Mo Zenian picked up his bowl and threw it towards Mo Lingâs back, âEven if you die, youâll die at their house. Since ancient times, marriage has been a major event, determined by your parents and the matchmaker. Do you want to go against the heavens?â
Mrs. Liang set down the rice bowl vigorously, smashing it in half, âMy Lingâer already has a fiance. Go and tell your employer, she wonât marry his son.â
âWhat kind of fiance does she have, and who allowed it!â
âI allowed it. Sheâs my daughter, why should I change her future for you!â
âYou are a shrew, occupying the role of my wife without doing anything. Iâll divorce you!â
âYou dare, Mo Zenian? I gave birth to a son and respected your mother. If you dare to divorce me, Iâll go to the governing official to sue you, and Iâll make you go to jail and be punished.â
âYou shrew, you cursed my sister to die during the New Year, how could you be filial? You definitely abuse my mother when Iâm not at home!â
Mrs. Liang sneered, âIf youâre filial, then take her to the city! Why do you keep her here?â
âThis is my house, the Mo family house. This isnât the Liang family house!â
âI built this house myself, and it has nothing to do with your Mo family. I think itâs you who should get out!â
âYouâre all going against me!â [1]
Mo Zenian flipped over the dining table, and the dishes fell on the ground, most of which were broken. Mo Yan looked at the mess on the ground, gritted her teeth and said, âMother, since he doesnât have this family or us in his heart, itâs better to make peace with him and separate from him cleanly.â
He turned his anger on Mo Yan again, âYou have no right to speak, get out!â
Mo Yanâs eyes widened angrily, and she glared at him, âIs it because Iâm not old enough to marry yet, so I canât improve your future? Iâll marry sooner or later, but I wonât change my future for you. Iâll raise my mother, but I donât have to keep the Mo surname!â
âYouâre trying to rebel!â He slapped Mo Yan firmly on the face. She didnât cry, nor did she feel wronged, because she knew that dogs would always bite people.
âMother, if you separate with him, we wonât have to worry about the old woman in the back courtyard anymore, and the family at the east of the village will no longer be our relatives. Weâll be free from them!â
Mo Zenian still wanted to hit Mo Yan again, but was stopped by Mrs. Liang, âStop it, sheâs right. If Fengâer wasnât so young, I would have separated with you long ago.â
âLeave as soon as you leave, Iâll go and ask Ping Shun to write the paperwork!â
Mo Zenian left in a huff, the ground was in a mess and no one cleaned it up. Mrs. Liang sat in the kitchen and burst into tears. Mo Feng came in and squatted beside her, âMother, if you really divorce, I want to stay with you, I donât want to be with him.â
Mrs. Liang patted Mo Fengâs head, âFengâer, youâve grown up and can leave your mother. No oneâs mother can stay with them forever! In the future, you have to go your own way.â
âMum, I donât!â Mo Feng also started crying.
Mo Yan came in and said, âYouâre male, youâll have to enter the Mo familyâs ancestral grave in the future. Weâre different, weâll marry into someone elseâs family anyway.â
âYanâer, I donât want to go to Yi City, I donât want to go with him!â
âIf you donât want to go with him, you need to make a living for yourself. No one can support you for a lifetime!â
Mrs. Liang was still hesitant, âShould I really divorce from him?â
Her birth parents were gone, and she only had one younger brother, and no one to back her up. If they divorced, she wouldnât have anywhere to go.
Mo Ling also entered the kitchen, âWhat are you afraid of? We can support you. At worst, weâll leave the village and rent a house in Qianshui City.â
âBut weâll have a bad reputation, and you wonât be able to marry well!â
âMother, what is a good family? When you married my father, was their family considered a good family? How about now?â
Mo Zenian really went to look for the governing official. It seemed like he really wanted a divorce and was afraid that if he missed this opportunity, Mrs. Liang would change her mind. His mistress was probably eager to become his wife, or his son from outside was of age to join the genealogy.
When the governing official came to their house, he naturally tried to persuade them to change their mind. But Mo Zenian had long since stopped caring about this family, and wished he never had to come back. If it wasnât for Mo Lingâs marriage he wouldnât have come back so early and would have only stayed for three or four days for a formality.
He had been thinking about divorcing his wife for more than a day or two, but he didnât mention it as Mrs. Liang had a short temper. Now that she had finally brought it up, he struck while the iron was hot and ended their marriage as soon as possible.
Uncle Pingshun was trying to persuade them to calm down and didnât write a divorce agreement, so Mo Zenian wrote it himself. Mrs. Liang was illiterate, so Mo Yan read it for her. Aside from formalities, it was about children and property.
In order to divorce smoothly, Mo Zenian thought he gave very generous terms.
âThis courtyard is for you to live in. If you want to farm the two acres of land, feel free, but you have to give my mother food.â
Mo Yan immediately replied, âWe donât want it.â
âIâll allow you to keep your surname, but your life wonât have anything to do with me!â
Mo Yan patted the table, âVery good!â
However, Mrs. Liang shed tears again, âFengâer is your eldest son, but youâre not even going to recognize him?â
He sneered and said, âSons can be born easily. Iâm letting him keep his surname, and he can still enter the ancestral grave in the future. Iâm being very generous. Youâve raised a good son, go reap what youâve sown!â
At this time, Mo Yan had confirmed he had a son with his mistress.
Mu Feng held his motherâs clothes tightly and begged, âMother, I want to stay with you.â
Mo Zenian was holding the newly written divorce paper in his hand, and wanted to make a last effort to improve his future, âIf Mo Ling agrees to the marriage, I wonât divorce you, and Iâll take Fengâer away.â
Mo Yan gritted her teeth and said, âIn your dreams!â
Mrs. Liang patted her thigh, âOkay, Iâll sign it.â After speaking, she pressed his fingerprints on the divorce paper.
Both parties agreed, so Uncle Pingshun had no choice but to sign as the witness.
Holding back tears, Mrs. Liang saluted him and said, âPingshun, tell the villagers that I am no longer Mrs. Liang, my name is Liang Yanfen.â
She has endured so much for so many years, but this day has finally come.
There are two copies of the divorce papers, and they each put away their own copy. Mu Zenian took it and read it repeatedly, just like when Mo Yan got the business documents.
Mo Zenian kept saying that he was generous, and Ms. Liang wasnât stingy, so didnât drive him out immediately, but she moved to Mo Ling and Mo Yanâs room to sleep.
At night, the mother and daughters were lying on the kang and talking.
âLingâer, you didnât want me to tell him weâve made money, did you expect this to happen?â
âYes, nothing had happened before, so I couldnât persuade you to divorce, but think about it carefully. What have you gotten from the Mo family in these years besides the reputation of being a wife? Since he doesnât even want to give you this, whatâs the point? Donât worry, we can afford to take care of you.â
âThen Iâll be in your care from now on.â As she spoke, Ms. Liang began to cry again.
The next day is the fifth day of the New Year. To welcome the God of Wealth and chop up villains, each household had to make dumplings. Mo Ling started chopping cabbage early in the morning, Ms. Liang made flour, and they made dumplings together.
They made two plates of dumplings and they couldnât eat them all. Mo Ling called Mo Yan, âYanâer, send a plate of dumplings to your second grandma.â
Mo Yan agreed, and went to the backyard with the dumplings. As soon as she entered the courtyard, she shouted, âSecond grandma, Iâm bringing you dumplings.â
Post-translation notes: Things are looking up after the divorce! Now we just have to hope the mistress doesnât cause chaos here. Also, I intentionally changed Mrs. Liangâs name; from now on, sheâll be Ms. Liang. Thank you for reading!
[1] What a juvenile manchild.