nucmednet Chapter 398 The Jiang Family's Bitter Days
Chapter 398 The Jiang Family's Bitter Days
It turned out that the Jiang family did not have an easy time after being sent back to Lingnan. Although Prince Ning was kind enough to buy back their former houses and land in the Lingnan village.
However, it is always easier to go from frugality to extravagance than from extravagance to frugality. The Chiang family lived a life of luxury in Kyoto, surrounded by servants. Whether in the city or the countryside, everyone in the neighborhood treated them with utmost respect.
Nowadays, we have to do everything ourselves. We haven't worked for years, and the whole family is so delicate and frail that we can't do any rough work, let alone farm work.
The days of being waited on hand and foot are gone forever. I pawned the few pieces of jewelry and clothes I had painstakingly brought back to barely get through the winter, but once the money was gone, I went back to my old ways.
At first, Jiang's mother didn't believe it and caused trouble everywhere, saying that she was the mother of Prince Ning, but that she had just had a conflict with Prince Ning. She said that once Prince Ning remembered the kindness he had shown her, he would take them back sooner or later.
But the villagers, knowing her true nature, all laughed.
"Mrs. Jiang, what do you mean by 'gratitude for raising'? Aren't you ashamed? We all know that you've never treated your Sanlang like a human being. You either beat or scold him, he eats worse than our dog, and does more work than our ox. Tsk tsk tsk, you treat him like a slave, and you expect him to be filial to you?"
Jiang's mother was so angry that she jumped up and down: "You're talking nonsense!"
"I'm talking nonsense?" The villager wasn't afraid of him at all, hands on his hips. "Who doesn't know these things? Before the New Year, the prince's entourage thoroughly investigated your family's past. Not to mention the two years you lived in our village, they even investigated the days before you fled the famine!"
Another person nodded in agreement: "Yes, there are people in the county who know your family. We've all heard it. Your old relatives all said that you're lazy and don't do any work. Sanlang was pitiful when he was little. He was chained up like a dog and had to fight with the dogs for food. When he got a little older, he was made to do all the housework. Tsk tsk tsk, I didn't understand why before, but now I know that he's not your biological son."
"It's a good thing they're not your biological children. Look at you all, all fat and ugly. How could you possibly have a handsome child like Sanlang?"
Jiang's mother became even angrier and stepped forward to hit someone—this was a bad habit she had developed in the capital. Relying on her status as the foster mother of Prince Ning, she was extremely arrogant, and if anyone angered her, she would fight with them.
Once others learned of her identity, they couldn't argue with her and could only swallow their anger.
But her neighbors didn't tolerate her at all. They were used to farm work and hadn't been pampered like Jiang's mother for two years. Naturally, they had plenty of strength and methods to beat Jiang's mother until she screamed in pain.
The neighbor threw her aside and spat on her.
"Shameless bastards! You were the one who cruelly demanded money and forced poor Sanlang to sell himself. And you're still not satisfied, bullying his wife and abandoning his daughter."
"If you ask me, Your Highness is just too kind-hearted. If I knew about these things, the entire Jiang family would have to pay with their lives for my wife and daughter. Tsk tsk tsk, back then, Sanlang's wife was so beautiful, capable, and considerate. Such a good daughter-in-law was tormented to death by the Jiang family. It's so pitiful."
A neighbor who knew the situation said, "Sanlang's wife didn't die. After the Jiang family abandoned her, she met her maternal family and went to live with them."
Jiang's mother was filled with hatred, believing she hadn't done anything wrong and only that Si Mutong was at fault. Hearing others talk about Si Mutong, she felt an urge to tear Si Mutong to pieces.
"That's alright. Sanlang is sentimental; even those of us from the village who had shown him kindness gave him some benefits. I reckon he'll at least give his ex-wife some compensation. It's just a pity about their daughter... what a tragedy!"
"Hey, you know what, I heard his daughter is alive too. The Si family is really capable; they found the child. I heard they were originally from a high-ranking official's family, and they were all taken away."
The group left while discussing the matter.
Jiang's mother was stunned.
The girl is still alive? How could that be! They clearly abandoned her in the deep mountains. A child that small would surely starve to death after two days in the mountains. Even if she didn't starve, the wolves in the mountains would have eaten her.
After returning home, Jiang's mother grabbed Jiang's father and asked, "Does Si Mutong have another daughter?"
Mr. Jiang pushed her away: "What's wrong with you? Look at the state you're in, the house is a mess, and you still go out and cause trouble."
Jiang's mother had indeed gone mad; she would ask everyone she met, "Is that child still alive?"
But nobody paid any attention to her.
Life became increasingly difficult for the Jiang family. Jiang Jianchun's temper worsened, and he would beat his wife and sons when there was nothing to eat. Jiang's sister-in-law had to take care of the whole family by herself. Her three sons were relatively obedient, but they couldn't stand being hungry and would cry for food every day.
Sister-in-law Jiang went out and brought back some food, intending to leave it for her three sons. However, her father and son, Jiang Jianchun, saw this, snatched the food away, and beat Sister-in-law Jiang half to death.
These days are just too hard to bear.
Sister-in-law Jiang cried until her eyes were swollen. She could hear her youngest son muttering in his sleep that he wanted to eat, while her eldest son tossed and turned and wouldn't sleep. He must be hungry.
But they dared not utter a sound, for if they made a fuss, they would be met with a severe beating.
The next morning, when the Jiang family got up, they found that the person was gone.
Sister-in-law Jiang disappeared, along with her three children.
After searching for a long time without finding her, the father and son cursed Jiang Dasao to no avail. They went out begging every day, and whenever they met someone, they would talk about how bad Prince Ning was, how heartless he was, and how cruel he was to his adoptive parents who raised him.
Most people know the truth and don't really care. Those who don't know the truth might actually pity them, give them some food, and that's how they get by.
Unexpectedly, during the summer, Jiang Jianchun overheard that his wife hadn't gone far; she was working in a weaving workshop in the neighboring county and was earning some money.
Jiang Jianchun immediately ran to look for her and indeed found Sister-in-law Jiang working. After a few months, she looked much more presentable than before, she must have been earning money.
He couldn't stand it, so he grabbed Sister-in-law Jiang's hair and gave her a brutal beating. Sister-in-law Jiang was beaten until she was barely breathing and was dragged back to the Jiang family home.
From then on, Jiang Jianchun beat Jiang's sister-in-law three times a day, gave her only a bite or two to eat, and made her do all the work in the house and in the fields.
Sister-in-law Jiang felt that she would rather be dead. But for the sake of her three sons, she persevered, thinking that things would get better when the children grew up.
Unexpectedly, Mr. Jiang was so broke that he sold his two grandsons after being persuaded by others.
This time, Sister-in-law Jiang was not about to give in. She started arguing with her father and son, and the two of them beat her until she was almost lifeless.