“Thank you, Brigade Leader, but there’s no need to reconsider. I must get this divorce. I can’t stand another moment in this family.” Xiao Mandong only wanted to escape this household as quickly as possible, to get far away from the Lu family.
Lu Bingshan’s lips twitched with anger, but he dared not speak back. The truth had been exposed, and further denial would only bring more shame.
Seeing Xiao Mandong’s firm stance, the Brigade Leader stopped trying to persuade her. After everything that had happened, staying in the Lu household would do her no good. He could always help the girl out in the future. Turning to Lu Bingshan, he said:
“Since it’s settled, let’s draft a written pledge. Write down Mandong’s three demands clearly: voluntary divorce, return of all her dowry—listing the sewing machine, watch, two hundred yuan, and other related items—and cooperation in handling the paperwork for her transfer to the Red Flag Brigade in the countryside. Every member of your family must sign and finger print. The accountant and I will act as witnesses. With this pledge, no one can go back on their word later.”
The village accountant immediately took out paper and pen from his cloth bag and wrote the pledge on the spot, the terms clear and explicit. The divorce would still take a few days, as they had to wait until Lu Jianguo could get out of bed.
Lu Bingshan… He had no desire to sign just yet, but refusing would mean openly defying the brigade, only making things worse. Gritting his teeth, he made Ma Lanying and the injured Lu Jianguo press their fingerprints and sign, finally adding his own fingerprint at the end.
Xiao Mandong took the pledge, read it carefully to ensure nothing was missing, then folded it neatly and tucked it into her pocket.
The Brigade Leader kept the other copy, handing it to the accountant for safekeeping, then warned Lu Bingshan: “Until Xiao Mandong comrades leaves for the countryside, she will continue staying here. You must guarantee her safety, or else don’t blame me for being harsh.”
With that, the village officials set down their things and turned to leave.
Just as they reached the gate, Ma Lanying began muttering under her breath:
“What a curse, marrying a jinx like her. She’s ruined my Jianjun…”
Suddenly, Xiao Mandong remembered something and hurried after them: “Brigade Leader, leaders, please wait a moment.”
The village officials turned back, thinking maybe she regretted the divorce. After all, divorce in these times was hardly a respectable thing, and a divorced woman’s reputation was worse than a widow’s.
By now, some villagers were passing by. Xiao Mandong deliberately raised her voice:
“There’s something I’ve kept to myself for too long, but I have to say it now. During the New Year, Wang Xiumei let it slip: Lu Jianjun’s failure to get promoted had nothing to do with my family background. It was because someone more capable competed against him in the army. When he lost, he came back and blamed me, making his whole family hate me. Out of respect for him as the eldest brother, I kept quiet until now. But I won’t carry that stain for him anymore. If you don’t believe me, you can investigate at the military unit—they won’t lie. If I’m lying, I’ll face any consequences.”
In her past life, the Lu family had bullied the village under the name of being a martyr’s family. Now that their hero’s mask had been stripped away, no one would grant them any face again.
Several village officials shook their heads at Lu Bingshan. The Brigade Leader sighed:
“Lu Bingshan, your family’s actions here have been truly dishonorable. How could you wrong someone like that? And Jianjun… well, the deceased are forgiven, but really…”
Lu Bingshan was flustered and embarrassed. He wanted to argue but feared this madwoman might actually go to the military for a confrontation. So he forced himself to shift the blame to Ma Lanying:
“We never blamed Mandong. It’s just that old woman’s loose tongue, always spouting nonsense. I’ll deal with her when I get home.”
Passing villagers curled their lips and whispered among themselves. Xiao Mandong was confident the news would spread through the whole village by nightfall.
As soon as the gate closed, Ma Lanying, unable to contain her fury, felt overwhelmed. Losing a daughter-in-law like this was unbearable, and on top of that, having to return the entire dowry made her blood boil. And now her eldest son’s reputation was ruined too. Ma Lanying directed all her anger at Wang Xiumei:
“Wang Xiumei, get inside with me.”
Wang Xiumei heard her mother-in-law’s summons and rushed to Lu Jianguo’s bed, grabbing his arm:
“Jianguo, help me!”
Lu Jianguo was kneeling on the kang with his legs apart, unable to lie on his stomach or back, and had no mind to deal with Wang Xiumei. He pried her fingers off his arm:
“Go in and apologize to Mom properly. It’ll be fine.”
Seeing that Wang Xiumei hadn’t come inside yet, Ma Lanying stormed over, grabbed her by the hair, and dragged her into their room.
Wang Xiumei trembled like a leaf, truly terrified. When she first married into the family, her mother-in-law had beaten and scolded her constantly. Only when she followed Lu Jianjun to the army had she escaped the old woman’s control.
The room echoed with screams and curses. Only Wang Xiumei knew what she endured.
Xiao Mandong returned to her own room, locked the door, and didn’t bother cleaning up the overturned kettle on the floor. She wouldn’t be staying much longer anyway.
She lifted a brick under the edge of the kang and pulled out a tarpaper-wrapped bundle. Inside were a bankbook, some ration tickets, and a uniquely patterned silver ring with a red braided cord attached.
The ring had been given to her by her grandmother, who said it was her great-grandmother’s dowry.
She had worn it around her neck since childhood. When she first came to the Lu household, her younger sister-in-law, Lu Hong, had seen it and demanded it. Xiao Mandong refused, and Lu Hong stole it one night. It took a lot of effort to get it back.
Now she put the ring back around her neck. As soon as she did, a strange feeling came over her—the tightness in her chest and dizziness noticeably eased.
Her constitution had never been strong, but it hadn’t been this bad until recently. It seemed like her health had deteriorated after she’d stopped wearing the ring.
She didn’t think too much more about it. There was much to do. She sewed the bankbook and tickets into an old cotton-padded jacket.
Hearing Wang Xiumei’s sobs outside the door, Xiao Mandong smiled slightly. She had known that exposing Lu Jianjun’s false accusation through Wang Xiumei would lead to a beating.
But Wang Xiumei really was the one who had revealed it—only ten years later in Xiao Mandong’s past life.
She packed her belongings, tied them with rope, and locked the door. Then she headed to the village’s drying ground.
At the drying ground, many people were chatting, enjoying the cool evening air, while children ran around playing.
Xiao Mandong immediately spotted Gousheng, a three-year-old who was chasing another child with a stone. In her past life, just before she died, Wang Xiumei had said it was Gousheng who pushed her daughter into the river. Even at three, he was already a little menace.
Xiao Mandong glanced at him coldly and turned away. She went up to the Brigade Leader’s wife:
“Aunt Liu, is anyone in the village looking to buy a sewing machine? It was part of my dowry, but I don’t know how to use it. I want to sell it. It’s almost brand new, bought a year ago and used only four times.”
Aunt Liu had already heard about Xiao Mandong’s situation. Knowing that Xiao Mandong’s grandfather had done a favor for her family, she was quite eager to help.
“Wait, let me ask around. Tao Cuihua, your son’s getting married soon. Do you need a sewing machine?”
Hearing this, Tao Cuihua quickly trotted over:
“What, do you have an industrial ticket?”
Tao Cuihua had been very anxious. She hadn’t managed to get an industrial ticket in six months, and the wedding was just a month away. She’d been so stressed that blisters had formed on her lips.
“I’m not lying. Xiao Mandong’s sewing machine is for sale. She bought it a year ago and only used it four times. It’s brand new. If you can’t get a ticket, just buy hers. It’s even cheaper.” The Brigade Leader’s wife was enthusiastically recommending it.
Tao Cuihua quickly asked about the price.
“No need for a ticket, just a hundred yuan. You can go take a look. It doesn’t have a single scratch.” Xiao Mandong offered a very low price. At the time, she had used one sewing machine ticket, fifteen industrial tickets, and still paid 175 yuan.
She wasn’t lying at all. She had really only used it a few times. Ma Lanying wasn’t very skilled with sewing, so she hadn’t set her heart on it. It was her sister-in-law, Lu Hong, who had her eyes on it, saying she wanted it as her dowry when she got married. In her previous life, that sewing machine had indeed been given to Lu Hong as a dowry.
Since she was preparing to go down to the countryside, she now had to sell off all the things that were hard to move. Even if she sold them cheap, she wouldn’t leave a single scrap for the Lu family.
Tao Cuihua was overjoyed. It was truly a case of sleep coming when a pillow arrives. She knew who Xiao Mandong was and that everything she had was high quality.
She immediately called her husband and two sons, and they pushed a cart over to the Lu family home.
As soon as they walked in, they saw Wang Xiumei coming out of the inner room, her face stained with tears. The red marks from a feather duster were clearly visible on her neck.
Ma Lanying became annoyed the moment she saw Tao Cuihua. Back in the day, she had actually set her sights on Tao Cuihua’s husband, but that man hadn’t been interested in her.
So she opened her mouth, leaving no room for friendliness. “What does Tao Village Beauty want at my house?”
Tao Cuihua was beautiful, and everyone in the village called her Village Beauty.
Tao Cuihua smoothed the stray hairs by her temples. “I’m here to buy a sewing machine. Don’t you know yet? Your daughter-in-law has sold off her dowry sewing machine.”
Ma Lanying’s face turned a livid, liver-colored purple in an instant.
