Chapter 16: Li Pojzi – Wuyou Grass

Seeing the small movements of her daughter-in-law, Old Lady Li’s curses grew even harsher.

She could scold herself, but she would never tolerate anyone scolding her daughter-in-law—not even if it was her own mother.

Seeing the redness in his wife’s eyes, Li Youyin stepped forward and shouted loudly, “Enough already!”

“This is my house, and you are not welcome here right now. Please leave!” Li Youyin said painfully to Old Lady Li.

“Good for you, ungrateful son! You’re kicking your old mother out just because I cursed that fox spirit!”

“Damned! How could I have given birth to such a heartless bastard like you, who would join forces with your wife to bully an old woman like me…”

With that, she plopped down on the ground, throwing a tantrum. Several nearby families heard the familiar scolding and rushed over to Li’s house.

The shouting continued, and Shen Shi trembled with anger, tears the size of beans falling one by one onto the ground. Each tear seemed to pierce Li Youyin’s heart.

He couldn’t bear to see his wife cry, yet today it was his own mother who made her weep uncontrollably.

Seeing his wife’s pale face, Li Youyin was in great pain.

“Enough already! Yes, I’m your son, but if I had a choice, I’d rather have never been born, so I wouldn’t have to have a mother like you.”

Hearing his words, Old Lady Li cursed even more fiercely. In the end, she even began insulting the other siblings.

Li Guo’er had been holding back for a long time. She had initially hoped her father would handle it on his own, because everyone knew that Li Youyin was particularly fond of his wife and would never let her suffer.

But seeing her mother’s bloodshot eyes and trembling body, she couldn’t hold back any longer.

She walked up to Old Lady Li and said, “If you want something delicious, go buy it yourself! Who owes you anything?”

“Even if you gave birth to my father, didn’t he work like a mule at the old house for so many years? Isn’t that enough repayment already?”

“What face do you have to demand that he continue to pay for you and your cold-blooded, heartless parents?”

Old Lady Li was stunned by how sharp and eloquent Li Guo’er, so young, was. She was left speechless, unable to respond.

With a sudden movement, she stood up and raised her hand to slap Li Guo’er’s face.

Seeing that his own mother was about to slap his daughter, Li Youyin stepped in front of Li Guo’er, angrily saying,

“From today on, we have no more ties. Don’t ever come to our door again. I don’t have a mother like you.”

Upon hearing Li Youyin’s words, Old Lady Li stepped forward to hit him, but was stopped by Shen Shi.

Old Lady Li shouted angrily, “You unfilial son! With a wolf’s heart and a dog’s lungs, you have good food but don’t share it with your own parents, giving it to others instead.”

“My life is so miserable! I gave birth to a son who marries a wife and forgets his own mother!” Old Lady Li slapped her thighs and yelled.

By now, the Li family’s courtyard was full of onlookers. Villagers had gathered, shaking their heads. They couldn’t believe how much of a shrew Old Lady Li had become.

“You’re so unfilial, Youyin! How could you not show respect to your elders first? You can’t blame your mother for being angry,” Wang Pózi said in a senior’s tone to Li Youyin.

Wang Pózi was notorious in the village as a wicked mother-in-law. She had constantly harassed her daughter-in-law and granddaughter for years simply because her eldest son’s wife had given birth to two daughters instead of a son.

Wang Pózi’s eldest son, Wang Zijie, was an honest farmer who worked tirelessly but was less able to please his mother compared to his younger brother, Wang Ziqing. He was also insecure due to having no sons, and his silence and self-doubt worsened over time. One day, his eldest daughter accidentally broke an egg, and Wang Pózi beat her so severely that she was left near death.

When Wang Zijie came back from the fields and saw his nearly lifeless daughter, he couldn’t bear the suffering his wife and daughters had endured for so long. He finally snapped, having a fierce argument with Wang Pózi. He declared that he would rather leave and sleep in a straw hut on the mountain with his wife and children than endure another day of mistreatment.

In the end, under the village head’s persuasion, Wang Pózi reluctantly agreed to the separation, but she didn’t give her eldest son any land—she only allowed them to take their clothes. Wang Zijie, however, found steady work at the dock in the town and moved his family there.

The three women, his wife and two daughters, took up sewing and laundry work to help with the household finances, and their lives were much more peaceful than before.

Last year, they had a healthy baby boy. The younger daughter-in-law had been trying for many years without success, which greatly distressed Wang Pózi. She took her daughter-in-law all around seeking medical help, and finally, the younger daughter-in-law became pregnant. But after a long pregnancy, they had another girl, which disappointed Wang Pózi.

She then turned her attention back to her eldest son’s family, secretly visiting the town to see her grandson, only to be kicked out by her eldest son’s family without even seeing him.

She regretted her actions deeply, reflecting on how she had always been trying to please her younger son, who, despite being sweet-tongued, was useless. But now, when she thought of her honest eldest son and capable daughter-in-law, she regretted her behavior immensely.

“Grandmother, sending good things to your parents is called filial piety, right? But why don’t you ask us why we don’t give our grandfather and grandmother anything, even if it means carrying the label of unfilial?” Li Guo’er responded sharply.

“They don’t deserve to be parents. The things they’ve done to our family speak for themselves.”

“Everyone knows that it takes more than a day to freeze three feet. Please don’t moralize and guilt-trip us; we are not saints,” Li Guo’er said sharply.

Upon hearing Li Guo’er’s words, Wang Pózi was ashamed. She realized that her treatment of her eldest son’s family wasn’t much different from how Old Lady Li was treating them now. She sighed deeply, and after a long silence, she didn’t speak again.

“All these years have passed, yet you still haven’t learned anything,” Mrs. He said, looking at Old Lady Li in disappointment.

“Youyin and Xiulan are such good children. They’ve endured so much hardship over the years. Just when their lives were finally getting better, you come to cause trouble. Aren’t you afraid the neighbors will laugh at you?”

Old Lady Li retorted, “Who told them to send the roe deer to the old Shen family? I didn’t even get a taste.”

“When we were starving, relying on wild vegetables to fill our bellies, when the kids had no cotton clothes to keep warm in winter, where were you and your father? Did you send us even a grain of rice or a coin?”

Li Youyin looked at his furious mother and said, “I sent the roe deer to the Shen family because when I was at my lowest, the only ones who extended a helping hand to me were my father-in-law and his family.”

“It’s my duty to be filial to them, and I will continue to treat them as my own parents.”

“As for our mother-son relationship, it ends here today!” He finished, tilting his head back, trying to stop the tears from falling.

Seeing the redness in Li Youyin’s eyes, the villagers murmured, “A man’s tears don’t fall easily, only when he is truly heartbroken.”

Watching the tears well up in her second son’s eyes, Old Lady Li felt her heart twist painfully, as though something was slipping away quietly.

For a moment, she forgot to continue her shouting. Hearing the villagers’ reprimands, Old Lady Li felt a flush of shame for the first time in her life. Overcome with guilt, she hurriedly fled the yard and headed toward her own home.

As she walked, she angrily cursed her daughter-in-law, Zhao Shi, in her mind, blaming her for stirring trouble. If it weren’t for her, she wouldn’t have ended up so embarrassed today.