Chapter 7

When Father Cheng said he disagreed with dividing the family property, Shu Yue was not surprised. She knew well that the Cheng family was living comfortably only because of the wages Cheng Jingchuan regularly sent home. Every month she saw the postman deliver letters or money orders.

What was laughable—if bitterly so—was that she, his wife, had never received even a single cent or a single letter from him. Every time Mother Cheng received a letter, she would scold Shu Yue, calling her a jinx: all because their son had married the daughter of a former capitalist family. In Mother Cheng’s eyes, this was why Jingchuan no longer wanted to come home—it was entirely Shu Yue’s fault.

Whenever she heard such words, Shu Yue could only swallow her grievances in silence. She knew Cheng Jingchuan disliked her, believing she had schemed her way into the marriage.

This was especially clear the last time he came home on leave.

At first, they didn’t even have a marriage certificate. Jingchuan only said he had submitted an application but that approval would take longer because of Shu Yue’s family background. They held a small wedding banquet in the village, but there was no wedding night—he left immediately for the army and did not return for another six months, when he finally took her to collect the marriage certificate.

Shu Yue wanted to say it wasn’t necessary. She only wanted to live peacefully in the village and didn’t care much about a piece of paper. But when she saw Jingchuan’s cold, sullen face, the words of refusal stuck in her throat, and she followed him to get the certificate. That night, he treated her like a completely different man—demanding her again and again without rest. Shu Yue thought that now, as true husband and wife, their relationship might grow closer.

She never expected that by the next morning, when she woke up, Cheng Jingchuan had already returned to his unit, leaving nothing behind—only Mother Cheng’s endless scolding, blaming her for failing to keep her son at home even one night.

“While parents are still alive, families should not divide. Jingchuan’s wife, why don’t you reconsider?”

The village chief’s voice pulled Shu Yue back to reality. He could see she wasn’t living well in the Cheng household—her face pale, her figure thin. Most pregnant women, if not rosy-cheeked, at least gain some weight. Shu Yue had grown even thinner. The Chengs might not be wealthy, but at least they were a shelter. If she separated from them, she’d have no protection, and ill-intentioned villagers might try to take advantage of her.

Even if she moved in with Old Madam Cheng, life wouldn’t be easy. The old woman lived alone in the ancestral house, not with her son’s family, because she was taking care of Cheng Xiaoying—Father Cheng’s divorced sister, rumored to be infertile. After six childless years of marriage, her husband’s family had sent her back home. No brother wanted to house her, so Old Madam Cheng had moved to the old home to keep her company.

If Shu Yue also moved there, three women would live alone together, which would be unsafe. Villagers might seem honest by day, but at night, climbing walls and sneaking through windows was not unheard of. Even a formidable old woman could not protect two defenseless young women.

“I will not reconsider. This family must be divided. If I keep living here, I don’t even know if I’ll survive. My in-laws know I am near my due date, yet they left me uncared for, claiming Madam Huang would watch me. But from start to finish, she only looked after Huang Fang, never giving me a bite to eat. She even scattered beans in front of my door so I’d fall and give birth prematurely—and worse, she deliberately refused to help me deliver, letting me bleed while she waited to see whether Huang Fang had a girl, so that if I bore a boy, they could switch the babies. This…”

“You’re lying! Shu Yue, you—you’re talking nonsense! I never—!”

Madam Huang and her daughter paled as Shu Yue exposed everything. They’d dared to do such things only because Shu Yue was always quiet, never explaining herself, always maintaining a “the innocent need not defend themselves” attitude.

Who would have guessed she’d make such a scene this time? Not only calling the village chief to divide the household, but even revealing the baby-switching plot to his face. Even without proof, everyone knew how desperately Huang Fang wanted a son. Once this spread, people would believe it whether or not it was true.

“You know in your hearts whether I’m lying. If I hadn’t woken up early and overheard your conversation, I wouldn’t have believed people could be so vicious. I may lack evidence, but if you refuse to divide the family, I’ll go to the Public Security Bureau. I’m a soldier’s wife—I won’t just let you bully me. And all of you know how I’ve been treated in this house. I stayed silent before not because I’m easy to push around, but because I didn’t want to make things ugly. If you won’t agree to a fair separation, then let’s make it as ugly as it needs to be. There’s always a place in this country where justice can be found.”

Shu Yue’s attitude was unyielding. Not only Madam Huang and Huang Fang, but even Father and Mother Cheng stared at her in shock. It was still her face, still her voice, but something about her was completely different.

“Fine, we can divide the family,” Father Cheng said after a pause, “but there’s nothing much to give you. At most, ten jin of cornmeal and ten jin of sweet potatoes—that’s all.”

He thought to himself: this girl has never known real hardship, that’s why she speaks so casually about dividing the family. Once she leaves the Chengs, with a baby in her arms, she’ll starve soon enough—how could she possibly live well?

“You can’t divide the family like this,” the village chief objected. “That’s just bullying. Do I need to fetch the work-point records to show you? At the very least, Jingchuan’s wife should receive the rations she herself earned. And Cheng Jingchuan sends money home every month—shouldn’t his wife and child get their share too?”

The village chief, seeing Father Cheng had already agreed to divide the household but in such an unfair way, quickly stepped in. If the split was unavoidable, then it had to be at least somewhat fair. With just that meager share, Shu Yue wouldn’t survive more than a few days. That was practically forcing her to death.