Chapter 18

Old Man Heng was so angry that he felt dizzy.

Granny Heng didn’t dare to make a sound.

She knew this was all her fault. If she had treated him fairly, as though he were actually a member of the family, none of this would have happened. If only she had treated all of her children equally.

Instead, she only wanted him around because he was their source of income. If she hadn’t hidden the fact that they were all eating meat without him, then he wouldn’t have become so bitter.

She jumped up and ran over to Heng Yi, grabbing his leg while crying on the floor. She cried until her heart split open. “Heng Yi, I was wrong! I know it, I was wrong! Please forgive me this time! I will treat you fairly from now on!”

Heng Yi lowered his eyes and looked at his mother, who was crying bitterly.

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Was he soft-hearted?

Absolutely not.

All she had ever done for him was raise him. For as long as he could remember, he had grown up by her side, but he never had a good life. At least he never starved or froze to death.

They could have just abandoned him in the wilderness to become food for wolves.

“Just this once.” After Heng Yi finished speaking, he forcefully pulled out his leg.

He took a step and left.

He knew his mother’s crying and admissions of guilt were not genuine. They only did it since their sole source of income was about to walk out on them.

He had no choice but to compromise.

When he returned home, the smell of stir-fried meat from the next door wafted in. Heng Yi’s footsteps froze at the entrance.

For a moment, an absurd thought popped into his head.

At the Sun household, stir-fried bacon slices with chopped green onions were letting off a fine fragrance.

The remaining oil was used to stir-fried some pumpkin slices, which were also exceptionally fragrant.

The egg soup was fresh, tender, and smooth.

With the pumpkin buns in front of them, the four ladies said not a word. They ate very heartily.

Sun Yiming, too, was devouring his meal. His mouth was full of pumpkin buns. Though he could not help but feel like something was missing. It would be even better if there was some wine.

He ate all the steamed buns and vegetables. His wife and children ate until their stomachs were full. The little girls couldn’t stop burping.

Sun Yiming had worked very hard that afternoon. He finished a full seventeen copies.

There was still enough paper to write another five. He planned to sleep after writing those five.

“Xiu, Yi, boil some hot water for me to bathe in,” Sun Yiming ordered like it was nothing.

Although Sun Xiu and Sun Yi were extremely unwilling, they still endured it and agreed.

They got up to wash the dishes and pots as well as boil the water.

Sun Yiming asked Han Qiao, “How much does one copy sell for?”

“What are you trying to pull?” Han Qiao asked.

“I’m not trying to pull anything. I just want to know how much money I can earn if I work hard like this every day,” Sun Yiming said, staring at Han Qiao, “No matter what, a new book should cost five to six hundred cash coins. Granted the bookstore provides the Xuan paper and ink, each book should be able to be sold for more than a hundred coins.”

Xuan paper was expensive those days, and so was the labor of copying the book.

“Yes, a hundred coins for a book. What about it?” Han Qiao asked calmly.

She didn’t care if he knew how much she was making for each book.

Regardless, she wasn’t about to let him have a single penny of it.

When Sun Yiming heard that each book sold for over a hundred coins, he was happy.

“It’s said that books are more valuable than gold. The ancients weren’t lying.”

“Tomorrow, bring back a few more books. Eventually I’ll be able to pay back the money that I owe Big Brother…”

“Heh.” Han Qiao sneered.

“Sun Yiming, I’m not giving you one penny of this money. I deserve all the money you’ve earned me these past couple days. You borrowed that money and spent it on yourself, so you should pay it back yourself. Leave me out of it.”

Han Qiao’s voice was very cold and her tone indifferent.

Sun Yiming stood up angrily and shouted, “We are husband and wife. Husband and wife are one flesh. Now, how is this acceptable?”

“What if we divorced? Wouldn’t it be just fine if we divorced?”

“You…”

Sun Yiming was furious.

“Han Qiao, do you really want a divorce?”

“Of course I do. Do I look like I’m joking with you?”

She said that same line a few times.

She told Sun Yiming again and again that she wanted a divorce.

She didn’t care about good-for-nothing like him at all.

Even a clay figurine had a better temper.

Sun Yiming may have been a little scared after Han Qiao beat him up, but there was still some pride left in his bones.

Han Qiao kept saying that she wanted to divorce him again and again. She simply couldn’t take him seriously.

“Han Qiao, you’re gonna regret this.”

“I’m the one who brought it up, I won’t regret it.”

Sun Yiming was so angry that he was shaking all over. At that time, he didn’t really want to get a divorce.

In fact, he was so angry that he completely forgot about his own intentions of divorcing Han Qiao.

Before leaving, he got a good, long look at Han Qiao, then flicked his sleeves and left. He just walked right out of the house.

And, he slammed the courtyard door on his way out with a bang.

The three children were shocked. They were just dumbfounded.

Han Qiao sighed, gently but deeply.

He was a real thorn in her side, but she would pull out that thorn soon.

Saying it outright was better than keeping it bottled up.

She wanted to let Sun Yiming know that she was no longer willing to live with him.

“Xiu, Yi, go pack your clothes. Leave two sets here, but pack the rest.”

“Especially the cotton clothes. I don’t care if they’re good or not, I just want them packed up first.”

The three sisters didn’t dilly-dally. They promptly went to their room to pack.

Han Qiao, too, went off to pack. She took all seventeen copies of the Thousand Character Classic that Sun Yiming had written that day. She wrapped up the remaining Xuan paper and ink, planning to bring it with her to Xishan Village.

She also wrapped up all the new clothes. She packed up all the winter cotton clothes, cotton pants, and cotton shoes. If she got kicked out, she would be prepared.

“Mother.”

Her daughters were standing at the door.

Han Qiao let them into the house. “What’s wrong?”

“Is Father going to keep us from going with you?” Sun Xiu asked worriedly.

“No, he won’t.”

If he tried to keep them, she would fight him to the death.

She was willing to kill and to die for her children.

But Sun Yiming was a coward. He was still an examination candidate. As long as he still had aspirations of taking the exam, he wouldn’t be willing to die.

Though the children didn’t know why Han Qiao seemed so sure of herself, they were more or less relieved.

“Go take a bath and get some sleep. Wake up early tomorrow to make steamed buns.”

Whether Sun Yiming was at home or not, before they were kicked out, they would go on with life as normal.

The four of them were of one mind, one heart.

Sun Yiming walked on the street but had nowhere to go.

He ended up at the tavern. When he walked in, the waiter saw his bruised face and was shocked. “Grandpa Sun, what…what happened to you?”

“I accidentally fell while drinking that day. Give me the rest of the wine you owe me.”

When the waiter heard that, he didn’t dare to ask any more questions. He promptly brought out some wine for Sun Yiming.

The wine was quickly served on the table along with a tray of peanuts.

Sun Yiming drank alone. He felt that the taste of the wine today was not right, so he drank some more. The more he drank, the more uncomfortable he felt.

He didn’t know why he felt uncomfortable, but he felt that everything was off.

He drank one cup after another.

The alcohol was strong. He soon lost his strength and became dizzy.

In the old days, he could still go to a friend’s house or the brothel–the only one in Ninghe Town. But all of that required money.

With no money, Sun Yiming, in a very pitiful state, actually found nowhere he could go.

After having a few cups of yellow soup, it was almost closing time. Sun Yiming got up and stumbled out of the tavern.

He walked towards the front of the town.

He wanted to get to the bottom of this. He wouldn’t let himself continue to play the fool!