Chapter 11: Jiang Wenwen
Translated by Sakura Time
Xiao Xiao’s mother smiled and gave up trying to persuade her. Anyway, Xiao Xiao is already married. If she ate less, the others could eat more.
As soon as they entered the room, Xiao Sanmei took Xiao Xiao’s hand and asked, “Second sister, that wolf bastard didn’t beat you, did he? Dad and mom were really cruel, marrying you off to such a jerk for twenty yuan.”
The other sisters echoed, “Yes, yes…”
Xiao Xiao narrowed her eyes, “He’s your brother-in-law! Who told you to call him a wolf bastard? He’s actually very nice. If he knew you called him that, how sad he would be!”
The sisters didn’t expect Xiao Xiao to protect Wang Wei. They all looked at her in surprise, their mouths wide open.
Xiao Sanmei was the first person to regain her senses, “Second sister, how come you changed your mind so fast? When mom and dad wanted to marry you off to Wolf… brother-in-law, didn’t you even jump into the well?”
“That was all because I didn’t know any better in the past.” That was because the Xiao of the past was blind!
Seeing Xiao Xiao say this, her younger sisters stopped talking. Anyway, they were already married, so nothing could be done.
Xiao Sanmei sighed: “Anyway, if I have to marry someone, it will be someone I want; unlike you, I will not agree to marry someone pushed upon me by our parents.” Then she shifted her focus to her younger brother who’s sleeping on the bed, in a complicated way. “Mom and dad are really capable of doing anything for little brother.”
The other girls became silent as soon as she said that. Their parents clearly treated them differently, and an emotional scar was buried deep in their hearts.
Xiao Xiao is not their real sister and has only been here for a short time. She has never been exposed to the culture of patriarchy and cannot empathize with it. Xiao Xiao doesn’t know how to comfort them, so she can only excuse herself. “I’m going out now.”
Xiao Xiao walked to the room where Wang Wei had been previously, but she didn’t find him there. Only after she left the house did she see Wang Wei helping Xiao Fu chop wood in the yard.
Xiao Fu’s heart trembled as he watched. Every time Wang Wei chopped a piece of firewood, he quickly picked it up and arranged it, like a dog-legged little brother.
Xiao Xiao felt dissatisfied. Regardless of whether the original Xiao was acting morally or not, Xiao’s father and mother ignored their daughter’s wishes and compelled her to marry for the sake of their only son. She really could not stand the old Xiao couple.
Of course, more importantly, she doesn’t like Wang Wei pleasing Xiao’s parents for her. Doing such heavy work and also wasting so much physical strength when he couldn’t even eat enough food!?
“Enough, how can one meal take so much wood?” Xiao Xiao stepped forward and pulled Wang Wei to wipe the sweat on his forehead for him.
Xiao’s father breathed a sigh of relief: “Yes, yes, that’s enough, that’s enough.”
Although he didn’t want to admit it in his heart, Wang Wei enjoyed Xiao Xiao’s care for him so much that he subconsciously closed his eyes while Xiao Xiao was wiping his sweat, and the corners of his mouth couldn’t help but turn up.
The girls of the Xiao family hid behind the door and watched in amazement, their mouths forming an “o” shape. The fourth sister of Xiao pulled her third sister: “It seems that what the second sister said is true. I think brother-in-law is also quite good-looking.” She used to be afraid. Now, looking at the way Wang Wei closed his eyes when Xiao Xiao wiped his sweat, Xiao Simei realized that Wang Wei was really very handsome.
“Not bad…” Xiao Sanmei skimmed: “But what is the use of a good-looking man? Who in the village does not know that he even cut off his own parents? Of course, now that he has just married, he will be good to second sister at first, but how can we be sure that he won’t beat our sister after a while? “
As soon as Xiao Sanmei’s words were spoken, the sisters trembled in unison. Their second sister was thin and short. They were afraid that Wang Wei’s fist would kill her.
The youngest, Xiao Liumei, could not help but whimper and cry: “Woo, woo, second sister is so pitiful…”
Xiao Xiao and Wang Wei stayed at Xiao’s house for lunch. Xiao Xiao used to think that the food at Wang’s house was bad, but compared to Xiao’s house, it was surprisingly sumptuous.
The Xiao family has a large population, but most of them are girls who can’t earn much work points. The rest of the Xiao family, including the old couple, eat just the bare minimum. Only the baby in the family, Xiao Guoxing, has bumps. When others eat bran vegetables, he stands still with every bowl of egg soup and white rice.
Xiao Liu Mei is five years old, not much older than Xiao Guoxing, but she can only swallow her saliva while looking at her brother’s egg custard.
Xiao Xiao’s feelings of dissatisfaction towards Xiao Fu and Xiao Mu got even worse. She only took a little bite and put down her chopsticks. Wang Wei knew she was holding it in her mouth and stopped persuading her. He only secretly decided to catch some fish and roast it for Xiao Xiao later.
Wang Mu was surprised to see that Xiao Xiao only moved her chopsticks and then put them down, saying, “Xiao-er, why aren’t you eating?”
“I don’t have an appetite,” Xiao Xiao remarked calmly.
Xiao Xiao’s mother smiled and gave up trying to persuade her. Anyway, Xiao Xiao is already married. If she ate less, the others could eat more.
After eating and sitting for a while, Xiao Xiao and Wang Wei were ready to leave the Xiao family. As soon as they arrived at the entrance of the courtyard, they met a man. There were several people behind him. At this time, they were still a little far from the gate of the Xiao family’s courtyard and couldn’t see them clearly.
The man is a young man wearing glasses. He is about twenty years old. His clothes were washed white, making him look very neat. His eyebrows and eyes were gentle, and the corner of his mouth was smiling. At first glance, he looks like a spring breeze.
“Aunt Xiao, we’re here to return the bucket. I’ll trouble you and Uncle Xiao.” The man with glasses called out warmly before he got to the door of Xiao’s house. When he got closer, he realized that the person at the door was not the old Xiao couple. “So it’s Xiao Xiao, you’re back?” he asked, slightly shocked for a moment, but didn’t forget to stretch out a smile.
His voice is pleasant, and he is very attentive when looking at people. In particular, the smile on the corner of his mouth can easily create the impression that his eyes are filled with great affection.
He ignored Wang Wei and only looked down to greet Xiao Xiao.
Wang Wei’s green eyes darkened instantly. He was about to pull Xiao Xiao behind him, but Xiao Xiao moved ahead of him. She snatched Wang Wei’s arm and held it near to her, then lightly probed the man, saying, “Hello.”
The man looked mild and gentle, but Xiao Xiao didn’t like it. She could clearly see how his focused eyes and the upward angle of the corners of his mouth were all carefully rehearsed. It was as if he had found the most suitable mask to put on his face.
Xiao Xiao’s behavior greatly comforted Wang Wei, making all the erected thorns all over his body whoosh back. He then stroked Xiao Xiao’s head blissfully, then wrapped her up in his arms possessively, his sharp eyes looking directly at the man in front of him.
Seeing Xiao Xiao’s indifferent reaction, Li Zhixin’s eyes flashed with confusion for a moment, but they quickly recovered, and then looked at Wang Wei: “So you are Xiao Xiao’s husband. My name is Li Zhixin. Just so you know, Xiao Xiao is like a sister to me, so you better treat her well.” He jokingly said to Wang Wei
Wang Wei felt that the man was becoming more and more annoying. He looked up and down at Li Zhixin and said sarcastically, “She is my wife, and we are a couple. Can an outsider interpose in our affairs?”
Xiao Xiao was taken aback when he heard the person’s name. Li Zhixin? Isn’t this man the reason why Xiao jumped into the well? This… What type of eyes did the original Xiao have? She actually liked such a pretentious person?
At first glance, Wang Wei’s rejection of Li Zhixin can be seen clearly. Xiao Xiao can’t imagine how Wang Wei would react if he found out what the original Xiao did. She was a little distressed, but now she has to carry on from here.
“Wang Wei!” Not waiting for Li Zhixin’s reaction, a few people behind him also arrived at the entrance of Xiao’s house. One of the girls suddenly pulled away from Li Zhixin and pushed herself to the front. The girl’s face was gorgeous. Even her gray clothes could not hide her beauty.
“Wen Wen…” Li Zhixin was so directly offended by Wang Wei that he couldn’t maintain the gentleness on his face. When he saw his girlfriend looking at Wang Wei eagerly, his face finally sank and he pulled Jiang Wenwen.
Jiang Wenwen knew that she had overreacted and hurriedly restrained her expression and quietly shook off Li Zhixin’s hand. Xiao Xiao noticed that she was full of impatience and disgust when she looked at Li Zhixin.
But on the other hand, the way she looked at Wang Wei was full of eagerness, like a lover in love.
Xiao Xiao’s lips were pursed, her eyes narrowed slightly, and she tightened her arms around Wang Wei. “You and her… It seems like your relationship with her is very good, ah?” She said softly, tilting her head accusingly at him.
Xiao Xiao was still smiling when she asked him, but Wang Wei intuitively felt that she was angry. His strong desire for survival made him shake his head again and again, “I don’t know her, I don’t remember her, really!”
Xiao Xiao’s eyes curved a little wider, and she patted Wang Wei’s arm, “What are you doing? I’m not angry. I just want to know if she’s an acquaintance of yours or not.”
“I really don’t know her, ah!” Wang Wei yelled angrily at Jiang Wenwen, “Hey, who are you?” Why did she act as if they were old friends, forcing him to explain himself to Xiao Xiao?
“Xiao Xiao? Why are you here?!” When Xiao Xiao was making a noise, Jiang Wenwen found that there was still a person standing next to Wang Wei. When she saw Xiao Xiao, she had an unbelievable look on her face. How could it be? Didn’t Xiao Xiao die of fever at around this time in my last life?
She blurted it out as she was overly emotional, only to realize her mistake a second later. Jiang Wenwen quickly covered her mouth with her hand.
Wang Wei’s face is very ugly. He doesn’t beat women, but that doesn’t mean he can’t scold: “Are you fucking sick? She’s my wife, and this is my wife’s home. If she isn’t allowed to be here, then who else could?”
Jiang Wenwen’s inner shock had not yet passed when she was scolded by Wang Wei. She was more sad than shocked and looked at Wang Wei in a daze.
Xiao Xiao didn’t ignore the expression on Jiang Wenwen’s face, thought for a moment, then leaned on Wang Wei’s shoulder and asked her, with a smile, “Sister Wenwen, what do you mean by what you just said? Shouldn’t I be here? What do you mean by saying that? Do you mean I shouldn’t be standing here or I shouldn’t be living in this world anymore?”
The author has something to say.
Wang Wei kicked Jiang Wenwen over: “You fucking dare curse my wife. I’ll let you go to hell first!”
The translator has something to say: (✿◠‿◠)
Xiao Sanmei (肖三妹) – literally means Third Sister Xiao
Xiao Simei (肖四妹) – literally means Fourth Sister Xiao.
Xiao Wumei (肖五妹) – literally means Fifth Sister Xiao. (She will be introduced in the coming chapters)
Xiao Liumei (肖六妹) – literally means Sixth Sister Xiao.