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Chapter 119: Chapter 113: A Good Daughter-in-law in the New Era
After Shen Yunfang returned from visiting her relatives in the army, life returned to normal.
It was not yet the end of Chinese New Year, and it was impossible to work in the fields, so she devoted herself to taking care of the chickens in her backyard and the mushrooms in the western room, occasionally checking the condition of the quail eggs.
Brother Dashuan came almost every day to help Shen Yunfang with her work and took the opportunity to learn how to raise earthworms and grow mushrooms. It was actually Dashuan’s wife who wanted to come, but she was about to give birth, and no one felt comfortable with her walking back and forth, so Dashuan was sent to learn instead.
She had already decided to learn from Shen Yunfang and do the same at home. Initially, she hesitated to use her own house for these activities, but after seeing the plastic shed in Yunfang’s backyard, she was again inspired to pursue the idea.
Now she was just waiting for spring to come so she could start working; she planned to build a shed in her backyard too, and then, just like Yunfang, make it warm and cozy for the earthworms to thrive inside.
Shen Yunfang took advantage of the quiet period before the busyness began to learn from Brother Dashuan’s wife how to make quilts, clothes, and shoes. In fact, all the young women and brides of that time knew how to do these things—it was only her, a person once miseducated and now transported from the past, who did not.
Shen Yunfang thought that since she was going to get married at the end of the year, she should not have to ask others to make quilts and clothes for her after marriage. Even if she didn’t mind asking, she couldn’t expect others to make shoes for the men in her family, so it was better to learn herself and strive to be a qualified good daughter-in-law of the new era.
These tasks were not difficult, and with Shen Yunfang being quite clever, she quickly became quite skilled. The proof of her work lay on her bed—a new quilt she had made herself.
When Brother Dashuan’s wife saw that she had used bright red satin for the backing, she became curious; that material was usually reserved for weddings, "Yunfang, why did you decide to make a quilt, and why use such a festive color?" she asked tentatively.
After thinking it over, Shen Yunfang decided to reveal her plans to get married at the end of the year.
"What, you and your man have agreed on it?" Brother Dashuan’s wife was somewhat surprised, mainly because she thought Yunfang had just had some unpleasantness with her future in-laws—this could have endangered the marriage. She hadn’t expected that after a trip to the army, the two had settled on getting married.
"Yeah, it’s almost settled, sister-in-law, please don’t mention this to others yet," Shen Yunfang put down the paste she was holding and cautioned.
As nothing was finalized yet, it was better to keep a low profile.
"No need to tell me, I know," said Brother Dashuan’s wife as she smoothed out a piece of cloth and started to glue it on, "So how did you discuss with your man? Are you going to move to the Li Family after you get married? What will happen here?" Not to mention other things, what about those old chickens in Yunfang’s backyard—what to do with them? Take them to the in-laws? Who would they belong to then? If they were all slaughtered, it would be a pity, as next year those chickens would still be young and at a good age for laying eggs.
"Nothing needs to change; Li Hongjun and I have agreed to live here after marriage," Shen Yunfang said as she watched her sister-in-law paste another layer before applying more paste onto the cloth. The two women chatted while working on making shoes.
"What, isn’t that like marrying into the husband’s family in reverse? Does the old Li family agree?" This time, Brother Dashuan’s wife was genuinely surprised. In that era, unless a family was extremely poor, they would not let their son marry into the woman’s family in reverse—that would imply the man’s family had nothing to offer and that the man himself was incompetent. So any man with a bit of ambition wouldn’t do it.
"What’s there to agree or not agree with? The Li Family said if Li Hongjun marries me, they won’t recognize him anymore. Where I live afterward isn’t anyone’s concern." Seeing that she had stopped moving, Shen Yunfang took the piece of cloth from her hands and carefully spread it out.
She didn’t hide anything and repeated everything about the Li Family’s situation.
After listening to Shen Yunfang, Dashuan’s wife was so shocked she couldn’t close her mouth, and it was quite a while before she said, "This doesn’t seem easy to handle. The Li Family aren’t idiots. Li Hongjun has a salary every month, how could they let him live separately and on his own? They surely want to keep a hold of their daughter-in-law so their son’s money will eventually be theirs." Normally, if a family has someone on a government payroll, everyone in the family clings to them. Li Hongjun has to support his parents with the money he brings home, as well as aid his elder brother and pay for his younger siblings’ education.
"Who knows?" Yunfang was also aware of the difficulty, which is why she wanted Hongjun to think it over carefully.
Truth be told, if she hadn’t taken a liking to Li Hongjun himself, not even half an eyeball would be worth casting on his wreck of a family.
By the same token, if Li Hongjun hadn’t taken a fancy to her, he wouldn’t be causing a revolution with his family for her sake.
Dashuan’s wife couldn’t clearly say whether the Li Family was good or bad, "By all accounts, the Li Family’s circumstances are remarkable within ten miles around here. If you married into their family, I reckon life wouldn’t be too bad; at the very least, you wouldn’t worry about food or drink. But with your mother-in-law being so difficult, I’m afraid your future life wouldn’t be so peaceful. Also, I’ve heard that Li Family’s eldest daughter-in-law is quite the schemer, notoriously so around the neighboring villages. Once you marry in, you’d better watch out for the troubles between sisters-in-law."
Yunfang was unfazed, "I’ve already talked it over with Li Hongjun. Even if we get married, I’m not moving in with them. Li Hongjun will give them money for their old age, and they can divide it however they like. As for my own money, nobody from the Li Family had better even think about it."
Dashuan’s wife snorted, "Oh my, you’re still a young girl, thinking so simplistically. Living together involves all sorts of complications; it’s not as simple as you want it to be. Right now, whatever you say, the Li Family may agree to, but once you’re truly married, what will you do if your shameless mother-in-law constantly nags for things? If you refuse, she’ll just complain to your husband. Once or twice, he may side with you, but what if it’s frequent? He might start to think you’re the problem. Ah, these men, they’re all heartless. Before marriage, the wife is always right, but after marriage, it’s not so clear. Plus, with a stir-crazy mother-in-law and an eldest sister-in-law around, how can you guarantee your husband’s heart won’t change?" Dashuan’s wife had seen too many such cases at home, which was why when she was looking for a partner, her only requirement was a family with few members.
"Mmm, sister-in-law, you’re really right. Now that I think about it, I might as well just stay single. Living alone isn’t too bad," Yunfang said, nodding earnestly, impressed by the insightful analysis.
"Hey, hey, hey, you can’t think that way. I didn’t tell you all this to discourage you from getting married," Dashuan’s wife stopped her work, concerned. They say it’s better to destroy a temple than to break a marriage - how could she just say a few words and Yunfang is already considering not marrying.
"Haha, just kidding. This matter isn’t settled yet. Whether I marry or not will depend on the Li Family’s attitude. If Hongjun’s mother is still behaving like that, marrying would make no sense. But if Li Hongjun truly does what I’ve asked for, then I will marry," Yunfang spoke as she spread the paste and stuck the cloth, making a pair of shoes which was definitely not easy. Each layer, as they say, is literal--not an exaggeration at all.
"Well, I think the best solution is to split the household, everyone living their own life without interference or covetousness from the others," Dashuan’s wife sighed.
"That’s what I want too, but I guess the Li Family won’t agree," Yunfang said.
"That’s true, talking about it now is too early. When the time comes to get married, let your uncle have a good talk with them," Dashuan’s wife suggested, seeing Yunfang’s lack of enthusiasm, and let the topic drop.
