Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Chapter 486: Chapter 254: Coming to Confront (2)

With that said, he stalked into the house, his hands clasped behind his back and his face like ice. Without waiting for an invitation, he sat down commandingly at the square table. He didn’t offer seats to Zhang Dashuan or Zheng Changhe—he was stewing over being confronted like this. And he completely ignored Big Mouth Zhao, furious that the scoundrel had dared to curse his grandnephew.

Zhang Dashuan and Zheng Changhe didn’t need an invitation either, following Shorty Zhou inside and taking seats. When Zheng Changhe saw Xiaonian’s wife, he looked ready to explode again, but Zhang Dashuan quickly grabbed him and shook his head. Zheng Changhe remembered what the two of them had discussed at home and managed to suppress his anger.

Seeing Zheng Changhe and Zhang Dashuan arrive, Big Mouth Zhao quickly called out, "Uncle Zhang! Uncle Zheng!"

He was secretly thrilled. ’The more the merrier! Strength in numbers!’ He had been waiting here specifically for Qingmu and Huai Zi. Who would’ve thought that instead of the sons, their fathers would show up? So, he also found a seat, planting himself right across from Shorty Zhou, which only made the man’s mood fouler.

When Zhou Xiaonian saw his uncle arrive and immediately fly into a rage, and then saw Zhang Dashuan and Zheng Changhe behind him, he knew the situation had blown up. He felt utterly wronged. ’Isn’t this just looking for trouble?’ With one arm, he scooped up his son, and with the other, he grabbed his wife and started dragging her into their room.

In his anger, he used too much force. He squeezed his wife’s hand until it was raw with pain and held his son so tightly that the boy, squeezed uncomfortably, began to wail loudly.

Once in the room, Zhou Xiaonian shoved their son into his wife’s arms and shot her a vicious glare. "Happy now?" he snarled. Without waiting for a reply, he turned and went out to find his father.

Xiaonian’s wife had been scared stiff ever since Shorty Zhou came in and said his piece. She let her husband drag her back to the room in a daze, when she suddenly remembered Juhua’s words: "This is the only time. If you ever push your luck and get in my face again, don’t blame my dad and my brother for showing up at your door. Do you think I’m some kind of pushover?"

And now, their fathers had indeed come to her door. Not just one, but two of them.

What Shorty Zhou had said made her even more uneasy. Her husband’s uncle had always been strict. ’What if he really convinces my father-in-law to divorce me? What would I do then?’

She held her endlessly wailing son, her mind lost in a fog.

Outside, Shorty Zhou was growing irritated by the noise. He raised his voice and shouted, "Xiaonian’s wife, what kind of mother are you? You’re so good at running your mouth with gossip, but you don’t even know how to soothe your own child?"

Hearing this, Xiaonian’s wife’s heart dropped, and she finally snapped back to reality. Seeing her son crying himself hoarse, she was terrified, thinking Big Mouth Zhao’s curse was taking effect. She scrambled to her feet and rocked her son back and forth, humming a lullaby until the baby slowly quieted down.

Only then did Xiaonian’s wife let out a sigh of relief. She carefully looked her son over from head to toe, and only after seeing that nothing was wrong did she finally feel at ease.

When Zhou Xiaonian returned with his father, Zhou Baozhu, everyone in the room turned to look at the newcomer, waiting to see what he would say. No one offered an explanation; they all assumed Zhou Xiaonian must have told his father what had happened on the way.

Zhou Baozhu was a bit taller than his elder brother, Shorty Zhou, and wore the same stern expression. It was impossible to say how frustrated and aggrieved he felt. Just like his son, he thought his daughter-in-law was purely looking for trouble and bringing disaster upon their family.

He frowned and thought for a long moment before tentatively saying to Shorty Zhou, "Brother, about this... how about I have Xiaonian’s wife go to Dashuan’s home to apologize, and then clear things up with the village?"

Shorty Zhou turned to Zhang Dashuan and Zheng Changhe, his eyes asking for their opinion.

Zhang Dashuan waved a dismissive hand. "Never mind the village gossip. People have mouths, and they’ll say what they want. As long as the Zhang family and the Zheng Family don’t let it bother us, who cares what they say!"

Hearing this only made Shorty Zhou and Zhou Baozhu feel even more aggrieved. ’If that’s how you feel, then why are you and Zheng Changhe even sitting here?’ they thought.

Zhang Dashuan glanced at Zhou Baozhu. "Baozhu, you must be thinking that if we feel that way, why did we even bother coming here?"

Zhou Baozhu remained silent, his silence a clear admission.

Zhang Dashuan spoke with great seriousness. "Ordinarily, I can’t control idle gossip, I have no way to, and frankly, I can’t be bothered. Some time ago, Li Laoda’s wife, Granny Hua, was spreading rumors. We were angry, sure, but did we ever start a fight with her? No. She doesn’t have a malicious bone in her body; she just has a big mouth. But what your daughter-in-law did isn’t just simple gossip. First, she deliberately pulled off Juhua’s veil, and then she started spreading vicious lies. And I say ’lies’ for a reason—how would she know my Huai Zi is after the Zheng Family’s money instead of loving Juhua for who she is? I, Zhang Dashuan, may not be the most powerful man in Qingnan Village, but I’ve always lived my life with integrity. Since when did my family become a bunch of gold-diggers? Let’s not beat around the bush. The reason your daughter-in-law is dragging my Huai Zi through the mud is as plain as day, and you know it as well as I do. Am I supposed to tell my wife to go around the village shouting, ’So-and-so’s wife is shameless! She’s spreading lies because the Zhang family wouldn’t marry her sister!’? Could I do something like that? Of course not! But I can’t just let someone humiliate my family like this, either!"

Zhou Baozhu’s face was frighteningly dark. He shot his son a vicious glare. It had been Xiaonian’s idea to have his wife propose marrying her sister to Huai Zi. Who could have known the Zhang family wouldn’t give them the time of day?

Shorty Zhou was fuming. He cut straight to the chase and asked, "Dashuan, just say it. What do you want Baozhu to do?"

Zhang Dashuan’s voice was firm. "What should you do? Even Li Laoda knows how to keep his wife in line. Your daughter-in-law is dragging my Huai Zi’s name through the mud and laid hands on Juhua, all because our family wouldn’t marry her sister. Shouldn’t you discipline her? I came to your door today to demand that you get your daughter-in-law under control. If you don’t handle it today, then Changhe and I will."

Zheng Changhe nodded. "That’s right! She actually came to my home to bully my Juhua. If I’d been there, I would’ve slapped her right across the face."

Zhou Baozhu’s face was taut. "There’s no need for you to lift a finger. My son and I will discipline her ourselves." ’That damn woman,’ he thought. ’As soon as they’re gone, I’ll skin her alive. All she does is stir up trouble!’