Liu Maocai happened to return at that moment. Hearing his wife's words and seeing his wife's pale face, he also saw his eldest daughter standing in the yard, yelling at her mother. He ignored Liu Daya and reached out to support Li Cuihua, saying, "There's no need to be angry. If you're annoyed by her, just send her away. Consider it a waste of your time raising her."
Liu Daya was terrified when she heard her father's words. Her mother's fuss was just talk; if her father got angry, things would be terrible. But she couldn't back down. She was already so old, and her mother still hit her, showing her no respect whatsoever. So she hesitated, unsure what to do. Unconsciously, fear appeared on her face as she looked at her parents with pleading eyes.
Li Cuihua paused for a moment, then said, "Honey, Daya is such an ingrate. I spoiled her rotten. She hurt Erya's eyes."
"What did you say? Then hurry up and go to the hospital!" Liu Maocai was furious. How could this old woman not know what was important? He let go of Li Cuihua and went straight into Er Ya's room. "Er Ya, can you walk? If you can't, Dad will carry you. Let's go to the hospital to get it checked out. Eyes are more delicate than other parts of the body." When he saw the bloodstains on Er Ya's face, his heart ached. This second daughter had been sensible since she was little. Back when the family hadn't separated, he hadn't been respected by his mother, and the children had suffered the same fate. At that time, his mother wouldn't even let the family have enough to eat, and the second daughter would always secretly save some food when cooking, which the family would share at night. So he always felt guilty towards his second daughter, feeling that he was incompetent and that such a young child had to find ways to support him. He usually saw this girl always doing chores but didn't think much of it. Now that she was doing more, it wouldn't hurt. But he forgot an old saying: "Those who know everything are servants, those who know nothing are servants." Now that he thought about it, wasn't that true? I came home early yesterday and found out that my eldest daughter doesn't do anything; instead, she takes all the chores that others do. I always thought she helped with the housework, but I was just fooling myself. I feel so guilty towards my second daughter.
"Dad, it's alright. It's just that my eyelid is twitching, it's not touching my eyeball. Don't worry, the swelling will go down."
Liu Maocai felt even more ashamed after hearing his second daughter's words. "Then you should lie down and wait until your facial injuries heal before you start working again." Feeling too ashamed to stay any longer, he fled in disarray.
He left his daughter's room and saw his wife cooking sweet potato porridge, while his eldest daughter stood in the yard, head down, lost in thought. He ignored her and went back inside. When the porridge was ready, the two younger children returned from playing, and his eldest son came home. The younger children didn't seem to realize something was wrong, but Liu Jianguo could. He saw his eldest sister standing motionless in the yard, head down, and the porridge still being cooked by his mother; his second sister was nowhere to be seen. He didn't know what to do. His eldest sister must have caused trouble again. He wondered what was wrong with her; she seemed to have no harmony with the family.
"Dinner's ready," Li Cuihua said listlessly to the children. She was truly hurt by her daughter's words; she didn't know when her eldest daughter had become so close to her grandmother. Her mother-in-law had never liked her. She and Liu Maocai were childhood sweethearts, and naturally, they became a couple. But her mother-in-law disapproved, disliking her family's poverty and her large family. Liu Maocai didn't listen to his mother, which led to her dislike of him.
I never expected her mother-in-law to be so shameless, actually making up lies. When Da Ya was born, her mother-in-law said that raising a little girl was a waste, and it would be better to strangle her. I realized at the time that her mother-in-law just wanted me to breastfeed her youngest daughter, but I stood my ground and wouldn't let go.
Her mother-in-law was the kind of person who acted like everyone owed her something, as if she hadn't asked for it herself. She just wouldn't agree, wouldn't go along with her, which only worsened the relationship between them. Shaking her head, she noticed the children were looking at her and mustered her spirits to serve them rice.
Sanya, holding her bowl of porridge, asked, "Mom, why isn't my eldest sister coming in to eat? Where's my second sister? Should I go call my eldest sister?"
Liu Maocai looked at the children at the table and said, "Your second sister is injured. Have your mother make her some dumpling soup later. Your eldest sister won't be given any food. No one is allowed to call her. She should just stand outside." After saying that, he picked up his bowl of porridge and drank it, ignoring the children's gazes.
Li Cuihua picked up a bowl of porridge and held an egg in her hand. "Honey, I cooked an egg for Er Ya today. I'll ask her what she wants to eat first, and then I'll make it for her tomorrow."
"Okay, you decide what to do. Make sure Er Ya gets plenty of nourishment; we've been neglecting this child."
"Okay, I understand. It was my oversight. I'll go take her food first. You all eat first, don't wait for me." After saying that, Li Cuihua took the bowl and went to her second daughter's room.
Liu Erya didn't sleep either, she just lay on the kang to rest. When she saw her mother bring in a bowl, she quickly sat up and said, "Mom, you can just leave it here. I'll eat by myself. You should go eat too, or it will get cold."
"It's okay, Mom isn't hungry and can't eat. Er Ya, Mom cooked you an egg, eat it quickly. Don't eat the pickled vegetables yet, I'm afraid they'll leave scars if I eat too much salt."
"Okay, I'm not eating pickled vegetables anymore. It's getting dark, you must be hungry, go eat." Er Ya knew her mother was in a bad mood, but she couldn't skip meals.
"Okay, you eat yours. When you're done, just put it on the cupboard. I'll have Sanya come and get the bowl in a bit. I'm going to eat too. I'll make you something special tomorrow. What would you like to eat?"
"Mom, you don't need to cook anything special for me. I'm fine with anything. How about we have a nice meal together as a family tomorrow?"
Li Cuihua was touched by her second daughter's thoughtful words. It seemed she had neglected her daughter too much in the past, assuming that since her daughter could do it, she should do more, and that she was capable and wouldn't get tired if her daughter didn't say anything. "Okay, our family will have a good meal tomorrow." After saying that, she went out to eat.
The children at the table hadn't touched their chopsticks, waiting for Li Cuihua. "Let's eat, husband. Let Daya come in and eat. How many more years can she stay at home? Once we know what kind of person she is, that's good enough. We can find her a husband far away and send her off."
"As long as you feel at peace with yourself, that's fine. Don't take it too seriously. You can't rely on her in the future."
"I know, Sanya, go and call your older sister in for dinner." Li Cuihua was truly heartbroken over Liu Daya, but after all, she was her own flesh and blood. Before she found a husband, it was her responsibility, so she decided to just raise her like this. She didn't really expect her to be filial in the future, as long as she didn't make her angry anymore. Sanya obediently ran to the yard to call Liu Daya in for dinner.
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