Mr. Shen, accompanied by several of his sons and grandsons, was returning home. From afar, they saw a crowd gathered in front of their house, amidst the noise of a heated dispute. Fearing something had happened, they quickened their pace. Pushing through the crowd, Mr. Shen saw Mrs. Shen berating Mrs. Li. Shen Yuzhu was continuously stepping on what seemed to be pieces of meat scattered on the ground, while Mrs. Li, her clothing half drenched, was shaking her clothes and crying out in pain. He was so furious that his whole face turned dark and roared, "Enough is enough!"
Upon hearing his voice, the three immediately stopped.
"Everyone, inside now!" Mr. Shen led the way into the main building.
"There's nothing more to see here, folks," Shen Chengyao dispersed the spectators and closed the courtyard gate.
Xiao'er and her siblings also followed Shen Chengyao into the house. Everyone found their seats. Xiao'er discretely observed her great uncle's family, noticing their brand new silk clothing. Her great uncle, Shen Chengguang, bore a striking resemblance to Mr. Shen, only he was noticeably taller, standing nearly 175 cm. Although he was dressed as a scholar, his slightly corpulent figure lacked the scholar's refined elegance and seemed out of place.
Shen Jingwen, the eldest grandchild of the Shen family's eldest son, was sitting beneath him. He was far more handsome, with a scholar's headcloth and a white robe that was the uniform of the academy students. His face was fair and he carried himself with an elegant and scholarly aura. According to Xiao'er's past memories, Shen Jingwen was an excellent student and had obtained his diploma at the young age of 16.
Sitting below Shen Jingwen was Mrs. Lan, Shen Jingwen's mother. She wore a new rose-red blouse and skirt, her makeup was delicate, her features beautiful, a plum blossom pin adorned her hair, and she wore a jade bracelet of good quality. She looked every bit the well-bred lady.
Shen Bao'er was sitting close to Mrs. Lan. She had inherited all the best features of her parents—a fair complexion, delicate skin, and even the way she sat exuded elegance. However, the entire family seemed out of place in the Shen household.
Once everyone had settled down in their respective seats, Mr. Shen spoke up: "Now, what exactly happened? Don't you know any better than to make a scene?" He ended by glaring at Mrs. Shen.
"Why are you glaring at me? That old woman won't rest until she's turned our house upside down. Today, your third son's children caught a pheasant in the mountains and made chicken soup to honor us. This old woman even dared to steal that! Don't tell me she doesn't deserve to be scolded?"
"Father, it's not how it seems! I just wanted to taste it. It's all a misunderstanding. I was keeping it aside to cool down for you and mother when you returned. But mother and my sister-in-law misunderstood and my sister-in-law even spilled the soup. I am in so much pain right now, father. Please, get a doctor for me," Mrs. Li cried out in pain. However, there was no way she was going to admit to stealing. As long as she did not admit to it, no one else could do anything about it. This was not a government office, where truth and justice prevailed.
"Bah, you say I have wronged you? The moment you saw me coming back, you drank the soup and spit it out so that no one would dare to drink it after you," Mrs. Shen shot back.
"As for Yuzhu, she was just upset and knocked over the soup. No one expected you to get scalded. Instead of calling a doctor for you, someone who disrespects and defies their elders, you might as well keep dreaming!"
"Our Shen family cannot tolerate a daughter-in-law like you who has no shame and never admits her mistakes. Go back to your mother's house..." Mrs. Shen continued her tirade.
"I can't bear this anymore. Shen Chengzong, are you dead? You just watch me get bullied and don't say anything. I have given birth to sons and raised daughters for you. It's not easy for me. You treat me so harshly, even wanting to kill me for tasting a bit of chicken soup. Which family treats their daughter in law as cruelly as you do?" Mrs. Li started crying on the floor.
Xiao'er was completely taken aback, as she had never encountered such a woman in her previous life.
Mr. Shen was getting a headache. He had taken the wrong wife for his second son. However, they couldn't just divorce now. His eldest grandson was about to take the scholar examination and the family's reputation was at stake. "Enough, stop bickering. You, second son's wife, it was wrong of you to eat alone. So, this month you will feed the livestock as a warning. You can't do this again. Bao'er, you scalded your sister-in-law. That's wrong too. As a punishment, you will do the laundry for a month." Mr. Shen had originally intended to punish Mrs. Li by making her cook, but the thought of eating her hastily made meals for a month made him lose his appetite, so he relented.
On hearing these words, Shen Yuzhu wept in Mrs. Shen's arms. Mrs. Shen, too, felt a pang in her heart, and muttered to her husband, "Old man... "
"Enough! Do you want me to punish you too? Why don't you go and prepare dinner?" Mr. Shen shot Mrs. Shen a glance. With their years of marital harmony, Mrs. Shen understood she better stay quiet.
She shot a fierce glance at Mrs. Li, "Why aren't you cooking yet?"
Mrs. Li was in agony: "Mother, it's not me who cooks today. I'm injured, and I'm afraid I won't be able to work in the next few days."
"What's the matter, am I not supposed to use you? Did you break your hand or your foot?"
Seeing the gleeful expression on Mrs. Lan's face, Mrs. Li turned furious. Thinking quickly, she said: "Mother, my eldest sister-in-law hasn't been home in a long time. I can manage to cook despite the pain, but it wouldn't be fair to prevent her from showing filial piety to you. If rumors spread that my sister-in-law is unfilial, it may jeopardize Jingwen's future official career."
Infuriated with Mrs. Li's words, Mrs. Lan had no choice but to reluctantly stand and go cook. She said: "Mother, I'll go cook. But no one has been in my room for many days. We'll need to clean it, or it'll disturb sir and Guang'er's sleep tonight. What will we do then?"
Mrs. Shen was unhappy hearing Mrs. Lan's words. Since marrying into the family, Mrs. Lan had barely served her and cooked only a couple of meals. Now she was trying to dodge responsibilities even before being asked to. Mrs. Shen changed her mind.
"Bao'er is not a child anymore. Let her clean the room. You should cook the meal. You hardly stay home, and your father and I haven't tasted your cooking in a long time."
Mrs. Lan regretted her words immediately. She had momentarily forgotten to comply with Mrs. Shen. She had always been compliant before and wasn't asked to do much work.
Hearing this, Shen Bao'er quickly sent a pleading look to her brother. She had never done cleaning chores before!
Shen Chengguang went along with it too. He quickly stood: "Grandfather, let me clean up. Bao'er has been a little under the weather these days. Father and mother initially wanted her to stay in town for rest, but she insisted on coming home because she missed you and grandmother, and wanted to spend more time with you."
"You, a male scholar, doing women's chores, what would that look like? The rural examination is just one year away. You cannot be distracted. You should concentrate on studying." Mr. Shen understood Mrs. Shen's intentions. Mrs. Lan, the eldest daughter-in-law, was trying to avoid work under his watch. After some thought, he said: "Bao'er will be married in a few years. She should learn to do household chores. Second daughter-in-law, you go with Bao'er to clean your eldest brother's room."
Hearing this, Mrs. Lan's face changed instantly but regained composure just as quick. If Xiao'er hadn't been watching her closely, no one would have noticed.
Shen Chengguang glanced at Mrs. Lan. She thought of the agreement within the family and to save time, she bowed to Mr. Shen: "Father, I'll go off and prepare dinner now." Then she told Shen Bao'er: "Bao'er, you follow your second aunt and learn how to clean, understood?"
Shen Bao'er did listen to Mrs. Lan. She reluctantly replied: "I understand."
Mrs. Li entered the east wing with a bucket of water and a cloth, immediately throwing the cloth to Shen Bao'er: "Soak the cloth with water, wring it out, then wipe down the kang bed, table, and the cabinets just like how you would dry your body after a bath. Bao'er, please bear with it, my injuries are too painful. I need to rest."
Shen Bao'er was furious at Mrs. Li's words, her face turning red. How could she compare it to drying off after a bath! It was such an offensive and vulgar thing to say!
Mrs. Li returned to her room, looked at the blisters emerging on her skin and wished she could pour boiling water on Shen Yuzhu. She quickly changed her clothing.
After a while, Shen Chengzong arrived too. He had just secretly sent Jinghua to Doctor Luo's to buy a box of burn ointment, which had cost him one tael of silver!
"Apply some ointment. Jinghua got it from Doctor Luo. It'll ease the pain."
Mrs. Li initially wanted to lash out at Shen Chengzong but refrained when she saw the ointment. She said in a bitter tone: "What a wonderful sister you have, her heart is so cruel!"
She then asked: "How much did this ointment cost?" Upon learning it was one tael of silver, she felt the pain in her heart surpassing that of her physical pain! It was like adding insult to injury.