Quick Transmigration: Underdog Turns out to be Untouchable

Chapter 28: Chapter 28 Gender Sin 28

It turned out to be the village chief who came over. With such a big incident happening in the threshing ground, naturally, there were villagers who went to report to the village chief. After all, the village chief is not only the chief but also the Clan Leader of the Qin Clan, so he has to handle matters whether they concern the clan or the villagers, especially since Old Chen’s problem arose from his punishment!

The village chief was extremely anxious all the way over, fearing that if Old Chen really got into trouble because of his punishment, the villagers would criticize him for being too harsh, which would certainly harm his reputation!

Who knew that when he hurriedly reached the threshing ground, he saw Old Chen, full of energy, scolding and hitting Qin Laoer. After listening to the villagers’ gossip, he realized that Old Chen was pretending to faint!

This infuriated the village chief. Old Chen’s actions were a challenge to his authority as the village chief and Clan Leader. A chief and Clan Leader need to rely on authority to keep the villagers in line. If Old Chen genuinely pretended to be severely punished, he would be forced to change her punishment.

Going back on one’s word and being forced to change a decision is a huge challenge to his authority. It may even lead to more people disregarding his words in the future, making it impossible for him to govern the entire village! How could the village chief not be angry!

This was no longer just about punishing Old Chen for Qin Shuangshuang’s sake. The village chief, in a fit of anger, directly extended Old Chen’s punishment to a year. Even if she faints from overwork in the future, unless Old Chen never wakes up, she must come to work as soon as she’s awake!

Hearing this news, Old Chen wavered, almost genuinely fainting from the blow. However, she forced herself to stay conscious, fearing that further angering the village chief would result in more punishment, leaving no end in sight.

Qin Shuangshuang rolled her eyes slightly, then timidly walked to the village chief’s side, tugging at his sleeve. When the village chief looked down and saw it was Qin Shuangshuang, he softened his stern expression, gently patted her head, and gave a warm smile, ”Is it the young miss? You must have been frightened just now, right?”

Qin Shuangshuang shook her head, first glancing at Old Chen, then bit her lip and said, ”Village Chief Grandpa, my grandmother is old, and her body won’t be able to handle working all day!

My Eldest Aunt is usually very filial to my grandma. Maybe you could let my Eldest Aunt help my grandma so that they can work together, allowing the punishment time to be changed to half a day. This way, my grandma would have half a day’s rest and wouldn’t get exhausted to the point of pretending to faint.

Moreover, my Eldest Aunt is young and healthy, and she can take care of my grandma while they work, making it easier for her. Wouldn’t this be the best of both worlds?”

It’s common practice for children to repay their parents’ debts, and it isn’t too much for the younger generation to bear the punishment for the elders’ mistakes. Moreover, Qin Shuangshuang dared to suggest this because, as the victim, she wasn’t afraid of implicating her mother Mrs. Bai. It didn’t make sense for a victim’s mother to be punished with labor.

In the past, Little Chen had often troubled her mother. Milling rice is hard work, and it would be nice to seize this opportunity to put Little Chen in her place and relieve Mrs. Bai’s grievances. Plus, Qin Shuangshuang was sure that the Qin Family would all agree to her suggestion, except for Little Chen herself.

Though the village chief had spoken harshly in his anger earlier, the incident today had frightened him as well. He was somewhat afraid that if Old Chen truly wore herself out, it would reflect poorly on his reputation. But in order to maintain his authority, he couldn’t soften his stance and was forced to increase the punishment.

Now, with Qin Shuangshuang’s words, the village chief had a graceful way out. He didn’t know about Qin Shuangshuang’s little scheming. He just thought this child was kind-hearted and had helped him out, so he stroked his beard in satisfaction and smiled, ”You really are a kind-hearted child. Alright, for your sake, I’ll agree!”

The village chief wasn’t the only one pleased, as Mr. Qin was also happy. Although Old Chen had lost face again today, he surprisingly didn’t feel angry this time, since Old Chen pretending to faint from exhaustion had somewhat alarmed him.

Mr. Qin had always intended for one of the family’s two daughters-in-law, either Little Chen or Mrs. Fang, to replace Old Chen in labor. However, he couldn’t easily say this. Now that Qin Shuangshuang had spoken up for him, Mr. Qin couldn’t help but feel a bit more favorable toward the granddaughter he never really cared for.

Mrs. Fang, who had been keeping a low profile, quietly sighed in relief. Recently, she had been avoiding Mrs. Bai, choosing to work more rather than siding with Old Chen. It turned out to be wise, as when the young miss stirred up trouble, the first to face the brunt was Little Chen, who had been bullying Mrs. Bai! Mrs. Fang was conveniently ignored.

As for Little Chen, she was stunned! A bolt from the blue—this was it! Calamity from the heavens—this was it!

Milling rice is backbreaking and tedious work, even more painful than working in the fields! Little Chen, who was unwilling even to work in the fields, naturally had no desire to mill rice!

But as a daughter-in-law, she should respect her elders. If she dared refuse, she would have nowhere to stand in the village. Besides, she depended on Old Chen, both as her aunt and mother-in-law, to live an easy life, so she dared not refuse and offend Old Chen.

Little Chen was on the verge of tears. She forced a faint smile, her gaze pleading as she looked at her husband, Mr. Qin, hoping he would sympathize with her and help her refuse.

Seeing Little Chen’s expression, Qin Shuangshuang couldn’t help but secretly smirk. Mr. Qin, by nature, might be described as rational and steady, but more critically, he’s cold and selfish, even more so than Mr. Qin. He often makes decisions in silence, and he’s absolutely ruthless!

A refusal would tarnish his reputation, but agreeing could bring a good one. Little Chen expecting him to help her refuse was wishful thinking.

Sure enough, not only did Mr. Qin not help Little Chen refuse, but he also instructed her, ”Mother’s health is not good. When you work with her, take extra care not to let her get too tired! I know you are virtuous—my apologies for the extra burden on you!” Not only did he not help, but he also added pressure.

What could Little Chen do? She was nearly in tears. Her husband, Mr. Qin, had already called her virtuous, so how could she dare not be virtuous!

Ultimately, Mr. Qin, as her husband, was her sky, more intimidating than Old Chen and Mr. Qin. Mr. Qin obviously wanted her to help his mother with the work, so she had no choice but to comply. At this moment, Little Chen felt a sense of being isolated and helpless.

Her aunt and mother-in-law, Old Chen, was someone she’d known for years through flattery. She wasn’t surprised Old Chen and Mr. Qin were willing, but she hadn’t expected her bedfellow of so many years to be so indifferent to her!

Everyone, engrossed in their decisions, finalized things without her input. Even as they escorted Old Chen back home, Little Chen hadn’t uttered a word, distressed at the pain in her chest, but no one seemed to care about her feelings.

Everyone surrounded and escorted Old Chen and Mr. Chen back home, only to see a group of people busily moving in and out of their courtyard as soon as they reached the front door!