"At first, I was very good to those two girls, Chunhua and Jinhua, wasn't I?"
Chen Jianshe, it's all because of your mother. She said that the daughters I gave birth to were all a waste of money. After I gave birth to five daughters, all of your Chen family members despised me, and outsiders laughed at me.
I thought to myself, they're all my children. If others can scold my daughters like this, why can't I scold and beat them? I didn't abandon them.
Even if Fifth Sister was raised by my mother, my mother would not mistreat her. Besides, I was also raised by my mother, so why can't Fifth Sister? Is Fifth Sister more precious than me?
Ah… tell me? Chen Lao Er, tell me, what did I do wrong?
Now that old lady has passed away, why should I be sad? She never raised me. I'm not sad, I'm not upset at all..."
Li Yumei started by speaking calmly, but as she went on, she began to shout hysterically.
Her voice grew louder and louder, and the Chen siblings quickly noticed it. They stood outside and listened quietly, feeling somewhat at a loss.
Chen Xihua sighed inwardly, thinking that even the most hateful person has a pitiable side.
"Alright, alright, let's not be sad. We'll go back and pay our respects tomorrow. As long as we save face, that's fine." This was the first time Chen Lao Er had heard this. His wife had thrown tantrums and cried a few times before, but she had never lost control of her emotions like this.
He rarely held her tightly, as he had in his youth, offering comfort and words of encouragement.
The next morning at six o'clock, Chen Lao Er and Li Yu Mei set off back to Shanghe Village. They might stay at their old home in Shanghe Village for a night or two, and they also brought two changes of clothes.
This time, the two didn't ride a motorcycle; they went to the bus station to take a passenger bus. This winter is much colder than last year.
Around 9:30, Chen Lao Er and Li Yumei returned to Shanghe Village. When they arrived at Li Laotou's house, the mourning hall had not yet been set up in the main room, and Li Laotai was still in the room.
A group of villagers had already gathered at the entrance, whispering among themselves. They probably wanted to come and pay their respects or offer help, but no one had gone inside yet.
Old Li sat alone at the door, lost in thought, without any expression, while Li Dashun did not see anyone.
Li Yongmei and her husband, and Li Dongmei and her husband, had already arrived and were waiting in the courtyard.
Ye Zhen was in the kitchen, with her youngest daughter following behind her.
The other three grandsons of the Li family, the eldest of whom is fifteen years old, are playing a small game console in the yard, occasionally cursing out loud.
The two younger ones, around eleven or twelve years old, stood on either side of each other, all three seemingly oblivious to their surroundings.
Grandma Li accidentally fell out of bed in the middle of the night the day before yesterday and lay on the floor all night, freezing to death. Actually, she had been sick for several days because of the weather, and the night before yesterday was the coldest day.
It wasn't until eight or nine o'clock yesterday morning, when her daughter-in-law Ye Zhen brought food, that she realized she had intended to look for Li Dashun.
But he went out with his friends early yesterday morning and didn't come home last night. He didn't get home until five or six this morning, and went straight to bed. He still doesn't know that his mother has passed away.
"Li Dashun, get up quickly..." Ye Zhen saw more and more people at the courtyard gate, so she had no choice but to bite the bullet and call her husband. Normally she wouldn't dare to do that, because she would definitely be beaten and scolded.
Now everything has to wait for Li Dashun to step in and handle it, and he has to carry Old Lady Li out and put her in the main room.
According to the customs of Shanghe Village, no one else would help with this; the deceased is carried out by the son or grandson to set up the mourning hall. And Old Man Li's wife didn't have the strength to carry him.
The mourning hall was supposed to be set up yesterday, but there's been no movement since.
When Chen Lao Er and his wife saw this, he suddenly shivered, not knowing whether it was from the cold or something else.
He thought to himself: What's the use of having more sons if they're like this? If Xiao Bao were like this too, his real thought now would be to kick him out of the house. Anyway, his daughters are pretty good too.
Fortunately, it was Xiao Wu taking care of Xiao Bao. If it had been his own wife taking care of him, Xiao Bao might have ended up like those three grandsons from the Li family.
It's heartbreaking. Although he himself isn't a very filial person and sometimes makes trouble for his parents and older brother, he still has a conscience and wouldn't be this despicable.
Li Yumei's expression was a little unnatural, as if she had thought of something, but then she regained her composure, as if it were none of her business.
“What’s that howling…” Li Dashun’s angry voice came from that moment. He must have heard a lot of people talking in the yard. He groggily pushed open the door and came out. Ye Zhen immediately went over and said a few words, which instantly woke him up.
About an hour later, Li Dashun finally finished setting up the mourning hall and carried Old Lady Li to the main room.
The funeral for Old Lady Li lasted three days, and Mr. and Mrs. Chen stayed in Shanghe Village for two nights. On the last afternoon, when they were preparing to return to the county, Old Man Li started causing trouble.
"Yongmei, Dongmei, Yumei, the three of you, take turns caring for me in my old age. I don't want to stay at home anymore." Old Man Li's attitude was resolute, with a hint of despair and fear in his eyes.
When he learned that his wife had died of cold, Old Li was terrified. He finally realized that his son and daughter-in-law were unreliable, and that he too might starve or freeze to death if he wasn't careful.
“Father-in-law, you have a son and daughter-in-law, and I have parents too. I will not agree to this. Yongmei will come over in turn to take care of you. This is my biggest concession.” Li Yongmei’s husband was the first to refuse. Although he was an honest man, he was also very clear-headed and afraid that if he hesitated, his wife would agree.
“That’s right, father-in-law. I’ve never heard of you staying at your daughter’s house. Your son isn’t dead.” The second son-in-law chimed in, his disgust and hatred for his brother-in-law undisguised.
"You're the fucking dead." Li Dashun hadn't slept much for the past few days and was in a very bad mental state, though not because he was saddened by his mother's death. But as her son, he had to go to the mourning hall to keep vigil from time to time.
If he dares to slack off, many of the village elders are watching, and he will be condemned by the entire Li family. It will be difficult for him to gain a foothold in the village in the future.
"Third daughter, I know your family is relatively well-off. I'll go live with you in the county." Seeing that his two eldest sons-in-law were firmly against it, Old Man Li looked at Li Yumei.
Li Yumei didn't speak, since it was all men who had spoken before, so she turned her head to Chen Lao Er. Moreover, at this moment, her mood didn't fluctuate much, and she didn't feel sad or sympathetic just because he was her biological father. In fact, she felt that he deserved what he did.
“Uncle Li, what are you thinking? You’re just Yu Mei’s uncle, and you want to come and stay with us? Are you senile? It seems you don’t intend to accept the three hundred yuan of retirement money that my husband and I are giving you.”
Chen Lao Er had been barely holding back for the past three days. Li Dashun and his wife, along with their three sons, were truly despicable. The little girl was still young, so it wasn't clear yet. But he estimated that this whole family was no good, and once he got involved, there would be endless trouble. He would be crazy to agree to this arrangement.
At first, Li Dashun was in the mood to watch the show, thinking that it would be easier for his family if the old man went to stay with his sisters!
Moreover, it was he who reminded his father that now that his mother was gone, no one would pamper him anymore, and his father couldn't do anything anyway.
He'll need someone to take care of him in the future, and that will cost money. Where will he find the spare money to support his father in his old age? My mother used to say that if anything happens, we should go to our sisters.
But now he realized that none of his three brothers-in-law agreed, and his face immediately darkened. He was thinking of taking advantage of the fact that everyone in the village was still there to act tough and shameless.
However, Chen Lao Er knew how to act shamelessly. Without even glancing at Li Dashun, he grabbed Li Yumei and left. The other two sons-in-law quickly pulled their wives away as well.
Just as Li Dashun was about to slap his thigh and wail like his mother: "....."?
Don't my brothers-in-law have any pride?
Old Li sat down abruptly on the threshold. Already frail and old, he had no energy or spirit left.
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