The Farm Girl’s Charismatic Fortune
Chapter 158 - 154 Zhao’s Retribution

Chapter 158: Chapter 154 Zhao’s Retribution

Although New Year’s Eve had not yet arrived, the presence of Ruo Shan returning home made the evening meal especially lavish, surpassing any reunion meal from the previous years.

Dishes included abalone, hairy crab with ginger, marinated goose, radish stewed lamb, braised rabbit meat, yam with pork belly, peas stir-fried with squid, braised squab, steamed grouper, steamed green crab, and soup with crown daisy.

The abalone, grouper, green crab, and squid were all gifts from the ancient Shopkeeper, fresh seafood with each item being particularly large, and the abalone already cooked beforehand.

Indeed, the neighboring county to Shaxi County was near the sea, so seafood was not hard to come by, but it was expensive, and ordinary people could hardly afford it.

However, ever since Divine Lady Xuanyuan moved up to the villa, the Ruo Family often enjoyed fresh seafood and even had a sizeable stash of precious dried goods stored away, including bird’s nest and sea cucumber.

Divine Lady Xuanyuan was generous; every time she received fine items, she shared a portion with the Ruo Family.

However, when Ruo Xuan went up the mountain to study, she often brought home-grown vegetables and mountain goods, many of which were cultivated or raised with her Spiritual Power, consuming them could enhance one’s vitality and longevity.

Although Divine Lord Xuanyuan fed Divine Lady Xuanyuan two fruits nourished with his Spiritual Power daily, Ruo Xuan modestly felt that the fruits she grew or ripened with her Spiritual Power were absolutely better than those of Divine Lord Xuanyuan’s!

After all, her Spiritual Power was the energy of flora, most beneficial to plants, and she understood them better than Divine Lord Xuanyuan.

Divine Lord Xuanyuan might be more formidable in many respects—a man adept at embroidery, even more so than her—but she had the edge when it came to plants!

So while discussing value, what Ruo Xuan gifted to Divine Lady Xuanyuan was more precious than the seafood, but this was known only to a few.

But Divine Lady Xuanyuan was aware. In her youth, she had battled across the lands, and her body bore various ailments, once thinking her life would be short-lived. However, ever since she started eating the fruits her grandson provided, her health improved day by day. Now, she was a healthy elder.

The fruits Xuanbao gave her made her feel extremely comfortable, even more so than those provided by her grandson.

She knew all these; she merely chose not to speak of them openly.

Some things were best kept to oneself, some secrets she intended to carry to her grave.

Ruo Xuan placed an abalone on a dish for Ruo Shan, "Uncle Wu, try this."

The abalone was as big as half a plate!

Ruo Shan knew the family’s circumstances had improved, but he did not realize to what extent.

Working as an attendant at the medical center, the place had been packed since the weather turned cold. These past few months had been so hectic he barely had time to eat, let alone rest and return home.

Ruo Xuan had woken up, and he had only come home once after that; since then, he had had no time to visit. Although he had heard about the changes at home, witnessing them firsthand still came as a bit of a shock.

The Fang Family was wealthy and purchased delicacies like abalone for their New Year’s Eve dinner, but those abalones were only the size of a small spoon and rumored to cost a hundred coins each.

This one, as big as a bowl, probably weighed half a jin to eight taels—how much silver would that cost?

And the larger the abalone, the more expensive it became, especially the ones weighing several taels each, costing several Taels of Silver per piece, right?

As an attendant at the medical center, he earned merely three Taels of Silver a year, not nearly enough to afford even a single abalone!

Ruo Shan quickly put the abalone in front of Xuanbao, "Uncle Wu doesn’t care for it, Xuanbao, you eat it."

Ruo Shan saw several more abalone in the casserole but couldn’t bring himself to eat them. Such fine food was better saved for the nephews and nieces!

With so much meat that evening, he was content with the other dishes!

Granny Lei laughed, "Lao Wu, just eat it! There’s an abalone for each person, just enough. You ah, you’re blessed because of Xuanbao. Remember to be extra kind to her from now on."

Hearing this, Ruo Shan replied, "What is mother saying? Isn’t it natural to be more affectionate toward Xuanbao? But, were these all awarded to Xuanbao by The Emperor?"

The Fourth Brother had informed him that Xuanbao had received The Emperor’s reward, and whenever he thought about it at the medical clinic, he would feel as happy as if he had received the reward himself.

Ruo Xuan served another piece of mutton to Ruo Shan, "No, this is from Granny Xuanyuan, Uncle Five, try this one."

"And this green crab, it’s so creamy and rich!"

Ruo Xuan didn’t stop serving Uncle Five, and the bowl and plates in front of Ruo Chuan piled up as high as a small hill.

"Enough! Enough! Uncle Five can’t eat that much!" Ruo Chuan kept refusing.

Ruo Shui, helping Ruo Xuan, cut a small piece of abalone and placed it in front of her, said sourly, "Old Five, if there’s food, just eat! If I didn’t know better, I’d think Xuanbao was your own flesh and blood!"

Ruo Chuan hurriedly replied, "Fourth Brother, how would you know? Ruo Xuan is indeed my daughter, my own flesh and blood!"

The others also chimed in teasingly, "Nonsense, Ruo Xuan is my daughter, my own flesh and blood daughter! Old Four, don’t even think about monopolizing Ruo Xuan!"

"Exactly, Ruo Xuan is also my daughter!...."

Ruo Xuan was overwhelmed. She quickly slid off the stool, wanting to serve everyone, being everyone’s daughter was not an easy task!

Granny Lei gestured for Xuanbao to eat on her own and then pretended to be angry and scolded her. The family had a lively reunion dinner in advance.

However, halfway through the meal, an uninvited guest arrived.

"Ruo He! Ruo He, save me! The gambling den people want to take me back, my parents won’t care for me! I barely managed to escape!" A disheveled woman, dressed in tattered clothes, burst in. As soon as she entered and saw the dishes on the table, her eyes widened!

Oh my!

So much meat!

The Ruo Family really has become so rich!

It’s not even New Year’s, and they can eat so much meat!

Zhao’s eyes lit up, and she reached out with both hands to grab the abalone on the table. Everyone saw her dirty right hand missing two fingers.

Ruo Xuan scowled, and mimicking Xuanyuan Que, she waved her sleeve, and Zhao was flung out the door!

She felt quite imposing and pleased, especially when dealing with a big villain!

Then two burly and fierce men rushed in and started punching and kicking Zhao.

"Damn woman, how dare you run away! I’ll teach you a lesson!"

Zhao cowered on the ground, wailing, "Don’t hit me! This is my husband’s house, they have silver! I’ll pay back the silver! Ruo He, save me! Save me!"

The two men paused their assault and looked towards the Ruo Family.

The entire Ruo Family stepped out, and the villagers also gathered to watch the spectacle.

Ruo He was furiously livid, "I am not your husband; you were divorced a long time ago."

Granny Lei was near exploding with anger, "Pah! Who’s your husband? Don’t talk nonsense! You have nothing to do with our family anymore!"

Granny Lei then said to the two men, "This person has nothing to do with our family, please take her away quickly!"

Zhao cried out, "Mom, I know I was wrong! Don’t disown me! I’ll change, I won’t gamble anymore! Please, help me repay them five hundred taels of silver! For the rest of my life, I’ll work like an ox or a horse for you, sob... I don’t want to be taken away by them! It’s too miserable! Sob..."