Chapter 348: It’s Alright Not To Live Such A Day
Upon mention by her sister-in-law, Bai Ruozhu finally noticed that her lips hurt slightly. She originally thought her lips had cracked from fatigue yesterday, but hearing that they were swollen made her puzzled. She reached up to touch her lips.
"Indeed, Ruozhu’s lips have split and swollen red. You should drink more water today and avoid any inflammation that might make you sick," Jin Family chimed in.
Bai Ruozhu responded with an acknowledgment but found the situation quite strange. She gobbled her breakfast in a few bites, then fetched a basin of water to look at her reflection. Unfortunately, the water wasn’t a mirror, and it didn’t show her features clearly.
She touched her slightly swollen lips. She had her lips cracked from internal heat before, but how could they be swollen and painful this time?
Suddenly, she recalled a night when she was dragged into "practice" by someone, which resulted in her lips swelling. She had applied an ointment that reduced the swelling, and the next day her family didn’t notice anything unusual.
Could it be that he had taken advantage of her last night? Bai Ruozhu opened her eyes wide in disbelief. She must question him thoroughly next time.
Although Jin Family and Wan Caiyue advised Bai Ruozhu to rest, she felt uncomfortable not doing anything and joined the cleaning troop despite their warnings. After Zhou Deshun’s wife left, Lin Ping’er also helped, and the four quicky tidied up the dishes.
Bai Yihong and his sons returned the borrowed tables and stools early in the morning, and then brought back the dishes. By the time they had completed these tasks, it was nearly noon.
Jin Family and Wan Caiyue hurried to the kitchen to prepare lunch. Standing aside, Bai Ruozhu felt particularly emotional. It seemed she had more help in the future, and having another sister-in-law cherish her was a tremendous blessing.
In the end, the lunch was prepared by Jin Family and Wan Caiyue together. Just when it was about to be ready, the old lady came visiting.
"Second son, what are you trying to do by sending your father away?" said the old lady without acknowledging anyone else, directing her question at Bai Yihong upon entering.
Bai Yihong was already troubled by this matter and didn’t know how to answer the old lady’s question.
"Not saying anything? Have you done something guilt-ridden that you can’t even talk to me, your mother?" The old lady’s eyes widened. "And about you secretly buying land, I’ve heard about it. Now that your elder brother isn’t home, our life is getting harder. Once your life becomes more comfortable, you’re not going to care about us anymore?"
She glared at Lin Ping’er, saying, "You are the head of the house. Make a decision—will you double the monthly filial money? Are you in agreement or not?"
"Mother, this ..." Bai Yihong’s face flushed. His new daughter-in-law had just entered their home, and not too long after they had drunk the welcoming tea, his mother forced him into a difficult situation. What happened to his dignity as a father-in-law?
"Mother, isn’t it inappropriate to bring this up right after our family just welcomed a new member?" Seeing that Bai Yihong said nothing, Lin Ping’er got angry. She glared at Bai Yihong. He always seemed out of sort in presence of his parents, which was frustrating for her.
She continued, "Besides, isn’t our expenditure supposed to decrease now that his elder uncle is not home? One less person to feed and less money spent on stationery. His elder uncle didn’t contribute much to the labour work, so you should be in a better situation now. On the other hand, we have more income now, but Zepei will be going to the Study Palace in the City soon, which will incur a large sum of money. If we don’t save, what shall we do? Zepei is the only scholar in our family now, we have to send him there no matter what." Lin Ping’er finished and even tried to end the conversation on a cheerful note.
Bai Ruozhu secretly applauded her mother; she had really become more skilled and her answers were spot on. She skillfully declined the old lady’s request and subtly reminded her not to be as stubborn as the old man.
At the right moment, Jin Family said, "Aunt, if Zepei becomes a high-ranking official in the future, you will be the mother of an officer. Your status will be something else, and you will be blessed with limitless happiness."
The old lady was slightly moved but stubbornly said, "I can’t count on them anymore. If they don’t vex me to death, that would be a blessing."
"Mother, even if we struggle, your and father’s filial money will not be shortened. How about this: let us struggle a bit more and give you one hundred extra wen every month," Lin Ping’er offered a compromise.
Upon hearing this, the old lady broke out in a smile. For the first time, she found Lin Ping’er acceptable. "Alright, I will consider my grandson then. I will compromise a little so that he can study properly."
Everyone sneered secretly, but no one punctured the old lady’s lies.
Later, Lin Ping’er promised to add the extra one hundred wen when they deliver the regular money. The old lady ate happily, didn’t complain about anything more, and even left without mentioning anything about the old man again, seemingly satisfied with the deal.
When the old lady left, Bai Yihong’s face was already as grim as it could get. Jin Family sensed something and signaled Bai Yizhong, and they found an excuse to go clean up Mr. Wu’s house, leaving the residence.
Being the new bride, Wan Caiyue noticed everyone’s discomfort and said she was going to clean the dishes in the kitchen, conveniently avoiding the tension.
Bai Yihong, sporting a long face, saw the opportunity to talk and turned to Lin Ping’er, saying, "Why are we earning money? Isn’t it to make our family live better? We aren’t blinded by money to this extent, to even calculate so strictly with the elderly!"
Lin Ping’er was slightly infuriated. She glared back and retorted, "What? You think I’m treating your mother badly? Go out and ask around. Which family’s filial money amounts to five hundred wen a month? With the added one hundred wen, it’s six hundred wen now, enough for both of your parents for three to four months. How could I be calculating your mother?"
The filial money had previously been increased to five hundred wen a month, which definitely made them the first in the Back Mountain Village.
"Your mother said ’doubling it.’ That means giving them one tael of silver a month. Do you think the money we have is blown over by the wind? Do you dare to say this out loud without getting tongue-tied?" As Lin Ping’er spoke, her voice increased, and her emotions surged.
Bai Ruozhu hurried over to calm her mother and then turned to her father, "Dad, we really don’t have much cash on hand now. You might think we have a lot of income, but there are numerous expenses, including social interactions. The money gets used up quickly. Especially with the recent accident of elder uncle, we spent quite a lot, including inviting the whole village to a meal. That was a significant expense. Although our guests gave us some gifts, they were mostly little things. You can’t really sell them, can you?"
Bai Yihong, upon hearing Bai Ruozhu’s words, didn’t change his attitude as usual. Instead, his face turned even grimmer. He said coldly, "If we don’t have money, we can earn more. Our elders are counting on us. How much can we earn by selling hand-grasped pancakes every day? Is it necessary to be so stingy with the elderly?"
Hearing this, Lin Ping’er exclaimed in anger again, "What did I neglect? Did I deprive your parents of food or clothing? You know your mother’s character well. If I had agreed to it right away, she would have come by asking for two, three taels of silver in a few days. If we have to go through this uncertainty every day, I don’t mind giving up living such days!"