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Chapter 160: Chapter 154 Discussing the Division of the Family
Wang Dan peered through the window, only vaguely seeing her younger sister-in-law leave the yard before she sidled up to her mother-in-law and muttered.
"Mom, I think that IOU from the second sister-in-law is real. What do we do if she asks you to pay it back, Mom? How are we going to handle that?" Wang Dan looked genuinely worried.
"How dare she? She’s now a daughter-in-law of the Li Family; does she still have the nerve to ask me for money?" Qiu Shuping bellowed with false bravado.
"I think she’s pretty bold. You see how she was just now, with her eyes so wide like she was about to gobble us both up. If it really comes down to it, there’s no telling what she might do," Wang Dan fanned the flames.
Qiu Shuping fell silent.
"Mom, what are we going to do when the time comes? Goudan, Erdan, and Sandan are all still young. Hongxing is not capable, little uncle is still in school, and Xianghe is not even married yet." Wang Dan recycled the usual lines her mother-in-law would say, speaking as if it were all true and as if they were about to be pursued for debts. "Even if we sell the house, we can’t pay off five hundred yuan." no𝚟𝚙u𝚋.c𝚘m
"Then, what do you suggest we do? Should I have your second brother take care of her?" Qiu Shuping was also out of ideas. She didn’t have more than three hundred yuan in total, which was her nest egg for her old age.
At times like these, a mother-in-law’s tactic to deal with a disobedient daughter-in-law was to prod her son to beat the wife, as it was considered natural for a man to hit his wife.
"That won’t do. If we irritate her too much and she refuses to live with Hongjun, what then? If Hongjun has to find someone now, it’d be his second marriage, and with his leg like that..." She left the rest unsaid, letting Qiu Shuping ponder over it herself.
"Right, right, we still need her to look after Hongjun for now." Qiu Shuping also knew that if Shen Yunfang were to leave, the task of taking care of Li Hongjun would inevitably fall on her shoulders.
"Mom, the second sister-in-law doesn’t seem like the type to just quietly get on with life. Just like today she demanded money for pork, tomorrow she might ask for dragon meat! We can’t afford to keep her like that." Wang Dan said while observing her mother-in-law’s expression, seeing her grimace in pain before tentatively suggesting, "I think, with her being so troublesome at home, our life won’t be peaceful. Might as well split the family."
"That’s not possible, your brother is still in school, and your sister is not married yet... Besides, your father wouldn’t agree." Qiu Shuping sighed, having considered all this before, but when she had hinted at the idea to her husband, she was met with a slap across her face.
"Moreover, if Hongjun’s leg gets better later and he returns to the army, he can earn a salary." That way, she could continue to live a comfortable life.
"Mom, I’m going to speak some heartfelt words to you today. If you think I’m right, listen to me; if you think I’m wrong, just treat it as hot air," Wang Dan seemed somewhat reluctant.
"Bah, don’t talk nonsense. I know what kind of person you are. Just say what you have to say," Qiu Shuping urged her to get to the point.
"Alright, I’ll just say it, and I’m not trying to stir up trouble. Mom, I think the second sister-in-law has only been married into our family for two days, and she’s already caused nothing but chaos. It’s going to be tough expecting her to take care of you in the future; she doesn’t seem very filial." Wang Dan spoke while watching Qiu Shuping’s reaction.
Qiu Shuping turned up her nose dismissively, "I don’t count on her, as long as my second son is filial, that’s enough for me."
"The ’wife comes in, and the mom goes out’ isn’t exactly rare. Just look at how the second brother has been siding with the second sister-in-law these past few days. You might as well give up on that hope early," Wang Dan heaved a dramatic sigh. "And to say something unpleasant, with the second brother’s leg in its current condition, he can’t do anything and needs constant care. If he comes back home in the future, I and Hongxing will support him, no complaints, but if I and Hongxing have to support the second sister-in-law too, I really... I have three sons of my own."
"Even my younger sister-in-law says that my younger brother has to go to the hospital every week, true or false, let’s not get into that, just take the issue of seeing the doctor. It’s bound to be you, Mom, who has to fork out the cash. Each time she goes, you have to give her at least ten bucks. How much is actually spent at the hospital, who knows? If she comes back and claims it’s all gone, then it’s just a matter of running her mouth. Mom, I’m willing to support my younger brother wholeheartedly but having to slave away and treat my sister-in-law like royalty—that I truly can’t stomach."
"That’s why I’m saying it’s better to split the household. Then everyone will just take care of their own affairs. If my younger brother needs medical treatment, it’ll be my sister-in-law who has to pay. She was able to lend my brother five hundred bucks before, so she must have some money stashed away. Besides, the amount she’s fooled out of him over the past couple of years isn’t small either."
"Plus, once we’ve split, you’re still my younger brother’s real mom, and he and his wife will have to give you and Dad money for your old age. If my younger brother’s leg gets better and he starts earning a wage, giving you and Dad money is only right and proper. But if his leg doesn’t heal, then it’s up to my sister-in-law to cough up the cash." In short, splitting the household would be all to Grandma’s benefit with no disadvantage whatsoever.
Qiu Shuping was tempted.
"Dad just can’t wrap his head around this idea yet. You know what he’s like, don’t you? He cares more about face than anything. If you ask me, what’s the use of face? Living a good life is what really matters. Am I right, Mom?"
Shen Yunfang picked up the plate in one hand and the basket of eggs in the other and went home.
When she returned, it wasn’t like before when no one paid her any attention. As soon as she entered the courtyard, Wang Dan rushed over, "Oh, sister-in-law, you’ve worked hard. Here, let me take that, so you can rest for a bit." She said, and went ahead to snatch the basin from Shen Yunfang’s hands. Her eyes reddened when she saw the old chunks of meat in the basin.
"Alright then, sister-in-law, you’ve worked hard. I noticed that we’re running low on oil at home, so I bought a block of lard. After rendering it, I was thinking of frying some chunks of meat. We can divide that front pork belly in half—half for frying and half for making dumplings tomorrow night. And that piece with bone in it, sister-in-law, could you blanch it for me? I’ll stew it in a bit. Hongjun needs to drink some bone broth to get some strength back." Shen Yunfang declared as if it were a matter of course. The meat was bought by her, after all; how it was to be eaten was her call to make.
Wang Dan forced a smile and let out a couple of dry laughs before replying, "Sister-in-law, you’ve said so much, I just can’t remember it all. How about this—you go ahead and do the hard work first, and then you can rest."
Shen Yunfang snorted coldly, snatched the basin back from her, and first went to check on Li Hongjun. Seeing that everything was alright, she then headed to the kitchen to start cooking.
She had thought it through; keeping the meat just for her and her husband wasn’t practical. If others found out, it would cause gossip, claiming she was too selfish. Even if the elders were wrong, there’s no excuse for the younger ones to keep the best for themselves. So the meat had to be taken to the kitchen to cook.
She began by blanching the bone, then stewed it in cold water,
She didn’t let Wang Dan idle by either, tasking her with washing the pickled cabbage, slicing it into shreds. When Li Xianghe poked her head out, Shen Yunfang also roped her in to help with the work. Li Xianghe wasn’t too happy about it, but Shen Yunfang didn’t get angry. She just told her if she didn’t want to work, she should not open her mouth when it comes to eating because the meat was bought by her.
Li Xianghe went to complain to her mom, Qiu Shuping, who stood at the doorway and gave Shen Yunfang a thrashing with her words. Shen Yunfang wasn’t upset and replied with a smile, "Xianghe, how can you be so greedy? Do you know how much a pound of pork costs? Can you earn a pound of pork in a day? Here you are, so shameless, fussing about wanting to eat." She threw back the words that Qiu Shuping had hurled at her earlier.
"Mom, how about I make food for Hongjun first, and we can eat a little later? Don’t worry, I’ll definitely save some soup to nourish you and Dad." Aren’t you the ones who said you grew up without eating pork? Well, if you don’t want to work, then you’ll just have to make do with drinking soup.
Qiu Shuping skulked away in defeat, lacking the boldness that comes with contributing financially.
Afterward, Li Xianghe still came over, nagged by Qiu Shuping, and helped Shen Yunfang as an assistant. Shen Yunfang chopped two pounds of meat and told her to mince it. Li Xianghe took out her mood on the chopping, which was actually quite fitting for the task at hand.
