The Mute Wife Who Brings Prosperity

Chapter 367 - 335: Human Nature, Departure (Part 1)

Ningzhou.

After the earthquake, the villages within dozens of miles turned into ruins, and the ruins were buried under a blizzard.

After the disaster that left the people homeless calmed down, it seemed that only endless white was left between heaven and earth.

The whiteness felt somewhat heavy.

It was as if the heavens personally covered the curtain of ending for the dead and the suffering people.

The terrain of Pingjiang County is flat and open, with less severe damage, few collapsed houses, except for some arm-thick cracks on the ground that were frightening to look at.

The pre-disaster preparation work in the county was done properly, and the disaster relief tents were connected, stretching all the way to the entrance of the Wen Family.

Father Wen had long set up a tent on the open space outside his shop with Mrs. Zhou, taking in not only Song Erlang’s family but also Mrs. Zhou’s natal family.

Even though the court had allocated grain supplies, the rations each household received were still limited.

Mrs. Zhou’s two brothers had sons and daughters, and those half-grown kids were at the age of eating a lot, starting to shout about hunger right after finishing the disaster relief porridge every day.

Before the earthquake, Father Wen had Mrs. Zhou make a sack of pancakes and steam a sack of buns.

In the face of a natural disaster, a bite to eat was more precious than gold and jewels.

Now those things were blatantly placed in the tent, visible to anyone coming in or out.

Hearing the kids shouting hungrily, Father Wen thought the adults might not have eaten enough either, so he asked Mrs. Zhou to take out the dry food and share it around.

Initially, the two wives of the Zhou Family felt embarrassed, but in a few days, when the dry food was about to run out, the two sisters-in-law planned to get up at night when others were asleep to steal some pancakes and buns to hide.

Unfortunately, one night, Second Lang’s wife got up to nurse Song Duobao and caught the two sisters-in-law stealing. It was too dark, and the tent was divided by a cotton curtain, so the two didn’t notice her.

Second Lang’s wife, already troubled by the disappearance of Sanyang, didn’t want to get involved in others’ affairs, but thinking that her Er Ya also depended on that dry food for survival, she seized the moment when they just hid the pancakes and buns and woke everyone up, catching them red-handed.

The two sisters-in-law of the Zhou Family, realizing they were exposed by the Song family’s wife, immediately lost their guilty feelings, directly retorting to her, saying that they, with their families, came to the Wen Family to eat for free. What right did she have to boss around the Zhou Family? Even if they were wrong, they still belonged to Wen Shun’s grandmother’s family and it wasn’t up to the Song Family to lecture them.

Mrs. Wu, Mrs. Zhou’s mother, had suffered at the hands of Granny Song before, not only injuring her back but also being driven out of the village with her whole family. She had always harbored this grudge.

She hadn’t expected to end up living under the same roof with the Song Family because of an earthquake.

She had long found Song Erlang and his wife annoying, so when her daughter-in-law started arguing with the opponent, Mrs. Wu fanned the flames, "The dry food from my son-in-law’s family, the Zhou Family can take it whenever they want. But you, Song Tian, yelling thief in the night, haven’t you taken quite a bit before?"

Already upset because of Sanyang’s matter, and now being falsely accused for no reason, Second Lang’s wife handed Song Duobao to her husband, rolled up her sleeves, and looked ready to fight.

Song Erlang was frightened by her and quickly said, "At this time, how can you still have the mind to fight? Mrs. Wu is notoriously shrewish. Apart from our mother, who else can handle her? Just stop. If something really happens, what will your son do in the future?"

Hearing this, Second Lang’s wife gritted her teeth and held back, ultimately restraining herself for the sake of her son.

Mrs. Wu sneered, "I thought you had some guts. Turns out you’re just a coward, retreating and advancing like a turtle."

Second Lang’s wife, recalling how her mother-in-law had dealt with Mrs. Wu, took a deep breath to calm herself and then sarcastically replied, "I used to think you were tough, but didn’t you end up being chased out of the village like a stray dog? You don’t even have your name on the Zhou Family’s genealogy now. Go back and try causing a scene if you dare!"

That incident had been a thorn in Mrs. Wu’s side for years. Having it mentioned so bluntly by Second Lang’s wife, her anger surged, and she rushed forward to fight.

With Mrs. Wu joining in, the two daughters-in-law didn’t stay idle. They quickly hid their stolen food and stepped forward to help.

Second Lang’s wife couldn’t handle the three women and was beaten badly, her hair yanked out in tufts with blood.

Er Ya, eyes red with fury, picked up a wooden stick and swung it, "Dare to hit my mother, I’ll fight you!"

The tent quickly descended into chaos.

The two men of the Zhou Family aimed to tackle Song Erlang, who was holding the child.

Mrs. Zhou cried in fear, looking at her husband, "Husband, do something!"

Father Wen, seeing the situation getting out of control, shouted angrily with a stern face, "This is the Wen Family’s ground. If you want to fight, get out!"

When Father Wen became serious, his intimidation was considerable.

Mrs. Wu stopped her actions, frightened inside, but her mouth remained defiant, glaring at Father Wen, "Wen the Second, is this how you talk to your mother-in-law? Who are you telling to get lost, huh?"

Father Wen met Mrs. Wu’s gaze directly, his expression turning darker and more severe, "I made myself very clear earlier, whoever fights will have to get out!"

Mrs. Wu, furious, pointed at him, "You, you, you, you’re downright rebellious!"

The two sons, seeing their mother being bullied, chimed in to scold Father Wen, "Wen the Second, don’t think that just because you’re older you can act like no one else matters. Hierarchy is right here, even if you live to be a hundred and become enlightened, you’ll still have to call my mother-in-law ’mother-in-law’ today. How dare you tell your mother-in-law to leave, be careful or you might get struck by lightning!"

Father Wen sneered, "When it came to life and death and running away, the old lady didn’t consider me her son-in-law, nor did she see my son as her grandson. Her biological grandson has a life, but my son deserves to die?"

Before the earthquake, Father Wen had arranged for Wen Shun to go to the countryside to collect dried goods, and coincidentally, he was staying at his maternal grandmother’s house in Niu Family Village during that period.

When the earthquake struck, Wen Shun’s two uncles frantically fled with their own wives and children.

Wen Shun was trapped between two fallen beams and reached out to his grandmother for help.

Mrs. Wu tried to move the beam a couple of times but couldn’t, then she turned and ran away.

Wen Shun barely managed to escape with his life, with only scrapes and bruises but no serious harm.

After the Zhou Family fled to the county town, they found out that the shelters built by the government had long been occupied by the town’s residents, leaving no place for them, so they shamelessly sought help from the Wen Family.

Father Wen had already heard from his son about what happened on the night of the earthquake. Although he was unwilling, he allowed them to stay for the sake of the children.

Who would have thought that the Zhou Family, who left his son for dead, now took his shelter and generosity for granted.

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Wu felt embarrassed and quickly explained, "Shunzi must have babbled nonsense to you. When I left, I went to call his uncles back to save him. He’s my grandson, after all; how could I truly abandon him and only worry about my own escape?"

Upon hearing this, Wen Shun immediately jumped up, "Grandma is lying. You clearly told me you couldn’t save me and apologized, asking that once you got out, you’d burn more paper money for me!"

This statement plunged the atmosphere into awkwardness once more.

Father Wen glanced at the second Lang’s wife, who was crouching on the ground holding her head in pain, then at Er Ya, gritting her teeth while being restrained by her father, but in the end, he couldn’t bring himself to utter the words to drive them out. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "Earlier the government officials said the earthquake might not be over. If you think my place is good enough for now, you can stay. If you don’t feel it’s worthwhile and want to go elsewhere, I won’t stop you."

This was giving the two families a choice.

Mrs. Wu snorted coldly, "We’re a family, and in times like this we should help each other. My daughter and grandson are still in your house; even if you try to kick me out, I’ll refuse to leave, so what will you do?"

Father Wen looked at Song Erlang.

Song Erlang was never one to make decisions and could only look at his wife.

The second Lang’s wife sat up from the ground, tidied her hair, revealing the blood at the corner of her mouth, her face gloomy.

She looked at the two sisters-in-law of the Zhou family, "You two, give back the rations you stole just now. At dawn, Erlang and I will take the children and leave."

"Why should we?" Zhou Dalang’s wife said sourly, "It’s not yours, who says you can take it? Do you think I’m stupid?"

Father Wen gave Mrs. Zhou a meaningful glance.

Mrs. Zhou frowned and said to the two sisters-in-law, "There’s not much rations left; even if you take them, they won’t last two days. Just give it to them, they have young ones and a baby. Without food, how can a mother produce milk to feed her child?"

Zhou Dalang’s wife disagreed, "Easy for you to say. If we give it to them, our kids won’t eat? We are all mothers. She asks for rations for her daughter as if it’s justified, but I have to be scolded if I stash a little away? What kind of logic is that?"

Taking advantage of the argument, Wen Shun ran over and grabbed the rations hidden in a cloth package by the two sisters-in-law of the Zhou family under some rubble, handing it to Song Erlang’s wife, "Here, this is all we can help with. You’d better leave quickly!"

In times like these, everyone is struggling to take care of themselves. Accommodating them for a period is already more than generous; no one can be a Bodhisattva saving all creatures, sacrificing their own needs for others.

Song Erlang’s wife accepted it and whispered her thanks.

Watching the package, Zhou Dalang’s wife became furious, wanting to snatch it back but not daring to. After all, it was the Wen family’s ration, and she had stolen it...

With the rations in hand, Song Erlang’s wife returned to where they were staying, soothing the frightened and crying Song Duobao to sleep. Only then did she lean against a wooden post, silently shedding tears.