Even if this kind-hearted young woman wanted to save Mier, she probably didn't have five taels of silver.
Jiang's father carefully stepped forward and tried to bargain with Jiang Yu.
Before he could finish, Jiang Yu slapped him hard.
Smack!
The clear sound echoed as five distinct red marks appeared on Jiang's pale face.
Seeing his father get hit, Mier's eyes turned red, and his whole body trembled. He stared at Jiang Yu as if blood filled his eyes.
Jiang Yu flinched under that look, feeling a rare trace of fear, but quickly brushed it off. She raised her voice at Jiang's father and yelled, "Gu Chen! Who gave you the courage to call your wife's name directly? Do you not respect me as your wife?"
Niley, watching this early morning mess, sighed and closed her eyes.
Sure enough, it's best not to get involved in other people's drama.
She turned to the nearby crowd and shouted. Right away, someone eager for gossip ran off.
Seeing Niley about to call the village chief, Jiang Yu got nervous. "You… why are you calling the village chief?"
"You said you wanted to sell your son, right? I'm asking the village chief to write a contract for the deal!"
"You... you really have five taels of silver?"
Jiang Yu's face lit up. Forgetting her fear of the village chief, she stared greedily at Niley.
Looking closely, she realized Niley's clothing was completely different from theirs—clean and fine. Her face was fair with a rosy glow, and she was truly beautiful. She must be someone important from outside. Thinking of this, Jiang Yu regretted agreeing to five taels. That amount was probably too little!
She gritted her teeth and stretched out a hand again. "Add another five taels!"
The crowd exploded!
Before Niley or Jiang's father could say anything, the villagers Jiang Yu had driven away earlier rushed back, full of anger.
Some even rolled up their sleeves like they were ready for a fight.
"Jiang Yu, do you have any shame? This young lady is saving your son from hell, and you're extorting her!"
"How could our Zhukeng Village produce someone like you? It's embarrassing! Once the village chief comes, she better drive you out!"
"That's right! Kick her out! With her around, no decent family will want to marry into or out of Zhukeng!"
The village chief arrived to the crowd yelling "Kick her out!" Though their actions were loud, no one actually laid a hand on Jiang Yu, as if afraid she'd claim they harmed her.
Seeing that, the village chief breathed a sigh of relief.
She jogged over with a serious expression on her round face and shouted, "Enough! Quiet down!"
On the way here, she had already heard what happened. That Jiang Yu was involved didn't surprise her at all. Everyone knew she was a troublemaker—not only in Zhukeng but also in nearby towns.
Drinking, gambling, stealing—she did it all!
The Jiang family father and sons had suffered under her for years. But even so, selling a child to a brothel? That couldn't be allowed in Zhukeng!
It was shameful!
The noisy crowd fell silent when the village chief arrived. Jiang Yu, on the other hand, ran toward the chief whining like she'd finally found someone to rely on.
"What are you crying for?! Don't think I don't know all the awful things you've done!"
Before Jiang Yu could speak, the village chief scolded her harshly, making her forget her complaints. She stood there scratching her ear, pretending she didn't hear.
When the village chief paused, she quickly acted aggrieved. "Chief, please help me! Our family has lived in Zhukeng for generations. How can you drive us out? That's like taking our lives!"
"Hmph! In all those years, no one's ever sold their own children!"
The chief looked even angrier when Jiang Yu continued to act shamelessly. Her chest rose with heavy breaths.
If other villages heard about this, the chief herself would be embarrassed too!
Gu Chen, Mier's father, teared up and bravely stepped forward. "Chief, Jiang Yu is pushing my son and me into a dead end! If this kind-hearted girl hadn't shown up, my son would've already been taken by those people from Yichun House!"
As he spoke, he wiped away tears with his sleeve. Just hearing "Yichun House" still frightened him.
Before the village chief could respond, the villagers began speaking up for Gu Chen and his son.
Everyone in the village knew their story.
Jiang Yu had been known for stealing and causing trouble since childhood. By the time she was twenty-two, no one had proposed to her—people were afraid she'd ruin good men. Eventually, the government matched her with five husbands.
After giving birth to five sons, Jiang Yu grew bitter and ended up beating her husbands. Some died, some were crippled.
But that was her personal family matter. Even so, people didn't interfere. Still, her last husband had lived in the village for over thirty years, and many elders had watched the children grow up.
Strangely enough, despite Jiang Yu being a bad person, her sons all turned out decent.
But because of her bad reputation, no one dared marry into the family—even though the sons were hardworking, they weren't good-looking, and so they remained single.
Who would've thought she'd come up with the idea of selling her son to a brothel!
Luckily, it hadn't happened yet. Otherwise, the whole village's reputation would be ruined, and the young people wouldn't be able to marry into good families anymore.
Fortunately, the Mier boy was saved by a beautiful and wealthy young lady.
Maybe his future wouldn't be so bad after all.
The villagers all chimed in, mostly trying to get Jiang Yu to stop while she still could.
The village chief waved her hand and looked at Jiang Yu, then glanced over at Niley, who she recognized. Just days ago, Niley had registered her household in the village—clearly someone with money. She hadn't expected Jiang Yu to act so quickly. If only…
With that thought, she stepped forward and asked Niley what she planned to do. Seeing Niley nod, she decided to finalize the contract.
Mier's eyes lit up when he heard this. He quietly moved closer to the chief and, seeing the names and five taels of silver written on the contract, his lips curved slightly. His eyes reddened again as he bowed deeply to the village chief. "Thank you, Aunt Lan."
Village Chief Jiang Lan waved her hand. She made three copies and handed them to Mier and Jiang Yu.
"We agreed on two taels before, but now you're demanding ten? I'm making the decision here—no more. Just five taels! From now on, this boy's life and death have nothing to do with you."
She glanced at Jiang Yu, whose eyes sparkled at the mention of money, and silently shook her head.
"Chief, how could you take her side like that? This little brat—"