Mr. Jing and His Little Husband

Chapter 40

“Sigouzi’s Crafty Mother”

“A chicken can’t have two owners, right? Today, let’s solve this mysterious case together!” After Jing Yi finished speaking, he courteously bowed to all directions, instantly setting the atmosphere in motion.

Upon hearing this, everyone thought it was a good idea. After all, if anyone said something wrong, it was their own problem. If the chicken couldn’t be caught, it could only blame itself. They didn’t want to offend those who were just there to watch the show.

So some villagers who were standing at a distance also approached, forming a tightly packed crowd around the involved parties. Layers upon layers of people filled the surroundings, responding one after another:

“Great! This method is good!”

“Why not? Let us learn from the officials!”

“Xiaoyi has a good idea. You should remember what your own chicken looks like!”

“What if Xiaoyi is doing big business in town?”

“I think this cage should be more secure. It’s still showing some gaps!”

After Jing Yi finished speaking, Sigouzi’s mother’s greedy eyes stared directly at the chicken cage, as if she wanted to dive in and find out the truth. Now that she heard the people around her agreeing with this method, she knew that she had to comply, even if it didn’t work. Her eyes turned, and she began to raise her neck and shout, “I definitely know what my chicken looks like! But I’m afraid this little hoof might hear it, so let him speak first.”

“Alright. Xiao Tao, why don’t you go first?” Jing Yi saw that Sigouzi’s mother was willingly jumping into the pit, so he naturally went along with her. Xiao Tao nodded timidly, about to speak.

Jingmu saw this and quickly called a halt, saying, “Wait! What’s going on? The people from the Shitou family are still here listening, right? You’d better walk away for a bit. Otherwise, later on, if both of you say the same thing, we’ll mistakenly accuse you again!”

Jing Yi: “Mom is really knowing!”

The people around also realized what was happening and started gossiping:

“What are they doing? Xiaoyi already said to stay away, but why is she still sticking around? She must be eavesdropping.”

“Who cares if I want to listen? Pah!” Sigouzi’s mother muttered and walked away. Only then did Jingmu pat Xiao Tao’s hand, signaling him to continue.

Xiao Tao, feeling nervous and uneasy, began to describe, “The chicken in my house is a hen, small in size. We’ve only been raising her for a little over half a year, and she just started laying eggs. She likes to run around normally, so she ran out this time. She is a light brown color with some brownish patterns, but the feathers on her legs are relatively white.”

Jing Yi exchanged glances with the aunties who had just followed him in. It was mostly settled now.

“Aunties! It’s your turn. Please come over. Thank you for waiting.” Jing Yi politely beckoned Sigouzi’s mother, who was peering from all directions into the gaps of the chicken cage, to come over. Sigouzi’s mother slowly walked over, hesitating and lingering, but she kept looking inside the cage from all angles. However, she didn’t say anything.

After this incident, no one would dare to provoke the Jing Yi family in the future, mainly because they didn’t dare to provoke Jing Yi himself. Both Jing Yi’s father and mother were kind-hearted people.

Xiao Tao was extremely grateful and expressed his thanks. Jing Yi’s mother told him not to worry about it and held his hand, which was cold, urging him to go back home quickly to warm up.

“Um, thank you, Auntie.” Xiao Tao looked at Jing Yi’s mother and sincerely thanked her. Honestly, he had never received so much care and protection from his own mother before, nor had anyone ever stood up for him. It was only after marrying into Xiwancun and having a good mother-in-law like that he experienced the warmth and care of elders. However, his mother-in-law was also gentle and not good at handling things, so he didn’t expect Jing Yi’s aunt, whom he had just met, to stand up for him and protect him. He was very grateful.

Meanwhile, Jing Yi’s mother and son continued to buy tofu. Their pants and shoes were wet and damp from stepping on the snow, but they didn’t feel cold. Having done a good and fair deed, Jing Yi’s mother felt extremely happy. She walked with an air of pride. “Let you bully an honest person! Let you badmouth my son behind his back! Hahaha!”

Due to the delay on the way, Jing Yi accompanied his mother to buy tofu and hurried back home to start preparing the New Year’s Eve dinner. Dishes like pork ribs and chicken that required long stewing had been prepared by Jing Yi’s mother since morning. They were now kept in the kitchen, ready to be heated in a pot with water and served directly at dinner.

The kitchen stove was currently occupied, with Jing Yi’s mother steaming a dish of garlic-infused pork for Jing Yi’s father. It had just been placed in the pot and would take at least an hour to cook.

It was already past 3 pm, and it would be ready just in time for dinner. The cast-iron pot that had been set up in the yard a few days ago had been brought back from the shop, and it was still in its original position.

Jing Yi’s mother planned to use this pot specifically for frying. When frying, the smoke would be too much, so it was suitable to do it in the yard. Frying food was considered a novelty in the rural village. Even well-off families rarely did it, mainly because it required a lot of oil. Whether it was lard or vegetable oil, it was precious in the countryside. Even during the prosperous times of the Jing family, they had never done it. At most, they would use oil to pan-fry some dishes during the New Year, which was also considered “fried food.”

Therefore, at this moment, one by one, including Jing Yi’s father, were watching Jing Yi’s mother’s actions in the yard, occasionally lending a helping hand. Taking advantage of this moment, Jing Yi’s mother vividly recounted the recent incident in the village, of course, embellishing certain details. For example, Sigouzi’s mother’s rudeness and unreasonableness, Xiao Tao’s pitiful helplessness, Jing Yi’s intelligence and resourcefulness, and finally, Jing Yi’s bravery, righteousness, quick-wittedness, talent, gratitude, and reciprocation.

“Mother, you’re so amazing!” Xiao Shu joined in enthusiastically, immediately catching on to the story.

“Mother, you’re fantastic! How did you come up with this idea?” Xiao An was very interested in this tactic to deal with enemies and immediately asked Jing Yi’s mother.

“It was your big brother’s idea. But I played an important role in it,” Jing Yi’s mother said solemnly.

“Big brother!” With shining eyes, Jing An looked at his big brother. How was his big brother so capable!

Upon hearing his second younger brother’s interest, Jing Yi was quite pleased and said to him, “Xiao An, books contain a wealth of knowledge and beauty. Much of what your big brother knows comes from reading books.”

Looking at Jing An’s eager and shining eyes, Jing Yi gently patted his shoulder and said, “Xiao An, you’ll be turning eleven after the New Year. You’re a big kid now. How about big brother sends you to the town to study?”

Many children in the town started their education at the age of seven or eight, so Jing An was considered late.

“Big brother, I don’t know if I can learn. If I can’t, it would be a waste of money. It costs a lot of silver to study.” Jing An looked embarrassed and uneasy.

“I want you to study so that you can solve the problem of hunger and be self-reliant when you’re hungry, so that you can come up with solutions when you face difficulties, and so that you understand what a gentleman should and should not do in the future,” Jing Yi said gently.

“Remember, Xiao An, the purpose of our family sending you to study is not for official positions. Of course, if you have the ability and are willing to take the exams, big brother will support you!”

The last sentence could be described as full of grandeur.