Chapter 46 - 045: Oppression
After riding the night train for two consecutive days, Old Mrs. Ye’s body couldn’t take it. Once she returned home, she fell ill immediately, unlike the last time when she fell ill working at the brigade’s field and had Wang Changjiang take her to see a doctor. Now, she could only rely on herself, and Ye Ling thought about how her grandmother passed away early in her previous life, so she decided to take her to the town.
After covering Grandma with a blanket, she went to the brigade. There was an empty house at the east end of the village, which the brigade used as the brigade office. When Ye Ling entered, Wang Changjiang was talking to Si Daochen’s father. He looked up and saw Ye Ling come in without any surprise on his face.
This made Ye Ling realize that Wang Changjiang was aware of her and Grandma’s return.
"Uncle Wang, my grandma is sick. Could you lend us the brigade’s cart to take her to the town for a check-up?" Ye Ling lowered her stance, as she was here to ask for help.
Since the Ye Family received the telegram and left, Wang Changjiang kept guessing what the matter was. Now, seeing the old and the young return, and the old woman still sick, he couldn’t figure out what the issue was but sensed it was a conflict with the city people. Otherwise, why would the old woman return and fall ill?
These guesses flashed through Wang Changjiang’s mind in an instant. He had his calculations but didn’t speak immediately, putting on a difficult expression on his face before sighing, "Lingzi, it’s not that Uncle doesn’t want to lend you the cart. The cart belongs to the brigade; if every household borrows it for their matters, what about the brigade’s tasks? It’s not that Uncle is inconsiderate; there are many eyes in the village watching. If I make an exception this time, what will happen when other families come to borrow the cart? Why don’t we wait for the brigade members to return, and we’ll have a meeting? If it’s approved, I’ll have someone let you know. You should go home and wait first."
Ye Ling was itching to retort and curse back but knew that demanding the cart now would get her nowhere, so she held back her temper, "Uncle Wang, everyone in our village has been here for generations, and if you trace back a few generations, we all came over during the northeastern migration. We’re all connected somehow, and my grandma is old and sick. Even if it were an outsider, you wouldn’t just watch, right? Plus, Uncle Wang, you’re the brigade leader. Your awareness should be higher than us common folk, and serving the people isn’t the same as privately lending the cart, right?"
As she reached the end of her plea, Ye Ling adjusted her words and smiled, "The cart belongs to the brigade, which means it’s the whole village’s. Using it for family elder’s illness is just normal, wouldn’t you say? Even without explaining to the villagers, who could stand up and say anything? After all, it’s a matter of life and death."
Grandma was old, and saying it’s a matter of life and death didn’t seem excessive to Ye Ling.
Wang Changjiang felt embarrassed by Ye Ling’s words. If he disagreed in front of outsiders, wouldn’t he appear heartless and ignorant? He really didn’t know when the Ye Family girl became so sharp-tongued.