SLH | Chapter 21

Misunderstanding Resolved

Wu Erniu wiped the corner of her eye and held Ruan Xiulian’s hand, saying, “Let’s not talk about this. How have you been these past two years, Big Sister?”

Ruan Xiulian had a smile on her face, “Good, pretty good. How’s the family?”

“Big Sister always reports the good news and hides the bad. Do you think I, as your sister-in-law, don’t know?” Wu Erniu sighed, “Back then, our parents said they wouldn’t let you back in, but those were just words of anger. As soon as you left, they regretted it. But because of pride, they put on a tough front in front of us younger ones. Erniu, being stubborn, didn’t tell us when you came home and drove you away.”

As they were talking, a series of footsteps came from outside, accompanied by a child’s voice. A cute little toddler, fair-skinned and adorable, pushed the door open and came in.

The little girl seemed just over a year old, wearing a floral dress, looking like she just woke up with rosy cheeks, really adorable. She looked around the room but didn’t see her parents, only a bunch of unfamiliar faces, and showed a bit of shyness.

“Third Grandma,” the little one softly called.

Wu Erniu responded with a smile, “Ruyi, you’re awake. Your parents went to work in town. They won’t be back until sunset.”

She waved the little girl over, “Come to Third Grandma.”

The little girl held onto the door frame, glanced at everyone in the room, and seeing the tall Liu Hu, she shrank back a bit fearfully behind the door.

Song Tingzhu noticed this and smiled gently, “Don’t be afraid. Second Cousin is just tall, he’s not a bad person.”

The little girl looked towards the voice, seeing the handsome brother speaking, her bright eyes lit up even more.

“Brother…”

Ruan Ruyi had just learned to walk, her steps were still a bit unsteady. She entered the room without looking at Third Grandma and went straight towards Song Tingzhu, raising her little hands.

“This isn’t Brother, Ruyi should call him Second Uncle,” Wu Erniu corrected with a smile, “This is your Big Aunt, remember what Third Grandma told you?”

Seeing the little girl burying half her face in Song Tingzhu’s arms, Ruan Xiulian smiled too.

Ruan Ruyi clutched Song Tingzhu’s clothes with her little hands, nodding and saying in a soft voice, “I remember, Big Aunt.”

Then she turned her head and called Song Tingzhu, “Second Uncle.”

“Good girl.” Song Tingzhu patted the little girl’s head and then took out half a piece of candy from his pocket and handed it to her.

The little girl, having received the candy, didn’t mind being scared anymore. She stuffed it into her mouth and leaned against Song Tingzhu, happily eating.

“This must be Youyin’s child,” Ruan Xiulian guessed.

Wu Erniu nodded with a smile, “Ruyi looks just like Youyin when he was little, especially the nose and mouth.”

Ruan Xiulian agreed, “I could tell at a glance, she looks like she was carved from the same mold as Youyin.”

The two sisters-in-law chatted for a while, then they heard a commotion from the courtyard. It was Ruan Erniu calling Ruan Changhe back from helping someone build a foundation outside.

Ruan Changhe was fifty-four this year. Having worked hard when he was young, he couldn’t stay idle in his old age. Whenever a family in the village needed help building a house or slaughtering a pig, he would lend a hand and earn a few copper coins in the process.

Today, a family in the south of the village was hosting a banquet. The man who was supposed to help slaughter the pig couldn’t make it for some reason, and they couldn’t find anyone suitable on short notice, so they invited Ruan Changhe to help.

When Ruan Erniu arrived, the old man was holding down the pig, preparing to cut it open, when he heard his son say that his eldest daughter was back. He was stunned and almost let the pig escape.

After slaughtering the pig, he didn’t even have time to wash his hands and rushed back to the courtyard. But when he saw her, he put on a serious face and said something straight to the heart.

“Why come back? The Ruan family doesn’t have unfilial children like you. Go back to your Liu family.”

Ruan Xiulian’s face stiffened, her lips trembling as she called out, “Dad…”

“I can’t afford to be called Dad by you. You, Ruan Xiulian, are very capable, abandoning your family for your husband’s. Why come back today?”

Ruan Changhe was in a fit of anger, and Ruan Erniu and the others knew the old man’s temper well. If they tried to persuade him now, it would only backfire.

The atmosphere in the room was tense, and it looked like the visit would end in failure. Song Tingzhu coughed lightly, drawing all attention to himself.

“Grandfather, Mother never intended to sever ties with the family. It was all Liu Cuie stirring up trouble.”

Ruan Changhe had grievances against his eldest daughter but never spoke harshly to his grandchildren. Moreover, Huzi’s husband was in poor health, and it had taken a lot of effort to get him better. They couldn’t afford any setbacks now.

Seeing that her father didn’t say anything more hurtful, Wu Erniu quickly chimed in, “When Big Sister first married into the Liu family, that old lady Liu didn’t like her and looked down on our family, thinking we were just there to take advantage. Every time we visited Big Sister, the old woman would make sarcastic remarks.

You know Big Sister’s character better than anyone, Dad. I think it’s just like what Tingzhu said, that old lady Liu must have been stirring up trouble, causing misunderstandings between us and Big Sister, leading to today’s situation.”

The old man said nothing, but his expression softened a bit.

Seeing this, Song Tingzhu was about to press the advantage when an elderly woman with graying hair walked in from outside.

“Xiulian, my Xiulian, you’ve finally come to see your mother…”

Li Chunhua’s voice trembled, her cloudy eyes filled with tears.

Ruan Xiulian stood up, choking back tears as she called out, “Mother…”

“You heartless girl, disappearing just like that. I really raised you for nothing…”

“It’s all my fault, Mother. It’s all my fault…”

The mother and daughter hugged each other and cried for a long time before wiping their tears and sitting down together. Slowly, they unraveled the misunderstandings that had built up over the years.

It all started with Liu Cuie’s dissatisfaction with Ruan Xiulian. Back then, the daughter-in-law that Liu Cuie had her eye on wasn’t Ruan Xiulian but someone from a relatively well-off family in Yunxi Village. However, things fell through, and they settled for bringing Ruan Xiulian into the family.

The Ruan family had no savings, and Ruan Xiulian was strong-willed. Ever since she entered the family, she often argued with her mother-in-law.

Liu Cuie grew increasingly displeased and, in the early years when the Ruan family had a poor harvest and came to borrow grain, she stopped them. Not only that, she sowed discord, saying it was Ruan Xiulian who refused to lend, causing Ruan Erniu to leave in embarrassment. From then on, the relationship between the two families was strained.

Later, when Liu Cuie left Liu Meng and Liu Hu in the back mountain, Ruan Daniu and Ruan Erniu came to the Liu family to demand an explanation for their sister. At that time, Ruan Xiulian was ill, and the brothers didn’t even get to see her, being driven out by Liu Cuie and a bunch of relatives, who also said many unpleasant things.

After that, the two families barely had any contact.

After the family split, Ruan Xiulian did go back, but the Ruan family shut the door on her. In the following two or three years, they rarely met.

What could have been resolved in a few words dragged on for nearly twenty years. If not for Song Tingzhu’s “injury” plan to get into the Ruan family, this misunderstanding might never have been resolved.

Song Tingzhu couldn’t understand the older generation’s thinking. If it were him, he would have clarified things long ago and wouldn’t have wasted twenty years.

Now that Li Chunhua understood the whole story, she was filled with regret. Normally kind and gentle, she even cursed in front of everyone.

“That old hag, how could she be so malicious!”

Li Chunhua held her daughter’s hand, tears falling again, “It was my fault for believing that old woman’s words so easily. You’ve suffered all these years.”

Ruan Xiulian shook her head, “It was Father and Mother who suffered, as well as Second Brother and Third Brother. If I had known Liu Cuie was saying and doing those insulting things behind my back, I would have divorced the Liu family, even if it meant being talked about for a lifetime.”

Li Chunhua sighed, “Silly child, the one who did wrong was Liu Cuie. Dasheng is still a decent man. Otherwise, your father and I would never have agreed to the marriage back then.”

The old man snorted heavily, “I knew from the start that Liu Cuie wasn’t easy to deal with, but you insisted on marrying over there. And when you were wronged, you didn’t come home to say anything? Weren’t you quite fierce when you were a girl at home? How did you become so silent after getting married?”

“You old fool, now you’re being all capable. When our daughter was wronged, instead of comforting her, you locked her out. Without her family backing her, the Liu family bullied her even more.”

Li Chunhua’s words left the old man speechless, and he sulked angrily.

Ruan Xiulian said, “Father is right. If I had been tougher, maybe things wouldn’t have happened as they did.”

Li Chunhua frowned, “Without family support, no matter how tough you are, what good would it do? Many women have been worn down by their in-laws.”

It’s true. Women and young men are already at a disadvantage, and without family support, if they’re lucky, they’ll marry into a good family and enjoy a lifetime of happiness. If not, they’ll be stuck with a family that loves to torment, with a husband who’s weak and incompetent, and they’ll never rise above it.

Ruan Xiulian’s situation wasn’t the best, but it wasn’t the worst either. Liu Dasheng, though weak, did stand up for his wife and children once, forcing Liu Cuie to agree to a family split, giving them hope for a better life.

“Alright, let’s not talk about the past.” Li Chunhua turned and instructed, “Erniu, take some money and get a fish from Old Xu’s house. Youyin’s wife, go cut a piece of cured meat. We’ll have fish stew and fried cured meat for lunch.”

“Okay. I saw Uncle Seven’s house caught some river shrimp yesterday. I’ll see if there are any left.”

“Alright.”

The family was filled with joy. As Ruan Erniu went out to buy fish, a few aunts and women saw him and thought there was some happy event at home. They went up to congratulate him, only to find out that it was because the eldest daughter of the Ruan family was back.

Their expressions changed slightly, and as Ruan Erniu walked away happily, they gathered to gossip.

“Didn’t the old couple from the Ruan family disown their eldest daughter long ago? What’s going on today? Not only did they let her in, but they also spent money on fish.”

“Spending money like it’s burning a hole. Who buys fish when they can catch it from the river? How many families in the village buy fish? Only the Ruan family acts like they’re rich, buying fish.”

“Could it be that the son-in-law’s family has become wealthy? I need to go see what’s going on.”

A few who loved to watch the excitement hurriedly grabbed their baskets and headed towards the Ruan family.

Author’s Note:

———————-

After a long journey, I’m finally home. I never want to write on the road again [crying][crying]