"There are no problems, right? If there are no problems, I will write them down." Zhao Maosheng looked at them in silence and raised his voice and said something.
After writing the separation document, Zhao Maosheng picked it up and read: "On August 4, 1973, Zhao Maohua and his second son Zhao Zhaocai from Xinghua Village separated from the family of Zhao Jianguo, the eldest son. In the future, the family will become two families, and no matter rich or poor, they will be independent of each other. The maintenance of the elderly is five yuan per month, a total of 1,800 yuan for 30 years, to be paid within three years. The subsequent expenses will be divided equally between the two sons."
"Do you have any more questions? I'll add them. And I'll keep a separate account for Wenjuan's work points this month." Zhao Maosheng said sternly as he looked at the people present.
Father Zhao took a puff of his pipe and said, "Brother Maosheng, you know the situation of our family. We only have three rooms. Wenjuan will be accompanying the army in the future, so I won't give her a room. Move out tomorrow morning!"
Ms. Deng immediately stood up and said, "No, why should we move out tomorrow? Since she is so bold as to ask for a separation, she should move out tonight!"
Zhao Maosheng slapped the table and said, "It's already dark, where can they go? You guys are going to kill them, right?"
"I don't care. They are not that capable. They are clamoring to divide the family property. They will definitely find a way." Ms. Deng said angrily.
Goudan was scared and lay in Zeng Wenjuan's arms, crying loudly. Zeng Wenjuan patted Goudan's back gently and said, "Okay, I can take all our things away!"
"You have to take out your things and let us see them. You can only leave if you don't take anything away from home. Otherwise, what if you steal things from home?" Zhou Li said sarcastically.
Zeng Wenjuan nodded and carried Goudan into the house. There was nothing else in the room except a bed, a washstand, and a wardrobe that Zhou Li had replaced.
"Goudan, sit here for a while. Mom will pack up the things I brought, and we will be able to move out later." Zeng Wenjuan was happy from the bottom of her heart.
Goudan was a little worried: "Mom, where will we live if we move out? It would be great if Dad was at home. He is an official, so he must be very powerful."
"Once we give the money to your grandparents, we will go to the army to find your father. Then our family will all stay together. With mother around, no one will dare to bully us." Zeng Wenjuan touched Goudan's head and comforted him.
Soon, Zeng Wenjuan packed up her things. I didn't have much either. Goudan and she each had two sets of spring clothes, plus a military coat. Goudan's military coat was an old one that couldn't be altered. Zeng Wenjuan was also very skillful and did a good job altering it.
In addition to the washbasin and footbasin for two people and towels, there were not many things, and everyone could see clearly as soon as they went out.
"Put your things on the table! They are so dirty, don't dirty my new clothes." Zhou Li covered her nose with a look of disgust.
Zhao Maosheng looked at Zhao Maohua angrily, and said in an indirect way: "Are you blind? You have to check just these two things. Who has the money? Don't you know if it's missing?"
Old Man Zhao said with a dark face: "It's just a few things, why are you checking? You can take everything in your room away, otherwise people will think we are abusing you!"
"No need, we just need to take these things away. You can throw away or buy the rest." Zeng Wenjuan shook her head and said slowly.
Then she took Goudan out. She planned to live in a cave halfway up the mountain. That cave was dug when they were hiding from the Japanese. Later, when family planning was implemented, some pregnant women would hide there, so it was okay for them to live there.
Zeng Wenjuan and her dog hadn't even left the village yet! Zhao Maosheng shouted behind them, "Wenjuan girl...wait a minute."
After hearing what the village chief said, Zeng Wenjuan and her child stood still. Looking back, she saw the village chief running over breathlessly.
"Wenjuan, you left so quickly. I have discussed it with your aunt. From now on, you will live in my old house. It is still a thatched house with many people, but after some renovation, it can still be lived in." Zhao Maosheng said while panting.
Zeng Wenjuan looked down at Goudan and agreed with tears in her eyes: "Thank you, village chief uncle. I won't live in your house for free. I'll give you one yuan rent a month. What do you think?"
"It's just an old, shabby house where no one lives. If not... it would be hard to live there. But... your father and mother did this! Uncle can't help you with anything." As the village chief, Zhao Maosheng couldn't control everything, otherwise who would obey him?
Zeng Wenjuan nodded: "Uncle Village Chief, I don't blame my parents. Zhaocai is their biological son, so it's reasonable for them to favor him. They raised Jianguo and me, and I am grateful to them."
In that era when everyone was hungry and cold, Mr. Zhao and his wife raised their three children. Zeng Wenjuan also went through that time and knew how hard it was. It was a time when it was difficult to eat grass roots and tree bark. However, Mr. Zhao and his wife raised their children without money, which cannot be repaid.
In a blink of an eye, the three of them arrived at Zhao Maosheng's old house, which was just behind the village chief's backyard. It was a thatched house with two rooms and a kitchen.
"You are finally here. We have cleared out a room. Please come in quickly! We will ask Hu Zi and the others to help you rest during the day tomorrow so that you can live there more conveniently." Yuan Yujuan, Zhao Maosheng's wife, heard the voice before she saw the person. She shouted at the top of her voice.
This is probably a common problem among rural people! Most people like to speak loudly, especially when they are gossiping about something, such as whose pig gave birth to a puppy, whose scoundrel stole whose rooster, or whose cow ate whose vegetables.
Zeng Wenjuan walked into the house quickly with Goudan in her arms, and said with a smile, "Thank you, Auntie! If it weren't for your help and the village chief, I would probably have to live in a cave."
"Oh! That won't work! You are a girl who was raised by your aunt, you are very capable, and this house is really not very good." Yuan Yujuan likes Zeng Wenjuan very much. First, she has played with her own daughter since she was a child, and she looks at Zeng Wenjuan like her own daughter. Second, this child is pitiful! She was abandoned by her parents when she was young, and now she was driven out by her adoptive parents. They will help her as much as they can.
Zeng Wenjuan burst into tears of gratitude: "Uncle village chief, aunt. This house is already very good, as long as it can shelter me from the wind and rain. It doesn't matter where I live, but Goudan is still young and I'm afraid he will get sick. Don't worry, I won't live here for free. I'll give you one yuan in rent a month. Is that okay with you?" Although she was asking two people, Zeng Wenjuan was looking at Yuan Yujuan when she spoke.
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