Chapter 15: Reclaiming the Property

Uncle Yu’s sons saw their mother being beaten and were about to step in to help, but the soldiers directly blocked them.

The sons were also tough guys, and they started fighting with the soldiers.

They were weaklings, not even a match for the soldiers in one move.

They were beaten up, their noses and mouths bleeding, and they lay on the ground like dead dogs!

Uncle Yu, who was pinned to the ground, was furious, “This is outrageous! The officials are bullying the common people!” Uncle Yu shouted.

Several women from the Women’s Federation stepped forward.

“You’ve been occupying the martyr’s house and beating up the martyr’s family! You dare to shout?”

“This is our Old Yu family’s property. My brother died, he didn’t have a son, so it naturally belongs to his nephew!” Uncle Yu struggled to shout, feeling that he was completely justified.

“Yu Jianmin, the martyr, has a wife and daughter, how dare you occupy their property?” The Women’s Federation was speechless at this man who wanted to occupy someone else’s property and used gender as an excuse.

“He doesn’t have a son, so the house naturally goes to his son, it should be left to the Old Yu family!” The uncle thought he was making perfect sense.

“Even if they don’t have children, the property still belongs to his wife, it doesn’t belong to you! If you care so much about your son, find a way to earn your own property and pass it down to your son, don’t covet other people’s things!”

“This is the Yu family’s property, how can it be given to this good-for-nothing!” The uncle pointed at Yu Manman!

Li Mancang’s face turned black. He didn’t care if Uncle Yu was being held down by the militiamen, he went up and kicked Uncle Yu in the face several times.

The militiamen next to him pretended not to see anything, their eyes looking elsewhere.

“You’re the good-for-nothing, your whole family is good-for-nothing!” Li Mancang loved his son, but he didn’t belittle his daughter. Fenglan was a high school graduate, and Fengchun was still studying. He couldn’t stand it when they called his granddaughter a good-for-nothing in front of him!

“This is the house my brother-in-law and my sister bought after they got married, it has nothing to do with your Old Yu family! Didn’t you get all the Old Yu family’s property? My sister and her husband didn’t get a single brick!” When the Old Yu family divided their property, they didn’t give anything to his sister and her husband.

The second son said this in front of relatives and neighbors, to prevent anyone from saying that this was the Old Yu family’s property in the future.

“Yu Jianmin is a member of the Old Yu family, his house is the Old Yu family’s property!” Uncle Yu had two teeth knocked out by Li Mancang, he spat out blood while arguing.

“There are many people in the Old Yu family, why don’t you dare to go to other people’s houses and ask for their property? You’re probably afraid you’ll be beaten to death before you even get in! You’re just bullying my sister because she’s a widow and an orphan!

Her husband is dead! I’m telling you, my brother-in-law is gone, but my sister still has her family, and she has brothers. If you dare to bully them again, I’ll kill your whole family! I’ll make sure your Old Yu family dies out!” The second son’s face was fierce.

“Government! Are you going to do anything? He’s threatening me!” Uncle Yu shouted.

His wife was also crying and wailing.

“Shut up, if you shout again, I’ll make you eat bullets!” The leader of the military department roared! Yu Jianmin was such a good comrade, how could he have such a family!

“Comrades! Comrade Yu Jianmin died while performing his duty in the army. His wife and children are being bullied at home, they were kicked out in the middle of the night! Comrades, think about it, if we tolerate people like this, how can our soldiers defend our country with peace of mind? They shed blood and sacrifice themselves on the battlefield, fighting against the enemy, but their wives and children are being bullied in the rear. Comrades! Tell me, are the soldiers heartbroken? Can we allow this to happen?”

“No! No! No one can bully the families of soldiers!”

“Whoever dares to bully the families of soldiers, we will not tolerate it!”

The neighbors who were watching the commotion were all blushing after hearing the leader of the military department’s words! The soldiers were fighting tooth and nail on the front lines to protect them, and they were actually watching the commotion of their families. Were they even human?

“Uncle Yu is bullying the families of soldiers, he should be shot!”

“Right! He was always pretending to be a good person! As soon as Jianmin died, they came to occupy his house, it’s not something a human being would do!”

“And you, his relatives, you’re all helping him do evil!”

The neighbors all pointed fingers at Uncle Yu’s family and the relatives in the courtyard.

We came to pay our respects to Jianmin, not to help Uncle Yu! A relative said bitterly. They had heard that Jianmin had died and came early in the morning to help! They weren’t helping Uncle Yu.

“Then you saw Fenglan and her daughter, why didn’t you say a word of justice?”

“That’s right, they’re all no good!”

The relatives were bitter. What had Uncle Yu done? He got them scolded!

The leader of the military department ordered the militiamen to arrest Uncle Yu’s family. They were going to organize Jianmin’s funeral.

And they had to arrange for the family’s accommodation.

Uncle Yu’s family was arrested, and Fenglan invited the leaders into the house.

Yu Jianmin’s ashes were placed in a corner of the yard by Uncle Yu, ready to be buried in a random place today.

Fenglan and Manman looked at the ashes thrown in the corner and cried out loud.

Wu Zhiqiu wiped her tears and quickly gave the second son money to buy some white cloth and paper to burn. They would set up a simple mourning hall. With so many people here, they would need to eat.

She had over two hundred yuan left, which she was supposed to return to Fenglan, but she could only use it first.

She and Li Mancang went out to buy groceries. Many neighbors and relatives helped set up the mourning shed in the yard, and the women helped make offerings.

Fortunately, supplies were plentiful now.

Soon, everything was bought, and everyone helped to set up the simple funeral.

Many leaders from the street and district came over!

Fenglan fainted several times from crying!

Jianmin’s comrades made a statement at the funeral, in front of everyone, that the army would always be Fenglan and Manman’s support. No matter what problems they encountered in the future, the army would unconditionally provide assistance. If anyone dared to bully them, the widow and her orphan, they would be waiting for a military tribunal!

The army also promised that Manman could join the army after she turned eighteen.

A female soldier! There wasn’t one in the entire county. Manman’s future was secure!

The local authorities also arranged a job for Fenglan as a warehouse keeper. The job was easy and close to home, so she wouldn’t have to worry about taking care of her child.

Wu Zhiqiu breathed a sigh of relief. This life was different. Fenglan and Manman wouldn’t be homeless and helpless like in the previous life!

After the funeral, Wu Zhiqiu and Li Mancang stayed with Fenglan and her daughter for a few days.

Fenglan wanted to keep the three thousand yuan she had with Wu Zhiqiu.

Wu Zhiqiu refused immediately.

“Fenglan, this money is what Jianmin earned with his life. No matter who asks you to borrow it, you can’t. Understand?” Wu Zhiqiu was afraid that her unscrupulous eldest son would hear about it and come to borrow money with a thick face.

Fenglan nodded, “I won’t lend it to anyone except our family.”

Wu Zhiqiu was exasperated. Her own family was the wolf! She could reason with outsiders, but when it came to her own family, in the end, whoever didn’t argue would lose!

“You can’t lend it to anyone, including our family! Don’t even think about it!”

Li Fenglan hesitated. She could refuse outsiders, but how could she refuse her own family?

Wu Zhiqiu looked at her daughter and sighed, “Look, you’ve had such a big thing happen, who came to help you besides the second son? Can you be a little smarter? Your siblings all have their own families now, you’re just relatives, just keep up appearances.”