I'm already a concubine, who wants to fight with you?

Chapter 102 The Backyard of the Big House

The carriage stopped and Mother Liu came forward to help Xie Fei down.

Xie Fei looked at the people who were waiting to greet him at the door and asked curiously, "It's so cold, why are you standing outside instead of staying indoors to warm yourself by the fire?"

The Zou family, the Chen family, and several other families, anyone who could walk and jump, regardless of gender, age or status, came to greet Xie Fei.

Mother Liu said, "We haven't seen my daughter for two days. We all miss her very much."

Madam Zou came forward, also supported Xie Fei, and smiled brightly.

"My young mother left in a hurry, and we were worried that the Pei family would make things difficult for her. Besides, the New Year is coming soon, and we were hoping to spend the New Year's Eve with my young mother this year."

Everyone was talking at once, saying that if Xie Fei didn't come back for the New Year, then this Spring Festival would be too boring.

It was the first time for Xie Fei to be expected like this.

She looked at the simple and familiar faces, as if strange emotions were transformed into gurgling hot spring water, slowly flowing through her numb and cold heart.

It's rare.

Even an unknown person like her will have a day when she is expected and hoped for.

After entering the farm, everyone surrounded her and took her back to Songyueju, and then, under Mother Liu's instructions, they went about their business.

The yard finally became quiet, and Mother Liu said, "Let's clean up Songyueju first and make it the same as before. A lot of the poultry and livestock you raised outside the back wall have died in the past two days, and we don't know what to do with them."

Xie Fei felt very distressed, "It was frightened to death. We can only stew it and eat it."

The bandits broke into the village, and she suffered some losses.

The chickens and rabbits she raised were frightened to the point of being half sick. They couldn't eat the grass or drink the water. They huddled together and had to be slaughtered for meat.

One sheep was also chopped several times and survived for a few days, but even with the help of medicine, it still could not be kept alive.

Fortunately, the ice cellar was not discovered by the bandits, and the ice and frozen meat were not contaminated.

Xie Fei asked again: "How is the reconstruction of the village going?"

Mother Liu said, "Everyone who can move, even the children, are helping. Now that most places have been restored, housing is no longer a problem."

Fortunately, it is winter and there is not much farm work to do. If it were the autumn harvest time, it would be the most stressful.

Xie Fei sighed, "Pick a time, and everyone come and help me. Kill all my chickens, rabbits, and sheep and eat them."

There's no point in keeping them, so it's better to get rid of them all and use the reward money from the bandits' heads to buy chickens and lambs.

Mother Liu obeyed and left.

Xie Fei turned to look around the yard and felt that the ground was much smoother than before, the roof had been re-tiled, and even the capitals had been painted, making it look brand new.

No matter how luxurious the place was, this small courtyard was the place where she felt most comfortable.

It was dusk when Yuan San came back.

He was carrying a wooden bucket filled with fish he had caught from the river.

Then all the fish were poured into the pond, splashing icy water high into the air.

Xie Fei was busy in the kitchen wearing an apron. When he heard the noise, he came out to take a look.

"Where did you get the fish?"

There were too many of them, and they were so lively, wagging their tails and swimming in the newly-refilled pond, with water droplets splashing onto Xie Fei's face.

Yuan San picked up the wooden barrel and pointed to the stream outside the village, "Break the ice and make a nest. There are plenty of fish."

Chen Dafa and his friends were also catching fish, thinking that they would keep them in water tanks now, so that even if it snowed again in the next few days, they would not be left without food. When it was time to eat in the evening, the three of them sat together in the main room, with a brazier next to them, which was quite warm.

Yuan San learned about the affairs of the first wife from Fu Yu, and felt helpless about Ban Sihui's behavior.

"This lady Ban was carefully selected by Madam Zheng. Her family was once a noble and famous family, but unfortunately she committed a crime and her family property was confiscated, and her status plummeted. Besides, Madam Zheng is good at everything except her choice of daughter-in-law and son-in-law."

The eldest son and the second daughter of the first wife did not have a smooth relationship after marriage.

Xie Fei held the rice bowl in his hand and asked in confusion, "You even know everything about the eldest wife's house?"

"Miss, you forgot that I used to work as a temporary worker in the Pei family." Yuan San said with a smile.

Xie Fei knew that five years ago, after he was rescued and "turned a good man", he would often go out to work and earn some money to supplement his daily expenses.

Otherwise, with Xie Fei's meager income, the three of them would have starved to death long ago.

Without getting suspicious about this, Xie Fei asked again, "Do you know anything else about the eldest wife?"

Yuan San frowned and thought hard, but there was no movement for a long time.

Just when Xie Fei was about to say, if you can't remember, then don't think about it, he slammed his chopsticks on the table, and the noise scared Fu Yu so much that she jumped up.

"Third Brother Yuan, please stop being so startled!" Fu Yu's rice bowl was spilled and he picked up the rice grains while complaining.

Yuan San said seriously: "I suddenly remembered that Madam Zheng from the first house is not easy to get along with. It is better for the young lady not to get too close to her."

"Isn't this nonsense?" Fu Yu rolled his eyes.

Xie Fei naturally understood this, but was very confused.

"Mrs. Zheng is a resolute and decisive lady from a high-ranking family. She is not a kind and gentle person. I have known this for a long time. What I am curious about is that since she can control the harem tightly, how can she be so indulgent to Mrs. Ban?"

Ban Sihui not only dislikes Xie Fei and Xie Jing, she is a woman who loves to gossip and has a not very good brain.

She loved to interfere in every household affair, no matter it was between husband and wife, concubines, or conflicts between sisters-in-law, and was always ready to make groundless accusations.

Logically speaking, given Mrs. Zheng's style, she would not tolerate her daughter-in-law gossiping and offending others, and would at least give her a warning or two.

But looking at Ban Sihui's proud and arrogant temperament now, it seems that she has no intention of being taught a lesson at all.

Yuan San picked out the most tender piece of fish belly meat, removed the thick bones and gave it to Xie Fei, then slowly explained.

"After all, Madam Ban was the wife that Pei Shaoqing welcomed into the mansion in a sedan chair carried by eight men. Over the years, she has given birth to children and has worked hard even if she has no merits. She is also sincere to Pei Shaoqing and has not made any major mistakes.

Furthermore, if the Ban family loses, and Madam Zheng is too harsh on Madam Ban, people will say that Madam Zheng looks down on the Ban family and flatters the powerful. Then, the Pei family father and son will inevitably be talked about as well.”

After a pause, Yuan San continued, "The most important point is that although Madam Ban seems conceited and proud, she is actually sensitive and suspicious. Whenever Madam Zheng speaks harshly to her, she will definitely feel deeply insulted, have wild thoughts, and may even commit suicide."

Mrs. Zheng does not feel sorry for her daughter-in-law, but she does feel sorry for her four grandchildren.

No matter how good a stepmother is, she is not as good as the biological mother. If Mrs. Ban dies, what will happen to the four children?
So after weighing the pros and cons, even if Mrs. Zheng wanted to discipline her child, she didn't dare to be too harsh.

Xie Fei benefited a lot from Yuan San's analysis.

While she was admiring him, she was also puzzled, "You are a tomb robber, but you know so much about the twists and turns of these backyards?"

Yuan San's eyes were grim, and he was calm and composed: "In addition to robbing tombs, I also worked as a temporary worker in many wealthy families. How could I not see through such a small matter?"

Xie Fei continued to eat, muttering: "You are better than psychology, you see through it."

However, this is not only true for high-ranking families, but also for any family with many members. Naturally, each person has many thoughts. The mysteries are like the intertwined roots of a towering tree, and if you really think about it carefully, it is quite interesting.

(End of this chapter)