Chapter 77

Before the contract took effect, Zhang Qiquan had no way to set off for Anshui Prefecture.

But being cooped up in the small courtyard was suffocating and uncomfortable.

Liu Cui could chatter with Zhang Xianglian from morning to night, but he could only lean on his cane, drag his leg that Wen Zhiyun had re-bandaged, and shuttle around the county town.

He happened to see Zhou Zhiqiang asking around the county for the whereabouts of the Jiang Sheng siblings.

With no wife to take care of him, the sloppy man gestured with his hands and feet, saying, "Just a little girl of seven or eight, looks strangely pretty, completely full of bad water inside, clearly a cheap seed."

This description made Zhang Qiquan clench his fist in distress.

Of course it also earned the impatience of the merchants, "Get lost, don't know them."

Zhou Zhiqiang was furious, but didn't dare do anything to the unfamiliar merchants, so he could only go to a corner, spit a thick glob of phlegm at the ground, and yell, "Damn cheap woman, just you wait until the county magistrate gets here, I'll definitely report this, report you to death!"

Zhang Qiquan shook his head as he watched Zhou Zhiqiang walk away, and hurried back to the small courtyard.

"The county magistrate of Xieyang County will take office any day now, it would be quite troublesome if he really reported this," he asked, "Should we..."

Zhang Qiquan was suggesting they stop him.

But Jiang Sheng next to him jumped in and finished the thought, "Should we report him instead?"

Everyone in the yard couldn't help but glance over.

The little girl was wandering since childhood after all, her mind worked differently than normal people, always coming up with novel angles.

But when they thought about it carefully, her words did make sense.

If Zhou Zhiqiang was the one reporting, then Zhang Xianglian would become a runaway wife. Even with all kinds of evidence of being beaten and abused, it would only prove Zhou Zhiqiang right.

But if they reported Zhou Zhiqiang instead, then Zhou Zhiqiang would be the criminal, and he would have to find evidence and refute it, to prove his own innocence.

"But we never had any clauses about wives reporting being beaten by their husbands ah," Liu Cui sighed. "Only the Seven Outs for women's crimes, never heard of any crimes for men."

At this, the small yard fell silent. Everyone was racking their brains, trying to think of what grounds women could have to report their husbands.

Zhang Xianglian looked at the worried girl, then the frowny boy, wanting to speak but hesitating.

"I... I just had a miscarriage, would that work?" After a long while, she whispered tremblingly, "I was seven months pregnant a month ago, but was arranged by Zhou Zhiqiang to sift nightsoil and miscarried. The child had already taken human form, but still didn't make it..."

Before this, Zhang Xianglian still had hopes, wanting to have the child in her belly so she could properly spend her days with Zhou Zhiqiang.

It was only after miscarrying and the imperial doctor confirming she could never conceive again in this lifetime, that Zhang Xianglian's heart died.

So she gradually dared to refute and argue with Zhou Zhiqiang.

She could also suddenly muster the courage to escape that cage-like home.

"In my life, I carried four pregnancies in total, every time exhausting myself into a miscarriage." Zhang Xianglian's voice was miserable. "No matter three months or seven months along, the Zhou family would always find work for me to do, whether in the fields, washing laundry, cooking, doing dishes. Every time..."

Jiang Sheng listened with eyes brimming with tears.

Counting it out, the last time auntie was forcibly pulled by Zhou Zhiqiang to change her wadded jacket, she was already two months pregnant.

No wonder she said she couldn't leave, no wonder she said she couldn't bear to.

"Older sister, you've suffered too much," Liu Cui also cried along.

She and Zhang Qiquan were childless, yet the Zhou family carelessly wasted the children they had, even arranging a pregnant woman to work, it was truly a sinful thing.

"Causing miscarriages under the Dayu Dynasty's laws is culpable," Xu Mo, who had returned from school, slowly said from the doorway.

Wen Zhiyun, who came back carrying a small medicine box, also added, "Miscarriages within three months can still be detected by reading the pulse."

Jiang Sheng's eyes instantly lit up.

With these foundations, filing a report would no longer be difficult.

With Xu Mo writing up the plaint, Wen Zhiyun aiding with pulse reading, as well as giving auntie Zhang some nourishing medicine for her weak constitution.

Every wish comes true.

In early July, Xieyang county's new magistrate finally arrived by carriage to take up his post.

Zhang Xianglian, holding the plaint, knelt in the middle of the road he must pass through and kowtowed to report the injustice.

As a new official with fires to fight, the Xieyang county magistrate had no choice but to accept the case. Xu Mo, the young scholar, spoke on her behalf, with Zhang Qiquan and Liu Cui as witnesses to the Zhou family's reputation in the village.

No matter how Zhou Zhiqiang cursed and yelled, wanting to hit and strike people, even publicly threatening in the hall to beat Zhang Xianglian to death, it could not change the final verdict.

"In the case of Zhang Xianglian being battered and miscarrying by Zhou Zhiqiang, Zhou Zhiqiang's violence is verified. Thus the verdict is to dissolve their marital relations, from now on they will each go their own way, with no further ties."

When this verdict and divorce certificate came down, Zhang Xianglian had long cried herself into a tearful mess.

Zhou Zhiqiang was still jumping around on the spot, yelling, "I don't accept this, I don't accept this! She's my lawfully wedded wife, what right does she have to run away whenever she wants, what right does she have to divorce me? Even if I really don't want her anymore, it can only be separation, not divorce!" But no one paid him any attention.

Liu Cui happily pulled Zhang Xianglian along, while Jiang Sheng bared her teeth in a grin at the side.

The few children were also all happy.

Xu Mo was smiling at his sister, when he suddenly noticed a peeping gaze. He looked over to meet the magistrate's big round eyes.

Sensing he was discovered, the new magistrate immediately lowered his eyes, pretending to examine the case records.

Speaking of which, this new magistrate was quite young, only in his early twenties. Fair-skinned and beardless, born with a neat and refined look. Even his handling of the case was clean and decisive.

Objectively speaking, he should be a decent county magistrate.

But his peeping gaze really made people uncomfortable.

Xu Mo forcefully endured it and brought his siblings back to the small courtyard.

Zhang Xianglian had calmed down her emotions, and was whispering with Liu Cui about something private.

The contract between Zhang Qiquan and Zheng Ruqian had also cleared the stages and formally took effect.

Today, the Zhang couple would set off for Anshui Prefecture.

Knowing they were poor, Zheng Ruqian had long prepared fifty taels of silver. "Uncle Zhang, I'll hand the workshop money over to you. Take what you need for living expenses, no need to stand on ceremony with me."

As Zhang Qiquan accepted the silver, he felt moved by the employer's generosity and trust, yet also pained by his current poverty.

To think they didn't even have money for food.

Fortunate to have met Zheng Ruqian, fortunate to have signed this work contract.

Liu Cui was also bidding Zhang Xianglian farewell, chattering away.

"Sister Zhang, we'll probably be staying long-term in Anshui Prefecture from now on, helping the employer open a workshop there. If you have nowhere to go, why not come with us?"

Zhang Xianglian was about to speak when she noticed Jiang Sheng's nervous expression. She smiled and said, "Dear girl, it's certainly good to leave this place, but I can't feel assured about the children."

There were six little ones in total, the oldest twelve and the youngest eight, too worrying.

"I don't have much skills, only some household chores." Zhang Xianglian gently said, "I may not earn much money, but I will definitely take care of the children properly."

Jiang Sheng nodded vigorously at the side.

She sure hoped auntie Zhang wouldn't go to Anshui Prefecture, or else she couldn't eat delicious stir-fried chicken with green peppers anymore!

Although big brother's cooking was decent too, compared to auntie's culinary skills... she picked auntie Zhang!

Jiang Sheng patted her chest, hoping her big brother didn't hear her thoughts just now.