The Space’s Twelve Zodiac Comes to Farm Ch.38

Chapter 38: Found It

“Thank you, Doctor!” Bailian sincerely bowed towards Doctor Zhu’s retreating back.

The rest of the Third Branch quickly followed suit, bowing low towards Doctor Zhu’s direction. In their hearts, Madam Zhao was priceless, extremely important. They were naturally very grateful for the Doctor’s generosity and accurate diagnosis.

Doctor Zhu, who had already reached the door, heard the Third Branch’s gratitude ring out like a clear bell. He merely waved and hurriedly walked out, not even turning his head back.

On the inside, Doctor Zhu felt a bit guilty for leaving so hurriedly. It was just that he felt that Matriarch Wang was extremely savage and instinctively didn’t want to have anything to do with the Li Family.

Had it not been that he heard someone was on the verge of death, he would have never agreed to come.

While he had been diagnosing Madam Zhao and identifying the right treatment to give, he had a blitzkrieg strategy already laid out. As a result, like lightning, he had gone in and out of the Li family and naturally felt a bit guilty when thinking of the pitiful Third Branch. But after seeing the vicious Matriarch Wang for himself, he sped through his diagnosis as fast as possible.

Oh, what a pity!

“Village Head, let’s talk in the courtyard!” Bailian carefully folded Doctor Zhu’s written prescription, treating it like a precious treasure. Placing the paper on the bed, she turned around and said “Mother needs a good rest.”

“Alright.” The Village Head’s bobbed slightly. He inwardly sighed, thinking that although the girl in front of him looked very sickly, she was stubbornly filial on the inside, and hadn’t lost her head. She had been the calmest one out of them all today. 

If the Third Branch had been sniffling and timidly crying instead, not daring to speak their mind, then he, as the village head, wouldn’t have been able to help them.

“She’s as lazy as a pig and she still tries to rest…” Matriarch Wang pettily grumbled under her breath. Feeling Patriarch Li stare her down with a pair of angry eyes, she had no choice but to duck her head and timidly follow everyone out.

Yuyang was the last person to come out of the room and after he walked out, he quietly closed the door.

“Village Head, the Third Branch was not the one who stole the silver. Even if Old Madam and Master’s money was really stolen, then just report it to the officials in town!” Bailian’s eyes landed on the haggard Grandmother Ciying and the roughed-up Third Master. Pointing at her family, she firmly declared, “We were framed! Report this to the officials! If the culprit really was the Third Branch then the officials can take us away!”

Hearing these calm, steady words spill out of Bailian’s mouth, everyone took a deep breath.

In the village, mentioning the government was taboo.

No one from the Wuming Village had ever caused a big enough commotion or crime to get detained by the officials in town. Because, in the eyes of the villagers, the government office and jail was a place where people were eaten alive and whole, their bones never to see the light of day again.

Even when people didn’t commit a crime, when one walked by the government office in town, their legs would shake.

‘Fifth girl!” Patriarch Li glared at Bailian with disapproval, his tone carrying a tinge of warning. 

He was an influential teacher ah!

The academy is in town ah!

The government office is in town ah!

I have my students living there!

If my students saw their teacher getting dragged into the government office, where would I put my face?

“Bah! How dare you suggest we report this to the government, you little wench? I could just kill you as I please!” Matriarch Wang spat viciously, her body tensing up to rush over.

Bailian cooly looked at Matriarch Wang, “How can we solve this matter if we don’t go the officials? We didn’t steal the money. Even if you were to beat us to death, we wouldn’t be able to produce a single copper coin. Since you’ve lost so much money, it’s better for the officials to handle this matter!”

When Matriarch Wang heard Bailian’s rationale, it felt like a knife had sliced through her heart and she was bleeding painfully. Sneering at Bailian, she retaliated, “I don’t care about some official. It’s a fact that you owe me my money. If I can get my money back, then I wouldn’t even hesitate to sell you!”

“Old Madam!” The Third Master sadly looked at Matriarch Wang, a pained expression appearing on his tanned face, “Fifth is my daughter and Father’s granddaughter. Even if I were to die, you can’t sell her!”

“Bah! You really think you’re worth anything?!” Matriarch Wang disdainfully hissed, “I’m warning you, hurry up and take out the silver! Otherwise, I really will sell you off!”

When the villagers heard Matriarch Wang insisting on selling the Third Branch and tenaciously accusing them as the culprit, everyone could only sigh and look on at the scene with pity.

When they had first arrived to observe the scene, some of them had indeed suspected that the Third Branch had been the ones to steal the silver. But, just now, Bailian had even suggested going to the officials.

This meant that the Third Branch definitely wasn’t the culprit.

After all, if Bailian and the others had really stolen it, they undoubtedly wouldn’t have dared to trouble the officials.

There would be unimaginable consequences if the thief who cried “Stop the thief!” was discovered in the end.

“Wife!” Seeing the Villager’s disappointed and disdainful expressions and remembering Bailian’s glib tongue, Patriarch Li quickly shushed Matriarch Wang.

Up until now, Patriarch Li had carefully analyzed how he had lost his precious silver, and he could only come up with one logical conclusion: the Third Branch stole it.

The Third Branch was the poorest out of them all.

If there was no money to pay for the Eldest Master’s exam in the future, then he wouldn’t object to selling the Third Branch off.

However, you can’t do it in broad daylight, nor let anyone else see these dirty matters.

Because, he was a gentleman, a lofty and stately scholar.

His eldest son’s reputation couldn’t be stained because of a small matter like this.

If a person with a bad reputation were to pass the imperial examination and become a palace official, if their enemies were to expose his past, he wouldn’t have any good future ahead of him.

The current dynasty placed great importance on one’s moral character, and if this matter got out, one’s official life would definitely get cut off for good.

Therefore, Patriarch Li had desperately called out to Matriarch Wang now, hoping to keep her quiet.

“Squeak…”

In the quiet, tense courtyard, the sound of a mouse reverberated loudly.

Everyone subconsciously looked for the source of the sound. In ancient times, everyone guarded their hard-earned harvest and food. Everyone’s eyes instinctively scanned the courtyard, their first instinct was to kill the rat!

If the rat wasn’t killed, could you happily watch on as your own food got stolen right from under your nose?

“The rat’s mine!”

‘Isn’t that the silver the Old Wang Madam lost?”

“What is that?”

“It’s silver!”

“There’s even a bracelet!”

…

Everyone was stunned into a frenzy. There was something in front of the closed door, on the ground where the space between the floor and the door frame met. Two or so silver taels were scattered out and a gleaming silver bracelet laid on the floor.

Matriarch Wang was one of the first to recognize the objects, hurriedly jostling people aside as she approached the closed door. Picking it up, she shrieked, “This is my silver and bracelet!”

She still recognized this bracelet, it had been part of the Grandmother Ciying’s abundant dowry, she had stolen it.

Except for the silver, all her treasures consisted of a silver hairpin and bracelet, all of which had been pilfered from Grandmother Ciying.

Grandmother Ciying’s dowry had been full of ornate silver accessories and she even had some heavy, gold jewelry as well.

But, that was all dowry, items belonging to the groom!

Seeing Grandmother’s Ciying, Matriarch Wang had almost gone crazy at the sight.

This was the dowry of the woman who had married her husband!

No matter how she looked at it, she couldn’t be satisfied. Eventually, Matriarch Wang slowly began to take the dowry, replacing it with lesser-quality items, until she had gotten all of Grandmother Ciying’s treasures. She then pawned them off for mounds of taels and silver.

As a simple peasant woman, she knew how to curse at other people, but she didn’t understand how pawnshops worked. As a result, when she had sold off Grandmother Ciying’s dowry, she had actually been cheated many times.

So, as a result, even though Grandmother Ciying’s Father had included so many treasures and assets into his daughter’s dowry,  now it had all whittled down to a mere hundred taels.

After all, if one didn’t want to die, they had to eat.

And scholars were the most expensive to raise, a normal peasant family’s coffers usually wouldn’t be able to handle the financial burden.

In addition to the remaining hundred taels of silver in Bailian’s dimensional space, some of the remaining silver had been stolen from the Eldest Madam as well.

The Eldest Madam had been the eldest young miss of her house when she married off, so she naturally had some dowry leftover all these years. However, Li Shu had swiped it all away.

In the Li Family, there was not a single copper coin left. 

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Announcement: I have translated up to Chapter 40 for this novel, but do not plan on translating the rest of the work unless there is a lot of people who want it. I am having trouble getting the raws and am losing interest in the work. Just wanted to let you guys know!

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