Chapter 14: Conflict, Zhang Wanwan's Outburst

Wang Chunhua was completely stunned. Once she snapped out of it, she began pounding on Zhang Wanyuan’s front door, shrieking at the top of her lungs, "What do you mean by that? You have no manners and no upbringing! When your mother gets back, I’m going to have a good talk with her. What kind of trash has she been raising?"

Wang Chunhua’s shouting drew neighbors from both upstairs and downstairs. Seeing such a crowd, she became even more animated. Inside the apartment, Zhang Wanyuan was so angry her face turned red.

About half an hour later, Zhang’s mother’s voice could be heard outside. Zhang Wanyuan stood up and walked to the door, clearly hearing Wang Chunhua complaining to her mother, while Zhang’s mother remained silent.

An elderly woman from downstairs urged, "Let it go, let it go. The child doesn't know any better; why are you, an adult, bickering with a kid? Look at the time—don't you need to cook dinner?"

Wang Chunhua immediately retorted, "Auntie, that’s not how it works. If you don't discipline a child, who knows how crooked they’ll grow up to be! Especially a girl at this age—this is called adolescent rebellion. You don't understand!"

After saying this, Wang Chunhua looked at Zhang’s mother and continued her complaint, "You have no idea how temperamental that girl of yours is. I asked her one question, and she gave me the cold shoulder and wouldn't even let me speak. This can't go on."

Zhang Wanyuan couldn't listen anymore. She threw the door open, and before anyone could react, she walked straight up to Wang Chunhua and said loudly and clearly, "Auntie Wang, I’ve respected you as an elder and let you stand at my door badmouthing me for half the day. Do you really think I’m afraid to argue with you? You say I have no upbringing? What right do you have to say that? Compare upbringing? I’m much better than someone like you who doesn't even say hello before asking questions! If you want to talk about how my mother raised me, go look in a mirror first and see how you’ve raised your own children. What right do you have to manage me? You’ve got a pile of your own messes to deal with, yet you’re sticking your nose into our family’s business—aren't you afraid your hands are reaching too far and will get chopped off?

I’ll say this right here and now: I, Zhang Wanyuan, don't have a good temper. Don't provoke me in the future! I’m not afraid of a fight, either! Let’s see who beats whom! Don't try to pressure me with that 'elder' nonsense; our family doesn't have any relatives like you!"

After finishing, Zhang Wanyuan pulled the stunned Zhang mother into the house. As she passed the elderly woman from downstairs, she said politely, "Grandma Huang, your legs aren't good. In the future, you don't need to come up when you hear Auntie Wang’s voice; she’s just looking for trouble."

Once these words were out, the crowd was even more bewildered.

Wang Chunhua was so angry her face and neck turned red. She put her hands on her hips and shouted, "Li Meilan, you’re useless and can’t even teach your own child! What trash! If you can't teach her, I’ll teach her for you!"

Zhang’s mother paused, turned back, and glared sharply at Wang Chunhua, saying sternly, "My daughter is not for you to lecture! Just worry about your own family’s business!"

Wang Chunhua was so infuriated by Zhang’s mother’s firm attitude that her liver ached. Seeing that the two families were about to have a total falling out, Grandma Huang quickly pushed Zhang Wanyuan and her mother into their home and shut the door. The others pushed and shoved, urging Wang Chunhua to go home, and gradually dispersed, some going upstairs and others down.

Seeing that no one was backing her up, and thinking of the attitude of the Zhang mother and daughter, Wang Chunhua stiffened her neck and yelled, "Treating kindness like a donkey's lungs! You deserve to be poor for the rest of your lives!"

With that, she slammed her own door shut.

Back inside, Zhang’s mother’s face was ashen, but she said nothing as she carried the groceries into the kitchen. Ever since she realized groceries were cheaper in the afternoon, she had made it a habit to buy a little in the morning and a little more in the afternoon.

Zhang Wanyuan followed her to the kitchen door, worried, and asked cautiously, "Mom, are you angry?"

"No," Zhang’s mother said without looking up.

Zhang Wanyuan pouted, "If you aren't angry, why don't you even have a smile on your face? But today really wasn't my fault! It was that woman Wang Chunhua who started it. She had a falling out with Xu Zhiqiang, and I just happened to run into her when I got home. She couldn't do anything to him, so she took it out on me. Hmph! She thought I’d be like before and just let her scold me without saying a word!

Mom, let me tell you, when dealing with shameless people like her, if she’s tough, we have to be tougher. Only by letting her know we aren't easy to bully will she stop making us miserable every few days!"

"I’m not angry at you!" Zhang’s mother washed the rice, expressionless. "I’m angry that your father and I are so incompetent. If we weren't so poor, would that Wang Chunhua dare to act like this? She’s just picking on the softest persimmon! I used to think that avoiding trouble was better than causing it, so I let her be, but I didn't expect her to get more and more arrogant. In the future, if you run into something like this, don't say a word—let Mom handle it! You’re still young; by tomorrow, that Wang Chunhua could be going around saying you’re sharp-tongued and disrespectful to elders, which is bad for your reputation!"

Zhang’s mother tried to persuade her earnestly, but Zhang Wanyuan didn't take it in at all. "Forget it. You and Dad aren't related to that Wang Chunhua at all; what kind of elder is she to me? Besides, she thinks everyone else is blind! Who I am isn't defined by a few things she makes up, is it?"

Seeing Zhang Wanyuan’s stubbornness, Zhang’s mother felt helpless and urged, "Alright, go wash your hands and get ready to eat. The high school entrance exam is in a week; stop worrying about these messy things."

Zhang Wanyuan grinned and trotted off to wash her hands.

That night, when Zhang’s father returned, Zhang’s mother pulled him into the room and whispered to him for a while. "Your daughter is something else! Today, she actually argued with Wang Chunhua in front of all the neighbors and made her so angry she couldn't even speak. Just thinking about it feels so satisfying!"

"Huh?" Zhang’s father was confused. He had guessed the beginning but not the end. "No, wait—you’re telling me this, but aren't you supposed to be scolding Wanyuan?"

Zhang’s mother wasn't happy to hear that. "Scold her for what? She handled it beautifully! I haven't felt this relieved in a long time! I’ve been holding it in for so many years, and today was the most satisfying moment! I’m telling you this so that in the future, when you run into those people across the hall, you don't have to give them a pleasant look. Also, we need to work hard to make money. High school is much more expensive than middle school! And our eldest son will be in college in a year—what will we do if we don't have the money then? Today, that woman Wang Chunhua called us poor ghosts right to our faces! Old Zhang, my heart feels so heavy!"

Zhang’s father was speechless; it turned out his wife had been stewing in anger all evening because of that remark.

However, when it came to money, Zhang’s father also became much more somber. He lit a cigarette, puffed on it for a while, and then said slowly, "You don't need to worry about the money. If we work a bit harder this year, we’ll be able to scrape it together. Before, we had nothing left because we were paying off debts, but now it’s different!"

Zhang’s mother nodded. She felt the same as her husband—that without the pressure of debt, there was still hope.

In the next room, Zhang Wanyuan was reading quietly. Although she didn't know what her parents were discussing behind closed doors, she could roughly guess it was about the argument and making money. In this life, she would never let her parents struggle in the mud of poverty again.

(End of chapter)