Chapter 19

Chapter 19

"Can a car that costs tens of thousands still be called a car?" Third Uncle sat arrogantly in his chair, cigarette dangling from his mouth as he waved his arms grandly, acting as proud as a king in the county seat. "Can a car that costs tens of thousands still be called a car? What's the difference between that and scrap metal from a junkyard?"

"What about Uncle Three's second-hand bread truck then?" Yu Shu came downstairs, followed by her two attendants, Wenwen and Yu Yang.

Third Uncle: "That's for hauling goods conveniently. If I wasn't hauling goods, I definitely wouldn't be driving a bread truck!"

Third Uncle had opened a hardware store. Thanks to friends in high and low places introducing each other, his business was actually pretty good.

Yu Shu was too lazy to quibble with him. She went to the living room to support Ye Ping.

After Wenwen came downstairs for drinks and went back upstairs, she told Yu Shu that Yao Jinhua had brought her two daughters-in-law and was bullying Auntie, ordering her around like servants and saying that she hadn't taught Yu Shu and her siblings well, and that was why they didn't know to be filial to Grandma even when they succeeded.

Her exact words were: "Lack of filial piety invites heavenly thunderbolts."

Filial piety my a**!

The men's table was still not cleared because they were drinking and eating slowly. The kids' and women's tables had already finished eating. Yao Jinhua and Second and Third Auntie were sitting in the living room chatting while cracking melon seeds. Ye Ping and several senior female relatives were busy washing dishes and clearing the dining tables, not forgetting to change the tea in the living room.

"Sister-in-law, this is too hot. Change to room temperature water!" Third Auntie yelled in her screechy voice, acting like some landlady, finding fault in everything.

Tea from the same teapot that everyone else could drink, only she made a fuss that it was too hot.

"Can't even brew tea properly. What bad luck our Yu family had getting a daughter-in-law like this..."

Yu Shu was too lazy to listen to their nagging. She strode forward and dumped the entire cup of tea in Third Auntie's face. Amidst the latter's screams, she put down the cup and asked coldly, "Hot enough? Who you ordering around?"

"You girl! Is this how you treat your elders? How did your mother teach you?" Yao Jinhua immediately jumped up, brushing tea leaves off Third Auntie's head while lecturing Yu Shu.

"Don't blame everything on my mom. It's precisely because my mom taught me too well that allows you to take advantage of us." Yu Shu rebutted her in quick succession, not giving her a chance to retort. "Elders? What elders are you counting as? Have you taken care of me and Yu Yang for a single day since we were young? All these years, have you and your two sons given us a single red packet? Have we eaten a single meal hosted by you?"

Yu Shu pointed them out one by one, "Which one of you behaves like an elder? Are you qualified for that term?"

"In earlier years, my dad didn't stint on subsidizing all of you. When my dad was hospitalized after his car accident, did any of you contribute a single cent or effort?" Yu Shu gave a cold laugh, looking at them in disdain. "Forget money and effort, did you even visit him in the hospital once?"

"After doing so many awful things, you still dared to shamelessly come knocking when you heard my brother's family got rich. Truly gluing the skin from your left cheek to the right, shameless on both sides."

In her rage, no one dared approach Yu Shu to persuade her, only Ye Ping came over wanting to pull her aside.

"Yao Jinhua, what thing are you counting as?" Ye Ping swung the broom repeatedly at her face. "Thought I was really afraid of you?"

Twenty-five years of wear and tear, humiliation, twenty-five years of forbearance and swallowing insults, all erupted in this moment.

She had endured over and over again because Yao Jinhua was Yu Feng's birth mom. But Yu Feng actually joined his mother to bully her!

What was she counting as? What was she counting as!

Yu Feng wanted to stop Ye Ping but was grabbed by Yu Yang.

"Dad, if you dare go over, we will no longer be family." Yu Yang whispered in his ear. "Do you want to become family with Yao Jinhua? Say, would they be willing?"

Ye Ping's manner was too terrifying. Everyone present were close relatives who knew quite well Yao Jinhua's deeds over the years. Watching her get beaten, they didn't feel the slightest sympathy, only great delight.

Ye Ping tired from hitting. She flung away the broom, gasping nonstop for breath. Her eyes were distracted, no longer focused.

Yu Shu's tears instantly brimmed over as she trembled while hugging Ye Ping, bawling, "Mom... don't scare me... Mom..."

Mom... Mom...

Yu Shu's voice quivered to the end. Due to fear, her tone changed somewhat oddly.

When small, she was very timid, afraid of the dark, ghosts, rats, bugs, thunder, needles...

Afraid of everything.

Whenever scared, she would cling to Ye Ping and refuse to let go, plastering her little face tightly against her mom, trying her best to burrow into her embrace.

Her precious darling feared everything. She would protect her girl, letting her know with mom here, nothing needed to be feared.

But mom was a girl too. Mom... was also very afraid...

Mom feared even more things.

Ye Ping stroked Yu Shu's face, mumbling, "Mom... is also very afraid."

Yu Shu sniffed and wiped her tears. "I've grown up. With me here, mom doesn't need to fear anything."