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Chapter 450: Chapter 453: Seizing the Shop? _1
"If you want to know the truth, just go and ask around the village to see how I lived before I got married, to see what I looked like when I first got married."
"At my parents’ house, I cooked and washed dishes, fed the pigs and chickens, cleaned the house, washed clothes, did needlework, and never had a moment to rest. If there was work to be done in the fields, they would rush me to do it. I couldn’t even get enough to eat, and if I was a bit slow, I’d be beaten and scolded."
"In the end, they sold me to pay for Qiao Jingu’s medical treatment. When I entered the Tan Family, all I brought was two sets of tattered clothes. Under those circumstances, how could they afford to buy me a shop?"
"They oppressed me before, and now they slander me. Should I not disown such relatives?"
"Everything I have now, I’ve earned together with my husband, and it has nothing to do with them!"
Qiao Duo’er said this, standing tall and proud, not taking a single Wen money’s advantage from either the Qiao Family or the Tan Family.
Perhaps influenced by the residual feelings of the original host, her eyes slightly reddened.
This made her appear pitifully charming, and the tone of gossip began to shift somewhat.
But the Qiao Family had the upper hand, and they still held an absolute advantage in public opinion.
Qiao Jingu, with hands on hips, scolded, "You idiotic chatterbox, it’s obvious you were lazy and gluttonous and unwilling to work. Otherwise, how could you be so pretty?"
People who work hard have dark skin and rough hands. Look at Qiao Duo’er—her skin is delicate and tender, not at all like someone who does heavy labor.
Even if you told people she was a young lady from town, no one would doubt it.
The crowd looked at Qiao Duo’er following Qiao Jingu’s words and really couldn’t see the misery she claimed to have endured.
It must have been a lie to slander her parents.
"Mr. Tan, I’ll give you back the One or Two Silver. You return my daughter and her dowry. We, the Qiao Family, can’t afford to be related to you by marriage!"
As Qiao Laixi spoke, he began to pull out silver from his bosom.
Now that his daughter had the braised meat recipe in her hands, did he have to worry about not having Silver to spend in the future?
Whether the Qiao Family sold braised meat themselves or sold the recipe to Madam Liang, along with the reward money from Madam Liang, it would be enough to support them for decades!
The most crucial point was, without Qiao Duo’er at home, it just wouldn’t work.
Apart from Qiao Duo’er, the other female members of the family cooked dreadful meals; they’d carelessly forget to feed the chickens and ducks, and often they didn’t have enough firewood, resulting in cold rice porridge just to get by, which was no way to live.
Tan Zhenghong said without hesitation, "Duo’er is my wife, and you have no right to decide her life."
"This reminds me of something. My pure and innocent daughter is gone; how can I possibly give back the dowry? It seems to me that this shop should belong to my daughter!"
Besides, now that Qiao Duo’er has grown up beautiful, she could fetch a good price.
This time they stood to gain not only the shop but additional Silver as well. What a windfall!
Liu’s family struggled to hide her true thoughts, but a hint of smugness still showed on her face.
Qiao Laixi hurried to put the Silver back into his pocket. To save even One Tael, he would be more than happy!
Qiao Jingu eyed Tan’s Shop with disdain and pointed at Qiao Duo’er’s nose, "You good-for-nothing could only exchange yourself for such a small shop, totally worthless!"
As soon as these words came out, the people looked at Qiao Jingu with strange expressions.
Not to mention how Qiao Duo’er had been treated, as a younger brother, Qiao Jingu shouldn’t speak to his sister in such a manner.
Moreover, many people struggle their entire lives without being able to afford a shop like that, so what made this young kid so bold as to utter such big words?
Something’s wrong here; why does this whole family seem to be out to take over the shop?
