Chapter 13 Li Hongguo's Hunger Strike
After seeing Du Li off on the boat, Meng Chun went to the fish market and bought three catties of silver fish and five catties of white shrimp to send back.
"Dad, Mom, you stay home and help my sister take care of the baby. I'll go to the shop and watch over it," he said.
Although people can die at any time and in any weather, families holding funerals rarely buy paper offerings on rainy days, and the shop's business is pitifully slow on rainy days. Meng's father was not worried that Meng Chun could not keep the shop by himself. He only instructed, "The doors and windows in the attic in the backyard must not be opened, and the paper and cloth inside must not get wet, or they will become damp."
"I understand," Meng Chun replied and left.
Rainy days are perfect for sleeping, so Meng Qing left her child with her parents and went back to her room to sleep. When she woke up again, it was time for her child to nurse.
Mencius' mother brought the child and sat her down by her bedside. Seeing that she was still not awake, she skillfully unbuttoned her clothes. Mencius' mother suddenly felt a pang of sadness. "I still remember what you looked like as a child. In the blink of an eye, you have become me."
After saying that, she put the child down, turned around, and quickly went out.
Not long after, Meng's mother came in again, having composed herself. She was carrying a stack of urine rings, all of which were newly cut.
“I don’t know how many days this rain will last. The diapers won’t dry until the sky clears. I cut about twenty diapers from your brother’s old clothes.” She put the diapers on the bedside table and asked, “Will I come and sleep with you tonight? Will Wangzhou be restless at night? I’ll soothe him when he’s restless.”
“He doesn’t fuss, he sleeps soundly, and he only cries when he’s hungry. Sometimes I change his diapers and he doesn’t even wake up,” Meng Qing said.
"Just like you were when you were little, but you were even more clever. You knew to cry when you needed to pee, and after you turned five months old, your diaper was never wet again." Meng's mother reminisced. "Back then, I told your father that I was incredibly lucky to have such a clever girl. Your father was still disappointed that you weren't a boy. But after Meng Chun was born, he had a son, and then he complained that he had given birth to a fool."
Meng Qing had heard these words more than once, and she would laugh every time she heard them. She corrected him again: "My little brother is not stupid."
"Have they all grown up by now?" Meng's mother smiled as she held the child's chubby feet and sighed, "I didn't realize it before, but just now, seeing you feeding the child so absentmindedly, I suddenly felt uneasy. You're a mother now; time really flies."
“You gave birth to me, and I gave birth to Wangzhou. You raised me, and I raised him. This is the continuation of bloodline, and it’s a good thing.” Meng Qing’s eyes looked towards the door, then turned back to her mother’s face. She said excitedly, “Our lives are getting better, and they will get even better in the future.”
She doesn't dwell on the past, she only looks forward to the future.
Mencius' mother was already familiar with her daughter's tone. Her daughter was also strange; she had inexhaustible energy from a young age and seemed never to get tired of anything. Everyone would complain, but she wouldn't. Not only did she not complain, but when others sighed and lamented, she would shout, "Don't be discouraged! We're still alive! As long as we're alive, there's hope, and life will get better..."
"I'll go cook the shrimp." Meng's mother refused to join in her excitement. "Get up when you're awake, don't go back to sleep, lest you can't sleep at night and run off to cook again, making us have breakfast with you in the middle of the night."
Meng Qing laughed heartily, "I'll get up right away."
It was already dark outside, and Mencius' mother muttered, "I wonder if my son-in-law has arrived home yet."
"We won't get there until it gets dark," Meng's father said.
As Meng's father said, when Du Li arrived at Dujiawan Ferry, it was already dark, and his clothes were soaked. He walked home through the mud, and as soon as he entered the house, he heard his mother banging and cursing in the kitchen.
"Mother, have you not eaten yet?"
Startled by the sudden noise, Du's mother turned around and saw him standing in the doorway like a water ghost. She immediately became furious: "Eat, eat, eat! All you ever think about is food! You've made such a mess of the house, and you're still thinking about food!"
Du Li didn't respond. He simply said, "Add two more bowls of water," and turned to go back inside to change his clothes.
During dinner, Du Li noticed his sister-in-law was nowhere to be seen. He asked in confusion, "Brother, where is my sister-in-law? Isn't she home?"
Du Ming ignored him.
"Jinshu, where is your mother?" Du Li asked his nephew.
“She’s sleeping inside. My mother says she’s not eating,” Jinshu said.
"If she doesn't eat, she'll starve to death. Who are you trying to scare by putting on this show?" Du's mother shouted loudly, as if afraid that those who hadn't shown themselves wouldn't hear her.
"She starved to death. You'd better spend money to find me a wife and a stepmother for your grandchildren," Du Ming said without looking up, his words full of resentment.
Seeing that another argument was about to break out, Mr. Du slammed down his chopsticks and shouted angrily, "If you're not going to eat, get out! Do you want to starve to death? Are you trying to turn the world upside down?"
The dining table fell silent instantly, save for the sounds of breathing and chopsticks tapping against the rim of bowls.
Du Li took a deep breath, and his wandering thoughts immediately returned to their place. This was the home he had grown up in, a place filled with oppression and scolding.
After dinner, Du Li mustered up her courage and said, "Father, Mother, Eldest Brother, I have something to tell you."
"What is it now?" Mr. Du asked impatiently.
“If anyone in the village asks about Qingniang in the future, just say that she went back to her parents’ home to take care of her third brother’s meals. We discussed it on the boat. Whenever the Meng family cooks a good meal, Qingniang will send a portion to her third brother.” Du Li told a little white lie. He thought that he would check with Du Min next time he saw him. As long as Du Min was willing to cooperate, the matter of Meng Qing staying at her parents’ home to take care of his meals would be a done deal.
"Is it a real gift or just a pretense? Outsiders don't know whether the Meng family cooks good food or not. If she sends it once a month, she'll just gain a good reputation for nothing." Du's mother pouted.
“When your third brother comes back, just ask him,” Du Li said indifferently. “Meng Qing’s good reputation doesn’t bother anyone, and no one loses out. It’s just that your third brother has really benefited.”
Du's father mistakenly thought he was referring to Du Min's scheme to profit from the Meng family's business dealings, and he angrily interrupted, "Alright, shut your dog mouth, or I'll beat you to death if you cause trouble."
Du Li clenched her teeth.
Du Ming sensed something was wrong. "Dad, are you hiding something from me?"
"It's nothing." Mr. Du turned and left.
Du's mother also busied herself clearing away the dishes. When she saw Qiaomei scraping the thin porridge from the bottom of the bowl, she knew what she was going to do. She snorted but did not stop her.
But Li Hongguo refused to eat the porridge. She threw the bowl and chopsticks away. Du Ming argued with her, and she loudly cursed him for being a coward, accusing him of being treated like a slave in the Du family for eight or nine years since they got married. She said she was unwelcome in the family, and her children were also unwelcome...
Du Li, sleeping in the next room, heard everything clearly. The adults' arguments and the children's terrified cries reached his ears, making him shudder. If he hadn't tried so hard to ruin the marriage his parents had chosen, if he hadn't married Meng Qing, the curses and cries from next door would have played out in his room day and night.
The crying continued until midnight, and Du Li finally fell asleep when the crying stopped.
The next day, the rain was still falling, and Li Hongguo still did not show up. She continued to refuse food and water, lying motionless in the north room.
On the third day, Li Hongguo still wouldn't eat or drink anything. She was so weak from hunger that her voice was feeble. Du Ming was afraid she would really starve to death, so he tried to feed her, but she would vomit it up no matter how hard she tried.
The two children were so frightened that they stayed by the bedside and cried loudly.
Du Li tried to persuade her once, but was told to get lost, so he stopped interfering. He was also puzzled; he hadn't argued with her, so why did Li Hongguo resent him?
On the fourth night, the rain stopped. Du Li heard the sound of a door slamming next door. He got out of bed to open the door and saw Du Ming smashing the door to the west wing.
"Father, Mother, Jinshu's mother is dying. Come out and give me an explanation!" Du Ming shouted.
Mr. and Mrs. Du rushed out of the door in a panic, asking, "Is it really hopeless?"
“Yes.” Du Ming looked at them with hatred in his eyes. “If you don’t believe me, come and see for yourselves.”
Du Li followed her inside. He stood at the door and glanced at her. In the dim firelight, the woman lying on the bed had a sallow complexion and her eyes were half-open, as if she had lost her soul. No matter how much the two children cried and shouted, she did not respond.
"She's starving to death and will never have to eat Du's food again. Are you happy now?" Du Ming asked coldly.
"Quickly, go cook a bowl of rice porridge and force it down her throat." Mr. Du pushed Mrs. Du, and even at this point, he was still blustering and cursing, "Are you stupid? Your wife hasn't eaten or drunk anything for days, didn't you tell us?"
"The crying in my room never stopped, didn't you hear it?" Du Ming retorted, and he sneered, "I thought you were planning to starve her to death so you could marry me another one, a merchant's daughter, from a wealthy family. Only the wealthy are worth your attention."
Mr. Du was furious. He and his wife both believed that their eldest son and his wife were putting on an act to force them to back down. They had just been outmaneuvered by their second son's wife, and now their eldest son's wife was acting like she was going to kill herself and try to dominate them. The old couple were not about to give in. They didn't believe their eldest son's wife would actually die. They figured they had nothing else to do on a rainy day, so they could just let her stay in bed for ten days or half a month. They ignored the crying and cursing.
Du Li remembered that there was still maltose in his room, which was brought by Meng's uncles. He went back to his room, grabbed a handful, and asked his mother to stir a bowl of sugar water for his sister-in-law to drink.
The sweet soup was brought over, but Li Hongguo gritted her teeth and refused to drink it. As if in a final burst of energy, she struggled to sit up, hugged her two children, and said, "Jinshu, Qiaomei, remember this well, your mother was driven to her death by your grandparents..."
"Enough!" Mr. Du interrupted her angrily. "So what if you send Jinshu to school? Fine, send him. I'll skin and sell my flesh to send him to school. I want to see what kind of reputation your son can achieve."
Li Hongguo got what she wanted, and she knew when to stop.
Du Li noticed the triumphant look on his older brother's face, and he was certain that the hunger strike was real, while the suicide attempt was a pretense.
He breathed a sigh of relief, thankfully he hadn't really done anything rash.
Du Ming took the bowl of sweet soup from his mother and helped Li Hongguo feed her. "Drink up, Jinshu and Qiaomei still need you."
Mr. Du stormed off, and Mrs. Du, still upset, went to the kitchen to cook porridge. Du Li stood at the door, watching the family of four inside, feeling only a pang of sadness.
"Aren't you leaving yet?" Du Ming felt uneasy seeing him staring at him, afraid that he would see through something.
"Big brother, third brother is eighteen years old this year. You've been scolding me for eighteen years. When I was little, you scolded me and I cried because I was pretending to be pitiful. Now that I'm grown up, you hold grudges for the smallest things you've done to me. I've never understood if you were pretending not to know, but tonight I'm sure. You see, you can't stand being favored, ignored, or treated unfairly either. Only the one who gets hurt knows the pain." Du Li was quite heartbroken.
"What do you mean?" Du Ming continued to feign ignorance.
"Get out!" Jinshu suddenly said.
Du Li laughed, "Jinshu, you also resent me? Don't hate me, you should thank me. Without me and your second aunt, you wouldn't be able to go to the private school."
"My mother risked her life to allow me to go to school," Jinshu said loudly.
Du Li didn't argue with a child. He looked at Du Ming and asked, "Jinshu is eight years old. You two have always been easygoing before, so why are you so resolute this time? Is it because people who are used to taking advantage can't stand being taken advantage of? Big brother, don't come to me and yell at me anymore. You're too selfish and have no right to lecture me."
After saying that, Du Li left. He went straight back to the house and sat alone in the empty room. After a long time, he covered his face and took a deep breath. It turned out that his parents and siblings were well aware of the grievances and losses he had suffered since childhood.
"Second son, are you asleep?" Du's mother asked from outside the door.
Du Li ignored her, so her mother pounded on the door.
Du Li opened the door and stared at her without saying a word.
Du's mother walked past him into the house and habitually instructed, "I have something to tell you. You know the family's situation. It's already a struggle to support your third brother's education, and we don't have the extra resources to support Jinshu as well. You should discuss it with your wife, and she can pay for Jinshu's tuition."
"She has no money."
"..." Mrs. Du swallowed her curses and said, "Stop talking nonsense to me. Let her pay for several years in advance. Don't worry, Jinshu isn't cut out for studying. He'll quit on his own in a few years."
"No." Du Li was so angry that he was panting heavily. He silently chanted "Resist, resist, resist" in his mind. If he had understood this principle when he was a child and dared to be as reckless as his sister-in-law, he would definitely not have ended up being sacrificed time and time again.
“Whether she has it or not, she won’t pay this money. Her private savings are for my son, not for other people’s sons,” Du Li said clearly. “Whoever’s son it is, they should pay for his education. If they can’t afford it, they shouldn’t let him study. My third brother has studied for twelve years and it’s time for him to rest. If the family can’t afford to support him, they should let him open a private school to earn money and save enough to take the imperial examination.”
"Are you speaking human language?" Du's mother questioned.
Du Li pushed her out, saying, "I was born of you. You know better than anyone whether I'm a human or an animal."
Du's mother slapped him across the face. "You damned thing, you're the one who ruined this family. If you hadn't married such a jinx, our family would still be living happily. Why didn't I starve you to death back then? I should have starved you to death to save the baby in your belly."
"You finally said it. I also want you to starve me to death. If I die, you can feel guilty towards me for the rest of your life." Du Li felt his hands trembling and his teeth chattering. He felt cold all over. He wanted to cry but felt ashamed. He wanted to go to Meng Qing, but he was also afraid that she would not understand him.
He went back to his room, closed the door, and lay on the bed in a daze. He didn't even know when the cursing outside stopped.
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