Old Lady Yin agreed with Old Lady Wang's words. "I used to be from the countryside, and my husband is from the countryside too. We only have one promising son in our family. Before I came here, in addition to working in the fields, I also had to take care of my other sons. They were so grown up, but I was so lazy at home that I couldn't bear to look after them."
"I earn work points and do housework. When I have free time, I try to help others and earn some food. But my husband and other sons, after the autumn harvest, are paralyzed at home. I just have to feed them."
Old Lady Wang: "Didn't you say you only had Ah Sheng as your son? I treated them as if they didn't exist and even wrote a letter of severance to the village."
Old Lady Yin: "Are those other beastly sons worthy of being my sons?"
Old Lady Xia was curious, "What about Yin Sheng? Was he like this before?"
Old Lady Yin was filled with pride when she spoke of her son. "That's definitely different. If he lives up to his father's wishes, I might as well stay in the village. He's smart. We have many sons, so we have plenty to eat. We lived a hard life before, with famines. Several children almost starved to death, so he couldn't pay his tuition for a while and was sent back."
"At that time, I thought to myself, this is not going to work. I only have two choices in this life: either rely on those lazy guys and end up working myself to death, or I betray my son Ah Sheng and maybe I can have a chance to live a good life."
"So I started thinking of ways to solve the problem. I took any job I could get, even if it paid little. Even the smallest paycheck is still meat. Later, when I couldn't afford it anymore, and everyone was starving, and there was no money left, I... started selling blood."
"I wasn't going to tell Ah Sheng, but I thought it wouldn't be right. I've been suffering so much, why shouldn't I let him know? I just want him to know what Mom has sacrificed for him! Otherwise, if he thinks his lazy dad is the one who provided for him, then I'll be really at a loss."
Old Mrs. Xia exclaimed, "Won't your son be so guilty that he'll die? The psychological pressure is too great."
Old Lady Yin said: "Those of us who have studied and left the countryside are all under great psychological pressure. We don't even have the ability to withstand this kind of pressure. Why should he study? Why should I work so hard for him? I am using my life to pave the way for him. He was not born in an era where people had enough food and drink. Back then, people were starving and freezing to death!"
Old Mrs. Xia: ...Although it sounds a bit too cruel to the child, I have to say there is some truth to it.
"Later, he became a glorious worker. I know it wasn't easy for him to work so hard, and he also knew how hard it was for me to do it for him. So every time he came back, he would secretly give me money."
"My sons who were still working in the fields and earning work points knew he gave me individual banknotes, so... they became even lazier. They felt I wouldn't watch them starve to death, nor would I watch them go without wives."
Old Lady Xia was at a loss for words. "Those sons of yours don't seem to be filial sons either."
Old Lady Yin: "Let alone my sons, even my husband is not a hardworking man."
"I hid the money and ate whatever they ate. Finally, because we didn't work in the fields and didn't get any work points, we didn't get any money or grain at the end of the year. We ate all the food we got the previous year, and there wasn't a single grain left. And my eldest son was getting married, but I couldn't afford a single cent for the bride price."
Old Lady Xia didn't expect that her good sister, who looked so amiable, could actually act so decisively. "And then?"
Seeing that both of them were wide-eyed and curious about what would happen next, Old Lady Yin didn't keep them in suspense. "They wanted me to take out the money that Ah Sheng gave me privately. I disagreed, so they used all kinds of tactics. First, my husband said that if I didn't give it to him, he would tell me to go back to my parents' home. My parents are dead. If my brother and sister-in-law knew that I, a girl who had been married for many years, had returned home, they would definitely not be willing to take me in. This damn old man knew this and said such things on purpose."
"I just wanted to get out, so I applied for a dilapidated house from the village. Then, my man, who deserved to be in hell, started to act up in front of the team leader every day after work. To maintain peace in the village and to give this man peace and quiet, the team leader refused to grant me a permit and wouldn't allow anyone else to take me in."
Old Lady Wang was furious when she heard this. "These men only know how to help other men, and they don't listen to reason at all. We've been treated so unfairly, and they just try to smooth things over."
Old Lady Yin: "Who says it's not true? They say we women act on impulse, but it seems to me that they are the ones who are most driven by emotions. However, it is also possible that the crying child gets the candy."
"Later, that old man took me home and continued to ask me for money. My other sons acted pitiful to me, kneeling on the ground and banging their heads. He also said that once he got married, I would be able to enjoy a happy life. I really felt sorry for his future wives."
"I still refused to agree, so they tried to starve me to death at home. They threatened me with death if I didn't give them the money. Before I even died of starvation, they were starving to death and came to my house every day to try to persuade me."
"I said yes, but I wanted to divorce their father and give them all my money. They agreed and released me. After I gave them half of the money, they changed their minds after they had eaten their fill."
"When the villagers heard I wanted a divorce, their advice was almost like trying to kill me. It was all about reputation and endurance."
"So I thought about it and slaughtered all the extra chickens, ducks and pigs that the brigade had secretly raised that night. They didn't even dare to call the police because they were secretly raising them. They even killed the chicks and piglets. After killing them, I roasted one and ate it myself, and threw the rest into the river, leaving them with nothing to eat."
Old Mrs. Xia covered her mouth. No wonder she had the best life in her previous life. With such ruthlessness, how could she have a bad life? It really shows that you can't judge a book by its cover.
Old Lady Wang clapped her hands, "It's so satisfying."
Old Lady Yin smiled bitterly. "How can this be considered a great relief? The villagers saw those animals being killed and threw stones and dirt at me, saying I was a troublemaker. They can't eat the extra meat during the New Year, so they regard me as a class enemy."
"Someone even came up to me and said his father died last night because I pissed him off, and called me a murderer."
Old Lady Xia: “This…”
Old Master Yin laughed. "It's human nature. I harmed their interests, so naturally they were angry. I was too impulsive. I almost died in the village during that time."
Old Mrs. Xia thought of Captain Yu’s sister and had a deeper understanding of Old Mrs. Yin’s situation at that time. She must have had a harder time at that time, as she had offended everyone in the village.
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