Divorce with three kids? I'll build a house and eat meat, driving my in-laws crazy.

Chapter 24 Drive her out of the village
"Old man, what do you think we should do?" Zhao asked Chen Bingxiao.

His sons and daughters-in-law also looked at Chen Bingxiao. The old man took a few deep drags on his pipe, which made him cough.

After coughing, he spat out a mouthful of thick phlegm with a "pui" sound.

Everyone had become accustomed to his rude behavior and was just waiting for him to make a decision.

Feng Yuzhu frowned, looking at the thick, yellow substance, and felt nauseous.

Chen Ertong asked in a low voice, "What's wrong? Are you hungry?"

Feng Yuzhu shook her head, trying to calm herself down, and turned away from looking at the puddle.

Out of sight, out of mind; she secretly resolved that once her son was born, she would definitely separate from the family.

"Ahem." Chen Bingxiao said, "We not only want to find the village head to uphold justice for us, but we also want to report this to the authorities."

Li Ruru stole his pipe tobacco, and he wanted her to pay the price.

Chen Laosan is not someone to be trifled with.

"Eldest son, you two come with me to find the village head. Second son, you and your mother go together to report to the authorities."

"Li stole our things; don't even think about staying in our Chenjia Village."

Zhao smiled slyly, "That's a good idea. If the village head doesn't help us, there's always the county magistrate."

Wang Shuixia immediately said, "Then let's go quickly."

Chen Bingxiao led Chen Dagang and Wang Shuixia toward the village head's house.

Feng Yuzhu, however, remained motionless in the courtyard for a long time. Zhao asked in confusion, "Come on, what are you all standing there for?"

Feng Yuzhu wanted to go home and take her things, but she didn't want to be the bad guy.

Her eyes darted around. "Mother, let's find our third brother and have him report to the authorities. We'll stand up for him."

Zhao asked, "It doesn't matter who reports it to the authorities, it's all the same."

Feng Yuzhu said directly to Chen Ertong, "Go and call Third Brother back, hurry up."

Soon, Chen Sanbao was called back from Zhang Jun's parents' home.

"What are you doing running around to Widow Zhang's house all day?" Zhao asked irritably.

"Didn't Mother say she wanted to hold a grandson? Well, here I am, trying my best." Chen Sanbao chuckled.

He laughed for a while, then noticed his mother's face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and asked, "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? Don't you feel like something's missing from the house?"

"No! The house feels much more spacious without that bitch Li."

Zhao said speechlessly, "Our house didn't get bigger, it was robbed."

After learning what had happened, Chen Sanbao slammed his fist on the table and said, "This matter cannot be left like this. I'm going to the county government to report it right now. I don't believe the county magistrate doesn't care about the affairs of us common people."

Pan Dayan overheard important news. While Wang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu were grinding konjac, she saw her mother run out.

The two of them, unaware of what had happened, quickly put down their work and followed.

When Chen Bingxiao and his two companions arrived at the village head's house, they saw Pan Dayan panting and excitedly saying something.

The village headman frowned, while Wang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu stood idly to the side, rubbing their hands together.

"Ahem." Chen Bingxiao coughed. "Village head, you have to stand up for our Chen family. Li is a thief who stole everything from our house."

Chen Dagang quickly chimed in, "Yes, all our belongings, big and small, have been stolen. Now we can't even afford to eat."

"Li is too cruel! She's trying to starve us to death!" Wang Shuixia cried, covering her face. "Even if she's doing this to get revenge on my third brother, she shouldn't be so ruthless. This is taking our whole family's lives! What's the difference between this and murder and arson?"

Seeing that the groundwork had been laid, Chen Bingxiao said directly, "Village head, we demand that Li return all our belongings and that she be expelled from Chenjia Village. She was never originally from our village."

The village head tapped his pipe and slowly stuffed a handful of fresh tobacco into it. "You've all misunderstood her."

Chen Bingxiao was filled with rage when he saw the pipe that should have belonged to him now in the village head's mouth.

Pan Dayan was an impatient person and couldn't stand the village head's slow and deliberate manner. She stepped forward and glared angrily at Chen Bingxiao.

"Chen Laosan, what nonsense are you talking about? When my younger sister left your Chen family, she only brought a cartload of things."

Everyone was watching; there were tables, chairs, cabinets—so much stuff! Could the oxcart even fit it all?

They've already divorced, and you still won't let her go. People with hearts of stone like yours should be driven out of the village.

What the Chen family feared most was being driven out of the village. In those days of food shortages, being driven out of the village meant losing their land and their protection.

Chen Bingxiao became anxious, "Village head, if you don't believe me, you can come to my house and see for yourself. My house really has nothing left."

The village headman leisurely exhaled a puff of smoke. "Just because your things are gone doesn't mean Li Shi stole them. Shouldn't you consider whether your family has offended anyone?"

Wang Shuixia said angrily, "Li Shi even stole my son's books. My son is going to take the imperial examination this year, and Li Shi is deliberately trying to prevent our village from having any outstanding scholars. Village head, Li Shi is clearly trying to make things difficult for you."

If a village could produce a scholar, even a student who has only completed the preliminary stage of learning, it would bring many benefits to the village.

The imperial court would reward the local village head and also reduce or exempt certain taxes.

By saying this, Wang Shuixia directly turned Li Ruru into the village head's enemy.

She raised her head and looked at her father and husband triumphantly, as if to say: What good are you two grown men? I still have to do it for you.

But the village head suddenly said, "If I remember correctly, your family has been trying to pass the imperial examination for several years without success."

“Ah, this…” Wang Shuixia was speechless, but said angrily, “He will definitely pass the exam this year.”

Pan Dayan rolled her eyes. "You said the same thing last year. Besides, those books were originally bought by my younger sister. What's wrong with her taking them? They're her dowry, it's none of your business."

-

In the evening, Pan Dayan brought two large basins of ground konjac to Li Ruru's house.

As soon as she walked in, she started gossiping, "Oh my, little sister, you have no idea what happened today, something really funny."

Your ex-husband actually went to the county town to file a complaint, accusing you of stealing.

Da Ya was startled and quickly asked, "What happened next? What did the magistrate say?"

Pan Dayan slapped her thigh and giggled, "The county magistrate didn't say anything, he didn't even get to see the county magistrate, and he was thrown out. Guess what's happened to him now?"

"He's not dead, is he?" Li Ruru asked expectantly.

Pan Dayan: "..."

"No, I heard from Dr. Chen that he was given twenty lashes, his buttocks were bruised and bleeding, and he'll have to stay in bed for several days. Hahahaha."

Pan Dayan laughed unrestrainedly, and Li Ruru also felt very relieved.

"Auntie, why don't you have dinner at our house before you leave? I'm about to make konjac tofu."

"No, thank you!" Pan Dayan waved her hand. Konjac tofu was someone else's craft, and she felt embarrassed to stay and watch.

These days, as long as you have a skill, you can make a good living. Her two sons can earn 40 coins a day grinding konjac, and she is already very satisfied.

Suddenly remembering something, she frowned and said, "Tie Niu told me today that he saw Chen Jingang and Chen Jintong digging konjac on the mountain. Won't this affect your business?"

(End of this chapter)