Chapter 5
Heng Yi turned around and shut the door.
Standing on the other side of the door, Sister-in-law Heng was in a genuine panic.
The entire family’s livelihood depended on Heng Yi’s hunting. If he cut them off, they wouldn’t even be able to eat a meal, let alone have meat.
She rushed back to the main room.
The entire family was still there waiting for her.
“What happened?” Brother Heng asked hurriedly.
“Fifth Brother has known about it for a long time, but he just never said anything,” sister-in-law Heng replied, bracing herself.
Yes, the Heng family ate meat every night.
They would bring it out as soon as Heng Yi put down his bowl and left.
The family never cared about Heng Yi’s breakfast in the morning, nor did they care about his lunch. No one cared whether he ate or not.
Nor did he ever raise a complaint. He came in and out like a piece of wood.
He washed his clothes and cleaned his room himself.
No one knew if he had any money to his name, let alone how much.
And, if he didn’t come home for a few days, nobody would miss him. Granny Heng, on the other hand, would nag at him, but the only thing she cared about was how much prey he had hunted, and how much it could be sold for.
No one would care if he was in danger or if he died..
However, these idiots of the Heng family thought he would slave away for them his entire life. The secret the Heng family thought they had done a good job of hiding was out..
He had even said “don’t bother me anymore.”
Granny Heng pressed her hand to her forehead and sword, “That bastard.”
“Shut up,” Old Man Heng said in a gaping voice.
Cold as ice, he commanded, “Eldest daughter-in-law, get up early tomorrow and cook breakfast. Second, third, and fourth daughters-in-law, take turns to wash the clothes for Fifth Brother.”
The four daughters-in-law replied in unison, “Understood, Father.”
“Now eat.”
Having said that, Old Man Heng picked up the bowl and chopsticks and ate.
Apart from the children, few in the family could eat all that.
They all understood clearly that their whole family was still squeezed into this tiny courtyard. It had all been to profit from Heng Yi’s hunting.
The Suns.
Han Qiao closed the door and found a long, thick wooden stick, along with a hemp rope.
“Mother, let me help.” Sun Yi stepped up as though he knew what Han Qiao was about to do. Still, his tone was very serious.
“I have the same idea as Yi,” Sun Xiu added.
That should suffice to show where her attitude stood.
Though she didn’t really understand, Sun Ke said, “Mother, I can help just like big sister and second sister.”
Han Qiao smiled.
“There’s no need for that for now. He won’t be back for another two days.”
Every time Sun Yiming hit someone, they would hang him outside for two or three days, whereupon he went home to confess that he was drunk, that he knew he was wrong. Thus he always coaxed Han Qiao to continue slaving away.
But sooner or later he would do it again.
His wife and children could never catch a break.
“Go back to the house and sleep well.” Han Qiao touched the heads of the three children.
She went back, too.
Lying on the hard bed that reeked of sweat, Han Qiao took a deep breath.
She thought about the first thing she would do when she woke up tomorrow. The second thing would be to sell some more books and buy some things that she needed at home.
Sun Xiu, Sun Yi, and Sun Ke were fast asleep, heads nestled together.
“Sister, do you think Mother has made up her mind yet?”
“I think she has.”
She was daring enough to sell her husband’s books to buy food. She had even prepared hemp ropes and wooden sticks to deal with him.
“If mother really ties Father up and beats him, are you going to join her?” Sun Xiu asked.
“Of course I am. I don’t care if I get kicked out and have to beg for food with Mother,” Having said that, Sun Yi sat up and asked, “Sister, do you know where the house and land deeds are?”
“…”
Sun Xiu shook her head.
After thinking carefully, she said, “Maybe it’s with Grandpa and Grandma?”
If it were in her mother’s hands, her father would have already taken it.
Sun Yi thought carefully and felt that it made sense.
“What a pity.” She lay down and sighed.
Sun Xiu felt the same.
It was quite a pity.
Marrying a man, dressing and eating–things like that were thought to be part of the good life. But the results turned out to be a complete mess.
She was penniless, went to bed hungry, and never ate well. She never received a single compliment, was beaten every ten days to half a month, and each beating left her covered in wounds. Her tears were never-ending, and yet she had no one to turn to.
For the sake of her three children, she wouldn’t even think about dying. She was afraid of dying. In the blink of an eye, her husband would marry another woman, and the children would be tortured by their new stepmother.
“Fortunately, Mother is going to stand up to him,” Sun Xiu whispered.
Sun Yi added, “Yes, she is.”
“Yi, get some sleep. Head over to the coffin store tomorrow morning and ask if they need any paper dolls.”
“Okay.”
Rich people believed that making paper dolls was bad luck. For the poor who couldn’t even afford to eat, it was a way to put food on the table.
At that moment, Sun Yiming was off eating and drinking with others and putting on airs.
The flood of compliments and flattery felt good.
“Thank you for treating us today, Brother Sun.”
“You’re too generous, Brother Sun.”
Sun Yiming smiled. “You’re all too kind.”
After drinking, Sun Yiming had to pee. He got up and went to the restaurant’s bathroom.
Sun Yiming hadn’t returned for a while, so someone went looking for him.
“Brother Sun, Brother Sun.”
The drunkard saw him lying on the bathroom floor. Seems he fell asleep.
“Brother Sun, Brother Sun, you don’t look too good,” he teased.
Sun Yiming was pricked with shame and rushed to find an excuse. “Brother Wu, just now a thief attacked me.”
No one believed him.
Further, the waiter confirmed he had seen no thief.
He also checked Sun Yiming’s body. No injuries.
“Brother Sun, you’re definitely plastered.”
Everyone’s tongues were racing. Of course Sun Yiming knew no one had attacked him.
He felt embarrassed.
For fear of being mocked, he was ready to take leave of his friends.
He felt he’d rather go home and have his wife wait on him.
She may be bad luck, but her looks and figure were extraordinary. More importantly, she was loyal to him.
He took out the money–which he had demanded from his older brother–and threw it on the table. “Waiter, I’ll be paying now.”
The waiter saw that Sun Yiming was about to leave without even checking how much money he had just slapped down, so he wasted no time calling, “Mister Sun, hold on a moment. Let me give you your change.”
Sun Yiming’s footsteps paused. He pretended to be generous. “I’ve been saving up for a while. Don’t worry, I’ll drink my fill next time.”
“Alright, take care, Mister Sun.”
Even though he didn’t have much money left, the waiter still warmly and cordially saw Sun Yiming out of the tavern.
Sun Yiming headed home, stumbling and staggering.
He was even humming lewd songs he had heard at brothels. Humming and humming, his drunken walk gave way to a fit of tears.
He cried, lamenting all his failure and bad luck. He had married a jinx, Han Qiao, who was unable to give him a son. The damage this caused him is what was preventing him from becoming a scholar.
He was a boy in a man’s body.
A fortune teller had once told him that as long as Han Qiao could give him a son, he would be able to become an elementary scholar, then a high scholar, then a tribute student, and finally meet the Emperor in the throne room. From then on, he would have a prosperous career.
But Han Qiao couldn’t do so, she just couldn’t do so…
Melancholy, hatred, and rage swelled in his heart. Sun Yiming wanted to beat her to death.
He saw the wooden door getting closer and closer. Sun Yiming staggered forward and leaned against it, looking into the house. “Han Qiao, open up!”
At that moment, hearing Sun Yiming knocked on the door, the three children nearly jumped out of the sheets.
“Big Sister, Second Sister, Father is back.” Sun Ke was so scared that she cried.
Sun Xiu and Sun Yi got up immediately and ran into the main house.
Han Qiao was already guarding the door quietly.
“Mother…” the sisters whispered. Their voices were faltering. Fear had spread from their souls to their bodies. Though it was dark, Han Qiao could feel their teeth chattering.
“Don’t be afraid.” Han Qiao comforted the two children. “Go back to your room. Don’t come out no matter what you hear.”
Outside the courtyard, Sun Yiming was hollering curses, “Han, you slut. An old hen that doesn’t lay eggs. I’ll divorce you one of these days. No, if I divorce you, that’d be too easy on you. I’ll sell you to a brothel, you unsightly piece of trash. All you’ve done is give birth to a few dollar drains. How unlucky I am to have married a witch like you.”
“Open this door! Open this door for me!”
“When I get in there, I’ll break your legs!”
Han Qiao took a deep breath. That shameless bastard, that useless pig. Now he’s about to see whose legs are getting broken.