Who is Chen Lishu? She was the first university student from their village in many years. Regardless of whether she could contribute to the village in the future, her reputation was established. Moreover, with the Gu family involved, he couldn't just stand by and do nothing.
"You've all gotten brave, haven't you? What are you two doing here? Do you really think everything is fine just because you're out of jail? If you cause any more trouble during your probationary period in the village, do you want to be punished more severely?"
Upon hearing Zhang Changhe's words, Widow Liu immediately scrambled to her feet. "Secretary, it's not entirely the fault of the two children. The Old Chen family bullied us too much, especially that heartless and ruthless Chen Lishu. She wanted to kill me! You are the secretary, you can't favor them just because your daughter married Gu Laosi. Everyone is watching!"
When he heard her words, Zhang Changhe's face darkened. As the saying goes, it's hard to judge family disputes. He knew Widow Liu would be unreasonable, which was why he hadn't paid much attention to her. Seeing that the situation was escalating, as the secretary, he had to step in and say something.
"Who is watching? I only see you throwing a tantrum here. Tell me, how many days have you been causing trouble?"
"Exactly! Widow Liu is pressuring them so much. It's just that Man Tun and his wife are honest. If it were me, I would do the same as Lishu. It's infuriating."
"Oh, what do you guys know? That Widow Liu has been hooking up with several people since she got out. It's a pity that everyone sees her and her two children have been in prison, and no one wants to get involved. Without a way to make money, she's targeting the Chen family."
"You're talking nonsense! I am pure and innocent, who have I hooked up with? Whoever slanders me again, I'll pack my bags and live in their house tomorrow!"
Hearing her words, everyone was afraid she would actually latch onto them and dared not speak further.
"Hurry up and go to the fields to work. If you keep watching here, you'll lose half a day's work points," Zhang Changhe said to the crowd. Upon hearing about the work points deduction, they stopped watching the commotion and headed for the fields.
Seeing that everyone had left, Zhang Changhe turned around and saw Zhang Chunhua still there. He frowned and said, "Baozhu's mother, why are you still standing here?"
Zhang Chunhua came to her senses, glanced at the people present, and unhappily left the courtyard.
"Alright, now that everyone is gone, let's talk. How long are you three going to drag this out?"
Widow Liu glared at Chen Lishu. "We agreed to take Dabao in, and this must be honored."
"You're dreaming! I'd rather not marry for a lifetime than marry Liu Dabao!" Chen Liyuan came out of the house and said hatefully.
"I don't care. If you don't agree, I'll come here and cause trouble every day."
The situation became deadlocked again. Zhang Changhe found Widow Liu a huge headache. If he interfered too deeply, he was an outsider. Even as the secretary, he couldn't monitor this matter every day. If he only interfered superficially, it wouldn't be effective.
"Fine, you three stay here. It's best if you don't go anywhere."
Chen Lishu looked at Widow Liu and her two sons, left them with a sentence, and turned to Gu Xingye. "Fourth brother, after a while, you can ride your bike with me to the police station in town. These two brothers were released so quickly. I seriously suspect there's a problem. The leaders at the police station are quite familiar with your third brother. I'll go ask how to resolve this matter."
Hearing her words, Widow Liu's expression instantly changed to fear. Liu Dabao and Liu Xiaobao were also flustered and looked at Widow Liu.
"Stop right there." As they were about to leave the courtyard, Widow Liu quickly called out to them. Chen Lishu turned her head to look at her.
"I've been thinking, a forced marriage is never sweet. Let's forget about the marriage."
Everyone present breathed a collective sigh of relief at her words. But before they could fully relax, they heard her say, "However, this incident has been a huge blow to my Dabao. You must compensate us three—no, two hundred yuan."
Chen Lishu completely ignored her and reached out to push open the courtyard gate.
"One hundred and fifty!"
"One hundred! No lower than that, otherwise, you can find whoever you want. Even if the Emperor himself comes..."
Seeing that they were walking away, Widow Liu realized she couldn't control Chen Lishu. Hating it in her heart, she gritted her teeth and quickly caught up. "Alright, alright, you're the boss. We'll leave now, okay?"
Chen Lishu finally stopped. "If I ever find out you're still scheming against my family, remember this: even if your two sons are out, I can still send them back."
Although unwilling, Widow Liu still took her two sons and left.
Seeing that they had truly left this time, everyone present finally relaxed completely.
Zhang Changhe, seeing that the matter had come to an end, also planned to return to the team to lead the work.
"Uncle Changhe, thank you so much today." Chen Lishu saw him about to leave and smiled gratefully.
Zhang Changhe waved his hand. "It's nothing, my dear niece. I have things to do at the team, so I'll be leaving now."
"Third sister-in-law, I'm leaving too," Gu Xingye said and left with his father-in-law, Zhang Changhe.
"Dad, let's go back inside. I have something to say." Seeing that everyone had left, Chen Lishu looked seriously at Chen Mantun.
"Okay, okay, let's all go inside." Chen Mantun was very happy that the matter with Widow Liu was finally resolved.
"Mom and Dad, although others are responsible for this incident, the main responsibility lies with both of you. I did say before that we could consider taking in a son-in-law, but that was only if some of my sisters were willing."
After entering the house, Chen Lishu looked sternly at Chen Mantun and Wu Chunmei. "But now that the matter has happened, I don't want to say too much about blaming you. With Liyuan's middle school entrance examination less than two months away, I'll take her to town tomorrow. My paternal aunt transferred schools by contacting the principal of the Second Middle School. Their teaching quality is better than the commune's. Let's see if we can let her study directly in the city."
"This, who will take care of the younger children at home if she leaves?" Wu Chunmei frowned subconsciously when she heard her words.
Chen Liyuan was already grown up. Although she attended school during the day, she could still help with a lot of chores after school, like washing clothes, cooking, and looking after the younger ones. If she left, the family would lose half their workforce.
In Wu Chunmei's mind, having fewer people to help was secondary. The key point was that if Chen Liyuan continued her studies and went to high school, she wouldn't be back for at least two years. Although they wouldn't have to pay tuition fees, the pressure on her and her husband would still be considerable.
Chen Lishu's expression darkened considerably when she heard her words. "Mom, if you feel there's no one to share the household chores, that's fine. Except for the seventh child, I'll send the other sisters to town to study tomorrow. Does that make things easier for you?"
Send them all to town?
Wu Chunmei stared blankly at Chen Lishu. She wanted to say something, but after opening her mouth, she could only stammer, "Liyuan won't have anyone to take care of her in town. She's a girl and has never left home before."
"My paternal aunt is also in town, so they can keep each other company." Chen Lishu then looked at Chen Liyuan. "Second sister, what do you think?"