“Do you even believe what you’re saying?” Shen Yunzhi shot back. “Back then, when Father arranged my engagement with the Su family, you complained the betrothal gifts were too little. By the time of the wedding, you forced the Su family to add another ten taels.
You said you would keep that money for me — that if I ever faced hardship, you would give it to me.
At the time, I truly believed you were doing it for my sake. I was grateful.”
Mother Shen said, “I’m your mother. If I don’t think for your benefit, who will?”
“Later, when Ci-ge had a fever and the Su family couldn’t afford a doctor, I knelt outside the Shen household gate for an entire night. You never even let me in.
And when my husband went to war, I came to you asking for that money, hoping to buy him a new set of clothes to take with him. Do you remember what you said? You said that nine out of ten who go to war don’t come back alive — buying anything for him would be a waste.”
“Even so, I endured it. I told myself you were my mother, that you bore and raised me. I didn’t argue.
But you never should have taken the compensation money the Su family received. That was meant to secure a future for my two children.
You took it all. How were they supposed to live? How was I supposed to live?”
Shen Yunzhi wept miserably. The crowd listening around them was moved; many began wiping away tears.
Liu Lihua stepped forward to comfort her. “Don’t worry. We’ll help you raise the two children.”
“Thank you, sister-in-law.” Shen Yunzhi nodded, then continued firmly, “Mother, whether you blame me or resent me, the severance document has been signed. In my heart, that means I have completely cut ties with the Shen family. From now on, I will not involve myself in Shen family matters. I will live properly for my two children.”
“Daughter, Mother knows you’re angry. I don’t blame you. I’ll leave for now and come see you another time.” Mother Shen quickly found an excuse to slip away.
Shen Er followed her. Once they had left the village, he glanced back. “Mother, what do we do now?”
They had come for money and not only failed — they had even handed over ten taels. The thought made his blood boil.
“You still don’t understand Shen Yunzhi? Every time she says she’s cutting ties with us, she never lasts more than a few days before coming back on her own.” Mother Shen dismissed it lightly.
Shen Lao’er nodded. “Next time she comes back, I’ll make her kneel in front of me and kowtow in apology.”
This time, Shen Yunzhi had humiliated him publicly. He had to find a way to regain his dignity.
“But we’re about to send the betrothal gifts. What do we do without money?” he frowned, thinking of the wedding.
The xiucai’s family had been urging them.
“I still have some private savings,” Mother Shen said. “You go ahead and send the betrothal gifts first. As for the cloth we promised earlier, just find an excuse to brush it off. Scholarly families care most about reputation — they won’t break off the engagement over this.”
“To be honest, if her father weren’t a xiucai, just with her looks, I wouldn’t even glance at her. And she still demands such a large bride price. Doesn’t she know whether she’s worth it?” Shen Lao’er had never been fully satisfied with this marriage.
“If you marry the xiucai’s daughter, it sounds good for you. If you really can’t stand her, just come back home often. Out of sight, out of mind.”
“Mother, you mean…”
“The rest is up to you. As long as you have the ability.”
Shen Lao’er’s earlier gloom vanished. He was already imagining his future life.
A xiucai’s family didn’t marry off daughters like ordinary commoners. They would provide a dowry — one no smaller than the bride price. And since the xiucai had only this one daughter, the family estate would eventually be his.
Thinking about that two-courtyard residence, Shen Lao’er’s eyes shone.
Meanwhile, at the Su household—
The Su family couldn’t quite figure out Shen Yunzhi’s intentions.
The two elders called her inside.