Free Web NovelChapter 1349: Chapter 1344: Black-Hearted and Rotten
"Alright! I’ll definitely return earlier!" Qin Xianglan said.
After parting ways with Old Mrs. Mu, Qin Xianglan headed straight for the cosmetics shop.
She had two taels of silver on hand, which seemed like a lot, but if she truly wanted to buy top-quality cosmetics from the city’s reputable shops, it might be a bit tight!
Fortunately, along the way, Qin Xianglan surveyed several cosmetics shops, and this one was the most crowded with women.
Moreover, the women entering weren’t particularly extravagantly dressed, so she should be able to afford it!
She also planned to save some money to buy a nice yet affordable dress, which would be enough to impress Mu Dade!
After purchasing everything, the two taels of silver were used up, just as Qin Xianglan had predicted.
Everything in the city was more expensive than in the town.
No matter what it was, the fabric of city clothes and the quality of cosmetics were far superior to those in the town, especially the cosmetics.
The cosmetics Qin Xianglan bought were finer and looked exceptionally beautiful when applied.
She returned early to Mu Dade’s house and hid the things she had bought.
Originally, she intended to make an impression in front of Mu Dade. After all, last night, Mu Dade was very interested in her!
However, Qin Xianglan did not anticipate overhearing Mu Dade’s conversation with Mrs. Jin...
In the study, Mu Dade tried to keep his voice low as he discussed with Mrs. Jin, "I’ve thought about it. This time, we need to change our strategy. We can’t just try to get rid of all these people at once! We should tackle them one by one!"
"We won’t say anything to our parents, but we’ll talk to the second son’s wife. We’ll tell them that between our parents and them, we can only keep one.
Then, we’ll tell the fourth son that between the second and fourth families, we can only keep one. By then, everyone will surely try all sorts of tricks to stay!"
As soon as Mu Dade finished speaking, Mrs. Jin’s eyes lit up.
"You’re right. Among these people, the most cunning is that old lady. The most disgusting is Mrs. Lin. The two of them are hard to deal with, but the others are relatively easy to handle!
Once we get rid of these two troublemakers, we can deal with the rest as we please!" Mrs. Jin said.
"But you know my mother; her face is as thick as it gets! Getting her to leave is not easy!" Mu Dade said.
"Not really! Actually, something happened to the old lady some time ago. She was kidnapped for several days along with Qin Xianglan!"
"Qin Xianglan?" Mu Dade perked up instantly upon hearing this name.
But Mrs. Jin was too busy cursing Old Mrs. Mu to notice!
"Yes, the old lady was kidnapped by a hoodlum and forced to become a fool’s wife! Qin Xianglan rescued her!
I have a bold idea now. If the old lady and that fool did have something happen, do you think our father would let our mother stay in the county, discomforting herself?"
"Father didn’t tell me about this! Are you sure about this information?" Mu Dade looked shocked.
"I don’t know for sure either. It’s what Mrs. Lin said! She seemed to be saying that our mother and that fool might have had something, but it’s not certain!" Mrs. Jin answered.
Each word from Mrs. Jin was vulgar indeed.
It was completely different from the past, when Mrs. Jin was kind and gentle.
However, this was all because of Old Mrs. Mu, who had bullied and humiliated Mrs. Jin at the Old Mu Family.
So Mrs. Jin had sworn if Old Mrs. Mu kept living at her house, she would rather die a painful death.
Even for her own sake, she had to get rid of that old lady.
Mu Dade seriously considered Mrs. Jin’s words, and in truth, he didn’t reject them.
He knew that if this were true, his mother would most likely be sent to the countryside.
Once she left, the rest of the family would be easy to deal with!
Mu Dade had many matters to handle in the county.
Whether it was his own work or things between him and Ruan Xiao Jiao.
In short, the fewer family members around, the easier things would be to control!
"I think we should start with Qin Xianglan here. At worst, we can give her some money, encouraging her to badmouth the old lady in front of our father. If our father believes Qin Xianglan, then naturally, our mother will not be treated well!" Mrs. Jin said.
Mu Dade didn’t nod, but deep down, he agreed with Mrs. Jin’s approach.
Regardless of the means, as long as the end result was what he wanted, it was fine!
Qin Xianglan was genuinely shocked after overhearing Mu Dade and Mrs. Jin’s words.
For others to disdain their parents was one thing.
But Mu Dade...
He was nurtured by Mr. Mu and Old Mrs. Mu, all the way up, but now, to treat his own parents so cruelly — it was terrifying.
Qin Xianglan hesitated; should she really get involved with Mu Dade, trying to establish herself in the county?
Deep down, she didn’t want to!
But when she realized she didn’t even have a place to stay, and every person in the Old Mu Family was hard to serve, Qin Xianglan suddenly changed her mind.
No matter the outcome, she had to try!
By aligning with Mu Dade, she had a chance to turn her life around!
...
While chaos brewed in the Old Mu Family, harmony prevailed in the Third Branch.
With the autumn harvest arriving, Mu Shuangshuang hadn’t gone to the town’s restaurant for several days, instead staying at home to assist Mu Dashan and Yu Si Niang with various tasks.
Cooking was the main focus!
Every day, many people ate at their house—including hired short-term workers and village acquaintances like Uncle Yu and Uncle Gouzi.
Even Fu Wu helped to harvest a few plots of land, meaning the Third Branch didn’t spend much on hired hands overall!
But altogether, there were quite a few mouths to feed.
Cooking became a demanding task.
Mu Shuangshuang prepared various dishes daily, rewarding those working hard!
When everyone grew tired of homegrown vegetables, they’d hunt in the mountains.
At noon, they’d bring back the game and prepare side dishes for the workers to pair with their drinks.
After five busy days, everyone finally helped the Third Branch store all the grain in the warehouse.
Luckily, the harvest year was particularly good.
The rice grains were exceptionally plump and far surpassed the rice taken from Fengzi’s house and given to Old Mrs. Mu.
The Third Branch was profiting!
Good quality harvested rice naturally sold at a better price!
Sadly, Mr. Mu and Old Mrs. Mu couldn’t see it now; if they did, they’d likely feel deeply regretful!
Just imagining it made Mu Shuangshuang want to laugh.
In reality, the Old Mu Family left two days ago.
Who knows how they’re faring!
Mu Shuangshuang herself didn’t think it would be great; Mu Dade probably wouldn’t let them have a good time.
He might even be thinking of ways to drive them out!
Of course, these were merely Mu Shuangshuang’s private musings—she hadn’t shared them with anyone.
At present, her father and the villagers believed the rest of the Old Mu Family was living it up in the county.
They may never witness Old Mrs. Mu and Mr. Mu returning to the village!
...
After the autumn harvest concluded, Mu Shuangshuang began preparing items for her Northwest journey. As everything was readied, several days had passed!
