Chapter 3 The Old Lady Requests for Separation of Family Property

The Ming family had gathered in the main hall for breakfast. Ming Leyao, following her memories, arrived at the brigade leader’s house and knocked on the door when she saw someone in the courtyard.

“Coming,” answered the brigade leader, Pang Jianyuan. When he opened the door and saw it was Ming Leyao, he frowned and said, “You’re still injured, what are you doing running around? Did those people from the Ming family give you trouble again? Come on, I’ll go back with you and take a look.”

“Uncle, no, I came today about the support allowance.”

Pang Jianyuan was well aware of what kind of people the Ming family were—greedy and calculating. If it hadn’t been for the fact that the little girl was too young to live independently back then, he would never have sent the money to the Ming family. He’d thought they might treat her better for the sake of the money. But after what happened yesterday, it was obvious to anyone what was going on. Clearly, the money could no longer go to the Ming family.

“Alright. This year marks the third year. I’ll give the money directly to you. You’ll still be able to receive it for two more years. In the meantime, Leyao, you need to start planning for your future.”

“I understand, Uncle.”

When Ming Leyao returned to the Ming household, she saw her aunt-in-law, Qian Laidi, stomping home angrily at the door.

Qian Laidi had just argued with someone and was in a bad mood. When she saw Ming Leyao ignoring her and walking straight inside, she exploded.

“Well now, you rest for one day and start thinking you’re some capitalist’s precious daughter?”

“Aunt, you keep calling me a capitalist’s daughter. Sounds like you really envy that kind of life, huh?”

Qian Laidi gave a fake smile, her chubby dark face twitching as she glared at Ming Leyao. “You little brat, getting bold, huh? You dare talk back to me?”

“Not as bold as you, Aunt. Daring to talk about capitalists so openly. I wonder… if someone overheard you, would it affect Uncle’s future?”

“You little wretch…” she snarled, and raised her thick hand to slap Ming Leyao.

Ming Leyao immediately dropped to the ground and put on a pitiful expression.

“Auntie, the blow Red Bean gave me yesterday still hurts… And… and I haven’t eaten anything since yesterday. I know you want my support allowance, but… Grandma is too domineering and won’t give it to me. Even if I wanted to be filial to you, I have no way to.”

The Ming family lived right in the center of the brigade, a convenient location—but also one with constant foot traffic. It wasn’t long before passersby were drawn in by Qian Laidi’s loud voice.

After hearing what Ming Leyao said, people began pointing fingers at Qian Laidi—some saying Wang Guixiang (the grandmother) was heartless, others calling Qian Laidi shameless for taking the girl’s allowance, and others still expressing pity for Ming Leyao, who had lost her parents so young.

All in all, the public opinion was on Ming Leyao’s side.

That evening, Ming Shi—the eldest uncle—came home after a long day’s work. The moment he saw Qian Laidi, he slapped her across the face.

“You damn woman! Can’t you wait until we’re home to speak? Did you have to shout in front of everyone? Huh? Now the entire brigade is gossiping about how I mistreat that little brat Ming Leyao! Even the brigade leader called me in to talk! You knew this was a critical time for me, and you still stirred up trouble? Marrying you was the worst decision of my life!”

“That’s right, Mom. Everything was fine before, why couldn’t you just hold it in today?” Red Bean (Ming Hongdou) immediately joined in when she heard this might affect her father’s prospects.

“Mom, you really were in the wrong this time. That little wretch was in our hands—she could work, didn’t eat much, and we even got money from her. Why couldn’t you just tolerate her a little longer?” Ming Yuehe also chimed in, her sallow face showing disapproval.

Surrounded and scolded by her entire family, Qian Laidi felt aggrieved but didn’t dare argue with her husband. She could only vent her anger on her daughters.

“It’s one thing for your father to scold me—but you two brats dare to criticize me too? Hongdou, if you hadn’t messed things up, would that worthless girl have been able to pull this stunt? And you, Yuehe, weren’t you always boasting that you had her under control? Always saying she listened to you the most. And now? Huh?”

“Mom, I…” Ming Yuehe’s face turned sour. All her life, she’d been good at reading people and had always been treated gently for her sweet words. When had she ever been scolded like this?

Thinking about the one responsible for her scolding, Yuehe was furious.

“Enough! Why didn’t you discipline your daughters before? Now you want to act tough?” Ming Shi snapped. “Hurry up and figure out how to fix this mess!”

Suddenly, an idea came to Ming Yuehe’s mind.

“Dad, ever since Ming Leyao woke up, she hasn’t been the same. Maybe she found out the truth and can’t handle it emotionally. It’s probably impossible to win her over now. So why not just cut her off officially? Let word get out that we raised her all these years and she’s ungrateful, even arguing with her elders. You know how that would look in today’s society? A little girl trying to make it on her own? Let’s see how long she can last. And when she comes crawling back, we act like the loving family ready to forgive and accept her again. By then, we’ll control the narrative—and your reputation will only benefit.”

“That’s a good idea, sis. Dad, it’s worth a try.”

“You think I don’t want to split her off from us?” Ming Shi grumbled. “But the money is due soon. I was planning to use that 20 yuan to grease a few palms.”

“Dad, with how things are now, taking that 20 yuan will only confirm all the rumors. Better to give it to that little wretch—she doesn’t know how to spend money. She’ll definitely just save it. And when she comes begging to come back, that money will still end up in our hands anyway.”

Ming Shi thought over his daughter’s words and realized they made sense. The anger on his face gradually faded.

“Alright, I’ll go talk to your grandmother.” With that, Ming Shi headed to the main house.

The Ming family hadn’t split households. The old lady ruled the inside, and the old man oversaw the outside. Even if the family were in chaos, he wouldn’t get involved. So, out of habit, Ming Shi consulted with his mother. At first, the old woman disagreed, but after Ming Shi laid out the pros and cons, she reluctantly nodded for the sake of his reputation. At the same time, she shifted her anger onto Qian Dani. If it weren’t for her, would they really have had to let go of such a useful person like Ming Leyao? She vowed to make Qian Dani suffer for this.

Unaware of the conversation between Ming Shi and that old witch, Ming Leyao waited until night had fallen. When she heard snores echoing from the other rooms, she gently opened the loose door, slipped out through the fence, and ran toward Fu Wencheng’s house under the moonlight, following her memory.

The Fu family had produced many powerful and influential figures in the past. It wasn’t until recent generations that they declined. But even a starved camel is bigger than a horse—no matter how fallen, the family still had many assets. During the upheaval years ago, other branches of the Fu family received advance notice and moved their wealth abroad. But Fu Wencheng’s branch was delayed because he, still a child, had suddenly come down with a high fever. They were just one day late and ended up being seized by the Revolutionary Committee.

Eventually, they had to give up all their wealth just to shake off the “capitalist” label. To survive and feed themselves, they sold their western-style house to the government for a fraction of its worth. With the small amount they received, they repaired the old house in Shangjia Bridge Brigade and moved the whole family back there.

The huge downfall was something the family couldn’t accept. With no outlet for their grief and frustration, they turned on Fu Wencheng, blaming the entire misfortune on his childhood illness. He was made to do all the dirtiest and hardest chores. A small boy shouldered the burden of supporting the family. This bitter life continued until he joined the army, which finally gave him some relief.

Lost in thought, Ming Leyao panted heavily as she arrived at the small, rundown shack where Fu Wencheng now lived.

There wasn’t even a courtyard—just a dilapidated hut exposed for all to see. It could rival the firewood shed she currently lived in.

She pushed the door open and slipped inside. As she turned around, she came face to face with a pair of deep, dark eyes staring at her in the darkness.

“You came,” he said, as if he had known she would come tonight—his tone calm and unruffled.

“Were you waiting for me?” she asked.

Fu Wencheng raised an eyebrow, his expression saying, “Do you even hear yourself right now?”

“…”

Alright, she had to admit—what she said sounded a bit off.

“I need to take some of your blood to test it back home and identify what kind of poison it is before I can make the antidote.”

“No need. I’ve already had it tested. Here are the results.”

Fu Wencheng handed her a piece of paper from beside him. It must’ve been from when he was examined while still in the military.

Ming Leyao didn’t think much of it. She took the test results and scanned to the end, her brows furrowing slightly.

“You went to a biochemical lab before?”

At that, Fu Wencheng’s eyes trembled ever so slightly—but it was barely noticeable in the dark.

“That’s not something you should be asking.”

“Heh. Do you have the money ready?”

“One hundred. Will you treat me?”

“Deal.”

Ming Leyao pulled a cloth pouch from her pocket. Inside, neatly arranged silver needles of varying lengths sparkled in the moonlight. She quickly drew out a medium-sized one and was just about to insert it when she paused.

Looking up with a puzzled expression, she asked, “You trust me that easily?”

“I didn’t at first.”

“Oh really? Yet you’re sitting here like you were just waiting for me. Hah, men… Always lying pigs.”

Fu – liar – Wen – lying pig – Cheng: …

Fu Wencheng’s cold gaze landed on Ming Leyao, expression unreadable.

She ignored him, lifted the black blanket over his legs, and pressed gently with her hand.

“Does this hurt?”

“No.”

“Can you feel anything?”

“No.”

“How about now?”

“Still nothing.”

“It’ll hurt a bit at first—bear with it.”

With that, the silver needle went in. One, two, three… As more and more needles were inserted, his long-numb legs slowly began to feel pain.

The pain kept increasing. And increasing.

Fu Wencheng’s eyes grew brighter and brighter.

His legs… Could they really recover?

For the past few months, he had lived as a cripple. From the initial rage and denial to eventual helpless acceptance, the journey had been rough. He had seen the worst sides of people—abandonment by family, ridicule by others. Once a proud and promising soldier, he had ended up like this.

He could understand the panic his parents and brothers had felt back then.

But understanding didn’t mean approval. Without the will and ability to survive adversity, one could only live in fear, with no idea what lay ahead.