Witty Wife, Better Life-Chapter 835 - 825: Drive People Away

After returning home, the conversation between Li Hongjun and his spouse and the Zheng Family women did not go very well, mainly because Zheng’s mother had become rather cunning and difficult to deal with, no longer maintaining at least a superficial appearance of being educated and reasonable.

When Zheng’s mother heard Shen Yunfang suggest that they find somewhere else to move out to and vacate the house for the old man Li to spend his old age in, she exploded. She began to curse and weep in the yard of the old house, cursing the Zheng father as Chen Shimei, cursing the Li Family as inhuman, cursing Li Hongqi for being incompetent—she cursed everything she could think of in turn. It seemed she still felt it wasn’t enough upheaval; she even called out Zheng Huilan, making her kneel on the ground with her to apologize to Shen Yunfang, this "second sister-in-law," begging her to give their "orphaned and widowed" selves a way to survive.

Her wailing and making a scene managed to attract most of the people from Taoshu Village. Seeing the large crowd gathering around, Zheng’s mother acted as if she were seized by a fit of madness, not just sitting on the ground crying but also kneeling to kowtow before Li Hongjun and his wife. The words she said were not even worth listening to; needless to say, there wasn’t a single good word among them.

Li Hongjun frowned as he watched the mother and daughter of the Zheng Family’s antics. Finally, he could no longer endure it and was prepared to go over and pull them up. What was this all about? Whose home was this really? How could the Zheng Family women speak such shameless and hypocritical words?

Shen Yunfang stood by, pulling her husband back. This kind of crying farce was not suitable for men to get involved in; if he went over to pull them up, and Zheng’s mother took a fall pretending to be hurt here and there, it would be impossible to clear things up. Besides, her husband was in military uniform and it was not appropriate for him to interact with such unreasonable people—it was better for her to handle it.

Li Hongjun understood his wife’s intentions. Looking at the mother and daughter in the yard, he realized it indeed was not appropriate for him to intervene, so he frowned and went inside the house to avoid the frustration of sight and mind.

Shen Yunfang herself stood at the doorway, with no need for pretenses, leisurely watching the Zheng family women make a scene. If you have the energy, then go ahead and make a noise. The Li family doesn’t have much, but what they do have is a spacious courtyard, big enough for the two of you to somersault and show off your acts.

Some onlookers felt that it was too much to bear and began to gossip that the Li Family was acting in bad faith. Even though Li Hongqi had gone inside, Zheng Huilan was still the Li Family’s daughter-in-law, and how could they be so heartless as to drive someone out like that?

Others added fuel to the fire, saying that the old couple of the Li Family no longer had anyone who could take charge—otherwise, how could it be possible for them to watch their younger daughter-in-law be tormented by the second daughter-in-law like this? Everyone in Taoshu Village knew the old couple had always favored their younger son.

Shen Yunfang wasn’t upset; as long as they didn’t stand in front of her pointing fingers and saying these things to her face, she could pretend she hadn’t heard a thing.

Eventually, the village chief and the eldest member of the Li Family were brought to the scene by someone who enjoyed watching the commotion. Only then did Shen Yunfang invite them into the yard to have a proper talk about the Zheng Family women’s situation.

The elder Li’s view was that they were all members of the Li Family, and they shouldn’t take things too far. After all, the third son of the Li Family was not at home at the moment, but eventually, he would return, and the brothers would have to get along. Isn’t there a saying, "Leave a line, and you will meet a better situation in the future"? Moreover, the old lady had just passed away, and if the second son’s family drove out the younger sister-in-law so soon, it would not look good to outsiders, damaging their reputation.

After a lot of rambling, Shen Yunfang could see that this was just someone trying to smooth things over. Fortunately, the village chief was a decent person; from the moment he arrived, he just stood there without saying a word, clearly indicating that although he was obliged to come, he did not show any favoritism towards the Zheng family women.

Shen Yunfang let the old man Li speak his mind, then she asked everyone a few questions, "My in-laws always loved the third son the most; everyone in our village knows that. When the family was divided, it was also said that after the old people passed away, the two rooms that were left would belong to the third son’s family. But now, the third son is not at home, and my father-in-law is paralyzed in bed. Someone will have to take care of his toileting in the future. Elder, do you think it’s appropriate for my young and beautiful sister-in-law to be the one to care for my father-in-law?"

"Why should my daughter have to serve the old man? Everyone is equally a son, you all have responsibilities too," Zheng’s mother, who had long stopped crying, stood by listening to the conversation.

"Old Master, just look at this, my father-in-law has just become paralyzed, and the daughter-in-law who promised to take care of the elderly is already showing such an attitude. How can we be at ease leaving the old man in her care?" Shen Yunfang turned directly to confront Zheng’s mother, "I know what you mean is that you don’t want to take care of the elderly. We won’t make it difficult for you, so we’ve already discussed it. From now on, my father-in-law will be looked after by my eldest brother and sister-in-law."

Zheng’s mother listened with some smugness. This worked out perfectly for her. Her daughter wouldn’t have to care for the elderly, and she would still get the old man’s inheritance.

"It was agreed when the family divided that you would take care of the elderly, so the old house would go to the third one. But now you’re not serving the elderly, and it’s the eldest brother and sister-in-law who are, so this house should rightfully be inherited by the eldest brother and sister-in-law. Old Master, am I right?" Shen Yunfang turned to ask the most respected elder in the Li Family village.

What could the old man say? Could he say she was wrong? He was already one foot in the grave, and if he disagreed in front of his children and grandchildren, who would take care of him in the future?

The Old Master nodded his head.

Zheng’s mother panicked, not expecting Shen Yunfang to be lying in wait for her.

"That won’t do. Even though Hongqi isn’t at home, our Huilan is Li Family’s bride through a proper marriage. It was all agreed upon when we married, and now if you go back on your word, that’s called wedding fraud. Does the Li Family still want to have any face? If you really go through with this, I’ll spread the word and let everyone know what kind of stuff the Li Family of Taoshu Village is made of. Let’s see if you’ll still be able to find good girls to marry into your village." Zheng’s mother threatened.

At this time, reputation was still very important. If a family in the clan had a scandal, the entire village’s reputation would be affected. Girls from other villages would investigate before coming in, and if there was a bad reputation, it would indeed be hard to find a bride.

"You also know that Zheng Huilan is a properly wedded daughter-in-law of the Li Family, so why, as the daughter-in-law of the third son of the Li Family, didn’t she show up even once during my mother-in-law’s funeral? As a daughter-in-law, she should have worn hemp and filial piety for the elderly, but during the whole funeral period, she just hid in the house and never came out. Not to mention keeping vigil for the old lady, she didn’t even help greet guests or cook. What use is such a daughter-in-law to the Li Family?" Shen Yunfang had effectively turned the tables on her.

Zheng Huilan turned red with embarrassment; she was really afraid, now being so misunderstood, she began to cry with a whimper.

The onlookers, who hadn’t seen the daughter-in-law of the third son of the Li Family these past few days and had been gossiping, now saw the second daughter-in-law bring the issue into the open, and many people started to join the outcry.

The thoughts of ordinary people were simple: raising sons to provide for their old age. They had been protected and pampered all along for what? It was all for when they were old and immobile, to have children by their side to take care of them for a few days, and when they were gone, to have someone to keep vigil and perform mourning rituals. Now that the daughter-in-law of the Li Family’s third son hadn’t done any of this, no matter the reasons, it would be disheartening to people.

Shen Yunfang spoke facts and logic to everyone, and in the course of an afternoon, most of the onlookers took her side, condemning the Zheng mother and daughter as heartless.

Afterward, Shen Yunfang concluded that the two old houses of the Li Family should be left to the children who really could take care of the elderly. Since the third couple couldn’t, it should go to those who could.

They had three days to move out. If they hadn’t moved by then, she wouldn’t mind giving them a hand.