months of pregnancy and had trouble eating and sleeping. But now she was feeling stable.

And she discovered that the baby in her belly seemed to like silver.

One night, she felt uncomfortable and the plum candy wasn’t helping. Her husband happened to be home and just took out a silver hairpin he’d bought for her, and the baby immediately calmed down.

After a few more instances, they didn’t take notice.

It wasn’t until one time when she was feeling sick and her mother-in-law happened to bring over some silver. The moment she took the ingot of silver, her discomfort disappeared.

That’s when she realized she was carrying a little wealth-seeker.

Now she came to the shop every day to help out, either washing vegetables or rolling dough. As long as she thought it was something that could make money, the baby would be quiet, which improved her mood day by day.

"That’s a good point." Chen Qiulan paused, and after thinking it over, she agreed. Business had indeed been better these past few days.

"That’s why, don’t rush into anything. Good times and bad times always come hand in hand," Lin’s mother told them as she served each of them a bowl of noodles before sitting down.

"Mother, aren’t you worried about Nanzhi?" Chen Qiulan took a sip of soup, then hesitated before continuing.

After all, her little sister-in-law was now the city master’s wife, and too much gossip would not be good.

"Nanzhi is smart; there’s no need to worry about her," said Lin’s mother nonchalantly, picking up a piece of fried egg and adding it to her daughters-in-law’s bowls.

The men of the Lin family had an even lower morale.

While the temperament of the Lin men might not be outstanding, their towering and robust stature was the best deterrent.

Those who wanted to gossip in their shop closed their mouths upon seeing the two bare-chested brothers sawing wood.

They were afraid that if they said too much, they would end up like the chopped wood on the ground.

On the third day after Qian Er’s release, the direction of the rumors changed.

From the city master’s wife bullying her own maid to the rogue Qian Er deceiving and manipulating a naive girl.

When Hen Xiang left, she had five taels of silver.

This was the wages and rewards she received during her time at the courtyard from Nanzhi.

As soon as she arrived at Qian Er’s house, however, his father took one tael of her money.

She initially thought she would follow her husband regardless of his family circumstances. Encountering such a father-in-law, she thought she could only endure it. However, on the second day, Qian Er’s father came to her for money again.

Of course, Hen Xiang was unwilling to give in. But she was taken aback when Qian Er’s father cursed at her, saying that she was a cheap maid. Now that she was his son’s mistress, she should give up all her silver.

Although Hen Xiang naturally refused, once she calmed down, she realized what was happening.

Her contract of sale needed to be taken to the county government for registration and to change her status. Until then, she remained a lowly servant.

To get rid of Qian Er’s father’s pestering, Hen Xiang had to give him another tael of silver, but she also had to hang around the county office every day waiting for Qian Er to be released.

She waited seven days. By the time Qian Er was released, he was so thin that he was barely recognizable. His face was pale, and if it weren’t for his groaning, someone might have mistaken him for a cadaver.

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