Old Mrs. Wang’s loud cry startled nearly half the village.
In these times, entertainment was scarce, so gossip about neighbors naturally became the villagers’ favorite pastime after meals.
Without knowing the truth, the villagers began pointing fingers at Song Shulin.
“Shulin, I’m not trying to lecture you, but how could you drive your mother to death? That’s unfilial.”
“Exactly. Your mother, a widow, worked so hard to raise you three brothers. Everyone knows how tough it’s been for her.”
“Yes, we must have a conscience. Your mother raised you when you were young; it’s your duty as a son to care for her in her old age.”
…
More of these high-sounding words.
Song Shulin smiled bitterly. In his past life, he had been morally shackled by such talk.
Not only had he slaved away for the Song family his entire life, but he had also dragged his wife and children into it.
“Ahem, Third Brother, hurry up and apologize to Mother. Let’s not bring up dividing the family again,” Song Erlin quickly stepped in to smooth things over, seeing the villagers side with his mother. Liu Zhaodi chimed in as well.
“That’s right, Third Brother. As the old saying goes, ‘As long as parents are alive, the family should not split.’ By making such a fuss now, aren’t you stabbing our mother in the heart? How will she ever face people again?”
Song Shulin remained silent, so Old Mrs. Wang slapped her thigh and wailed again.
She had often used this tactic to manipulate her third son in the past.
The trick didn’t need to be clever—it just had to work.
“I won’t—”
Before he could finish the word “live,” another voice drowned him out.
“Heavens, I can’t go on! My mother-in-law is trying to drive her daughter-in-law to her death…”
Shen Xiuzhen threw caution to the wind. Mimicking Old Mrs. Wang, she sat on the ground, wailing and slapping her thigh.
“My Dani is only fifteen, and my mother-in-law wants to force her into a marriage exchange for Song Weimin…”
Inspired, Song Shulin went inside, fetched a rope, and headed for the old locust tree in the yard.
“I’m useless! I can’t protect my wife and daughter. I might as well die!”
Crying, making a scene, and threatening to hang oneself—these were Old Mrs. Wang’s usual tricks.
Song Shulin decided to preempt her next move, leaving her with nowhere to go.
The villagers were horrified.
They rushed into the yard to stop Song Shulin.
“Shulin, let’s talk this out. Don’t do anything rash.”
“Yes, Shulin, your children are still young. What will they do if you die?”
“Xiuzhen, stop crying. Hurry and talk some sense into Shulin.”
But talking sense was the last thing she would do.
Now that her husband had finally found his backbone, Shen Xiuzhen wasn’t about to dampen his spirit.
“Song Shulin, since your mother doesn’t want us to live, let’s die together. You hang yourself, and I’ll run into the wall. At least we can still be husband and wife in the underworld.”
With that, Shen Xiuzhen sprang to her feet and made a dash for the wall.
The Song family was dumbfounded. What was going on?
Why were they suddenly talking about life and death?
Old Mrs. Wang was both frantic and furious. These were her next lines! How had Third Brother and his wife stolen her act?
“Mom, Dad, please stop! I’ll marry him, okay? I’ll marry him!”
Song Dani, quick as lightning, grabbed Shen Xiuzhen and hugged her tightly, weeping as if her heart would break.
Life felt utterly meaningless to her. Her parents always forced her and her siblings to give in for the sake of their cousins.
Fine, she’d give in.
Let this be her final sacrifice for the family.
Shen Xiuzhen was so angry it made her liver ache. She and Song Shulin had put on such an energetic performance, not just to get her married off.
She wanted to protect her daughter, to divide the family, and to ensure that neither the eldest nor the second branch would have peace.
“Da Niu, let go! Let your mother die. Anyway, your grandmother doesn’t treat our family as human beings. There’s no point in me living.”
The villagers began murmuring again.
“Pah! I’ve finally seen it clearly. This Old Mrs. Wang is truly inhuman. How old is Da Niu, and she’s already forcing the child into a marriage exchange?”
“Exactly. I think she just sees Shulin and Xiuzhen as honest and easy to bully, so she’s pushing their family to the brink.”
“That Song Weimin isn’t a good person either. He dresses himself up all fancy every day, yet he could actually force his own cousin into a marriage exchange—such a cursed thing.”
“How can someone like him even be a teacher? Heaven must be blind.”
Song Weimin prided himself on being a cultured man and naturally wouldn’t stoop to arguing with these country bumpkins.
But the more they cursed, the uglier it got, making Song Weimin feel he had lost all face and dignity.
“Third Uncle, Third Aunt, please stop making a scene. I won’t get married anymore. Isn’t it enough if I don’t get married?”
Song Shulin and Shen Xiuzhen exchanged a glance. The couple didn’t believe a single punctuation mark of what Song Weimin said.
The Wu family was one he had worked hard to climb up to. How could he possibly just give up on marrying into it?
“No!” Old Mrs. Wang scrambled up from the ground, walked over to her precious grandson, took his hand, and earnestly said, “Weimin, you’re already twenty-one. How can you not get married?”
“Besides…”
“Grandma!” Song Weimin interrupted Old Mrs. Wang, giving her a meaningful look.
The most urgent matter now was to chase away these nosy villagers.
Once they were gone, they could discuss the marriage matter slowly.
The Wu family were city folks. If these idle rumors reached their ears, his marriage with Wu Meili would truly fall through.
Old Mrs. Wang understood instantly and sternly shooed everyone away.
“What are you all standing around in my house for? Don’t you have work in the fields? Get out of here now.”
“Zhenhua, Xingguo, Yaozhong, what are you idiots standing there for? Go close the gate.”
Song Zhenhua, Song Xingguo, and Song Yaozhong were all sons of the eldest branch.
As brothers, they naturally hoped Song Weimin could marry Wu Meili.
With in-laws from the city, the three brothers could also benefit in the future.
“Grandpas, grandmas, uncles, aunties, please go back.”
Song Yaozhong was relatively polite, speaking gently to the crowd.
Song Zhenhua and Song Xingguo didn’t care as much. The brothers’ faces grew longer and longer, looking quite intimidating.
“Go, go, let’s head back.”
The villagers said they were leaving, but once they reached the gate, they all stopped in unison.
Song Zhenhua closed the gate and bolted it, completely cutting off everyone’s view from outside.
Old Mrs. Wang looked at Song Shulin, her mouth opening and closing, afraid to speak rashly.
She feared that with one wrong word, Song Shulin would threaten suicide again.
Song Weimin knew that this time, they had truly stepped on the third branch’s sore spot, so he took the initiative to speak:
“Grandma, Da Niu is still young. It’s not suitable for her to be exchanged in marriage.”
He didn’t say this to help the third branch out of their predicament.
Rather, their family couldn’t do without Song Shulin and Shen Xiuzhen, this pair of workhorses.
Understanding her precious grandson’s underlying meaning, Old Mrs. Wang fell silent for a moment before finally making a decision.
“Then let Hongxia marry.”
“Why? I don’t agree!” Liu Zhaodi stiffened her neck and retorted directly.