Wang Yuanzhi lowered his chopsticks and looked at Fan Zehao. With his thick eyebrows and big eyes, he didn't look like a man who had married into his wife's family. He then looked at his wife, who was also quite ordinary in appearance, but possessed a spirited aura.
"I heard that Young Master Fan married into your family?"
Fan Zehao's face stiffened. He glanced at his wife, who was still eating heartily. Then he nodded at the village chief. "Yes, my family is poor, not as well-off as my wife's. And I have many brothers. When the time came, I found myself a wife. Although it doesn't sound good, our days are quite harmonious!"
Zhao Jiaqi looked up at her husband, then at the village chief, and smiled faintly. "If my husband hadn't married into my family, he would have remained a bachelor. His family has six sons. You can imagine, in the village, one son marrying one wife would cost at least one or two taels of silver!"
The village chief did some calculations. Having many sons also indirectly indicated good genes for producing them.
Zhao Jiaqi, on the other side, began to count on her fingers. "They say growing boys can eat their parents out of house and home. The elderly couple earns just enough to feed these children, where would they save money to marry them off?"
"That's why he married into my family!"
Wang Yuanzhi, who had never raised sons, didn't quite grasp the concept of "eating their parents out of house and home," but he did know that he had been a big eater in his childhood.
Seeing such a fine young man, he couldn't help but sigh for him. He raised his wine cup and toasted him, "Drink up, let's not talk about these troubles!"
Troubles?
The trouble was why his daughter married Fan Zehao!
After finishing her meal, Zhao Jiaqi sensed that the village chief wanted to have a private conversation with her husband. Otherwise, why would they be drinking so slowly? She was observant and put down her chopsticks, preparing to leave.
"Thank you for the village chief's hospitality. I've eaten my fill, so I'll head back to my room now. You two take your time drinking!"
Wang Yuanzhi was eagerly waiting for her to leave and repeatedly agreed, "Good, good."
After watching her figure disappear, Wang Yuanzhi truly began to smile. "You are a good man. It's a pity. If I had met you earlier, I would have kept you as my son-in-law!"
His words were incredibly clear. Anyone with a bit of sense would understand their meaning.
However, Fan Zehao feigned ignorance and also chimed in with regret, "Yes, what a pity. I'm already married, and my children are not small anymore!"
As he spoke, he seemed to feel wronged. "My wife... that shrew. When she was pregnant, I wanted to take a concubine. I had even found someone, and hadn't even given her a title yet, when my wife strangled that girl to death!"
He then wiped his face. "To this day, everyone around me is a man. And if I show the slightest interest in anyone else, she will do whatever it takes to kill that woman!"
"So, what Miss Wang did today, I could only be harsh in front of my wife. Later, if the village chief could explain a few words for me, I wasn't intentional!"
Hearing how miserable his life was, Wang Yuanzhi immediately felt sympathetic. "Your life is not easy either, after all, you married into her family!"
"Yes, there's no other way!" As soon as Fan Zehao finished speaking, he downed another cup of wine, looking like a wronged soul.
Once they had had enough to drink, the two men opened up to each other. Wang Yuanzhi felt it was time and broached the subject. "I only have this one daughter. I can't have any more sons in this lifetime. Why don't you come here and be my son-in-law?"
Fan Zehao, who had been looking down, rolled his eyes. He shook his head, his voice slurred with drunkenness. "That won't do... You don't know, my wife's family is quite wealthy and influential. Although they gave me a mansion and adopted my surname, in private, they are the ones in charge. If I leave now, first, how will we settle the money I've earned over the years?"
"Second, if the powerful members of my wife's family want my life, I..."
As he reached this point, he sighed again, shaking his head helplessly. "There's nothing I can do. I can only endure, endure until their whole family is dead, and then I can hold my head high!"
Unexpectedly, Wang Yuanzhi just scoffed dismissively after hearing this. He leaned in and whispered, "It's not hard to make them die!"
Fan Zehao froze for a moment, looking foolishly at the person before him. His words were drunken and his tongue was thick. He asked, "What do you mean?"
"You are truly foolish. I'll tell you, if you want people to die without anyone noticing, then you add some poison. Don't kill them all at once, do it slowly. Once they're all dead, the family fortune will be yours. Then, you can marry as many women as you want!"
Fan Zehao's face also broke into a smug smile. He gave Wang Yuanzhi a thumbs-up, but his heart turned icy cold.
He looked at the man who appeared kind and benevolent but harbored a devilish heart. He could even come up with such a malicious plan.
With a father like this, his daughter couldn't be any better.
Each with their own hidden agenda, they returned to their respective chambers.
As soon as he entered the room, he embraced Zhao Jiaqi, his back chilling. He said leisurely, "Wife, I've realized you're the best. You truly care about me!"
Zhao Jiaqi didn't know what had happened to him, but she sensed his fear. She wrapped her arms around his waist. "What nonsense are you talking about? You are my husband, the one who will grow old with me. If I don't treat you well, who else should I treat well?"
Hearing this, Fan Zehao chuckled foolishly, burying his head in her neck. "Yes, we are a couple for a lifetime!"
Afterward, he carried her to the bed, giving her no chance to resist or question, and sealed her incessant chatter with his lips. Finally, it all dissolved into soft sighs.
The moon outside shyly hid behind the clouds, unable to show itself for a long time.
The commotion in the room subsided slightly. After a while, their voices could be heard again.
Fan Zehao was very clear-headed. He said to Zhao Jiaqi, who was already drowsy, "This Wang Yuanzhi is a madman. He actually told me to poison you to death so he could seize your property and marry someone else!"
Zhao Jiaqi, who had been about to fall asleep, was instantly amused. "You can't judge a book by its cover. He looks like a kind old man, but deep down he's so sinister!"
"Yes, if I hadn't spoken indirectly to alleviate some of his concerns, he wouldn't have revealed his true colors so quickly!"
Zhao Jiaqi turned over. She couldn't stand looking at this kind of village chief. "Don't overthink it. Once the Chief Executive finishes his investigation, if necessary, just send troops to surround this place and deal with him!"
Fan Zehao looked at the wife in his arms and thought to himself that it wouldn't be that easy.
However, he didn't tell his wife, not wanting her to worry. He held her close and fell into a deep sleep. Only after his snoring began did Zhao Jiaqi open her eyes.
There was no drowsiness in her eyes, only resentment and hatred.
Many people had wanted her dead, but this was the first time someone had so brazenly suggested she be poisoned by her husband.