“A tree has roots, and every accusation should have evidence. The names of my three sons were personally entered into the clan genealogy by the Clan Chief himself. They are all legitimate descendants of the Zhuo family.”
Fenniang turned around. Her thin face carried an air of dignity as she spoke calmly and clearly,
“Second Sister-in-law, where did such a rumor come from? If you have proof, present it so people will believe you. Otherwise, you’re slandering us with nothing but empty words. I’ll invite the Clan Chief here right now and ask him to judge this matter.”
Fan Cuihua was instantly speechless.
“I… I only heard people saying it!”
Fenniang’s voice turned sharp.
“Who did you hear it from? Where did you hear it? I’ll ask the Clan Chief to summon that person and get to the bottom of this! This concerns the bloodline of the Zhuo family. How can we allow outsiders to slander it?”
“I heard it… How would I remember… who said it?”
Fan Cuihua had never seen the normally gentle Fenniang like this. She was completely dumbfounded.
“It was just something I overheard. Why are you getting so worked up?”
“When a family is divided, outsiders take advantage.”
Fenniang looked at her coldly. Her calm expression held an unshakable strength that no one could ignore.
“Even setting aside the fact that we belong to the same family branch, if our own clan can’t stand united, decline is only a matter of time.
“Never say such reckless things again. Trouble begins within one’s own household. It’s one thing if outsiders laugh at the Zhuo family, but if the entire Zhuo clan is mocked for having corrupt family values, can you bear that responsibility?”
A look of surprise flashed across Zhuo Ling’s little face.
She had always thought Fenniang was too gentle—even somewhat timid.
She had never expected that beneath her soft exterior was such strength. When it came to protecting her family, she was fierce.
Way to go, Fenniang!
Fan Cuihua involuntarily shivered under her forceful gaze.
She cursed inwardly.
Who in the whole village said Fenniang had a good temper?
She must have forgotten to check the almanac before leaving home today. It had only been one careless remark. How had it provoked such a complete change in the woman?
She had always gossiped behind people’s backs. Today she’d spoken without thinking, never expecting the usually meek Fenniang to react so fiercely.
The neighbors also began pointing fingers at her, speaking over one another.
“Second Sister-in-law, if you keep spreading rumors, we’ll all go see the Clan Chief with you!”
“How did Zhuo Village end up with such a long-tongued gossip? You’re an embarrassment!”
“The second branch really has no shame. Those are your own nephews! How can you say such things about them?”
…
“W-Who was talking about that?”
Fan Cuihua’s face turned red, then green. She wished the ground would open up and swallow her whole.
Fortunately, her skin was thicker than a city wall. Bracing herself against everyone’s criticism, she quickly changed the subject.
“Eldest Sister-in-law, hurry up and pay for that idiot girl’s egg! If you don’t pay today, I’m not letting this go!”
“What do you mean ‘idiot girl’? My daughter has a name!”
Fenniang shot her a sharp look, took Zhuo Ling’s hand, and turned to leave.
“Ling’er, come with Mother. We’ll get the money. We’ll pay for the egg, and tomorrow Mother will buy you another one to eat.”
Fan Cuihua folded her arms and sneered with her nose in the air.
“Hmph… Easy for you to say! Everyone knows how poor your family is. I’d like to see what you’ll use to pay me.”
A cold smile curled across Zhuo Ling’s lips.
Isn’t it just one egg?
How precious could it be?
If this young lady had a laying hen, wouldn’t it blind your titanium dog eyes?
She quickly opened the Marketplace System, entered the Post-Apocalypse Farm section, found the laying hen category, and didn’t even bother checking the price before placing an order.
The hens in the Post-Apocalypse Farm had been genetically enhanced and fed specially engineered feed. An ordinary hen laid one egg a day, but these could lay ten!
Their daily egg production had increased tenfold. They were practically fighter jets among hens…
Though whether their poor backsides could survive was another question.
“Ding! Goods have arrived at the designated location. Your account has been charged 5,000,000 Underground City Credits. Remaining balance: 4,000,000…”
The system notification sounded.
Zhuo Ling’s heart bled.
One high-tech chicken cost this much?
“Cluck… cluck…”
A faint clucking sound came from the firewood pile.
Having learned her lesson, she didn’t dare produce items out in the open again. Instead, she hid the hen inside the haystack in one corner of the courtyard.
“Mother… cluck! Cluck!”
Pretending to listen carefully, Zhuo Ling grabbed Fenniang’s hand and looked around excitedly.
“What is it?”
Fenniang also faintly heard the strange sound. She looked toward the haystack in surprise.
“It sounds like a chicken… Ling’er, you heard it too?”
Zhuo Ling happily clapped her hands.
“There’s a cluck-cluck! A cluck-cluck!”
“Why would there be a chicken hiding in the haystack?”
Completely puzzled, Fenniang cautiously walked toward it.
“Cluck… cluck-cluck…”
A huge black hen with a round, plump belly suddenly burst out of the haystack, frantically flapping its wings as it raced around the courtyard.
“Mother! Where did such a fat chicken come from? Catch it! Eldest Brother, hurry and catch the chicken!”
Zhuo Changfu cheered excitedly as he chased the hen all over the yard.
The high-tech chicken really could fight.
By the time he finally caught it, his head and face were covered in feathers.
“Mother, look! It’s a hen! It’s so fat! Our family’s got a chicken now!”
His grin stretched from ear to ear.
Fenniang cautiously reached out to touch one of its wings, still unable to believe what she was seeing.
“It really is… But where did this chicken come from?”
“Maybe it crawled into the haystack when I was gathering hay.”
Zhuo Chang’an looked toward Zhuo Ling, a faint smile appearing on his lips.
“Mother, don’t worry about where it came from. Since it came to our house, it belongs to us now.”
Feeling as though he’d seen straight through her, Zhuo Ling didn’t dare meet Zhuo Chang’an’s eyes.
She could only clap her hands, bounce up and down, and continue acting silly.
“Mine! Mine!”
“Oh my heavens… What kind of chicken is this? It’s so big and so fat!”
Fan Cuihua’s mouth slowly fell open.
She couldn’t close it again for a long while.
She wasn’t the only one left speechless.
The villagers gathered at the entrance to watch were equally stunned.
“A chicken just appeared out of nowhere in broad daylight. How much coarse grain could that be traded for?”
“They picked it up for free! Chickens and ducks are worth a fortune these days. Look at their luck!”
“If they trade it for grain and eat sparingly, their whole family won’t go hungry for at least half a month!”
…
Everyone was so envious their eyes practically popped out.
“Cluck… cluck-da! Cluck-cluck-da!”
The hen suddenly flapped its wings violently and began clucking urgently.
Seeing its swollen belly, Fenniang quickly said,
“It looks like it’s about to lay an egg! Changfu, put it down!”
The instant its feet touched the ground, the hen squatted.
Its rear contracted a few times…
Then a gleaming white egg slowly emerged.
Fenniang quickly reached out to catch it.
The warm egg, still carrying the hen’s body heat, landed gently in her palm.
“An egg!”
Joy spread across her thin face.
She held it for a long moment before handing it to Zhuo Chang’an.
“Chang’an, take this to Xiaohu.”
Zhuo Chang’an nodded.
Taking the still-warm egg, he handed it to Xiaohu and said coolly,
“Take it. My Ling’er doesn’t owe you anything anymore.”
“Xiaohu, we’re going home!”
Fan Cuihua was so jealous she nearly ground her teeth to dust, yet she still forced a look of disdain onto her face.
“It’s only one hen. What’s there to show off?
“Your father will bring you eggs every day from now on. Do you think they could bear to eat theirs like that?”
“Cluck-da… cluck-da…”
Before she had even finished speaking, the hen stretched out its neck and let out another loud series of clucks.
Its rear tightened—
And another egg dropped onto the ground.