In Majiazhuang, there is a parent named Ma Laohan, who has entered his fifties. Although Ma Laohan did not have any sons in the family, his wife gave him three lovely daughters. The eldest daughter's name is ** flower, the second daughter is a lotus, and the youngest is called autumn flower. Especially Qiuhua, her appearance is more outstanding than her sisters. The cherry mouth, willow eyebrows, and a pair of red phoenix eyes have attracted the attention of many young men.
In Majiazhuang, Ma Laohan's eldest daughter married Zhang Cheng, the master of the yamen, making her a member of the official family. Since the eldest son-in-law is the second-in-command of the Yamen, she seems to be arrogant in daily life and has an attitude of not admitting defeat to anyone. After all, she can have such an identity because her eldest son-in-law has a place in the officialdom. And the marriage of the second daughter Lotus is also satisfied, although she is not the richest man in the city, but Hu Youcai, who has a family property after marriage. However, the youngest Autumn Flower is married to a poor scholar.
Some viewers may wonder why the most beautiful girl would marry a poor scholarIn fact, this is exactly what the plot needs. As mentioned above, Ma Laohan had no son, but their family couldn't cut off the incense, so they recruited a son-in-law. Of course, in order to attract a suitable son-in-law, the conditions must be attractive enough. Therefore, Qiuhua chose to stay at home and assist the old father in choosing a son-in-law.
Although it is a door-to-door son-in-law, not just one person can do it. Ma Laohan is a shrewd old man, and he has strict requirements for his son-in-law. After layers of screening, he finally selected Wang Sheng from the neighboring village. Wang Sheng was a well-known scholar in Zhuangzi, with quick thinking and profound knowledge. Although his family is poor, he has not been able to take the big exam because he can't pay the huge amount of money. Ma Laohan took a fancy to Wang Sheng's talent and potential, so he recruited him to his home.
When it comes to this Wang Sheng, he is indeed a young man with backbone. When the matchmaker told him that he wanted to become a door-to-door son-in-law, he immediately expressed his dissatisfaction, but when he learned that the woman was Qiuhua, his heart was shaken. After all, the desire for beauty is human. The hero is inevitably attracted by the beauty, not to mention that he is just a little scholar. So, he became the son-in-law of Ma Laohan's family. After getting married, Wang Sheng and Qiuhua lived a relatively happy life. Gradually, however, he found that his father-in-law was very stingy and, not only that, but also liked to take advantage of the other two sons-in-law.
Take the eldest son-in-law Zhang Cheng as an example, he served as a master in the yamen. Many people hoped to find the county lord through Zhang Cheng, but since Zhang Cheng didn't have much free time to deal with these people, they turned their attention to Ma Laohan. With gold, silver and lavish gifts, their flattery held Ma Lao Han high. Ma Laohan felt very useful, and agreed to these people's conditions without thinking.
Although Zhang Cheng can handle some things, there are some things he can't do, so he can only shirk it. The father-in-law took the money, but he couldn't do it, how can this be satisfied?So, they went to Yamen one after another, and the county lord also understood that this was not Zhang Cheng's original intention, and asked him to return the people's money. So, Zhang Cheng had no choice but to ask his old father-in-law for money, but Ma Laohan held on tightly and refused to give it. He said that you can't do it yourself, and this can only be blamed on your lack of ability. After pulling around, he refused to let go, but Zhang Cheng paid out of his own pocket to compensate other people's money.
Later, Zhang Cheng learned that someone was looking for him through his old father-in-law, so he asked his subordinates to drive these people out, so no one came to give gifts to Ma Laohan. Faced with this situation, Ma Laohan felt that the benefits he obtained from his eldest son-in-law were limited, so he set his sights on his second son-in-law, Hu Youcai. Hu Youcai's family started a business and was very wealthy, and Ma Laohan thought that it should be no problem for him to go there and rub some things. So, he often used the excuse of visiting his daughter to frequently go to Hu Youcai's house to eat and drink.
However, the old man did not stop at eating and drinking, and every time he left, he would take something he wanted. Although this behavior was not noticed at first, as time went by, Hu Youcai finally couldn't stand it anymore. As soon as the old father-in-law came, he was eating, drinking, and it seemed that he wanted to move all the Hu family's belongings to his own house. Hu Youcai is a person who values love and righteousness, although he can't bear it in his heart, he can't say it clearly. So, he had to find his eldest brother-in-law Zhang Cheng to confide in his grievances.
After hearing this, Zhang Cheng said lightly: "You just complain about this little thing?."Don't you know that some time ago, my old father-in-law actually accepted a hundred taels of silver from the family of a death row prisoner and asked me to release the death row prisoner. How can I have that ability, even if I am a county master, I can't let people go easily. As a result, the people were not released, and the family members went to the yamen**, which almost caused me to lose my job!After hearing this, Hu Youcai sighed: This old man treats both of us as cash cows. This old guy will enjoy the most happiness, not only the daughter-in-law is the most beautiful, but also do not have to worry about the worries of the old father-in-law.
Zhang Cheng sneered when he heard this, and said, "Yes, this Wang Sheng is the most comfortable." The old man took the silver from you and me, and he must have taken it home to the old Sanhua, this son-in-law is really a good life. Let's go to the third child and see if we can get some money back. Hu Youcai nodded in agreement when he heard this, so the two hit it off and decided to ask Wang Sheng for an explanation. Coincidentally, they met Wang Sheng on the way, who was leisurely walking home with a piece of cloth in his left hand and a jar of good wine in his right hand.
Hu Youcai's eyes lit up, and he said excitedly: "This kid is obviously buying something with my money." So, they dragged Wang Sheng to a teahouse and questioned him bluntly. Zhang Cheng was the first to speak: "Wang Sheng, you are really doing well, drinking all day long, wearing new clothes, and having a beautiful daughter-in-law to hug, you are much more comfortable than our brothers." Hu Youcai also followed: "The money you used was all taken from me by the old man." ”
Wang Sheng looked at the two brothers-in-law's scolding, and said with a wry smile: "Hey, how can I be as good as you think." After I arrived at Ma's house, I did everything inside and outside the house alone, and I had almost no time to study and learn. Fortunately, Autumn Flower is virtuous and considerate, otherwise I wouldn't want to stay any longer. Hu Youcai said dissatisfiedly: "Aren't those things you took for your own use?"”
Wang Sheng sighed: "Second brother, how can I be blessed here to enjoy these things." This cloth was bought for my mother-in-law, this bottle of good wine was bought by my father-in-law, and there were five copper plates, which I had to hand over when I got home. I'm just a housekeeper, I wake up early and go to bed late every day, and my life is full of stress. The old man took the money from you, but the family did not hire anyone, and my daily tasks were extremely heavy. I'm not as comfortable as you two, and my life is almost hopeless. Hu Youcai was stunned for a moment after hearing this, and said, "No, didn't the old man take a lot of money from me?"Why didn't the family hire anyone?”
After hearing this, Zhang Cheng sneered and said: "Indeed, the old man also collected a lot of money through my relationship before, and he can at least hire a few good little maids to serve him." After hearing this, Wang Sheng said with grief and indignation: "Why are you recruiting people, the old man has said that I am their family's subordinate." Zhang Cheng and Hu Youcai were quite puzzled after hearing this, and asked one after another: "The old man has so much money, why don't you hire a few people?"Wang Sheng replied with a wry smile: "The old man said that he has been poor all his life, and this money is the guarantee of his pension." I did the math for the old man, and he got at least two hundred taels of silver from the two of you. ”
The two of them were quite unhappy when they heard this, but it was not good to ask the old man directly for money, after all, their old father-in-law. It is also difficult for the two people with distinguished status to fall into such trivialities. At this moment, Ma Laohan passed leisurely in a carriage. Hu Youcai looked at it and said, "Isn't this my carriage?"Last time, the old man said that he had broken his foot, so I asked someone to send him home. Who knew that the carriage was left by the old man, saying that he would return it to me when his leg was better, and half a year had passed, and his foot was obviously fine, so he didn't mention returning the car. Just when the three of them were dissatisfied with the old man's behavior, Ma Laohan suddenly had an accident. Specifically, it was Ma Laohan's carriage that had an accident. Because the horse in the carriage behind was frightened and the speed was too fast, the driver in the carriage could not control the horse, and as a result, he rear-ended the old man's car!
When the old man heard the movement, he quickly got out of the carriage and walked to the back to see that his car had been smashed in a large piece, and the windows had been knocked down, but the young man's horse was unscathed. Ma Laohan's heart was suddenly furious, but seeing the strong smell of wine on the young man's body, he had a plan and decided to take advantage of the opportunity. thought in his heart, this matter was originally his fault, even if it made trouble in the yamen, his uncle was also inside, and he was not afraid of anything.
Seeing this, Hu Youcai and Wang Sheng wanted to come forward to help, but they were stopped by Zhang Cheng, who said to the two of them mysteriously: "Do you want to vent your evil anger?"The two were confused, so Zhang Cheng whispered to them. After listening, the two gave Zhang Cheng a thumbs up and exclaimed: "Brother-in-law is really a good trick." Seeing that the car was damaged, Ma Laohan's mood was not the slightest annoyance, but a little happy.
The young man was so frightened that he hurriedly apologized to Ma Laohan repeatedly. Ma Laohan said with a serious face: "Young man, what's the matter with you?"You see my car was wrecked by your horse. Shall we go to the yamen to solve the problem, or will we solve it privately?The young man was so frightened that his face was pale, and he hurriedly took out two taels of silver from his pocket and said, "Uncle, I'm really sorry, you can take these two taels of silver to repair the car." ”
Ma Laohan** would deign for this little silver, and immediately said: "Who do you think of me?".I can't ask for this money, so that people will say that I am blackmailing you. Let's go to the shop in front and ask someone to fix it, and it will be as much as there is. When the young man heard this, he was grateful, and said, "Uncle, you are really a good person." I will listen to you what you say. So, the two walked to the nearby shop, Ma Laohan had already made a plan, prepared everything, and planned to take the opportunity to slaughter this young man!
In a blink of an eye, the group came to the shop. Ma Laohan called the shopkeeper out, explained in detail what happened, and gave the experienced shopkeeper a look by the way. Seeing this, the shopkeeper immediately understood Ma Laohan's intentions, so he concentrated on checking the car. Later, he said to Ma Laohan and the young man: "This car has been hit quite badly, the overall structure is a little loose, it needs to be reinforced, and the rear windows have to be repaired. It costs five taels of silver to repair it!”
The shopkeeper **, Ma Laohan felt that this young man might not be able to accept it, but he didn't expect the young man to say lightly: "It's okay, fix it as soon as possible, I have other things to deal with." With that, he glanced around the street. This made Ma Laohan happy in his heart, and felt that this kid seemed to be quite wealthy, so he simply glanced at the shopkeeper, and then said, "Look at my wheels, is there any problem." ”
The shopkeeper instantly comprehended Ma Laohan's intentions, and then carefully inspected it, and said, "That's right, I'll take a good look at it." After the inspection, the shopkeeper said: "That's right, I didn't look carefully enough just now, this wheel also has a problem, it needs to be replaced, otherwise there are big safety hazards, and this set will add up to twenty taels of silver." After the shopkeeper finished quoting the price, the young man was stunned for a moment, and although his face was displeased, he still said, "Money is not a problem." ”
Ma Laohan was overjoyed when he heard this, and immediately asked the shopkeeper to start repairing it. The shopkeeper reminded at this time: "You have to watch carefully, don't let this kid slip away, you will have to pay for it yourself." Ma Laohan smiled and said: "Don't worry, this kid can't run away, he is drunk and driving, even if he is sober, don't want to say that I blackmail him, after all, my eldest aunt is a master, and he can't sue me." After hearing this, the shopkeeper asked the guy to repair the car with peace of mind.
Two hours later, Ma Laohan's car was repaired, and he was ready to ask the young man for money. However, at a critical moment, a team of catchers suddenly broke into the shop. Seeing this, the young man was like a mouse seeing a cat, and hurriedly fled, but he quickly caught him, put on a chain and took it away. Ma Laohan was angry when he saw this, he thought to himself that this kid hadn't paid yet, how could he be arrested. He stopped him and asked, "What are you doing?"How can you arrest people casually?”
One of them quickly recognized Ma Laohan and explained: "This person's name is Li Si, and he is a thief. Just now we received a report that his carriage had been stolen, and someone saw that Li Si did it, so we came to arrest him. After saying that, they took Li Si away. Ma Laohan also wanted to leave, but the shopkeeper disagreed, he reminded that the car had been repaired and he had to pay. Ma Laohan was so angry that he could only go home and get money to pay for the repair of the car, so that he could take the carriage away.
It turned out that the appearance of catching fast was planned by Zhang Cheng. As soon as he got out of the carriage, Li Si was recognized by Zhang Cheng. As a habitual thief, Li Si had just been released from the yamen the day before yesterday, how could he have a carriage in such a short period of time?Not to mention that the target of the theft turned out to be his old father-in-law's carriage. Zhang Cheng's understanding of Ma Laohan was just right to blackmail Li Si. Therefore, he asked the patrolling arrester to go to the yamen to report the case, and waited for Li Si to catch him when he paid the car repair fee, and let Ma Laohan pay out of his own pocket.
Seeing that Li Si was arrested, Ma Laohan was helpless, Wang Sheng and Hu Youcai both looked at Zhang Cheng with admiration. Wang Sheng proposed softly: "Second brother-in-law, do you want to get back the money that your old father-in-law took away from your house?"Hu Youcai hesitated: "I want to think about it, but I can't ask for it directly, otherwise I won't want to live a good life at home!."Wang Sheng smiled and said, "Of course you can't go in person," and then said a plan to the two of them. After hearing this, the two actually praised Wang Sheng: "I didn't expect you to be the most clever." ”
The next day, several arresters suddenly came to Ma Laohan's house and wanted to arrest him. Wang Sheng hurriedly asked, "What's going on?"Why did you arrest my father-in-law?Ma Laohan also said angrily: "What are you doing, I'm your master's father-in-law, why do you want to arrest me?"Catch quickly and silently, and take Ma Laohan to the yamen. When I arrived at Yamen, I learned that Li Si had sued him yesterday, accusing him of stealing more than 100 taels of silver. The carriage had been taken away yesterday by the owner, and the silver had been placed in the house of the old man. The county lord ordered Ma Laohan to be brought for questioning.
After Ma Laohan understood what had happened, he shouted his innocence, claiming that there was no silver at home as Li Si said. He thinks that this kid is resentful of blackmailing him yesterday, and deliberately lies his words. Lord Zhou sent a quick search, and sure enough, he found a hundred taels of silver at Ma Laohan's house. Faced with questioning, Ma Laohan had no choice but to blush and explain that he had gotten all the silver from his two sons-in-law's families, and that he had sold the things he liked for money.
Lord Zhou ordered Hu Youcai to be brought to the yamen and questioned him about the silver. Hu Youcai felt that Ma Laohan kept sending him signals, so he responded calmly: "That's true." Lord Zhou then asked, "Then this silver should belong to you?"Ma Laohan hurriedly interjected: "That's right, my lord, this money is indeed my son-in-law's, and it has nothing to do with Li Si." Master Zhou nodded: "Then it's decided, Hu Youcai, it's okay for you to take this silver." ”
Ma Laohan hurriedly said that he had no objection. When he left the yamen, he said to his three sons-in-law: "You must be careful, you can't use illicit money." I just wanted to take advantage of it yesterday, but I didn't expect to be bitten back by that Li Si. The good thing is that our money is clean, otherwise it would be really troublesome. Ma Laohan didn't know that all this was planned by Wang Sheng. Since then, Ma Laohan has never bragged to his son-in-law. 100 help plan