Wang Jiao froze, her face full of surprise. "What money? I don't owe you anything!"
A trace of mockery curled at the corner of Yu Wanzhu's lips. "Do I need to help you recall? The ten taels of silver you took from me the day before yesterday—surely you haven't forgotten?"
Wang Jiao choked, not expecting her to say such a thing. She quickly tried to defend herself. "That… wasn't that the money for the medicine? I already explained it all to you. Why are you still asking me for it?"
Mm, she'd bought a packet of filth-drug and swindled ten taels of silver out of her. It was a pity the original owner had been foolish, but that didn't mean she was.
Today, buying supplies and hiring a cart in the prefectural city had only cost two taels in total. How dare Wang Jiao ask for ten?
She, Yu Wanzhu, refused to be made a fool of!
"You know very well what that filth-drug is worth. Return the rest of the money to me, or I'll spread the word about your little side business selling filth-drugs!"
Wang Jiao's expression shifted. She took two steps back and looked at her anew.
What was going on with this fat woman?
Seeing the sharpness in Yu Wanzhu's eyes—no longer the foolish look of before—she felt a strange sense of dread creep up on her.
But she didn't want to show weakness in front of this fat woman. In a fit of anger, she turned hostile and shot back, "I didn't know a done deal could be reneged on! Besides, you bought that filth-drug and you used it. What good would it do you to spread it around?"
Yu Wanzhu let out a cold laugh. "So what if I bought it? I'm a married woman—am I not allowed a bit of bedroom pleasure? But you—"
"An unmarried girl, handling these filth-drugs. Hah."
Wang Jiao glared at her hatefully. She was right—for a married woman, buying this kind of medicine would only earn a few snickers behind her back.
But she was still an unmarried girl. If this really got out, never mind anyone else—her own parents would be the first to cast her out!
She knew her reputation wasn't good, but compared to this, what were a few rumors?
With a resentful expression, Wang Jiao reluctantly pulled a few pieces of loose silver from her sleeve and tossed them on the ground. "Hmph, I underestimated you before. Today I've seen just how formidable you are. Just you wait!"
Yu Wanzhu leisurely picked up the silver and tucked it into her bosom. At the words, she raised a hand in a dismissive gesture.
"Don't bother. From now on, I won't seek you out, and you stay away from me. Best if you take a detour whenever you see me."
"You—" Wang Jiao was furious and raised her hand to strike.
But Yu Wanzhu was already prepared. She grabbed her wrist and squeezed tighter and tighter, leaving Wang Jiao completely unable to move.
Ridiculous—in her past life, she'd trained in martial arts for years, and with her current bulk, dealing with someone like her was child's play.
Wang Jiao's face twisted in pain, and she had no choice but to beg for mercy.
Yu Wanzhu shoved her back hard and said coldly, "Scram!"
Wang Jiao scrambled up from the ground, shot her a venomous glare, and walked away clutching her wrist.
…
When Yu Wanzhu returned, Dr. Zheng had already taken Mrs. Xu's pulse and was now examining Song Yubai's leg.
The whole family was gathered around Song Yubai, and even Mrs. Xu couldn't help calling out from the room, "Doctor, can you heal my son's leg?"
Dr. Zheng had practiced medicine for many years and was highly experienced. He spotted the problem at a glance, and after a thorough examination, gave his definitive answer.
"Of course I can heal it," he said, pointing at Yu Wanzhu. "This young wife described the symptoms to me in detail at the medical hall. The supplies I've prepared will come in handy today!"
Hearing this, the Song family was overjoyed. The two little ones couldn't even help but cheer.
Song Yubai glanced at Yu Wanzhu, his expression complicated. He pressed his lips together but said nothing.
The process of treating the leg was somewhat brutal. The already-healed bone break had to be re-broken and reset, then fixed with wooden splints. He would also need to stay in bed for a full month before he could get up and walk.
After finishing the consultation, Dr. Zheng didn't linger. He was about to pack up his medicine box when Song Yubai grabbed his sleeve.
Although he'd been given anesthetic powder, his face was still pale and covered in cold sweat.
Dr. Zheng was just wondering why he hadn't fallen asleep when he heard him speak in a trembling voice, "D-doctor, that woman has injuries. Please, I beg you, take a look at her too…"
With that, he passed out.
Yu Wanzhu was somewhat surprised. She hadn't expected Song Yubai to still be thinking of her.
Actually, even if he hadn't said anything, she would have asked the doctor to tend to her wounds anyway. The injury on her hand was one thing, but the one on the back of her head was serious. It didn't hurt much anymore, but what if there were aftereffects?
Dr. Zheng re-bandaged her wound and examined the injury on her head. He said there was nothing to worry about and only prescribed a tonic formula.
Everything went smoothly, except the consultation fees for the three patients were a bit steep. With the medicine added on, it came to twenty taels of silver in total!
Yu Wanzhu's face fell. The original owner's dowry had just about twenty-something taels left. This had practically cleaned out her entire savings…
If it weren't for the eight taels she'd just gotten back from Wang Jiao, she would have been flat broke.
It was getting late. Song Xiaolan cheerfully prepared dinner for everyone, while Yu Wanzhu was summoned by Mrs. Xu once again.
As she stepped into Mrs. Xu's house, her heart was truly uneasy. After all, Mrs. Xu had never treated her poorly since she married into the Song family. Even though Mrs. Xu had initially opposed the marriage, seeing that she couldn't sway her son, she eventually accepted her.
In fact, later on, whenever Song Yubai wanted to divorce his wife, Mrs. Xu would stand up and speak up for her.
"Child, come here."
Mrs. Xu was in good spirits today, and her voice carried much more strength. She leaned against the bed and beckoned Yu Wanzhu over.
Yu Wanzhu walked to the bedside and sat down, smiling as she said, "Mother, please rest and recover. The doctor said that with a bit more care, you'll be well again."
Mrs. Xu was somewhat surprised. In the past, her daughter-in-law had been restrained in her presence, but she had never been this good-tempered before.
She took Yu Wanzhu's hand and said softly, "Wanzhu, we owe today to you. I knew you were a good person. A-Bai is stubborn by nature—our Song family has wronged you…"
She let out another heavy sigh.
Hearing this made Yu Wanzhu feel rather embarrassed. After a moment of thought, she said, "Mother, I've come to understand. I was never worthy of Song Yubai. From now on, I won't force things anymore. You don't need to worry."
Mrs. Xu was taken aback, then her face filled with concern. "Did A-Bai say something to you again?"
Yu Wanzhu shook her head. "A melon forced off the vine isn't sweet—I understand that principle. Mother, please rest well. I won't disturb you any longer."
Mrs. Xu watched blankly as her daughter-in-law left, then sighed again.
If it hadn't been forced, why would she have married into the Song family in the first place?
…
That evening, Yu Wanzhu returned to her room, finally awaiting the moment of judgment for the day.
With a thought, the scale appeared in her hands.
The Sucker System was a bit ridiculous, but the ten-square-meter Spatial Dimension it came with was quite reliable—hiding anything was a breeze.
She rustled as she stripped off all her clothes and stepped onto the scale—
99 kg!
Lost two jin!
It wasn't for nothing that she ate less and moved more today, enduring the hunger with sheer willpower.
The System interface appeared right on time.
—Congratulations, Master, for completing the task twice over. Task rewards are doubled. Current reward: 6 wild yams (low-carb staple)
—Pickup location: Beneath the thirteenth pine tree, going down the eastern side of West Mountain, Qinghe Village
Yu Wanzhu: ??
What kind of Sucker System is this? Can it be unbound?!
She didn't want it anymore, okay?!