After the Scholar Rejected Me, I Married the Rogue and Got Rich - Chapter 32

As soon as the old woman left, Old Mrs. Zhang could no longer hold onto the fine embroidery needle in her hand. With a soft “snap,” the needle and the embroidery hoop fell onto her lap.

The anger in her heart suddenly surged to the top of her head. She stomped her foot in frustration, feeling a tightness in her chest.

What a wonderful marriage it was back then! Lin Sang was handsome, strong, and looked like she could work hard and manage a household well. She was also straightforward and reasonable.

Unfortunately, her own son, blinded by greed, was completely bewitched by Lin Jiao’er from the Lin family’s first wife! What kind of person is Lin Jiao’er? She pretends to be frail all day long, speaks in a high-pitched voice, and what can she do besides cry and act pitiful? What good is a weak and delicate appearance in a farming family? Will she be able to work in the fields or manage the household chores?

And look at Lin Sang! A young woman, yet she managed to support her family and lead them to venture into the town! What kind of place is that? A melting pot of all sorts of people; without skill and guts, how could she possibly survive? I heard that now she even has to pay to buy scallions and cilantro from the village. How much money must she have made to dare to spend like that?

Old Mrs. Zhang knew perfectly well that the Lin couple were honest and hardworking people who had spent their lives toiling in the fields and obviously didn’t have such cunning minds. The eldest son of the Lin family was also a simple and honest person. Who else could it be but Lin Sang, that shrewd and capable girl?

“Oh dear! My good daughter-in-law, the cooked duck, has flown away just like that!” Old Mrs. Zhang beat her chest and stamped her feet, feeling as if a piece of her heart had been ripped out, and the pain was so intense that she was in agony.

If they hadn’t broken off the engagement back then, wouldn’t the Lin family, this coveted prize, and all that income be theirs now? Why are things in this state?

Her eyesight was deteriorating, yet she still had to work tirelessly on embroidery to support her son’s education, who was oblivious to the cost of living. The family was almost starving! The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, wishing she could immediately drag Zhang Mingyuan and that crybaby Lin Jiao’er over and give them a good beating to vent her anger!

Just then, Zhang Mingyuan returned from outside, carrying two old books.

As soon as he entered the door, he didn’t notice his mother’s unpleasant expression and said directly, “Mother, I’m hungry. Hurry up and bring out the food.” He had run into Lin Jiao’er in town that day and saw her looking at a beaded flower with obvious delight, while he himself was short of money and felt rather annoyed.

Old Mrs. Zhang was already venting her anger, and upon hearing her son’s words, she flew into a rage. She slammed her embroidery on the kang table and raised her voice, “Eat, eat, eat! All you know is how to eat! Do you know that something terrible has happened in Linjia’ao!”

Zhang Mingyuan was taken aback by his mother’s sudden outburst of anger. He frowned and asked, “The Lin family? Which Lin family? What happened?” His mind was filled with the classics and the beautiful image of Lin Jiao’er, and he had always disregarded the gossip in the village.

“And which Lin family! The Lin family you broke off your engagement with! Lin Sang’s family!” Old Mrs. Zhang’s fingers trembled with anger. “They’ve set up a stall at the town’s docks now, selling mutton offal soup, and business is booming! I heard they earn more in a day than my daughter and I do in a month! Everyone in the village says the Lin family is going to be rich! That idea must have been Lin Sang’s! What a wonderful girl, capable and shrewd! If you hadn’t been so blinded by greed, you would have…”

At first, Zhang Mingyuan was a little confused. When he heard that “he earns more money in a day than we do in a month,” his heart skipped a beat. He subconsciously thought: So much money? If he hadn’t broken off the engagement, wouldn’t he have been able to focus on his studies without worrying about money, and even buy his beloved daughter things she liked?

But the thought only flashed through his mind, and he immediately shook his head, as if trying to shake off something dirty.

He’s a scholar, destined for officialdom and to bring honor to his ancestors. How could he be tempted by such materialistic things? As the sage said, “A gentleman worries about the Way, not about poverty. There are houses of gold and beauties in books!” Only vulgar, lowly commoners would constantly talk about money!

Thinking this, he straightened his back, a mixture of superiority and impatience on his face, and interrupted his mother: “Mother! How can you be like those village women, so short-sighted and obsessed with money? How utterly vulgar! A gentleman is steadfast in poverty, but a petty person becomes reckless when poor! I, Zhang Mingyuan, have studied the classics and seek a bright future; how can I be confined to such trivial things? No matter how much money Lin Sang can make, she is nothing more than a village woman, a merchant; what is there to envy?”

This was the first time Old Mrs. Zhang had heard her son’s “profound” words so clearly. She stared wide-eyed at the son she had raised with such care, as if she didn’t recognize him.

She had initially thought her son was just young and infatuated with beauty, but now it seemed that the more he read, the more pedantic and out of touch with reality he became! The family was almost starving, and he was still spouting nonsense about gentlemen and villains.

She pointed at her son, trembling with anger, her voice trembling with tears and unprecedented disappointment: “You…you’ve really gone mad from studying! How vulgar! Without this vulgar money, how will you buy writing materials? How will you take the exam? How will you fill your stomach? Your father and I saw your intelligence and risked our lives to support your studies, hoping you would amount to something! But look at you now, what can you do besides empty talk? That Lin Jiao’er, besides crying and putting on an act, can she support this family for you? Can she work herself to the bone like me to earn money for you? My son, wake up! This life isn’t something you can live off just by reciting a few lines of classical texts!”

Zhang Mingyuan blushed at his mother’s heart-wrenching words, but stubbornly retorted, “Mother! That’s a woman’s view! Short-sighted! When I pass the imperial examination, naturally…”

“High school? Wait for you to get into high school? I’m afraid my old bones won’t even live to see that day before I starve to death!” Overwhelmed with grief, Old Mrs. Zhang slumped helplessly on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed). For the first time, she realized so clearly that her son, on whom she had placed so much hope, seemed to have already embarked on a wrong path that she could neither understand nor control, on that seemingly bright road.

My anger turned into endless sorrow and a deep sense of powerlessness.

Looking at his mother’s instantly aged and dejected expression, Zhang Mingyuan felt a pang of sadness, but the “aloofness” of a scholar still prevailed. He pursed his lips, ultimately said nothing, flicked his sleeve, and turned back to his room, which contained nothing but books, as if this would isolate him from the “vulgar” world outside.