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Sun Shi watched helplessly as Shen Zhu gracefully departed, her hand reaching out, mouth opening and closing without a word coming out. She seemed like she was struggling in vain, appearing quite ridiculous.
“Fourth brother! Where do you expect your third brother and me to find money to buy those useless things for her? You’re so heartless!” Sun Shi scolded Shen Zi’an, but in a subdued tone, fearing being overheard. Though she felt pained spending money on Shen Zhu, she didn’t dare upset her too much. Shen Zhu was cunning, and their parents favored her, leaving Sun Shi to silently bear the burden. However, when she saw Shen Zi’an, she couldn’t resist letting out her frustrations. She knew Shen Zi’an wouldn’t lay a hand on her or engage in an argument, but despite feeling intimidated by his gaze, she still voiced her grievances.
Shen Zi’an responded, “Sister-in-law, it’s best to keep quiet. If you had held your tongue earlier, we wouldn’t be in this mess now.”
Sun Shi fell silent, realizing she had been the one who initially schemed against Shen Zi’an, only to be outplayed by him.
“You needn’t bring up the new bathing tub, right? You’re doing this on purpose!” Sun Shi retorted.
“Hmph, if I take on this task, do you think I wouldn’t arrange for a new bathing tub?” Shen Zi’an replied.
Sun Shi fell silent once more, realizing Shen Zhu’s determined personality would inevitably lead to the new bathing tub. She had anticipated this outcome but hadn’t expected it to fall back on her. Shen Zi’an, who used to be less calculating, seemed to have changed after getting married, now prioritizing his own interests. It appeared unlikely that she could benefit from him in the future.
“Younger brother’s wife, are you just standing here to cool off?” Wang Shi returned after seeing Shen Zhu leave and noticed Sun Shi hadn’t served the empty bowl with porridge, which furrowed her brows. She held a strong disdain for Sun Shi and couldn’t resist a jab.
“What’s the rush? A little delay in dinner won’t hurt anyone,” Sun Shi retorted, visibly irritated from her recent setbacks.
Wang Shi glared at her and retorted, “The whole family is returning from the fields, famished and exhausted. Do you not feel any urgency? Are you planning to starve our parents, the Shen family members, and all the children? Father asked for it to be quick!”
The Shen family was not destitute to the point of going hungry, but Shen Youfu held traditional values, believing that thriftiness was essential for prosperity. Consequently, their meals were often meager, and they only ate twice a day. Consequently, everyone gathered promptly and eagerly at meal times, especially the children, who waited eagerly with necks stretched and some even drooling, evoking a sense of pity.
Although frugal, Shen Youfu cared for his son and grandchildren. Seeing the children drooling in anticipation, he urged to serve the food promptly.
Sun Shi, feeling weakened by Wang Shi’s confrontation using their father-in-law’s authority and resentful towards Shen Zi’an for causing her financial loss, aggressively scooped from the pot, filling the bowls with the thickest portion at the bottom, which she had Wang Shi take away. The bowls she served to Shen Zi’an were mostly watery.
“Sister-in-law, isn’t this porridge a bit too watery?” Shen Zi’an, observing that Sun Shi had served mostly soup in the bowls, felt compelled to speak up. Normally, he wouldn’t bother arguing over such trivial matters with a woman, but now he simply wanted his wife to have at least her fair share of food.
Sun Shi’s expression hardened as she retorted, “This is how the porridge is, stop nitpicking, okay? I’m your sister-in-law! Are you trying to use the incident when I gave your nephew two cornbread against me to demand thicker porridge? Let me tell you, it’s not happening. With so many people in the house, either working or children, I can’t let them go hungry just to provide better food for your ailing wife! The amount she spends on medicine could feed us meat for a year! It’s already a luxury for her not to go hungry, dreaming of eating well!”
Sun Shi’s voice grew louder as she spoke, unafraid of escalating the situation. She believed that even if her in-laws discovered she had served Shen Zi’an watery porridge, they wouldn’t intervene, especially considering Shen Zi’an’s unpopular wife. This emboldened her to act as she did.
Inviting her parents-in-law might lead Shen Zi’an to accuse her of being overly frugal due to the bathing tub incident, providing her with an opportunity to shift the focus away from the tub. As this thought crossed her mind, her voice raised further.
“What’s going on here?” Shen Zhang Shi approached, having heard the commotion. She couldn’t ignore such a disturbance, deciding to intervene while leaving the others with Shen Youfu.
Sun Shi explained the situation to her mother-in-law, setting down the ladle and stating, “Mother, I simply ladled out the porridge casually. Fourth brother thinks it’s too thin, but I can’t let the whole family eat watery porridge just for his sick wife!”
Shen Zhang Shi sighed and addressed Shen Zi’an, “Zi’an, Fifth Son isn’t well. He was asking for thicker porridge earlier. Your fifth brother needs to eat better these days. Could you consider accommodating them a bit more? Mother knows it’s not fair to you. Why don’t you take Mother’s portion instead? I can go without a meal.”
“Fourth brother, you’re being disrespectful!” Sun Shi exclaimed loudly. “You’re actually trying to take Mother’s food. Her health isn’t great, and if you leave her hungry, even the heavens won’t forgive you. Beware of being struck by lightning!”
“Thank you for your kindness, Mother, but it’s unnecessary,” Shen Zi’an responded calmly, picking up the ceramic pot and the bowl filled with food and bread, then walked away.
Sun Shi watched Shen Zi’an leave with a sense of disappointment, wondering why he didn’t argue. If he had, he could have brought up Shen Zhu’s situation.
Shen Zi’an returned to the thatched cottage with a calm demeanor, though Su Zhi still sensed something amiss.
“The porridge today is really thin, almost like water. Was it served by Sister-in-law?” Su Zhi inquired.
Shen Zi’an nodded and pushed the bowl towards her, saying, “Finish the vegetables, have an extra bread, and consider the porridge as water.”
As Su Zhi looked at the meal in front of her, she felt a warm sensation. The disappointment she felt when she realized the spring water had no healing properties resurfaced. She wished her illness could be cured sooner, at least to stop burdening Shen Zi’an. Despite staying in the cottage, she knew she wasn’t welcomed by the Shen family. Still, Shen Zi’an insisted on keeping her, moving her to this humble thatched cottage to care for her, enduring the family’s open mockery and subtle jabs daily. She understood his life must be difficult.
Su Zhi pushed the bowl back towards the center and said, “I can’t eat that much. Let’s share it. I don’t eat much in the evening, so please have more.” She then split a bread in half, taking only one portion and giving the other half to Shen Zi’an. After taking a bite, she noticed Shen Zi’an wasn’t eating but rather watching her.
“Why aren’t you eating? What’s the point of staring at me? My face isn’t exactly pleasant to look at, so don’t let that affect your appetite,” Su Zhi remarked.
Shen Zi’an responded, “You’re just like my mother. She used to split her bread with me in the same way. When she arranged our marriage, maybe she foresaw that you would treat me kindly, just like her.”
Su Zhi was surprised to hear this, thinking Shen Zhang Shi favored her other children instead of Shen Zi’an. As she pondered this, Shen Zi’an uttered another statement.
“She would be at peace if she knew.”
Su Zhi blinked in confusion. “What do you mean? Is your mother deceased? Then who is the person you call ‘Mother’ at home now?”
“That person is not my birth mother.”
In this region, the night descended early, and people retired to bed soon. Su Zhi and Shen Zi’an lay down early to rest.
“Zi’an, I left home at a very young age, and many memories are fuzzy. Can you tell me about it?” Su Zhi contemplated the future, envisioning a lifetime with the man beside her, feeling the need to understand his life better. “Tell me about your family, about your mother.”
Shen Zi’an fell silent for a moment before slowly starting to narrate.