Transmigrated into the role of the matriarch, I ensured my family had enough to eat and wear during

Zheng the Rascal completely ignored the villagers' jeers and taunts. He spat on the ground, stubbornly making excuses: "I'm doing this for the villagers' sake! These two lads secretly carried dozens of buckets of water home last night, and they're back again today! The well water is the common property of the whole village. If they use an extra drop, everyone else has one less!"

He glanced at Tang Liqiang and emphasized, "Besides, this kid is from another family. What right does he have to take advantage of our Yangqu Village?"

The villagers all scoffed at it.

Yangqu Village originally had three wells: one at the beginning of the village, one at the end, and one at the village head's house. Now, due to the severe drought, only the well at the beginning of the village still has water, and everyone is worried that the well will dry up one day.

However, the village has never stipulated the amount of water to be carried each day, nor is there any saying that "if you carry water at night, you can't carry it during the day."

Anyone with eyes can see that Zheng the Scoundrel is deliberately picking a fight, bullying Tang Susu and her widowed child, and also bullying Tang Liqiang, who is not of the same surname.

"You're talking nonsense!" Yang Gousheng retorted, his face flushed with anger, clenching his fists. "The village head didn't say anything, and the well isn't yours, so what right do you have to tell us what to do?"

"I'll take care of it!" Zheng the rascal sneered, took a step forward, and kicked over the bucket of water that Yang Gousheng had placed on the ground.

The bucket rolled away with a "glug" sound, spilling water all over the ground.

"I'm telling you, you're not allowed to carry water today! It's your family's fault for using too much water, harming everyone's interests!"

Seeing the water bucket overturned, Tang Liqiang, like an enraged calf, lunged at Zheng the Rascal: "You pay for my water!"

But he was young and not as strong as Zheng the Rascal. Zheng grabbed his shoulder and pinned him to the ground. Zheng raised his fist, about to smash it down.

"stop!"

A sharp shout rang out, and the villagers who had been watching instinctively parted to make way for Tang Susu to walk in.

She strode forward, grabbed Tang Liqiang from the ground, and pulled him behind her, her eyes icy as she stared at Zheng the Rascal: "Zheng the Rascal, do you think that just because my husband is gone, you can bully us, a widow and her orphan, as you please?"

Zheng the Scoundrel withdrew his fist, stubbornly insisting, "I didn't bully anyone! I was just upholding justice for the whole village!"

"Upholding justice?" Tang Susu scoffed. "I think you're just avenging your son, aren't you?"

She directly exposed Zheng's true intentions: "Isn't it just yesterday that my Xiaobao caught a pheasant, and your son Zheng Dahu tried to snatch it, but failed and ended up scratching Xiaobao and tearing his clothes? I haven't even settled that score with you yet, and you're already coming to my door to cause trouble, even kicking over my water bucket!"

Zheng Popi already had a terrible reputation in the village, and as soon as Tang Susu finished speaking, villagers immediately started complaining.

"That's right! Just a few days ago, Zheng Dahu even stole the wild vegetables my granddaughter had dug up!"

"Several cabbages went missing from my house before the Lunar New Year, and we later found out it was this kid who stole them! Just like his father, lazy and good-for-nothing, always doing bad things!"

Some villagers whispered among themselves, "Tang Susu is different today. Before, when something like this happened, she would just throw a tantrum and cry her eyes out. Today, she speaks clearly and logically."

"It's pitiful, they have to toughen up and fight for their children."

Zheng, the rascal, blushed and paled as he was berated by the crowd. Overwhelmed with shame and anger, he uttered a threat: "Stop talking nonsense! If you piss me off, I'll even beat women!"

"Oh?" Tang Susu took a step forward, bringing her head right up to Zheng the Rascal, and said sarcastically, "What a coincidence, just two days ago my second uncle smashed my head with a rock. And what happened? He compensated me with one of my old hens. If you dare to hit me, you don't need to compensate me with a chicken, just give me ten pounds of rice."

She took another half step forward, almost touching Zheng the rascal, and urged, "Come on, hit him! Hit him here, hit him hard!"

Zheng the rascal subconsciously took a few steps back, his mind racing with calculations.

He originally thought that since both he and Tang Susu had bad reputations, the villagers wouldn't side with either side, and he could take advantage of the situation.

Unexpectedly, Tang Susu acted out of character today, not only speaking logically but also daring to force him to take action.

He's scared!

The rice jar at home was already empty, and if we really got into a fight, we simply couldn't afford to pay for ten kilograms of rice in compensation.

He was even more afraid that Tang Susu would do what she did before, running to his doorstep crying, making a scene, and threatening suicide, which would leave him with no way to handle the situation.

Just then, Yang Houcai, standing in the crowd of villagers, couldn't help but shout, "Zheng, you scoundrel, have some shame! What kind of skill is it to beat women and children?"

Hou Cai's wife, who was standing to the side, exploded upon hearing this.

She reached out and grabbed Yang Houcai's arm, twisting it hard, and cursed, "You heartless bastard! Mind your own business! What's it to you?"

"I'm just speaking up for a widow, how is that meddling?" Yang Houcai retorted stubbornly.

These words completely enraged Houcai's wife. She was convinced her husband had designs on Tang Susu, grabbed Yang Houcai by the ear, and dragged him home, yelling, "You! You're siding with outsiders! I'll settle the score with you when we get home!"

Yang Houcai grimaced in pain, but dared not resist, and could only be dragged away by his wife.

With Yang Houcai taking the lead, other villagers followed suit.

"Exactly! What kind of skill is it to bully orphans and widows?"

"Why don't we ask the village head to come and settle this? The village head is always fair; if Tang Susu really stole the pheasant, he'll definitely help you!"

Seeing this, Zheng the rascal knew he wouldn't get away with it today.

He spat on the ground with a disdainful look, picked up his water bucket, and slunk away, cursing.

After Zheng the punk left, Tang Susu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Actually, she was quite nervous just now. Apart from being eloquent, she didn't have any real skills. If Zheng the rascal really made a move, there was nothing she could do.

She immediately decided that she would definitely buy some self-defense items from the mall later.

She turned to the villagers who had gathered around, nodded slightly in thanks, and said, "Thank you all for speaking up for me earlier."

When she spoke, she stood tall and straight, exuding an invisible aura.

The sunlight shone on her face, making her skin fair and dazzling, a stark contrast to the dark and rough faces of the village women who had worked hard for a long time. She had none of the vulgarity of a village woman.

The villagers were stunned, feeling that Tang Susu was like a completely different person.

In the past, when she encountered such a situation, she would only throw a tantrum, cry and scream. Today, however, she neither rolled on the ground nor cried. She managed to scare Zheng away with just a few words. The style of her behavior was completely different.

Ignoring the villagers' astonishment, Tang Susu led Tang Liqiang and Yang Gousheng home.

Along the way, the two boys didn't dare to breathe loudly, their heads hanging low, thinking that they would definitely get a severe beating from their boss this time.

As soon as they entered the courtyard, the rich aroma of meat and rice wafted over them, and their stomachs immediately rumbled, their mouths watering uncontrollably.

Tang Susu brought over a basin of water and placed it in front of the two of them: "Wash your hands first, then we'll get ready to eat."

Yang Gousheng was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but look up and ask, "Mother, you...you're not going to punish me and my second uncle?"

Tang Susu glanced at him indifferently and said, "This isn't your fault, why punish you?"

She knew in her heart that this conflict was ultimately caused by poverty. A little chicken and a little water could cause a dispute; life was too hard.

The family sat around the table, looking at the Dongpo pork and white rice on it, and began to wolf down their food.

After the meal, Tang Susu took an empty wooden bowl from the kitchen, filled it with a bowl full of Dongpo pork, and stuffed it into Yang Xiaobao's hand: "Take this to Grandpa and Grandma and tell them that Mom snatched it back from the Tang family."

She had her own reasons. The original owner of this body had abused the children, and it was only through Old Lady Yang's secret feeding that the children managed to survive.

She wants to live a peaceful life in Yangqu Village, which is inseparable from the support of her clan—most of the villagers in Yangqu Village are surnamed Yang, and they were one family five hundred years ago.

If we maintain a good relationship with the Yang family, things will go more smoothly in the future.

Moreover, letting Old Lady Yang know that she stole something from the Tang family would also send a signal that she had completely broken ties with the Tang family.

Yang Xiaobao, carrying the wooden bowl, rushed quickly towards Old Yang's house.

It was noon, and everyone in the Yang family was there.

The men would return to rest after finishing their work, relieving the fatigue of the morning.

The women were washing clothes and mending clothes in the courtyard;

The children gathered together, picking and washing the wild vegetables they had dug up that morning.

"Grandma!" Xiao Bao rushed into the yard, handing the wooden bowl to Old Lady Yang. "Mom asked me to bring you something!"

The Dongpo pork in the bowl was stewed until tender, with alternating red and white colors, and its rich aroma instantly filled the air, attracting the attention of everyone in the courtyard.

Everyone couldn't help but sniff hard. Old Mrs. Yang was completely stunned. She put down the half-sewn garment and quickly stepped forward to check it.

"This is...meat?"

"Mmm!" Xiao Bao handed her the bowl and explained, "Yesterday, Mom went to Second Grandma's house and snatched back the hairpin from Great Grandma's hair. She took it to the market and traded it for a lot of meat. This is for you!"

After saying that, he licked his lips, turned around and ran back: "I need to go home and eat meat, or my older brother and the others will eat it all!"

Old Mrs. Yang stood there, holding the heavy bowl of meat, her mind filled with doubt: Had Tang Susu really broken ties with the Tang family completely?

Yang's wife leaned closer, smelling the aroma of the meat, and said with a smile, "It's good that they've broken ties! From now on, she won't send any more of the good stuff from our house to the Tang family, and the children will be able to live a better life."

"What's so good about it!" Old Mrs. Yang scolded with heartache, "She really doesn't know how to manage a household! That silver hairpin could be exchanged for at least several hundred coins, enough to buy so much grain! She actually used it to buy meat, only caring about her immediate pleasure, without thinking about how she'll survive in the future!"

Yang's second wife whispered, "Do you think she doesn't want to separate the family anymore and wants to move back to the old house? Otherwise, why would she suddenly be so kind as to bring us meat?"