The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 9: Chapter 9: Poor Eyesight? That’s Just Plain Blind

”Your son is shameless! He went and got some other woman pregnant, and you, his own mother, are cursing out my sister instead of him. If it weren’t for the children, I’d claw your face off right now, you shameless bitch!”

Zhang Xiufang was no pushover herself. Being cursed out by Han Xiaoqing like that made her seethe with anger. ”This is our family’s business! It has nothing to do with an outsider like you. Say one more word, and I’ll tear your mouth off.”

Han Xiaoqing refused to back down an inch, firing back, ”Yang Jianming is the shameless one! A supposedly respectable university teacher, and all he does is screw around with women. He’s the one who hurt my sister. And that other woman is just as shameless, waltzing into this house before they’re even married. You think you can pick on my sister just because she’s by herself?”

”My name is Han Xiaoqing. I might not have any special talents, but I’ve got one life to lose. And if you really push me, I’ll stab your entire family.”

Han Xiaoqing’s voice was high and crisp, melodic even.

But the words she spoke were utterly terrifying!

The barefoot aren’t afraid of those with shoes. When one side is ready to risk it all, the other side—the one with something to lose—gets scared.

”You... How dare you! This is my house!” Zhang Xiufang was furious. Han Xiaoqing, this country bumpkin relative who used to be too scared to even breathe loudly in her presence, was actually screaming back at her. ”Get out! Get the hell out of my house!”

But Han Xiaoqing was no pushover. She shot back, ”Since when is this *your* house? Didn’t they get divorced? Well now, this is a first. I’ve never heard of a former mother-in-law and daughter-in-law still being family after the papers are signed.”

”Don’t tell me my sister is your biological daughter, and your son is the one you had with some other man? Uncle Yang went to buy nails and he’ll be back any minute. I’ll have to get a good look to see if you’ve made a fool out of him.”

Han Xiaorui, who had been a little worried, couldn’t help but break into a smile when she heard Han Xiaoqing’s sharp retort. She pushed the door open and walked in.

’To deal with this kind of drama queen mother-in-law, you have to be even more shameless, more relentless, and have an even sharper tongue than her. Only then will she back down. Put her in her place a few times, and I guarantee she’ll avoid you like the plague in the future.’

”Aiyo, if it isn’t my dear mother-in-law?” Han Xiaorui put on a fawning smile, grabbing Zhang Xiufang’s arm and holding on tight. ”The hospital has been so expensive these past two days. Seven hundred yuan isn’t nearly enough. As a divorced woman, I have no way to make money. So, I’ve decided not to get divorced after all. That way I can ask my father-in-law for money, loud and proud.”

Zhang Xiufang panicked the moment she heard that.

’If Han Xiaorui doesn’t go through with the divorce, won’t my precious grandson be unable to get his household registration? He’ll be an undocumented citizen! Zhang Lili is easy to fool, but her family members are no pushovers. If they go to my son’s university and make a scene, he’ll probably lose his respectable job.’

”We already agreed! You can’t do this! The divorce, you have to go through with it,” Zhang Xiufang said in a panic, backing away. ”My son doesn’t like you! Don’t try to back out of the divorce now!”

Just then, Yang Zhigang arrived with an armful of tools and materials. His face immediately darkened. ”What are you doing here, spouting nonsense again?”

When Zhang Xiufang saw her husband, she quickly blurted out, ”Zhigang, Han Xiaorui is going back on her word! She doesn’t want to get divorced anymore. She’s after our family’s money.”

Yang Zhigang felt his head throb. ”If you hadn’t come here to make a scene, everything would be fine! That’s enough. If you can’t stand the sight of your own two granddaughters, then just stay away from now on.”

After he finished speaking, Yang Zhigang led the helper he’d brought over to a corner of the yard, where they built a chicken coop, a pen for the ducks and geese, a doghouse, and a cat house.

Housing these small animals outside would keep the inside of the house clean.

Zhang Xiufang’s face flushed red with suppressed anger. She wanted to scream at them, but she was also afraid Han Xiaorui really wouldn’t go through with the divorce. She stomped her foot in frustration and scurried home.

Half an hour later, everything was finished. As he washed his hands, Yang Zhigang said, ”Xiao Rui, Jianming’s mother has always been like this. From now on, just ignore her when you see her. And I’ll say it again: even though you and Jianming are divorced, you are still the mother of my two granddaughters. I’m truly grateful that you didn’t just pack up and leave.”

Han Xiaorui chuckled softly. ”Dad, I feel the same way. Even after the divorce, I may not recognize Yang Jianming as anything to me, but I’ll always recognize you as my elder. You will always be Pingping and An’an’s grandpa.”

”It’s the girls’ misfortune to have a father like Yang Jianming, but it’s their good fortune to have a grandfather like you.”

Yang Zhigang wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, his weathered face filled with gratitude. ”Everything’s all set. If you need anything in the future, don’t you hesitate to call on me.”

”If you feel awkward coming to the old family house, you can find me at the market, or even just have someone pass a message along. In short, if there’s anything I can do to help, I’ll do it. I won’t refuse.”

”Thank you!” Han Xiaorui said gratefully. She beckoned to Pingping and An’an, who were hiding behind the doorway. ”Pingping, An’an, Grandpa and Uncle built homes for the little chicks, ducklings, and goslings. Thank Grandpa and thank Uncle.”

Han Xiaoqing led her two nieces over. Zhang Xiufang’s shouting had frightened them earlier.

But unlike in the past when they would have just frozen in place, this time they knew to find a hiding spot. That in itself was huge progress.

”Thank you, Grandpa.”

”Thank you, Uncle.”

Yang Zhigang was delighted. He patted his two granddaughters on the head and then took his leave.

Yang Zhigang’s nephew, Yang Jianguo, sighed. ”Uncle, now that Pingping and An’an are starting to talk, we have to get them proper treatment. We don’t need them to be geniuses; it would be more than enough if they can just grow up to be normal kids!”

’His younger cousin Yang Jianming is handsome and stands six feet tall. Han Xiaorui isn’t short either, and she’s a beautiful girl.’

’And Pingping and An’an are even more striking, having inherited all the best features from their parents. If they were just normal kids, they’d have suitors beating a path to their door when they grow up.’

Yang Zhigang nodded. ”Of course we’ll get them treatment. They couldn’t say a single word before. Now, after just two days at the hospital, they can say ’Grandpa,’ ’Mama,’ ’Uncle,’ and name all the animals—’fish,’ ’shrimp,’ ’chicken,’ ’duck,’ ’goose,’ ’cat,’ ’dog’.”

”Jianguo, you’re the village leader. I’m often out at sea, so if I’m not here and Xiao Rui runs into any trouble, I need you to help her out. Don’t let anyone bully her and the girls.”

”Don’t worry, Uncle,” Yang Jianguo agreed with a nod. ”I’m Pingping and An’an’s uncle. And since Xiao Rui is their mother, she’s family to us. We can’t just cut ties!”

As Han Xiaoqing closed the door, she overheard the conversation between the uncle and nephew. She turned to Han Xiaorui and sighed, ”Sis, are your eyes broken or something? You managed to pick the only scumbag in the entire Yang Family!”

Han Xiaorui gave a wry smile. ”My eyes weren’t just ’broken.’ I was completely blind! Anyway, it’s getting late. Let’s get dinner started. I caught a ton of shrimp today. We can make garlic shrimp and some steamed grouper.”

Han Xiaorui’s hands never stopped moving as she got to work.

When Han Xiaoqing saw the fish and shrimp in her sister’s bucket, her eyes lit up. ”Sis, this is great! I can’t believe you actually caught fish!”

”More than just ’caught fish,’” Han Xiaorui said proudly, raising an eyebrow. ”I caught so many that I didn’t even dare to sell them at the village pier. I had to go all the way to the pier in the county town. Guess how much money I made today.”

Seeing her sister so animated and full of life, Han Xiaoqing felt her nose tingle. ’My beautiful, cheerful, clever sister is back!’

”A hundred yuan?”

”Too low, guess again!”

”Three hundred?”

”Can we raise our sights a little? That’s still way too low. Guess again!”

”Don’t tell me it was a thousand?”