Lady Ding's eyes sparkled suddenly, a surge of joy swept over her but she suppressed it quickly and replied hastily, "Of course!"
Zhu Rou San, craving a wife, considered 20 silver pieces no big deal for Xiao Fu's Zhang Family. However, with his notorious reputation for having caused the death of his three past wives, finding another wife wouldn't be easy in the future. Now that there seemed to be a hint of hope, he naturally didn't want to give up easily.
If he could just take Ji Xinhe off his hands, then all his worries would vanish.
A sharp glint flickered across Lady Ding's cheerful face as she looked at Ji Xinhe, almost as though she intended to pierce her with it. She sneered inwardly, this damn girl dared to sabotage her plans, so she must be punished severely!
However, it was not appropriate to show such malintent in public. Certain endeavors could only be carried out in secret.
But Lady Ding's menacing glint was fleetingly brief. Immediately afterward, she laughed joyously, "If that is the case and Zhu Rou San is willing to give us some leeway for a few days, that's even better. I'll gather the silver first thing next morning. I will definitely pay off the debt. If not, people would assume our Ji family heartless and unscrupulous."
With these acceptable remarks from Lady Ding, the villagers' spirits lifted considerably. Ji Dashan, somewhat sheepishly, smiled at his wife, "My dear, why borrow money for our expenditure? Just ask me if we run short of it."
Lady Ding glared at him coldly. Silently, she cursed inwardly, "Depend on you? I would rather beg in the streets!"
However, she did not voice this in front of so many people. Instead, she simply blew him a cold glance, turned away, and sashayed back into the house. Ji Xiulan glared maliciously at Ji Xinhe before following her inside.
Once Zhu Rou San left, the gathering gradually dispersed.
Ji Dong could finally breathe a sigh of relief, "At least mother didn't force you onto Zhu Rou San."
Xiao Bei, still somewhat petrified, clung to Ji Xinhe's hand, "Luckily the crisis was averted this time. What if you actually got married to Zhu Rou San? It would be disastrous! This episode may have passed but you should be more cautious in the future. Be mindful not to run afoul of Lady Ding again."
Ji Xinhe's expression remained serious, betraying no relief, "True, the drama is over. But this incident is far from resolved."
Ji Dong's heart constricted, he hurriedly asked, "How come? Lady Ding has publicly promised to repay the debt. Surely she can't force you to get married again?"
Ji Xinhe scoffed, "Do you really think that Lady Ding would willingly return the twenty silver pieces in her possession?"
Ji Dong fell silent as Xiao Bei gritted her teeth in response, "Whether she wants to or not, she has to! Anyway, she can't use you to repay the debt!"
"Now is not the time to be stubborn. Did you notice the new clothing and jewelry that Lady Ding had bought for Ji Xiulan today? Did you notice that there was a golden hairpin adorned with begonias on Lady Ding's head? These are not petty expenses. And where did the money come from? It must've been my sell-flesh money. Why else would she delay when Zhu Rou San asked for his money back?" Ji Xinhe explained.
Xiao Bei's face paled, "Maybe she's thinking of gathering the money?"
Ji Xinhe ruffled Xiao Bei's hair, "Naive child, Lady Ding is a notorious miser. Rather than gathering the silver, she'd prefer to use me as a scapegoat to settle the debt with Zhu Rou San."
"She can't renege on her promise made in public!" exclaimed Xiao Bei, agitated.
Ji Xinhe gave a cold laugh, "She can't go back on her word openly, of course, but behind the scenes? Given Lady Ding's character, what wouldn't she do?"