"If it were just about doing chores, I wouldn't say a word. Every farming family's children do their share of work. But Xu Xiao'e, brought by my stepmother, is only a few months younger than me. She hasn't done anything, and I'm the one who washes her clothes."
Shen Xiaoyan paused here, looking at a blushing Xu Xiao'e with a sneer, and continued, "After Xu Xiao'e arrived, she started attending school. Shen He and Shen Bing are also in school now. I've given up on myself, but Xiaoming is almost 10 years old and hasn't attended a single day of school. Is this fair?"
Bai Yonggui and the others looked thoughtful, gazing at Shen Xiaoyan and Shen Xiaoming, but remained silent for a long time.
What Shen Xiaoyan said, though pointing out Shen Cheng's wrongdoings, was about parental favoritism, which was common in any family. Severing ties solely for this reason was impossible.
Shen Xiaoyan also knew these were minor issues. She took a breath, took out a piece of paper from her person, and handed it to Bai Yonggui, continuing, "This is the statement from Shen Cheng and Madam Xu selling me to Zheng Wei."
Hearing Shen Xiaoyan's words, and seeing the paper in Bai Yonggui's hand, Shen Cheng and Madam Xu panicked. They thought the statement was supposed to be at the Zhu family's, so how did it end up in Shen Xiaoyan's hands?
Bai Yonggui carefully examined the words on the paper and then handed it to the person next to him.
After the village elders had passed the statement around, they returned it to Shen Xiaoyan.
Shen Xiaoyan took back the statement and then produced the prescription for the medicine Shen Xiaoming took when he was ill, continuing, "The day after I got married, my younger brother Shen Xiaoming developed a fever, but no one in the Shen family noticed. It wasn't until the third day that Wu Dagang came to find me and helped me hire a doctor, which saved Xiaoming's life."
As Shen Xiaoyan spoke, she still felt a pang of sadness in her heart. She choked back a sob and continued, "After Xiaoming got sick, he came here with me. The Shen family never visited him, let alone paid for his medicine."
"You are Shen Xiaoming's older sister. Shouldn't you take care of your sick younger brother?" Madam Xu retorted, puffing out her chest.
"If he were an orphan, then of course I would be responsible for everything," Shen Xiaoyan said with a sneer at Madam Xu, and then continued, "You didn't want him anymore, you even took his household registration away with me. Why do you want him back now that he's recovered?"
"That's his home, he should naturally return. There are still many things waiting for him to do at home..." Madam Xu blurted out her true thoughts.
After speaking, Madam Xu realized her mistake and quickly fell silent.
"Heh, Village Chief, you've all heard it. Shen Xiaoming absolutely cannot go with them. Otherwise, next time, I'm afraid he won't even wait for me to intervene..." Shen Xiaoyan didn't finish her sentence, but everyone present understood what she meant.
"These striped watermelons and red berries all belong to Zheng Wei. But today, as soon as they arrived, they demanded I hand them over. They even said that I and Shen Xiaoming should give them 100 taels of silver as filial piety money for this year. As for next year, we'll discuss it next year."
As soon as Shen Xiaoyan finished speaking, Bai Yonggui and the village elders stared at Shen Xiaoyan in disbelief. They then looked at Shen Cheng and Madam Xu, whose faces were flushed red, and knew that Shen Xiaoyan's words were true.
They all shook their heads in disapproval, sighing inwardly. While it was common for parents to show favoritism, they wouldn't push their own children to their death.
After a while, Bai Yonggui spoke, "100 taels of filial piety money, and for a whole year? I think you two must have been sleeping in a stupor and are still dreaming."
This was obviously said to Shen Cheng and Madam Xu. The two dared not reply, merely lowering their heads.
At this point, an elder also spoke up. He was the village chief's cousin, named Bai Yongqi. "I just heard this girl, Shen Xiaoyan, say that her and Shen Xiaoming's household registrations have been moved out?"
Shen Cheng knew he was being asked and looked up, meekly murmuring an affirmative.
Bai Yongqi sighed and said, "Since that's the case, I think it's best to divide the family. Shen Xiaoyan is a married daughter, so she's no longer considered part of the Shen family. As for Shen Xiaoming, alas, consider this son to be separated."
Bai Yonggui and the other elders nodded in agreement. Bai Yonggui then added, "Given that Shen Xiaoming is still young, filial piety money cannot be given now. It should at least wait until he gets married."
When Madam Xu and Shen Cheng heard they wouldn't receive any money, they were quite dejected. However, with the village chief and elders present, they didn't dare to say anything.
Bai Yonggui took a breath and said, "Family division, family division. You must give him something, right? Money, land, and also provisions..."
Before Bai Yonggui could finish, Madam Xu objected. Not only were they not getting money, but they also had to give things to Shen Xiaoming? This was truly daydreaming.
"Village Chief, your words are not right. Shen Xiaoming is young, but Shen Xiaoyan is not. Since he is her younger brother, she should pay the filial piety money for Shen Xiaoming. As for dividing the family, this is our family matter, and you don't need to worry about it, Village Chief."
After speaking, Madam Xu even tugged at Shen Cheng's collar, urging him to quickly express his opinion.
Although Shen Cheng felt somewhat embarrassed, he couldn't let go of the money that was almost within his grasp. Clearing his throat, Shen Cheng said, "Yes, if Shen Xiaoming doesn't have it, then Shen Xiaoyan will pay. As for dividing the family, I've raised these siblings for over 10 years, spent so much money. They still want to divide land? Don't even think about it."
At these words, Bai Yonggui and the village elders' faces turned extremely ugly. Was Shen Cheng disrespecting them?
Seeing the situation, Shen Xiaoyan secretly smiled in her heart, but on her face, she appeared hurt. "Village Chief, esteemed elders, please don't be angry. I am willing to pay the filial piety money for Xiaoming, but on the condition that they write a document stating that they will no longer bother us and have no right to interfere in any matters concerning me and Xiaoming."
Bai Yonggui and the others had no choice but to nod. Shen Xiaoyan asked Shen Xiaoming to go inside and get the brush and ink. Finally, Bai Yonggui drafted the document, and Shen Xiaoming, Shen Xiaoyan, Shen Cheng, and Madam Xu all signed it.
The document stated that Shen Xiaoyan would pay Shen Cheng two taels of silver annually as filial piety money, with festive gifts of wine and meat to be calculated according to village standards.
Furthermore, Shen Xiaoming was formally separated from the Shen family, and Shen Cheng and Madam Xu would have no right to interfere in his affairs thereafter.
There were three copies of the document: one given to Shen Cheng, one to Shen Xiaoyan, and one kept by Bai Yonggui.
Shen Xiaoyan then directly produced two taels of silver and handed them to Shen Cheng in front of everyone.
Initially, Madam Xu and Shen Cheng objected to the mere two taels of silver for the year, but they were strongly suppressed by Bai Yonggui and the others.
The reason was simple: for farming families, besides the produce from the fields, the only other source of income was selling their own chickens, ducks, or pigs. Two taels of silver a year as filial piety money was already considered generous in the village.
Shen Cheng and Madam Xu knew they couldn't offend Bai Yonggui and the others too much. After taking the money, they left with Xu Xiao'e and the dragon-phoenix twins in shame.
After Shen Cheng and his party left, Shen Xiaoyan and Shen Xiaoming thanked Bai Yonggui and the elders.
Shen Xiaoyan also confirmed with the village chief and others about bringing villagers to plant striped watermelons next year. Finally, Shen Xiaoyan picked a few striped watermelons from the patch and gave one to each of them before seeing them off.
Closing the gate, Shen Xiaoyan, Shen Xiaoming, and Zheng Wei sat together at the bamboo table. Shen Xiaoyan took out the document and carefully reread it before putting it away safely.