Shen Meng and Bai Jinxi drove the donkey cart around, taking the firewood Li Shuanzhu, He Hua’s family, and Wang Haijing had cut back to their homes one by one.
It was obvious that Wang Haijing’s family had lived here for generations. Their house was well built and located relatively close to the center of the village.
Li Shuanzhu’s and He Hua’s families, on the other hand, had only arrived in recent years. Their houses were cramped and narrow, tucked away at the very edge of the village.
Shen Meng’s family had also moved here later, so their house was naturally built near the edge of the village.
However, Shen Meng’s family had a very large courtyard, and the house itself was well built. At a glance, it was clear that the family was fairly well-off.
Originally, there had only been one courtyard. Later, as the family’s circumstances improved, the brothers separated and each built their own houses nearby. Eventually, the younger generation built houses of their own and moved out as well.
A few years ago, Shen Mancang’s family had enclosed the houses belonging to several of his sons with walls, creating one enormous compound. At the very edge of the compound, they had also built separate courtyards for the kitchen and woodshed, along with another yard for the donkey shed, chicken coop, and donkey carts.
Courtyard after courtyard was connected together, forming a sprawling residence that looked like the multi-courtyard homes of a wealthy family.
When unloading the firewood for the three families, they gave each family two extra bundles of wood that Shen Meng herself had cut—one bundle of brushwood and one bundle of wormwood.
The three families thanked them profusely, while the children kept calling out, “Thank you, Boss!”
Shen Meng felt her vanity more satisfied than ever.
“Helping people really does make you feel happy!”
“Are you trying to make up for what Meng’er did?” Bai Jinxi asked.
“I… I just feel bad that they’re struggling, so if I can help, I’ll lend them a hand.”
Shen Meng wasn’t telling the truth, though she didn’t even know why she hadn’t.
“Meng’er used to bully them, but she never beat them particularly badly. It’s just that they’re outsiders, and now that our Shen family has gained influence in the village, they’re instinctively afraid of us. As for Wang Haijing, his older brother works on our family’s boat, so their livelihood depends on us,” Bai Jinxi explained.
“I indulged Meng’er because I thought it was better for her to bully others than to be bullied herself. Having a bad temper could protect her sometimes. She couldn’t exactly spend her entire life being bullied both at home and outside.”
Bai Jinxi sighed helplessly.
“Besides, every time she bullied someone, I’d make it up to them afterward by sending them firewood or food. It’s just that these past few years, we were struggling to make ends meet ourselves and needed other people’s help, so we couldn’t do much for them anymore.”
“When you’re poor, you take care of yourself first. When you’re prosperous, you can help others,” Shen Meng said. “Of course we should make sure our own lives are in order first. But bullying people weaker than us won’t actually protect us. The people who bully us are stronger than us in one way or another.”
“We need to make ourselves strong first.”
Shen Meng gazed at the fading sunset, its golden afterglow casting a warm sheen over the entire little fishing village.
“Let’s take some firewood to your Fourth Granduncle, Shen Manjiang, who’s the village head,” Bai Jinxi said.
Shen Meng nodded. “We should. Building goodwill with people who have influence will also make it easier for us to establish ourselves in the village.”
Shen Meng understood these little social niceties. They might be relatives, but whether they were close or distant still depended on how much effort they put into maintaining the relationship.
Of course, they couldn’t rely entirely on flattery and sucking up, either.
Bai Jinxi nodded and carefully explained.
“Sending firewood to your Fourth Granduncle is something our Shen family agreed to do after he became village head. Your Third and Fifth Granduncles’ families provide their share every day.”
“Your Great-Aunt’s family—Silver Fragrance’s family—doesn’t have to. The old village head was a benefactor to our family, so we also give them gifts every month as a token of respect.”
“Our family is an exception for two reasons. First, the eldest brother is like a father. Those siblings still have to come regularly to pay their respects to your grandfather. Second, your father became a constable at the county government office, so he works for the government.”
“Now that you’re strong enough to cut more firewood than we need, I was thinking that, as a younger member of the family, you could send a few bundles over every day to show your filial respect. Would you think I was…”
“Think what? This is a good thing.” Shen Meng smiled and interrupted Bai Jinxi.
“Sending firewood to Fourth Granduncle’s family follows the Shen family’s customs, and it also lets us strengthen our relationship with the village head’s family. Why wouldn’t we do it? Besides, I have plenty of strength. Cutting a little extra firewood isn’t a big deal.”
A smile tugged at the corners of Bai Jinxi’s lips as she looked at Shen Meng, but her eyes had turned slightly red.
“If only my Meng’er had been this sensible from the beginning.”
Wang Haijing’s house was located deeper inside the village, relatively close to the center. Naturally, when Shen Meng and Bai Jinxi drove a donkey cart loaded with firewood into the village, they attracted the villagers’ attention.
Quite a few people came out to watch, and many of them commented, “Shen Meng has really changed. She’s become sensible and capable.”
Those words pierced Bai Jinxi’s heart.
“I didn’t raise Meng’er properly…”
Shen Meng felt a little awkward and uneasy. She put an arm around Bai Jinxi’s shoulders.
“Don’t say that.”
“I had my own selfish reasons. I wanted Meng’er to marry out of the village someday so she wouldn’t have to suffer here, so I never taught her how to do farm work. I raised her the way the daughters of wealthy families in the city were raised.”
Bai Jinxi spread out her rough, calloused hands.
“No matter how fine a woman’s hands are, farm work will eventually make them rough. We originally lived in the county town, but after Shen Fugui and my father passed away one after another, we had no choice but to return to the village to make a living.”
“Women aren’t allowed to register their own households. We either have to remarry, or the government will classify us as vagrants, confiscate our family’s property, and send us to a welfare home.”
Shen Meng was so shocked that she could hardly believe her ears.
How could the feudal system here be even harsher toward women than the ancient costume dramas she’d seen back home?
This really left women with no way to live!
The law had practically nailed women down as men’s dependents.
It was infuriating!
“I didn’t want to send the young Meng’er to her husband’s parents’ family, and I didn’t want to take Meng’er and marry into another family either. So I had no choice but to come back to Shen Family Village with her.”
After saying this, Bai Jinxi felt both aggrieved and overcome with longing for Meng’er. She secretly wiped away a tear, afraid that someone might see her crying.
Shen Meng put an arm around Bai Jinxi’s shoulders.
“You were the daughter of a county clerk. You managed to survive in a little fishing village, and now you can even do farm work quickly and well. That’s already incredibly impressive.”
Shen Meng thought to herself that it really was impressive.
The change in Bai Jinxi’s circumstances had been far too drastic. If she’d been a weak-willed woman with poor emotional resilience or poor physical health, she would have broken down long ago or been worked to death.
A county-level clerk was one of the three highest-ranking officials in the county. The position covered a wide range of responsibilities, including finances, taxation, household registration, and other affairs. In modern terms, it was roughly equivalent to a deputy county magistrate combined with the head of the county finance bureau.
A pampered young lady from a family like that, who had never lifted a finger for household chores, had suddenly been brought to a remote fishing village. Shen Meng couldn’t even imagine how difficult the adjustment must have been.
But Bai Jinxi had made it through.
She had endured for five whole years.
“If I were you, I’d have felt the same way. I would’ve made sure to get my daughter out of the village, too. At the very least, I’d want her to marry someone from the town.”
“Don’t be too upset. What’s done is done. You still need to take care of yourself. I’ll definitely give you a good life. I’ll take you away from here.”
“You have to live well, so Meng’er can rest easy up in heaven.”