Chapter 010: Pretending

Zhuang Qingning felt increasingly baffled as to where he might have offended Zhuang Jingye. He attributed the cause to his uncle's possibly foul mood and became even more vigilant in his dealings.

"Uncle, would you like some tea?" Zhuang Ruman offered with an obsequious smile, addressing him not as the village chief but affectionately as "uncle," hoping to bridge their relationship.

"You think I'm blind, huh? Can't you see that's what I'm doing? What else am I gonna drink, rat poison?" Zhuang Jingye replied irritably.

"You're joking, uncle, haha, haha..." Zhuang Ruman was taken aback and laughed awkwardly.

Laugh your head off!

Suppressing the urge to kick Zhuang Ruman, Zhuang Jingye glared at him and said, "Enough, what's your business with me so early in the morning?"

"The chickens at home have been laying a lot of eggs recently, and I thought that, since you always manage the whole village and you work so tirelessly, you must need to nourish your body. So I especially picked out a few of the freshest eggs to bring to you."

"It would be convenient for auntie to make you an egg tea or something, it's easy to drink and tastes good as well." Zhuang Ruman, smothering his face with servility, placed the small basket loaded with eggs onto the little tea table beside him.

I don't know if these eggs are any good for nourishment, but one thing I do know is that you, Zhuang Ruman, are a sly fox.

Zhuang Jingye gave Zhuang Ruman a sidelong glance, "Speak plainly."

Having his intentions so starkly exposed made Zhuang Ruman's face even more difficult to maintain. He chuckled awkwardly, "Uncle, I won't lie to you, my two nieces at home, the very ones like Zhuang Qingning and Miss Sui from the Hai family, they somehow ran out of the house yesterday."

"Oh? They ran away? And why is that?" Zhuang Jingye leaned back in his chair, feigning indifference.

"Ah, speaking of it, I'm to blame. I haven't paid much attention to my two nieces lately. I thought since they're girls, it's more convenient for them to be raised by their uncle's wife. But it turns out that Mrs. Song, this woman, was nice to them in front of me but beat and scolded them behind my back."

"I knew of Mrs. Song's temper; she is both foolish and mean-spirited. I feared that she would treat my nieces poorly, so I often asked Zhuang Qingning and Miss Sui how they were doing. Every time I asked, they told me they ate well, dressed well, and I just assumed they were indeed fine and didn't think much of it."

"Yesterday, I overheard Zhuang Qingning arguing with Mrs. Song. The more I listened, the clearer it became. Zhuang Qingning was upset about why the houses and lands left by their parents couldn't go to her and Miss Sui, but instead were given to our family. I tried to explain a bit and even promised them that the future earnings from the lands would be saved for their dowries."

"There's always been a rule: if a family has no descendants, the girls can't inherit the property; it should rightfully go to the brothers with sons. As their uncle, I'm entitled to inherit these things; there's nothing wrong with that. I took the property, and I'm adding the earnings to their dowries; I'm being as generous as I can."

"But no matter what I said, Zhuang Qingning and Miss Sui wouldn't listen, stubbornly demanding the land and houses. In the end, we got nowhere, so I stopped talking and figured they'd understand once they had time to think. But to my surprise, after a while, the two girls left without a word..."

"The outside world is in chaos. Two young girls, without any papers or anything, where can they go? No food, no drink, no place to stay, not to mention the hardship and suffering. If they meet someone bad, what then? How am I to explain to their deceased parents?"

As Zhuang Ruman spoke, his eyes reddened, and he choked up, "So I quickly took Mrs. Song and started searching everywhere. But after searching high and low, we still haven't found them. Even asking around the village, no one seems to have seen them. My heart is racing with anxiety."

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"In the end, we had no choice but to think about seeking your help, uncle. We were hoping you could also talk to the people in the village. If anyone has seen them, they could let us know, so we can find those two girls sooner and put our minds at ease."

After saying this, he lowered his head and forcefully sniffled, even wiping the corners of his eyes.

Looking at him, one would think he was the picture of a loving uncle worried about his two nieces.

Zhuang Jingye spat in his heart.

What a pretentious bastard!

All that talk about quarrels and wanting property, Zhuang Qingning and Zhuang Qingsui did not bring up any of this when they were seeking to establish their own household registration. They both clearly knew the rules, and had no intention of taking what wasn't theirs. Yet here you are, accusing your own nieces of not following the rules.

And what about these claims of not understanding Mrs. Song's leftist leanings, as if asking them would not yield the truth? It's evident that you're pushing all the blame onto Mrs. Song and the two girls, while making yourself out to be squeaky clean.

In this village, who doesn't know that Mrs. Song is selfish, bad-tempered, and quarrelsome with anyone, yet she is always compliant and never disobedient to her husband Zhuang Ruman. If you, Zhuang Ruman, had put your foot down earlier, would Mrs. Song dare to be so unrestrainedly abusive?

It's clear that it's either your tacit approval or even your instigation, and yet, in the end, you shift all the blame onto Mrs. Song and portray yourself as the poor victim. Such extreme hypocrisy and using others as pawns is detestable!

What's worse is thinking you can fool someone like me—the village chief, with incomparable wisdom and insight—with a few words!

You are greatly mistaken, having miscalculated with your wishful thinking.

Zhuang Jingye snorted coldly, "Actually, if you want to find Ning Miss and Miss Sui, it isn't difficult at all."

"Uncle, do you have a way to find them both?" Zhuang Ruman suddenly overflowed with joy.

He knew that seeking Zhuang Jingye was the best recourse. Today's egg had not been given in vain.

"It's not really a matter of having a way. Ning Miss and Miss Sui didn't go anywhere else yesterday, but came to me," said Zhuang Jingye, glancing at Zhuang Ruman. "They came to seek my help in a certain matter."

Had they come to Zhuang Jingye to lodge a complaint?

Zhuang Ruman's heart sank instantly.

How audacious were these two brats? Once they're found, he would have Mrs. Song give them a thorough discipline!

"Uncle, those two girls must have made quite a few complaints against us. Whatever these girls have said, after all, is just their side of the story. Don't take it too seriously, uncle. I guess they might be upset about the farmland dispute and would dare to say anything now..."

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