Chapter 4: Conquest by Force, Assisted by Words

The onlooking members of the Lu family stared wide-eyed. Fang Yuan’s domineering attitude and utter disregard for reason had finally made the Lu family see her true colors. She showed no guilt whatsoever as she snatched what she wanted.

To match her words, Fang Yuan kicked the luggage straight to the doorway, completely ignoring whatever Li Meng was saying.

Fang Yuan looked up at the Lu family’s second son, her eyes full of disdain. “What are you staring at? Pick up your things and take them back.”

Just like that? Take them back? Back where? Why does she order me around so easily?

Even the previously dejected Second Lu felt something different. This fierce woman was no slouch when it came to grabbing things.

Fang Yuan didn’t bother considering anyone else’s feelings. She continued instructing Second Lu, “And my dowry—find a cart, load everything up, and take it away.”

She had no intention of staying in this place, breathing the same air as these two people. Too polluted.

Lu family’s third son, terrified Fang Yuan might set her sights on him, quickly jumped in to help, eager to curry favor. “I’ll help Second Sister-in-law move the dowry.”

Just like that, she became “Second Sister-in-law,” and Second Lu was simply swept along by the whole family.

Second Lu thought to himself, So this so-called “phoenix egg” isn’t worth much after all—not in this family.

Fang Yuan glanced at Third Lu, then pointed around the room. “This, this, and this—all of it goes.”

The whole family’s eyes followed Fang Yuan’s finger in a circle. Once all those things were taken, there’d be almost nothing left.

Lu’s mother was a bit reluctant to part with the new thermos. There were still things in the room they used daily, things put in the bridal chamber just for show. She opened her mouth, “But…”

Fang Yuan shot her a look, and Lu’s mother immediately shut up. When they first met, this girl seemed so nice—who knew she’d turn on them in a heartbeat? And even get physical.

Second Lu watched his parents, who wanted to speak but didn’t dare, and for some reason felt a strange sense of satisfaction having someone like Fang Yuan holding things down.

All his past nagging had never been as effective as a single look from Fang Yuan.

On the other side, Li Meng, watching the “female fiend” sit back down on the kang, was shaking with rage. “Why are you sitting down? You’ve already taken everything—why aren’t you leaving?”

Fang Yuan replied, “I married into your family. You think I can just leave whenever you say so? Do you think I’m as worthless as you?”

Then she added, “Oh, right—you were just a freebie for the Lu family.”

Li Meng’s face turned green with embarrassment. This woman’s mouth was vicious.

She glanced at Lu Feng, thinking of the good days to come, gritting her teeth and holding on. Seeing the Lu parents weren’t speaking up for her, Li Meng turned to Lu Feng, whining, “Brother Feng, look at how she’s bullying me. What kind of woman is this?”

Lu Feng squatted on the floor, not wanting to speak. How did things get to this point? Everything had happened so fast he hadn’t even had time to think—he’d been swapped in a marriage exchange.

Honestly, it was all Li Meng’s doing. Now she was clinging to him, but where was she before? Lu Feng still remembered how she’d pressured him when they broke off the engagement.

The whole family watched as Second Lu packed up the things Fang Yuan wanted, with Third Lu helping. Anything Fang Yuan set her eyes on, she had them take away.

Truth be told, Second Lu had grown up in this family and not a single thing in the house truly belonged to him.

Now, being allowed to take whatever he wanted, while Lu Feng and that woman could only watch and stomp their feet, he felt a strange satisfaction.

At first, he was just going along to appease Fang Yuan, but as he kept packing, he started to feel genuinely good about it.

Fang Yuan sat alone on the kang, while the entire Lu family stood on the floor, with Second Lu and Third Lu scurrying around, clearing out the house under her direction.

The scene looked just like bandits raiding a village.

By the time Second Lu and Third Lu carried everything out, the room was almost empty—even the new bedding on the kang was gone.

Lu’s mother, heart aching, suddenly had a strange realization—she could even praise her second daughter-in-law for being so capable at managing a household.

After all, the things weren’t going to outsiders; they were just being moved to the old house, still within the family. No real difference.

Thinking this way, Lu’s mother felt much better—though she still felt bad for her college-bound second son.

At this moment, Fang Yuan spoke up again: “I married into your family. If I just leave like this, without any explanation, that won’t do. You need to go to the brigade, find someone impartial to make things clear, and write a proper division of property agreement.”

Just as Lu’s mother had comforted herself, she broke down again. Division of property? That meant these things would soon no longer be hers, but Second Lu’s. Clutching her chest, she still felt the pain.

Lu’s father felt ashamed. Even though things had come to this, he’d rather keep it within the family to save face. He tried to negotiate with Fang Yuan, “Fang girl, can’t we wait a bit? It’s not really appropriate to call people over to divide the family today.”

Fang Yuan immediately turned hostile, giving him no face at all, her words sharp: “When you promised your son to two families, did you think that was inappropriate? Bringing two dubious and immoral people into the family for no reason—do you really think hiding it makes things look better?”

Lu’s father still had his own principles—he couldn’t accept such accusations. He tried to reason with Fang Yuan, “Fang girl, the engagement wasn’t promised to two families. That girl forced her way in. Our family keeps its word.”

No matter what, Li Meng had come out and disgusted her. Fang Yuan glared, giving no one any face, “What, you want to argue with me about this?”

Lu’s father immediately backed down. The last time Fang Yuan argued, she flipped the table; the marks from her nails were still on his eldest son’s face.

If it came to being unreasonable, he didn’t dare; if it came to being reasonable, well, the family was clearly in the wrong.

The woman beside his eldest son was impossible to explain away. The child in her belly was even harder to account for. His face burned with shame—the Lu family had really disgraced themselves.

All he could do was call out to Third Lu, who was heading out: “San’er, on your way, ask the village secretary to come over.”

Lu Feng could hardly believe it. What kind of wedding was this? The whole family was being torn apart. How could his father agree to all this?

Fang Yuan started dividing up the family property: “For the division, we want the old house. That’s not really fair to us, is it?”

Lu’s father pulled a long face, not daring to answer. The old house wasn’t new, and there was still Third Lu to consider. Where would he live when he got married?

But he didn’t dare argue with Fang Yuan. Before she married in, they’d promised her the new house. But that was when she was marrying the eldest.

Now Fang Yuan was going to the old house, married to the second son. Wasn’t that unfair?

Lu Feng wanted to say, “I’m the eldest, this house should be mine.” But as soon as he opened his mouth, his nose started bleeding again, so he quickly covered it and couldn’t say a word.

The whole family listened in silence as Fang Yuan spoke.

Fang Yuan said, “But I’m a reasonable person, and I’m filial. Parents should live well. But let me be clear—this is out of filial piety, not to benefit Lu Feng.”

When it came to property, Lu Feng didn’t feel guilty at all. He had to fight for what was his. Holding his nose, he said, “You’re going too far. I’ll be the one supporting our parents in their old age.” The house was his.

Fang Yuan sneered, “You useless thing. As if being immoral wasn’t enough, you don’t even know whose child that woman is carrying, and you expect us to trust you to care for our parents?”

Li Meng couldn’t take it anymore. Wasn’t this just insulting her? “You woman, who are you calling names? Brother Feng is the eldest legitimate son. The child in my belly is the legitimate grandson.”

As if the Lu family had some gold mine waiting to be inherited."

"**Chapter 5: One Hundred Plus Two Hundred Fifty**

Fang Yuan could take on a whole room by herself. She pointed right at Li Meng’s nose and said, “You. Yes, you. Do I even need to insult you? Are you so pure and innocent? Have you ever seen a decent girl show up pregnant at someone else’s wedding? Want me to go outside and tell everyone about it?”

Li Meng shut her mouth. She cared about her reputation too. With the whole village gossiping, she couldn’t save face. She hadn’t expected this woman to be so fierce.

Fang Yuan turned to Oldest Lu and Li Meng and let loose: “I’m giving you face, so take it. When I tell you to shut up, just close your mouth. What, you think I’m easy to deal with? Think I won’t go out there and talk sense into people?”

She spat in Li Meng’s direction. “Pfft. Your precious eldest son—aren’t you ashamed to be involved in something so disgraceful?”

Li Meng pressed her lips tightly together. If word of this got out, she’d never be able to hold her head up in the village again.

Li Meng turned to Lu Feng, her voice as delicate as a wilted flower. “Feng-ge, I’m willing to suffer for you.”

Lu Feng’s face darkened. Who asked you to suffer? He just felt embarrassed. What was this woman doing here after breaking off the engagement?

Li Meng’s heartfelt confession only earned her Lu Feng’s back. No understanding, no comfort. The road to prosperity was off to a rocky start.

Fang Yuan spoke up, “I’m giving up this room for my parents. If Oldest Lu wants to live here, he’ll have to pay me.”

No freebies. Fang Yuan wasn’t about to waste words on people like them. Her family never suffered losses, and they cared about money. Ask around in the township—everyone knew that.

Old Lu mulled it over and thought it made sense. Fang Yuan might be a bit rough around the edges, but she had a good heart. She was thinking of her elders.

Sons are all family, but when it comes to dividing the house, things should be fair.

He sucked on his unlit pipe and said, “Fang Yuan’s right, but there’s no money left. We spent it all marrying you.”

Classic broke man.

Fang Yuan wasn’t afraid of the Lu family being poor. She’d already known most of their situation before marrying in. It wasn’t the Lu family she was planning to squeeze.

She pointed at Li Meng. “You guys might not have money, but she does. She came all this way, pregnant and alone, to find a man—she must have money.”

A penniless woman couldn’t act so spoiled. New bedding, a new enamel mug hanging on her luggage—one glance and Fang Yuan could tell she had cash.

Li Meng instinctively clutched her money pouch, furious and dizzy. This woman was shameless, eyeing her money. “Dream on! You’re just a thief. Why should I give you my money?”

Fang Yuan replied, “Thief? What’s worse, stealing money or stealing a man? I’m giving you a chance to pay a ransom for your man. He just married me, you know. What, you think you can just take him for free?” No need to act—she was playing the bandit to a T.

Old Lu and his wife were both stunned. What kind of person had they married into the family? Old Mrs. Lu realized Fang Yuan was not someone to cross.

Lu Feng just felt worthless. He’d just gotten married, and now this woman was selling him off for cash.

He glanced at Fang Yuan, then turned away, not wanting to look at her again. What kind of person had that matchmaker brought into their home?

If Lu Feng had a choice, he’d stay far away from both these women.

All the family’s money had gone into marrying off the eldest son. They really had nothing left. Now everyone just stared at the two women, meaning: You sort it out yourselves.

Li Meng could see it too—Lu Feng was starting to look down on her. She had to hold her ground. She gritted her teeth. “How much do you want?”

Fang Yuan shot back, “What, after all this fuss, you think this disgraceful man isn’t worth much? Shouldn’t you pay whatever you have? If it were me, I wouldn’t even take him if you paid me.”

Of course he was worth something. Now it was all about pride. Li Meng had to give Lu Feng face. Her man had to be valuable.

Besides, she’d made such a scene earlier, and Lu Feng seemed to be siding against her. Now she had to show some backbone and prove how much she valued her Feng-ge.

Li Meng gritted her teeth. What was a bit of money? Her man was capable, and there’d be plenty of money in the future. She’d be a rich wife someday.

She glared at Fang Yuan, thinking, “One day, this woman will have to watch me rise to the top. When we’re doing well, we won’t bother with Lu’s second family. Hmph. Let her regret it.”

She dug in her pocket for a long time, pulled out a roll of bills, steeled herself, stomped her foot, and threw the money over with her eyes closed. “Here! Take it! All of it!”

Oldest Lu watched as the two women bought and sold him, thinking, “So I really was sold by one woman and bought by another?”

Old Mrs. Lu was worried, seeing Li Meng just hand over her money like that. Was she stupid?

What would her son’s future look like? This woman really wasn’t much. You can’t just take advantage for nothing.

Honestly, Fang Yuan was the better woman—she knew how to run a household. Look at that: she’d just arrived and already had the house and the money in hand. She was a real manager.

Old Mrs. Lu was timid but not foolish. She thought, “Well, this isn’t so bad. Both sons have wives now.”

The eldest son’s wife came chasing after him—if she had to suffer a bit, so be it. The second son’s wife was begged for by the family, so of course she should be treated well. Even if she was meant for the eldest, there was no other way. The real worry was that the second son still had to go to college. What would they do?

The second son’s wife was fierce—she didn’t dare cross her. She wouldn’t even say it out loud. But she’d already decided: from now on, she’d go along with whatever the second son’s wife wanted. She didn’t dare do otherwise.

Fang Yuan calmly opened the roll of bills, licked her fingers, and started counting. Then she frowned at Li Meng and said, “So this disgraceful man is only worth two hundred fifty?”

That number—what a coincidence—wasn’t exactly lucky.

But the amount stunned the whole Lu family. It was more than all the money they’d scraped together for Fang Yuan’s bride price.

They looked at Li Meng like she was an idiot. So much money, just handed over?

Old Mrs. Lu even glanced at her eldest son—he wasn’t worth two hundred fifty, was he?

Li Meng was furious. This woman was too wicked. Wasn’t she deliberately driving a wedge between her and Lu Feng? “You’re the two hundred fifty! My Feng-ge is not a two hundred fifty!”

She pulled out a handkerchief and threw it at Fang Yuan. “Take it! It’s all yours!” She was ready to give her heart for Feng-ge.

Every penny was her love for him. She just didn’t know if he understood.

Unfortunately, Lu Feng didn’t see it that way. Watching Li Meng act foolish, he was getting anxious. What’s wrong with being worth two hundred fifty? Throwing money around like this—now that’s really being a fool.

He couldn’t bring himself to say, “He’s not worth two hundred fifty.”

Fang Yuan opened the handkerchief, counted the money, and was finally satisfied. She pocketed the cash and announced to the room, “One hundred plus two hundred fifty—deal. This disgraceful man is yours now.”

Li Meng was dizzy with anger. Three hundred fifty is three hundred fifty—why did she have to say two hundred fifty plus one hundred? It was like saying she wasn’t even worth two hundred fifty. Too wicked.

Fang Yuan wiped her hands with the handkerchief, then tossed it back to Li Meng with a look of disgust. “I don’t want this thing. It’s dirty.”

Her tone was so disdainful, it was almost bullying.

Just then, Lu’s third son arrived with the village party secretary."