Chapter 487 - 475: Who Needs a Maiden Family Like This?

The eighteenth passed, and soon it was the twenty-third, the day to honor the Kitchen God.

Some families made a big deal of honoring the Kitchen God, while others didn’t. In truth, there wasn’t much to it. Most homes didn’t even have a Kitchen God shrine anymore. People would just buy some malt candy, eat a nice meal, and that was enough to count as a celebration.

After honoring the Kitchen God, it was time for a flurry of washing and scrubbing, followed by a thorough house cleaning. Once everything was neat and tidy, the twenty-eighth arrived.

The family had bought plenty of New Year’s goods, firecrackers, and even written couplets. It was all starting to feel very festive.

On New Year’s Eve, everyone gathered at the Sun Family’s home again. Anyone who could make it was there.

Lin Shan arrived with Chen Fengjiao, Lin Sui’er, and Lin Zheng. They were all dressed in new clothes. Lin Shan looked sharp, Chen Fengjiao appeared elegant, Lin Sui’er was beautiful, and Lin Zheng had filled out a bit, looking even more handsome.

Cao Qiu and Sun Zhuzi came with Sun Jiasheng, Wei Hong, and Sun Tingting.

Speaking of Wei Hong, her return to the Sun Family had actually happened more than two weeks ago. She had promised her own family she would get money from the Suns and split it with them, but Sun Jiasheng simply refused to go pick her up. She waited and waited to no avail. Then, she heard a rumor that someone was introducing potential new wives to Sun Jiasheng, and Cao Qiu was actually looking them over. Wei Hong panicked. She realized the Sun Family wasn’t just making threats this time; they truly didn’t want her anymore. She immediately rushed back.

But when she got back, Cao Qiu and Sun Zhuzi weren’t home—they were over at Gu’er’s place. The house was locked up tight, and she couldn’t get in. So she went to the shopping mall to confront Sun Jiasheng and caused a scene. She sat on the floor, wailing and howling, cursing him for being heartless and attracting a large crowd of onlookers.

At first, Sun Jiasheng endured it, but as Wei Hong’s accusations grew more outrageous and her performance more dramatic, he finally cut her off. He said that if she liked making a scene, she could go right ahead, but they were finished. Then he left.

Wei Hong was dumbfounded. She had never imagined Sun Jiasheng would be so resolute in ignoring her. She’d always thought that as soon as she started crying and making a fuss, he’d be at a loss. But he had left. Someone at the mall then warned her that if she continued to disrupt business, they would throw her out.

Staring at the burly security guards, Wei Hong could only pick herself up and slink away in humiliation.

She waited outside until it was nearly dark, then went back to their house. Cao Qiu and the others had returned, but Cao Qiu flat-out refused to let her in. When Wei Hong started shouting insults, Cao Qiu shouted right back. Wei Hong raised her voice, but Cao Qiu’s was even louder. All the neighbors took Cao Qiu’s side, and eventually, Wei Hong fell silent.

Cao Qiu told her to go back to her parents’ house and stay there for the rest of her life. She said that after the New Year, she would have Jiasheng divorce her. She’d already found a new wife for him, someone a hundred times better.

Wei Hong didn’t even remember how she got back to her parents’ house. When she arrived, her family questioned her, and upon learning the truth, they immediately started berating her. They called her useless for not being able to get the Sun Family’s money.

Then, Wei Hong’s older brother went to find Cao Qiu and Sun Jiasheng. He said a divorce was fine, but the Sun Family had to give them money. He had the gall to ask for fifty thousand.

Cao Qiu chewed him out completely, saying he was out of his mind to be thinking about money. Forget fifty thousand, she told him; he wouldn’t get five thousand, or even five hundred. She made it clear that Wei Hong hadn’t worked or earned a single penny in years, and that she had funneled all of Jiasheng’s earnings back to her own family. The house had been bought with money from Cao Qiu and Jiasheng, so Wei Hong had no share in it. The child would stay with the Sun Family, and Wei Hong could go back to her parents’ home without a single cent.

Wei Hong’s brother tried to cause a scene, but Sun Jiasheng beat him and sent him away. He then went to the mall to stir up trouble, but Dingzi’s army buddies threw him out, warning him that if he ever dared to show his face again, they’d beat him every time they saw him. Terrified, he ran back home, where he immediately started cursing the Sun Family and Wei Hong.

Wei Hong’s mother and sister-in-law also gave her a severe scolding. Her sister-in-law even grabbed her by the hair and started hitting her, blaming her for her husband getting beaten.

Wei Hong was completely stunned. ’I don’t understand,’ she thought. ’For so many years, aside from our own living expenses, I’ve given all of Sun Jiasheng’s earnings to my family. Even now that our lives have improved, I haven’t spent money on myself. I just take things from Gu’er’s place and give the money I save to my family.’

’The food, drinks, and toys the family bought for Tingting... I often took them to my parents’ house. Tingting cried about it so many times, but I hardened my heart and ignored her. I thought that since my sister-in-law gave the Wei Family a grandson, I had to be good to my nephew.’

’The Wei Family’s entire lifestyle is funded by my money. Without me, could my brother go out drinking and having fun with his friends every day?’

’Without my money, could my sister-in-law afford a gold bracelet, or wear fancy dresses and woolen coats?’

’Without my money, could my mother own gold earrings and a gold ring, showing them off to everyone she meets?’

’Without me, where would my nephew get all the snacks, drinks, toys, and new clothes he shows off?’

’They all depend on me. So why are they treating me like this?’

’How have I ever wronged them? I gave my family everything I possibly could. My in-laws hate me for it, but what have I gotten in return?’

’Is it just because I can’t give them money anymore? Is that why they’re doing this to me?’

Wei Hong remembered how, in the past, whenever she brought money and gifts back to her parents’ house, her family would be overjoyed and greet her with smiles. If she came empty-handed, they would give her the cold shoulder. Back then, she felt terrible if she didn’t give them money and things. When her mother-in-law accused her of favoring her own family, she just found her mother-in-law annoying. ’What’s wrong with favoring my own family?’ she used to think. ’They’re my real family. It’s only right that I give them everything.’ But now, her "real family" was treating her like this.

Wei Hong was lost. She didn’t fight back when she was hit. She lay in bed all night, but she still couldn’t make sense of it all.

In the following days, her sister-in-law actually started looking for a new husband for her. She said that since the Sun Family didn’t want her anymore and were too tough for them to handle, they might as well marry Wei Hong off to someone else and get some betrothal money. She even told Wei Hong that after she remarried, she needed to be smarter and bring everything she could from her new home back to her parents’ house, or there would be consequences.

Wei Hong was floored. She had never considered remarrying. ’How could I be with any man other than Sun Jiasheng? Besides, he used to be so good to me. It was my own constant drama that made him treat me this way. And then there’s Tingting... she’s my own daughter! How could I abandon her?’

’No, I will absolutely not marry someone else. I’d rather die.’ She never thought her own sister-in-law could be so cruel. She went to her mother, but her mother just told her this was her fate, and that she should listen to her sister-in-law and support her older brother.

Her brother threatened to beat her to death if she dared to keep whining and complaining.

Wei Hong’s heart turned completely cold. She couldn’t believe that the family she had cared for so deeply could be so heartless. She felt she had been so foolish to ruin her own perfectly good life like this.

Wei Hong declared she was cutting ties with her family. She would never come back, and she would not marry anyone else.

Her brother hit her, but she pushed him away and ran. She ran back to their house, but no one was home. She crouched outside until dark, waiting for them to return. When they did, she admitted she was wrong, but Cao Qiu still wouldn’t let her in.

Wei Hong finally, truly understood that she had been wrong. The Sun Family had, in fact, always been good to her. She knelt at the door until midnight. Cold, hungry, and miserable, she fainted. Cao Qiu and Sun Jiasheng carried her into the house. And that was how Wei Hong returned to the Sun Family.

——————

Thank you to Snow Under the Maple Tree, Pacific Stone Monkey, and Mo Xiaoyan for the monthly tickets. Thank you all for your support. It’s snowing huge flakes outside, and I have to go pick up my kid soon. Just thinking about it makes me not want to leave the house.