Chapter 309: Chapter 309: Knew All Along
Song Jing got married.
Completely out of the blue, on the tenth day of the tenth month, he married Fang Yuzhi, the daughter of the Academic Administrator.
Because Mrs. Meng had insisted on returning to Song Family Village, Village Chief Meng had a bit of a falling out with her and her son. The rest of the clan was angry about it too.
So when Song Jing’s wedding invitation was suddenly delivered, Village Chief Meng was completely bewildered.
While he wasn’t the most dutiful uncle, he still knew a thing or two about his nephew’s personal life, especially when it came to something as important as marriage.
Song Jing had never even been engaged before. How could he leap straight to getting married?
Where was he getting married? Who was he marrying?
’Besides, isn’t he... fond of Ji Huan?’
But the invitation couldn’t be fake. The person who delivered it was a prominent figure in the Song Family.
Half-believing, half-doubting, Village Chief Meng opened the invitation. When he saw who the bride was, he nearly jumped out of his skin!
He gasped, brought the invitation close to his face, and squinted, checking it word by word two or three times.
Still in disbelief, he took the invitation and ran into the middle of the courtyard, turning it over and over in the sunlight while muttering to himself.
His reaction startled everyone in the room.
Mrs. Hong’s face fell. "He barely set foot back there and they’ve already found him a wife. The Song family is certainly eager to please that Scholar nephew of yours. Is she a relative of their clan leader, or..."
Village Chief Meng cut off her sarcastic remarks, pointing to a few of his sons and grandsons. "You, go get Fourth Great-Uncle. You, go get Third Grand-Uncle. And you—go get Sixth Ancestor. Tell them to come over. We have important matters to discuss."
It took no more than the time to drink a cup of tea for everyone to arrive.
Before they even entered the house, Village Chief Meng presented the wedding invitation.
The group discussed it in the courtyard for a while before the elders in charge made a decision: They would go! The clan would prepare a generous gift, and they would all go together tomorrow to offer their congratulations.
Scandals could cause an uproar even when people tried to hide them, let alone joyous news, which seemed to grow wings of its own. And with a little help from a certain someone, it flew through all of Dafeng Village in less than half a day.
That certain someone was Mrs. Hong.
Mrs. Hong didn’t even want to think about what she’d been through lately. Just thinking about it was enough to bring her to tears.
Ever since Song Jing became a Scholar, that husband of hers had been so ecstatic he didn’t know which way was up, and he paid even less attention to what she said.
The villagers also mocked her, both openly and behind her back, saying that she had been dead set against Song Jing returning and that it was all thanks to Village Chief Meng’s foresight.
Mrs. Hong was bottling up a bellyful of resentment, but whenever she went out and saw people, she had to force a smile and join in with everyone else in praising Song Jing and complimenting Mrs. Meng.
She had no choice. She had to think about her own sons and grandsons, didn’t she?
Who would have thought that ungrateful mother and son would make such a fuss about returning to their own village? Not even the clan elders could persuade them to stay.
’Let them go then, good riddance! It saves me from having them right under my nose, a constant reminder of my past foolishness.’
She had assumed her life would get easier once they left.
But who knew the villagers would still laugh at her, even blaming her for Mrs. Meng’s attempt to hang herself.
Her own clan members also grew to dislike her more and more, believing that if she hadn’t mistreated Mrs. Meng and her son, they wouldn’t have been so determined to leave.
One of the clan elders even suggested that Village Chief Meng should divorce her.
Mrs. Hong was furious enough to burst! Yet, she could only suffer in silence.
When the rumors about Song Jing and Ji Huan started, she hadn’t bothered to pay them any mind. ’How normal. Who wouldn’t want to curry favor with the Scholar these days?’
But after a few days, the rumor took a turn, and Mrs. Hong’s spirits lifted instantly!
’Look at that! Just look! So much for being a Scholar—even a country girl looked down on him!’
In her excitement, Mrs. Hong dropped her pretense of being sick and rushed out the door, eager to join the village gossips in mocking Song Jing and finally vent some of her frustration.
But no one would include her.
Before she arrived, everyone had been chattering away excitedly. The moment she showed up, they all clammed up and wouldn’t even mention Song Jing.
When she brought him up herself, the group immediately started showering him with praise!
Mrs. Hong was so frustrated!
What frustrated her even more was that when those women mocked Song Jing behind his back, they mocked her family as well.
Mrs. Hong was indignant, but there was nothing she could do.
After this, she finally understood what that husband of hers was always going on about—that "we all prosper or suffer together" business.
If Song Jing was successful, the Meng Family might not see many direct benefits, but in the long run, it was more advantageous than not.
But if Song Jing fell from grace, in the eyes of others, it would be the same as the Meng Family failing.
Just as she had figured this out, the wedding invitation arrived.
Seeing that Song Jing was about to climb even higher, Mrs. Hong felt a pang of jealousy, but she was already able to see the bigger picture.
Her first thought was that after being mocked for so long, the Meng Family could finally hold their heads high again!
Mrs. Hong didn’t even bother to prepare lunch. She went out to chat, sending out all her daughters-in-law, grandsons, and granddaughters as well.
With such a large-scale operation, it was hard for anyone not to find out.
And so, the winds of gossip in the village shifted once again.
"Doesn’t Song Jing like Ji Huan? It’s only been a few days since he went back, and he’s already forgotten all about her. Who do you think he really likes?"
"Obviously! A country girl versus the Academic Administrator’s daughter—is that even a choice?"
"Exactly! Song Jing was just inexperienced. It’s only normal for him to have a change of heart after seeing more beautiful women out in the world. Besides, she’s the daughter of an official! Tsk, tsk, Mrs. Meng is truly blessed!"
"If you ask me, the one who’s truly blessed is Song Jing. With a Yue Family like that, he’s set for a meteoric rise..."
"When all is said and done, the only one left to pity is Ji Huan."
"Whose fault is that? Her judgment is poor. She turned down a ready-made Scholar, so of course someone who knows a good thing when they see it was waiting in the wings."
"Song Jing is indeed a rare talent. No wonder Miss Fang took a liking to him at first sight..."
"Hey? I remember you saying something different before. You were laughing about how pitiful Song Jing was, saying even Ji Huan looked down on him..."
"Get lost! Did I say that? I don’t remember saying that! If you ask me, it’s a good thing Ji Huan rejected him, so he could marry someone even better! Just you wait, Song Jing’s future prospects will be no worse than his father-in-law’s!"
"I heard his father-in-law is a fourth-rank official. If what you say is true, could Song Jing go even higher?"
"It’s certainly possible. Song Jing just has the face of someone destined for greatness."
"Oh my, if that’s true, and if I were Ji Huan, I’d cry my eyes out..."
Song Jing’s marriage was big news, but since the man himself was no longer in the village, the focus naturally shifted to Ji Huan, the person he had been linked with.
Every aspect of her life was dragged out and compared to the Academic Administrator’s daughter, with the final conclusion being that she was inferior in every way.
In an instant, she became the subject of pity, mockery, and everything in between.
Ji Huan had just put down her rice bowl when Widow Xie arrived.
Ji Huan was puzzled. "Aunt Xie, aren’t you going to rest for a bit? It’s not time to go back to work yet."
Widow Xie looked like she wanted to say something but was hesitating. Finally, she steeled herself and spoke.
"Song Jing is getting married."
The hand Ji Huan was using to clear the dishes paused. This time, the pause was quite long.
Widow Xie could only see half of her face, and with the light behind her, she couldn’t make out her expression. But she imagined Ji Huan must not be taking it well.
Just as she was racking her brain for comforting words, Ji Huan snapped out of it.
"Is that so? I thought he would at least wait until after the county-level examination."
’What does she mean by that...’
"What? You already knew?"