Abstract: Although traditional mainstream society had abandoned the practices of remarriage or wife-selling，due to the widespread poverty it remained a common folk custom and for those a means to perpetuate the generations and carry on the family name. In Nanbu county，Sichuan，remarriage or wife-selling was not officially regarded as an“evil custom”because it did not involve a son-in-law moving into the wife's home，or a“household transfer”marriage，customs and thus could not undermine the existing inheritance and settlement practices. As for cases of remarriage and wife-selling that reached the yamen，there were numerous reasons for settling disputes. Interestingly，magistrates' decisions were based on the different motivations of the villagers in litigation，not strictly in accordance with the statutes，and magistrates made flexible judgments for both sides. The pattern of official settlements coincided with the living conditions of the lower classes.