Splendid peasant girl busy farming

Chapter 12023

Little Mo said, "My sister and brother-in-law helped me buy it through someone. It was discounted, so it cost about one tael of silver!"

hiss……

Old Yang's old pine bark twitched; at this price... the old man felt a pang of heartache.

Tan, who had been sitting there silently, holding the small copper stove to warm her hands and squinting like a mascot, suddenly opened her eyes.

The moment the old lady opened her eyes, a sharp glint shot out from them towards Little Mo, like Ultraman who had just been awakened.

(Please don't question why a person with two eyes can only shoot out a single beam of light; it's because the old lady was one-eyed.)
"What the hell? One firework costs one and a half taels of silver? Good heavens, what a waste of money! Are you all living in poverty?"

The newly awakened mother Ultraman Tan unleashed a powerful attack directly at Little Mo.

Xiao Mo was stunned for a moment, somewhat helpless after being struck by this move.

"Grandma, life goes on. This...this is Yongqing's idea," she stammered as she explained.

They thought they could shift the blame to the old lady's grandson so that she would think he was in charge of managing the household and the money, but to their surprise, Mrs. Tan only focused on the key points.

"Are you dead? He wants to buy it, so you just let him? Don't you have a mouth or hands? Don't you know how to stop him?"

Little Mo's face turned bright red. Being scolded in public like this was, to be precise, the first time she had been truly scolded since recovering from her madness.

As for the scolding and disdainful looks I received when I had my episodes of madness, those don't count.

At this moment, Xiao Mo was unable to explain, nor did she dare to continue sitting. She hurriedly stood up and forced a helpless, bitter smile.

She tried to stop him, but Yang Yongqing gave many reasons why he absolutely had to buy it. One of them was that after the New Year, Yang Yongqing would officially take over the restaurant business of Tianxianglou in Qingshui Town and become the manager in town, and start making big money.

To bring good luck, I'll splurge and buy a fancy firework to set off on New Year's Eve, hoping to share in the festive spirit!

However, Xiao Mo couldn't say these things here. After all, not everyone could be the manager of the restaurant in town. It was only after her second brother mentored her and Qing'er took extra care of her that the job fell to Yongqing.

"...The two kids are growing up day by day, and there will be many more places to spend money in the future. The four of us are still crammed into a tiny room...You really don't know how to manage money!" Mrs. Tan's scolding continued, and the spittle she sprayed covered several plates of snacks in front of her, one of which was a small plate of rock sugar tangerines.

It was also Yang Ruoqing's favorite. She had previously taken two and peeled them to eat, but now she had blacklisted that plate of oranges.

"Ahem, Grandma, I think it's fine if we buy it. We don't buy these things every day. It's okay to have a little something for the festive New Year." Yang Ruoqing was the first to step in and smooth things over. After all, her brother and sister-in-law would be her direct subordinates from now on, and such big fireworks could only be set off after the third branch of the family and the Luo family had all arrived. Just for that reason, Yang Ruoqing was willing to protect her.

"Even buying it once a year is a waste of money!" Tan's eyes flashed with a sharp light as she glared at Yang Ruoqing.

"Look at this, just a wooden stake, what good is it? It could buy a whole cartload of firecrackers, enough to last from the beginning to the end of the year..."

"Sizzle sizzle... Bang! Bang!"

The noise from the entrance to the main room interrupted and drowned out Madam Tan's accusations, while also drawing everyone's attention to the doorway.

What was once an ordinary entrance has suddenly been transformed into a magnificent, seven-colored tree. The tree is covered in fiery blossoms that not only shoot high but also over a wide area, illuminating not only the area in front of the entrance but also filling the front half of the main hall with a seven-colored glow.

Bathed in the glow of the sunset, the children danced and cheered, jumping and leaping with joy. Even the youngest, Liangliang, couldn't help but clap his hands excitedly.

Inside the main room, all the adults were staring at the fireworks display outside, their pupils reflecting the colorful lights, their faces filled with amazement.

"Wow... these fireworks are so beautiful!"

"I have to say, these expensive fireworks are much prettier than those cheap ones!" Liu exclaimed, her eyes filled with amazement as she gazed at the dazzling display of lights outside.

Jiang Guiling glanced at Liu Shi sideways, her eyes seemingly praising Liu Shi for having good taste.

However, Jiang Guiling felt she had a great advantage in this area, so she continued Liu's words: "You get what you pay for. Such beautiful fireworks can only be seen in the city. If they are set off in our village, our Yang family will probably be the first to do so!"

"Of course! Just putting it down like that costs one and a half taels of silver. No family in the surrounding villages can afford that!" Liu said again. "I haven't seen enough yet, what should I do?"

"If you haven't seen enough, I'll gouge your eyes out! Look, look, what are you looking at? This stuff is so expensive, will looking at it fill you up? Or can you drink it like soup?" Madam Tan had been briefly distracted by the fireworks outside, although the old lady was also stunned by the dazzling spectacle.

However, Liu's words about "wasteful spending" quickly brought Tan back to her senses from the shock, and she was able to continue to calmly criticize Liu!
Liu was also unconvinced. She clapped her hands and exclaimed exaggeratedly, "Old lady, you're really funny! I'm not the only one praising the fireworks. Guiling and the others all said so, so why are you picking on me?"

Tan's hawk-like gaze swept over Jiang Guiling and the other young wives.

Those who were swept away either lowered their heads in fright and pretended to look for something on the ground, or turned their faces away and pretended to talk to the people next to them. In short, everyone tacitly pretended to be very busy and dared not make direct eye contact with Tan.

Yang Ruoqing's gaze remained unwavering throughout, but Tan's gaze abruptly stopped just before it reached Yang Ruoqing, turning back to Liu.

"Those girls are all talk and no action, they don't ask for money, they're not wasteful. You're different!" Madam Tan pointed at Madam Liu: "You're complaining that you haven't seen enough, what? Do you want Fourth Brother and Kang boy to buy them for you to see? You wasteful tiger woman, you're not a child anymore, how can you say such things!"

Liu was so angry that her head was practically steaming. "Old lady, you really know how to pick on the weak! You never give me any face all year round, and now you're picking on me like this during the New Year. I don't have any solid evidence of wrongdoing today, and even if you're my mother-in-law, I won't tolerate you!"

"Oh ho, you think you're getting out of hand? What? You think you're all grown up just because it's the New Year?" Tan looked at Liu, who was jumping up and down in anger, but remained as calm as a mountain, with a disdainful smile on her face, completely disregarding Liu as her opponent. "You have to apologize to me!" Liu shouted.

The other women nearby exchanged glances, but none of them came over to persuade Liu or dared to risk trying to persuade Tan.

In the past, there were those who tried to persuade her, namely Sun Shi and Bao Suyun. But today, on New Year's Eve, both of them stayed at home and didn't come over, because someone must stay at home on New Year's Eve; it's not acceptable for someone to be absent.

The two women didn't come, and Jin was taking care of the children in the front hall, so it became a standoff between Tan and Liu.

Old Yang started to get impatient, tapping his pipe on the table: "You're all getting carried away with your conversation, aren't you? It's the New Year, so shut up!"

Yang Huaming and Kang Xiaozi were both giving Liu Shi meaningful glances. Kang Xiaozi lowered his voice and said, "Mother, you are the younger generation. Why don't you take a step back and stop arguing with my grandmother?"

It's pointless for a family to argue like this!

"What do you mean I'm arguing? From the very first word, it's your grandma who's been causing me trouble! Can't you tell, you little bastard, it's your mother who's been wronged!" Liu was so angry she wanted to pinch Kang's ears. Her husband and son were both there, but not a single one of them dared to say a word for her.

Madam Tan gave a soft snort and refrained from scolding Madam Liu for the time being, but the look in her eyes seemed to say: See? I, the old lady, am still the matriarch of this family!
Liu was so angry that her chest hurt!

Just as the Tan and Liu families were exchanging barbs, the dazzling fireworks outside finally faded, and darkness returned to the entrance of the main hall.

Originally, it wasn't that dark because of the lanterns, but after experiencing such a dazzling scene, the original 'not dark' felt even darker and more unbearable after the curtain fell.

The children stared blankly at the large firework stump that had already burned out not far away, hoping that it would burst out with surprises again.

But after waiting for a while, nothing came, and the children were immediately disappointed.

The two little brothers, Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan, seemed to have an idea. They looked at each other and then, displaying their twin-like tacit understanding, ran together into the main room and each hugged Yang Ruoqing's left and right legs.

"Mom, I want to set off fireworks too!" Yuanyuan shouted.

"I haven't seen enough yet, I want to see more!" Tuantuan said.

"Well, listen to this, I'm not the only one saying this, am I?" Liu, who was clutching her aching chest and trying to recover, immediately saw an opportunity to make a comeback after hearing what Yang Ruoqing's two children said.

"Grandma, did you hear that? Qing'er's twins also said they haven't seen enough. Go ahead and scold them! Why don't you scold them?"

Liu's tactic of diverting the blame was indeed effective. Tan's previously calm and composed expression now showed a subtle change.

"Haha, old lady, why don't you say something critical? What? You treat the same words differently depending on the situation? Are you looking down on me, your daughter-in-law? Or on your fourth son? What about your grandson and great-grandson?"

Well, Liu struck again, and this time it was even more ruthless than the last, dragging the entire fourth branch of the family into the mess and also lifting Tan up.

Tan's expression became more subtle and complex, and the corners of her mouth twitched slightly, clearly indicating that she was frantically organizing her thoughts to retaliate. However, because Yang Ruoqing's family was involved, Tan had to be cautious in her moves.

Tan's series of reactions also aroused the curiosity of the other family members present.

If the original dispute between Tan and Liu was just a common quarrel between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law in everyone's eyes, then now, with Liu diverting the trouble, the matter has become subtle and interesting.

Those eyes that had been pretending to be busy earlier were now all turning their gazes in this direction. Everyone remained silent, waiting to see what Tan would do next.

Even Yang Huaming, though unhappy that Liu had dragged Yang Ruoqing's two children into this, was even more annoyed by Tan's double standards!
He admitted that Liu was not as capable or virtuous as his third sister-in-law and fifth sister-in-law, but Liu was not the kind of villain who would kill or commit arson.

She's just a little talkative, a little greedy, and a little lazy.

As a mother-in-law, it's fine to scold her in private or in public, but just say a few words and leave her some face. But if you keep attacking her like this, and now you encounter the same problem, let's see if you, as the eldest in the family, will still scold her with bias.
If that's the case, it's a huge disregard for the fourth branch of the family, and Yang Huaming would definitely have something to say about it!
Old Yang clearly sensed Yang Huaming's dissatisfaction, and his expression changed. Just as he was about to reprimand Tan Shi, Yang Ruoqing, who had only intended to be a bystander, sighed and spoke up:

"Please pause for a moment, let me say a few words about my thoughts on this matter,"

"Sister Qing'er, please speak, we're listening." Jiang Guiling was the first to speak again, smiling warmly and friendly at Yang Ruoqing. Unfortunately, Yang Ruoqing didn't appreciate her kind intentions.

So Yang Ruoqing ignored Jiang Guiling's attempt to smooth things over and continued, "First of all, let me state my position. Although you, Fourth Aunt, are trying to shift the blame, I will not comment on the argument between my grandmother and Fourth Aunt, because you are both my elders, and I will not comment on who is right or wrong!"

Well, if it were before, Yang Ruoqing might have supported Liu, but since she shifted the blame, sorry, she won't support her anymore.

When Ms. Tan heard Yang Ruoqing state her position, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and the expression on her face was no longer as tense as before.

On the other hand, Liu had a vague sense of unease. She had a feeling that what Yang Ruoqing was about to say might not be good for her.

Yang Ruoqing continued, "Secondly, it's not surprising that the same words can elicit different reactions from others."

"Auntie, how old are you? And how old are my twins? They're not even a fraction of your age combined, are they? So no matter what the kids say wrong, the adults just laugh it off. So there's absolutely no need for you to drag my twins into this. Don't you all agree?"

"Sister is right. Not to mention the twins, my Fuwa and Jun'er also whispered in my ear that they hadn't seen enough either." Xiaohua spoke calmly, every word of which was in full support of Yang Ruoqing.

Yang Ruoqing smiled at Xiaohua. At times like this, it was immediately clear who was genuine and who was fake.

Regardless of how the New Year's money is calculated, when it comes to supporting each other, Xiaohua is absolutely unambiguous. An older sister is an older sister, and no one is as close to her as her older sister.