Chapter 11
When Sun Xiu got back home she gave the money straight to Han Qiao.
Then, she checked the Xuan paper to make sure it wasn’t damaged.
Usually when stores gave out paper for copying, they would provide a few extra sheets, along with extra ink, just in case it was needed.
What was extra was hers to keep.
Sun Xiu was very attentive to details. After checking, she said, “Mom, there are no problems with the paper.”
Han Qiao nodded and took the Xuan paper and ink into the study. Sun Yiming looked like his spirits were completely crushed. She said to him, “You are going to write five more copies before you go to bed. Otherwise, you can forget about ever sleeping.”
“…”
Sun Yiming couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
He was going to be up all night.
“Actually, I think five is too little. Seven.”
With a chilly glare, Han Qiao shouted, “And if you refuse, I’ll beat you to a pulp again.”
She threw the Xuan Paper and ink down onto the desk and headed back to the kitchen to cook dinner.
Sun Yiming froze where he was. Inaudibly, he cursed, “You robber, you beast, Han Qiao you b.i.t.c.h.”
He then remembered that he had to make another seven copies before he could sleep. He was forced to swallow his anger and tears and get to work.
In all his life, he had never felt this powerless.
An ineffable bitterness was fermenting in his heart. The bitterest medicine could not compare.
It was pain on top of pain.
Dinner that night was pumpkin porridge, stir-fried salted veggies, as well as stir-fried Chinese veggies. He ate his dinner before it was dark.
After dinner, Sun Yiming went back to the study and got back to work.
Han Qiao and her three girls were, meanwhile, busy moving everything into the room. They then made the bed, and tidied up the clothes, which were all dry by now.
Meanwhile, the Hengs were getting ready to sit down to dinner.
That night’s dinner was an unusual feast. There was meat, eggs and steamed buns.
Against expectations, Old Man Heng said to Heng Yi, “Old Five.”
“Yes,” Heng Yi darkly replied.
“You didn’t go hunting today?” Old Man Heng asked.
“That’s right,” he replied, once again darkly.
The thought of Heng Yi giving up hunting and so abandoning the family brought pain to Granny Heng’s heart.
She wasn’t about the chew him out for it, though. Clenching her teeth, all she could do was glare at Heng Yi.
“What are your plans then?” Old Man Heng asked.
“Get a wife, break with this household and find a new place to live.” Heng Yi’s voice was calm. Still, it sounded like his decision had been long in the making.
Granny Heng stood up and opened her mouth, about to scold him.
Old Man Heng shouted angrily, “Sit down.”
Overcome so suddenly by fear, she sat back down.
“Old Five, your mother and I are still alive. You can’t leave us yet.”
“When Grandfather and Grandmother were still around, didn’t you split up with First Uncle, Third Uncle, and Fifth Uncle?” Heng Yi shot back.
Old Man Heng was at a loss for words.
He said, “That’s not the same!”
“Why not? I go out hunting every day. When I return home, I don’t even get to sit down to hot tea or meat. This is my twenty-fourth year and I’m still single. I have less than 5 silver coins to my name. And you still want me to bust my a.s.s for this family?”
They had never heard him speak so much before.
And, never before had he actually expressed his displeasure with his family.
“In the future, I won’t ask you for a single penny. Whether or not you want to split up the family, I leave that up to you.” Heng Yi took a few mouthfuls of rice from the bowl, threw down his utensils, and stormed out of the room.
“You’re asking for it! How unlucky I am to have raised such a wastrel!” Granny Heng cursed amid streams of tears.
Old Man Heng was speechless.
The bowl in his angry hand was shaking.
If they had been paying more attention, they would have realized that Heng Yi hadn’t touched the meat or scrambled eggs at all.
“Old Man…” Granny Heng called out softly.
Old Man Heng was silent for a moment before saying, “He’s right. We need to find him a wife.”
“And split up the family?” Granny Heng asked anxiously.
The hatred on her face grew deeper.
“What else are we going to do, huh? If you hadn’t been treating him like that to begin with, we wouldn’t be in this mess!”
They also hadn’t noticed that the prey Heng Yi brought back every day was becoming scantier and scantier.
It was too late for words now.
Meanwhile at the Sun household, Sun Yiming had just finished all seven copies. His back ached and pain wracked his entire body.
He got up to stretch. Then he left the study and went to the bathroom. He saw Han Qiao moving a bamboo recliner into the courtyard to lay down on. The children were nowhere to be seen.
Sun Yiming wanted to say something, but he didn’t know what.
He sighed softly before going to the toilet.
When he came back out, Han Qiao, still on the recliner, just ignored him. She acted as though he wasn’t even there.
He pulled up a chair and sat beside her. “Han Qiao, let’s talk.”
“…”
Han Qiao returned his gaze.
Under the moonlight, she couldn’t see his face clearly.
But that didn’t stop her from hating this abusive and irresponsible sc.u.mbag.
“Sure, let’s talk. What do you want to talk about? Let’s talk about why the deed to the house and land is in your mother’s hands and not mine. Or, we’re going to talk about how you didn’t use the money for studying and how you beat up my daughter and me to vent your anger instead. Or, let’s talk about how you’re a good-for-nothing who didn’t earn a single cent and used our money to eat and drink and act dumb in front of your friends.”
“Sun Yiming, I’ve had enough of the past. In those days, I didn’t understand anything. But after I beat you yesterday, I realized I can never compromise with you. You would never feel bad for what you did, nor could I bring you to stand on your own two feet. So I decided to return an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. You beat me up, so I beat you back. And if you dare to scold me, I’ll smash your face and tear your mouth off. If you don’t leave the four of us alone to live in pace, I’ll kill you!”
“I realized that after I let go, life isn’t so hard anymore.”
It was said that bare feet weren’t afraid of wearing shoes.
Han Qiao’s words sent chills down Sun Yiming’s spine.
He swallowed some spit and thought that Han Qiao had gone crazy.
“You want to talk? That’s all I have to say. What more do you want to talk about?” Han Qiao asked gloomily.
Sun Yiming opened his mouth but couldn’t find his voice.
“I don’t have any expectations for you anymore. Make 200 copies, then get out of my hair. I absolutely won’t stop you.”
“Really?” Sun Yiming asked anxiously.
“Why, I’ll be d.a.m.ned, if that’s the case.”
200 copies meant 20 taels of silver. With that, she could buy a house in the village. She would have to go to the authorities and ask how she, as a woman, could get ahold of a household register. It was time to make plans for the future.
Sun Yiming had no conscience. The Sun family had many schemes, and her family couldn’t rely on them. She could only rely on herself for everything.
“Does what I wrote today count?” Sun Yiming asked again.
“No.”
“…”
“Starting from tomorrow.” Han Qiao pat Sun Yiming’s shoulder. “You can do it. After you make 20 copies, you’re home free.”
Sun Yiming wouldn’t be sleeping in the main room. He had been sleeping alone in the study, so Han Qiao wasn’t afraid of him escaping. And if he did escape, she would raise h.e.l.l all over town to find him.
Besides, Sun Yiming wouldn’t dare sleep in the same room as Han Qiao.
He’d much prefer to sleep in the study.
But he was much more anxious to make the 200 copies than Han Qiao was.
He got up at dawn, went to the bathroom for water, washed his face and rinsed his mouth. Then he got to work making copies of Thousand Character Cla.s.sic.
He had finished 20 before noon.
“I still have 180 books left.”
Han Qiao nodded.
She took the books and went out with her three daughters.
Though she locked the front door, there was still a back door Sun Yiming could escape out of.
However, Sun Yiming’s face was swollen like a pig’s head. She knew he wouldn’t dare go out.
Also, Han Qiao had promised to let him go after he had finished making 200 copies. He had something to look forward to now. With the remaining paper and ink, he could finish two copies. Without a moment’s rest, he kept on writing.
Han Qiao took the three children to the bookstore first. They exchanged the books for money, then took some ink and enough paper for 40 thousand characters.
“Thank you, shopkeeper. By the way, may I ask you something?”
“Madam Sun, please.”
“How can a woman get a household register?”
Shopkeeper Xie was stunned by Han Qiao’s question.
“You’ll have to go to the government office and ask them about this. There should be a clerk there. If you give him some money, he’ll tell you what the procedure is.”
Han Qiao quickly thanked him. She then told him they would be back in a while to get the writing supplies. With her three children, she left and headed in the direction of the local government office.