Chapter 17: Successful Separation

After Zeng Yanne quietly shared her idea, the village leader cleared his throat awkwardly. There was no precedent in the Xiangyang village, or even the entire Hongqi commune, for an underage daughter to separate from her family. He knew that separating a family was never an easy thing to do.

He could understand the girl’s reasoning. Aunts and uncles, cousins, family—the bond was thicker than blood. She might be leaving now, but at the end of the year when it came time to calculate work points and distribute grain, and later when she got married and had to support her parents, there would be an endless stream of arguments. It would be better to take advantage of the Zeng family’s moral debt and sever ties completely, nipping future troubles in the bud.

A magistrate finds it hard to settle a family dispute. For the sake of his own peace and quiet, he was also in favor of the separation. As a man who had worn a military uniform, he admired decisive and courageous young people. He wanted to help Yanne just for her rare mettle and spirit.

“Yanne wants to write a separation agreement. If you don’t agree, we’ll all go to the police station and sort this whole thing out. You have two choices. You decide for yourselves,” Zeng Fumao said, his face unreadable.

What? Separate? Everyone was glad they had stayed to watch the show. The sound of their gossiping almost drowned out the sound of the waves. One man who had a little more education on him even said, “Little Yanne is not a person who makes a scene, but when she does, she leaves a lasting impression.”

No matter what others said, Zeng Yanne kept her eyes on her family’s reactions.

Among Zeng Fusheng’s family, only Zeng Yanling looked worried. The couple and their youngest son, Zeng Yuejin, were acting as if it had nothing to do with them, standing with their arms crossed and sneering at the drama.

Nothing else had been found during the search of the house, and Zeng Laonian was visibly relieved. He had returned to his dazed state, forgetting his role as the head of the family.

Sun Jiazhi kept her head down, as if she were asleep, her presence barely noticeable. Her three sons—the eldest, Zeng Jianguo, was glaring at her, while his wife, Sun Xiaoman, was still in shock. Her two younger sons, Kangmei and Yuanchao, a year apart in age, were looking at her with complex expressions, as if they didn’t know her at all.

The most intense reactions came from Hu Sifeng, Zeng Fuzhen, and Zeng Fugui.

Zeng Fugui howled, “What right does a girl have to separate? I won’t allow it!”

Hu Sifeng shrieked, “If you want to separate, you have to repay the Zeng family for raising you! Don’t even think about leaving without giving us a thousand yuan.” She was completely fixated on the number one thousand.

Zeng Fuzhen said, with a sharp, mean tone, “You cursed my brother to his death. You’re only alive to pay your debt. There’s no way you’re separating from this family.”

Zeng Yanne deftly deflected their blows, striking at their sore spots. “If you don’t agree, then we’ll go to the police. I’ll give you some friendly advice: don’t try to lie there. They have countless ways to make you talk. As for the source of this medicine… If I’m not mistaken, my grandma’s side of the family has someone who works at the purchasing station for medicinal herbs, right? It’s a key position. If they find out there’s embezzlement, do you think the police will let him go?” Zeng Yanne would never use the term “grandma” for Hu Sifeng.

“You’re full of it! I paid for that stuff!” Hu Sifeng shrieked, hitting her weak point.

“That’s what you say. We’ll find out once we get to the station.”

Hu Sifeng was all bark and no bite. She looked tough, but she was easy to deal with if you knew where to hit. The reason she was so arrogant was because of her family—she had a few nephews who were doing well in the county. If she dragged them down, her family would kill her.

Sure enough, as soon as Zeng Yanne’s threat was out, the old hag had nothing else to say.

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As for Zeng Fugui, his sore spot was obvious.

Zeng Yanne turned to the village leader and asked, “Uncle Fumao, you often go to the county for meetings. Have you heard how the higher-ups are dealing with petty thieves and violent criminals?”

Zeng Fumao secretly smiled at the girl’s cunning and played along. “The prisons are overcrowded right now. The public security bureau has a reform-through-labor division. Those with lighter sentences are sent to labor farms to be re-educated. We heard the ones from our area go to the Yellow River Farm to dig the Yellow River embankment. They work more than ten hours a day, and they can’t sleep until they’ve dug enough dirt.”

Zeng Fugui knew the old man and the young girl were putting on an act, and he knew that since the girl was fine, the police might not even bother with this mess. But he was taking a risk. What if they were punished? His wife had gotten heatstroke just from clearing land in their village. If she went to a labor farm, she would probably die.

The voices of the people around him were buzzing like flies in his ears. Zeng Fugui heard a lot of them cursing Sun Jiazhi. He could live with a bad reputation, but he didn’t want his wife’s name to be tarnished. After a moment of inner turmoil, Zeng Fugui finally, and reluctantly, nodded. “Fine, we’ll separate.”

The corners of Zeng Yanne’s eyes lifted slightly. It didn’t matter if it was a clever trick or a direct scheme; as long as it worked, that’s all that mattered.

There was no need for everyone to watch the details being worked out. It was already dark, and Zeng Fumao told the onlookers to go home and eat. He found the most senior elder of the Zeng clan, the great-grandfather, to act as a witness and preside over the separation.

Zeng Yanne didn’t care about the family’s wealth, but some things had to be included in the agreement, such as food rations, bedding, pots, pans, money, and coupons. Hu Sifeng tried to get Zeng Yanne to leave with nothing, but the great-grandfather got angry and told Zeng Laonian to take his wife away. It’s your son who is separating, not you! What are you meddling for?

After some haggling, Zeng Yanne was given ten pounds of wheat, a hundred pounds of corn, fifty pounds of sweet potatoes, thirty pounds of potatoes, a small water vat, a pot, two bowls, a set of bedding, ten yuan, and a coupon for three feet of cloth.

Coupons were a rare commodity for every family. The Zeng family had many laborers, so they definitely had more money than this. They were holding on to it for dear life. Zeng Yanne was tired, and seeing the village leader looked exhausted as well, she didn’t want to argue anymore. She said she was fine without the money, but she had to have the pot.

Other terms were written into the agreement: her work points and food rations would be calculated separately at the end of the year, and since the Zeng family had failed to raise her to adulthood, Zeng Yanne would not have to support them. At Zeng Yanne’s request, a clause was added that she had the right to decide her own marriage, and the Zeng family had no right to interfere.

The only regret was that the household registration policy was strict right now, and unmarried children couldn’t move their registration without a special reason. It was impossible for everything to be perfect. She would have to be careful that the Zeng family didn’t use her registration against her in the future. The agreement was made in three copies, and all family members and witnesses put their fingerprints on it.

On her first day back in the village, Zeng Yanne had cut all ties with the Zeng family. Even she couldn’t believe it had happened so efficiently. Her original two-part plan was to expose Sun Jiazhi and make people doubt her own origins, and to anger Zeng Fugui enough to make him leave. She didn’t expect Wu Jingui’s perfect assist. She had managed to separate from the family, achieving three goals with one stone.

Her luck really had turned around since she was reborn. She thanked the great-grandfather, who had clearly sided with her. The village leader borrowed a cart to help her move her things. When one door closes, another one opens. The Zeng family was terrible, but most of the people in the village were kind. Zeng Yanne felt a new sense of belonging here.

Before she walked out of the courtyard, Zeng Yanne turned back and met Sun Jiazhi’s dark eyes. Both of them knew that this separation was not the end.