I won't be a prince's concubine; I'll cook delicious food and raise two villainous cu

Shen Yu's loud cry was heart-wrenching and devastating, leaving the village women present stunned and completely bewildered.

They all knew that although Li Dalang lived in the deep mountains with his younger siblings for many years and did not interact much with the villagers, he would share some of the wild game and mountain produce he hunted with the villagers a few times each year.

If you really anger him, you'll lose all these benefits in the future.

Moreover, the villagers are ordinary people who care about their reputation. No one wants to be branded with the infamy of "framing a respectable woman and driving someone to their death," which would mean being cursed behind their back for the rest of their lives.

Soon, a young woman was the first to react, pointing at Ye Xiaoqin at the back of the crowd and shouting, "It's all that widow Ye Xiaoqin's fault! She was spouting nonsense, which made us misunderstand this young lady!"

Aunt Chen, who was in charge, quickly stepped forward and helped the limp Shen Yu to her feet. With an apologetic smile on her face, she kindly advised, "Young lady, don't be foolish! It's just a misunderstanding. Once it's cleared up, everything will be fine. Why make such a fuss? It's not worth it."

"Yes, yes! Girl, please don't do anything rash!" The other village women chimed in, offering their advice all at once. "If anyone dares to falsely accuse you, we neighbors will all stand up for you. You mustn't do anything foolish!"

A group of people surrounded Shen Yu, pulling and persuading her, fearing that she might do something rash in a moment of despair.

Just then, Li Xiaoyun, also known as Li Dalang, led a middle-aged man from another village and strode over.

No one knew that the middle-aged man and Li Dalang had actually returned long ago. The two of them stood in the shadows outside the courtyard and had seen the whole farce clearly.

The middle-aged man's gaze swept over Shen Yu's tear-reddened face, and he let out a disdainful sneer, saying, "You bunch of women are really making a fool of yourselves! This young lady looks delicate, with skin as smooth as cream. She's clearly a pampered young lady who grew up in a wealthy family. How dare you slander her as a prostitute?"

He paused, his tone becoming even more sarcastic: "Besides, I have indeed seen the portrait of that redeemed prostitute, and she bears absolutely no resemblance to this girl. How did you manage to link the two together? Your hearts are truly malicious!"

An innocent woman has been unjustly branded as a "prostitute." If she cannot clear her name today, her reputation will be completely ruined for the rest of her life.

After being scolded so harshly by a strange man, the village women all hung their heads, too ashamed to lift their heads.

Looking at the middle-aged man before her, Aunt Chen found him unfamiliar and asked hesitantly, "May I ask who you are? This is a family matter in Chenjia Village; what business is it of an outsider like you?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than someone recognized the middle-aged man and exclaimed, "Isn't that Doctor Lin from the neighboring Lin Village?"

Upon hearing this, everyone gasped in shock.

Dr. Lin runs a clinic in town and is highly skilled in medicine. Even the wealthy families in town treat him with great respect. Why would he suddenly come to this remote mountain area today?

Soon, they remembered that Shen Yu had come out of the house with crutches, and suddenly realized: Could it be that Doctor Lin was specially invited by Li Dalang to come up the mountain to treat this girl's injury? If that's the case, this girl really is Li Dalang's cousin who came from afar to find her.

The faces of the village women, led by Aunt Chen, turned deathly pale instantly.

Doctor Lin is a figure that no one in the surrounding area dares to offend. Everyone has their moments of illness and fever, so who would dare to offend him easily? Moreover, if word gets out that this incident today, and the clan leader finds out that a group of women went to the Li family to cause trouble, I'm afraid none of them will have a good ending.

Aunt Chen slapped her thigh hard and shouted at the top of her lungs, "My God! It was all a huge misunderstanding! Arrest Ye Xiaoqin immediately!"

Ye Xiaoqin, who was at the back of the crowd, realized that her plan had been completely exposed. She was so frightened that she turned around and tried to run away, but before she could take two steps, she was caught by the quick-eyed and quick-handed village women and dragged to the front of the crowd by twisting her arms.

Pushed to the front, Ye Xiaoqin was still desperately trying to deny it, waving her hands with a pale face: "I... I just said it casually, it's all a misunderstanding by the aunties and sisters-in-law, it has nothing to do with me..."

"You still dare to talk back!" Aunt Chen was furious. She stepped forward and slapped Ye Xiaoqin hard across the face. "Do you think we're blind? You're a widow, always thinking about Li Dalang, don't you even know if he wants to marry you!"

Caught red-faced in public, Ye Xiaoqin's face flushed crimson, as if dripping with blood, yet she still stubbornly insisted, "I didn't! Please forgive me, ladies and sisters-in-law, I really didn't have those thoughts..."

"Normally, it's just that Dalang asked me to help look after Yaya, and I occasionally bring her some food up the mountain. We don't really have any contact at all..."

Upon hearing this, the village women scoffed even more.

A widowed woman and an unmarried bachelor, a lonely man and a woman frequently meeting, what else could it be but a secret affair and a real relationship?

Shen Yu raised her head and looked at Li Dalang standing to the side. Her eyes were still filled with deep sorrow, but she was secretly curious: how would he deal with this farce, given his appearance?

Unexpectedly, Li Dalang's cold gaze met hers. The sharpness in his eyes made Shen Yu's heart skip a beat, and she instantly felt a sense of shame, as if she had been caught red-handed pretending to be her cousin.

At this critical juncture, is he still concerned about her impersonating someone else?

Shen Yu's heart clenched immediately, fearing that Li Xiaoyun would disregard her feelings and expose her lie on the spot, which would put her in a completely desperate situation.

Just then, Li Dalang slowly shifted his gaze and said in a deep voice, "I have always paid my sister-in-law appropriately for taking care of Yaya. I have also returned the food she sent with raw meat. We are even. There really hasn't been much interaction between my sister-in-law and me."

Those few words, though seemingly casual, were like a sharp knife, instantly piercing through Ye Xiaoqin's disguise. Her flushed face turned deathly pale.

Li Dalang is clearly trying to sever all ties with her and completely cut off any hope she might have!

The village women's gazes toward Ye Xiaoqin instantly filled with contempt, mockery, and disgust.

It turns out that this woman, who usually spreads rumors, was actually plotting this, but Li Dalang didn't even think much of her.

Moreover, now that the Li family has a beautiful "cousin," who would still want her, a widow who has been married before?

Ye Xiaoqin's mind was buzzing from Li Dalang's words, and she was filled with disbelief: How could this be? Clearly, she was the one who should have married Li Dalang the most!

The gazes around her were like needles piercing Ye Xiaoqin, making her unable to lift her head. The resentment in her heart surged like a tide, and she could no longer suppress it.

She abruptly raised her head, staring intently at Shen Yu with venomous eyes, and roared, "It's you...it's all your fault for ruining my plans!"

"You and Li Dalang were alone in a room, a man and a woman, who knows what kind of shady things you've done already? How are you any different from a thief and a prostitute?!"

"Brother, look at me! I'm the one who's best suited for you!"

"Your cousin has come from afar; who knows if she's lost her chastity on the way! You'd be better off marrying me than her!"

"Brother, you promised my son Chen Weisheng you would take care of my daughter and me. You can't go back on your word, Brother!"

These crazy words startled Aunt Chen and the others. They hurriedly glanced at Doctor Lin beside them, fearing that this matter would spread and bring shame to Chenjia Village. They quickly stepped forward and covered Ye Xiaoqin's mouth.

Aunt Chen was trembling with rage. She slapped Ye Xiaoqin twice more, yelling, "Ye Xiaoqin, have you gone mad?!"

"Have you no shame? First you framed an innocent woman, and now you have the audacity to force Li Dalang to marry you. Do you have any shame at all?"

"You shameless hussy, our Chenjia Village will not tolerate you!"

"Drag her away! Go tell her mother-in-law right now, let her see how many shameful things her good daughter-in-law has done!"

"I'll go and inform the clan chief right away, and have him send this madwoman back to Ye Family Village!"

"This is insane! We've been fooled by her for so long..."

Aunt Chen frantically directed the crowd, trying to take Ye Xiaoqin away.

But Ye Xiaoqin suddenly went berserk and bit the woman who was covering her mouth hard.

"Ah! How dare you bite me?" The woman screamed in pain and pinched Ye Xiaoqin hard in anger.

Ye Xiaoqin struggled desperately, like a madwoman, trying to break free of her restraints, crying out in a hoarse voice, "No! No—Dalang, save me! Please save me... Brother Chen is already gone, if I'm kicked out by my in-laws too, I really won't be able to live..."

Ye Xiaoqin's cries were shrill and desperate, which reminded Shen Yu of her own experiences in her previous life.

She knew in her heart that there was nothing wrong with fighting for her own destiny and marriage, but Ye Xiaoqin should not have resorted to despicable means such as fabricating rumors and slandering others.

If I hadn't been quick-witted this time, I might have repeated the same mistake as in my previous life and been kicked out of the house by Li Dalang.

Therefore, Shen Yu felt no sympathy or pity for Ye Xiaoqin.

But she inadvertently caught a glimpse of Li Xiaoyun looking at Ye Xiaoqin, and his usually cold and stern brows seemed to have softened slightly...