Chapter 15: Full Month (3)

These days, life at Jiang Dachuan’s home is truly miserable.

In the past, with the help of the old couple from the Jiang family, they had never once feared going hungry. The coarse grains at home had either been used to trade for refined ones or were sent back to Fan Xiaojuan’s parents. Now, all that was left was a little bit of cornmeal.

Fan Xiaojuan couldn't bring herself to go back to her parents’ house to ask for more grain, so the four of them had to rely on a mixture of cornmeal and rice bran to fill their stomachs.

Forget about Jiang Aiguo and Jiang Aidang, who had been pampered since birth—even Jiang Dachuan and Fan Xiaojuan themselves couldn’t stand the coarse, gritty steamed buns. They could only pinch their noses and force them down, not even daring to chew.

They had experienced hardship in the past, but after years of living comfortably, they had forgotten what that was like. Their pampered stomachs couldn’t handle such rough food. It had been several days since they last used the toilet. Their stomachs were hard and bloated.

Jiang Aiguo and his younger brother Jiang Aidang were still too young to understand what was going on. They couldn’t comprehend why the food at home had changed. Every day, they cried and screamed, refusing to eat the unpalatable buns—until they were starving and reluctantly choked them down with sobs.

Jiang Aiguo glanced at Jiang Yiliu, who was cradled in his aunt’s arms, a flash of malice in his young eyes that was far beyond his age.

His mother was right—everything was because of this little bastard. If it weren’t for him, he’d still be eating white steamed buns and basking in the envy of others. And that aunt—she’d already given birth to four money-losing daughters. Why couldn’t she just have had one more? They were all sluts—stealing things that belonged to their family.

Jiang Aidang wasn’t as scheming as his brother. Drooling as he stared at the chicken wing in Sanni’s hand and the half-eaten drumstick in Meng Xiangxue’s, he ran over with a thud-thud-thud and snatched the chicken wing from Sanni’s hand, stuffing it into his mouth. He even tried to grab the drumstick from Meng Xiangxue.

“Waaaah—!”

Jiang Aidang had used a lot of force, and his fingernails hadn’t been trimmed in who knows how long. He scratched a gash into Sanni’s hand.

Sanni's hand hurt, but her heart hurt even more. She had been cherishing that chicken wing, taking tiny bites because she couldn't bear to eat it all at once. Now, Jiang Aidang had snatched it and devoured it in just a few mouthfuls before tossing the bone to the floor.

Sanni knew that Grandma would never allow her to eat meat again. Grief overwhelmed her. Sniffling, she jumped down from the chair, crouched to pick up the discarded bone, and, seeing that there were still a few bits of meat on it, brought it to her mouth to gnaw.

Fan Xiaojuan just sat there, covering her face and crying, making no move to stop her son. Jiang Erni clenched her fists tightly, her gaze toward that family filled with seething hatred.

“Give me that drumstick! You’re just a worthless girl’s brat. Why should you be eating our food?”

Still not satisfied, Jiang Aidang bounced toward Meng Xiangxue, trying to snatch away his half-eaten chicken drumstick.

“Worthless girl, bastard—!” Jiang Dazhen was so furious she nearly exploded. Meng Pingchuan’s face also darkened—if his son was a bastard, what did that make him?

Jiang Dachuan knew trouble had started the moment the words left his son’s mouth. He shot Fan Xiaojuan a fierce glare, stormed over, yanked down Jiang Aidang’s pants, and began spanking him furiously.

“That’s for being disobedient and stealing from your younger siblings! That’s for learning filthy talk from outside! I’ll beat you to death, you little brat!” Jiang Dachuan cursed as he struck, each blow harder than the last. Jiang Aidang’s bottom quickly turned red and swollen.

Fan Xiaojuan’s heart ached watching her son cry so miserably, but under Jiang Dachuan’s glare, she dared not say a word.

Jiang Dahai had been angry when his nephew snatched food from his daughter, but seeing his younger brother hitting the child so harshly that he was on the verge of passing out, he couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy.

Jiang Yiliu was nearly fuming as he watched. In his past life, the four people he hated most had reappeared before his eyes, bullying his sister right in front of him. And his father—that spineless good man—was already wavering. What, did he still want to be a good big brother, selling his daughter so his nephew could have a house and a wife?

The warmth that had slowly been building over the past few days vanished in an instant. If Jiang Dahai had known that his moment of soft-heartedness would make his precious son despise him even more, he would’ve regretted it deeply.

“Stop—!”

Jiang Cheng slammed the table and roared. The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes furrowed deeply as he gave his youngest son a meaningful, penetrating look.

Under that gaze, Jiang Dachuan felt exposed and powerless. His raised hand hovered midair, unsure whether it should come down.

“Aidang, come to Grandpa.”

Jiang Cheng beckoned to his second grandson, his expression gentle and kind.

Forgiven so easily? Nestled in Gu Dongmei’s arms, Jiang Yiliu felt a wave of frustration. He hated how powerless he was. Was he really going to watch this disgusting family parade in front of him for another few decades?

They say good deeds are rewarded and evil is punished. But in his past life, up until his rebirth, Jiang Dachuan’s family lived comfortably. His cowardly and weak parents worked like oxen to support them. When the old house was demolished, those two fools even gave all ten-plus compensation apartments to their nephews. In the end, they fell ill in old age and were pushed back onto his aunts by that same ungrateful family.

A lifetime spent sacrificing for grandsons and nephews—and in the end, it was the so-called “money-losing” granddaughters and daughters who supported them. What a cruel joke.

Too bad he had been reborn. He’d never know whether they regretted it at the end.

“Aidang, Grandpa has some questions for you. If you answer honestly, Grandpa will give you this drumstick.” Jiang Cheng lifted the chicken drumstick from his own bowl and spoke kindly to Jiang Aidang.

Drooling, Jiang Aidang reached for the drumstick and chanted, “Eat drumstick! I want to eat drumstick!”

Jiang Cheng’s tone remained calm. “Then tell Grandpa, who taught you those words just now? Who told you that everything in this family belongs to you?”

Fan Xiaojuan’s heart skipped a beat. She rushed forward to cover her son’s mouth, but was blocked by Jiang Dazhen, who stood by watching with amusement.

“Second sister-in-law, why are you so anxious? Dad’s asking Aidang, not you,” Jiang Dazhen said meaningfully.

“Dad, what’s the point of asking that? He must’ve picked up nonsense from some gossiping women outside. Where else would he hear that?” Fan Xiaojuan ignored her sister-in-law’s jab and forced a smile while frantically signaling her son.

But Jiang Aidang’s eyes never left the chicken drumstick. How could he notice his mother’s expression?

“It was my dad and mom! They said there are only me and my brother as boys in the Jiang family, so everything will be ours. They said those money-losing girls will only steal from us. Grandpa, I told you, now give me the drumstick!”

Jiang Cheng's gaze swept over his pale-faced younger son and daughter-in-law. With a cold snort, his disappointment was obvious. At the same time, he began to reflect—had he truly made a mistake in how he had handled things all these years?

“Dad, you can’t blame me. Weren’t you the one who said we should adopt my son to my elder brother’s name?” Jiang Dachuan’s voice was hoarse, trying to defend himself.

“Your elder brother now has a son. There’s no need for any adoption. When we split the family, the deeds clearly stated what each of you should receive. From now on, don’t even think about taking anything that doesn’t belong to you,” Jiang Cheng replied firmly, his tone leaving no room for argument.

“Grandpa, I still want meat! Give me that chicken!” Jiang Aidang devoured the drumstick in just a few bites and began tugging on Jiang Cheng’s trousers, throwing a tantrum.

“This chicken isn’t yours. If you want to eat, ask your mother to cook one for you.”

Jiang Cheng was truly heartbroken by this son and his two grandsons. His tone was no longer kind. He had thought he’d given them so much, but in the end, not only was he unappreciated, he was even resented. He really had been a foolish old man, making one mistake after another.

“Give it to me! Give it to me now!” Jiang Aidang’s crying reached an ear-piercing pitch. He opened his mouth wide and screamed, “All this stuff is ours! My mom said that bastard child won’t live long! When he’s gone, everything in the Jiang family will be mine and my brother’s!”

Those words made Jiang Dachuan and Fan Xiaojuan’s faces go completely white. They wished they could shove their idiotic son right back into the womb.

Jiang Dahai was chilled to the bone. He had given his all to his younger brother’s family—and this was how they repaid him? They were wishing for his son’s death. Did they really want him to have no descendants?

No one present looked pleased. Every gaze toward Jiang Dachuan and his wife was filled with disgust and disappointment.

Jiang Cheng, fuming, laughed in disbelief. “Don’t worry. Even if I have to marry my granddaughter to a live-in son-in-law, I’ll never adopt your precious son again.”

Search This Blog

Outpost Translations

Chapter 15: Full Month (3)