Turning Antagonist to Protagonist: He is Both Soft and Fierce-Chapter 289 - 284: Why Did Song Tingfan Marry Someone Older?
"Two, huh, not bad, hahaha, I only had one back then. Now I’m hoping, maybe I can have another daughter," Mrs. Wang Zhu said with some envy.
Lin Qiao resisted the urge to explain the science behind having children and smiled, "I’m sure it will happen, go on now, we won’t disturb you any longer."
After saying goodbye to the Wang family’s young couple, the two walked forward. Lin Qiao deliberately avoided mentioning the mistake with the wrong Buddha statue earlier. She turned to a woman and asked, "Big sister, can you tell me where the temple for peace is? It’s my first time here, so I’m not familiar."
The man next to the woman instinctively glanced at her and then, with a smile, pointed to the other side, "Over there, go left from under the stone steps."
The woman wasn’t pleased and glared at the man, "What do you know, you fool, get lost. This old lady is going home, you stay here and pray alone if you want. Let’s see what you can pray for!" With that, she turned and left in a huff.
The man lost face, angrily pointing at her and cursing, "How dare you talk to me like that, woman!"
Then he turned to Lin Qiao and explained, "She’s not usually like this at home. When I say go east, she doesn’t dare to go west..."
Song Tingfan didn’t like his gaze and gave him a sharp look. Before the man could finish, he pulled Lin Qiao away.
His strides were a bit large, and Lin Qiao stumbled, taken by surprise, but he caught her just in time.
After regaining her balance, she withdrew her hand and rubbed her aching wrist, feeling a bit helpless about his sudden mood, "What’s the matter?"
Song Tingfan muttered, "Better wear a veil when you go out in the future."
A lot of men liked to look at her, some customers in the shop came just for her.
Lin Qiao couldn’t help but laugh, "People in the countryside don’t wear veils. I’ll just go out less in the future."
But she understood well that a woman’s striking appearance could easily cause problems, so apart from in town or her village, she rarely went out.
"I’m not saying you should go out less. I’ll accompany you whenever you go out in the future."
Song Tingfan glanced at her wrist, a hint of guilt flashing in his eyes. He then gently took her hand and gave it a light rub, "Did it hurt?"
"Let’s go down the mountain and get some medicine."
Lin Qiao shook her head, glanced at the crowded mountain path, and said, "It’s nothing, it’ll be fine soon. Let’s go burn incense instead, more and more people are coming."
"No need, let’s get down the mountain." Song Tingfan didn’t dare pull her hard anymore, wrapping his arm around her shoulder and leading her down the mountain road.
His presence overwhelmed her, and Lin Qiao felt a bit uneasy, "Cough, it’s crowded here." She motioned with her eyes for him to let go.
"They walk their own way," Song Tingfan seemed not to understand her meaning.
Seeing they were really going down the mountain, Lin Qiao quickly stopped, "Let’s burn the incense before leaving, my wrist is really fine."
She insisted, and Song Tingfan pursed his lips and agreed.
...
The next day, after Mrs. Wang Zhu mentioned the incense burning, the whole village knew about it.
That morning,
By the riverside, several women gossiped, "They’ve been married for over half a month, why isn’t Widow Song showing any signs? Could it be something’s wrong?"
"She’s getting older, it’s not easy to conceive, a few years ago would’ve been better."
"Looks like Song’s second family might not have any more descendants. I don’t know what Song Tingfan is thinking, marrying an older woman, it’s really unfilial."
"Exactly, if his parents were alive, they definitely wouldn’t let him marry Widow Song."
"Indeed."
"I heard it’s the Lin Family couple who forced Song Tingfan to marry her, said they’d hang themselves if he didn’t."
"Ah, I heard Widow Song got into Song Tingfan’s bed in the night."
Not far away, Li Guifen heard every word. It was one thing if they talked about her, but she wouldn’t tolerate them badmouthing her daughter. She loudly declared, "Why are you speaking so softly, say it so the whole village can hear! Are you flies, knowing so much about other people’s business?"
"Instead of gossiping about others, why not care about your own family? I don’t know whose daughter still hasn’t found a match in these times."
Immediately, the woman in gray stood up angrily, pointing at her and shouting, "Li Guifen! Who are you dissing? My daughter might not be engaged, but she’s more virtuous than yours. Only Song Tingfan would pick up that worn-out shoe."
"Even if my daughter is a worn-out shoe, she’s more sought after than yours. No one would want your daughter even if she came with silver coins, as ugly as an old tree bark. Not even a man, I’d feel sick looking at her myself."
"But it’s not your daughter’s fault, ugly mothers raise a whole litter of ugliness."
"You!! Li Guifen!!! You you you!!" The woman blushed furiously, shouting in anger.
"Can’t even speak properly and still badmouth others. You deserve a slap!" Li Guifen gave her a glance, then strutted home, not bothered by the women by the river.
Lin Han came back from work and heard about his wife’s "heroic deed," "Wife, you should have slapped their mouths! Hmph! Talking about my daughter like that, my daughter is more precious than gold even compared to grass!"
"Aunt Zhou and the others are watching!"
The more Li Guifen thought about it, the more uneasy she felt. She turned to him and quietly asked, "Do you think there’s really something wrong with Tingfan?"
Lin Han thought of Song Tingfan’s sturdy build, "Doesn’t seem like it, Tingfan is so strong."
"What good is it to look strong on the outside? Think about how he hasn’t had proper food or clothing these years; how can he be strong inside?" Li Guifen looked worried; she’d feel at ease if her daughter’s belly had a child.
Lin Han was also concerned but didn’t show it, "Let’s wait a while longer, it’s only been half a month."
"No, I still need to bring broth to Tingfan later, and persuade your stubborn daughter to go to Lunan City."
"Why is she my stubborn daughter? Didn’t you give birth to her too?"
"Could I have given birth to her alone? Go, go, go, buy some sheep’s pizzle, buy plenty, I won’t believe it won’t work."
...
After noon, the shop was quite empty.
After seeing that they finished lunch, Lin Qiao said, "Sorry for interrupting your rest, please come over, I have something to say."
Once they gathered around, she continued, "In a few days, I won’t be overseeing the shop anymore. Master Qian will handle the kitchen, Jiang Ming will manage the hall, and if anything is lacking, just get silver from the accountant. After purchasing anything, report back to the accountant."
"I’ll come back once at the end of each month to bring the monthly stipend and check the shop’s condition."
"When I’m not here, I hope everyone will put in effort; better business means better pay for you all, you know that."
Everyone nodded.
Lin Qiao didn’t say much more and picked up the prepared monthly stipends from the table, "I’ll pay the monthly stipends in advance; same as last month, adding an extra one hundred cents." She then distributed them one by one.
"Along with the ’sweet jujubes’," she said more sternly, "there are consequences. If anyone is caught doing something shady in the shop, they’ll be reported to the authorities immediately."
Jiang Ming was the first to pledge his loyalty, "Boss, don’t worry, I absolutely won’t do that. I’ll take good care of the shop."
The others chimed in agreement, knowing that the boss’s pay was more than elsewhere; they’d have to be fools to do anything unscrupulous.
Lin Qiao nodded and was about to say something when she spotted Li Guifen coming in with a basket, "Mom, why are you here at this time? Have you eaten?"
