Chapter 8: The Wife is a Little Black Rabbit
Yang's second son's sheep had made a mess everywhere on the street, and Yu Jingting was walking haphazardly without looking.
"Watch your step!" Suizi, afraid he would "step on a landmine," reached out to hold his hand.
Wang Cuihua saw them holding hands and couldn't close her mouth.
In the morning, Suizi was still wiping her tears, but in the afternoon, they were hand in hand, laughing and joking?
"Fourth Aunt, what are you looking at?" Yang's second son asked.
Staring hard at the air, her eyes were blank, which was too scary! What was she seeing with that expression!!!
The young couple had been blocked by the woodpile from Yang's second son's point of view. All he saw was air.
Wang Cuihua took advantage of Yang's second son not paying attention and quickly glanced at the chicken coop.
Calculating with her fingers, she pointed in the direction of the chicken nest and said:
"The old sage said there are two unclean ones there. Bring them to me!"
Yang's second son stumbled up to the chicken nest and took a look, scared out of his wits.
"Are there two eggs?" Could it be that they were possessed by something, so Fourth Aunt said they were not clean?!
"Give these two to me, the next ones laid will be normal."
Yang's second son was full of admiration.
"Fourth Aunt really is amazing, knowing there are two unclean ones without even looking at the chicken coop. The old sage says it and it happens - didn't he just say he was leaving?"
Wang Cuihua was holding two eggs, thinking to herself. Covered in chicken droppings and dirt, weren't they unclean?
She would boil one for her daughter-in-law and steam one for her maiden, just enough.
Wang Cuihua observed the young couple's surreptitious behavior. Were they going to see the village chief to get a divorce? No, she'd better follow and watch.
As soon as the village chief finished roasting his potatoes and poured the liquor, before he could take a sip, Yu Jingting burst in like a bandit, grabbed him without a word, and dragged him out the back door.
Anyone who didn't know would think they were fleeing famine.
"Sir, haven't you eaten yet?"
"I'd barely roasted a potato when you two barged in."
"I'll bring you corn cakes tonight. My mother taught me how to make them."
The village chief's expression changed.
Years ago, when the village was going through a grain shortage, he was close to starvation. It was Suizi's mother who gave him two corn cakes, and that's how he survived.
The village chief wasn't stupid; hearing Suizi mention corn cakes he guessed she was asking for a favor.
"Suizi, did Tiegen bully you?" The village chief kicked Yu Jingting. "Suizi is a good girl, I won't accept you bullying her!"
"He's been very good to me, it's just that some people can't stand to see us happy..."
Suizi explained the whole situation, and the village chief was left scratching his head.
"Sir, I'll help you talk it out, but don't get your hopes up too high. Your stepmother's mouth... she could bring the dead to life with her words."
Suizi had expected this would be the case.
In the village, when there is a dispute, instead of calling the police, people ask for mediation from those who are respected and venerable.
As they are so close to the village chief, bypassing him to go to the police would not be proper in the future, the necessary courtesies must be observed.
The village chief was a decent man, though a bit slick. He likes to stand aloof from worldly affairs and wasn't too keen on getting involved in this matter.
"Sir, my father beats me every time he sees me. I'm pregnant and don't dare to go inside. He even smashed the glass."
Yu Jingting's eyes widened, his docile wife was capable of lying with a straight face! She wasn't a little white rabbit, she was a little black rabbit!
"What do you want me to do about it?"
"Can you pass a message for me? Tell those two heartless women, if they want this matter settled, Lamei's labor points for this year will be counted as mine, and half of Wang Fenfang's labor points will be given to my mother-in-law."
The village chief gasped. She dares to say that!
"Suizi, aren't you asking for a bit too much?"
According to Suizi's demand, the Chen Family would be barely making ends meet, living on watery gruel, with nothing to spare!
"She almost killed our baby, there's nothing wrong with making demands!" Yu Jingting interrupted.
"Why did she act so viciously toward you? I remember you two got along just fine before?"
Suizi glanced at Yu Jingting and sidled over to the village chief, murmuring in low tones.
Yu Jingting felt curious and wanted to eavesdrop, but Suizi silently mouthed: Go to the loft!
Turning around, Yu Jingting kicked a stone, playing by himself. If they didn't want him to hear, so be it. Big deal!
He had to make it up to the loft, even if the King of Heaven tried to stop him!
"What?! That's outrageous!" The village chief raised his voice, emotions surging, "Is everything you said true?"
"Would I lie? You can ask your son when you go home."
"I will confront them. We should have never allowed mother and daughter into our village. They've brought nothing but trouble!"
The village chief paced briskly towards the Chen family's house.
"Wife, what did you say to him that got him so worked up?" Yu Jingting wondered.
The village chief had initially intended to mediate, but Suizi's whispered words changed his attitude.
"It's a secret! I'll tell you when you behave." Suizi walked towards her parents' house.
Her demands for grains were false pretenses. She wanted to make Lun Lamei unwelcome in Yang village.
Yu Jingting followed her, hopping along.
"Can't you just tell me? Don't walk so fast, watch your step or you'll trip and hurt our son!"
"Always going on about 'our son', do you favor boys?" Suizi stopped.
"Didn't you also wish for a son when you were in the hospital?"
"That was just to bait you, and you fell for it."
Yu Jingting was gasping for breath, this woman was unreasonable! Whatever she said was fine, but he couldn't say anything?!
"It's fine if we have a girl, we can have another child after the first. Two children would be lively."
"What if we have another daughter? What, you think I can't have sons? I can step aside so you can remarry someone who can. Here, take this. There are plenty of women in the village, use this money to pick one who guarantees you a son."
Suizi pulled out two hundred yuan and shoved it into his hand.
Yu Jingting was stunned, his scalp felt numb.
He had always been bragging at the village entrance about his wife being pregnant with a son, just repeating what he heard others say. It was just a form of address, no other meaning behind it. Why was his wife so offended?
A gust of cold wind swept past the nape of his neck, followed by a black cloth shoe whizzing past his head.
This feeling was too familiar - he had been beaten like this since he was a kid. He didn't even need to look back to know that it was his mother.
Wang Cuihua hopped over on one foot, grabbing Suizi's hand while kicking Yu Jingting with her unshod foot.
"I heard everything back there. What's wrong, trying to pull off the Emperor's stunt without the Emperor's command? No son, no good?"
"No, not at all!!!" Yu Jingting felt wrongly accused, that was not what he meant at all!
Tomorrow, he would give those men at the village entrance who kept on calling their unborn children sons a piece of his mind. They were the ones who started this and got him in trouble!
"Suizi, your mother-in-law is backing you up. If he dares to mumble any more nonsense, hit him! If you can't do it, call me to do the job!"
Wang Cuihua hopped about, picking up her shoe.
Yu Jingting glared at Suizi. Well, she knew how to tattle, huh?
He couldn't see his mother from his angle, but Suizi certainly could from hers. This was clearly intended to have his mother scold him!
Suizi pouted her lips. Yu Jingting noticed her pink plump lips, licked the corner of his mouth, wished his mother wasn't present, he'd plant a kiss right there!
"You should be thanking your stars for marrying Suizi, and you still dare to be picky? Sons and daughters are the same. Old Zhao's two sons let their father starve to death! Old Wang's four daughters are filial, who wouldn't envy that? What you get in life is what's destined for you, understand?"
Suizi looked gratefully at her mother-in-law. It wasn't common to find a mother-in-law with such progressive beliefs in these times.
"I have nothing against having a daughter—ah, forget it, I can't explain." Yu Jingting slapped himself in frustration, "From now on, I'll be happy even if Suizi gives birth to an egg."
"Are you slapping mosquitoes there? Slap harder! Swell up that handsome face that upset your wife!"
Having scolded her son, Wang Cuihua bent down and noticed the two hundred yuan in his hand.
"Huh?"