Wolf-Raised Cub with a Space: Surviving the Disaster Years

Shen Ningning asked curiously, "Grandpa Village Chief, don’t worry. Take your time and tell me what happened."

The old village chief wiped a handful of sweat from his forehead. The blazing sun had turned his face red, and his expression was fraught with anxiety.

"A little while ago, the wealthy merchant from the city, Mr. Quan, was celebrating his birthday. He ordered about thirty catties of loquat candy from our village and even paid a deposit."

"We sent a sample we made to the Quan Mansion for him to inspect, and he seemed quite satisfied. But now, I don’t know who’s been poisoning his ear, but he heard that you’ve been to court and says our candy is unlucky to eat."

"Not only does he want the deposit back, but he’s also coming to the village soon to accuse us of concealing the truth and demand a formal apology!"

Standing beside Shen Ningning, Jiang Zhi’s temper flared the moment she heard this.

"That old bastard, what nonsense is he spouting? Did he even bother to find out that Ningning went to the government to identify another criminal?!"

As she spoke, she rolled up her sleeves. "The Quan Mansion, is it? I’ll go have a word with him."

Shen Ningning reached out a small hand to stop her.

Her eyes, clear as freshly fallen snow, turned to the old village chief. "Grandpa Village Chief, when the Quan Mansion ordered the candy from you, did you sign a contract?"

"Well..." The old village chief hesitated.

He sighed. "Mr. Quan is a famous merchant in the Capital City. He has a reputation for being a man of his word, so I didn’t ask him to sign a contract with us."

Shen Ningning shook her head silently, her soft, childish voice filled with resignation. "I’ve told you many times, getting things in writing saves a lot of trouble later."

"Ningning, what do we do now? They want the silver back, but I don’t have it anymore! I already distributed the deposit money to all the families in the village."

"How much was the deposit?"

"Fifty taels."

Shen Ningning exhaled softly.

She originally had five or six hundred in saved silver, but she had recently spent quite a bit furnishing Jiang Zhi’s house in the village and also settling Wu Zuchang’s funeral affairs.

Now, she only had a little over a hundred taels left.

The little girl’s bright black eyes darted about as an idea came to her.

"Brother Jiang, come closer." Shen Ningning stood on her tiptoes and whispered a few instructions in her soft voice.

Jiang Zhi’s brows furrowed slowly. "Him?"

The little one nodded earnestly, her big, watery eyes so round and bright that it was impossible to refuse her.

"Brother Jiang, I can’t leave, so I can only count on you."

"Alright then..." Jiang Zhi sighed, then turned, mounted the horse Shen Ningning had raised, and left the village.

Watching her disappear in a cloud of dust, the old village chief asked, puzzled, "Ningning, have you thought of a solution?"

"I have. If they don’t want the candy, we’ll just give them back their silver. But we can’t let them take the money so easily. We need to put some pressure on them first!"

The little girl said this with a sweet smile. Her dark eyes sparkled, and combined with her round, fair, and delicate face, she looked utterly adorable.

「A short while later.」

A large, intimidating crowd of people appeared at the village entrance.

A soft sedan chair was set down, surrounded by burly servants wielding clubs.

They clearly hadn’t come for a polite discussion.

If the old village chief refused, they were likely to resort to violence!

The sedan’s curtain was lifted, revealing the wealthy merchant, Mr. Quan. He was over sixty, with narrow eyes, a handlebar mustache, and a sharp, shrewd look about him.

He glanced at the construction of the houses in Xiangyun Village, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.

’How could these poor villagers afford to build their houses like this?’

But soon, his expression turned disdainful again.

A servant stepped forward and bellowed, "Where is everyone? Are you all dead? Mr. Quan is here! Get out here and greet him! And give us our money back!"

The village path was empty, and every household’s doors and windows were shut tight.

Just then, a little girl came skipping down the path from the far end of the village, humming a song.

Shen Ningning was wearing a small blue and white dress, her hair adorned with a beautiful golden-winged butterfly pin. At a glance, she didn’t look like a village girl.

Mr. Quan was a businessman who knew how to treat people according to their station.

Seeing Shen Ningning, he clasped his hands and adopted a more polite tone. "Little girl, do you know where the villagers of Xiangyun Village have gone?"

The little one looked up, blinking her big, sparkling eyes.

"What do you want with the villagers?"

"I’m here to get my money back! These villagers are cunning and insolent. They hid the fact that someone in their village has been to court. I’m very superstitious about such things, so I’ve decided to cancel the whole order."

"Have you tried to understand the full story?" the little one asked in return.

Mr. Quan clasped his hands behind his back, looking unconcerned. "My friend, Mr. Ba Sr., is very familiar with these villagers. He told me himself. How could he be wrong?"

’So it was Ba Deshun causing trouble behind the scenes!’

Shen Ningning’s little eyebrows furrowed.

Ever since Deng Fugui married Wang Qiao’er and moved in with the Ba Family, there had been no news of him.

"But the deposit has already been paid. According to the rules of business, if the buyer backs out, the silver shouldn’t be refunded," Shen Ningning said, fluttering her long eyelashes.

Mr. Quan snorted coldly. "Who can prove it was a deposit? I could just as well claim that the old village chief, Deng Changshou, swindled me out of my silver!"

A chill went through the little girl’s heart as she listened.

Mr. Quan knew the old village chief and the others didn’t have a contract, so he could twist the truth however he wanted, and the villagers wouldn’t dare do anything to him.

Shen Ningning’s voice was soft and haunting. "Business depends on integrity. Mr. Quan, if you act like this, how do you expect your business to last?"

Mr. Quan was angered and about to retort when he suddenly stared at Shen Ningning, his gaze turning sinister.

"How do you know so much? And you speak so righteously on behalf of these villagers... Could it be that you’re the one...?"

Before he could finish his sentence, the clatter of horse hooves echoed from the village entrance, accompanied by the lively sound of gongs and drums as a procession entered the village.

Everyone turned to look. They saw troops of soldiers in silver armor on brown horses, majestically escorting four mahogany chests into the village.

Jiang Zhi walked at the front, beating a gong.

When she reached Shen Ningning, she clasped her hands and offered congratulations. "This humble one pays respects to the Funing Village Chief."

With that, she turned and opened one of the carved chests.

As the lid opened, it revealed a dazzling collection of multicolored jewels and ornaments, glittering in the sunlight.

Never mind Mr. Quan; even Shen Ningning herself was nearly blinded by the sight.

"Village Chief?!" Mr. Quan’s eyes widened, thinking he had misheard.

Jiang Zhi shot him a sideways glance. "What’s the matter? She was personally ennobled by the Emperor. The Imperial Decree was issued ten days ago. Don’t tell me you didn’t know?"

Mr. Quan opened his mouth but said nothing. His gaze shifted to Shen Ningning, and his face paled.

Jiang Zhi sneered, "That’s right. How would a commoner like you know that Xiangyun Village has produced a Village Chief."

"What kind of country bumpkin are you? Get out of the way! Don’t delay us from delivering the rewards to the Village Chief!"

As she spoke, she secretly winked at Shen Ningning.

The little one let out a giggle.

Mr. Quan was incredulous. "Your old village chief never said the one who went to court was a Village Chief!"

"You never asked," the old village chief said, approaching from the end of the village path with the other villagers.

Shen Ningning nodded. "Mr. Quan, you should go talk to whoever told you that. You said you want to return the candy, and we can accept that. But from this day forward, Xiangyun Village will no longer do business with your family."

The little girl was full of authority as she looked at the old village chief. "Give him back the fifty taels."

She had already prepared the silver.

Without a word, the old village chief stepped forward and offered the silver.

Now, Mr. Quan was the one who didn’t want to take it.

’If Xiangyun Village truly had a Village Chief, then not only should I not return this loquat candy, but I should continue buying it indefinitely!’

"Village Chief, a great person such as yourself doesn’t hold grudges against the insignificant. You see..." Mr. Quan’s previously arrogant and bossy demeanor vanished, replaced by a fawning smile.