The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure-Chapter 908 - 907 Discrimination?

Immediately, someone was displeased: "I say Madam Gu, you’re like a high lantern that lights up others but not yourself! How come you can run to the Song Family to ask for sauce, but we can’t? You run to the Song Family eight times a day, you wouldn’t do it so diligently if there weren’t any benefits? My son saw you sniffing the aroma and running to the Song Family for sauce and bringing it back! Why is it okay for you to ask, but when we do, it’s not?"

"I’m not the one saying this, but Madam Gu, isn’t your eating manner a bit disgraceful? You only want your family to take advantage of the Song Family, eh?"

"Exactly, you can ask, why can’t we? And yet you have the cheek to talk about us!"

...

A group of wives surrounded Madam Gu and started accusing her in a chorus.

Madam Gu was amused and furious: "What are you people worth? You think you can compare to me? I do visit the Song Family often, but I conduct myself righteously and sit firmly! Your brat just saw me carrying sauce back, why didn’t they see me bringing eggs? Do you think I’m as shameless as you, come and take things without asking?"

Behind her, Old Granny Zhang feared the group of wives wouldn’t die from anger, so she shouted loudly: "Even if I give it to Madam Gu for free, I’m willing! I just can’t stand you shameless and shallow-eyed creatures and won’t give it to you!"

After these words, those wives couldn’t stay any longer out of embarrassment. Each of them, holding their bowls angrily, turned their heads and left the Song Family Courtyard.

The children were still waiting at the doorstep and, seeing their mothers come out with empty bowls, were immediately dissatisfied. freewēbnoveℓ.com

"Mom, where’s the sauce? I want sauce! I want sauce!" Some started crying and fussing.

It was already afternoon and at the alley entrance, quite a few people gathered to watch the scene.

Those wives, unable to save face, grabbed their children and gave them a couple of smacks on the butt, scolding: "Eat, eat, eat, all you know is eating! Are you a reincarnated starving ghost or what? They didn’t give you anything, what will you eat? Get back home now!"

Brats aren’t formed in one day; if they listened, could they persuade their moms to ask others for food?

After being slapped a few times, the child wouldn’t comply, so they flung themselves onto the ground, crying and wailing: "I don’t care! I just want sauce! I want sauce!"

There were those who couldn’t stand watching this and spoke up: "Madam, look at how the child is fussing, they haven’t asked for anything else, just a bit of sauce, let the child have some!"

The wife rolled her eyes, slapped her thigh, and sat on the ground, wailing: "You say it so easily! As a mother, how can I bear to see my own child rolling on the ground for a mouthful of sauce? Isn’t there no other way?"

"What do you mean no other way?" someone asked.

"What means can there be? This sauce isn’t ours; it’s Scholar Song’s family sauce, brewed all noon, with a fragrance impossible to resist, luring my child to stay here all noon without going home to eat, just smelling it by the wall of Scholar Song’s courtyard. And that’s that, my child just smells it, can’t see it, can’t taste it, and will eventually go home by evening."

"But Madam Gu next door, her child smelled the temptation too, and asked Madam Gu to get a bowl of sauce from the Song Family. Naturally, my child saw it, right? What do kids understand? Seeing others ask, went home and made me come ask the Song Family for some to try."

"But the Song Family! We came nicely for our children to ask for a mouthful of sauce, only to be scolded by Scholar Song’s mother-in-law, saying we’re shameless! Madam Gu heard the commotion, her lips softened by eating free sauce, and ran to the Song Family to drive us away! The child didn’t see any sauce, so of course they’ll cry!"

The onlookers, many from around the street, know who these children lying on the ground and the crying wives are, right?

They’re people who are never satisfied just taking advantage, so no one takes them seriously. Everyone guesses that probably these wives tried to mooch, but were chased away by the kind-hearted Madam Gu.

They’ve seen Scholar Song’s wife too, gentle and polite, always smiling when she speaks to others, most amiable. They know Scholar Song’s mother-in-law too, she’s been sick for quite a while now, Scholar Song and his wife hire grannies and maids to care for her, who doesn’t say they’re filial?

Though Scholar Song’s mother-in-law looks smart, she hasn’t been known as formidable in all this time. Especially now that her illness has improved, she rarely goes out, staying home to recover, how could she scold them?

Such slander, don’t they fear retribution?

Someone even joked: "I say, dear sisters, we all live on the same street, who doesn’t know who? I suggest you quickly take your children home! Save some face and avoid unpleasant words!"

There are some without their heads screwed on straight, hearing the wife and her child crying so pitifully, they became immediately dissatisfied: "This is too outrageous! Even a Scholar Family’s women can be so stingy? Neighbors and all, what’s wrong with giving the kids a taste of sauce?"

The person beside sneered: "These must not be locals, right? They’re probably outsiders just coming to study?"

The confused one was curious: "How do you know?"

"Heh, just hearing you speak and seeing your clothes it’s obvious. If you were locals, just by the aroma, you’d know what sauce is being brewed, wouldn’t say such things! I advise you, eat as much food as you like, but speak less!"

The confused one seemed dressed like a scholar, with five or six similarly dressed scholars following behind, hearing this, all frowned.

"What do you mean by that? Are you looking down on us outsiders? We know your Jing County Changqing Academy is remarkable, yet we never imagined your Jing County people look down upon others like this?" One narrow-eyed scholar spoke displeasingly.

Nearby people, hearing this, thought it didn’t sound like they were here to study, rather seemed like they were here to cause trouble?

With matters concerning Changqing Academy and its scholars, the person who was just speaking no longer dared to speak up, fearing they’d invite trouble.

Thus everyone stepped aside.

Seeing the situation, those scholars showed some smugness, and the leader stepped forward: "Dear sisters, don’t cry anymore, we’ll go and seek justice for you!"

With that, they headed towards the Song Family Courtyard.

The crowd watching was dumbfounded: "Where did this bunch of fools come from? Have they read themselves silly? A group of scholars going to ask for sauce justice on behalf of those women?"

"I doubt it! Not silly! Probably these outsider scholars are here to stir trouble?"

Some shrewd ones sensed trouble and exchanged glances, then split up to run towards Changqing Academy and County Yamen.

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