Chapter 1565 - 1554: Honest Fool

Chapter 1565: Chapter 1554: Honest Fool

"Stop crying." Seeing no one else in the room, Ye Qiu struggled to open his eyes, "Don’t cry until your eyes are ruined."

"You’re...you’re okay?" Niu Xue Mei widened her eyes, saying joyfully.

"Lower your voice." Ye Qiu glanced outside, "Didn’t we agree that I’m faking it?"

"So realistic, I thought you were really possessed by something unclean." Niu Xue Mei let out a heavy sigh, "How come you pretend so well? You don’t know that mom has no suspicion at all."

"If I don’t act well, how can they believe? Xue Mei, listen to me next." Ye Qiu’s eyes flickered, he had another cunning idea.

Niu Xue Mei now believed Ye Qiu completely, as long as he spoke, she would listen.

"Every time people from the village come to see me, you need to cry and complain more, spread the word that we have nothing to eat, and aren’t given money to see a doctor. By the way, talk about how much silver brother’s family needs each year, it’d be best if fourth brother hears this too."

Niu Xue Mei puzzled: "Why tell fourth brother? It’s not like fourth brother will stand up for us."

"Are you stupid? Who does mom love most in this family, brother or fourth brother? Anyway, we don’t get to use the family’s money, so would fourth brother willingly let brother use all of it? He hasn’t married yet; isn’t he also planning for himself?"

"That’s true!" Niu Xue Mei realized, then looked at Ye Qiu with shock, "You want brother and fourth brother to fall out?"

Ye Qiu’s face remained calm: "If they don’t fall out, how can we have the opportunity to split the family? Next, I will continue pretending to be sick. Remember, don’t go work, let them see what it’s like to suffer."

"I won’t work, I’ll listen to you." Niu Xue Mei, who hadn’t had a rest day even on her wedding day, now experienced the true meaning of life for the first time outside of childbirth. Why couldn’t she just have a day off? Elder sister-in-law often doesn’t work, and when she herself does a little less because of her period, she gets criticized. Why should she bear it? She’d listen to Sanlang and rest, unless after splitting the family things change.

Autumn harvest was undeniably busy; no one knew if the next day would be sunny, everyone was working hard to reap. This season was when the autumn tiger was fiercest; Ye Chun and Wang Hong hadn’t done such work for years. Each time they went to the field, they only pretended to work, the real work was done only by Ye Qiu and his wife.

Without Ye Qiu and Niu Xue Mei, their work was inefficient, even after a whole day, they harvested less than an experienced hand would in half a day. Even so, in the past they claimed they weren’t lazy, that work in the fields was done by their family!

Who in the village didn’t know who was doing what, it’s just they didn’t say it to their face. This year, without Ye Qiu’s couple, these two had no one to help them work, didn’t it just expose the truth that they wouldn’t do real work?

"Mr. Ye, the efficiency is a bit low this year."

"Yeah, in the past didn’t you say your couple did a lot? How come today you only harvested this little?"

"Could it be you were just taking all the credit before? Why compete for credit in a family?"

"Mr. Ye, you better work hard, your couple is the slowest harvester in the village, careful not to finish before it rains!"

The villagers looked at Ye Chun and Wang Hong resting on the field ridge after harvesting a bit, laughing and jeering filled the place, Ye Chun and Wang Hong were utterly humiliated.

Yet they couldn’t just leave immediately, after all, the rice still needed to be harvested, or else how would their family’s future food supply come? How would tuition for their son’s studies come?

Wang Hong now just prayed for Ye Qiu to get well soon, otherwise with so many fields, how long would she have to reap?

Yet this time Wang Hong was destined for disappointment, after the Divine Woman performed rituals three times, not only did Ye Qiu not get better, he seemed worse. How could Niu Xue Mei work? She cried herself unconscious once and broke two bowls at home in her distracted state.

Though the bowls at home weren’t anything precious, Niu Xue Mei felt heartbroken at hearing her husband mention breaking them. However, she had one good trait, she listened to Ye Qiu.

Since then, Old Lady Wang dared not let Niu Xue Mei do other chores, just told her to take care of Ye Qiu, even changed the bowls to wooden ones.

But because Old Lady Wang refused to agree to bring a doctor for Ye Qiu, Niu Xue Mei cried and fussed several times, saying in front of the whole family that Old Lady Wang was willing to spend money for the eldest family, but not for Ye Qiu’s treatment. Ye Conghui alone cost thirty taels a year for studies, Ye Qiu is a living person, would she really watch her own son die?

When Niu Xue Mei made a fuss, there were a few villagers present, upon hearing this, they felt Old Lady Wang was truly biased, and going back, the gossip spread widely.

Over at Ye Dong, after hearing that just for Ye Conghui alone, brother’s family used this much money yearly, he wasn’t calm, soon Ye Conghuang would also reach school age, elder sister-in-law always clamoring for him to go to school too, for Old Lady’s family two kids that’d be fifty or sixty taels a year. How many taels does Ye Family make a year?

Moreover, he knew most of the family money was earned by third brother’s family, now third brother in this half-dead, half-alive state, whether he’ll recover is uncertain, even if he does, he might not earn like before; if next year brother’s two kids both go to school, wouldn’t they spend his marriage money?

Ye Dong thought about this, and grew hostile towards Eldest’s family, no way, he’d have sons too, couldn’t let Eldest’s family spend all the money.

"Where is there money for medical treatment in this big family, don’t you see everyone needs food?" Old Lady Wang angrily scolded Niu Xue Mei.

"No money for treatment but Ye Conghui has money for education? You also said next year Ye Conghuang will go to school too, can’t this money be used for Sanlang’s treatment first?" Niu Xue Mei was truly angry, fortunately, her husband was pretending to be sick, if he was really ill, wouldn’t his life be lost? She saw through this family clearly, no one could be relied on, this family must be split.

"How can it be the same, my son studying is to change our family’s fate, would Ye Family always be just farming?" Wang Hong immediately retorted.

"Isn’t one person changing our fate enough? Is your family going to take all advantages?" Niu Xue Mei shouted frantically.

"You dare yell at me, careful my son won’t support you in old age."

"I’m not counting on them for old age, my man’s life is at stake." Niu Xue Mei glared fiercely at her, "We were foolish before, just worked to the bone, what did we get? Mom, today just give us an answer, this sickness, are you going to treat it or not?"