Chapter 275 - 253: Fighting for Rights (Part 2)
Chapter 275: Chapter 253: Fighting for Rights (Part 2)
Tang Qingyun said the old man and old woman had already decided to register Manman under Tang Qingshan’s name. Wu Xiaowen was vehemently against it, but since even Tang Qingyun couldn’t win an argument with Tang Qingshan, she had even less courage to confront and object to him.
That was why she insisted on keeping Tang Yaxuan by her side. She was being forced into this by the Tang Family—’Since you won’t give me my biological daughter, are you saying I can’t even keep my adopted daughter for support?’
’Respect human rights! You’ve never raised a daughter or experienced the tender warmth a daughter provides, so it’s fine if you don’t get it, but you have to understand the heart of a mother who has!’
Tang Qingshan began to brew tea, but he didn’t stop talking. "Tang Qingyun, Wu Xiaowen, both of you come and sit down. You, Wu Xiaowen, explain what you just said!"
Grandpa Tang, Grandma Tang, and Grandpa and Grandma took their seats on the sofa. Grandma Tang spoke, "The old man and I aren’t dead yet, and Manman’s Grandpa and Grandma are here too. If there’s an explanation to be made, it should be to us elders. Wu Xiaowen, when you said those things, you were overtly criticizing Manman and Hao Hao’s upbringing as inferior to Xuanxuan’s, but you were actually questioning whether the four of us know how to raise children. How ridiculous. Where do you get this confidence and nerve? The only reason I’m affording you this last shred of dignity is for the children’s sake! When it comes to the matter of upbringing, you have no right whatsoever to pass judgment, and neither does your mother, Lin Aizhen!"
Wu Xiaowen’s face, which had just returned to normal, turned deathly pale again. Having suffered too many blows, she had built up layers of defenses in her heart. Paradoxically, this made her stronger. Though still shaken, her body was no longer trembling. Fueled by a surge of indignation, she once again bravely met Grandma Tang’s gaze.
"Let’s stick to the issue at hand. Please don’t drag innocent, uninvolved people into this! Also, before you mock others for being ridiculous, you should reflect on your own actions first. What you’ve done is what’s truly laughable!"
"Wu Xiaowen!" Tang Qingyun stepped forward and pulled at his wife. "What’s gotten into you? Are you possessed? We came home for a New Year’s reunion, not to provoke the elders!"
Wu Xiaowen shook off Tang Qingyun’s hand, her eyes instantly turning bloodshot. "A New Year’s reunion? Take a look around! Do they seem like they’ll have us? Qingyun, it’s been over ten years, and I’ve had more than enough! This is the modern era, not the old society! I married you, I wasn’t sold to your Tang family! I can’t endure the oppression of this old-fashioned, feudal family of yours anymore!"
"You... You’re being irrational!" Tang Qingyun’s face also turned pale with anger.
Tang Qingshan calmly portioned out the tea, served it to the elders, and told Hao Hao and Manman to come get their own. As for Tang Qingyun, Wu Xiaowen, and Tang Yaxuan, he ignored them. If they wanted water, there was hot water in the thermos that the staff had boiled during the day. Want tea? Sorry, brew it yourself.
Grandpa Tang took two sips of tea, his eyes narrowing slightly as he smiled at Manman. ’The water boiled by my eldest granddaughter really is different. The tea it makes is mellow, fragrant, and refreshingly sweet. The flavor is superb!’
But the smile on his face was fleeting. It was quickly replaced by a cold, stern expression. He was deeply displeased. He had never been so utterly fed up with and disappointed in his daughter-in-law, Wu Xiaowen, as he was right now.
’Before, when his wife wasn’t seriously ill and bedridden, she handled all family matters. He would occasionally inquire but never interfere. He could understand why his wife disliked Wu Xiaowen, but Wu Xiaowen had, after all, become Qingyun’s wife and borne a grandson and granddaughter for the Tang family. He tried his best to satisfy her requests, even hiding them from his wife just to keep her from getting angry. But he was absolutely on the same side as his wife. For Wu Xiaowen to be so disrespectful was tantamount to showing no regard for either of them.’
Grandma Tang calmly finished her cup of tea, exchanged a few words with Grandpa and Grandma with a smile, and casually placed a plate of fried tea cakes in front of Manman and Hao Hao. Children have delicate and simple palates, so they weren’t quite used to the bitterness of the tea; the tea cakes would help cleanse their palates.
After doing all this, Grandma Tang finally turned to Tang Qingyun and Wu Xiaowen. "Alright, stop all that pulling and tugging. Today, we’re going to lay everything out on the table. Let’s get it all out in the open so everyone understands! Wu Xiaowen, you just said our Tang family is an old feudal family, that you weren’t sold to us. You’re right, you weren’t! Back then, you and Qingyun claimed it was a free romance, a free union, and mutual consent—no one forced you! You also said to stick to the issue and not drag in innocent people. Correct. I mentioned your mother. Lin Aizhen is no innocent party! For raising and training a foolish daughter like you who doesn’t know her place, she deserves to be cursed out! You told me to reflect on myself? No need for the reminder. I speak and act according to my own set of rules. For sixty years, I’ve lived my life and never made a fool of myself the way you have!"
Wu Xiaowen bit her lip, trembling uncontrollably as tears streamed down her face. She had heard the old woman curse her and her mother again, loud and clear. She desperately wanted to argue, to curse back, but in her agitation, she was at a loss for words, as if she couldn’t find the right things to say. On top of that, Tang Qingyun was glaring at her, which made her lose her courage. A small, faint sliver of clarity remained in her mind, reminding her that she couldn’t completely burn her bridges with the old woman. ’I’m just here to fight for my rights, not to seek revenge or make enemies!’
Hao Hao brought two cups of hot tea over to Tang Qingyun and Wu Xiaowen. Grandma had told him to. Tang Qingyun accepted it, but Wu Xiaowen refused. Tang Yaxuan also came over with a cup of hot water for Wu Xiaowen, saying softly, "Mom, have some water. Your lips are chapped."
Wu Xiaowen took the cup and had two sips, then raised her hand to gently caress Tang Yaxuan’s face. "Such a good girl."
Hao Hao: ...
Tang Qingyun glanced at Wu Xiaowen, took the teacup from Hao Hao’s hands, and drained it in one go. He then patted the boy and told him to go back and sit with his grandparents.
Xiao Man sat next to Tang Qingshan, peeling an apple. She glanced at Wu Xiaowen from time to time, rendered completely speechless by the woman’s behavior.
’She was clearly the one making a scene and starting trouble, but in the end, she was the one having a breakdown, looking pitiful with tears streaming down her face as if she’d been bullied and humiliated. It was as if the whole world had wronged her.’