Chapter 705: Shameless

Zhu Hongfu’s words were utterly shameless. Zhu Hongyun taught him the recipe, and he made money from it on his own. Now that Tong Sanlang, Qiao Xiaomai, came looking for him, he acted as if he had nothing to do with it.

He shoved all the blame onto Zhu Hongyun.

His audacity truly matched Zhu Hongyun’s. They were indeed family.

“Whoever profits from selling braised pork is the one I’ll settle accounts with,” Qiao Xiaomai declared loudly. She jumped off the ox cart and said to Zhu Hongfu, “Today, is it you who will smash your kitchen, or should Tong Sanlang tear down your house?”

Zhu Hongfu didn’t want to choose either option.

He scoffed and ran to the door.

Just as he suspected, a large group of villagers stood at the entrance.

He blurted out, “Fellow villagers, are you just going to stand by and watch these outsiders bully us in our own village?”

Nobody responded.

The Village Chief Zhu was standing right there. If the Village Chief agreed to this, what could they say?

The Village Chief Zhu sighed and began, “Hongfu, your sister really is in the wrong here. Sanlang’s wife kindly taught her the recipe, and she took it and sold the product in secret. Is this something a decent person would do?”

“Now that Sanlang and his wife have come, I suggest you do as they wish and trash your kitchen.”

As his words fell and Zhu Hongfu was about to protest, the Village Chief’s expression turned cold, and he continued, “Hongfu, Tong Sanlang just graduated as a scholar, and he’s the top-ranked Jieyuan. He’s about to travel to Prefecture City for the imperial examination. If he becomes a Juren, that will make him a high-ranking official.”

“Night has fallen, I advise you not to delay unnecessarily. Otherwise, the one to suffer in the end will be you.”

A Juren—a graduate of the prefecture examination—is eligible to become a government official like a low-ranking clerk or a school superintendent. If he has connections, even the county magistrate’s position is within reach.

Thus, once someone becomes a Juren, it usually means they’ve half-stepped into officialdom and will be respectfully addressed as “Master” by ordinary people.

Tong Sanlang was the top scorer in the Huai’an County examination. With such achievements at such a young age, it was entirely possible for him to become a Juren.

So why would Zhu Hongfu, a small rustic farmer scratching a living from the land, even bother opposing Tong Sanlang?

Especially when Zhu Hongfu was in the wrong in the first place!

He thought he could cause trouble under the pretense of being a relative. There’s no such easy prey in the world!

What a fool!

Stunned by the Village Chief Zhu’s words, Zhu Hongfu couldn’t think straight.

A scholar?

Tong Sanlang had become a scholar?

He hadn’t heard about this. Zhu Hongyun had not leaked a word.

And the Village Chief even mentioned something about a Juren, oh goodness, that’s a grand title!

Recalling the fact that Qiao Xiaomai had once cooked for the retired emperor, Zhu Hongfu slapped his thigh in regret, force a smile onto his face, “Oh, Sanlang has become a scholar? I didn’t know, please don’t be offended, sister-in-law. Congratulations, congratulations, such a promising future you have!”

Qiao Xiaomai, “…”

Zhu Hongfu continued, “Sister, this incident is all Xiaoyun’s doing. She came back to her parents’ house in a huff, and when I told her to work in the field, she refused and insisted on selling braised pork to make money.”

“My mother indulges her, and let her do it. If I knew she had stolen the braised pork recipe from you, I would never have allowed her to behave this way.”

“We’re all family, this sneaky behavior is too unsightly!”