Chapter 14: Moving House

Chapter 14: Moving Out

"What am I afraid of? I wouldn't be afraid even if I reported this to the officials."

The night was pitch black, and Yu Tingwan's words were forceful enough to ring out clearly.

"What? You want to report us to the officials?"

Wouldn't it be better if Yu Tingwan just obediently accepted her fate!

Mother Xu rushed forward: "If you dare harm my second son, I'll skin you alive."

But before she could touch Yu Tingwan, she was intercepted by Li Lian, who was standing closest.

Li Lian pushed her away and cursed, "If you want to go crazy, go back to your own village and act crazy there! This isn't your house!"

"Daring to act like this right under our noses—do you really think the girls of Xilin Village are easy to bully?"

As soon as those words fell, the villagers collectively picked up tools from the courtyard and surrounded the Xu family.

Father Xu panicked: "Are you all trying to beat people?"

He was elderly and a light sleeper.

He had woken up when Xu Fen quietly left the kitchen, but he hadn't tried to stop him from the beginning.

There was no use being angry at Xu Fen now. He couldn't even handle one woman.

The eldest Xu son looked sullen as he shielded his wife behind him, attempting to lower his posture: "Wan-niang, if you are unwilling to marry, we won't force you. I'll have my second brother apologize to you. Please don't hold onto this matter."

Yu Tingwan retorted, "How about I castrate Xu Fen and then apologize to him later? Would that work?"

Seeing the situation reach a deadlock, the Village Head observed Yu Tingwan. Her lack of panic when facing trouble was a rare display of composure.

He clasped his hands behind his back. "It's too dark to travel right now, so let's leave that aside. Wang-shi, tomorrow morning, the Xu family must leave."

Wang-shi frowned.

She was somewhat reluctant.

Once they left, it would be her turn to do all the work again.

However, she did not dare to contradict the Village Head.

The Xu family's expressions changed drastically all at once.

"That won't do! Our house is uninhabitable; where are we supposed to go?"

"The weather is this cold; aren't you just telling our family to go die?"

Li Lian had no desire to listen to their wailing: "Then that's your problem!"

Other villagers chimed in.

"Coming here to seek refuge is one thing if you're an honest family, but you're nothing but a nest of schemes."

"Even if Wang-shi were willing to let you stay, we wouldn't agree. I wouldn't deal with relatives like you for a lifetime."

"Then go die! So you don't go on to ruin any more girls."

At this moment, the Village Head looked at Yu Tingwan and spoke after a moment of contemplation.

"Wan-niang, this is ultimately a scandal."

"I know you have suffered grievances. Xu Fen had malicious intent, but in the end, nothing happened. Now that he is injured like this, the yamen won't intervene. If this blows up, it won't be good for you either."

"I don't need to mention how your uncle has treated you over the years. You might not care about being pointed at by outsiders, but you must consider him and Yaozu."

"You are a good child; you shouldn't make things difficult for them."

"As outsiders, it is difficult for us to handle this matter. How about this? Let's set it aside for now. Once your uncle returns, I will not stop him from dealing with the Xu family however he sees fit."

Yu Tingwan was not surprised that the Village Head was trying to play the mediator.

It made sense; it wasn't his daughter facing the issue, so he couldn't truly empathize.

How could a girl with deceased parents compare to a scholar?

She wasn't so foolish as to go head-to-head with the Village Head who governed Xilin Village.

She lowered her face halfway, appearing to be in conflict.

Seeing that she had gone from being aggressive to showing signs of yielding, the Village Head's expression softened.

"Is there some difficulty?"

Yu Tingwan pursed her lips.

"I can no longer stay in the Hu household."

"First the Dong family, then the Xu family—what will be next?"

Her concern was not without reason.

The Village Head was also very disappointed in Wang-shi's actions.

Not only was Yu Tingwan uneasy, but even he was uneasy.

"This is easy to solve. You can stay at my house until your uncle returns."

It would mean one more mouth to feed, but once Hu Dazhu returned to pick her up, he wouldn't be taking advantage of them for nothing.

However, Yu Tingwan did not agree.

Once she moved out of the Hu house, she had no intention of returning.

Living in the Village Head's house meant dealing with a large family, and it wouldn't be convenient to come and go. She also didn't want to owe anyone a favor.

Seeing her hesitation, the Village Head said, "If you are afraid of causing trouble, there is an empty old house in the village. Although it has fallen into disrepair over the years, it can be lived in if cleaned up a bit."

Yu Tingwan moved into the old house that very night.

Perhaps out of pity for her, as she walked somewhat awkwardly after her fall, the villagers volunteered to help.

Aside from some firewood, a few pieces of clothing, and some fruit Yu Tingwan had scavenged from outside to stave off hunger, she hadn't packed much luggage.

Though she had lived in the Hu house for many years, her traces there were very shallow.

Seeing this, Old Lady Fan said sarcastically, "Anyone who didn't know would think you were living in the woodshed."

"It seems Wan-niang's days in the Hu house weren't all that good."

Upon hearing this, Wang-shi felt like getting into a fight with her.

This was the countryside; it was already quite generous of the family to clear a space for her to sleep.

It was dark, and Yu Tingwan could not see the path clearly. Being sensitive to the cold, she simply kept her head down and followed the crowd.

With an injury on her leg, she did not walk fast.

The old house was far away and very dilapidated, but the lights in the neighboring house were on, meaning someone lived nearby.

"This is the place."

The Village Head used a key to unlock the door and let everyone in.

The old house had not been inhabited for a long time; it was covered in cobwebs and thick with dust.

It was just a tiny room, but Yu Tingwan was already very satisfied.

Since they were already there, the villagers were in no hurry to leave. They simply rolled up their sleeves to help clean, each moving with great efficiency.

The window was wobbling and creaking in the cold wind, so someone gave it a simple fix.

Old Lady Fan leaned in.

"Wan-niang, I have a nephew..."

Before she could finish, she was interrupted by a stout woman beside her.

"Old Lady Fan, have some decency! Your nephew is a mute; do you really want to introduce him to Wan-niang?"

Old Lady Fan turned on her: "So what if he's mute!"

If it weren't for her nephew being mute, she wouldn't even look at Yu Tingwan!

She grabbed Yu Tingwan's hand: "Child, I truly think you two are a good match."

Yu Tingwan:...

Thank you.

Everyone pricked up their ears and looked over.

Old Lady Fan: "There are advantages to not being able to speak."

Yu Tingwan asked sincerely, "What advantages?"

Old Lady Fan choked up: "..."

Yu Tingwan had no choice but to kindly answer for her.

"In the future, if there are disagreements, he won't have the ability to argue with me."

Old Lady Fan: "Right, right, right!"

Yu Tingwan pulled her hand away forcefully.

Old Lady Fan was undeterred: "I have another nephew."

The stout woman: "Just shut up."

"That other nephew of yours is even worse. He's mentally incomplete. He's twenty-eight and still soils his pants."

"Last time you were washing his underwear, he turned around and ran out naked."

"I saw it myself; that thing was as thin as a needle."

People in the countryside spoke without any restraint.

Although Yu Tingwan had no experience in matters of intimacy, she knew what ordinary couples did.

The Hu house was small; every time Hu Dalang and Mrs. Xu made noise in their room, it would disturb her rest.

Moreover, there were many wild dogs in the countryside, and it wasn't as if Yu Tingwan hadn't seen a male dog mounting a female dog...

Just thinking about it made Yu Tingwan's scalp tingle.

Was being thin not a good thing?

Otherwise, wouldn't it be too painful?

By the time they were finished, they would think he hadn't even entered.

Yu Tingwan was inspired.

If she was going to look, she would look for a thin one!