Chapter 4

Chapter 4 The Daughter-in-Law Who Normally Couldn’t Draw Blood with a Needle—How Does She Have Eight Hundred Schemes? In the dilapidated courtyard of the Zhang family’s fourth branch, all the little children were gripped by unease. Especially Dahua and Erhua, who were old enough to understand a little. Separate the household? They had heard of it. It meant that although they were still one family, they would be little better than strangers, each living their own lives without anyone caring about anyone else. Although their grandfather and grandmother had never looked after them since their father left, still… having them was better than having no one at all, wasn’t it? Seeing the terror filling the children’s dark, round eyes, Zhizhi said to Dahua, “Take your younger brothers and sisters inside. I’ll handle this!” Dahua didn’t dare disobey her mother. She took her little brother by the hand and called for her sisters to go inside. Though their mother was so meek outside that anyone could bully her, she was quite fierce toward her daughters. Especially after their father had left to join the army, she had vented all her resentment on them. “Those good-for-nothing daughters are treated like treasures!?” Old Madam Zhang was furious at the thought of having to give them any money. With a shocked yet serious expression, Zhizhi said, “Mother-in-law, I won’t allow you to insult yourself like that! Otherwise, your own good-for-nothing mother would regret not drowning you in a urine bucket the moment you were born!” Old Madam Zhang: “…” Zhizhi had managed to infuriate her completely. She remembered the days when her own mother had cursed her as a good-for-nothing daughter. She was just about to start cursing when the village head walked in. He frowned at Zhizhi. “Fourth Son’s Wife, is there anything that can’t be discussed properly? Why insist on separating the household? You’re a woman, and you’re pregnant. Without your husband’s family to support you, how will you get by?” Zhizhi knew perfectly well that Zhang Xiaocui would never say anything good about her. “Uncle Village Head, I’m not the one demanding to separate the household. It’s the Zhang family that can no longer tolerate us—a widow and her orphans…” Her little mouth rattled on. Briefly yet incisively, she listed all the Zhang family’s misdeeds, leaving them no opportunity to speak. “Although I’m not capable of much, I can take care of my own children! All I ask is that they be fair. Whatever belongs to our fourth branch should be given to our fourth branch. My husband joined the army for the sake of the Zhang family. “If his children aren’t treated fairly, he won’t be able to rest in peace even in the afterlife!” The village head was left utterly dumbfounded. Since when had Fourth Son’s Wife become so articulate? Everything she said was perfectly reasonable. She clearly understood things well enough. Why had she been so unable to think things through before? He glared at Old Madam Zhang. There was no selling children in Zhang Family Village. Old Master Zhang sensed that things were going badly and hurriedly said, “Fourth Son’s Wife, you’ve misunderstood your mother. She only thought of sending Dahua to work as a maid in a wealthy household because you were so sick you couldn’t even get out of bed. She wanted to exchange her for some money to buy medicine for you. “Dahua is a child of our Old Zhang family. If anyone wants to sell her, I, her grandfather, will be the first to object!” Zhizhi nearly applauded the old man. As expected, he knew everything. He had deliberately stayed out of sight just now, letting Old Madam Zhang play the villain! “Village Head, Fourth Son’s Wife has misunderstood us. Even if we don’t separate the household, our hearts have already been divided! Sigh… If she insists on separating, then let her. I can’t control her anymore. But rest assured, I won’t short her of anything that belongs to the fourth branch! After all, they’re children of the Zhang family. Even if no one else dotes on them, I, their grandfather, certainly can’t fail to!” The village head was an honest man. Hearing this, he no longer tried to persuade them. “Since you want to separate the household, I’ll write up the agreement now. I happen to be going to the county seat tomorrow, so I can register it for you while I’m there!” He could see that the two sides had already fallen out. If they didn’t separate, they wouldn’t get along anyway. The Zhang family had made up their minds not to care for the fourth branch. They wouldn’t do so even without a separation. And if they truly wanted to take care of them, they would do it even after the household was divided. He soon finished writing the household separation agreement. “Take a look. If there’s nothing wrong, sign and affix your fingerprints!” There were three copies in total. Zhizhi walked over and picked up one. Zhang Xiaocui sneered. “Are you kidding me? You don’t even know a single character. What could you possibly understand?” How laughable. Zhizhi ignored her. She had to inspect it carefully. Otherwise, they might use it to make trouble later. Everything looked fine, except for one clause. “Uncle Village Head, add one more condition. When Mother-in-law proposed separating the household just now, she said that if I took the children and remarried, the Zhang family wouldn’t care about us. Don’t come back later and use my Xiaobao to make an issue. He’s my lifeline! If they won’t raise him, then let us cut ties cleanly.” She even put on quite a convincing act. For the sake of the original owner, she wouldn’t favor daughters over sons and abandon the boy. She would treat them all equally. The village head cursed inwardly. The Zhang family was shameless. Just now, they had repeatedly claimed that Fourth Son’s Wife was the one making a fuss about separating the household. So, in the end, it was Zhang Pozi who thought the fourth branch was a burden? Old Master Zhang didn’t want to benefit the fourth branch, but Old Madam Zhang had said it in front of so many people. He could only accept it. “Write it!” After all, Fourth Son’s Wife was a complete fool. He could simply demand it back later. Besides, they were children of the Old Zhang family. Even if they cut ties, wouldn’t they still obediently return to their ancestral home someday? He didn’t believe that their weak and incapable fourth daughter-in-law could make a decent life for them. Once she could no longer support them, she would send the children back to their family. Then he could sell them all to pay his eldest grandson’s academy tuition. The village head gave a speechless, cold laugh. Was the Old Zhang family so destitute that they were even willing to abandon their own grandchildren? He felt sorry for Zhang Huaiyang, who had died. “You really know how to read?” Zhang Xiaocui refused to believe it no matter what. She was an orphan whose father had died and whose mad mother had been kidnapped. How could she possibly know how to read? Zhizhi sneered and ignored her. She read through the household separation agreement—which was practically no different from a severance of relations—once more. Only after confirming that there were no problems did she affix her fingerprint and hand it to the village head. “Thank you, Uncle Village Head!” She didn’t sign her name. Her fingerprint would serve just as well. “Let’s go!” Old Master Zhang was dispirited. He called for his wife, wanting to leave as quickly as possible. “Could you first give our fourth branch the money, grain, and other things that belong to us, in front of Uncle Village Head? It’s not that I don’t trust you. I just think it’s best to settle matters involving money clearly in front of everyone, so there won’t be any disputes later!” Zhizhi said with a smile. She knew the Zhang family’s character all too well. Once she stepped out of this courtyard, there was no chance she would ever get the money from them. The village head still commanded considerable respect in the village. She had to receive everything in front of him for it to truly count as hers. Old Master Zhang felt even more stifled. He really had intended to give them nothing at all. After all, there was no evidence that they hadn’t given her anything. But how did this daughter-in-law, who normally couldn’t draw blood with a needle, suddenly have eight hundred schemes? The village head actually felt it wasn’t necessary. However, seeing that Zhizhi insisted, he said, “It’s only a few steps away. It won’t take long.” Old Master Zhang could only turn to his wife. “What are you waiting for? Go get it!” Old Madam Zhang was deeply displeased, but she was also afraid of the village head. She could only go unwillingly to fetch the things. Six hundred copper coins and two jin of black, coarse rice. Zhizhi found it utterly disgusting. Eating this rice would either poison you to death or give you such severe diarrhea that you’d die from that instead. But… no matter how much she despised it, she couldn’t possibly let the Zhang family benefit. As for the six hundred copper coins, they were a little less than they should have been, but prying even that much out of them had been no easy feat. Old Madam Zhang clutched the coins tightly. Zhizhi struggled for quite some time before finally snatching them away. “Not giving them back!” The old woman was practically driven mad with anger. Before leaving, Old Master Zhang glanced at Fourth Son’s Wife. He couldn’t shake the feeling that she was somehow different from before.