bookcurios Chapter 148: Divorced Just Like That?
Chapter 148: Divorced Just Like That?
That night, Shen Yu slept in the woodshed.
Thinking about the good days to come, she wasn't afraid even if there were rats around.
The next day, she asked the village chief to be a witness and gave Zhou Jingyi the divorce papers to put his fingerprint on.
The village chief naturally offered another round of advice, but Shen Yu's mind was made up, and no one could persuade her otherwise.
Zhou Jingyi was scolded last night for not acting like a man, but today he straightened up and pressed his fingerprint on the divorce agreement without any expression.
However, his masculinity only lasted a few minutes. After pressing his fingerprint, he ignored everyone else, leaned on his cane, went back to his room, and buried himself in the blankets, silently weeping.
The divorce was finalized, and the onlookers dispersed.
Shen Yu had no reason to stay at the Zhou family's house anymore, so she packed her things and went back to her parents' home.
The house suddenly felt much quieter.
Yang Fenglan felt rather uneasy, unsure whether what she had done was a good thing or a bad thing.
Xu Yingying heard about the Zhou family's affairs and found out that Shen Yu had returned to her parents' home, which is why she dared to visit Yang Fenglan's house.
They didn't dare come before, fearing that Long Aotian would suddenly appear and say something unfounded to Shen Yu.
Xu Yingying peeked around the room, then turned to Yang Fenglan and asked, "You really left?"
"I'm really gone."
"This is so sudden, it's too fast. I didn't even hear about it, I wasn't prepared at all."
"It's not like you're getting a divorce, why should I need to prepare?" Yang Fenglan rolled her eyes.
With Shen Yu not around, Xu Yingying felt safe and comfortable staying at Yang Fenglan's house, chatting with her about recent events, venting her frustrations, and expressing her feelings.
Her mouth was dry from talking, so Yang Fenglan stood up. "Alright, now we should think about stockpiling food. I need to go find Xiao Yuanshan again later."
“Go ahead, I think Xiao Yuanshan is quite good-looking, he’s your type. If you really can’t reason with him, just seduce him,” Xu Yingying said with a wicked smile.
Yang Fenglan: ...
That brat, her head is full of lewd nonsense.
……
Shen Yu's divorce caused quite a stir in Qingshui Village, but no one spoke ill of her behind her back.
Instead, Zhou Jingyi and Yang Fenglan took on all the responsibilities.
Some people feel they've glimpsed the whole picture just by hearing the word "divorce".
She said that Shen Yu had been taking care of Zhou Jingyi wholeheartedly all these days, but was divorced instead. She said that Zhou Jingyi and Yang Fenglan did not know how to cherish a good girl, and that they would regret it later.
Yang Fenglan heard these words, but Zhou Jingyi, who was at home crying every day, didn't hear them, otherwise he would have cried even harder.
The wheat fields surrounding the village had already been harvested, and Qingshui Village suddenly became desolate.
Gradually, people stopped gossiping about the Zhou family.
Because right now, every family is frowning.
Despite their diligent efforts in carrying water to irrigate the fields every day, the harvest was still greatly reduced.
The good ones can get 50-60% of last year's amount, while the bad ones only get 40%.
Grain production has decreased, but taxes have not.
The government even announced that taxes this year would be 50% higher than last year.
In this world, taxes are calculated based on the area of cultivated land, and the government doesn't care about the amount of your harvest—after all, harvests can be lied about and falsified, and the government can't possibly check every household.
With incomes already shrinking and taxes increasing, the people began to complain bitterly.
Families with little land handed over most of their grain, and what they had left, even with careful saving, was only enough to feed the family for a month.
Families with more land pay more taxes and have more grain left over, but they may also have more mouths to feed, so the grain may not last long.
Yang Fenglan couldn't afford to pay the grain tax, so she paid money instead.
All year round, we still have to spend money to farm.
It's both laughable and pathetic.