Sold immediately after wearing it? I took my family and fled the famine.

Wu San Niang thought for a long time, then suddenly slapped her thigh and remembered.

Her family home is in the next village. I've seen this girl before when I went back to my parents' home.

This girl's mother, who married into the same family as her, was surnamed Yang and named Yang Cuihua.

Yes, that's Yang Cuihua's daughter.

Wu San Niang glanced at Jiang Xing again, saw the oilcloth shed and Jiang Xing's thick cotton-padded coat, and her heart ached.

That brat must be rich, otherwise where would she get the oilcloth? Where would she get the new cotton-padded jacket? I heard people arguing this morning that she even sold a wild boar and made several dozen taels of silver.

Wu San Niang stood up, dusted herself off, and walked towards the back of the camp.

After walking for a while, she stopped in front of a dilapidated shed. The shed was made of a few tree branches and covered with a layer of dry grass, and it was drafty on all sides.

A woman in her forties was squatting in front of the shed. She had a long, thin face and thin lips, and looked like a formidable character.

"Cuihua! Yang Cuihua!" Wu Sanniang called out.

Yang Cuihua looked up, startled, and asked, "Third Sister? What are you doing here?"

"What kind of question is that? How did I get here? I'm a refugee, of course!" Wu Sanniang squatted down and lowered her voice, "Cuihua, guess who I saw? Your daughter! Your eldest daughter! She's right up ahead!"

Yang Cuihua's expression changed, and impatience flashed across her face: "She has nothing to do with me. Her father is dead, I remarried, and we live our own lives."

"Don't be so hasty," Wu Sanniang leaned closer. "Do you know how well your daughter is doing now? She lives in a tarpaulin shed, completely draft-free! She wears new cotton-padded jackets! She eats and drinks the finest food! And guess what? She sold a wild boar and made several dozen taels of silver! Guess what? She didn't spend that money on your son, but instead used it to make cotton-padded jackets for an old man from a distant relative!"

Yang Cuihua frowned.

As Wu San Niang was saying this, an old woman came out of the shed. She was about sixty years old, with a round face, small eyes that looked like slits, and thick lips. She looked like a troublemaker.

This is Yang Cuihua's new husband's mother-in-law, surnamed Li, known as Granny Li.

"Who? Who has money?" Granny Li's ears were sharp, and her eyes lit up when she heard the word "money".

"Mother, it's nothing," Yang Cuihua tried to stop her.

"What do you mean, 'nothing'?" Granny Li pushed her away and looked at Wu San Niang: "Who are you saying has money?"

Wu San Niang was secretly delighted and embellished the story. Li Pozi's eyes lit up with each retelling, and finally she slapped her thigh: "Let's go! Let's find her!"

"Mother, let's forget it..." Yang Cuihua didn't want to go.

"What's there to calculate?" Granny Li glared at her. "That's your daughter! She has money but doesn't respect you; it's outrageous! Come on! We'll make her pay up today!"

Yang Cuihua gritted her teeth, not daring to stop her anymore. She had no say in the He family; her mother-in-law was the only one who could do what she said. If she dared to talk back, she would be scolded when she got back.

Granny Li pulled Yang Cuihua along as they walked towards the front of the camp.

Yang Cuihua followed behind, while Jiang Xing was packing things up outside the shed when he heard a series of curses coming from afar.

They were insulting her by name.

"Jiang Daya! You heartless bastard! Come out here!"

Jiang Xing paused for a moment. She couldn't recognize the voice, but Zhang Shi did.

Zhang's face suddenly turned cold, and a chill seemed to emanate from her very bones.

"It's Yang Cuihua," Zhang said, each word seemingly squeezed out from between her teeth: "your mother."

Jiang Xing paused for a moment, then slowly stood up.

Zhang came out of the shed. Her old leg was in great pain today, but at this moment, she walked as if she were going to war.

The little calf also came out and stood next to Zhang, its little face tense.

After tucking his pipe back into his waistband, Uncle San stood up and stood next to Jiang Xing.

Jiang Xing walked at the front, and the four of them stood in a row at the entrance of the shed.

Yang Cuihua stood opposite, with Granny Li beside her. Behind Granny Li were two middle-aged men, the sons of Yang Cuihua's new husband.

Seeing that Yang Cuihua didn't understand, Granny Li reached out and pinched her. Yang Cuihua winced in pain, then said fiercely, "Jiang Daya!"

Yang Cuihua pointed at her: "Do you have any conscience? Your own mother is starving and freezing here, while you're eating and drinking well, and you don't care?"

Jiang Xing didn't speak. She looked at Yang Cuihua as if she were looking at a stranger.

Zhang spat and pointed at Yang Cuihua, yelling, "Yang Cuihua, how dare you show your face here? When my son died, you couldn't wait to leave home. Where were you when my two children were being bullied? Now you come here to question your conscience? Have you lost all your conscience?"

Yang Cuihua's face flushed red: "No matter what, I'm still her mother. Is it any of your business?"

"I'm still their grandmother," Zhang said calmly. "Your name is on the family genealogy. My son died, and you remarried without observing three years of mourning. How dare you even mention your conscience?"

She felt sorry for her son, and for her granddaughter and grandson. When her son died, this daughter-in-law didn't even come to the funeral. Where was she when her two children were bullied? Now that her granddaughter has money, she's clinging to her?

Yang Cuihua was choked and speechless.

Granny Li spoke up, her voice shrill and sharp: "You're Jiang Daya? I'm your stepmother. Your mother remarried into our family, so you're one of us now. You have to give up this shed you're living in, and half of your family's grain should be given to us."

Jiang Xing looked at her as if she were a clown jumping around on a beam: "Are you done talking? If you're done, then get lost."

Granny Li was stunned for a moment, then exploded: "What kind of attitude is that? I'm your elder! How dare you talk to me like that?"

"Who do you think you are, some kind of elder?" Jiang Xing said. "I have nothing to do with Yang Cuihua. When she remarried, I wasn't her daughter anymore. Now you're trying to claim kinship? Too late."

Yang Cuihua became anxious: "Jiang Daya! I am your own mother! If you don't acknowledge me, you are being unfilial! Filial piety is paramount, and you can't reason with me anywhere!"

"Filial piety?" Jiang Xing looked at her. "Where were you when my father died? Where were you when my brother had his head smashed open? Where were you when our family was bullied? And now you're talking about filial piety? Yang Cuihua, have you no shame?"

Yang Cuihua's face flushed red and then turned pale.

Granny Li jumped up and down, yelling, "This is outrageous! A mere maid dares to curse her own mother! Cuihua, go and sue her! Sue her for filial impiety! Let the authorities arrest her and put her in jail!"

"Go sue." Jiang Xing looked at Yang Cuihua, his tone indifferent: "Go ahead and sue, I wish you would. You abandoned your own children and remarried without permission, you're unfaithful, how dare you sue?"

Yang Cuihua blushed with anger, while Granny Li continued to stomp her feet: "Don't be stubborn! I think you're just pretending now. You'll know what fear is when you actually take it to the authorities."

"Then let's give it a try," Jiang Xing said. "I'll be waiting."