The so-called saying goes: “Good things don’t go out the door, bad things spread a thousand li.” [好事不出门，坏事传千里: a Chinese idiom meaning bad news spreads fast while good deeds remain unknown.]
The Daliushu Village was close to Hongye Town. Quite a few villagers did business or did odd jobs in the town.
In less than half a day, the matter of Jiang Chun beating up her own uncle and uncle’s mother had already spread to Daliushu Village.
Jiang Chun had just finished steaming a pot of mantou [steamed buns], and was in the middle of loading them onto the steamer tray.
The mantou were too hot, scalding her so that she kept going “si si” with her mouth.
Song Shi’an happened to come out to pour water for grinding, and upon seeing this, pressed his lips together.
Jiang Chun was not the type to silently dedicate herself like an old ox, so upon seeing him come out, she immediately began to take credit:
“Husband, look at the fine wheat mantou I steamed just for you. Aren’t they white enough, fine enough, smooth enough? I sifted the flour five or six times just for this—almost broke my old back from the effort!”
Seeing that she didn’t even bother to pick up the mantou, just tilted her head and stared fixedly at him like that, Song Shi’an lowered his eyes and was silent for a moment, then spat out two words: “Much obliged.” [有劳: literally “troubled you”, a polite way of thanking someone for effort.]
Jiang Chun’s face instantly bloomed with a smile like a flower: “Not hard, not hard at all. As long as husband can eat well, it’s no problem if I suffer a bit.”
Looking exactly like a pair of loving husband and wife.
Just at this time, the main gate slammed open, and an uninvited guest burst in, full of anger.
Just entering the courtyard, she loudly shouted: “Chun-niang! Chun-niang! You get the hell out here for your old mother!” [椿娘: Chun-niang = an informal or rural way of calling someone’s name, like “Chun-girl” or “Chun-lass” (娘 meaning “girl/daughter/woman” here).]
To dare barge into Butcher Jiang’s house this arrogantly, besides that old hag Li-shi, there was no one else.
Jiang Chun ignored her and continued placing mantou on the steamer tray.
If she didn’t transfer them while hot to the steamer tray woven with sorghum stalks, and waited until the temperature dropped, they would easily stick together.
Not seeing Jiang Chun, Li-shi went straight into the central room that doubled as kitchen.
Pushing the door open and entering, the first thing that met her eyes was a full steamer tray of big white mantou, instantly making her gulp and swallow saliva with loud “gudong gudong.”
Li-shi completely forgot the matter of coming to settle accounts with Jiang Chun, and repeatedly urged:
“Such good white wheat mantou, the last time this old lady ate them was when your second uncle was doing his confinement month after childbirth!”
“Chun-niang, hurry and pack a few, I’ll take them back for Tong-ge’er to eat.”
“Granny, what are you saying? If Tong-ge’er wants to eat white flour mantou, you can steam them for him yourself. Second Uncle’s family planted twenty mu of wheat, and can’t even afford to eat white flour mantou?” [20 mu = about 1.3 hectares of wheat.]
Jiang Chun didn’t even lift her head as she placed the last three mantou onto the steamer tray, picked up the fine hemp cloth cover and draped it over, then placed it on the cupboard.
Li-shi yelled: “Your Second Uncle’s wheat is to be sold for silver coins, saved up to buy a shop in town for Tong-ge’er. Who would be willing to waste it like this?”
Jiang Chun turned her head and lifted her chin toward Song Shi’an, meaning to say—I’m only wasting like this for you.
Song Shi’an pressed his lips together, bent down, scooped half a ladle of water into a bowl, and carried it into the west room.
Jiang Chun hadn’t even said anything yet when Li-shi already voiced her opinion, spitting at his back and loudly “muttering”: “What kind of live-in son-in-law doesn’t even have manners enough to call his milk granny!”
She wasn’t wrong.
But that’s if she acted like a proper human being as a grandmother.
Toward an old hag who didn’t act human, Song Shi’an’s attitude was absolutely not a problem.
This fellow was a future Grand Secretariat Assistant, with a sharp brain and very observant— he must’ve noticed that Jiang Chun didn’t care for Li-shi, hence he behaved like that.
Anyway, he wasn’t like this when facing Jiang He. Although he spoke little, in terms of manners and etiquette, not a single flaw could be picked out.
Jiang Chun let out a light snort: “Granny, this is my son-in-law. As long as my father and I think he’s good, that’s enough. No need for you to give your opinion—after all, my father was already swept out the door by you more than ten years ago.”
Li-shi, being so bluntly retorted against, suddenly recalled the reason why she came to the eldest branch’s home.
Her face instantly filled with anger, hands on her waist, she began to curse loudly: “Chun-niang, you damn girl! It’s one thing to act like a tyrant at home, but you even run off to the Wang family to act like a tyrant—have you rebelled? The affairs of elders, are they something a little girl like you can interfere in? If word gets out, won’t people laugh at how the Jiang family has no rules?”
These words made Jiang Chun laugh out loud.
She added several ladles of water into the pot and began loading the risen dark wheat mantou into the steamer one by one, laughing as she said:
“Ever since the day Granny swept my father, the eldest son, out the door, and left all the property and fields Grandfather left behind to Second Uncle, our Jiang family has had no rules to speak of. You shouldn’t keep chanting ‘rules’ all day—I feel ashamed for you.”
Jiang Chun did not save her any face at all. If it had been someone else, they would’ve surely lost face, but Li-shi’s skin was as thick as a city wall. Not only did she not feel ashamed, she even responded righteously:
“You’re not afraid now that you’ve recruited a live-in son-in-law, but have you thought about Liu-jie’er? If she can’t find a good husband’s family, just wait until your Second Aunt tears your mouth apart!”
Jiang Liu was Second Uncle Jiang Hu’s eldest daughter, three years younger than Jiang Chun. She was fourteen this year—right at the age for marriage talks.
Jiang Chun let out a sneer: “If Second Sister can’t find a good marriage, who’s to blame? Isn’t it all because of you, Granny, who goes back on your word and swallowed the Wang family’s five taels of silver dowry? After all, no one’s money comes blowing in on the wind. Who wants to end up like the Wang family, getting tricked by you again? If anyone should have their mouth torn up, it should be you, Granny. It’s got nothing to do with me. Don’t go trying to splash dung water on me.”
Li-shi felt a bit guilty being spoken to like that. After all, keeping the eldest daughter’s five taels of dowry was indeed a rotten thing she did—but her mouth certainly couldn’t admit it.
She pretended to speak proudly: “You stop spouting nonsense! The marriage I arranged for your aunt is the best it could possibly be. The Wang family has a house and a shop in town—your aunt’s marriage is miles better than those village girls!”
Jiang Chun lit the firewood, feeding soybean stalks into the stove while sneering coldly:
“It’s pretty great, huh. Her own man eats, drinks, and whores outside, while she stays at home looking after the shop and weaving cloth to make money, and even has to cook meals for the whole big family. And in the end, she doesn’t even have the right to sit at the dining table—only allowed to eat other people’s leftovers. Even her own daughter looks down on her. With blessings like that—Granny, would you want them?”
Li-shi stiffened her neck and said: “If this old lady had a marriage offer from someone with a house and a shop in town, I definitely wouldn’t have married your grandfather!”
Jiang Chun suddenly felt disinterested.
Toward a dead old hag like Li-shi—selfish, shameless, pretending to be stupid, and not even caring whether her own daughter lived or died—what was the point of wasting words with her?
Was she supposed to touch her heart, awaken her with emotion, make her burst into tears and from then on treat her daughter like a treasure?
What a joke. Believing that was like believing pies fall from the sky.
She said coldly: “I did beat the Wang family, but that’s between me and the Wang family. If they’re not happy about it, they can go to the county yamen and beat the drum to sue me, or gather a bunch of people to settle accounts with me—I’ll face them to the end. It’s not Granny’s turn to seek justice for them. After all, the Wang family already cut ties with the old house long ago. Granny, if you want to suck up to them, they’d probably think you’re bad luck.”
She, Jiang Chun, wasn’t some brainless fool who hits anyone out of a moment’s heat.
Before beating up Granny Cao and Wang Bo, she had already thought things through.
First of all, the Wang family had no power or influence. Even if they were beaten, they wouldn’t dare bring it to the yamen.
After all, that place—whether you’re in the right or not—once you go in, you’ve got to first shed a layer of skin.
Secondly, the Wang family had thin family branches—starting from Wang Bo’s father, Wang Dali, they had always been a lone seedling, not the kind of clan with many relatives.
Even if he wanted to call people to take revenge, there were no clan members to help. At most, he could gather a few fox-friends-and-dog-companions who drank, whored, and played with him.
They weren’t even enough for her to beat with one hand.
The worst consequence of beating them would be losing a bit in medical fees.
That’s why she rolled up her sleeves and went up.
And reality proved that she had even overestimated Wang Bo—half a day had passed since they left the Wang family, and still no sign of him bringing any fox-friends-and-dog-companions to pick a fight.
Truly a bullying-the-weak-and-fearing-the-strong domestic tyrant!
“You calling who unlucky? You damn girl! No respect for elders at all—now even daring to scold your Granny! I think you’ve turned the sky upside down!”
Li-shi stomped her feet and surged forward in bouncy jerks, full of a posture that she was about to clash head-on with Jiang Chun.
Jiang Chun, hearing the ruckus, turned her head to glance at her and “kindly” warned:
“Granny, you’d better be careful. Don’t get too close. You know me—I was born with great arm strength. If I accidentally twist your arm off, don’t blame me for not giving you advance notice.”
Li-shi, like a caterpillar, instantly hit the brakes.
“You…” She pointed a finger at Jiang Chun, hatefully saying: “You unfilial granddaughter! Even daring to hit your own Granny! Aren’t you afraid of being struck by lightning!”
Jiang Chun laughed loudly and said: “What should I be afraid of? With a cruel birth-mother like Granny—who kicked the eldest son out of the house—blocking the front, if lightning’s gonna strike, it’s striking you first.”
Li-shi was choked until her face turned white. For the first time, she felt her mouth wasn’t sharp enough.
Her eyes spun around, and with an “aiyo!” she tried to fake a faint and fall to the ground.
Just so happened Jiang Chun, who was turning around to pull more soybean stalks, caught a glimpse of it from the corner of her eye.
She let out a cold laugh and said:.“If Granny really faints, we only have two rooms in this house. No place to put you. We can only carry you to the pigsty out back and leave you there. Luckily our pigsty is big—we can clear out a small space for Granny to live.”
Upon hearing this, Li-shi immediately stood up straight and shouted loudly: “Who’s fainting?! Who’s fainting?! Don’t you dare curse your Granny!”
“Good that you’re not fainting.” Jiang Chun curled her lips into a smile, pointed her fire-stoking stick toward the door, and snorted: “Granny, I’m busy firing the stove and steaming mantou. No time to entertain you. You take your time on your way out—I’m not sending you off.”
Li-shi didn’t get any advantage, and was unwilling to leave like that. Her little beady eyes scanned around the kitchen room, and her gaze landed on the cupboard that had the steamer tray set aside.
Then, with a speed faster than thunder and a force too quick to cover one’s ears, she dashed to the cupboard, lifted the hemp cloth with one hand, grabbed two big mantou with the other, and dashed toward the door.
By the time Jiang Chun reacted, she had already run past the main gate.
Jiang Chun: “……”
This really was, truly was…
If not for Song Shi’an being just a wall away in the west room, she’d have already started swearing, sending her curses all the way to Li-shi’s already-deceased mother.
Losing two white wheat mantou for nothing—it really broke her heart.
If she went chasing now, she’d definitely be able to get them back.
But the mantou had already been clutched by Li-shi’s claws, which hadn’t been washed who-knows-how-long—
Even if she snatched them back, they couldn’t be eaten anymore. They could only be thrown to the pigs.
And in this ancient era of grain scarcity, feeding white flour mantou to pigs—she was really afraid she might get struck by lightning.
So she could only let that dead old hag take advantage this time.
But Jiang Chun was not someone whose advantage could be taken so easily—she’d be sure to get it back double later, and let that old hag know what meat pain really means!
••
Jiang Chun finished steaming two pots of mantou. Only then did Jiang He return, with a big goose whose wings were flapping wildly tied to the wheelbarrow.
She quickly ran out to remove the door sill and asked with a smile: “Dad, you’ve been gone all this time—where’d you go to catch such a big goose?”
Jiang He followed along with her words and joked: “Went to your uncle’s place to catch a big goose. Take a look—is this one your dad caught fat enough?”
Everyone in Daliushu Village had already heard about Jiang Chun beating up the Wang family. How could Eldest Uncle Zheng—Zheng Yi, who lived in town and was well-informed—not know?
Before Jiang He had even left the town, Zheng Yi had already come looking for him.
After Jiang He finished telling the entire cause and effect, Zheng Yi laughed heartily: “Niece did right to beat them! If you ask me, someone should’ve taught that bastard Wang Bo a hard lesson ages ago!”
Jiang He gave a helpless bitter smile: “Big Brother, it’s one thing if you don’t try to rein in Chun-niang, but instead you even indulge her. If this keeps going, she’ll be even more lawless.”
Zheng Yi casually said: “I’ve only got this one niece. If I don’t spoil her, who should I spoil? Come, go back home with me. Yesterday I got two big geese—you take one home.”
Jiang Chun, upon hearing this, grinned proudly: “Still my uncle is the one who loves me—knows I was tired from beating people up today and gives me a goose to replenish myself.”
Jiang He gave her a side glance: “So you think you’ve done a meritorious deed, huh?”
Jiang Chun took the opportunity to complain: “Aiya, how could I dare? Just now Granny even came to settle scores with me. Not only did she scold me head to toe, she even snatched two white wheat mantou I steamed for your son-in-law!”
Jiang He frowned. Unable to speak badly about his own mother in front of his daughter, he could only sigh and say:
“Next time she comes, keep a close watch—don’t let her catch a chance to sneak away with our things again.”
Jiang Chun snorted: “Next time she comes, I won’t even let her in the house.”
“Just like that,” Jiang He nodded.
He had long been completely disappointed in this biological mother.
From the day he was stripped clean and kicked out of the house, forced to bring his wife and child to live in a broken ancestral shrine, in his heart, his mother had already died.
He only held back from making a scene out of consideration for the clan elders’ faces.
But that didn’t mean he had to be a sucker, letting her come mooch off them.
After Jiang Chun finished complaining, she picked up the big goose and said excitedly: “Dad, tonight let’s eat iron-pot braised goose! I’ll go kill the goose now!”
As she passed in front of the west room window, a thought suddenly struck her. She turned around sharply, lifted the goose, and pushed open the door to the west room.
Facing Song Shi’an, who was sitting on the kang writing furiously, she shook the loudly “gagaga”-squawking goose in her hand and grinned: “Iron-pot braised goose—wanna eat?”
Song Shi’an didn’t even lift his head, using silence to express his refusal.
Jiang Chun clicked her tongue: “Iron-pot braised goose is the finest flavor on earth—you’ve really got no blessing for good food.”
Song Shi’an let out a light snort.
Before anything happened to the Song family, it was truly flowers blooming on brocade and oil poured on fire— [鲜花着锦、烈火烹油: metaphor for extreme prosperity and splendor.]
There were two kitchens just for cooking, and in each kitchen there were twenty or thirty chefs who could take a stove by themselves.
What kind of delicacies hadn’t he seen?
But he had withstood all temptation and had never once broken his vegetarian vows.
A mere countryside-style iron-pot braised goose, with barely a few spices, and she wanted that to make him break his vows?
That was simply—a fool’s dream!