Aunt Wei cried all the way, her cries echoing through half the village. When Captain Wu and Li Yuanzhao arrived, they were followed by several old women and two heavily pregnant women who looked like they were about to give birth. These were all people who couldn't work and had to stay at home.
"Captain, you have to stand up for my sister-in-law. My sister-in-law has been widowed for a long time, and her life has been so hard. She's so old, and she still has to suffer from her daughter-in-law's temper. I can't stand it." Aunt Wei looked quite heartbroken as she cried. Song Yan wondered why she didn't become an actress.
Captain Wu was thoroughly fed up with people like this. But he was the captain, and he had to deal with things. "Patriotic wife, your aunt said you're disrespectful to your mother-in-law and even talked back to her, is that right?"
"Let's go inside and talk!" Song Yan invited everyone inside.
Aunt Wei had no idea how things had gotten to this point. Her family was perfectly fine; she didn't need to go to the brigade leader!
“Mother, the brigade leader came today. In front of him, I asked you: Since you injured your leg, I have done the laundry, cooked, cleaned your bedpan, and taken care of the children. Have I ever complained?”
"No."
"To help your leg injury heal faster, I go fishing every few days and cook it for you, right?"
"yes."
Do I respect you when I talk to you?
"Song Yan has a good temper. He never loses his temper."
“Captain, I’ve gone to such lengths, how can I be considered unfilial? Then I really don’t know what filial piety is.” Song Yan looked at Aunt Wei calmly.
Some of the older women started whispering among themselves. "Don't let Song Zhiqing's background as a city girl fool you. Look how good she is to her mother-in-law; she's never looked down on her rural mother-in-law."
“That’s not how it is at all. Your mother-in-law asked you to give me some noodles, but you refused no matter what,” Aunt Wei said matter-of-factly.
"I really can't give that to you," Song Yan replied slowly.
“My grandson isn’t feeling well and wants to eat something nice. His mother-in-law agreed, but she didn’t. Is there any daughter-in-law who doesn’t listen to her mother-in-law? Is this what you call filial piety?” Aunt Wei’s finger was practically poking Song Yan’s face.
Everyone looked at Aunt Wei with expressions of sudden realization. So, Aunt Wei had wanted flour but hadn't gotten it!
"Just give her a bowl of plain noodles." The captain didn't want to listen to this old woman's nonsense.
"I never imagined you'd throw away your dignity for a bowl of noodles," Song Yan said, heartbroken.
“Listen to this, everyone! Is this how you talk to your elders?” Aunt Wei immediately saw the logic in it.
Li Yuanzhao also showed disapproval on her face. Because Aunt Wei was such a shameless shrew, there was nothing you could do about her.
"You want everyone to judge, and I want everyone to judge for me. Five jin of flour. I made dumplings a few days ago. There were only five jin of flour in total. After eating the dumplings, how much could be left over?"
"Wei Ping, Wei An, have you eaten steamed cake yet? Was it delicious?" Song Yan asked.
The two children answered together, "We ate steamed rice cake! Steamed rice cake is so delicious!"
"Are the vegetable dumplings my second aunt makes tastier than before?"
"Delicious. My second aunt's vegetable dumplings are so good."
"Can you make steamed cake with just cornmeal? Of course I made it with wheat flour. The vegetable dumplings are especially delicious because I added wheat flour." Song Yan smiled, implying that he had eaten the wheat flour.
"You're talking nonsense, that's impossible. How could you have finished all the noodles?" Upon hearing that the noodles were all gone, Aunt Wei regretted arriving so late.
“It’s hot, and noodles are prone to getting infested with bugs. Why would I leave something good to grow bugs in? Look at her, everyone, she’s asking me for something she doesn’t have. What am I supposed to give her?” Song Yan’s voice was soft, like she was chatting casually, which made her more convincing.
“You’ve hidden everything. And then you say you don’t have any? I can still search your house. No noodles? Fine, just give me one of the fish you caught.” Aunt Wei was about to completely back down.
“Captain, I also have a suggestion.” Song Yan’s words made Captain Wu’s heart jump. He didn’t think Song Yan was easy to bully. “Respecting the elderly is a fine tradition of our nation, but we cannot inherit the dregs of feudal society that oppressed women. Aunt Wei told me that her mother-in-law was manipulating her daughter-in-law. Isn’t that blatant oppression of women? Also, we’re out of flour. Everyone, see if she won’t give up until she gets some. Does she expect me to be sold to her for flour? She’s even more ruthless than a landlord. And then there’s the fish. Everyone says to respect the elderly and care for the young, but shouldn’t we respect the elderly first and care for the young later? My mother-in-law’s legs are like that, I should be filial to her! I can’t be unfilial to my mother-in-law and be filial to my grandson! This logic doesn’t make sense anywhere! Captain, do you think I’m wrong? Shouldn’t this kind of person be educated? Otherwise, he’ll corrupt the atmosphere of our village.”
“Song Zhiqing is right. Landlords and rich people exploit the poor, and they wish they could drive them to their deaths. That’s exactly what Aunt Wei is doing now. Aunt Wei’s grandson has parents, yet she goes to her sister-in-law’s house to forcibly take food. This is no different from bandits. In the new society, everyone is equal, and we cannot exploit or plunder. We must overthrow all feudal ideas that oppress the people. I don’t think we should advocate for mothers-in-law to oppress their daughters-in-law. That’s feudal thinking. This kind of behavior should absolutely not be encouraged. I support Song Zhiqing’s proposal; such people should be educated.” Li Yuanzhao supported Song Yan.
The brigade leader looked at Aunt Wei, wondering why the old lady was acting so recklessly. He'd known Song Yan's sharp tongue was formidable ever since he'd seen his draft that day. Today, the brigade leader hadn't let Li Yuanzhao work, precisely so he could have him write his speech. If those two clashed, she'd be finished. "Wei Dazhuang's mother, she went to a relative's house trying to extort money, and she's spreading feudal ideas, even advocating for a mother-in-law to oppress her daughter-in-law. She needs to be educated. Next time we have a political education conference, give her a good talking-to." The brigade leader's words sealed the deal. Then he left with Li Yuanzhao; he still had his draft to finish.
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
