Chapter 27: Chapter 27 Beating
“Hmm, okay then.” Madam Xie, honest and simple, lowered her head and thought for a while before she reluctantly agreed.
Xuexue let out a deep sigh of relief, her heart, which had been suspended in mid-air, finally settled down, and she along with Chuner enjoyed a hearty meal. While eating, she didn’t forget to occasionally pop some chicken eggs and cured meat into Madam Xie’s mouth.
“Wow! I’m so full, this is the first time I’ve eaten so many good things.”
Chuner, patting her round little belly, smiled with satisfaction. It seemed as if, since she became aware of the world, this was the first time she had ever indulged herself in eating meat so freely.
Listening to her, Madam Xie felt very guilty. Just because she hadn’t given her husband a son, she had no status in the Mo family, and her daughter also suffered hardships with her.
“Silly girl, this is nothing. If mother listens to me and we split from the family, we can have meat every day in the future.”
Although Xuexue’s words were directed at Chuner, her clear eyes were fixed on Madam Xie, making her meaning very clear: she hoped Madam Xie would agree to split from the family so that they, the three of them, could live their days together and live as they pleased.
Upon hearing this, Chuner also looked hopeful. She turned her head, looked at Madam Xie, and said crisply, “Mother, please listen to sister. Let’s split from the family. That way, grandmother won’t be able to scold and hit you every day.”
To them, the Mo family, although it was supposed to be their home, always had a feeling of dependency, where every action and word had to be carefully measured for fear that a single misstep might provoke a vicious beating.
“You’re still young, what do you know? If we split from the family, what will you and your sister eat? Where would we live in such cold weather? I’m afraid we’d starve or freeze to death before winter is over.”
Madam Xie was full of concerns. She could no longer rely on her husband, and had to consider the welfare of her two daughters.
“Mother, don’t be afraid, Xuexue is grown up now, already fourteen. I can earn money to support you,” Xuexue tried to convince her adoptive mother.
In another month, it would be the New Year. In her previous life, on New Year’s Eve, Madam Xie had been busy all day cooking the New Year’s Eve dinner for the entire family, only to be driven out of the door by Old Lady Mo on some pretext. She spent a whole night in the freezing cold, and the next day, when Xuexue and Chuner went out to find her, the cold and hungry Madam Xie had already fainted.
Xuexue hoped to leave the Mo family with Madam Xie and Chuner before such an event could happen again.
“Let’s end this matter here, and don’t talk about it outside. If your grandmother hears it, she will scold and beat you again,” said Madam Xie as she wiped the corner of her mouth with her sleeve, then lay back down on the bed and closed her eyes, unwilling to continue the conversation.
Seeing this, Xuexue didn’t press any further. After all, Madam Xie had spent half her lifetime in this isolated place and hadn’t seen much of the world. It was indeed difficult for her to make such a decision all at once.
“Chuner, you and mother rest. I’ll clean up the dishes and then come back to sleep,” Xuexue said while cleaning up the bowls and plates on the table.
“Hmm, make sure you come back soon to sleep, sister.”
Xuexue carried the basket outside. She had to wash these bowls and dishes clean, otherwise, if Old Lady Mo and the others discovered them, they would be in trouble.
In the dim early morning, Xuexue heard a commotion…
“Mo Xiuzhi, you wretched little hussy, your audacity grows. Did you steal my cured meat again?”
That lioness roar, thought Xuexue with just the tips of her toes, had to be Old Lady Mo. A shiver woke Xuexue up immediately; she quickly got out of bed, dressed herself with agile hands and feet, put on her shoes, and ran outside.