If Lin Lan didn’t separate the family, she was accused of being an eyesore that took up space; after separating the family, she was now a selfish shrew. How was she supposed to be a ‘parasyte’ when she was no longer living in the main house?
Old Lady Han understood something else— nobody else was allowed to separate their families unless she died. That was because the one that was on the losing side was none other than herself!
The Eldest sister-in-law waited for the children to fall asleep and whispered to the Eldest Brother,”It’s already come to this, yet you insist that we don’t have to separate our families?”
The Eldest Brother Han wondered, “How? We can’t not take care of our parents.”
The Eldest sister-in-law, “What do you mean? Didn’t we all agree on taking turns to look after the elderly?”
At the very least, they were in a separate room from the Second Family. If they were to share a room with them, then they would truly be suffocated to no end.
In the past, everyone suffered together, so she didn’t feel too repressed, but now that Lin Lan had left and a big house was built in a blink of an eye, the Eldest sister-in-law was feeling rather uncomfortable.
Old Three was also known throughout the entire village as a loving husband towards his wife. She would always listen to the sour words of the other ladies in the village as they gossiped with red eyes.
To put it bluntly, weren’t they just envious of Lin Lan being loved by a man?
Old Three was capable, had the ability to provide for his family and was still a cadre. Other women would have treated him like he was their father, so who on earth would be daring enough to have him handle housework as well?
Lin Lan’s fate was good then. She had a good man that other people covet as she would not stop him from sewing quilts, sewing clothes, washing dishes, sweeping the floor and cooking.
Besides, if she wanted to show her temper, she could do it anytime. In fact, that man would lie on the ground and coax her out of it.
Who wouldn’t be jealous of that sort of treatment?
As a sister-in-law, she was not jealous, but she was definitely envious, especially when she compared him to the man of her own. Though she knew, there was only more harm done if she compared.
The Eldest Brother was still muttering, “Now, Old Four is no longer here and Old Three has moved out. I’m the eldest, so I cannot desert them. Even if it comes down to the separation of the family, we are not going to be the ones who separate.”
The Eldest sister-in-law was so angry that she buried her face in the quilt and cried silently. In spite of that, she didn’t dare to cry out loud as she didn’t want to wake the children up.
The Eldest Brother Han felt a little distressed seeing her like that. He wanted to persuade her, but he didn’t know what to say, so he finally choked out, “The old lady has gone through a lot but is limited when it comes to knowledge. As the eldest son, I have to provide more of my support.”
The Eldest sister-in-law almost fainted.
She would have to think of her own way out, because she knew that men were simply unreliable.
At Lin Lan’s place, the children ate their share of mooncakes and apples. Erwang and Xiaowang didn’t finish eating and kept their portions for tomorrow whilst Maisui took hers onto her kang.
Now that she had her own kang on the north side, she wasn’t the least worried about sleeping alone. In fact, she was more than ecstatic about it.
Xiaowang was sleepy and clambered to his mother, wanting to sleep with her.