Chapter Thirteen: Sign an Agreement
Over the weekend, Shu Yao cut the fabric she had bought, preparing to make herself an autumn garment. She only had two spring and autumn clothes before, both of which were patched. She would try to cover the holes with embroidery, but the fabric was already flimsy and would tear easily if she wasn't careful.
When she married Sun Yaozu this year, it was summer, and her mother-in-law bought her some fabric and made her a short-sleeved shirt. However, she didn't have any autumn clothes. This time, when she went to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy fabric, he bought several pieces in one go. Enough to make two outfits. She plans to make one looser one, as her belly will grow bigger in a few days.
"Honey, what would you like to eat for lunch?"
Their workplace operates on a three-shift system with rotating days off. She was originally supposed to have Thursdays off, but he had weekends off, so they arranged for her to have her days off on the weekend so they could be together.
A tall man stood in the doorway, smiling as he called her "wife." Although she had been told before that she could call him that, she still couldn't help but blush.
Anything is fine.
"I'll cook some rice, and we still have eggplant and green beans at home. I'll go buy some tofu and make a stew."
"good."
She stayed inside sewing clothes, while her husband went out to buy groceries and cook. When they ran into acquaintances on the street, they couldn't help but tease him.
"Station Chief Su, you still have to cook for yourself even though you have a wife?"
"Yeah, isn't the point of getting a wife to do the laundry and cooking? If you still have to do all that yourself after getting married, then what's the point of getting a wife?"
Su Xiangdong chuckled, unperturbed by everyone's teasing. "You're marrying a wife just to do laundry and cook? No way."
The man was stunned: "Then why did you get married?"
"To live with my loved one."
The man was dumbfounded and didn't know how to respond. He was a rough, uneducated man with only an elementary school education; he had no idea what this meant.
Living with your loved one? Your loved one is your wife, so isn't that just living life with your wife? If you're living with a woman and don't expect her to do your laundry and cook, then what are you after?
Su Xiangdong didn't say much, bought tofu and spinach, and turned to go home. He made a stew for lunch and also made her a separate cold spinach and nut salad. She liked the fried peanuts mixed with spinach; peanuts are very nutritious.
"Wife, dinner is ready."
He spoke loudly enough that the Sun family next door could hear him. He did it on purpose, to infuriate that bastard Sun Yaozu. Upon learning she might be pregnant with the Sun family's child, his first reaction wasn't to come and confirm it, nor was it joy at having an heir with the Sun family; instead, he was trying to sow discord between the couple. That whole family is utterly wicked, especially Sun Yaozu.
The couple was eating when guests arrived. Seeing his third aunt shakily leaning against the wall as she entered, he quickly went over to help her. His third aunt had previously had a good relationship with his mother; she was strong-willed. However, without a job or financial means, even her strong will had to be tempered.
"Third Aunt, what brings you here?" I'd heard from my third uncle that she wasn't in good health and had been resting at home.
He helped his third aunt sit down on a bench in the courtyard, and Shu Yao got up to pour her a bowl of hot water. She also brought her clean bowls and chopsticks, and since it was mealtime, she ate a bite herself.
"Thank you, niece-in-law."
"Third Aunt, you don't need to be so polite. We're all family."
The woman was parched from walking all the way. She picked up her bowl, blew on it to cool it down, and drank some water before she felt better. Shu Yao proactively served her rice and added some vegetables to her plate. During this period, food was rationed, and every household was short of food. Offering a meal to a guest was the greatest act of hospitality.
"Thank you." The woman was embarrassed, but she had come here today risking her reputation; if she cared about saving face, she would lose her life. She immediately picked up her rice bowl and started eating, the fragrant rice making her unable to hold back her tears.
"Third Aunt, please slow down, there's still some left in the pot."
Shu Yao hasn't been vomiting much these days, so he made extra for lunch. He was thinking of stir-frying some for her tonight; she really likes egg fried rice. He didn't expect his third aunt to come, which meant there was extra food.
She swallowed a bowl of rice with tears streaming down her face. Her third aunt wasn't even sixty this year, but she looked older than seventy-year-olds in later generations. Shu Yao, having lived an extra life, felt deeply saddened seeing the old woman like this. She glanced silently at Su Xiangdong, "Do you know what's going on here?"
The man shook his head; he was just as confused. When he was little, his mother and father were always busy, so he was often taken care of by his third aunt. Once, when he had a fever, it was his third aunt who discovered it and spent the whole afternoon applying ice packs to him with wet towels to bring the fever down.
After his aunt finished eating and put down her bowl, he asked in a low voice, "Auntie, what's wrong?"
Mentioning this made the old woman sad again. But she quickly stopped, sniffling and wiping away her tears. "I've had stomach pains since last year, and I've been putting it off. This year, the pain has been so bad that I can't lie down or sleep all night. Your brother took me to the hospital for a checkup, and it turns out I have gallstones."
Su Xiangdong didn't understand this, but Shu Yao had heard about it. She immediately said, "Surgery can be performed, and the patient will recover after the surgery."
The woman nodded, tears falling again. "That's what the doctor said too. But..."
She was sobbing uncontrollably and could no longer speak. Su Xiangdong knew the Su family well and immediately guessed what was going on. "Third Uncle doesn't want to spend money?"
The woman nodded with difficulty: "The children all said they have no money."
If it were cancer, it would indeed be a devastating loss of both life and money. In this era of widespread poverty, it's understandable not to seek treatment, since it's essentially incurable. But this is just gallstones. Once the stones are removed, the person recovers; it's a curable disease.
"Approximately how much will it cost?"
"The doctor said it would cost around 200 and I would need surgery."
Two hundred yuan was no small sum at that time. But my third uncle had two sons, and if everyone chipped in and borrowed, they might not be able to raise enough. Even though they were in debt, this was a life at stake; how could they bear not to save it if they could?
Shu Yao had money, but as a weak woman, she couldn't flaunt it carelessly. One shouldn't harbor malicious intentions, but one must be wary of others. She didn't know this third aunt very well, so she looked at Su Xiangdong.
Su Xiangdong was also in a dilemma. If this were his mother, he would definitely go to the hospital for treatment. But this was his third aunt, his third uncle's wife. He didn't want to get involved with his third uncle and eldest cousin, in case the surgery went wrong... And even if there were no problems, it was still two hundred yuan. He wasn't alone now; he would have to support a whole family in the future.
If he paid for his third aunt's medical treatment, would the Su family come after him with all sorts of trouble? He knew what kind of people his third uncle and eldest cousin were; if they could get something for nothing, they would try to do it again and again, leading to endless trouble.
Just as the couple hesitated, they heard a noise at the door. It was Uncle San and his two sons. As soon as they entered, Uncle San heard Su Xiangdong talk about Aunt San's illness, and he immediately sighed.
“Nephew, you know your third uncle is incompetent. He's used all his strength to raise his children all these years. He still owes tens of dollars in debt. Your third aunt is sick now, so please help her out and lend her some money to use first.”
The youngest son of the third uncle also spoke up: "Brother Xiangdong, I'm begging you, please help my mother."
Shu Yao remained silent, letting Su Xiangdong handle the matter. The family was wealthy; whether to lend money and how much to lend was his decision, and she had no objection.
Su Xiangdong was pondering how much to borrow when his third aunt made a peculiar move. "Don't pretend to be nice here. Are you planning to borrow money from Xiangdong to gain a good reputation in public, but you'll never pay it back?"
"Mother, why do you say that?"
Uncle San, enraged and embarrassed, retorted: "You damned woman! This is money I'm lending you for your medical treatment, and you dare to sabotage me. Then you might as well not go for treatment and just wait to die."
The aunt wiped away her tears, her eyes filled with a desperate desire to survive. She saw through the father and his two sons, her gaze turning coldly to them, and both brothers lowered their heads.
“Xiangdong and Third Aunt do want you to help me with my medical treatment. However, I'm not that shameless. I was thinking that your wife is pregnant and will give birth next year. She has a job, and there's no one to take care of the child. How about this: you help me with my treatment, and I'll spend the rest of my life helping you take care of the child and do housework. Is that alright?”
My third aunt is not yet sixty, and apart from the gallstones, she's in pretty good health. Su Xiangdong and his family definitely need someone to help take care of the children, and my third aunt is a suitable person. She's a relative, so there won't be any gossip or rumors about capitalists hiring her, and she's someone they can trust.
Su Xiangdong turned to his third uncle and asked, "What do you think, Third Uncle?"
"Hmph, don't come looking for me even if you're dead."
Su Xiangdong sighed: "How about this then? Uncle, you sign a contract with me, I'll pay for Aunt's medical expenses, and Aunt will take care of my child for two years."
Shu Yao nodded almost imperceptibly to the side; this was exactly what she was worried about. She wasn't carrying one baby, but twins. Although two babies are easy to take care of, someone still needs to look after them.
In her past life, her in-laws helped take care of her child, and she would work and come home to care for the child, juggling both responsibilities. In this life, she doesn't have in-laws, and she doesn't want to lose her job. Hiring someone would invite gossip, so helping out with family relatives is the most suitable option.
Uncle San was still hesitating, his small eyes darting around as if he was calculating whether he was at a disadvantage. Aunt San was both angry and helpless. She was heartbroken; she had come up with her own method and was doing it herself, so why were they unhappy?
"What are you unhappy about? You don't have to do anything."
The eldest son then muttered, "Don't you need us to take care of you while you're having surgery?"
The youngest son chimed in, "That's right. We all have to work, and without my dad's permission, he can't take care of us."
Uncle San hurriedly waved his hand: "This is something you younger generation should do to fulfill your filial duty, I, as an old man, would never do that."
"We both work, and the wife has to take care of the child. How can she have time to take care of the child?"
Su Xiangdong gritted his teeth in anger, while his third aunt looked equally disheartened. What kind of creatures had she given birth to? Why hadn't she just thrown them into the river to drown?
"Alright. Uncle, I'll sign an agreement and an informed consent form on the day of the surgery. You don't need to worry about the rest. I'll take care of everything."
Auntie San was overcome with emotion, tears streaming down her face. Shuyao handed her a towel to wipe her tears, then touched her own belly. "My dear babies, grow up healthy and strong. Mommy has found someone to take care of you. She's a wonderful grandma."
Since things had come to this point, Uncle San had no choice but to sign. If he didn't, outsiders would say he was cold-blooded and heartless, and public opinion would drown him in it. So he immediately signed the treaty written by his nephew, put down his pen, and stormed off.
The two sons followed, the younger one sighing all the way. His mother had originally been helping him look after his children, but now she was sick and needed surgery, which he refused to perform. His mother had made a deal with his cousin; she couldn't help him anymore.
A note from the author:
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