Chapter 200
With the incentive of the subsidy, the villagers eagerly signed up. Even after eliminating those who didn’t meet the requirements, there were still more than enough applicants for the three hundred spots.
Wu Zhenggui was stunned when he saw the registration list.
“There are actually this many extra people?”
“Yes. It seems everyone’s sense of civic responsibility is pretty strong after all.” Song Nianchu looked pleased as she studied the list.
“They may have some sense of civic responsibility, but most of them are really just here for the subsidy.” Wu Zhenggui knew the villagers well. “Since there are too many applicants, should we screen them again?”
“Right. Let’s draw lots when the time comes,” Song Nianchu replied.
“All right. I’ll arrange it tomorrow.” Wu Zhenggui nodded.
“Mm.”
After handing the list over to Wu Zhenggui, Song Nianchu no longer needed to worry about the rest.
Meanwhile, over in Yangjia Village, Yang’s mother was arguing furiously with Mu Jingmei.
“Why should I go? Building the dam is hard and exhausting. If you want to go, then you go!” Mu Jingmei looked at Yang’s mother with open disgust.
“I’m too old and don’t meet the requirements. Otherwise, I’d certainly go.” Yang’s mother planted her hands on her hips.
“Who can you blame for that? You’re the one who got old.” Mu Jingmei refused to back down.
“You!” Yang’s mother was so angry she nearly exploded. She turned to Yang Dafu beside her. “Dafu, are you going to control your wife or not? I’m her mother-in-law, yet look at the way she’s treating me! Anyone who didn’t know better would think she was my mother-in-law instead.”
“Jingmei, show my mother some respect.” Yang Dafu frowned.
Ever since their family had gotten into trouble and his father had been arrested, arguments had broken out at home every other day. His head felt like it was splitting in two, and he almost wished he never had to come home.
“Respect? I’ve already been respectful enough. Didn’t you hear her telling me to go build the dam? Is that any place for a young woman like me?” Mu Jingmei became irritated with Yang Dafu as well.
“Why can’t you go? So many people in the village have signed up. They provide food and lodging, and the production brigade is offering an additional subsidy too—five yuan! You have to go!” Yang’s mother gritted her teeth.
“It’s only five yuan. Have you never seen money before?”
“Hah, listen to you! What do you mean, ‘only five yuan’? Have you ever earned even a single yuan since marrying into our family? We spent a fortune arranging your wedding, and this is what we got—a jinx for a daughter-in-law.”
“Who are you calling a jinx? You were the ones with rotten intentions, so why blame me? Did I force you to embezzle public funds?” Mu Jingmei wasn’t the least bit intimidated when it came to arguing.
“You…” Yang’s mother had never encountered anyone like her. The finger she pointed at Mu Jingmei trembled violently.
“All right, stop fighting! I’m hungry. Hurry up and bring the food!” Yang Dafu had a splitting headache from their arguing. He slammed his palm against the table and glared coldly at the two women.
Yang Dafu already had a naturally fierce-looking face. With his expression darkened, he looked terrifying enough to make anyone’s heart tremble.
The two women fell silent at once.
In the end, Yang’s mother still cared about her son. She turned and went to the kitchen to bring out their dinner.
When she lifted the lid, all that could be seen was a large bowl of watery millet porridge and a plate of young greens.
“That’s all?” Yang Dafu stared at Yang’s mother in disbelief.
“All the grain in the house was confiscated earlier. I had a hard time getting even this much. Eat quickly, then go lie down in bed. That way, you won’t feel so hungry.” Yang’s mother filled a bowl for Yang Dafu, giving him the thickest porridge, then filled one for herself.
Only thin broth remained in the pot.
Seeing this, Mu Jingmei said nothing. She simply picked up the bowl of porridge in front of Yang’s mother.
“What are you doing? That’s mine!” Yang’s mother was furious.
“You’re already so old. You’ll digest watery soup and broth more easily.” Mu Jingmei ignored her completely, lifted the bowl, and drained the millet porridge in one go.
“You shameless woman! Not only do you refuse to show your mother-in-law any respect, you even steal my food! I’m going to beat you to death today!” Yang’s mother was so enraged that her eyes turned red. She pulled off one of her shoes and swung it at Mu Jingmei.
Mu Jingmei wasn’t the type to let others bully her. She immediately grappled with Yang’s mother.
Yang Dafu finished the porridge and ate the plate of greens, yet he still didn’t feel full.
In the end, he even drank every last drop of the broth left in the pot.
His stomach was full, but it was filled entirely with water, which made him feel extremely uncomfortable.
Just as he was thinking of searching the house for something else to eat, a tattered shoe flew straight into his bowl.
Yang Dafu: “…”
Yang Dafu slammed the bowl onto the table, stood up, and forcibly pulled Mu Jingmei and Yang’s mother apart.
“If either of you dares to fight again, I’ll throw you both out!”
“She started it.” Mu Jingmei’s hair had been yanked into a bird’s nest, and her clothes were torn nearly beyond recognition.
Yang’s mother looked even worse. She had fallen hard onto the floor and was now sitting there, wailing and slapping her thighs.
“Heavens above! Open your eyes and look! In this day and age, a daughter-in-law actually dares to hit her mother-in-law! Why don’t you send down a bolt of lightning and strike her dead?”
“You’ve done so many wicked things. If there really were a God of Thunder, you’d be the first one he struck,” Mu Jingmei retorted fearlessly.
“Can you stop talking for once?” Yang Dafu glared at Mu Jingmei.
Before their family had gotten into trouble, Mu Jingmei had still treated him fairly well.
But once disaster struck, her temper had come completely to the surface.
People had called her a refined, gentle, and virtuous young lady from the city, but Mu Jingmei didn’t fit that description in the slightest.
“Why should I stop talking? When you asked me to marry you, you promised me that I’d eat meat every day and never have to work. But look at the life I’m living now! It’s bad enough that I can’t get enough to eat, and now I have to work in the fields for work points too. Yang Dafu, I want a divorce!” Mu Jingmei lost her temper as well.
“What did you say?” The look in Yang Dafu’s eyes instantly turned dark and menacing.
Mu Jingmei was furious and didn’t notice the change in his expression. She repeated herself.
“I said I want a divorce!”
But the moment Mu Jingmei finished speaking, Yang Dafu slapped her across the face.
He had used all his strength. The blow sent Mu Jingmei staggering several steps backward.
She stood there stunned for a long while. Only when a fiery pain spread across her cheek did she realize that Yang Dafu had actually hit her.
Mu Jingmei covered her face and turned to stare straight at Yang Dafu.
“Yang Dafu, you dared to hit me?!”