met free Chapter 78 60 The Youngest Daughter of a Farming Family (11)
Chapter 78 60 The Youngest Daughter of a Farming Family (11)
Upon hearing this, Lin Fang immediately became anxious. "Mother, you're not going to live with us and expect us to take care of you in your old age? Are you and Father going to live with my younger brother and sister-in-law and expect them to take care of you in your old age?"
Upon hearing Lin Fang's words, Liu Xue'er perked up. She knew that over the years, Mr. and Mrs. Xia had accumulated quite a collection of valuable possessions! If the elderly couple were to live with them in their old age, they would undoubtedly have to hand over all these treasures!
Although after the family is divided in the village, the elderly usually live with their eldest son, there are also elderly people who choose to live with their youngest son in their old age, so that he can take care of them.
Lin Fang had long considered Xia's parents' belongings as her own. She had even made plans to distribute many of them. Now, hearing Xia's mother's words, she became anxious. If she didn't live with them, all those things would fall into Liu Xue'er's hands. She wouldn't stand for that. They were both daughters-in-law; what Liu Xue'er had, she wanted too!
Although the two had different thoughts, they both looked at Xia's mother seriously, waiting for her reply.
Looking at Lin Fang and Liu Xue'er, Xia's mother felt a chill in her heart. Neither of these two daughters-in-law truly cared about the elderly couple; they were only concerned with whether their own interests had been harmed.
She turned her head away and saw Xia Aiguo and Xia Aimin still eating with their heads down, and felt a pang of desolation in her heart. Although it was the eldest and second sons' wives who spoke about elder care today, it may well have reflected what the eldest and second sons were thinking. Perhaps Lin Fang and Liu Xueer represented them, and today, through their words, they expressed what was hidden in their hearts.
She opened her mouth and asked in a hoarse voice, "Eldest brother, second brother, do you also think that Mother had ulterior motives and used public funds to subsidize our little sister, right?"
Xia Aiguo remained silent, and no one knew what he was thinking at that moment.
Xia Aimin muttered, "Mother has always favored my younger sister, we're used to it!"
Upon hearing this, Xia's mother felt a surge of anger and nearly fainted.
Xia Mingwei reacted quickly, and as soon as she saw that her mother was not in good condition, she hurriedly helped her up.
With Xia Mingwei's help, Xia's mother managed to steady herself. Xia Mingwei gently patted her mother's back to help her catch her breath, and Xia's mother finally calmed down.
She took a deep breath and continued speaking to the eldest and second sons' families: "Since everyone is here today, let's make things clear so that you won't have any ill intentions towards us old folks in the future!"
"Weiwei is the youngest daughter. Because she was born prematurely, she has been weak since she was little, and we almost couldn't save her several times. I think you know this, so your father and I have been especially fond of her!"
“You and Dad didn’t just favor one over the other! You were so good to each other that all the girls in the village were jealous!” Xia Aimin couldn’t help but interject.
Having calmed down, Xia's mother was no longer so angry. She glanced at Xia Aimin and continued, "Speaking of loving children, which one of you haven't I loved? Eldest son, when you married Lin Fang, was the dowry small?"
Xia Aiguo, who had been called out, could no longer remain silent and stammered, "No, it's not a small amount!"
"Let me tell you, it's not just a lot, it's the first of its kind in the whole village! Have you ever seen anyone spend so much on a wedding?"
After speaking to Xia Aiguo, Xia's mother turned her attention to Xia Aimin.
"Second son, you refused the girl we found for you, insisting on marrying Liu Xue'er from the city. Even if your father and I weren't happy, didn't we prepare the same betrothal gifts as the eldest son for you? Did we shortchange you by even a penny?"
Hearing his mother's question, Xia Aimin was speechless. Even if he was unwilling, he couldn't deny that his parents had contributed no less money and effort than his older brother to his marriage!
Seeing that Xia Aiguo and Xia Aimin had nothing to say, Xia's mother continued to speak on her own.
“From childhood to adulthood, apart from a few times when she was unwell, Weiwei has never spent a lot of money. Even her schooling expenses were not high. You two brothers shouldn't say I'm biased; Weiwei went to school of her own volition. Back then, you two refused to study and insisted on dropping out, so you can't blame your father and me for not letting you go to school!”
"You should have persuaded us back then! Studying is much easier than farming!" Although the voice was soft, it reached Xia's mother's ears completely.
In an instant, her anger flared up again. She pointed at Xia Aimin and yelled, "Didn't your father and I try to persuade you? We tried everything, we even scolded you, but you just wouldn't agree and insisted on dropping out of school. You said you'd rather farm than go to school. What could we do? We could only send you home!"
"Besides, what's wrong with farming? Your father and I raised you three siblings by farming. And these days, if you don't study and don't want to farm, do you want to be a lazy bum? Don't want to work and just want to freeload? Let me tell you, you're not destined for that! If that's what you're thinking, tell your father and me as soon as possible. We can't afford to support you young masters, so it's better to separate now!"
Upon hearing this, Xia Aiguo and Xia Aimin knew that their mother was truly angry. They quickly waved their hands and explained, "Mother, that's not what we meant. We don't want to separate the family!"
Hearing this, Xia's mother's anger gradually subsided. It seemed that her two sons were not completely beyond redemption.
If Xia Mingwei knew what her mother was thinking at this moment, she would definitely tell her loudly not to have such high expectations for the two of them. Her two older brothers haven't chosen to separate from the family yet because they haven't gained any benefits from it!
But Xia's mother didn't think in that direction. After all, they were her own children, and she didn't want to assume the worst about them.
She sighed, "The money Weiwei said she was going to use to submit her work to the editor this time was all from my personal account! It didn't use any of your public funds, so you don't need to worry about anything! It's my money, and I can spend it on whomever I want! If you have time to keep an eye on other people's pockets all day long, you should think about how to work more and earn more money! I'm not unaware that you haven't fully handed over your wages for doing odd jobs! The reason I didn't say anything was just to save you some face!"
After saying this, Xia's mother glanced at Lin Fang and Liu Xue'er's faces and noticed that both of them blushed and paled in turns. They were probably embarrassed because Xia's mother had directly exposed their little scheme.