Chapter 21 - 021 Rise Up
Zhu Qingping panicked. What did grandpa mean? Did he want Jinhua and her to divorce? Although she always disparaged Tian Jinhua for not being accomplished or manly enough, she was absolutely unwilling to divorce him. The Tian Family had good food, a good home, and kind grandparents, uncles, and aunts. Plus, there was the prestigious relatives from great-grandpa's family, making her the envy of everyone wherever she went. Weren't all her former sisters envious of her good marriage?
Even her own parents and siblings treated her with extra respect, speaking softly and not daring to raise their voices, unlike how they used to scold and hit her when she was a child. Wasn't it all because of the substantial festival gifts she brought home every year? If she were to suddenly stay at her parents' home again, especially for the disgraceful reason of needing to learn manners, not to mention the spit of the villagers, even her own parents and siblings would grind her to death with complaints.
No, going back to her parent's house was not an option, there was nothing good to be had there. Zhu Qingping suddenly knelt on the ground, ceaselessly kowtowing, "Grandpa, please don't make me go back home. I know I was wrong. I shouldn't have hit Ah Nan. I will go apologize to Ah Nan tomorrow. Grandpa, I beg you, please don't send me away. Granny, Daddy, Mama, Uncle, Aunt, Jinhua, please say some good words for me. I really know I was wrong!"
Zhu Qingping cried miserably, her voice growing louder and louder. Li Yuedi, infuriated, shouted, "Do you think our family isn't disgraced enough? Why don't you just go outside and cry and draw all of Tian's field's people here? That would surely look good!"
Li Yuedi was the most face-conscious person. Whatever she did, nobody could find any fault. Even though she was straightforward by nature, in all her decades with Bajin, they had never had a direct confrontation. Even when disciplining children, she would close the doors and windows and sternly deal with them, but there is one thing: children could not cry out loud. The louder they cried, the harsher she would be. Hence, the children of Bajin's house, including Tian Mantu, knew they could only clench their teeth and endure silently when hit by Li Yuedi.
Zhu Qingping, after being scolded by Li Yuedi, dared not cry loudly anymore, but only sobbed quietly, looking very pitiful. On the second floor, Tian Qinghua, Tian Xinhua, and Tian Shouhua shrank at the stair entrance, they had been hiding here watching since they went upstairs. They all disliked this older sister-in-law, Zhu Qingping.
Children tend to be competitive, especially at their age. Whenever they gathered with friends, they would talk about their family members. Their cousin Sisi, known as Miss Shanghai, made them particularly proud. Simply mentioning that "Miss Shanghai" was their cousin drew envious and jealous looks from their peers, which they found greatly satisfying.
However, this older sister-in-law, Zhu Qingping, was not someone they could be proud of. It wasn't just that she wasn't pretty, but she also lacked any manners and was not gentle, caring, or capable like other people's older sisters-in-law. Zhu Qingping not only hogged the best food but also always bossed them around. Tian Xinhua and the others had long harbored frustrations towards her. Although they were the younger generation and couldn't confront Zhu Qingping even when furious, they were quite thrilled now that grandpa and grandma had finally taken action.
"Looking at it now, the sister-in-law seems quite pitiful," Tian Qinghua said, his heart softening at the sight of Zhu Qingping crying miserably below.