Collected the Debt
The next day, when Shen Yanbei was in a daze and was about to get up, the bed board "creaked". Shen Yanbei immediately became conscious.
The temperature around him had cooled down, it meant that Gu Changfeng had woken for a while.
Hey, it was not a good thing for a wife to be too diligent! He also wanted to ask for a good morning kiss! Shen Yanbei sighed and got up to wash after getting dressed.
The door was pushed open, Gu Changfeng came in with breakfast. "Get up? I just made fish soup. Come and eat!"
There was no more rice at home, so he had to get up early in the morning and go to the river to catch some fish.
"Fish soup?" After eating such a bowl of gruel and a few sweet potatoes last night, he was already hungry. But... Shen Yanbei frowned and said, "The river is too cold in the morning. Don't go into the water to catch fish in the future."
"Good." Gu Changfeng nodded in response.
The fish soup was originally delicious, but it had not been specially processed so there still was a smell of soil in the soup. That was the case, but Shen Yanbei still drank two big bowls.
Ate and worked! Putting down the bowl, Shen Yanbei wiped his mouth and said, "Okay, Wifey, let's go. Go get the money back!"
Gu Changfeng didn't know why, seeing that Shen Yanbei was anxious to go out, he quickly put a coat on him.
Shen Yanbei had long thought about it. He took all the notes of the leased field with him and walked directly towards the home of Shen Youcai. This Shen Youcai was the son of the original master's grandfather's cousin. He was extremely stingy and was a famous iron cock*. At first, because he could be regarded as a relative, Shen Youcai cried to Father Shen and called Mother Shen repeatedly to promise to pay the rent on time. Only then did Father Shen agree to rent him three acres of paddy fields and two acres of dry land. As a result, after the land was obtained, Shen Youcai cried poorly, dragged the tenant's rent without paying. When Father Shen and Mother Shen were gone, Shen Youcai didn't take the leased field seriously and directly declared that it was his.
*tiěgōngjī: a stingy person; a person who will not lift a finger to help.
This was the most difficult one among all the people who owe the rent to the Shen family. Besides that, even if the original owner knew what Shen Youcai was doing, he did not dare to tear his face with him.
But Shen Yanbei was not the original owner, so he liked to use such thorns to operate. This Shen Cock clearly bullied those who were kind and feared those who were severe. Yet this Shen Cock wouldn't know how powerful Shen Yanbei was if he didn't give him a bit of fierceness.
"Shen Yan, how are you?"
A middle-aged aunt walked towards him, who was short and chubby with a kind face. She looked up and down at Shen Yanbei and then cast her gaze on Gu Changfeng, who was behind Shen Yanbei, with a curious look.
"Thanks for Aunt Li's concern, I am fine now." Shen Yanbei smiled slightly.
This aunt was a big speaker in the village. Her hobby was to join in the fun and spread gossip. As long as she heard any trivial matter as big as sesame beans, it would spread throughout the village within an hour.
Aunt Li was taken aback by the title of 'Aunt Li'. She couldn't help but look at Shen Yanbei suspiciously. This Shen family boy, who won fame as a scholar because of his young age, never put their elders in his eyes and he didn't want to say hello when he met them. Why was his attitude so good today? Was it possible that people were refreshed because of happy events?
Aunt Li muttered in her heart. It was said that Shen Yan didn't like this Shuānger at all. He didn't regard people as wives but as slaves. Suddenly right now, the husband and wife were in and out together, it didn't look like having a bad relationship...
Thinking about it this way, Aunt Li's curiosity reappeared. "Early in the morning, where are you going?"
"Go to Uncle Cai's house," Shen Yanbei said with an unsightly expression.
What were you going to do to find Shen Cock? Aunt Li asked hurriedly, "What are you going to do with him? Borrowing money?"
No wonder Aunt Li thought this way. He was really poor when the original owner got married and couldn't even afford a wedding wine.
Shen Yanbei smiled helplessly.
Aunt Li thought that she had guessed it correctly, said happily, "Shen Yan, although you go to Uncle Cai's family and they just sold a cow and got a sum of money, I advise you not to look for him."
"If you go to Uncle Cai, he won't lend you money. You might as well go to Shen Lao Er. He hunted a wild boar two days ago. He slaughtered it and sold it and made a lot of money..."
It was a coincidence! Shen Yanbei raised his eyebrows. This second Shen's Family also rented the land of the original owner's house!
"Shen Yan, you are all married, so should you go out and find some work?" Aunt Li asked tentatively, "You still have to repay the money if you borrow it and you still have a wife to raise?"
"I'm not looking for Uncle Youcai to borrow money but to collect debts from him." Shen Yanbei frowned, "When my parents were still there, Uncle Cai rented three mu of paddy fields and two mu of dry land for farming. Except for the rent in the first year, they have not paid a penny to me in the past two years!
"When we wrote the lease note, you also were there to watch, Auntie Li, weren't you?"
Aunt Li smiled slyly and did not answer Shen Yanbei's words. In the past two years, Shen Youcai said that he bought the three acres of paddy field and two acres of dry land, but no one in Shen's Family came to urge the rent to be paid. Everyone thought that he really bought it. Now Shen Youcai's eldest son, Shen Chengwu, was married to the daughter of Guo Xiucai. The second son, Shen Chengwen, was said to be expected to be admitted as a scholar. Everyone did not want to offend him for things that were not related to him.
"He hasn't paid the rent for a long time. I'm afraid that Uncle Cai has forgotten that this is mine?" Shen Yanbei said in a deep voice, "If he has forgotten, I'll be nice to say if he has other thoughts..."
"It's against the law to embezzle other people's property! It can range to twenty hits by flogging and it can be imprisoned."
Aunt Li was shocked and asked, "If he doesn't give the rent, you...what are you going to do?"
"I have written the testimony. If he doesn't give it to me, we will go directly to the county to sue him! The county magistrate, Liu Dàrén, loves the people like a child. He will definitely give me justice!" Shen Yanbei said sternly. After speaking, Gu Changfeng left.
It was incredible! This Shen Youcai was going to go to court! Aunt Li turned her eyes and immediately turned and walked towards the river.
"Something happened!" Aunt Li shouted at the women and Shuānger who were washing clothes by the river.
"It's Sister Li, what's the matter? Whose chicken ran to the field to lay eggs, or whose dog ran to chase the chickens?"
Shuānger, about the same age as Aunt Li, looked at Aunt Li disapprovingly and laughed.
On weekdays, this woman always loved spreading rumors. Her mouth was so broken. It was really annoying!
"The second Shen's Family, this matter has something to do with your family too!" Aunt Li raised her eyebrows, a bit of gloating in her words.
"Sister Li, just talk about it. If not, then don't talk! What's wrong with our family?" This Shuānger was quite aggressive. He became on fire when he heard Aunt Li's words.
Aunt Li ignored him but said to the other young wife who craned their necks. "I just met the young scholar of the Shen's Family and his wife on the road!"
"Oh, Is it Shen Xiùcái who keeps insulting me all day long?" A young wife in a floral dress said, "What's the matter with him? He beat his Shuānger or was beaten by Shuānger?"
As soon as she said this, the blue-robed Shuānger beside her smiled. "Just his small body, how can he beat this Shuānger! This Shuānger was very powerful! My brother said he saw him two days ago moving goods at the dock!"
"Really? He ran to the men's pile to move goods, that Shuānger?" The wife in a flower skirt stared wide, "Shen Xiu agree?"
"I don't know about that." Shuānger with blue garments put the washed clothes into the wooden bucket and sighed. "You can't blame him for this. If Shen Yan and his family are still the same as before, how can he be used? A Shuānger to support the family?"
"Hey, I'm not talking about Shen Yan and his Shuānger!" Aunt Li hurriedly said when the topic was turned off. "What I want to say is that Shen Yan is going to the county to sue Shen Youcai!"
"This...what the hell is going on?" Everyone was shocked.
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