Bab 8: Chapter 8 Debate
"You wretched girl! What nonsense are you spouting? You've learned to lie now, too? I'll tear your mouth apart!"
Zhou Lanfang went up to hit Shen Mianmian, but luckily she reacted quickly and hurriedly hid behind Zhao Xianlai.
Zhao Xianlai was a bit angry, thinking that if Zhou Lanfang would attempt to strike someone even in his presence, what she might do when he wasn't around was unthinkable. Shen Jianhua's face flushed with embarrassment as he quickly scolded Zhou Lanfang, "What are you doing? Can't we talk things out calmly without resorting to violence?"
Zhou Lanfang, however, spoke righteously, "The child has even started lying now. Can't we do something about it?"
She needed to discipline her own daughter; why should she care about anyone else's opinion?
"I haven't lied." Shen Mianmian bent down and rolled up her pants, revealing more severe bruises from her ankle to her knee, "There are many injuries like this on my body. Whether they are from falling or pinching, dad and Uncle Zhao will be able to tell."
Nobody was a fool.
The blue and purple bruises on her arms and legs—if those were claimed as results from falling, wouldn't that be blatant lying?
Shen Jianhua was shocked; he thought Zhou Lanfang was just giving the child a stern talking-to. He hadn't expected her to be so heavy-handed. When Zhou Lanfang saw his expression, she realized she couldn't deceive him this time and quickly put on an expression of tough love, "I hit her because she was skipping school, wasn't it? The teacher has even visited our home several times, haven't you met him once before?"
Upon further reflection, Shen Jianhua remembered indeed encountering a teacher's visit to their home last year. He had come home right when the teacher left, and Zhou Lanfang told him it was because Shen Mianmian skipped school, and the teacher was there to educate her. Since he had heard her mention Shen Mianmian's skipping on more than one occasion, he hadn't been suspicious.
After all, a child skipping school certainly needed to be educated.
"Spare the rod and spoil the child," was the slogan of the era.
Shen Mianmian, of course, wouldn't let Zhou Lanfang get away with talking nonsense. Her eyes brimming with tears, she explained with a sense of grievance, "I have never skipped school. That time, it was because I had a high fever of forty degrees during class, and the teacher was worried, so they sent me home."
Actually, the teacher had only come that once, when she had a forty-degree fever and was nearly delirious from it.
In the eighties, communication was not very convenient. The teacher, worried about her getting into trouble on her way home, took her back and repeatedly urged Zhou Lanfang to take her to the hospital. However, Zhou Lanfang only gave her some fever-reducing pills.
Luckily, Shen Mianmian had a strong will to live and pulled through.
"Dad, if you don't believe what I say, you can go to the school and ask the teachers."
Upon hearing the suggestion to ask the teachers, Zhou Lanfang immediately became anxious, "Why ask the teachers? It's almost winter vacation, and they are extremely busy. How could they spare time to deal with our trivial family matters?" She said this also for Zhao Xianlai to hear, hinting that he was meddling too much.
At this point, what else did Shen Jianhua fail to understand? Zhou Lanfang was clearly feeling guilty, "How could you be a mother?"
"Having been husband and wife for so many years, don't you know what kind of person I am? You believe everything she says? Oh my... I can't live this life anymore..."
Seeing that her argument was weak, Zhou Lanfang resorted to dramatics, sitting on the ground and starting to cry hysterically—a mix of sobs and tears.
Shen Jianhua was at a loss about what to do with her and, with a face turned iron blue, awkwardly glanced at Zhao Xianlai, "Village Chief, I apologize for making you witness this farce."
Bab 9: Chapter 9 Questioning
Zhao Xianlai snorted and said to Zhou Lanfang, "Enough, stop wailing like a banshee. It's your family affair, and under normal circumstances, I shouldn't interfere. But the child was beaten so severely and even ran to my house, I can't ignore that. Make a promise, never lay a hand on Mianmian again."
Pah, still remembers it's her family affair, huh? How she wants to beat her own raised bastard is her business, Zhou Lanfang cursed inwardly, but her ranting voice didn't diminish by half.
Zhao Xianlai paid her no mind and turned to look at Shen Jianhua, "Jianhua, since Mianmian's poor academic performance is due to trouble at home, what about her schooling..."
Shen Jianhua interrupted Zhao Xianlai with a troubled look on his face, "Village chief, it's not that I don't want to let Mianmian go to school, you know the situation at my home. Now that I'm unemployed and getting work that pays as high as the kiln factory's wage is unlikely, I simply can't support two high school students, not to mention college later on. Siyu has better grades..."
He didn't finish his sentence, but the implication was crystal clear.
"Dad..."
She had thought that knowing the truth, even if out of guilt, Jianhua would agree to let her study. It turns out she was overthinking. Although it was Zhou Lanfang's instigation, it must also be Shen Jianhua's own decision, right? Zhou Lanfang was just made to be the villain.
Shen Jianhua's eyes darted around, avoiding Shen Mianmian's gaze.
Zhao Xianlai looked at Shen Mianmian apologetically, realizing he was unable to help in this situation.
In the eighties, schooling was not free; even if Jianhua had not lost his job, supporting two students was challenging. As the village chief, how could he mediate knowing the family's financial situation?
"Dad, am I really your biological daughter?" Tears the size of beans fell from her eyes, but she bit her lip, refusing to cry out loud. The scars on her arms and legs made her seem more pitiable than "Little Cabbage" in TV dramas.
The question hit Shen Jianhua's sore spot, "What kind of question is that? Back then your mother and I could barely fend for ourselves, how could we have extra to raise someone else's child?"
Zhou Lanfang, panicked, stopped crying and stood up abruptly, "You ungrateful girl, did you listen to some old gossip?" She'd raised her for over a decade, and now that she was of age to work and earn money, she couldn't let Mianmian discover the truth.
Shen Mianmian sneered inside but continued to question with feigned innocence, "Which father doesn't let his own daughter study but supports someone else's girl? No matter how good the other family's daughter does in school, can she provide for your old age?"
She deliberately emphasized the term "provide for your old age."
A bastard daughter is still closer than a niece, right?
Shen Jianhua: "..." He was at a loss for words. Yet Mianmian's point was valid. When Zhou Siyu came to live with them, she was already old enough to remember and would often go back to her own home. Although the future seemed promising, whether she would actually provide for him in his old age was indeed in question.
Zhou Lanfang jabbed Shen Mianmian's forehead forcefully, frightening Mianmian into flinching, "You wretched girl, learning to sow discord now, huh? Siyu's better in her studies than you, she's the one who deserves an education."
If not for her miscarriage that caused her infertility years ago, how could she tolerate Shen Mianmian in the Shen Family all these years?
"Speak your mind, why the need to be violent?" Shen Jianhua glared at Zhou Lanfang, then pulled Shen Mianmian behind him. The village chief was watching. Couldn't she restrain herself a little?
"This girl does poorly in school and yet competes with Siyu, how can I not intervene?" She could not give in on this matter. She had always been mean to that girl; if Mianmian ever becomes capable, who knows how she might retaliate?
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