My Fulang is a Delicate Flower Chapter 28 Part 2

You's mother’s heart was in her throat by this point, though she still clung to a sliver of hope that the Ji family had no proof.  

But when she saw Wang niangzi and her ruffian son shuffling forward at Ji Yangzong’s call, her entire body turned cold.  

You Lingxiao’s eyes widened in disbelief at the sight of the cowering Wang niangzi, his body stiffening in shock.  

"The Ji and You families recently announced the dissolution of their engagement, each free to marry others. Such partings should be amicable. But some with loose tongues have spread rumors, claiming that the two young people behaved improperly before the engagement, saying they have crossed the line without evidence, tarnishing their reputations! Such baseless slander is meant to ruin the reputation of an unmarried child!"  

Ji Yangzong glared at Wang niangzi. "Wang Pinyue, my Ji family won’t bother saving face anymore. Today, in front of everyone, you will explain why you slandered the Ji and You families. What grudge do you hold that you’d try to make the Ji family’s ger unmarriageable? Why stir up trouble in the village?"  

The villagers, realizing the meeting was about this, grew even more interested. Who would’ve thought Wang niangzi, known for her big mouth, would dare to spread such rumors about the Ji and You families?  

And the village head was bold enough to lay it all out in the open, as if his own ger’s reputation wasn’t already tarnished enough.  

Though some were there for the spectacle, families with daughters or gers sympathized with the Ji family. A perfectly good ger, first losing an engagement and now being slandered like this. Those spreading the rumors clearly wanted to ruin his chances of marriage.  

If it were their own daughters or gers suffering such rumors, they’d want to die of shame. Even if it wasn’t their problem now, with such malicious people in the village, who knew when it might be their turn next?  

Some women and fulangs who had been gossiped about by Wang niangzi seized the moment to scold her:  

"Wang Pinyue, you’re a woman yourself. How could you harm the girls and gers of your own village?"  

"The village head has always treated you well. Your son acts like a bully, yet the village head never drove you, a widow, out of the village. And this is how you repay his kindness?"  

"Disgusting! Shameless! Evil people never come to good ends!"  

Wang niangzi had always been thick-skinned, but even she couldn’t withstand the villagers’ overwhelming scorn - especially since she had already promised Huo Shu to confess.  

She hurriedly defended herself: "It wasn’t me! It wasn’t me!"  

"Your mouth is the busiest in the village. If it wasn’t you, who else could it be? The village head has already caught you, and you still dare to deny it? You belong in prison, only then will you learn to behave!"  

Li Jinhu, seeing the crowd growing fiercer, roared: "My mother is straightforward and says what she thinks! Sure, she likes to gossip, but she wouldn’t make up lies out of thin air!"  

"That’s right, that’s right!" Wang niangzi quickly agreed with her son.  

But the villagers weren’t having it. Someone even threw a handful of wilted vegetable leaves at her, nearly hitting her. Startled, Wang niangzi pointed straight at You Lingxiao in the crowd and shouted:  

"It was the You family! You Erlang told me to spread those rumors!"  

You's mother, seeing Wang niangzi’s finger aimed directly at You Lingxiao, panicked. She suddenly lunged forward, screaming:  

"You crazy old hag, spewing filth! My son is a juren! How dare you slander him? I’ll tear your mouth apart!"  

Wang niangzi, seeing the furious You's mother charging at her, shrieked and ran toward Ji Yangzong:  

"Village head, I’m telling the truth! You must protect me!"  

Ji Yangzong quickly blocked the enraged You's mother, pretending to mediate:  

"Sun niangzi, calm down! Wang Pinyue, don’t spout nonsense!"  

"I’m telling the truth!"  

Wang niangzi hastily pulled out more than ten taels of silver from her clothes:  

"On the eleventh, You Erlang came to me and gave me ten taels to spread those rumors about the ger of the Ji family when the Village Head Zhou and his son visited. Yesterday, when the Zhou father and son came, I did as You Erlang asked."  

"I spent two hundred copper coins of that ten taels at the Song family’s tavern in town, bought some fabric and two hairpins, about two taels in total. Eight taels are left."  

Wang niangzi spilled everything in one breath:  

"Then this morning, You Erlang suddenly came to me again, telling me to spread the rumors even further. He gave me another ten taels. All the money is here!"  

"Otherwise, why would a widow like me dare to speak ill of the Ji family's ger? You Erlang is a juren now, if he tells me to do something, how could I refuse?"  

As Wang niangzi ranted, the expressions of the onlookers grew increasingly dramatic. By the end, the entire courtyard was in an uproar, all eyes turning to You Lingxiao and his mother, who was still trying to claw at Wang niangzi.  

You Lingxiao was completely dumbfounded. He never expected Wang niangzi, who had seemed so tight-lipped that morning, would spill everything in front of the whole village. His feet felt frozen in place.  

The You family, unaware of the truth, was horrified. Regardless of whether it was true or not, they immediately began shouting:  

"Wang Pinyue, you’re spouting nonsense! How dare you slander the You family in front of the whole village? The You family has been here for generations, everyone knows our character! If you keep lying, we’ll drag you to the magistrate!"  

Li Jinhu, seeing the You family using their lineage to pressure his mother, retorted:  

"Fine! Let’s go to the magistrate! Then the whole prefecture can see what kind of person the You family’s juren really is, he is a wolf in scholar’s clothing! Scheming and vicious!"  

"Li Jinhu, shut your filthy mouth!"  

"What, you dare to do it but not admit it? Scared to let people talk? Everyone, take a good look! Our village’s juren, the village head funded his studies, and once he passed, he dumped the Ji family's ger. Now he’s even paying people to ruin their reputation!"  

Li Jinhu stabbed straight at the You family’s weakest spot. Humiliated, the You family exploded. The Ji family, no pushovers themselves, fired back:  

"You Lingxiao, what’s the meaning of this? Even if passing the exams made you look down on the Ji family, you grew up with Ji Taoyu! How could you do something so vile, ruining his reputation and his entire life? Is this the behavior of a scholar? What did our Ji family ever do to you?"  

"What a sin! My sixth brother was too soft-hearted. When they came begging, saying a widow and orphan couldn’t survive, he ran around for them, buying books, arranging tutors, even promising his own ger in marriage."  

"Who knew the world had so many ungrateful white eyed wolves? Once they rose in status, they kicked him aside, and he never complained. But now, some people take advantage of good hearts, ruining my nephew’s reputation and trying to destroy our Ji family’s standing. What kind of malice drives someone to such evil?"  

The eldest branch of the Ji family spoke with tears streaming down their faces, their accusations tugging at everyone’s heartstrings.