Chapter 83: Yang Sigen Is Not to Be Trifled With

Chapter 83: Chapter 83: Yang Sigen Is Not to Be Trifled With

"Unprovoked? It seems you don’t know the situation. Fine, I’ll tell you exactly why I’m here today, smashing up the Bai Family’s things."

Yang Sigeng turned his head and, spotting Liu in the courtyard, pointed a finger at her. "This woman, Liu! She came to our Baiyang Village a few days ago, saying her family had a marriageable girl looking for a husband. She was asking around Baiyang Village to see if there were any suitable families."

"There are plenty of bachelors in Baiyang Village, and I’m one of them. After asking around, Liu decided to arrange a match with me, Yang Sigeng. We agreed on everything. I even gave a betrothal gift of ten taels of silver, and we arranged for me to pick up the bride in three days."

The village chief instantly understood the situation. He shot Old Mrs. Bai and Liu a cold glare. ’These two wicked women are getting more and more outrageous! How old is Bai Zhi? And they found her a man this fierce and vicious? He’s probably even older than Bai Erzhu. How is that acceptable?’

Yang Sigeng continued, "This was supposed to be a joyous occasion. I had everything ready at home, just waiting to come to Huangtuo Village tomorrow to pick up my bride. But then, today I hear that a while ago, the Bai family beat Bai Zhi so badly that she can’t have children anymore. You tell me, why would I marry a woman who can’t bear children? Just to have a pretty vase in the house?"

The village chief nodded. "Even so, there’s no need to smash things. Can’t you discuss this calmly?"

Yang Sigeng said, "It’s not that I didn’t want to talk. I tried to speak to them calmly, but would they listen? The moment I opened my mouth, they accused me of spouting nonsense and refused to admit they’d tried to trick me into this marriage. They should ask around and see if I, Yang Sigeng, am someone to be trifled with!"

Old Mrs. Bai scrambled to her feet and pointed at Yang Sigeng. "You’re spouting nonsense! How could our Bai Zhi be unable to have children? Which bastard spread such a vicious rumor? If it were true, how could I, her grandmother, not know about it?"

Liu chimed in, "Exactly! Some gossip must have been spreading lies. Our Bai Zhi is perfectly fine. Why, she was just out digging for wild vegetables yesterday."

Yang Sigeng pointed at Old Mrs. Bai and Liu, then turned to the village chief. "See? I try to reason with them, but is it any use? Will they ever admit it?"

The village chief pondered for a moment. "Alright," he said. "Since you both have different stories, why don’t we ask Doctor Lu to come take a look? We’ll have Doctor Lu clear this matter up in front of everyone. How does that sound?"

Yang Sigeng readily agreed. "Fine by me. We’ll do as you say, village chief."

Old Mrs. Bai hesitated. ’This can’t be a groundless rumor,’ she thought. ’Even Yang Sigeng knows about it, so it can’t be just idle gossip. If it’s true... doesn’t that mean those twenty-two taels of silver will fly away?’

But with things as they were, it seemed she had no choice but to refuse.

She could only brace herself and say, "Fine, call him! Who’s afraid?"

Old Mrs. Bai shot Liu a meaningful look. "What are you standing around for? Hurry and go get Doctor Lu."

Having been Old Mrs. Bai’s daughter-in-law for nearly twenty years, Liu understood that look perfectly. She quickly agreed and was about to head out when a figure emerged from the crowd. It was Doctor Lu.

Doctor Lu chuckled. "I just got back from town and saw the commotion over here, so I came to take a look. I never expected to hear my name being called the moment I arrived. What a coincidence."

The expressions on Old Mrs. Bai and Liu’s faces instantly soured. Their relationship with Doctor Lu was far from good; they still owed him six taels of silver. And now he had shown up before they could get their story straight. ’If he really finds something wrong with Bai Zhi, what are we going to do?’