Zhulan had time to take a closer look at the eldest daughter. The eldest daughter looked like her mother-in-law and had good looks. In the original body's memory, the eldest daughter was raised by her mother-in-law for several years, and her personality was like her mother-in-law, gentle on the outside but strong on the inside and very opinionated. Unfortunately, her mother-in-law passed away early and she didn't raise her for several years. However, in her memory, she was very successful at a young age and helped the original body a lot.
Zhulan likes this eldest daughter very much. She is tactful, filial and not jealous. Today, Zhou Shuren gave her a jade pendant as a token of trust. She carefully observed the children in the family.
The more the eldest brother knows, the more confident he feels. Zhou Shuren is always well-mannered and is becoming more and more like the eldest son.
The second brother is the most thoughtful and shrewd. Even if he doesn't tell him the truth, he has figured it out a little bit but doesn't show it on his face.
After all, the third son was young and selfish, and he didn't like Rongchuan, so his expression changed.
The eldest son was also very calm. This kid really doesn't care that much about money.
The eldest daughter was not jealous. Instead, she kept examining Rongchuan. She was protecting her younger sister!
In the bedroom, Zhou Shuren heard the noise and saw Zhulan pulling her eldest daughter in. He quickly closed his eyes again. He was not going to go out to make room for the mother and daughter. He was not drunk, but he was very tired after talking for the whole morning. He lay there and didn't want to move.
Zhulan didn't notice Zhou Shuren's actions and gestured to her eldest daughter to sit down.
Xuemei glanced at her father who was resting, "Mom, Dad is resting, you've been tired all day, take a rest too, I'm going to leave first."
Zhu Lan stopped her, "It's okay, your father is sleeping soundly, and our conversation won't disturb him."
Xuemei really wanted to chat with her mother, but she didn't say much today. Then she thought about waiting for the ox cart to come back and leave, so she didn't go out in the end.
Zhulan had already gone to the kang to look through the money box. This time, she understood the original mother's feelings of subsidizing her daughter. She took out five taels of silver and put it in her purse. She also took out two sets of children's clothes and put them in front of the eldest daughter. "Take this money and use it. The clothes were made by mother last night. They are a little bigger. If they don't fit, you can go back and have them altered for the child."
Xuemei's eyes turned red. "Mom, my family has already given me a lot of money. I can't accept this money."
If it wasn't for subsidizing her, why would she send New Year gifts to the Jiang family? It's because she knows that the conflicts in the Jiang family are all because of her. This year's gift is more than in previous years. Her mother is thinking about her and the children and supporting her.
Zhulan felt sad, "The money is not for you, but for my grandchildren. Both children have lost weight when summer comes."
Xuemei felt a lump in her throat and wanted to cry. She wanted to say that she still had some silver in the bottom of the box and would not let the child suffer any loss, but she could not say it out loud. The ten taels of silver in the bottom of the box were gone, and her husband was going to take the exam to become a scholar again this year, but the family could not raise the money. Her parents-in-law wanted to sell their land, and several sisters-in-law got together and had a fight that lasted for several days. Her parents-in-law refused to lend her money, and they were so angry that the eldest sister-in-law wanted to hang herself with the child. Her husband said he would not take the exam anymore.
What could her parents-in-law do? They finally compromised. She was unwilling to accept this. Her husband was talented and hardworking, and she didn't want to give up halfway. In the end, she not only took out the silver money from the bottom of the box, but also pawned the hairpin given by her mother as a dowry to raise enough silver. Unfortunately, she almost passed the exam. If the quarrel at home had not affected her husband, he would have passed this year.
After her husband failed the exam, his sisters-in-law looked down on their family more and more, and his parents-in-law also lost hope. After her husband failed the exam, his parents-in-law no longer protected their family. In previous years, they had to harvest the autumn harvest together, but this year most of the work fell on their family. Her husband didn't eat well to begin with, and he lost even more weight in the autumn. His parents-in-law seemed to have noticed nothing. If she hadn't encouraged him to take the exam again, and if her husband hadn't wanted to earn back her dowry money to save his face, he would have given up long ago.
Zhulan's eyes also turned red when she saw her daughter crying. The girl was much thinner than in July, with calluses all over her hands. Her son-in-law was even thinner and looked unrecognizable. Even though the second son talked about the changes in the eldest daughter and her husband, he could not see it clearly with his eyes. He hugged his daughter and said, "You didn't say anything when you were wronged. Why are you so stubborn?"
Xuemei cried so hard. She was a gentle person with a strong heart but she couldn't stand the years of bullying. When had she ever been bullied in her parents' home? She was really wronged in her husband's family. They were not a couple who only studied and did nothing. Her husband never fell behind in the work in the fields and she also helped. It was her parents-in-law's idea for him to study, but how come they were the ones to blame in the end? Thinking of her son and daughter who didn't have enough to eat, she cried even more sadly.
Zhu Lan's heart ached. The more she integrated into the Zhou family, the more she treated the children as her own. Yesterday, she heard the second child talk about the changes in the eldest daughter. She made clothes for the two grandsons overnight. The money was discussed with Zhou Shuren. Touching the eldest daughter's thin body, her heart ached even more. "Okay, don't cry. Your mother feels sad when you cry."
Xuemei was afraid that her mother was not in good health and worried about her, so she did not dare to go back home once in winter. Only when she saw that her mother was well did she dare to cry, choking with sobs, "I won't cry anymore, and don't feel bad, mother."
"Tell your mother and me all the changes in the Jiang family this year."
Zhulan was startled and saw Zhou Shuren sitting up. "Did you wake me up?"