Chapter 33 My Daughter is My Own (Part 3): A Guide to Pampering My Wife and Daughter...
As evening fell, Song Ce and Liang Qiulan carried Song Rou to Song's parents' courtyard. Song's mother was serving dishes in the kitchen when she heard the noise at the gate. She peeked out and saw her son and wife. She greeted them.
"You're here?"
To Song's mother's surprise, Liang Qiulan placed the child in Song Ce's arms, strode over, and looked at her with bright eyes, saying, "Mom, is there anything else that hasn't been finished? Let me help!"
Seeing her daughter-in-law's enthusiasm, Song's mother didn't know what to say, so she said, "Peel half a head of garlic, you can use it to stir-fry later."
"Why!"
Seeing that Liang Qiulan wasn't working silently as usual, but instead struck up a conversation with her, she said, "Mom, what are you doing? It smells so good."
Upon hearing this, Song's mother was somewhat surprised. She looked closely at Liang Qiulan's face and saw that the sorrow and grievance on her face had vanished, replaced by a smile, and she looked much more cheerful.
Thinking of what her son had said to the elderly couple, Song's mother's expression softened: "I slaughtered the chickens at home today. We haven't had meat in a long time. It's getting cold, so we need to fatten ourselves up a bit."
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law worked in the kitchen for half an hour, and all the dishes they prepared were served on the table.
After setting the food on the table, Song Ce looked at the dishes and placed a chicken leg in his mother's bowl.
"Mom, you've worked so hard these past few days, have some meat," Song Ce said gently.
"Okay, okay, Mom will eat." Song's mother ate the piece of chicken with a touched expression. She felt that her life was really not bad. Although her husband was a bit proud, he listened to her. Her son was grown up and considerate. She had married a daughter-in-law who was easy to take care of. Although their first child was a granddaughter, they were still young and had a long life ahead of them.
Thinking this, Song's mother comforted Liang Qiulan: "Qiulan, don't take what the villagers are saying to heart. Only they know what their lives are like. Don't worry, if I hear those gossips again, I'll make sure to scold them back."
"Alright, why are you still talking about this while we're eating? People can say whatever they want, we can't stop them. Eventually, no one will say it anymore. Stop thinking about these upsetting things."
"Nobody said anything!" Song's mother raised her eyebrows. "Old Song, think about the old Ma family in the west of the village. Didn't his aunt's affair cause the villagers to gossip about it her whole lives? Raising a daughter for someone else only to raise an ungrateful wretch! So how can we keep quiet about this? Who knows what kind of rumors will spread! The villagers might not say anything to your face, but do you know what they'll say behind your back? They just think you're a stupid old man!"
Before Song's father could speak, Song's mother continued, "Think about the electrician's family again. That girl ran off to the south with someone while heavily pregnant. Isn't that shameful? The electrician's family didn't care, but people in other villages more than ten miles away from us are gossiping! They're spreading rumors with all sorts of details! What do you have that Old Ma's family has more of than the electrician's family? Why wouldn't people gossip about your family? How naive you are!"
Seeing that Mrs. Song was getting angrier and angrier, Mr. Song wisely shut up and ate his meal. And so, dinner ended with the family chatting.
While washing the dishes, Song's mother and Liang Qiulan grew much closer under Song Ce's deliberate guidance. After her son and daughter-in-law left with the child, Song's mother took out some yarn and started knitting a sweater while muttering to Song's father, "Old man, I think they're just taking advantage of our son and daughter-in-law's youth and ignorance. Look at our son, he's educated and has a thin skin, how can he possibly compete with those burly villagers? They're just bullies who prey on the weak! They've even come to bully my son!"
Looking at his wife, who was muttering angrily, Mr. Song felt less upset. Instead, he comforted her, saying, "Our son has been spoiled by us. It's good for him to experience some things. Just you wait and see, once this is over, our son will be much more sensible."
After all, in the eyes of Song's father, who had been a farmer all his life, a person, especially a man, is like a kitchen knife; only by sharpening it on a stone can it become sharper and sharper.
After Song Ce and Liang Qiulan returned to their small courtyard, Liang Qiulan carried Song Rou in one arm and rubbed her lower back with the other hand, looking tired. Seeing this, Song Ce took Song Rou and said with a smile, "Lanlan, you've worked hard these past few days. You should rest at home for a while. I'll take Rou Rou out for a walk."
Liang Qiulan was somewhat tempted by his words, but looking at Song Ce's gentle profile, she hesitated and said, "Brother Ce, it's not that I don't want you to take Rou Rou out, it's just that there's been a lot of talk about it these past few days..."
"Lanlan," Song Ce gently interrupted Liang Qiulan, "the more you worry about something and the more silent you become, the more people around you will think that if you have nothing to hide, why would you remain silent? They will then believe the rumors to be true."
Liang Qiulan lowered her head and softly hummed in agreement.
Song Ce smiled and patted Liang Qiulan's head: "Lanlan, get some rest."
At this moment, Song Rou didn't understand anything. She could only open her mouth and babble, laughing. When Song Ce saw Song Rou's little face, he couldn't help but think of his first child: Song Jinyao.
Jin Yao was Princess Ping Le in the Dali Dynasty, so he personally pampered Rou Rou like a little princess.
Holding the fragrant and soft Song Rou in his arms, Song Ce went straight to the place where the villagers gathered to chat and gossip after dinner: the entrance of the village committee.
To be honest, the villagers rarely saw Song Ce and his wife come here because they were both shy and introverted. So the reason why the rumors were spreading was also related to their gentle nature.
Aunt Song was also in the crowd. When she saw her college-educated nephew coming over, she quickly raised her hand and called out, "Ce boy! Come here!"
Song Ce walked over as instructed, smiling as he said, "Third Aunt, you've finished eating so quickly! My brother Xiao Zheng is going to be in the third year of junior high school, right? I've been organizing all my extracurricular tutoring books and was thinking of sending them to Xiao Zheng tomorrow. It's such a coincidence that we ran into you, Third Aunt. We'll bring them back for Xiao Zheng when we go to your house later."
In rural areas, nothing is more important than children's education. Despite Song Ce's usual shy demeanor, his aunt's eyes lit up as soon as she heard this, and she exclaimed, "Xiao Zheng is so lucky! He has such a good older brother like Ce. I bet there are some rotten-hearted people who think our Ce is easy to bully and spread rumors about our family."
Those who were close to Aunt Song didn't really understand how the rumor started; they just kept hearing it when they were with the villagers. Hearing Song Ce say this, they quickly stepped forward and asked, "Ce, kid? Do you still have your middle school books? Your third sister will be starting middle school soon too, what do you think of this…?"
Song Ce, naturally understanding the implied meaning, replied with a smile, "No problem, Aunt Wang, I'll send it to Third Sister tomorrow. It's good to be able to preview it in advance."
"Oh! Then I'll thank you on behalf of your third sister!"
"Oh, so this is Rou'er! She's so pretty!" Aunt Wang teased the child and said with a smile.
“That’s right, this child takes after her mother. She’s beautiful in every way except for her eyebrows, which are like mine. Now she sometimes says ‘papa’, haha!” Song Ce said proudly.
Hearing this, several villagers exchanged glances and whispered, "What's wrong with this kid? Didn't everyone say the child wasn't his? Why is he acting so heartless?"
"Who knows? We don't know what's going on behind the scenes. Maybe we won't be able to make ends meet in just a couple of days."
"I don't think so. Ce's wife is so beautiful, he might not be willing to leave his wife."
As the group was engrossed in their conversation, a cheerful voice suddenly rang out from behind them: "Uncle Qian, Uncle Wen, what are you talking about?"
Uncle Qian, who had started the conversation, turned around somewhat awkwardly: "Ah, it's Ce, kid. Have you eaten dinner yet?"
Upon hearing this, Song Ce revealed a row of neat teeth: "I ate it. My mom stewed chicken for me and Qiulan."
"Oh, what a good meal! Very good, very good. Winter is coming soon, eat more so you can stay healthy." Uncle Qian said, following up on the conversation.
"Uncle Qian, I just heard you and Uncle Wen talking about how the child isn't mine? You weren't talking about Rou Rou, were you?" Song Ce asked with a smile.
Uncle Qian never expected that this young man would be so blunt and say such things so openly. He clearly felt the surroundings fall silent. Uncle Qian was extremely embarrassed and could only laugh it off, saying, "Nothing of the sort. It's just something I heard from others. Don't take it to heart, young man."
Song Ce laughed and said, "Why would I take such unfounded words to heart? Don't worry, Uncle Qian. But, it's already this late, Uncle Qian, haven't you gone to find Aunt Li yet?"
Uncle Qian suddenly felt a murderous glare from his wife behind him, and hurriedly waved his hands, saying, "I... I'm looking for your Aunt Li late at night, what do you want? Don't talk nonsense, kid."
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Song Ce said innocently, "Didn't my Aunt Li agree to join your rural senior dance troupe as your dance partner the other day? Shouldn't you be practicing dancing with Aunt Li right now?"
"You're something else!" Aunt Qian, who had overheard everything, rushed over angrily and grabbed Uncle Qian's ear hard. "No wonder you've been running around so much these past few days. Turns out there's some vixen out there hooking up with you! You shameless old hag, practically throwing yourself at her, ugh! Have you no shame at all!"
"You...you damned woman, what nonsense are you spouting!" Uncle Qian said angrily.
"Aunt Qian, please don't misunderstand Uncle Qian." Song Ce coaxed his daughter in his arms, "Last time Aunt Li went to the hospital, it was my Uncle Qian who accompanied her! What bad intentions could my Uncle Qian have? He's just kind-hearted and helpful!" Song Ce said with a smile.
"Okay, okay, okay." Aunt Qian released Uncle Qian's ear and chuckled, "Well done! You've really grown up! If it weren't for Ce telling me, I wouldn't have known you secretly accompanied someone to the hospital. How could you be so shameless!"
Uncle Qian never expected that even though he was so careful last time, Ce Xiaozi still saw him. He quickly begged for forgiveness, saying, "We're all from the same village. If someone has a problem, can't we just lend a hand?"
“That’s right! Aunt Qian. Not only my Uncle Qian, but also my Uncle Wen! They’re just too enthusiastic. You’ve misunderstood my Uncle Qian!” Song Ce quickly reassured her.
"What?" Aunt Wen, who was carrying a rice bowl, quickly came up to Uncle Wen and said through gritted teeth, "Let's go home."
Uncle Wen stammered, "How...how did I get home?"
"I don't want to embarrass you in front of the younger generation, so come back with me." Aunt Wen smiled, but her hands didn't stop moving as she pinched Uncle Wen's soft flesh hard.
“Oh… let’s go back, wife, let’s go back, let’s go back.”
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Author's Note: Good afternoon everyone~ In my personal opinion, silence is definitely not the proper way to deal with rumors. The more silent you are, the more emboldened the rumor-mongers become, making listeners and those spreading the rumors think that the person being rumored to be spreading them is admitting to the truth. My approach is to directly confront them and then shift the blame. If there are any inconsistencies in my writing, please feel free to point them out and offer suggestions~ Thank you again to all my lovely readers for your support, comments, and favorites, love you all~
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