Chapter 11: The Troublemaker

Ignoring Lei Honghua’s vicious curses, Qiao Jiangxin went back into the chicken coop and killed the only remaining hen, the one used for brooding.

Lei Honghua actually fainted from anger.

The four of them were happily eating chicken when a surprised voice came from outside the yard.

“Wow, what delicious food are you having? It smells so good!”

Qiao Jiangxin looked back and saw Qiao Jianguo, who had been playing cards all night, returning.

“Eh, you killed a chicken?” Qiao Jianguo’s eyes lit up. He grabbed Qiao Jiangxin’s collar and pulled her outside, reaching for the chicken leg in Liu Fang’s bowl.

Qiao Jiangxin pushed him back, “What are you doing? Are you a dog?  You’re even grabbing food?”

Qiao Jianguo glared, raised his hand to hit his niece. Seeing Qiao Jiangxin’s fierce gaze, he didn’t dare swing his arm down. He turned to look for Lei Honghua, “You useless thing, you’ve gotten bold, haven’t you? Mom Mom, come out!”

Qiao Jiangxin snorted coldly, “A beating on the child hurts the mother’s heart. Uncle, Dad, hold him down!”

“Ah, what are you doing?”

“Damn it, you two bastards, you dare hit me?”

“Ah Mom, Mom!”

“Aaaaaahhhhh! Oh my god, aaaah, aaaah, stop it, stop it!”

The sharp screams woke up the fainted Lei Honghua. She shakily got up and saw her precious son being beaten by three members of the Qiao family.  She was so angry that she almost fainted again.

She pinched her thigh hard to regain consciousness and rushed over to protect her precious son.

She unleashed a torrent of abuse at the three Qiao family members.

After eating their fill and beating up Qiao Jianguo, Qiao Jiangxin filled a bamboo container with ashes from the stove and ran to Lijiagou with her uncle.

Her third uncle’s in-laws lived in Lijiagou.

Along the way, gossiping villagers asked Qiao Jiangxin, “Qiao Daya, what’s going on at your house? There was crying and shouting early this morning.”

Qiao Jiangxin answered without blushing, “Oh, it’s all because of food.  Auntie, you wouldn’t believe it.  We’re so busy with the farm work, and my third uncle has been hiding at his in-laws’ house and won’t come back.

He keeps coming home to steal chickens, eggs, and food. My fourth uncle is always wandering around and never home. My grandpa, uncle, and dad are working like oxen, and there’s no meat on the table.

Yesterday, Grandma said she wanted to send a chicken to my third uncle to please his in-laws, and Grandpa got angry and beat Grandma.”

“He scolded Grandma for being unfilial, only caring about her in-laws and not her husband. He scolded Grandma for raising two unfilial brats, lazy and ungrateful, only sucking the blood of their old father.

He said that to pamper Third Uncle and Fourth Uncle, to pay for their education, to get them jobs and arrange their marriages, he didn’t let my uncle get married. Now, my third uncle is acting like a son to his in-laws…”

Qiao Jiangxin’s words caused a stir.

“Oh, I said before that Lei Honghua wasn’t a good person. If Youfu were her own son, would he still be single?  Her third and fourth sons have always been like that.  Which child is like them?  Those half-grown boys are chasing chickens and dogs and won’t work in the fields.  But those two older brothers work like oxen and she doesn’t care.”

“Yang Mei died too early. If she knew her own sons were being treated like this, she wouldn’t rest in peace. They say that when you get a stepmother, you get a stepfather. Jiuwang is the same. They’re his own blood, yet his heart is biased. “

Aunt Niu, her face full of gossip, said, “What happened today? What was the commotion about? I saw your grandpa going into the mountains with a sullen face and a hoe when I went to cut pigweed.”

Qiao Jiangxin rubbed her eyes, “Remember what happened when Fourth Uncle stole a chicken to eat? Last night, Fourth Uncle stole another one. Grandma got up, saw the missing chicken, and beat my mother.

She specifically targeted my mother’s belly, saying that Uncle and Dad would never have sons, and they would serve Third Uncle and Fourth Uncle their whole lives, raising their children.  That’s why they fought again.”

These words stunned everyone for three seconds.

After a long while, Aunt Niu cursed, “Oh my god, that’s terrifying!  Such a cruel heart! How could such a vicious woman appear in our village? No wonder, no wonder Youcai and Youfu…”

Aunt Niu glanced at Qiao Youfu, who was shrinking in the periphery, her sympathy barely concealed.

No wonder he wasn’t lazy, he was famously diligent.  Aside from the ringworm on his head, he shouldn’t have trouble finding a wife.

It was too tragic, truly tragic. What Lei Honghua did was worse than digging up someone’s ancestral grave.  She was cutting off their lineage.

Qiao Youfu, equally shocked, looked at his niece, whose eyes were red. She spoke so sincerely, so earnestly.

If he hadn’t experienced it himself, he would have believed her half-true, half-false story.

“Alas, Youfu and Youcai have had it rough.”

“Yeah, did your grandpa just watch, without doing anything?”

Qiao Jiangxin sniffed, her eyes red, “Grandpa said that whether it’s my father’s bloodline or Third Uncle and Fourth Uncle’s bloodline, they’re all his bloodline.  He said that getting married costs money, and he told Uncle not to get married, that he should raise children for Third Uncle and Fourth Uncle later, saying that nephews and sons are the same.”

“This morning, they almost split up. Grandpa said that either they serve Third Uncle and Fourth Uncle, or Uncle and Dad leave with nothing.”

“Wow, I think Uncle Jiuwang is senile.”

“Oh, you don’t understand. It’s called… what is it… pillow talk. Men…”

…

Qiao Jiangxin followed the principle of adding fuel to the fire when it came to family scandals.

After gossiping with the aunties and sisters-in-law for a while, she tearfully took her uncle to Lijiagou.

Qiao Youfu was an honest man.  Seeing that no one was around, he said to his niece, “With your embellishments, everyone in the village will know in half a day. Your grandpa will be angry.”

Qiao Jiangxin rolled her eyes, “He’ll be angry? He’ll be even angrier later.  Anger is good, anger is easy to hang on the wall.”

“Jiangxin, what are we going to do now?”

“Go to Lijiagou. The whole village knows that Third Uncle is a wretch, exploiting his old father and brother to please his in-laws. Grandma is sick with anger, and Grandpa is still working in the fields at sixty. Don’t I have to go to Lijiagou to talk about it?

Also, Grandma and Grandpa always said they would let you raise the child Third Aunt gives birth to, don’t you want to see your eldest son?

Most importantly…” Qiao Jiangxin patted the bamboo container filled with ashes, “We need to give Third Aunt a secret recipe for having a son.

What if she gives birth to a daughter? Grandpa and Grandma promised you a son, so Third Aunt must give birth to a son for you.”