The Evil Mother-in-law: Torment Children, Work Hard, Be Rich!-Chapter 129: Refusing to Be the Family’s Scapegoat
In the past, during the wheat harvest at home, it was always Gu Dahuan and Chen Sufen who did the work.
The rest of the family also worked, but it wasn’t for their own farm; they were sent by Tong Huaqiong to her mother’s family to harvest their wheat.
This year, Tong Huaqiong came down to the field with a few bad bamboos, reducing the burden on Gu Dahuan and Chen Sufen while also speeding up the wheat harvest.
Tong Huaqiong had been home for two days, and the family’s wheat was nearly all harvested. The harvested wheat was spread out in the threshing field, waiting to be threshed and dried before being stored.
After two days, Tong Huaqiong was so tired that her waist ached and her legs hurt.
Farming is truly exhausting, especially in times lacking modern tools, when it is exhausting upon exhausting.
Tong Huaqiong lay slouched on a lounge chair, with Yaozu and Man Er kneading her back and legs on each side, their small fists bringing both soreness and relief. Tong Huaqiong lamented that if she could return to her era, she would suggest anyone romanticizing pastoral life before the new rural construction to do a few days of farming first.
She was only exhausted from harvesting wheat and hadn’t even gone to the threshing field to push and pull the stone roller to thresh the wheat yet.
She is the "old" ancestor of the house; she has the right to rest.
Others, however, have to work non-stop.
For instance, Gu Dahuan had been soaking in the threshing field, his face and neck peeling from the sun.
In any era, within our community, farm work is never easy, and farmers are always very hard-working.
Tong Huaqiong was calculating in her mind; in the future, as the family’s land increased, she would either rent it out or hire people to work it.
"Mom, Uncle Tong sent a message through someone,"
Gu Dashu came back from the threshing field to eat and brought news from the Tong Family to Tong Huaqiong.
In fact, Tong Huaqiong didn’t want to know any news about the Tong Family. She wasn’t Tong Dajiao; the Tong Family wasn’t her own family.
She didn’t want to become like Tong Dajiao, becoming a blood-pouch for the Tong Family.
Seeing the old mother silent, Gu Dashu continued, "Uncle sent someone to ask us to go to Black Dragon Village tomorrow, saying family needs manpower to harvest wheat."
Black Dragon Village is the village where the Tong Family is located.
This village doesn’t belong to Yan Guan Town; reaching Qinghe Bay requires crossing two mountains, and it’s not easy to make a trip.
Tong Huaqiong sneered; during previous wheat harvest seasons, without needing the Tong Family to push, Tong Dajiao would send Gu Dashu and Gu Dahuan to work for the Tong Family, only getting to their own work after finishing the Tong Family’s.
Tong Dajiao would also go help with cooking.
Not only that, she would even bring her own food grain to her mother’s home.
This year, no one from the Gu Family went, so the Tong Family became uneasy and started sending messages for help.
What Gu Dashu didn’t say was that the words from the uncle through others were harsh to hear; he had refined and summarized them into pleasant words for fear his mother would be disheartened upon hearing them.
"Just because he sent someone, are we supposed to go? Are all the Tong Family members dead? Do they still need us to help with wheat harvest? Not going!" said Tong Huaqiong.
"Then if we don’t go, how will we visit relatives at the Tong Family in the future?" Gu Dashu asked.
"Then we just won’t visit," Tong Huaqiong said decisively.
The last time Tong Huaqiong made Chen Sufen cut ties with the Chen Family, she also expressed she would cut ties with the Tong Family herself.
After Gu Dashu heard, he thought Tong Huaqiong was just saying it in anger, but now it seems she meant it genuinely.
Before, Gu Dashu couldn’t understand why his old mother would arrogantly dominate at home, always wanting the upper hand whether right or not, but at the Tong Family, she would tuck her tail between her legs. All good things from home were transported to the Tong Family, and she would involve herself in all their matters, chasing after them to work at the Tong Family during busy farming seasons.
She treated Uncle Tong like a revered father.
Uncle Tong, despite his age, had studied his whole life but remained merely a child student, stubbornly considering himself a scholar, not doing anything, and even now spends his days lamenting his ill fate inside and outside the house.
No matter how much his old mother sacrificed for the Tong Family, she never received a word of gratitude.
According to Gu Dashu’s thinking, they should have cut ties with the Tong Family long ago, even in ancient times.
He once suggested it to Tong Dajiao, but before he finished speaking, Tong Dajiao started throwing a tantrum, calling him unfilial.
He was helpless too!
Now his old mother finally awakened, how could Gu Dashu not be happy?
"Mom, you finally came to your senses. Not to say, but judging by how you used to be with the Tong Family, it seemed like you were willing to hand the family store over to them," Gu Dashu said to Tong Huaqiong.
"You’re talking nonsense! I’m not that stupid," Tong Huaqiong cursed.
The one who would do such a stupid thing was Tong Dajiao, not her, Tong Huaqiong.
Gu Dashu, after getting scolded by Tong Huaqiong, grinned and went to the kitchen to eat.
It doesn’t matter if she scolds him, as long as he doesn’t have to go to Black Dragon Village to help the Tong Family work or watch Uncle’s face.
The eldest brother Tong Fusheng, whom Tong Huaqiong decided to cut ties with, was cursing at Tong Dajiao in distress; the whole village’s wheat was harvested except the Tong Family’s, which wasn’t. If a rain came, the whole family would be left to drink northwest wind (have nothing to eat)!
"Your sister is really something; she knows wheat won’t wait. It’s already this late, and she hasn’t come to harvest our wheat," Tong Dajiao’s sister-in-law, Mrs. Wang, joined in cursing.
"Don’t worry, I’ve already sent a message to Qinghe Bay. Dashu and them will definitely come tomorrow," Tong Fusheng said confidently.
He knew his sister well; something must have held her up. Otherwise, she would have come to Black Dragon Village by now.
However, even if something did hold her up, when they arrived tomorrow, he’d scold her.
What on earth could delay his family’s wheat harvest?
"Dad, Mom, I heard people say Aunt is doing business in Yan Guan Town, selling some pastries," Tong Dajiao’s nephew, Tong Zhijie, said. "Could it be she made some money and started disrespecting our family?"
Mrs. Wang pursed her lips, saying, "What kind of business could she do? She doesn’t have that ability."
"Even if your aunt does business and sells pastries, the money she makes should be given to our family," Tong Fusheng replied.
Mrs. Wang thought for a moment and asked Tong Fusheng, "Did you send word to your sister to bring some chicken, duck, fish, or meat for Zhijie to nourish himself?"
Tong Fusheng nodded, "I sent the word. Don’t worry; my sister will definitely bring some meat and dishes tomorrow."
Mrs. Wang and Tong Zhijie smiled.
The Tong Family is destined to be disappointed, as Tong Dajiao changed from her core to her brain, becoming a different person.
Even if they waited until the wheat sprouted in the field, Tong Huaqiong wouldn’t appear at the Tong Family.
...
By evening, Tong Huaqiong went to the threshing field.
She didn’t go there to work but to flaunt her power.
What a coincidence, as if it were fate; the Gu Family had one mu of land adjacent to Yan Pozi’s land, and now the space in the threshing field was also next to Yan Pozi.
No doubt, after failing twice at the hands of Tong Huaqiong, plus losing the extra two feet of land planted with wheat in spring, Yan Pozi’s family was definitely thinking of ways to retaliate.
The main workforce at the family’s threshing field was Gu Dahuan.
Gu Dahuan was known for being honest, and Tong Huaqiong was worried that in a few days when the other bad bamboos followed her to town, Yan Pozi and her gang would plot against Gu Dahuan.
Tong Huaqiong arrived at the threshing field and saw Gu Dahuan with Gu Dashu and Jingzhe using the stone roller to thresh the wheat.
This is hard labor; the three brothers were sweating profusely.
Especially Jingzhe; in his life, he had never done this kind of work before.
"Third brother, go take a break; you’ve worked for a long time," said Gu Dahuan to Jingzhe.
Recently, not only has Jingzhe worked diligently, but he also showed great respect for Gu Dahuan as his eldest brother. Although the grudge Gu Dahuan held against Jingzhe for nearly selling his daughter hasn’t disappeared, it has lessened.
His attitude towards Jingzhe gradually returned to the elder brotherly way.
"No, I can still work," Jingzhe said, wiping his sweat.
Tong Huaqiong watched the harmonious scene between Gu Dahuan and Jingzhe and felt complicated inside.
In all honesty, if she were Gu Dahuan, knowing her own daughter was almost sold, she certainly wouldn’t forgive Jingzhe.
But society nowadays isn’t like in the future where brothers can sever ties without affecting life; here, the entire community fights against the outside world as clans and families, and if the Gu brothers fractured, it would inevitably affect the family’s progress.
She could only press Jingzhe to do his utmost to compensate the first house.
She didn’t want the rift between brothers to widen.
Tong Huaqiong refocused on her purpose for coming to the threshing field, scanning around and indeed spotting Yan Pozi’s family.
