The Evil Mother-in-law: Torment Children, Work Hard, Be Rich!-Chapter 235: Vision

"The corn in Qinghe Bay is doing quite well this year."

County Magistrate Liu arrived at Qinghe Bay and saw the luscious and healthy cornfields, free from blight, with swelling ears promising a bountiful harvest.

He knew that the corn in the Pingchuan County area had always been plagued by ear rot, and there had never been a year of bumper harvests.

He had sought remedies from various people, but none had met his expectations.

This year, the cornfields in Qinghe Bay exceeded his expectations, prompting him to express his admiration.

The bitterness caused by Xu Yong’s corn damage was somewhat alleviated by the lush, verdant cornfields of Qinghe Bay.

"You see, Lord Liu, it was Xu Yong’s medicine used in Qinghe Bay that eradicated ear rot. That bastard Xu Yong kept the real medicine for Qinghe Bay and gave us fake ones," said Lu San, the steward of the Lu Family, through gritted teeth.

He was fuming just thinking about it.

He had also come to Qinghe Bay to investigate the cornfields and found that, just as Xu Yong had claimed, the cornfields used his medicine, resulting in such impressive growth.

Little did he know, he had fallen for Xu Yong’s trick.

Lu San quickly realized that Xu Yong kept the real medicine for Qinghe Bay because he was a local and dared not deceive his fellow villagers; besides, the flourishing cornfields would attract more victims like Lu San himself.

Even if the fake medicine ruined the cornfields in other villages, Xu Yong could turn around and ask why the same medicine worked in Qinghe Bay, claiming a misuse on others’ part.

This way, the blame was conveniently shifted away from him.

With this thought, Lu San despised Xu Yong’s nefarious acts of selling fake medicine even more.

Xu Yong was nothing but a fraud, setting traps one after another to ensnare people.

The scion of the Lu Family was right in saying that while wealthy families like theirs might only lose some silver, the farming families relying on agriculture might face famine due to such deceit.

Xu Yong must be held accountable for this.

County Magistrate Liu’s expression was equally grim. It seemed Xu Yong indeed had some skills; after all, he concocted the medicine that could eradicate ear rot.

To think that even with his connections to the Shengjing Agricultural Department, he hadn’t been able to find a solution.

It was audacious of Xu Yong to keep the real medicine in Qinghe Bay while distributing fake ones elsewhere.

He was unsure how to charge Xu Yong properly.

He still wanted the genuine formula from Xu Yong.

Gu Dashu shook his head after hearing Lu San’s words and said, "Mr. Lu, you’ve been deceived by that bastard Xu Yong. He never came up with the real medicine; it was my mother who concocted it and shared it with the entire village for free. That’s why our village’s corn is thriving—because we sprayed my mother’s medicine. Xu Yong must have stolen the formula after obtaining the medicine."

"What? He dared to deceive me!" Lu San’s eyes widened.

So this medicine wasn’t concocted by Xu Yong at all.

Xu Yong had a lot of nerve.

Gu Dashu began to complain to County Magistrate Liu, "Lord Liu, you know my family and the Xu family don’t get along, yet my mother generously gave the medicine to Xu Yong because she felt the crops in his field were innocent."

He glanced at County Magistrate Liu, and upon hearing this, Liu, who cherished crops, nodded.

Gu Dashu continued, "Xu Yong is shameless, instead of thanking my mother, he secretly replicated and sold the medicine. If he could at least reproduce it accurately, it would have been fine, but his version ruined the crops. He tried to steal and ended up losing more than expected—what a pity for those tricked villagers and those wasted cornfields."

So it was Widow Tong who originally concocted the medicine!

Upon learning the truth, County Magistrate Liu sighed in relief, knowing that Xu Yong couldn’t redeem himself now.

Stealing Hua Qiong’s formula was one offense, deceiving the people was an added crime, and selling fake medicine warranted three unforgivable charges.

Gu Dashu carefully observed County Magistrate Liu’s reaction and noticed his expression relaxed, only for his brows to knit slightly.

Gu Dashu, who had mixed with all sorts of people, understood the nuances of expression well and quickly grasped what County Magistrate Liu was thinking.

County Magistrate Liu seemed to be questioning why, if Hua Qiong had the formula, she waited so long to present it, allowing Xu Yong to take advantage.

Gu Dashu would not allow the magistrate to doubt his mother.

With this in mind, Gu Dashu said to County Magistrate Liu, "Lord Liu, it’s no coincidence I met you midway. Early this morning my mother had me accompany her to the county office to present the medicine. On the way, we ran into villagers from Moon Bay and Guazhou Bay coming to the village to find Xu Yong, and that’s how we discovered Xu Yong had stolen the insecticide and harmed the crops."

"Initially, my mother feared the formula might lead to blunders that harm the crops. So she first tested it on our land, and once it proved effective, she started distributing it for free to the villagers. These days she’s been anxious, losing sleep for worry over ineffective results. Yet, as you’ve seen, Lord Liu, our village’s corn is thriving, ear rot and cotton aphids are gone. With my mother at ease, she decided to present the formula to you, hoping you would help promote it across Pingchuan County."

County Magistrate Liu’s eyes brightened instantly.

What an interesting widow Tong was, having concocted such a remedy and willing to share the formula.

A truly righteous act.

Gu Dashu continued, "Lord Liu, honestly, I don’t understand why my mother wants to share this formula. As I see it, she could sell the formula; it could earn as much, if not more, than our dessert shop. After all, people can do without sweets, but they need grain. My mother scolded me, saying Lord Liu worries about the corn in Pingchuan County every year, so how could she exploit this formula for profit? As a farmer herself, she knows the hardship of relying on the weather for a living. Having developed a treatment for ear rot, she wants it to benefit more people."

Gu Dashu intentionally belittled himself to elevate his mother.

True enough, County Magistrate Liu was moved to tears by Gu Dashu’s sincere words.

See, this exemplified the magnanimity of ordinary farm women under his jurisdiction.

So noble, so selfless.

If Widow Tong’s remedy truly worked for the entire county’s corn, he certainly would advocate for court recognition for her.

Lu San’s eyes grew moist.

He inferred from Gu Dashu’s mention that his family owned a dessert shop, and who would own a dessert shop in Qinghe Bay but the widow who saved the Lu Family’s eldest son?

He asked, "Young man, is your mother the proprietor of Taohua Dessert?"

Gu Dashu nodded and said, "Yes, I’ve delivered desserts to the Lu family before."

Lu San, in excitement, said, "Your mother is the life-saving benefactor of our eldest son! And I didn’t realize even the farm remedy was concocted by her. Not only is she a blessing to the Lu family, but she’s also the fortune of all Pingchuan County."

He would inform the eldest son about Widow Tong’s noble deed.

"Lord Liu has arrived!"

"Lord Liu has arrived!"

The villagers, distressed by the disaster and waiting in the Qinghe Bay ancestral hall for County Magistrate Liu to intervene, saw Liu arriving in Gu Dashu’s donkey cart and were overjoyed.

They came out in greeting.

They had been waiting impatiently for County Magistrate Liu to come and administer justice, afraid of any setbacks along the way that might prevent their compensation claims from Xu Yong.

In their anxiety, these out-of-village villagers said harsh words to Liu Tieshan, implying suspicion that he, as Qinghe Bay’s village chief, sided with Xu Yong.

This made Liu Tieshan want to explode in anger.

Now that County Magistrate Liu had arrived, Liu Tieshan’s heart settled back in his chest.

He truly feared that if County Magistrate Liu didn’t arrive soon, he’d lose control over the situation.

Thankfully, Tong Huaqiong had made thorough preparations, sending Gu Dashu ahead to escort County Magistrate Liu.

Seeing County Magistrate Liu, the crowd couldn’t help but marvel at Tong Huaqiong’s influence in actually bringing County Magistrate Liu here.