As soon as Matchmaker Yuan and the others had left, Chuxue hurried inside and asked, “Mother, did you agree?”
Madam Zhao teased her with a smile. “Is our Xiaoxue so eager to get married? But listen, Xiaoxue: you should still avoid spending too much time alone with Young Master Tang. He came to propose, but your father hasn’t agreed yet.”
Chuxue let out a sigh of relief, though she was also at a loss for words. How had Madam Zhao decided she was desperate to get married? She simply didn’t want to marry some stranger on a whim—especially since this man was the direct reason the original owner had met such a miserable end.
Madam Zhao went on mending clothes as she said, “Don’t worry about this. Your father knows what he’s doing. He won’t let you suffer.”
Xiaoxue sighed. She could tell Madam Zhao didn’t want to say any more, so she didn’t press her. She could only fret about it in silence.
Meanwhile, Madam Deng paid for the medicine, then hurriedly sent Yan Yujiao to fetch Third Uncle Yan. The moment he returned, she said, “Husband, what if Snow Girl agrees to this match? How will we explain it to the Li family?”
Third Uncle Yan narrowed his eyes. “We just have to make sure the match falls through. Then Snow Girl really won’t be able to marry.”
Yang Qin-shi and Tang Hongxi hadn’t gone out of their way to hide the fact that they’d taken a matchmaker to Yan Residence. Several families had seen them, and there had been that whole scene in the courtyard, too. By afternoon, rumors were already spreading through the village: Xiaoxue was shameless, had gone to Tang Hongxi’s home to force him, and had used the debt of saving his life to threaten him. That was why Tang Hongxi had been forced to propose. Otherwise, he was such a fine-looking young man—how could he possibly choose a village girl like Xiaoxue?
After delivering water to Yan Dajun, Xiaoxue passed the big tree at the village entrance and happened to hear several of the village’s sharp-tongued women gossiping about it.
Yan Chuxue was instantly furious. What did they mean, saying she was shameless and had seduced Tang Hongxi, forcing him to marry her? She didn’t want to marry him at all!
The angrier Yan Chuxue grew, the brighter her smile became. She walked up to the women, who were still chatting animatedly beneath the tree, and asked, “What are you all talking about, Aunties? You sound like you’re having such a good time.”
The gossip stopped dead. After all, being caught talking behind someone’s back was awkward.
Auntie Wang[1]“Auntie” may be used as a familiar form of address for an older woman in the community, even when she is not an actual relative. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3717455_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3717455_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); looked at Yan Chuxue with contempt and disdain. “We’re talking about Young Master Tang coming to your house this morning to propose. I wonder what he was thinking, proposing to you. Maybe someone was afraid she’d never marry and used the debt of saving his life to threaten him.” The sourness in her voice was impossible to hide.
The other women hadn’t expected Auntie Wang to be so blunt. They hurried to smooth things over. “We were just curious. We didn’t mean anything by it.”
Yan Chuxue grinned. “The other day, I saw Auntie Wang go to the little woods west of the village with Laoguang. I don’t mean anything by it, either. I just happened to see you.”
Laoguang was the village’s unmarried man, who often flirted with and harassed the village women.
At that, Auntie Wang sprang to her feet and pointed at Yan Chuxue, cursing. “You little slut! What are you talking about? See if Mother[2]Here “Mother” appears to be a forceful way for the speaker to refer to herself, like the Chinese colloquial self-reference “this old lady,” rather than a reference to someone else’s mother. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3717455_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3717455_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); doesn’t tear that mouth of yours off!”
Yan Chuxue gave a cold laugh, seized both of Auntie Wang’s hands, and flipped her onto the ground face-first. She pinned her hands behind her back, braced a knee against her spine, and forced her down.
Even pinned to the ground, Auntie Wang wouldn’t give up. She cursed loudly, so Yan Chuxue pressed her face into the dirt, stuffing her mouth with sand.
The others were so frightened by the murderous look on Yan Chuxue’s face that they all backed away several steps.
Yan Chuxue paid them no mind and focused on dealing with Auntie Wang. Most of the nasty things people had said about the original owner had come from her.
“Are you going to keep spreading lies?” Yan Chuxue demanded.
Auntie Wang’s mouth was full of sand and dirt. Some of it had even gone down with her saliva, scraping painfully at her throat.
Auntie Wang was truly afraid now. She could barely breathe, and she could feel the murderous aura coming off Yan Chuxue. She hurriedly shook her head to show she wouldn’t do it again.
References[+]