Poisonous Peasant 'Concubine' Ch 41 - Hyacinth in Bloom

Chapter 41 — Stirring Up Trouble • A Conversation Between Two Baozi

There is a saying that goes: “Plans can never keep up with change!” From past lives to the present, love and marriage were never truly what Ling Jingxuan sought. Yet, when fate destined for you arrives, no matter how you try to escape, you cannot avoid it. Soon, Ling Jingxuan would truly come to realize this harsh reality and witness the cruel nature of the ancient feudal society.

To make one hundred jars of jam, a great number of wild fruits would be needed. Additionally, he planned to brew another hundred jars of grape wine. How many wild grapes grew in the mountains, he did not know. If the wild grapes were insufficient, he would have to use other wild fruits for the jam. This would, of course, consume more time in the mountains. Thus, after finishing their meal, Ling Jingxuan gave a few instructions to the two little buns and, with a large bamboo basket on his back, set off with Ling Jingpeng to Yuehua Mountain.

However, he overlooked one thing. His family—he and his two sons—had long been accustomed to being bullied. Even if he temporarily scared them off, driven by their nature and habits, they would never let things end so easily, especially now that it seemed like he had really made some money, all at the expense of their humiliation.

“Mother, you don’t know! That monster Ling Jingxuan has so many good things in his house. At noon, they were still cooking meat! Our father doesn’t have such a good life. I’ve noticed recently that Second Brother and his wife, along with Jingpeng, keep running to his place. Do you think they’ve been secretly giving him money? Otherwise, how could someone so despised, with two half-grown wild bastards, suddenly afford meat and buy all these things?”

The old Ling family in Lingjia Village was considered a big household, with several dozen acres of land and no taxes to pay. Their ancestral house sat right in the heart of the village—a grand, several-roomed house with green bricks and large tiled roofs. It was quite impressive. The mother and daughter, still nursing the grievances they suffered at Ling Jingxuan’s house, returned home in a huff and rushed straight to the upper room where the Old Madam resided. Taking advantage of the fact that Ling Chenglong and his wife were working in the fields, Ling Jiang-shi relied on the Old Madam to fan the flames, constantly inciting trouble.

“What’s the matter? Haven’t you been given any meat at home? Are you feeling wronged?” The Old Madam, lying lazily on a couch with her eyes half-closed, cast a sideways glance at her daughter-in-law, her gaze holding a clear warning. The Ling family hadn’t fallen so low that they were jealous of others eating meat.

“No, mother, how could I be that kind of person?” Ling Jiang-shi immediately flushed with embarrassment and quickly tried to explain. Standing beside her, Ling Xiaoying had inherited her mother’s skill of stirring the pot well. Seeing the Old Madam’s face darken, she slyly tugged at her mother, crouching at the Old Madam’s feet with a pitiful expression.

“Really, Grandma, I also heard that for the past few days, Second Uncle and Jingpeng have been hauling fresh, plump fish to the market every day. Jingxuan’s money must be from selling fish, and that’s money Second Uncle and Jingpeng earned. We haven’t split the family, so it should all go to you, Grandma! How could they give it to that expelled bastard?”

She refused to believe that the Old Madam would let such a thing go, and if the Old Madam came to the house, she was certain that Ling Jingxuan wouldn’t dare threaten to report her to the authorities. If he had the courage, let him try to drag her to the county office to be beaten.

“Is that true?”

At these words, a young woman in pink, looking to be in her late teens and quite beautiful, exaggeratedly asked. This was the Old Madam’s youngest daughter, Ling Chenghua, who was the same age as Ling Jingxuan. She was the cherished youngest child of the two elders and had been doted on since childhood. The only thing that hadn’t gone smoothly for her was her marriage. Her engagement had been arranged years ago with a wealthy family in the town. She was set to marry the following year, but when the scandal with Ling Jingxuan erupted, her fiancé’s family thought that although she was the daughter of a scholar, her upbringing was lacking, and she wasn’t worthy of marrying into their family. They soon broke off the engagement, and the Old Madam had even personally caused a scene in the city, but it all ended in failure.

It was a grave matter for a woman to be jilted, and for the next two years, even though she carried the title of a scholar’s daughter, no one dared to propose to her. Over the years, there had been some suitors, but she either looked down on their family background or disliked their appearance. The Old Madam indulged her, so now, at twenty, she was still an unmarried old maid.

For a long time, she had blamed Ling Jingxuan for ruining her life, harboring deep resentment against him. Over the years, the three of them—Ling Jingxuan and his sons—had been bullied wherever they went, and she had played a big part in it. Now, how could she bear to see the very person who had ruined her life live a good one?

One cannot deny, the old Ling family’s education of their children was truly lacking. A village girl, carrying the title of a scholar’s daughter, thought she was akin to a princess. If she had been born into a royal family, would she have been insufferably proud?

“Really, Little Aunt, if you don’t believe me, just go outside and ask—many people in our village know about it!” Ling Xiaoying didn’t like this little aunt of theirs who had been bullying them since they were young. Yet, at this moment, she answered faster than anyone else, and her intent was all too clear.

“Mother, you can’t just ignore this. Second Brother and his wife are truly too much. Back then, Second Sister-in-law used her dowry to buy that bastard three acres of land. That was her dowry, so we couldn’t interfere. Over the years, you’ve let them off the hook time and again because of your maternal love, but this is just greed! How could they take your kindness for stupidity? If you don’t take action, Eldest Brother and Third Brother will certainly accuse you of favoritism.”

After receiving a confirmatory answer, Ling Chenghua rudely pushed aside Ling Jiang-shi, clung to the Old Madam’s arm, and rambled on with a long tirade. The Old Madam, who had remained indifferent at first, slowly furrowed her brows. Her half-closed eyes suddenly snapped open, her high cheekbones revealing her harshness.

“Unbelievable! The second son’s family has gone too far! Take me to that bastard’s home. I want to see how much the second brother has been giving him!”

Daughters and daughters-in-law were different. As soon as the Old Madam spoke, her face became even more stern and severe. Ling Chenghua secretly rejoiced in her heart and eagerly helped the Old Madam to her feet. The four of them, believing themselves to be in the right, stormed angrily toward Ling Jingxuan’s house to “seek justice.”

Of course, Ling Jingxuan had no way of knowing all this. To save time, the two brothers made their way through the backyard and the thicket, heading into Yuehua Mountain. They knew the route well and soon arrived at the woods where they had picked wild grapes. The corpse of the she-wolf was gone, leaving only a pile of bones and bloodstains on the ground, likely gnawed on by other wild animals. Ling Jingxuan didn’t give it much thought. The brothers quickly set down their bamboo baskets and resumed picking wild grapes.

“Brother, where are you going?” At this time, most of the fruits were ripe, and they had quickly filled half a basket. As Ling Jingpeng raised his head, he saw Ling Jingxuan walking deeper into the forest with a sharp sickle in hand. A look of confusion crossed his face, and without thinking, he followed him.

“I want to see if there are any other fruits nearby. You stay here and pick; I’ll be back soon.”

Ling Jingxuan turned back to give him a reassuring glance. His movements with the sickle didn’t pause for a moment. Many of the fruits could be made into jam, but when it came to taste, few could compare to the balance of sweetness and sourness of grapes. For long-term planning, he had to find as many fruits as possible for making jam or other food products. Before winter came, he had more to do than just building a house—he was planning something much bigger.

“Be careful and don’t go too deep. There are many wild beasts in the mountains. If you run into something fierce, it could be trouble,” Ling Jingpeng warned, stopping for a moment, though he knew better than anyone that his older brother was capable and didn’t need his concern.

Ling Jingxuan didn’t respond this time, simply waving his hand behind him in acknowledgment. Sweat trickled down Ling Jingpeng’s face as he turned back to continue picking the grapes. He could hardly believe his ears when he heard Ling Wen say that one jar of jam sold for a silver tael. The shock was followed by an overwhelming admiration for his older brother, and a surging excitement about making money. Whether the money came from Ling Jingxuan or himself, it didn’t matter—after all, they were brothers, weren’t they?

Meanwhile, back at Ling Jingxuan’s house, after they left, the two little buns awkwardly entered with the clothes they had bought for Yan Shengrui. However, it seemed that Yan Shengrui was sleeping. The brothers couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. As Ling Wen searched for a place to put the clothes, the cute little bun squatted in front of Yan Shengrui, curiously studying his sleeping face. His brows occasionally furrowed, and his little lips pouted at one moment, then curled downward the next. The expressions on his face were so varied and adorable.

“Brother, do you think he’s really our father?” With a bold hand, the little bun poked Yan Shengrui’s face and turned to his brother with a longing gaze. Deep down, he still longed for this father.

“Why are you curious about that? He’ll leave once his injury heals. Xiao Wu, didn’t we agree that we only want Daddy?”

Ling Wen’s small, dry body stiffened for a moment. He then curled his lips in displeasure and walked over. His dark, bright eyes were filled with a mixture of resentment, longing, and inner turmoil. How could he not understand his little brother’s feelings? But over the years, their grandmother had often whispered in his ear that if it weren’t for this man, they wouldn’t have fallen to their current state. Since he became aware of the world, he had harbored endless resentment toward this so-called father, but at the same time, he secretly longed for him. Of course, he would never admit it.

“But… Tiewa has two fathers. I want two fathers too. That way, people won’t call us wild bastards with no parents anymore.”

The little bun lowered his head, feeling wronged, and fiddled with his fingers. A faint tear glistened in his eyes as he didn’t understand why, even though their father had returned, their father and brother still wanted to send him away.

Ling Wen felt a sharp pang in his heart. He put down the clothes and pulled his little brother into a hug, his own eyes brimming with tears as he spoke softly, “Xiao Wu, be good. Don’t say these things in front of Daddy. It will make him sad.”

“I know, I just want to complain to you, brother. Can’t we really have our father?”

The little bun buried his head in Ling Wen’s neck, nodding as he expressed his frustration. When he raised his head, his tearful eyes were full of hope, not bothering to hide it. Ling Wen felt another pang in his heart. He could no longer continue to argue. Lowering his eyes, he stammered, “Well… it’s not that we can’t. I secretly asked Third Uncle, and he said that if Daddy is willing, he can stay. Uncle also told me not to interfere with Daddy’s decision. For the past five years, Daddy was foolish and naive, all because of that man. Now that Daddy is finally clear-headed, if we go against his wishes, he will surely be heartbroken. I don’t fully understand what Third Uncle meant, but I think Third Uncle is right. If Daddy wants to keep him, I’m willing to forget everything and accept him. Xiao Wu, I’m telling you this in confidence. Don’t tell anyone.”

“Mm, but brother, don’t you always scold Daddy?”

The little bun nodded obediently, blinking his innocent eyes as he innocently pointed this out. Ling Wen froze, suddenly recalling how often he would scold his father, his face flushing red. He quickly turned and walked out, his steps large and purposeful. “I… I only do that because Daddy always spends money recklessly. How hard is it to earn money in our family? Daddy isn’t exactly good with money, so of course, I need to keep an eye on him. That’s all.”

“Oh, that’s it!”

Ling Wu seemed to have an epiphany, nodding vigorously before happily following behind. The two brothers soon disappeared from the room. Unbeknownst to them, Yan Shengrui hadn’t actually fallen into a deep sleep—he had just been resting his eyes. As soon as they entered, he was already aware of them, and in his heart, he actually wanted to interact more with the children, talk with them, maybe even share some casual family matters. However, he didn’t know how to approach them, so he decided to feign sleep and observe what they would do. To his surprise, he heard every word they said.

When he heard that the usually distant and aloof Ling Jingxuan had been foolish and naive for the past five years, a strange, dull pain suddenly rose in his chest. No wonder he had treated him that way. If it had been him, he might have slapped him senseless. The more he learned about Ling Jingxuan’s past, the more uneasy he felt. He wanted to do everything in his power to make up for it, but for some reason, he felt as though something was missing. He couldn’t put his finger on it and, after a while, decided it must be because he had forgotten something due to his memory loss.

Yan Shengrui opened his eyes, propped himself up, and grabbed the new clothes that Ling Wen had carelessly left nearby. Although the fabric didn’t look particularly impressive, Yan Shengrui gripped it tightly. The sharp pain in his tiger-like eyes gradually faded, replaced by a determination that he had never felt before.

“Ling Jingxuan, I’m going to make sure I win you and your sons.”

No matter if his memories would ever return, or whether he truly had the noble identity Ling Jingxuan spoke of, he would not forget this decision. He would ensure a bright and happy future for them!

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Translator: LazyHermitGal