My domineering ex-husband is living off his wife in ancient times.

Chapter 19 Husband, come and help me!

"The second son wants your father to die with his eyes open in the afterlife, and wants me to be gossiped about and cursed by the villagers..." Zhao's tears streamed down her face. She cried so sadly that it was more like her father was about to be buried than her son was going to marry into the family.

Si Shaoheng's head ached from her crying. "Fine, let Second Brother be shameless. We'll head straight to the official road at dawn tomorrow and go to Jiang County."

"Huh?" Zhao immediately stopped crying and asked in surprise, "Why is it tomorrow? Why do we have to stay in Qingshan County for another night?"

Si Shaoheng lied without batting an eye: "The travel permit won't be issued until tomorrow. Here's half a tael of silver. Mother, please take everyone to the post station outside the city for the night."

"Me? If you don't make arrangements, what about the Cheng family? Isn't she the one in charge now?" Zhao's lips curled down, her face full of dissatisfaction when she mentioned Cheng Ruoan.

"She accompanied me on business in the city."

"She's with you again?! Third brother, I've noticed you've changed..."

Zhao's old eyes widened, her face showing a mixture of grievance and anger.

Si Shaoheng's face instantly turned cold.

“Then I’ll divorce her right now. I don’t care about my reputation, and I can forget about taking the imperial examination.”

Upon hearing this, Zhao thought, "This is outrageous!"

"No, my son, it's not me..."

"Don't touch that cartload of white rice and flour over there. It was bought by Cheng Shi with her dowry money. Return it all to the Cheng family."

Zhao: !!!

For most of her life, she only ate coarse grains for two or three years after her father passed away; before that, she always ate refined grains.

Seeing so much white rice and flour right before her eyes, and then being told that she would never be able to eat it again, was more painful for her than letting the Cheng family take over the Si family business.

Zhao grabbed Si Shaoheng, forcing a smile that looked more like a grimace: "No, no, no! My son, I love Cheng the most, you're not allowed to divorce her! You're not allowed to mention her again!"

Si Shaoheng's lips curled slightly, but he still maintained a serious demeanor, his cold eyes sweeping over Zhao Shi: "Then can you make arrangements for everyone tonight?"

"Yes!" Zhao replied through gritted teeth.

"Cheng bought this for you in town just now." Si Shaoheng gave her a slap and then handed her a bamboo tube from his sleeve. "It's your favorite Zhuyeqing tea. Keep some for yourself."

In Jiangnan, Zhuyeqing is a type of tea, but in Bachuan Prefecture, it is a common type of sake.

Zhao loved this drink, but in Si Sanlang's memory, after the Si family became less wealthy, Zhao stopped drinking it.

Si Shaoheng was an outsider, but he saw things very clearly.

Zhao, this woman, wasn't all that bad.

It is merely a microcosm of most women in feudal society.

The mother-in-law/daughter-in-law problem is not only a major issue in ancient times, but also remains unresolved for many families in modern times.

In Cheng Ruoan's words, "Just make do, what else can we do?"

Holding the bamboo tube, Zhao beamed with joy. Her resentment towards Cheng Ruoan, which she had been suppressing, dissipated considerably.

"She's sensible."

“Mother, a mother’s love is essential for a son’s filial piety. A mother’s love is necessary for a son’s filial piety.”

"From now on, if you target Cheng less, she will naturally be more respectful to you, her mother-in-law."

Si Shaoheng tried to reprimand her, but Zhao waved her hand and said she knew what she was doing.

Then, the conversation turned to Si Erlang and Li Shi, and incidentally, the suspicion towards Xia Shi was also mentioned.

"Are you really not going to take care of your second brother? What will happen to them if the plague really breaks out? Also, your sister-in-law's family seems honest and law-abiding, but we can't support them all the way, can we?"

Your sister-in-law hasn't asked her father about the expenses the Xia family has incurred along the way. Do you think she's trying to get our Si family to support the Xia family?

And your wife's family...

Si Shaoheng glanced at the three families—Si, Xia, and Cheng—who were chatting in separate groups under the shade of the trees by the roadside.

Although Zhao was not the best temporary leader, only she, with her status, could bring the three families together.

The Cheng family was small, consisting of only three people. They fled with the Si family simply because they couldn't bear to be separated from Cheng Ruo'an. Along the way, it was uncertain which family would help which.

Si Shaoheng thought for a moment and said, "Let's talk about it when we get back tomorrow morning. Mother, please don't say anything more."

"alright."

Si Shaoheng then found Si Dalang and his mother-in-law and gave them each a brief explanation.

Si Xin and Si Nian were a little unhappy when they didn't see Cheng Ruoan come out with them, but when Si Shaoheng told them that the old doctor had examined their mother's leg and said it was fine and would get better slowly, the two little ones happily hugged each other and jumped around.

The children's innocent and adorable nature is vividly portrayed.

This made Si Shaoheng, who originally only felt a sense of "responsibility" towards the two children, soften his heart a little.

"Sweetie, when Daddy and Mommy come back, we'll bring you some milk."

"Great! But could you bring some for Si Niu too, Daddy?" Si Nian asked cautiously, tugging at Si Shaoheng's sleeve.

Si Shaoheng raised an eyebrow at her, and she immediately said, "It's okay even if I can't..."

She could secretly share her drink with her younger sister.

Si Shaoheng glanced at the four-person family of three in the distance, smiled and nodded, "Okay, but only the three of you. The rest, keep it a secret, understand?"

"I understand, I understand, hehe." The little girl's eyes crinkled with laughter.

Si Silang secretly gave the asthma medicine to Lin Shi, taught her how to use it, and reminded her:

"Wife, no matter what happens in the team, don't step forward or say anything. Just take good care of Si Niu and don't worry about anything else."

Lin was timid and cowardly, and had never been away from Si Silang for a whole night before. Especially when she heard that Si Silang was going to accompany her third brother and sister-in-law on business, she was so worried that her eyes turned red.

But she couldn't disobey her husband.

"Then...then be careful."

Si Silang nodded, and then quietly gave Lin Shi the five and a half taels of silver that the fourth branch of the family had saved: "Take it. From now on, we won't need to go get the medicine for Si Niu anymore. I'll work for my third brother and sister-in-law to pay for the medicine."

Keep these on you for protection.

"Okay. Silang, come back soon."

"Ok!"

After Si Shaoheng and Si Silang paid their fees to enter the city again, they saw that Cheng Ruoan was already chatting with the old couple who ran a tea stall at the city gate.

"You little lady, you have such a sweet tongue. If you weren't leaving Qingshan County to find your relatives, I would definitely pay you to work at the tea stall."

"If you weren't the wife of a scholar, spouting tea recipes off the top of your head, this old man wouldn't have gotten your recipes for nothing. Here, take these packets of refreshing herbal tea, brew some for your family on the road!"

"Take a few of these tea cakes with you, just to sweeten your child's mouth."

"And these pancakes, we made them ourselves, they're so fragrant, take them with you."

Cheng Ruoan was overwhelmed by the "goodwill" of the two elderly people and exclaimed that she couldn't take it all.

Just then, her eyes caught sight of Si Shaoheng, whose face was filled with black lines, and she hurriedly called out, "Husband, come and help me!"

Si Shaoheng: ...

Why didn't I see you being this arrogant in modern times?