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Chapter 30: Her Bed is Really Warm
And this bed… After sleeping on a hard wooden bed for over twenty years, always with straw laid on top, this bed was surprisingly softer and warmer than the one he used to sleep on in the army.
What was under the mattress? It seemed to be foam.
Everything felt pretty good, except…
Gu Yuelin glanced toward the other side of the curtain. Tonight, he had a ridiculous dream.
…
The next day, Gu Yuelin left at five in the morning.
She knew what time he got up, but Feng Mian didn’t get up. She reminded him of a few things and then went back to sleep.
She woke up at seven, ate a simple breakfast, then took incense, paper money, and other offerings to visit her mother’s grave for the New Year.
This was the local custom.
Her mother was a woman who married out, so Feng’s family ancestral grave didn’t require her to pay respects; she only had to visit one grave and could return home early.
After the New Year, everyone started visiting relatives. Besides visiting her maternal grandmother, she didn’t have many relatives to visit.
On the second day of the lunar new year, after visiting her maternal grandmother’s house, she had no other visits planned.
That day she dawdled until almost noon before going. According to local custom, she brought two packs of sugar candy and a pack of tea leaves.
Her maternal grandmother liked to drink tea.
Zhao Hui said she was stingy — having money to fix the house, money to invite men home, but for New Year, only gave two packs of sugar candy.
Feng Mian wasn’t the kind to stay silent and immediately fired back:
“Well, what about you? What did you give my maternal grandmother for the New Year?”
“You…”
Before Zhao Hui could answer, Feng Mian added, “Hmph, not to mention this year, you’ve been married into this family for over twenty years. Has my grandmother ever had a sip of your sugar water? Has she ever had a drop of your tea?”
“Hey, you little brat, what are you saying? I’m your aunt.”
“Am I wrong?”
“You should respect them. You’re their granddaughter on the outside.”
“Hmph, if the granddaughter on the outside should be respectful, shouldn’t the grandchildren born in the family be even more filial?”
“You… you little ungrateful brat, don’t you remember how many years they raised you?”
“Heh, of course I remember. My mom died when I was ten. They raised me until I was fifteen — five years total.” Feng Mian glanced at her cousins and said, “But they helped you raise children too, your cousins, for over ten years, even twenty years. What have they done for their elders in return?”
Her cousins flushed red from Feng Mian’s words, feeling unjustly attacked.
“Hey, Mianmian, I wasn’t talking about you,” said the eldest cousin.
Feng Mian felt a little apologetic, sorry for dragging them into it.
Zhao Hui was furious. “You really are something. Your conscience hasn’t grown over the years, but your sharp tongue sure has!”
“Aunt, your skills haven’t improved over the years, but your face sure has gotten thicker.”
“You…” Zhao Hui stomped her foot in anger and shouted, “Feng Xinliang, Feng Xinliang, where have you gone? Come see your good niece — she’s going to turn the world upside down!”
Zhang Shi came out of the room and said grumpily, “What are you yelling about? I think you’re the one who’s going to flip things over in this family. At least Mianmian brought two packs of sugar candy. And you? All these years, you just take stuff from this family back to your mother’s house. How much grain is missing from the granary? Don’t make me say something harsh.”
Zhao Hui screamed, crying and shouting.
She said, “It’s New Year’s, how can we live like this?”
The old lady’s heart could never be warmed. She worked like a beast for this family, giving birth to two grandsons and two granddaughters, but nobody saw her goodness. The only thing the granddaughter on the outside did was bring two packs of sugar candy and think that was enough to repay her.
She said, “I gave Zhang Shi four children; it’s not as good as the granddaughter on the outside’s two packs of sugar candy.”
These nonsensical arguments made Feng Mian cringe with embarrassment.
No, she was raising two cousins and two cousins — weren’t they basically her own kids?
Why is it always about giving birth to grandchildren for Grandma?
But they don’t call Grandma “Mom.”
When they heard the noise, Uncle Feng Xinliang came out. Zhao Hui pulled him aside to complain, then pressured him: “Be fair—do your two sons and two daughters equal the value of two packs of sugar?”
Poor cousins— in Zhao Hui’s logic, they were only worth two packs of sugar.
“Oh, it’s New Year, why are you all fighting? Just calm down and say a few less words,” Feng Xinliang said, feeling a headache.
He told Feng Mian, “She’s your aunt, you should respect her and say less.”
Then he told Zhao Hui, “Mianmian is still a child. You’re grown up now, so don’t argue with a kid.”
Then he told Zhang Shi, “Mom, Xiao Hui has several kids and manages the household. She’s a bit hot-tempered—please be understanding.”
Finally, he pulled Zhao Hui aside, “My mother is old, please be considerate.”
He thought he had soothed everyone, but no one was convinced.
Zhang Shi and Zhao Hui, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, formed a united front and started scolding the uncle, even attacking him from all sides.
The cousins tried to break up the fight.
Feng Mian quietly went back inside to see her grandfather.
Grandpa heard everything inside and sighed sadly.
“Back then, I should have made your uncle join the army. Even if he died out there, it would have been better than being so useless now.”
Grandpa had been a soldier before, and had won medals on the southern battlefield. His body also carried hidden injuries from those days.
After coming back, he worked many intense jobs. When he was young, it was fine, but as he got older, those hidden injuries began to cause trouble.
His legs always hurt, but he endured it quietly.
Once, while working in the production team, his leg suddenly hurt and he fell into a ditch. That leg was ruined.
“I’m filial to Grandpa and Grandma because it’s my own choice. I don’t care what she thinks. Grandpa, I have to go now. I’ll come visit you another day.”
“You haven’t eaten lunch yet…”
“I won’t eat here. I’ll cook at home myself.”
She didn’t want to cause them trouble.
After she left, Zhang Shi came inside and looked at her husband, who kept sighing.
“Old man, seeing Zhao Hui’s attitude, I guess we can’t expect our son and daughter-in-law to support us in old age.”
The old man sighed too.
Zhang Shi thought to herself, just hoping her body holds up a few more years so she can take good care of the old man until the end.
When she gets too old to move, she’d rather just jump into the courtyard pond and drown.
She could already imagine how hard her life would be lying in bed like that.
…
On the fourth day of the lunar new year, matchmaker Xu came over to remind Feng Mian about the bride price.
She praised Gu Yuelin again and then gave Feng Mian some advice analyzing pros and cons.
“You do need to spend a bit more money, but you’re not losing out. That young man doesn’t have good relations with his family, especially his stepmother. Once he transfers his household registration to your place, he’ll focus on your little family. He’s hardworking, strong, and capable.” Then she lowered her voice to Feng Mian and said, “The key is that his temperament is like his dad’s—timid and easy to manage. In the future, you’ll definitely be the one running the household. Isn’t that better than marrying out and being a daughter-in-law suffering from your mother-in-law’s temper every day?”
Feng Mian laughed and cried at the same time, nodding repeatedly.
“I got it. Tomorrow I’ll prepare everything and send it to the Gu family.”
“Alright, then I’ll leave now. I still have to make a trip to Shangyuanzi Village.”
Matchmaker Xu happily made two deals in a row.
The two families lived close, so she didn’t have to travel far.
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@ apricity[Translator]
Immerse yourself in a captivating tale brought to life through my natural and fluid translation—where every emotion, twist, and character shines as vividly as in the original work! ^_^