Mrs. Thompson's Deceit

Lily Evans looked at the two innocent little girls, so angry she was gritting her teeth.

That damned Mrs. Thompson! How could she possibly give Jill Evans and Hannah Lee five taels of silver!? She clearly took advantage of their naivety, tricking them into working for her!

Jill Evans held Hannah Lee's hand and said, "Hannah, I have plenty to eat and drink at home. When Mrs. Thompson gives us the five taels of silver, you should take it all home. That way, your parents won’t hit you anymore."

Hannah Lee shook her head. "No, we did the work together. We should split the five taels evenly."

Jill Evans shook her head hard. "I have no use for the money, Hannah, you take it all."

Watching the two girls politely insisting the other take the money, Lily Evans felt both comforted by their good character and even angrier at Mrs. Thompson for exploiting their innocence.

If Jill Evans and Hannah Lee found out the truth, they would be heartbroken and disappointed.

Just then, Mrs. Thompson strode over from the front yard, scolding, "Why are you working so slowly? Didn’t you eat? Once you’re done chopping wood, come wash the dishes and vegetables in the kitchen! Clumsy girls—do you even want your silver or not?"

The moment Lily Evans saw Mrs. Thompson, her anger flared. She stepped off the chopping block, marched straight to the main gate, kicked open Mrs. Thompson’s rickety wooden door, stormed inside, and pointed at her, shouting, "For shame! You call yourself an adult, but you’re shameless—tricking two little girls into doing your dirty work! How black is your heart?"

Mrs. Thompson hadn’t expected Lily Evans to show up. She froze for a moment, then stiffened her neck and retorted, "What nonsense are you spouting! Which eye of yours saw me trick girls into doing hard labor?"

Lily stormed inside, grabbing Hannah Lee with one hand and Jill Evans with the other. She glared at Mrs. Thompson and shouted, "You heartless wretch! If you dare bully my sister and Hannah again, you’ll answer to me!"

Mrs. Thompson, aware she was in the wrong, spat and snapped, "Go on, get out! What can two clumsy girls even do?"

Lily pulled Hannah Lee and Jill Evans toward the door, but Jill tugged on Lily’s arm and stopped. "Lily, what about our silver?"

Hannah Lee echoed, "Right, Lily, we did all that work and Mrs. Thompson still hasn’t paid us."

Lily turned and glared fiercely at Mrs. Thompson. "Five taels of silver for chopping wood and chores? How could you make up such a ridiculous lie to trick these kids!"

Jill Evans froze for a moment. "Lily, Mrs. Thompson didn’t trick us. She promised us, as long as we chopped wood and washed dishes, she’d pay us."

Hannah Lee nodded innocently. "That’s right. When Lily’s family built their house, I helped out in the kitchen, and Mrs. Wang gave me food and wages."

Mrs. Thompson scoffed at the two girls clinging to the idea of silver. "You two silly fools, so easy to trick! You believe anything I say—are your heads full of water?"

Jill Evans stared wide-eyed at Mrs. Thompson. "Mrs. Thompson, what did you say? Didn’t you promise Hannah and me five taels of silver if we finished chopping two bundles of wood and washed the dishes?"

Mrs. Thompson spat again, looking smug. "I just made up a story to fool you. Who knew you two idiots would believe it! Do you even know how much five taels of silver is? Did you really think you’d get that for chopping wood? Silly girls, you’ll end up just like Lily—marrying a fool!"

Jill Evans stared at Hannah Lee in disbelief. It took the two girls a long moment to realize they’d been tricked by Mrs. Thompson.

Jill Evans suddenly burst into tears. "How could you be so mean? Hannah and I trusted you! How could you lie to us? Waaa..."