Sun Min's thoughts
Under the dim light, Sun Min lowered her head and carefully rubbed the rag, muttering her thoughts.
Since they want Grandma to live with Second Uncle, Second Uncle must agree. Once Second Uncle agrees, he has a way to make Grandma listen to him.
My second uncle's family lives in the countryside, and he's a lazy good-for-nothing. His family of five relies mostly on my grandmother's financial support. Money is his favorite thing, so getting him to obey is simple: just give him money. But directly giving him money isn't enough; my second uncle is too greedy and never satisfied with taking advantage.
If Dad can stand by their side, then he can stop giving Grandma pocket money, cutting off her financial support to Uncle, and their family will definitely have a hard time. Then we can inform Uncle and make him pay Grandma's monthly allowance; he's also a son and has an obligation to support her.
How could my second uncle possibly agree to that? He can't even support himself. In this situation, if we try to remind him that he can bring his grandmother over, then his father will pay for her care. This way, he won't have to spend any money and can even make money. Given his personality, he will definitely keep his grandmother by his side and treat her as his cash cow.
If he becomes greedy and demands that his father increase the alimony, then his father can pretend to take his grandmother back, which will deter him from causing trouble again.
Liu Xiangmei nodded. This idea grasped Sun Lao Er's personality weakness. It wouldn't be difficult to succeed, but the difficult part was how to get Sun Dong to obey.
After thinking for a moment, Liu Xiangmei turned to look at her second sister, who was sitting in the living room and eavesdropping, and said, "Why don't you get a divorce from Sun Dong?"
Liu Xiangqiu quickly shook her head. "I won't get a divorce. If I really do, then the whole family will benefit from Sun Lao Er's divorce."
Liu Xiangmei ignored Liu Xiangqiu and looked at Sun Min instead.
Sun Min was much smarter than Liu Xiangqiu, and she immediately understood what her aunt meant.
She wiped her hands and walked towards Liu Xiangqiu.
Liu Xiangmei was wiping the kitchen countertop when she heard Sun Min say, "Mom, there's a trick called 'playing hard to get'..."
The thought that her clever niece was about to be ruined by her foolish parents because of a single mistake made Liu Xiangmei angrier and angrier. When the noise in the living room disappeared, Liu Xiangmei knew that her second sister had understood.
She walked into the living room and asked Sun Min, "Xiao Min, what are your plans for the future?"
Sun Min glanced at Liu Xiangqiu, pursed her lips, and said, "I want to go straight to high school."
Liu Xiangqiu was still planning how to manipulate Sun Dong according to her daughter's wishes when she heard her daughter's words and subconsciously asked, "Which high school do you want to attend?"
Sun Min looked directly at Liu Xiangqiu and said, "Mom, didn't you ask me what I wanted at the entrance of the second-hand market today? I wanted you to pay my tuition for attending school outside the county's No. 1 High School, and I wanted you to support me through university."
Liu Xiangqiu saw determination and longing in her daughter's eyes, exactly the same as when she chose to marry Sun Dong, except that her daughter's choice seemed to have a brighter future.
Since our daughter wants to improve herself, why can't we agree to it? She's our only child; it's not like we can't afford to support her.
Upon seeing Liu Xiangqiu agree, Sun Min burst into tears. Was it really that simple? Then all her hesitation and resentment during this time seemed utterly worthless.
At night, Sun Min and Wang Yao slept in the bedroom with the window open and the curtains fluttering in the breeze.
Sun Min looked at the swaying curtains, and tears welled up in her eyes again.
Her life and her family were almost ruined by a "son" who would never exist.
She knew that her mother had wanted to have another son until this afternoon, but today her mother's hopes were completely dashed and she would never have a son. So her mother finally gave up and was willing to give her everything instead of always holding back.
She had been mentally prepared for the possibility of a younger brother arriving at any time before today, so she never made excessive demands because she knew that everything in the family was for her brother, and she wouldn't be allowed to ask for anything, such as repeating a grade. So when her mother asked her what she wanted today, she didn't say anything, because she knew that asking would probably have been pointless anyway.
But today she learned that she wouldn't have a younger brother. To be honest, she was very happy. Then she thought of a nephew who might be adopted. But an adopted nephew is better than a biological brother, right?
When she overheard her aunt and mother's conversation that evening, her mind immediately started racing. She knew she had to get her grandmother out of the house and get her father to stand on her and her mother's side.
Will her father stand by their side? Yes, because in the past few years, she could clearly sense that her father was indifferent to everything in the family, and her mother mostly managed the family business. He probably knew he wouldn't have a son.
Grandma stole things from the house like a rat to support my second uncle's family. Didn't Dad know? How could he not! But even if he saw it with his own eyes, he pretended not to see it.
After the results came out, her mother initially agreed to let her repeat a year, and her father agreed as well. However, her grandmother started making a scene every day, so he changed his mind. Was it because he listened to his grandmother? Of course not, he just wanted to keep the peace.
Even the matter of adopting a nephew was something that Grandma kept arguing about at the dinner table before Dad finally agreed.
So as long as Mom is willing to make a fuss and mediate, Dad will also side with them in order to have less trouble.
From then on, the shadow cast by her "son" was gone from her life, which allowed her to confidently speak out what she wanted. Why not repeat a grade? Because she wanted to gain freedom as soon as possible, to take control of her life instead of being manipulated by others.
…
The next morning, Liu Xiangqiu heard that her younger sister was going to take Yao Yao to see her older sister, so she took Sun Min with her and the four of them set off for Lianchi Town together.
The van was packed with people. As soon as they arrived at their destination, Sun Min opened the door and started vomiting, which also made Wang Yao, who was prone to motion sickness, feel nauseous.
Despite this, everyone was quickly soothed by the vast expanse of lotus flowers in the distance. The line "The lotus leaves stretch to the sky, an endless expanse of green; the lotus blossoms, bathed in sunlight, are a vibrant red" perfectly describes the scene before them.
Two women, accompanied by two girls, gazed at the lotus flowers before them, exclaiming "Wow..." and "So beautiful..." as they walked. Wang Yao only regretted not having a camera to capture the scene before her.
When they arrived at Liu Xiangchun's house, only Chen Xiu and Chen Bing were drying wheat.
Upon seeing them, Chen Xiu quickly greeted them and then instructed Chen Bing to go find her parents.
When Chen Xiu told Liu Xiangmei that her parents were picking corn in the field that day, Liu Xiangmei thought it was perfect and asked Chen Xiu to lead the way so they could go directly to the field to take a look.
Chen Xiu didn't know what was so interesting about picking corn, but she wasn't very familiar with her second aunt, her youngest aunt, and her two younger sisters. She felt a little awkward just sitting there, so it would be nice to take them out for a walk.
The Chen family's land wasn't far away. After walking a short distance, they saw Chen Hai and Liu Xiangchun about to take off their straw hats and come out of the field.
Liu Xiangmei shouted loudly, "We're here!"
The last time Liu Xiangchun saw her younger sister was at her brother-in-law's funeral. At that time, her sister was crying her eyes out, but now her eyes were full of smiles. She looked at her sister and felt relieved; it seemed that she had completely recovered.
Liu Xiangmei acted differently when she saw her second sister than when she saw Liu Xiangchun, becoming like a little girl, "Hello, eldest sister and brother-in-law. Why didn't you tell me that it's so beautiful here in the summer? I bet every household grows lotus flowers here!"
Liu Xiangchun shook his head: "There aren't that many. My family doesn't have a lotus pond. I'm tired of seeing them every day."
Liu Xiangmei sighed, "This is the first time I've seen it with my own eyes! Every time I come before, it's in the summer. So, you don't have a lotus pond at home, and you've planted other things instead?"
Liu Xiangchun nodded and pointed to a piece of land in front of him, "That used to be my family's lotus pond. Now it's been filled in and vegetables have been planted in it."
Liu Xiangmei clicked her tongue in amazement, exclaiming how many vegetables must have been grown, and then insisted that her older sister take her to see them.
Liu Xiangqiu couldn't understand why his younger sister, who grew up in the countryside, was interested in farming. Hadn't she always been farming back home? What was so interesting about a vegetable garden? It would be better to go see the lotus flowers.
She watched as Chen Xiu led Yao Yao and Xiao Min toward the largest lotus pond. She wanted to follow, but she felt that they were all children and that it would make them uncomfortable if she, an adult, went up to them. So she had no choice but to follow her two older sisters.
Wang Yao and the other two sat on the bluestone slab beside the lotus pond, chatting while listening to the frogs croaking. To be precise, Wang Yao and Chen Xiu were chatting, while Sun Min took out her notebook and pencil, intending to record the scene before her.
When Wang Yao learned that nineteen-year-old Chen Xiu was already being introduced to potential husbands, she was surprised, but upon reflection, it was quite normal in rural areas during this era.
"Have you found someone you like? Is he handsome?" Wang Yao's eyes lit up, her face full of gossip.
Chen Xiu did not show the expected shyness, but simply said, "They're all about the same, I didn't notice whether they're handsome or not."
Hmm? What's wrong? He doesn't seem very interested!
Chen Xiu's next words confirmed Wang Yao's guess.
“The other girls in the village who didn’t go to school either went out to work or stayed at home like me. No matter which one, they all started dating after they turned eighteen. Some of them had children before they even got their marriage certificates. Looking at them, I can imagine my own future, surrounded by men and children, slowly getting louder and weaker, and then dying here. So the result is the same. What’s the use of being handsome when you’re young!”
As Chen Xiu finished speaking, her eyes were filled with gloom.
She didn't know why she was telling Wang Yao, whom she wasn't very familiar with, all this. She thought she must have been holding it in for too long, and there was no one else she could talk to. If she did, people would just think she was being dramatic and would only reply with, "Isn't everyone like this? Why are you the only one who doesn't want to?" But she just didn't want to.
Before going on blind dates, she was actually quite clueless. She only cared about her own happiness and never thought about the future. As a result, she didn't get into high school and stayed at home helping her parents. When her friends invited her to go out and work, her parents wouldn't let her go, so she didn't go.
Since she started going on blind dates, it's as if she suddenly woke up. She doesn't want to get married like this, she doesn't want to live like this until she dies, but she doesn't know what to do!
From Chen Xiu's words and expression, Wang Yao could sense her unwillingness and helplessness. She was unwilling to live her life like this, but helpless because even if she knew the ending, she was powerless to change anything.
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