Even in such darkness, Yang Yiyang could still see a little.
But no one spoke further. Jiang Zihao carried his mother and fled toward the ward as if escaping.
Yang Yiyang, meanwhile, slowly looked around. The hospital here had only two floors at most, and the ward she was staying in was merely a tiled house, not even a proper building.
Originally, since Jiang Mother had woken up, they should have called a doctor to check on her. But it was so late now, and all the doctors had already gone home after work.
So they could only wait until tomorrow when the doctor came for rounds to have her examined.
Having slept for so long, Jiang Mother couldn’t fall asleep again right away, but her injuries were too severe, so she could only lie still.
Jiang Mother asked her daughter-in-law, “Yiyang, are you alright?”
Yang Yiyang thought, Aren’t you the one who’s not alright? And you still have the energy to worry about others.
“I’m much better. I’ll be able to leave the hospital in a couple more days.”
Jiang Mother thought about how much money it would cost to stay here another day. Besides, she hadn’t even asked her son where the money for the hospitalization came from.
“I’m fine too. Let’s leave the hospital first thing tomorrow. It’s the same recuperating at home.”
Jiang Zihao protested, “Mom, your injuries are serious this time. You definitely can’t leave the hospital tomorrow. You need to stay a few more days.”
Mother Jiang frowned with worry, closed her eyes, and said, “I know my own body. It’s nothing serious. Let’s go back!”
Yang Yiyang also guessed that Mother Jiang’s insistence on going home was because of money.
She still couldn’t understand how her mother-in-law, who was usually as soft as dough and worked like an ox or a horse for the Jiang Family, had found the courage to take so much money from the family at once and send it to the Yang Family.
Jiang Zihao said, “Mom, don’t worry about the hospitalization fees. Focus on recovering first.”
Then he briefly told his mother about how the Jiang Family had gone to the Yang Family to make a scene earlier that day.
“We took out 20 yuan for the two of you to use for hospitalization, so don’t worry about the money.”
Hearing this, Mother Jiang grew even more worried. She didn’t know what awaited her when she returned to the Jiang Family.
Yang Yiyang asked them, “Have you thought about what to do when we go back to the Jiang Family in a few days?”
Mother Jiang began to cry softly. “As long as the two of you are doing well, it doesn’t matter what happens to me.”
Even if it cost her her life.
Jiang Zihao said, “At worst, we’ll go back and let Father Jiang beat us up. He wouldn’t dare kill us all, would he?”
Yang Yiyang rolled her eyes dramatically. She didn’t want to be beaten by anyone, no matter who it was.
After crying for a while, Mother Jiang cautiously asked,
“Yiyang, could you return the remaining money to your father-in-law first? That might make him less angry.”
She knew this request was somewhat unreasonable, but she couldn’t think of a better way.
Yang Yiyang thought, Once the money is in my hands, giving it away is impossible. No one can make me do it.
“Have you considered what would happen if we returned the money to the Jiang Family and they drove the three of us out? How would we survive?”
Mother Jiang cried, “That won’t happen, it won’t. Zihao is his son too.”
In truth, she wasn’t entirely sure, but she tried to convince herself.
Yang Yiyang added, “But what if? It’s better to be safe than sorry. Have you thought about how you’d live then?”
Jiang Zihao knew his father was capable of such a thing. He had long wanted to drive him out and disown him as a son.
“Mom, Yiyang is right. This time, Dad intended to beat you to death. Do you think he cares about our lives?”
Mother Jiang kept repeating, "It won't happen, it won't happen."
It was unclear whether she was saying it to herself or to others.
But as Jiang Heda's wife of twenty years, sharing his bed for two decades, how could she not know how ruthless he could be?
Yet, what could she do if she didn't believe him? What could the three of them—mother and children—do?
She had never earned a single penny in her life—what options did she have?
Yang Yiyang said, "No matter who gave that money to the Yang family, it was given to me as my dowry. That makes it mine. I won't hand it over, and no one can convince me otherwise. It belongs to me."
Hearing this, Mother Jiang felt as if the sky were collapsing—there truly seemed to be no way out.
Yang Yiyang continued, "If I don't hand it over and we get kicked out, we can still use that money to find a temporary place to live."
"At least for a short while, we won't have to worry about ending up on the streets or starving."
Jiang Zihao heard this and thought, That's right! My wife is clever.
"Then we won't hand it over."
Mother Jiang grew anxious. "If you don't hand it over, your father won't let us off."
Jiang Zihao said, "Mom, even if we do hand it over, do you really think Dad will let us off?"
Yang Yiyang had to give them a harsh dose of reality. "If I were Father-in-law, I'd take the money and then kick the three of you out."
"Because none of us in the Jiang Family have jobs. We're just extra mouths to feed. Even if he were willing to keep us, our two brothers' families wouldn't allow it."
"Before, there was no excuse. Now, with such a perfect reason handed to them, do you think they'd let it go easily?"
"Back when his children were young, he needed you to help raise them. Now his grandchildren are all grown up. You're no longer of any use to him."
Hearing this, Mother Jiang cried even more bitterly. Deep down, she had known all along—she had just been deluding herself, unwilling to believe it.
Now, her daughter-in-law had torn open the wound, laying it bare and bloody. She could no longer find any reason to deceive herself.
Yang Yiyang said, "From now on, the only ones you can rely on are Zihao and me."
"Don't worry—as long as we have food to eat, we won't abandon you."
But then Mother Jiang remembered that neither her son nor her daughter-in-law had jobs. With her included, that made three idle mouths to feed. How could they survive in the long run?
"For now, let's focus on recovering in the hospital. Once we're better, we'll go back and deal with the problem. No matter what happens, I'll find a way to earn money first."
Then Yang Yiyang carefully explained the situation regarding the one thousand yuan Mother Jiang had taken. It was part of their marital assets—not stolen.
It was simply taken, though without her husband's consent, and spent entirely.
"Your son is also Father-in-law's son. Using his own father's money for his marriage is only natural. Didn't his first two sons use money when they got married?"
"Haven't his grandchildren spent plenty of money over the years?"
"If you calculate it, Zihao hasn't used much more than they have."
She then broke down the numbers for them: Father-in-law earned 45.8 yuan a month, which came to 540 yuan a year. Over ten years, that was 5,400 yuan, and over twenty years, 10,800 yuan.
So why did they only have one thousand yuan in savings now? Because it had been spent—and by whom?
Before she did the math, neither Mother Jiang nor her son had realized it. But once laid out, that one thousand yuan truly didn't seem like much.
After this, even Jiang Mother felt less panicked. That's right! Jiang Heda covered the monthly food expenses, but there were only two of us eating. How many people were eating on their side?
Yang Yiyang intended to brainwash the mother and son first, so that when she stepped forward, they wouldn't hold her back.
"Take your time thinking it over. I'm going to bed first."