Three Springs
Yang Yanzhen had noticed Xingwang's unhappiness. But children are children, it's normal for them to have some emotions. The two brothers are blood relatives, give him some time, and he'll get used to his younger brother.
Ke Xingwang throws tantrums every day.
Yang Yanzhen didn't know what was wrong, but she didn't have time to investigate. She was too busy taking care of her child, her mother-in-law, and endless housework and farm work. She really couldn't understand why Xingwang, who used to be cheerful and happy all the time, would cause trouble outside without her finding him annoying. Why was he acting up at home now that she didn't care about him?
Everyone in the village has children this way. I've never seen any child like Xingwang, who hates his own brother. They are blood relatives and should support each other. They are a rural family and have no property to fight over. Why can't Xingwang tolerate his own brother?
When Yang Yanzhen was young, there were many children in her family. She was the second oldest and took care of her younger siblings as she grew up. Her parents were always busy and she rarely saw them. No one taught her how to compete for their affection, and no one told her how to handle such situations.
Even at this age, there are still many things she doesn't know how to do.
She grew up following in her parents' footsteps and acted in the same way they did, but when she arrived at Xingwang, she felt flustered for the first time.
So when Xingwang accused her of favoritism again, she didn't know how to face him.
That day, Xingda was sitting on the floor playing with a toy car. This toy was an old item that Yang Yanzhen found at home. It was a gift that Xingwang's father brought back for the New Year when Xingwang was a little younger. But at that time, Xingwang said that he was grown up and would not play with this kind of non-motorized car anymore, so the car was put away in the cabinet without even being unpacked.
Yang Yanzhen saw that the toy packaging box was still intact, and since Xingda was the perfect age to play with it, she took it out and let Xingda play with it.
However, when Xingwang returned, he exploded as soon as he saw the toy car. He snatched it from Xingda's hand, shouting that it was his toy, and accidentally pushed his younger brother over.
Yang Yanzhen was working in the kitchen when she heard Xingda's loud crying. She rushed into the main room and found little Xingda crying so hard he could barely breathe, while Xingwang stared fiercely at his younger brother with a flushed face.
This was certainly not the first time Xingwang had made his younger brother cry. Xingda was only nine months old, and Xingwang practically had to bully him to tears every day. Yang Yanzhen was furious: "Chen Xingwang, what are you doing now! You've made your brother cry again for no reason. You're brothers, why do you keep bullying your brother!"
Xingwang glared at her hatefully: "That's my toy car! Dad bought it for me!"
Yang Yanzhen was furious: "Didn't you say you'd grown up and wouldn't play with it anymore, so you just left it there? It's just lying there anyway. Just because you don't play with it doesn't mean your younger brother can't play with it too!!"
"No!!" Xingwang's eyes reddened. "Even if I don't play with it, it's still mine! It was given to me by Dad! It's mine!"
"..." Yang Yanzhen was at a loss. Although she didn't want to admit it, what Xingwang said was true, but Xingda didn't exist back then.
Often, adults are unwilling to show weakness or compromise in front of children, and Yang Yanzhen was no exception. She could only take a deep breath and say the sentence that all parents say: "Can't you let your younger brother play for a while? You are the older brother, the big brother, and your younger brother is the little brother. Can't you let him have his way? As the older brother, you have to give way to your younger brother!"
It would have been better if he hadn't said that; saying it only made Xingwang angrier. He stiffened his neck and roared, "Why should the older brother give way to the younger one? Who decided that?! You're being biased! I won't let him play, even if he falls, I still won't let him play!"
After saying that, Xingwang lifted the car up and slammed it hard onto the ground.
Yang Yanzhen was dumbfounded.
Rather than being shocked by Xingwang's actions, Yang Yanzhen was more deeply moved by what Xingwang said.
The older one... isn't it supposed to take care of the younger one and give way to them? Why should they? Because the older one is older... but that's not something the older one can decide...
Yang Yanzhen didn't know why. Her parents said it, the villagers said it, everyone said it, so it must be right, right? But Xingwang didn't think it was right. He was angry and aggrieved. He asked why.
But no one told Yang Yanzhen, and Yang Yanzhen couldn't give Xingwang an answer either.
That day, after Xingwang smashed his toys, he locked himself in his room again. Yang Yanzhen coaxed him for a long time before he calmed down. His mother-in-law heard the commotion from the inner room and asked Yang Yanzhen what was going on. Yang Yanzhen told her, but his mother-in-law spat out, "Xingwang is getting more and more disobedient as he gets older. As the older brother, it's one thing if he doesn't take care of his younger brother, but why does he always argue with him?"
Look, everyone's talking about the theory that "the older one should give way to the younger one." Yang Yanzhen wanted to ask her mother-in-law why the older one always has to give way, but she opened her mouth and then fell silent.
That evening, when she called her husband, she asked him to send back a trendy toy for a child Xingwang's age. Her husband was surprised: "Why do you need a gift when it's not a holiday?"
Yang Yanzhen opened her mouth again, but only said, "You only bought gifts for Xingda when he was born, but Xingwang got nothing. He's a little jealous."
Chen Dehong probably couldn't understand: "What's there to be jealous about? He's the older brother. If he's jealous over buying something for his younger brother, how will he take care of him in the future?"
Yang Yanzhen recalled Xingwang's bloodshot eyes and his resounding question. She didn't know how to tell her husband. Perhaps if she did, Chen Dehong would dismiss it, only blaming Xingwang for being ignorant, or he would simply tell her that Xingwang should be beaten up.
In traditional parenting, physical force is the simplest and most effective method. But Yang Yanzhen didn't understand. This was her child, the child she had carried for ten months and raised with her own hands and feet. Outsiders couldn't understand that feeling, not even her husband.
She couldn't bear to hit Xingwang over something like this. Xingwang hadn't done anything wrong; he was just wronged. Why should he be beaten for being wronged?
In the end, Yang Yanzhen simply said, "Xingwang is a thoughtful child."
The toys given to Xingwang were sent back, but Xingwang was still unhappy. He put the toys away and wouldn't let anyone touch them.
Yang Yanzhen was at a loss, but life had to go on. Xingda was still young and needed constant care. Her energy was limited, and she simply didn't have the capacity to pay much attention to Xingwang. Occasionally, she would get irritated by his temper—anyone gets impatient, and although she was a mother, she was still swayed by her emotions. Yang Yanzhen wasn't exactly a gentle woman. She had to take care of her whole family, and gentleness alone wouldn't be enough to survive in the village. Life would wear her down, and she reserved her patience only for her family. Of course, she wouldn't be able to hold back, and when she did, she would yell at Xingwang. After yelling, she would regret it, because Xingwang would become even angrier.
Sometimes she actually wanted to talk to Xingwang more, to let him tell her what was on his mind and what she should do to make him happy.
But Xingwang was like a perpetually angry little lion, never speaking properly and always prickly towards her. So much so that later, when Yang Yanzhen thought of Xingwang, she always pictured that stubborn, glaring, angry face.
The mother and son could no longer get along peacefully.
As Xingda grew up, so did Xingwang. After entering junior high school, he became increasingly rebellious. He no longer accused Yang Yanzhen of favoritism, but he still opposed Yang Yanzhen in every way. It was as if he hated everyone in the family.
During this period, when Chen Dehong returned home for the Chinese New Year, he would find that Xingwang was out of place in the family. The father was usually absent, and the son was even more unruly. He had scolded and hit him, but the situation only got worse. The relationship between father and son was very tense and they were at odds.
Their whole family was caught in a vicious cycle of emotions.
Things spiraled out of control over a small matter.
In fact, that day was just an ordinary evening, so ordinary that whenever Yang Yanzhen recalls it, she feels that it was no different from any other day in her life of several decades. She followed the routine of being a daughter, a wife, and a mother, thinking that she would watch her children grow up, and that she would become a mother-in-law, a grandmother, and even a great-grandmother, thus completing her ordinary life.
However, that day shattered the ordinariness of her life.
She remembered that she had made fish soup that afternoon. Xingda liked to eat fish, and if there was fresh fish at the market, Yang Yanzhen would buy it and make it for him. In fact, she often made fish soup for Xingda, usually at noon, but that day Xingda had eaten too much at noon, so he said he would save the fish soup for an afternoon snack.
In the afternoon, Yang Yanzhen heated up the fish soup and was about to give it to Xingda when Xingwang suddenly came in from outside. It was Thursday, so he had obviously skipped class. Yang Yanzhen was about to ask him something when Xingwang glanced at the bowl of fish soup and said he wanted some too.
A few small crucian carp were stewed into only one bowl of fish soup. No one else in their family ate fish except Xingda. Yang Yanzhen was used to making only one bowl, so she was stunned when she heard Xingwang's words. She forgot about his skipping class and just said, "There's only one bowl, don't fight with your brother."
Thus, an unprecedented argument erupted.
Xingwang, like a firecracker that had been lit, blurted out all the hurtful things he could think of: "Brother, brother, brother, all you ever think about is your brother! Do you even remember me? I'm your son too, I'm in this family too! If you like your brother so much, why did you even have me in the first place? And if you had me, why did you have your brother in the first place?!"
Yang Yanzhen didn't understand the logic, but she was saddened and angry when she heard these words. She scolded Xingwang: "How old are you? You're still so immature. You fight with your younger brother for food. People will laugh their heads off if they hear about it. Now you're skipping school. Chen Xingwang, what are you trying to do? Are you trying to drive me to my death?!"
Xingwang was furious: "I'll die! Fine! You're all family! Everyone'll be happy if I die! I'll die!"
After saying that, he grabbed the pesticide behind the gate and drank it all without hesitation.
In that instant, Yang Yanzhen's world shattered.
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