Chapter 42: Urging a Breakup Rather Than Reconciliation

They had just held a meeting yesterday to discuss Old Mrs. Wang’s inner guesses and speculations after listening to the story, as well as everything she witnessed upon returning home.

During this meeting, Wang Xiaohua’s position within the family was firmly established. No matter how much they favored Goudan in their hearts, Goudan must understand that Xiaohua was his elder sister. He had to respect her and must not be allowed to grow into the villainous Wang Xiaoliu depicted in the book.

Furthermore, they needed to treat Xiaohua better and ensure their favoritism did not turn the siblings against each other, pushing Xiaohua further and further away. Who knows, perhaps doing so might even bring forth some unforeseen fortunate opportunity.

The entire Wang household operated under Old Grandmother Wang’s autocratic rule, not to mention that her words made complete sense this time. As everyone recalled the contents of the story and connected them with Goudan's past behavior, a deep sense of dread and realization washed over them.

Education—he simply had to be educated!

Thus came the scene at the dinner table today.

No matter how reluctant Wang Dalang and his wife were, they had to act according to yesterday's agreement.

Following Old Grandmother Wang's lead, Wang Dalang picked up a piece of food, placed it into Wang Xiaohua's bowl, and accompanied it with a kind smile.

Seeing that everyone was paying attention only to Wang Xiaohua while completely ignoring him, Wang Goudan felt extremely aggrieved.

He could not help harboring resentment toward Wang Xiaohua and glared fiercely at her.

Who would have thought that even this single glare would catch Old Grandmother Wang's attention? "Xiaohua is your sister. What kind of look is that? Show some respect!"

With that, she signaled with her eyes, and old man Wang along with Wang Dalang and his wife immediately chimed in to support her words.

Though reluctant, the adults knew that educating the child was of the utmost importance, so they had to follow her lead.

"Goudan, since when did you become so insensible?"

"Xiaohua is your elder sister, of course she deserves to eat better than you."

"Hurry up and apologize to your sister."

Everyone condemned his behavior in unison with stern tones, as if he had committed some heinous crime.

Wang Goudan could not accept this. They hadn't spoken to him like this before.

He had done similar things in the past; why had they never condemned him then?

It was as if the entire household had suddenly turned upside down overnight, transforming into a place Wang Goudan no longer recognized.

Despite Wang Goudan's previous unruly, lawless behavior—teasing cats and dogs at home and frequently getting into fights with the mischievous boys in the village—unruly children are exceptionally skilled at reading adults' expressions.

Although he lacked clear self-awareness, he had already relied on instinct to test the adults' bottom lines step by step in order to achieve his goals.

Who could have guessed that the adults would start changing now? If it were just verbal reprimands, Wang Goudan wouldn't have cared at all, but yesterday they had resorted to real punishment, which left a lingering sense of fear deep in his heart.

Reluctantly, he had to follow their instructions and offered a grievance-laden apology to Wang Xiaohua.

"Elder sister, I'm sorry. I was wrong."

It was the first time Wang Xiaohua had ever received an apology from Wang Goudan, and she felt quite unaccustomed to it. "It's alright."

Watching this scene of sibling harmony, the adults nodded in relief one after another, praising, "Such two good children."

Having weathered these twists and turns, they were finally able to enjoy their meal in peace.

As Wang Xiaohua ate, she recalled the past two days, which felt entirely like a dream.

The kind smiles of her grandfather and grandmother, along with the caring words from her parents, were things she had longed for so dearly, yet all of them were coming true today.

Her nose tingled, and she could not help but feel her eyes redden. Tears dropped onto the table one by one, and she quickly raised her hand to wipe them away.

She only hoped this moment could last a little longer—if only it could last a lifetime.

Well, Xiaohua thought to herself, perhaps she was being a bit too greedy.

Even if it were just for one day, she would still be thoroughly satisfied.

Everyone was concentrating on their food, and no one noticed her emotional turmoil, save for Old Grandmother Wang, who could never sit still and always kept her eyes and ears open to everything around her. She caught sight of Xiaohua's tears.

Old Grandmother Wang felt slightly uneasy and awkwardly wondered: Were they really that terrible to Xiaohua originally? Why was she crying just over a chicken leg?

Though she favored boys over girls, she wasn't the kind of person to mistreat her own granddaughters.

***

Thanks to the father-and-son duo of the Lu family and their introductions, Xu Chengshu inspected several residences and finally made her choice after much deliberation.

The location she selected was well-considered. The neighborhood was prime, and the rent was high, but the people living nearby were not high-ranking officials or nobility; rather, they were relatively wealthy merchant families.

Affluent merchants guaranteed that the living conditions would not be too poor.

Xu Chengshu was also afraid of the complicated troubles that came with the nobility, fearing that a careless offense might bring disaster.

She purposely picked an auspicious day to move. Before leaving, she went to inform her neighbor, Mrs. Zhou.

After all, upon discovering her background, Mrs. Zhou had been exceptionally enthusiastic. Fearing that she might expose her whereabouts outside, Mrs. Zhou frequently took the initiative to drop by and offer to pick up supplies for her.

She would often buy groceries or deliver fruits and the like.

Aside from her initial nosiness, she turned out to be quite a warm-hearted neighbor.

Because of these connections, Xu Chengshu felt obliged to let Mrs. Zhou know.

Hearing that she was moving away, Mrs. Zhou immediately wore an "I knew it" expression.

"I knew you'd be leaving sooner or later. Staying in one place too long isn't safe and makes it easy for people to find you. Alas, I just wonder if I'll ever meet another neighbor as warm-hearted as me again. Take good care of yourself, and make sure not to run your mouth about everything!" Mrs. Zhou earnestly exhorted.

"Please rest assured, Mrs. Zhou, I will take good care of myself. Thank you so much for looking after me during my time living here," Xu Chengshu replied, slightly amused that Mrs. Zhou still bought into her fabricated backstory. She suppressed her smile and thanked her solemnly.

After Xu Chengshu hired several carts to haul away her pots, pans, and other belongings, the courtyard stood entirely empty.

She even dug up the flowers and plants she had originally planted in the courtyard, packed them into flower pots, and took them along. Filling in the holes with soil, she leveled the ground again. Scarcely any trace of her ever living there remained in the courtyard.

Farewell.

Xu Chengshu silently chanted in her heart, bidding farewell to the first little home she had settled and decorated in this world.

Following that, she stepped out of the courtyard, pulled the heavy wooden doors shut, and slid the latch into place.

The close-knit circle gathered around the Shanhai Bookstore consisted mostly of youngsters aside from the manager, and they loved joining in the fun.

Hearing that Xu Chengshu was moving, they specially sent housewarming gifts.

Lu Hongzhuo was the most down-to-earth person. Knowing Xu Chengshu's preferences, he gifted her an inkstone—the very same plum-blossom inkstone Xu Chengshu had coveted for ages but could never bring herself to buy.

Xu Chengshu fondled it affectionately for a long time, almost polishing it to a mirror-like sheen.

As for Xue Zhenrui, she had visited Xu Chengshu's home many times. Seeing the plants and flowers growing in the courtyard, she knew Xu Chengshu was an avid gardener, so she managed to procure a potted peony, said to be a rare variety, to present to her.

Regrettably, the timing of her gift was poor. It was already late autumn and approaching winter; the peony's blooming season had long passed, and its leaves had turned slightly yellow due to the dropping temperatures, making it look completely unappealing.

Xu Chengshu did not mind at all. She told Xue Zhenrui, "I will take good care of it and wait for next year when the peony blooms. We can host a peony-viewing gathering together."

Their gifts were a token of their goodwill, and Xu Chengshu was already deeply delighted.

After the laughter and merriment, she sent her guests off.

Following a few days of resting and tidying up in her new home, Xu Chengshu re-planned and arranged the courtyard, planting all the relocated flowers, plants, and trees into the earth, waiting for them to take root and sprout in their new home just as she had.

During this period, Xu Chengshu did not let her writing fall behind.

By this time, the story had progressed to Er-ya gaining the appreciation of Lady Han, the wife of an aristocratic family, through the village bailiff's wife.

Drawing upon her exceptional culinary skills, Lady Han grew increasingly famous within the aristocratic circle of noblewomen. Lady Han even gave her a new name, Wang Lanhui, derived from the imagery of a noble character and a delicate mind.

Relying on Lady Han, Wang Lanhui became associated with an aristocratic family, transforming into a widely discussed figure back in her home village, to the point that her toxic relatives from the Wang family no longer dared to cause trouble.

Through the intricate, progressive connections between the great Han family, the village bailiff's wife, and Lady Han’s concubine and matriarch, Wang Lanhui caught a faint glimpse of the tip of the iceberg that was the feudal hierarchical system.

As she grew older, she partnered with the Han family to open an eatery called the House of Delicacies. Backed by the Han family's prestige, it attracted numerous aristocratic patrons as well as scholars and poets who vied to compose verses in its honor.

The Wang family gradually grew wealthy, and Wang Erlang and his wife no longer had to endure the bitter hardships of the past. However, this couple who had shared hardships turned on each other after achieving prosperity.

The conflict stemmed from their failure to produce a son. Initially holding back for Er-ya's sake, Wang Erlang found himself growing older and losing patience, eventually proposing to take a concubine.

This caused immense emotional agony for Madam Qin of the Wang family. On one hand, she felt profound guilt for failing to bear a son; on the other hand, she deeply loathed the idea of sharing a husband with another woman. They had managed the bitter days just fine, yet now that they were wealthy, they were expected to share a single husband.

The previous chapter had stopped right here, eliciting a flood of howling letters from readers begging for the next installment.

What Xu Chengshu needed to write now was the subsequent plot development—upon hearing of this matter, Wang Lanhui encourages Madam Qin to seek a formal separation.

She actually felt rather hesitant while writing this, knowing that once this plotline was released, readers would abandon their previous unanimous praise, and all sorts of chaotic reviews and controversies would erupt anew.

Yet a creator cannot stop moving forward because of this, especially since this was a mandatory milestone in the growth of the Wang Lanhui character she had shaped.

When she first began writing this book, she had debated whether to portray Wang Lanhui as a female protagonist who possessed rebellious agency from the very beginning, matching wits and courage with the Wang family, or as a somewhat ignorant and naive young girl—clever and quick to understand, yet burying all her suffering deep within her heart, slowly uncovering her strength and fostering personal growth through changing external environments and acquired knowledge.

In the end, she chose the latter. Because when Er-ya was young, knowing her plight yet remaining utterly helpless would have instilled a profound, suffocating sense of despair in the readers.

The current Er-ya was different. Retaining her inner purity and kindness, and having witnessed the cruelty of the world, she still lived an optimistic and hardworking life, never halting her pursuit of an ideal world.

Throughout this process of self-reflection and self-exploration, she never gave up. She did not reconcile with the world; rather, she and the world became two intersecting parallel lines, constantly probing one another.

Therefore, encouraging her mother to divorce her father was a crucial step she had to take.

As for the impending bad reviews and controversies, let them come.

***

Wang Xiaohua spent a period of wonderful days.

Every meal was satisfying, and her family showered her with praise at every turn instead of constantly scolding her like before. If she performed a chore poorly or moved a little too slowly, it no longer invited complaints.

What made her even happier was the affection and care of her family. When she fell ill or her clothes got dirty, they would show concern—treatment that previously belonged exclusively to Wang Goudan.

As her life gradually improved, her personality grew increasingly cheerful. Upon meeting people, she no longer cowered timidly as she used to, but instead greeted uncles and aunts openly and generously.

She no longer performed tasks with the paralyzing fear of making mistakes that would incur her grandmother's fury, which allowed her hands to move with much greater dexterity, earning her even more praise from her family in a virtuous cycle.

Previously, Wang Goudan treated her as casually as a servant, snatching her belongings whenever he pleased.

They say there are no unruly children, only unruly parents; children's behavior stems entirely from their parents' attitudes.

Now, Wang Goudan had become exceptionally skilled at reading the adults' expressions. Since the adults valued Xiaohua, he dared not look down upon her either. Every day, he would fetch water and serve tea for Wang Xiaohua, calling her "Elder Sister" at every turn and tagging along behind her like a little puppy.

Observing all these changes, Old Grandmother Wang became increasingly gratified.

Just look at how massive a transformation her wise decision had brought to their family. Naturally, her belief in the story that sparked these changes grew even firmer.

Thus, she brought another matter onto the agenda.