Wang Guiqin held the baby in her arms and glanced at Wu Yulan, hesitating, not daring to speak.
Wu Yulan’s voice was calm. “It’s a girl.”
The moment Li Xiuyun heard this, she panicked. Grabbing her mother-in-law’s sleeve anxiously, she pleaded, “Mother, please don’t sell Chun Ni. The next one—the next one will definitely be a boy!”
Wu Yulan said nothing. She cleaned Li Xiuyun up, then covered her with a quilt, carefully preserving her privacy.
At that moment, Chun Ni’s hoarse voice sounded from outside the door.
“Grandma, I’ve brought the doctor back! Please open the door and let him check on my mother!”
Wu Yulan opened the door and saw Chun Ni’s thin, anxious little face.
Looking into those eyes filled with worry, Wu Yulan’s voice softened. She comforted her gently, “Your mother is fine. Both mother and daughter are safe.”
After speaking, she turned to the physician standing beside her. “Doctor Jiang, please take a look at my daughter-in-law.”
Doctor Jiang had long heard of Wu Yulan’s notorious reputation as a vicious mother-in-law. Seeing her so gentle and courteous now left him stunned for quite a while.
…
After taking Li Xiuyun’s pulse, Doctor Jiang said in a clear voice, “There’s no major issue. Her body is simply severely depleted. She needs proper nourishment.”
These words were mainly directed at Wu Yulan.
Naturally, Wu Yulan knew that Li Xiulan’s body was gravely weakened. She was quite confident in her own medical skills.
The reason she had invited the physician over was to obtain some medicine.
“Many thanks, Doctor Jiang.”
“If it’s convenient, could you prescribe a few medicinal herbs for me?”
Doctor Jiang nodded. “Prescribing medicine is no trouble.”
“I heard that this pregnancy was originally a breech position?”
A breech birth was extremely dangerous; difficult labor was common. The fact that Li Xiuyun had delivered safely struck Doctor Jiang as very unusual.
“It was breech indeed.”
“Oh? Then how was the child delivered safely?” Curiosity flared wildly in Doctor Jiang’s eyes.
Wu Yulan remained composed and replied casually, “I happened to learn a method from someone that can turn a breech position around. I tried it just now, allowing the baby’s head to enter the birth canal smoothly.”
Doctor Jiang was immediately invigorated. “Oh? There’s such a method?”
“May I ask where you learned it?”
Wu Yulan did not intend to keep secrets, but her medical knowledge was not something just anyone could learn.
If Doctor Jiang proved to be a good person, she would not be stingy in sharing it.
“If Doctor Jiang truly wishes to know, we can discuss it another day. For now, it’s rather inconvenient.”
Doctor Jiang paused, then hurriedly said, “I was too eager—too eager.”
“What herbs did you say you needed? I’ll have my eldest grandson deliver them shortly!”
Wu Yulan listed the medicinal herbs she required.
Doctor Jiang nodded slightly. “Very well. I’ll have my eldest grandson bring them over soon.”
“Mm. Please tell me the consultation and medicine fees—I’ll pay them together.”
Doctor Jiang waved his hand. “We can talk about it another day. It’s not worth much.”
With that, he slung his medicine box over his shoulder and left.
Wu Yulan knew he was simply leaving an opportunity for future dealings.
After glancing back at the frail Li Xiuyun, Wu Yulan went to the kitchen.
Her second daughter-in-law, Zhao Lijuan, was carefully ladling porridge into bowls.
Seeing Song Zhishu follow Wu Yulan inside, she hurriedly said, “Younger brother-in-law, the porridge is ready. The eggs are here.”
Song Zhishu reached out to take them, but grasped at empty air.
Wu Yulan held the porridge in one hand and the eggs in the other, turning and walking straight out.
Song Zhishu frowned. “Mother, where are you taking that?”
When he saw Wu Yulan head directly to Li Xiuyun’s room, he froze in place.
“This porridge… isn’t… isn’t it for me?”
Everyone exchanged looks of surprise.
In the past, the white rice porridge and eggs at home were always eaten by Song Zhishu—only the scholar, Song Zhishu, was allowed to have them.
But this time, the white rice porridge and eggs were not given to Song Zhishu?
Song Zhishu watched as Wu Yulan carried the porridge toward Li Xiuyun’s room, his brows instantly knitting together.
“Mother, are you giving that porridge and egg to that wretched woman?”
Wu Yulan suppressed the urge to slap him and shot back angrily, “That’s your third sister-in-law! If not her, should I give it to you?”
Song Zhishu nodded as if it were only natural. “Of course it should be given to me…”
But Wu Yulan ignored him completely and walked straight into Li Xiuyun’s room with the bowl of porridge.
Seeing this, Song Zhishu grew furious and shouted, “Mother, have you gone mad?”
“Fine! If you won’t give it to your son, then I simply won’t eat!”
With that, he turned and headed back to his room.
Hmph, you won’t let me eat? Even if you beg me later, I won’t touch it!
Unless you stew a chicken soup for me, I won’t take another bite of that porridge!
Song Zhishu grumbled inwardly.
However, he had no idea that this time, his calculations would come to nothing.
Li Xiuyun felt a trace of panic when she saw her mother-in-law bringing in white porridge and eggs.
Previously, when the eldest sister-in-law’s child had been sold, her mother-in-law had suddenly treated her kindly in the same way. At the thought of that, tears streamed down Li Xiuyun’s face.
“Mother, I don’t need white rice porridge or eggs. Please don’t sell Chun Ni!”
Wu Yulan opened the door and let Chun Ni come in to stay by Li Xiuyun’s side.
Yet even after seeing her eldest daughter, Li Xiuyun still did not dare to eat the porridge and eggs.
Wu Yulan curled her lips and scolded directly, “Stop dawdling. If you don’t eat, I’ll sell her tomorrow!”
Sure enough, those words were the most effective.
The moment Li Xiuyun heard them, she hurriedly took the bowl and shoveled the porridge into her mouth. However, she seemed to have misunderstood something, wiping her tears as she ate.
“Mother, I’ll eat. Please don’t sell Chun Ni. As long as you don’t sell her, even if this porridge poisons me to death, I’ll accept it willingly!”
Wu Yulan held her forehead.
Without offering any explanation, she watched Li Xiuyun finish the porridge and eggs before opening the door and stepping outside.
Once she relaxed, Wu Yulan felt her head throb.
She returned to “her” room to sort out her thoughts.
Wu Yulan had originally been a doctor of both Chinese and Western medicine in the 21st century. Because she stayed up late working overtime researching pharmaceutical formulas, she died suddenly from overwork.
She was only thirty-five. In her life, she had never married or had children, dedicating herself entirely to medical research.
Pitifully, she had not enjoyed even a few days of comfort before dying. Death might have been clean enough—but of all fates, she had become this vicious old woman.
The malicious old woman had been born in Wu Family Village, in the northern part of Dongchen Country. She married into Song Family Village at fifteen. Her husband died early, and now she herself was only forty-six.
She had given birth to four sons: the eldest, Song Zhiyong; the second, Song Zhicong; the third, Song Zhikang; and the fourth, Song Zhishu.
The eldest son, Song Zhiyong, had been forced by the old woman to hunt in the mountains during winter and had broken his leg. His wife, Wang Guiqin from a neighboring village, had borne two sons and two daughters: Song Dalang, 14; Song Erlang, 13; Song Jinhua, 10; and Song Yinhua, 9.
This harsh and vicious old woman, thinking granddaughters wasted food, had secretly sold Song Jinhua.
The second son, Song Zhicong, had been forced by her to work on river repairs and had yet to return. His wife, Zhao Lijuan, also from a nearby village, had given birth to twin daughters, Song Tonghua and Song Qianhua. Naturally, the old woman had sold the twelve-year-old Song Tonghua to human traffickers.
The third son, Song Zhikang, had been sent to the frontier by her, and his fate was unknown. His wife was Li Xiuyun, whom Song Zhikang had brought back from the mountains. She now had two daughters: Chun Ni and the newborn baby.
The fourth son, Song Zhishu, was born in the old woman’s later years and was deeply doted on.
At home, he acted like a lord, served by the entire family, spending his days dreaming of becoming the top scholar in the imperial examination and marrying a noble lady.
After sorting through the family situation, Wu Yulan rubbed her forehead and cursed inwardly.
“This old woman is truly despicable!”
“Favoring sons over daughters is bad enough, tormenting her daughters-in-law as well—but to even sell her own granddaughters? That’s downright vile.”
Her sons, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren were obedient and filial. If she hadn’t stirred up trouble, she could have enjoyed a harmonious family and a peaceful old age. Yet she insisted on courting disaster.
Looking at the mud walls plastered with yellow clay and reeds, and the roof thickly covered with thatch, Wu Yulan sighed.
Well then. Since she was here, she might as well make the best of it.
Since she had become this old woman, she would live properly in her stead.
With that thought, Wu Yulan searched through the old woman’s memories to locate where she had hidden her silver.
And when she searched, she discovered something extraordinary.