Transmigrated as the Scum Alpha in a Farming Novel (GL) - Chapter 7

Yu An’s tone at this moment made Liu Huaixu feel a bit frivolous, and her actions even more so.

But in everyone’s eyes, especially Cao Guan’s, it would seem like flirting.

There was nothing wrong with wives flirting, except that it might make people feel a little shameless.

But Cao Guan was different; she couldn’t stand Yu An saying such things to Liu Huaixu.

Her expression instantly turned wronged. She reached out and gently tugged on Yu An’s sleeve, her voice sounding like a spoiled child: “Sister Yu~”

Yu An didn’t look at her; instead, she shook her hand off.

“Miss Cao, please have some self-respect.”

Liu Huaixu heard this sentence and involuntarily raised her eyebrows.

There was a hint of uncertainty in her heart: Was Yu An acting or not?

Regardless of whether it was acting, the hand on her waist was unbearable. Liu Huaixu twisted uncomfortably, trying to subtly tell Yu An to remove her hand since so many people were watching, but Yu An seemed oblivious. She had no choice but to slowly rub away, trying to move away from Yu An’s side.

She was busy and didn’t notice Cao Guan’s reddened eyes, staring intently at her waist, while one hand still clutched Yu An’s sleeve without letting go, her words becoming unrestrained.

“Sister Yu, you said Liu Huaixu treats you badly, you don’t get meat, and you don’t even get to sleep on a warm kang.”

Yu An hadn’t expected her to be so bold, daring to blurt out everything. She immediately released her arm from around Liu Huaixu, her gaze sweeping the crowd, who were all eager to watch the spectacle.

Cao Guan didn’t care about any of this. Her words were even more reckless, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably. She cried out, wronged: “Wuwu… you said Liu Huaixu is like a block of wood, she doesn’t warm people, and she doesn’t… mm-mm…”

Hearing these words, Liu Huaixu’s expression grew colder and colder. Yu An also panicked, quickly covering Cao Guan’s mouth, afraid that Cao Guan would say more filthy words and ruin the image she had been building up these past few days.

“Don’t talk nonsense here.” Yu An had already released her hand, and her expression also darkened. Although she didn’t quite understand the current customs of this era, people were mostly gossipy. If these words were overheard, who knew how they would discuss her and Liu Huaixu in the future.

Liu Huaixu was also furious, angry that Yu An would say such things to Cao Guan. She looked at Yu An with an even colder gaze than usual, mixed with anger, and even the hand holding the meat began to tremble. She thought she had worked hard all day to buy some meat for Yu An to eat, but unexpectedly encountered so many problems.

She had endured again and again, but with Cao Guan now saying such things, she truly didn’t want to tolerate it anymore.

“Sister Cao, watch your words. It’s not good for you to know too much about matters between wives.”

Yu An was a Qian Yuan and wasn’t afraid of these things. Although Liu Huaixu was a Kun Ze, she was Yu An’s wife. Saying such words would only make people laugh for a while but wouldn’t earn her public scorn.

But Cao Guan was different. For an unmarried Kun Ze to say such shameful things, not only would she face public scorn, but it would also be difficult for her to marry.

Cao Guan froze upon hearing this, her tears dared not flow, making her eyes redder from holding them back.

Remembering the warnings her father had given her at home, she suddenly felt a chill in her heart.

She glanced into the crowd, noticing a few people gathered, pointing fingers at her. She felt angry but dared not speak up.

Yu An seized the opportunity and quickly said, “You should go home quickly, and don’t say these things again in the future.”

“Sister Yu…”

Yu An had seen Cao Guan’s frightened look just now and felt a little unbearable.

For her, Cao Guan was just a teenage child, whose mind wasn’t yet mature and had been deceived by the original owner, who was a scoundrel. Besides, she was just a bit unrestrained with her words, which wasn’t such a huge fault.

Being scared like this, Yu An could only advise her to go home quickly and watch her words in the future.

Precisely because she didn’t think so much, she reignited Cao Guan’s hope and also made Liu Huaixu look at her with even colder eyes.

Perhaps it was too obvious, Yu An noticed it and looked back. Liu Huaixu met her gaze without flinching, feeling a bit amused in her heart for that hint of uncertainty.

If Yu An wasn’t acting anymore, would she still be Yu An?

Cao Guan cried and went home, and the crowd dispersed. Only Yu An and Liu Huaixu were left in front of Butcher Li’s door.

Their thoughts and ideas were completely different. Liu Huaixu thought Yu An was putting on a show, while Yu An believed that her changes were so obvious that Liu Huaixu shouldn’t give her a cold shoulder anymore.

She said with a smile, “Let’s go, we’re going home too.”

Liu Huaixu gave her a cold glance, took the meat from her hand, and walked home without looking back.

Yu An was stunned. This didn’t seem to be what she had expected???

She rubbed her nose and trudged forward in silence.

Along the way, neither of them spoke, one walking in front, one following behind.

When they reached the courtyard gate, Liu Huaixu paused, noticing that both chimneys were puffing smoke. She glanced back at Yu An, who also looked in the same direction, a cheerful smile on her face.

She looked like she was asking for praise.

Liu Huaixu couldn’t quite figure out what Yu An’s intentions were.

This kind of thing, in all her previous attempts to please, Yu An had never done.

Composing herself, Liu Huaixu decided she still couldn’t give her a pleasant look, so her expression became cold again.

But Yu An had already seen her expression soften, and her inner thoughts became even clearer: Liu Huaixu was cold on the outside but warm on the inside, she was just too angry at the original owner.

“Wife, I saw you went out, so I prepared the meal first.” Yu An’s expression held a hint of triumph. She had to admit, she hoped Liu Huaixu would praise her, or even smile at her.

But who was Liu Huaixu?

She was the person who was utterly disappointed in Yu An. How could she easily give her a good look?

Liu Huaixu said blandly, “Don’t call me wife.”

“Oh, then ‘Huaixu’?”

“No.” Liu Huaixu shook her head coldly.

“Then ‘sister’?”

“No.” Liu Huaixu’s face tightened even more.

She wasn’t allowed to call her this, or that. Yu An was a bit confused.

“Then what should I call you?”

“Whatever.”

Yu An scratched her head. Just as she was about to ask what “whatever” meant as a form of address, a girl in a jujube-red hemp cloth came rushing over. At a glance, Yu An recognized her; it was the little girl who had tipped off Liu Huaixu that day.

Wu Qiuqiu had been waiting at Liu Huaixu’s doorstep for a while. This time, she was here to deliver another message.

“Sister Huaixu… just now… just now…” Wu Qiuqiu, focused on delivering the message, completely ignored Yu An standing beside her. Only after addressing Liu Huaixu did she notice Yu An, and she stammered, cautiously glancing at Yu An, wondering if she should continue speaking.

Liu Huaixu saw all her small movements, glared at Yu An disapprovingly, and then said to Wu Qiuqiu: “Qiuqiu, is there something urgent?”

Her voice was gentle, unlike the sharp tone she used when speaking to herself, which made Yu An feel a little wronged.

And the girl’s timid gaze towards her just now, as if she might hit her.

Anyway, it was very uncomfortable.

However, Yu An wasn’t mistaken; Wu Qiuqiu was indeed afraid she might strike. She was a few years younger than Yu An. In the past, when the Yu family was still relatively well-off, Wu Qiuqiu’s family were tenants who rented the Yu family’s land year-round, so they had some interactions since childhood.

At that time, Liu Huaixu often dealt with the tenants, and naturally, they became familiar. Every time Yu An saw her, she would scold her, and sometimes even hit her a few times.

So, even now, she was still a little afraid of Yu An.

But with Liu Huaixu speaking now, her courage grew significantly. She composed herself and said to Liu Huaixu: “Sister Huaixu, I just saw Second Madam Yu arrive.”

Second Madam Yu was a Qian Yuan Jun, the younger cousin of Yu An’s grandmother, Old Madam Yu. Since Old Madam Yu passed away, Second Madam Yu became the head of the Yu family.

Yu An’s branch of the family still held some influence in Yuanze Village. Old Madam Yu was the most outstanding Qian Yuan of their generation, and her biological sister married the then village head, making them illustrious for a time.

In their old age, the entire Yu clan and Cao Biao all held Old Madam Yu in exceptionally high regard.

Old Madam Yu was good in every aspect, except that she suffered the pain of a parent outliving their child; her only son died before her. And then there was Yu An, who caused the elderly Old Madam Yu endless worry.

Now that Old Madam Yu was gone, Yu An had no status in the clan whatsoever; instead, she was a bothersome presence.

Liu Huaixu’s eyebrow twitched when she heard that Second Madam Yu had arrived, and she had a bad feeling. Then she glanced at Yu An and asked Wu Qiuqiu again: “Did Second Madam say what it was about?”

“She didn’t say that… but…” Wu Qiuqiu paused, glanced at Yu An, and seemed hesitant to speak.

“Don’t mind her, you say what you need to.”

Liu Huaixu patted Wu Qiuqiu’s hand reassuringly. Only then did Wu Qiuqiu continue: “I overheard Second Uncle Yu say a few words, it seems… Sister Yu An caused trouble in the county town, and someone came looking for Second Madam.”

Second Uncle Yu was Second Madam Yu’s son, ranked second in the clan. Younger villagers would call him Second Uncle Yu.

Yu An kept her eyes downcast, head bowed in humility, but still felt two burning gazes. One quickly retreated, while the other’s gaze grew even colder.

“It’s getting dark, Qiuqiu, you should go back first.”

Wu Qiuqiu looked at them both, responded, and ran home without looking back.

Only after Wu Qiuqiu left did Yu An dare to look up, but she was still afraid Liu Huaixu would scold her, so her eyes darted around.

It wasn’t her fault; she was already miserable enough as the biggest scapegoat.

When the two were discussing this earlier, she had been wondering what Yu An had done. Just as she was about to figure out a clue, she was startled by Liu Huaixu’s cold and indifferent gaze. Her memory hadn’t caught up, and she was afraid Liu Huaixu would ask her something now.

But Liu Huaixu ignored her. She was used to such things.

Entering the house, she first checked Yu An’s earlier work. Yu An had used polished rice when cooking, and Liu Huaixu felt it was a bit wasteful.

But then she thought that they had been busy all day, so it was appropriate to eat something good. She then prepared to chop the meat, but just as she placed the meat on the cutting board, Yu An snatched it away.

The previous incident made Yu An feel a little guilty. She leaned closer to Liu Huaixu, trying to please her: “You bought the meat, how about I cook it?” Never mind the “whatever” issue for now, eating is more important!

But Liu Huaixu refused, wanting to take the meat back. She didn’t want to waste a piece of meat.

She wouldn’t yield, and Yu An wouldn’t back down.

After a standoff, Liu Huaixu finally let go, her expression a bit awkward as she glanced at Yu An before turning and returning to her own room.

Liu Huaixu’s expression seemed strange to Yu An, though she couldn’t pinpoint why. She rubbed her nose and suddenly caught a faint cold fragrance, but the scent dissipated quickly. Yu An even wondered if there was something wrong with her nose, sniffed twice more to confirm there was no smell, and then took the meat to cook.

When Liu Huaixu left earlier, Yu An had already thought about what to cook at home. While rummaging through things, she found some pickles and wanted to make the pickled vegetable stir-fry with meat that she often ate as a child.

Given the current conditions, she couldn’t make anything more elaborate than this simple meal. Yu An added a few pieces of firewood to make the fire burn more vigorously, then went to search near the stove.

She wanted to find some oil. These past few days, she rarely saw Liu Huaixu put oil in her cooking, and she didn’t dare to ask, so she could only search directly.

But after searching for a long time, she found nothing, confirming how poor this family was. Yu An accepted it, picked up the pork, and began to stir-fry.

Fortunately, it was pork belly; a few stirs brought out the oil.

After the dish was cooked, Yu An made a simple vegetable soup before going to call Liu Huaixu for dinner.

“Dinner’s ready, come eat…”

Since they were both under the same roof anyway, Yu An forgot about knocking. As soon as she opened the door, she saw Liu Huaixu with her back to her, applying something to the back of her neck. Hearing Yu An’s voice, she trembled all over, like a startled rabbit.

“Get out.” Liu Huaixu said coldly, her back still turned, gripping the small porcelain bottle tightly in her hand.

Yu An thought she had startled Liu Huaixu and explained: “I am here to call you for dinner…”

“I said get out, didn’t you hear me?” Liu Huaixu never turned around, but her voice grew colder, and her grip on the small porcelain bottle tightened.

After a long pause, Yu An weakly replied, “Oh.”

Only after she left did Liu Huaixu’s tense body relax. She looked down at the small porcelain bottle and breathed a sigh of relief.

Her estrus period had arrived. If Yu An found out…