A Good Country Wife-Chapter 96 - Those Reputations_1

Chapter 96: Chapter 96 Those Reputations_1

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Chapter 96: Chapter 96 Those Reputations_1

“Erhu’s family, your words sure sound nice,” sneered the Wei Family. “You’re just looking for an excuse to avoid supporting the elderly, aren’t you? But, no matter how you spin it, he’s still Zhao Erhu’s own father, your father-in-law, the one who raised Erhu from a child. Aren’t you afraid of being pointed at and having your spine cursed?” The Wei Family was, after all, much tougher than the aunt. With just a few words, they turned the situation around. The villagers had originally been on Lin Yue’s side out of sympathy for Zhao Erhu’s plight, but now some of them started to agree with the Wei Family’s accusations and began to suspect Lin Yue had ulterior motives.

Lin Yue scoffed, “Mother-in-law, you don’t need to go to such lengths to pin this on us. Everybody in the village knows who really raised Erhu. Still, you can rest assured. Every year, we won’t short you a cent of the silver that we owe for supporting my father-in-law. But as for anything extra, whatever was given in the past is in the past. From now on, you can forget about getting anything more from us.”

With things having reached this point, the Wei Family knew they wouldn’t be getting any more benefits from Zhao Erhu. They stood their ground and replied firmly, “Rest assured, we don’t care for those minor favors of yours. In the past, we only accepted them because Erhu was filial. But since the matter has come to this, henceforth our families will go our separate ways.”

“Very well, father-in-law, mother-in-law, a spit and a nail seal the deal. Uncle and the fellow villagers here are all witnesses to today’s agreement. Make sure you remember what you’ve said. Erhu is still at home waiting for me to bring back the silver to hire a doctor to treat his injuries and prescribe medicine. I won’t delay any longer and will head back now.”

It felt like winning another battle, and Lin Yue felt a bit more relieved. If it weren’t for the sake of maintaining Zhao Erhu’s and the children’s reputations, she wouldn’t have to be so scheming and demean herself in such a way. She wouldn’t care about getting directly confrontational with the aunt and the people from the old Zhao Family house; she didn’t care for that kind of reputation.

Taking the silver offered by the uncle, Lin Yue said, “Uncle, I’ll take this silver to handle the emergency. I see your kindness toward my family and Erhu, and we’ll never forget it. We will definitely show you our filial piety in the future.”

“What are you saying? It’s just a small matter. Since you address me as ‘uncle’, how can I not lend a hand when you’re in trouble? I’m not like Erhu’s father, so blinded by favoritism that he’s lost his conscience, charmed by that shameless woman, caring only for benefits, to the point of neglecting whether his own son lives or dies. Humph!”

Uncle didn’t miss the opportunity to rub salt into Zhao Jingen’s wounds with these parting shots. Such comments were only appropriate coming from him. Given Uncle’s seniority and esteem, both Zhao Jingen and the Wei Family had to take it without complaint. Zhao Jingen and the Wei Family had faces like those with constipation, bringing Lin Yue some inner pleasure. This was the power of ancient family hierarchies and generational rankings.

“Erhu’s wife, let’s go. I’ll accompany you to check on Erhu’s condition.” The uncle walked with Lin Yue back to their home, and upon their arrival, he visited Zhao Erhu’s room with her. It wasn’t long before Doctor Zheng arrived too.

Doctor Zheng was called away early in the morning to sit at the medical hall, but soon after, he was summoned to Zhao Erhu’s doorstep. Feeling somewhat speechless, he thought to himself that this family really was beset by one misfortune after another. That young woman endured sickness and injury, and as soon as she recovered, her husband sustained serious injuries. The description given by those who had summoned him was dire, and he wondered how Erhu was faring now.

Doctor Zheng took Erhu’s pulse, carefully examined the wound, and then took his pulse again. He frowned deeply, sometimes nodding and sometimes shaking his head, leaving onlookers anxious and uncertain about what he meant.

“Doctor Zheng, how is my husband’s injury? Is it serious?”