Chapter 15: Making Clothes

It wasn't a major issue; staying home to recuperate was just as good.

Unexpectedly, after only a few days of rest, Mei Lian's sister-in-law grew unwilling to let her be.

The sister-in-law had given birth to two sons, both around three or four years old, so she could have easily let go of the childcare duties.

However, she was narrow-minded and could not bear to see anyone else living better than her.

Seeing Auntie Mei Lian recuperating at home, she would spend her days making passive-aggressive remarks. Being a new bride, Mei Lian had a thin skin; after being insulted several times, she didn't dare rest anymore and began performing simple household chores.

As long as she was comfortable, the matter might have been settled, but her pregnancy was clearly not going well, and she lived in constant fear every day. To make matters worse, her mother-in-law sided with the sister-in-law.

She had no choice but to work. Her constant endurance only emboldened the two of them to become even more excessive, eventually losing all sense of propriety and dumping all the household chores onto Mei Lian.

Mei Lian was a person who could endure; she could have endured through her entire pregnancy, but in the end, she only harmed herself and the child in her womb.

It wasn't a case of "one corpse and two lives lost," but the child died immediately after birth, not even living for an hour.

Was she angry?

Did she hate?

Did she feel resentment?

Mei Lian was angry—angry that not a single person in her husband's family showed her any compassion.

She hated even more the heartlessness of her in-laws and the sister-in-law's petty, competitive nature. Of course, she hated herself most of all—why couldn't she stand up for herself?

To endure? Why should she endure?

She resented her husband, who had never said a single kind word to her from beginning to end. Even if he helped her with the work, it only meant there would be even more work the next day.

At that time, she had lost the will to live.

The more she suffered, the more excessive her sister-in-law and mother-in-law became.

They called her an omen of bad luck, saying it was her retribution. They asked why, among all the people in the village who were pregnant and giving birth, everyone else's children survived while hers did not.

They claimed it was karma, that even Heaven did not want her to have a child.

Every harsh word was hurled at her, and every sin was pinned on her head.

Finally, Mei Lian reached her breaking point. Combined with her own family coming to cause a scene and persuade her, she slowly began to see things differently.

Divorce was impossible, as divorce simply didn't exist back then.

Once her postpartum period ended, she got into a fight with her sister-in-law. She couldn't win because she was physically weak.

The next day, she went back to her maiden home, called her three brothers, and gave the eldest brother's wife a severe beating.

She also completely severed ties with her mother-in-law.

Only then was the family split into separate households.

They ended up with the plot of land they live on now; as for the fields, they didn't take anything from the elders, as they used the fields and land already under their own names.

Thus, the young couple lived separately. After living at her maiden home for half a year, they finally managed to borrow money to repair their current house, but the sister-in-law was still dissatisfied.

She began spreading gossip everywhere again. Mei Lian's temperament had changed; she would either hit or curse the woman, eventually making the sister-in-law terrified of both her blows and her words.

The woman no longer dared to bully her.

More than a year later, she became pregnant with Lixia, and the following year, she had a son.

Life gradually became more and more fulfilling.

As for the sister-in-law, her life wasn't exactly great, but it wasn't terrible either. After the family split, her husband had also leased out the family's land and left to work in the cities with his wife and children.

Grandma He didn't particularly like that niece-in-law and never questioned her. When they met, Grandma He wouldn't speak, acting as if she didn't even recognize her.

Hearing Auntie Mei Lian's story, Mei Xue understood why she had told her to be stronger.

Indeed, with a gossip like that, she would only learn her lesson if she was beaten and cursed into submission.

"Auntie Mei Lian's life is quite good now," Mei Xue said with a smile.

"Indeed. The conditions in the village are a bit poor, but at least there is land and fields to support a large family. The outside world isn't that easy; everything must be bought with money, and if you don't buy it, you don't eat."

Mei Xue nodded in agreement. "Right, Grandma, you don't know—even in the small towns, people have to pay for vegetables. For us, a single planting is enough to eat for a season."

Mei Xue also liked this kind of life. Compared to buying things with money, she preferred growing them herself.

Upon returning today, Mei Xue handed the money from the vegetable sales to Grandma He. Grandma He looked very happy; they had sold them faster than usual.

"That's just because you were lucky today. On ordinary days, they wouldn't sell until the afternoon." Having sold vegetables herself, Grandma He knew exactly how difficult it could be.

However, seeing the smile on Xiao Xue's face, Grandma He was very happy.

"Still, growing some vegetables to sell can supplement the household income and provide enough for the family to get by for quite a while." Grandma He was very satisfied with their current life.

Compared to the past, it was like night and day. Now, after paying the government grain tax, the crops from their own land provided enough to feed the family for a whole year.

It wasn't like before, when they couldn't even eat their fill.

"Then Grandma, let's grow more vegetables in the future. When the time comes, I'll take them all to the town to sell." Mei Xue was very dedicated to this idea.

Grandma He was very happy that Xiao Xue liked this lifestyle, unlike the daughters-in-law in other families who were always demanding this or that.

"Sure. It's perfect to plant melons after the autumn harvest. We can plant some melons; they are great for both eating and selling because they keep well."

Having received her grandmother's consent, Mei Xue was full of energy. "Mhm, I'll do whatever you say, Grandma. When the time comes, I'll help you till the soil and plant the vegetables."

The grandmother and granddaughter enjoyed a delicious dinner together in harmony. There wasn't much to do at night since the village had no electricity; anything one wanted to do depended on the weather.

After going to bed early, both slept through a dreamless night.

The next day, Mei Xue took the cloth she had bought to Auntie Mei Lian's house, because not only could she make clothes, but she also had a sewing machine.

Cottoning wasn't something that could be done in a day. While Grandma He was at home fluffing cotton, Mei Xue took the cloth to Auntie Mei Lian's.

To get to Auntie Mei Lian's house, one had to pass by Auntie Xi Lian's doorstep.

It was drizzling a bit today, so most people were staying indoors to rest, saving their strength for the upcoming autumn harvest.

"Where is Xiao Xue going?" As Mei Xue was lost in thought, she heard someone call her. She quickly looked toward the voice and saw several people sitting under the eaves of Auntie Xi Lian's house. Mei Xue didn't recognize them.

"I'm going to Auntie Mei Lian's to make a couple of outfits for Grandma." Mei Xue was straightforward; she didn't hide anything when asked, mainly because she couldn't hide it anyway with the cloth in her hands.

"Oh, Xiao Xue is so filial! You went to the big market yesterday and bought cloth to make clothes for your grandmother." The person speaking was the wife of Chen Dayou, who lived below. This woman was close with Sister Yong and was a well-known gossip in the village.

Mei Xue didn't know her, but she knew the voice was different from the one that had just called her.

"Mhm." Mei Xue didn't want to chat with them; she just wanted to get to Auntie Mei Lian's to learn how to sew.

"If there's nothing else, I'll be going." Since she didn't know them, she had no desire to linger.

"What's the rush?" Chen Dayou's wife ran toward Xiao Xue in the rain, looking at her as if she had discovered a treasure, her eyes fixed on the items in Mei Xue's hands.

Because there was a lot of cloth, Mei Xue had placed it in a basket; otherwise, it would have been difficult to carry in the rain.

(End of Chapter)