Chapter 4: Severing Ties
Xu Jinyan thought about the fact that he would be leaving next month and would need quite a bit of money. At home, he had a paralyzed father and poor financial conditions; considering he was divorced and could still borrow this much money, that was already not bad.
Xu’s mother wore a cold expression as she spoke, “That’s right, we’ll divorce her and have her return the two hundred yuan she took before.”
Xu Jinyan’s face changed slightly.
Xia Xiaoyu sneered, “Of those two hundred yuan, Xu Jinyan took one hundred from me. I can return the rest to you, but I’ve worked like a beast of burden in your house. Even a laborer deserves a wage. Calculate what I’ve done during this period, and pay me accordingly.”
Xu Chunhua mocked, “How could there be such a shameless woman in this world? You eat and drink at the Xu’s—what’s wrong with helping take care of the elderly? Now you want a wage for that?”
Xia Xiaoyu gazed at Xu Chunhua with a chilly look. “If you’re willing to be an unpaid maid, that’s your business. Since I’m cutting ties with Xu Jinyan, it’s only right to be clear about everything.”
The old village secretary was at a loss.
What kind of mess was this?
He looked over at Xu Jinyan.
Xu Chunhua muttered under her breath, “Jinyan, I can’t stand this woman. If you don’t separate from her, I won’t lend you any money.”
The old secretary, not getting a reply from Xu Jinyan, said, “I’ll give you a few more days to think it over.”
Xia Xiaoyu wanted nothing more than to make a clean break. “No need. I’ve already made my decision.”
Xu’s mother urged her son, “Divorce her. Let’s see how tough she acts when she has to return the money and has nowhere to stay.”
Xu Jinyan was still hesitating.
His mother pressed on, “What are you hesitating for? You’ve already been accepted to university. You have a bright future ahead. You can marry someone better, someone who can help your prospects. Why stay with a woman who only eats, doesn’t work, and won’t help care for your parents?”
Xu Jinyan found this reasonable. Gritting his teeth, he told the old secretary, “I agree. I want a divorce, but my mother says she must return the bride price we gave her family.”
The old secretary felt thoroughly embarrassed but still tried to reason with him. “Jinyan, think it over carefully.”
Xu’s mother jumped in, “What’s there to consider? Make her return the bride price, and since she’s lived and eaten at our house for so long, she should pay a year’s worth of food and lodging.”
The other villagers watching were speechless.
The old secretary asked, “Are you here to solve problems or not? Looks to me like you’ve already made up your minds.”
If ever there was one-sided oppression, this was it.
He couldn’t take it anymore. “If you’re so unreasonable, fine, divorce it is. But since you’re the ones proposing it, there’s no reason she should return the entire bride price.”
Xu’s mother shouted, “Old Secretary, we’re all from the Xu family. Why are you taking her side?”
The old secretary’s face darkened.
Xu Jinyan tugged at his mother. “Mother, that’s enough.”
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Xia Xiaoyu said, “Xu Jinyan, on our wedding night, you took one hundred yuan from me. You call yourself a man, a scholar—will you admit it?”
A scholar’s reputation must not be tarnished.
Xu Jinyan nodded. “I admit it. I took one hundred yuan. Our family gave you two hundred, so you only need to return the remaining hundred.”
Xu’s mother stomped her feet in anger, feeling her son was being taken advantage of.
The old secretary disagreed. “According to the rules, since you’re the ones proposing the divorce and Jinyan already took one hundred from his wife, Xia Xiaoyu only needs to return fifty of the remaining hundred.”
Xu’s mother protested again, “No!”
The old secretary was too tired to argue. “If you’re so idle, go to the commune and tell everyone how you treat others. If you think this will do Xu Jinyan’s reputation any good, keep making a scene.”
But Xu’s mother was confident. “Son, get this woman out of here. She’ll be begging at our door tomorrow, asking you to take her back.”
Xu Chunhua chimed in, “Xia Xiaoyu isn’t even a child of this village. The elders who picked her up are all gone. No one will stand up for her.”
“She has nowhere to go. What’s the use of her tough talk now?”
Xu’s mother agreed. The most important thing was to get the tuition money for her son.
“Fine, let’s leave it at that.”
Xia Xiaoyu immediately received a certificate of divorce written by the old secretary.
Xu’s mother said, “Pack up whatever you left at our house and get out.”
Worried Xu’s mother would try to cause more trouble, Xia Xiaoyu asked the old secretary to be a witness.
A group of people trailed behind as they went to the old house where Xu Jinyan and Xia Xiaoyu had lived.
Xia Xiaoyu began packing her things late into the night.
Her university acceptance letter was at the bottom of her clothes. She took her bundle and packed all her clothes inside.
Xu’s mother wanted to search her things. “Wait, I want to check if you’ve stolen anything from us.”
Xia Xiaoyu looked up coolly. “These few rags—do you really want to take them by force?”
The old secretary’s opinion of their family had plummeted. “Xu Jinyan, a scholar should act like one.”
Only then did Xu Jinyan tell Xu Anxin, “Let her pack.”
With so many people watching, if she had any private savings, she wouldn’t dare take them out now. He could search later.
Xia Xiaoyu really had very little—just a few sets of clothes, not even any jewelry.
---
Once her bundle was ready, all that remained were some pots and bowls she had bought herself.
Watching her pack up more from the kitchen than the room, Xu’s mother nearly exploded.
But Xu Jinyan suddenly remembered: when he married, the only things in the house were a bed and a quilt—because his mother said they could just use things from home.
Xia Xiaoyu was nearly done. There was just a large wooden tub with her things and her packed clothes.
She left behind whatever else she couldn’t carry; she didn’t want them.
Xu’s mother watched her haul everything to the door and gritted her teeth in pain.
The old secretary saw Xia Xiaoyu, a lone woman, trying to move so much, and it was already night—not at all convenient or safe.
He asked, “Do you have anywhere to go?”
Just as Xia Xiaoyu was about to speak, Xu Chunhua interjected, “She’s an orphan. Where would she possibly go?”
She meant that no matter what Xia Xiaoyu did, she had nowhere to turn.
But hearing this, the old secretary looked at Xia Xiaoyu with even more sympathy.
He said, “There’s still a room by the cattle shed. You can stay there for now tonight.”
Xia Xiaoyu wasn’t entirely without a place to go. In fact, she had already made arrangements. But with the old secretary offering, she thought it best to accept.
The divorce had happened much faster than she expected. These past days, she’d been searching for that man—she hoped, before leaving the village, to at least learn who he was that night.
“Thank you, Secretary,” Xia Xiaoyu said.
Xu’s mother was nearly beside herself with rage, glaring daggers at her.
But Xu Chunhua sidled up and said, “Auntie, why are you so upset? She’s an orphan—even if she can stay in the cattle shed, that place is remote. If she goes there tonight, who knows if she’ll run into snakes or wild beasts on the way.”
Xu’s mother’s eyes flickered with calculation.