"The family has already split up, what's the point of saying all this now?"
Speaking of the division of the family property, Yang Fengxia couldn't help but feel a little dejected.
After the family split up, Fang Hai no longer handed over all his wages, leaving his parents with only five yuan a month as a filial gift. Even with Fang Yaozu's wages from sweeping the streets as a temporary worker, it was only a little over twenty yuan.
With just over twenty yuan a month, they not only had to cover the food and drink for the elderly couple and Fang Lu, but also the social obligations to relatives, friends, and neighbors. Their lives were even more strained than before.
Furthermore, before the family split up, her daughter-in-law, Dong Ping, helped with everything inside and outside the house. All she had to do every day was cook and wash dishes. Now, however, she has to cook, wash dishes, sweep the floor, and even hand-wash clothes one by one. She doesn't have a moment's rest all day long.
Yang Fengxia genuinely regretted separating the family.
It's also Fang Hai's fault; he's too stubborn. Can't a son just lower his head in front of his mother?
I had to be stubborn with her.
In the heat of the moment, they impulsively divided the family property.
Can you take what someone says when they're angry for granted?
Why can't he understand?
To put it bluntly, once a son has a wife, he forgets his mother; he's no longer truly connected to his own mother.
Fang Xue advised, "Mom, we're family, so let's not be so formal. You know what kind of temper Xiao Hai has. He's always been filial. If you apologize to him, you can make up with him."
"No, no, no, I'm not going." Yang Fengxia waved her hand to refuse: "If anyone should be the one to back down, it should be him coming to me to back down. How can an elder bow down to a junior?"
Fang Xue said helplessly, "Mom, Xiao Hai has been pushed too far by you this time. He's determined to cut ties with you. How could he possibly come to you and apologize on his own initiative?"
Yang Fengxia got angry as soon as she heard this: "Then I'm his mother! He doesn't listen to a word I say, and he almost made me die of anger. Now you want me, his mother, to give in to him? Aren't you afraid of shortening his lifespan?"
"But the situation is different now."
Fang Xue suppressed the annoyance in her eyes and patiently explained to Yang Fengxia, "My younger brother is playful. Who knows when he'll settle down? If he doesn't settle down, you and Dad can't rely on him for the rest of your lives, can you? Xiao Hai is a bit stubborn, but he's steady, filial, and responsible. Only by relying on him can you and Dad have a secure future."
"Mom, I'm doing this all for your own good. Think about it carefully, am I right or wrong?"
"But..." Yang Fengxia still couldn't bring herself to say it.
"No buts. I would like to be your and Dad's support for the rest of your lives, but do you think I'm up to the task? I have to be mindful of my mother-in-law's feelings even for myself. How can you and Dad have a good life with me?"
“You’re no good,” Yang Fengxia said. “A married daughter is like water spilled from a cup; you’re someone else’s person now, and I don’t expect you to support me in my old age.”
“So, we still have to rely on Xiaohai!” Fang Xue forcefully pushed Yang Fengxia’s shoulder toward the kitchen: “Mom, listen to me, apologize to him. Give him a way out, and everyone will be better off.”
Yang Fengxia had already been persuaded, but she was too embarrassed to say so.
Now that Fang Xue had made the decision for her, she reluctantly followed along.
Yang Fengxia was concerned about her reputation, so she whispered to Fang Xue, "Let's find a time when no one is around and talk privately. Let's not let anyone see us."
"Mom, I know," Fang Xue assured, "This is a family matter, and I promise not to let a third person know."
However, things didn't go as planned. Even after the banquet was over, Yang Fengxia couldn't find a suitable opportunity to speak with Fang Hai privately.
After the lunch banquet ended, relatives and friends left one after another.
Fang Xue nudged Yang Fengxia's shoulder, urging her to go talk to Fang Hai.
Yang Fengxia dawdled, thinking she would wait until everyone else had left before looking for Fang Hai.
Just as the mother and daughter were struggling, they suddenly heard a woman's sharp scream from next door.
Fang Xue was startled: "What's wrong? What's wrong?"
Yang Fengxia was also extremely flustered: "What happened?"
As neighbors, Fang Hai asked Fang Qiao to keep Dong Ping company while he went to check on the situation in the neighboring courtyard to see if there was anything he could help with.
A crowd of people had gathered outside the courtyard of the neighboring tenement.
Yang Fengxia, being very curious, pulled Fang Xue into the crowd to join in the fun.
Just then, someone in the courtyard shouted, "Make way, make way... move aside quickly..."
Accompanied by urgent sounds, the screaming woman was carried out of the courtyard on a bed board. The onlookers quickly moved aside to make way for the person inside.
In the crowd, Fang Xue's instep was stepped on several times, and the heel of her shoe was stepped off by someone.
She glanced at her quickly and noticed that the woman lying on the bed looked somewhat familiar.
People around started talking.
What happened to Aunt Zhou's daughter?
"Is she going into labor? I see a lot of blood under the covers."
"It's not the right time yet, is it? I remember Xiaoxia got pregnant around June 1st."
"It was Children's Day. My grandson's class was having a celebration that day. He was wearing his sister's dress when Xiaoxia came back to her parents' house to share the good news. She even gave my grandson a big handful of candy. I remember it very clearly."
"Isn't there a significant gap between the months she was supposed to give birth and the actual birth date...?"
"That's quite a bit short, only six months..."
"I'm afraid it can't be saved..."
Someone said this, and the scene suddenly fell silent, as if the air itself had become stagnant.
Fang Xue was still shaken.
When she got home, she told Zhang Jun about Xiaoxia with some fear, while also worrying about the baby in her belly.
Before Zhang Jun could speak, her mother-in-law called out, "Xiaoxia? Zhou Xiaoxia?"
"I think so, he looks somewhat familiar."
"You live in Hutong No. 3 near Labor Park?"
Fang Xue nodded and said, "It's No. 3 Hutong, the house my brother rents over there."
"That's right, Zhou Xiaoxia's family home is in No. 3 Alley." Grandma Fang Xue asked, "Are you sure she had a miscarriage?"
"I don't know, but that's what everyone around said. She bled a lot and was carried to the hospital on a bed. Blood was dripping all the way there." Fang Xue felt a chill run down her spine at the thought of that scene and instinctively covered her stomach with her hand.
"With so much blood lost, how could the baby possibly survive?"
Grandma Fang frowned. "How could she have miscarried out of nowhere? It was such a carelessness."
Fang Xue shook her head: "I don't know, I don't even know her. By the time I heard the screams, it had already happened. Mom, why are you asking this?"
"Nothing, just asking," said Grandma Fang Xue. "You don't know, she also consulted a master for a prescription."
"But wasn't she already pregnant?" Fang Xue asked, puzzled. "Master has only been in the capital for three months."
"Yes, she was pregnant early. She was initially carrying a girl, but the master prescribed a remedy to give her a boy."
Grandma Fang Xue sighed and said with regret, "It's a pity she wasn't lucky. This was a boy that the master specially arranged for her."
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