Ye Shizhi’s temperament was such that she would soften when she thought it appropriate, but when someone bullied her, she didn’t back down.
“Auntie, what do you mean?”
She didn’t believe a single word when Jiang Sinian stole something—she might even trust more that he spent his own money wrongly than think he stole it.
Her eyes held a faint coldness as she confronted the group, making her already gentle face even more striking.
Aunt Jiang was momentarily mesmerized by her appearance, then, ashamed and angry, cursed: “You fox-like temptress! You’re no good just by looking at you!”
“I’ll tell you. Yesterday we knew Jiang Sinian stole something, and now you only need to give us five mao (cents), and we’ll let it slide.”
She sounded as if she was suffering a loss, which only made Ye Shizhi furious.
In this era, a typical worker’s monthly wage was only around thirty to forty yuan. In this remote village, who even dared ask for five mao?
“Jiang family’s daughter-in-law, just give them the money. Your Jiang Sinian makes his own money outside. A little extra or a little less won’t matter to him.”
A few other women nearby, seeing Ye Shizhi’s inaction, urged her in a gentle tone, following Aunt Jiang’s lead.
Ye Shizhi opened the door fully and sneered: “First of all, Jiang Sinian doesn’t steal. Second, money or no money, even a single cent, I won’t give.”
“And besides, where did you get the idea he makes ‘black-hearted’ money?”
“If there’s no proof, I could go to the town police and accuse you of defamation. They won’t hold you long…”
She noticed their timid expressions, and continued slowly: “About four or five days, I suppose.”
“Also, I hear that those who get locked up aren’t easy to mess with. Losing an arm or an eye there is pretty normal.”
“Of course, compensation would be generous…”
Immediately, some people fidgeted. They didn’t understand the law but had heard some rumors.
“This…”
Aunt Jiang roared, “What nonsense are you saying? Even if someone came for me, I’d be in the right! You stole from us, shouldn’t you return it?”
“No justice at all! My old man works alone, and now someone steals from our house! It’s like they want our family dead…”
Her loud cries attracted more people outside, curious from the gossip.
Ye Shizhi quietly stepped back a few paces, unable to tolerate the high-decibel noise.
Time ticked by. Aunt Jiang kept peeking at Ye Shizhi’s reaction while crying, thinking she could break her. When Ye Shizhi looked elsewhere, her heart skipped a beat.
This trick had never failed before, so she tried even harder.
“Jiang Sinian stole rice wine from our house, tricked our little Bao into getting it, and our daughter An saw it with her own eyes! Villagers… tell me, is there any justice?”
“Stealing is one thing, now they won’t even give us money… how can I live…”
Each cry was more tragic than the last.
Ye Shizhi knew that for such a farce, the only method was to match force with force. Ignoring them or reasoning with them wouldn’t work.
Judging that this would not end quickly, Ye Shizhi went to fetch a chair and placed it about two meters from Aunt Jiang, then sat down. Something felt off, so she went inside briefly, and everyone thought she was fetching money.
Returning with all eyes on her, Ye Shizhi sat down holding a handful of sunflower seeds.
She picked one and started cracking it, ignoring the stunned expressions around her. She said to the trapped Aunt Jiang: “Auntie, you continue.”
“I… I…”
Aunt Jiang was momentarily speechless, stunned by this action.
“Tired, are you?” Ye Shizhi said politely. “No worries, auntie. It’s normal to have half a leg in the grave at your age. Rest a bit, then continue.”
She smiled faintly. “After all, there are so many spectators waiting.”
This comment silenced the crowd—they were being insulted too.
Yes, Ye Shizhi was adding fuel to the fire, making fun of the people who had nothing better to do but watch.
“Jiang family daughter-in-law, since you stole from them, you should return it. That’s common sense in the village.”
Ah, here came the peacemaker from the crowd.
“What’s this? Didn’t sleep last night stealing, so you saw Jiang Sinian stealing?”
Ye Shizhi didn’t hold back. Sharp words.
She was willing to soften in front of Jiang Sinian, but among these rude people, she was no pushover.
“You, you, you…”
“Do you still want to talk, auntie?” Ye Shizhi ignored her and focused on Aunt Jiang.
After a while, someone standing next to Aunt Jiang turned sullen, glowering at Ye Shizhi.
They thought she’d be easy to bully, but she was not to be trifled with.
Her posture relaxed slightly, and she popped another seed, nodding. “Your ideas are quite ambitious.”
Someone in the crowd chuckled, soon everyone was laughing so hard they bent over.
“Jiang family, I’d say you’re shameless. Giving three mao, that could buy how many bowls of rice wine? And rice wine, everyone has a big jar of it!”
“Right! We always keep ours outside. If Jiang Sinian stole anything, it’d be ours first!”
Another wave of laughter erupted.
Seeing Aunt Jiang embarrassed, Ye Shizhi knew she must have annoyed many people before, and now watching her falter was amusing.
“Auntie, you say Jiang Sinian stole your rice wine, and that your little An saw it, right?”
“Yes! An saw it with her own eyes. Jiang Sinian even threatened her not to tell anyone.” The latter part was false, but she played along.
Ye Shizhi waved her hand and looked at Jiang Jian, who had been eyeing her seeds hungrily. “Come over.”
Jiang Jian rushed over, eyes never leaving the seeds. “What do you want me to do?”
Ye Shizhi held a seed out.
“What’s your name?”
“Jiang Jian.”
Given food, he quickly gobbled it down and stared at the rest.
“You gave Jiang Sinian a bowl of rice wine yesterday, right?” Ye Shizhi began coaxing him.