The old woman sighed, "Others might not know, but you two brothers should. What your third brother earned with his life didn't just save his wife; your daughter, she wouldn't be doing so well if it weren't for him. Ask around—how many children were kept hidden in those years?

Which family's child could grow up this well? You’ve forgotten all this, only remembering this pelt, this little bit of money, right? You’ve forgotten your own brother.

Even children know to secure a place for their fathers to rest in peace; why can’t you two manage that?" With that, the old woman began to cry—not wailing this time, but a deep, heartbroken sob. The Eldest Uncle remained silent, his face flushed crimson. The Second Uncle’s wife interjected, "Mother, no matter what, that thing shouldn't be messed with by Yingzi like this!" The old woman spat, "Hmph!

That's Yingzi’s thing. She can do with it as she pleases; what business is it of yours? That is the dowry your third brother left Yingzi with his life.

You’ve already taken the meat from the soup, and now you want the bones too? You wicked trouble-maker, you heartless wretch! You have no decency, get out!

It was clearly written down when we divided things, and the Village Head is right here. What are you interfering for? Our family likes trading mountain plots; what concern is that of yours?" She couldn't curse her own sons, but when it came to her daughters-in-law, the old woman felt no burden.

All the anger she held for her sons was unleashed upon her daughters-in-law. The Eldest Uncle stood up, his face ashen, "Mother, your heart only holds the Third Brother. We two brothers benefited from his fortune, so we must remember it forever, is that it?

Should we perhaps register our children under the Third Brother’s name too?" Seeing her eldest son’s attitude chilled the old woman. "Eldest, if you can't remember kindness, fine, but you mustn't hold a grudge. What the Third Brother left for Yingzi, no one is to covet—whether it’s the tiger hide, the money it traded for, or the mountain plot bought with that money." The old woman spoke with absolute finality.

Cheng Eldest Uncle felt his pride wounded; three thousand yuan was a substantial sum. "Mother, we don't covet it. Let Yingzi mess with it then; wasn't it left by her father?" He turned to his wife and children, "Let’s go.

We have no business here." With that, he led the way out. Cheng Ying thought to herself that the old woman and her eldest son had drifted further apart because of her, but to the villagers watching, Cheng Eldest simply had a stubborn temper, unwilling to see reason. The old woman was certainly principled, not even desiring what rightfully belonged to her own son.

No matter how one looked at it, Cheng Third was dead. The old woman cared too much. And it was only for a little girl, whose future lay outside this family.

The old woman couldn't process it; she seemed unreasonable. This was precisely what angered Cheng Eldest Uncle—surely, she could care for her two living sons! Why was their own mother grieving over the Third?

Three thousand yuan! Cheng Second Uncle said, "Mother, what the Third left for Yingzi, is for Yingzi. I don't covet it; I’m grateful for what he did.

Don't be angry. Yingzi is young, but this needs managing. In a while, we two brothers will come over and tidy up Third Brother’s gravesite.

Don't mind Eldest Brother; his anger isn't about this." The old woman looked at her dull-witted son, tears rolling down her cheeks. At last, there was one who was reasonable. The Second Uncle’s wife shook her head and walked away, muttering a parting shot, "Mother is determined to side with her granddaughter for life." One could only imagine what the future relationship between this daughter-in-law and the old woman would be like.

Cheng Ying walked in and stood beside the old woman. "Grandma, I’ll support you. If you’re still angry, hit me, but I won’t run away." The old woman exclaimed, "You little girl!

Why didn't you say so sooner? You scatterbrained thing!" Cheng Ying dared not speak. Wasn't what I said untrue?

Look at how these few sentences have blown up; the whole village knows now. I’m too ashamed to show my face! Cheng Shan said, "Old Madam, please calm your anger.

I will come by another day to apologize to you." The old woman retorted, "What business is it of yours? I haven't even thanked you yet. I’ll invite both of you gentlemen over for a drink soon." Cheng Shan asked, "Old Sister-in-law, about this money..." The old woman declared, "The words spoken by the adults and children of our family stand.

That was earned with Yingzi's father’s life, earned for his peace of mind. We are happy with whatever comes of it; do as needs be." Showing such magnanimity, Cheng Shan said, "Alright, Old Madam. This is the village’s mountain plot.

There’s nothing pressing in the village right now. This money will be distributed back into the village soon." Cheng Ying thought to herself that it would have been better used for road repairs; the village head had no foresight. Sadly, she had no say here.

But then again, even if it were distributed, her family might only get a small share, perhaps a hundred or two hundred yuan. In those days, a wedding gift might only yield two jin of flour. Despite the sum, two hundred yuan was a huge income.

It was likely that even though Cheng family’s girl was seen as wasteful, the villagers would say she was worth spoiling. Of course, there were some, perhaps those who knew the true value of that tiger skin, who only shook their heads at Cheng Ying; the child had clearly been taken advantage of. After seeing off this crowd, Cheng Ying felt weak all over, and the old woman, deeply shaken, appeared several years older.

Cheng Ying felt a pang of guilt. Yang Zhi looked at the old woman, feeling distressed. Even though it was something her own husband had procured, the old woman wouldn't even let her touch it.

Yang Zhi understood; the old woman was afraid she would covet it. It was something left for Yingzi, but now the foolish girl had given it away to be wasted. Moreover, because of this, the Eldest Uncle was truly furious with his mother.

What on earth was the girl doing? Though Yang Zhi remained silent, she understood everything in her heart. Back then, life was already difficult; if one wasn’t a little muddled, how could they survive?

Now that times were better, Yang Zhi was willing to think more for her daughter and her family; they weren't fools. They understood things clearly. The eyes of the entire extended family had been fixed on that tiger skin.

Well, perhaps the girl had resolved the issue for good; otherwise, it would have caused trouble sooner or later. The only one who looked relatively energetic was Chi Yong; he had just stood by offering occasional words of comfort, having done none of the manual labor. He was indeed a bit worried about the child, though his mind was clear.

He knew about the tiger skin at home; Chi Yong had been aware of it when he was in the production team. Furthermore, his opinion of his daughter, who was like a top student in the family, had reached a new height. Not just anyone could trade a tiger skin for three thousand yuan.

Even if the skin was valuable, how many people in the village currently had three thousand yuan in their pockets? Such people were few and far between. Not to mention the ability to have two children safely bring it back.

What Chi Yong saw wasn't just this bag of money, but the difficulty inherent in it—it was extraordinarily hard. Chi Yong didn't believe it was pure luck; the little girl truly had enough cunning. Watching his son, who had clearly matured after running around once, Chi Yong shook his head.

He didn't know whether to tell his son to stay away from the girl lest she trick him into buying something, or to keep him close for positive influence. This kind of growth was far more tangible than anything his own mouth, as a father, could impart. The old woman led her granddaughter inside.

The family didn't yet know the full story; they had only heard rumors. The old woman said, "Yingzi, tell Grandma properly, and don't hide anything anymore. How could such a big matter be something a little girl like you could keep secret?" Chi Yong was feeling vexed nearby.

Hearing the old woman suggest the girl had already settled things, he hesitated. If he spoke up, the old woman surely wouldn't listen. He decided to stay put and listen.

It was hard being a stepfather. If he were the real father, he would have already grabbed Cheng Ying and given her a stern talking-to. Cheng Ying replied, "Grandma, it’s nothing much.

I just saw that mountain plot looked good, and I wanted to secure it. I figured if we planted trees there, when Wu Zi and I grow up, we wouldn't have to worry about college tuition." The old woman’s eyes grew moist; her granddaughter was sensible, though she was still unwilling to talk about her own father’s affairs. The old woman pulled her granddaughter into an embrace.

"Our Yingzi has grown sensible." Cheng Ying felt bitter inside. This time I was telling the truth! But why won't anyone believe me?

Yang Zhi looked away, her eyes red. She hadn't dreamt of Yingzi's father for a long time now. The old woman asked, "Yingzi, who did you sell the tiger skin to?

How did you sell it? You’re just a girl, did you even understand? How could you dare take it out?

You must never do that again." Cheng Ying got off the bed and took a tiger head from the cabinet. "Grandma, I kept this for you to remember him by." When Chi Yong saw the tiger head, the way he looked at Cheng Ying changed entirely. So the girl had cut off the head before selling the rest of the skin?

And she still got three thousand? Then she really hadn't been cheated. The old woman held the tiger head and cried again.

Cheng Ying felt terrible. The old woman was such a strong person; for almost a year, she had only ever gotten teary-eyed, yet today, Cheng Ying had made her cry several times. Cheng Ying said, "Wu Zi, tell Grandma about us buying the tiger skin in the city.

I still feel scared when I think about it now." Indeed, the old woman’s emotion was stirred. "What? Was there danger?" Chi Wu instantly perked up and began to describe vividly how they bought the tiger skin.

Chi Yong glanced at his foolish son. You idiot, why get involved in this? Besides, why would you bring it up now?

Wouldn't that just share the blame with the girl? But Chi Wu didn't know better. He spoke with such passion that when he mentioned they bought the tiger skin for five thousand, Yang Zhi, standing nearby, nearly collapsed.

"Where is the other two thousand?" The three adults all looked at Cheng Ying. Cheng Ying replied, "It’s in the cellar where you store the wine." The old woman slapped her thigh and shot up decisively. "Aiyo, you wasteful child!

You thoughtless thing! There are rats in there!" Cheng Ying hastily added, "Don't worry, don't worry, I put rat poison nearby, truly!" Chi Yong couldn't help but chuckle; the girl was too considerate. Chi Wu asserted, "Really, I saw Yingzi looking for rat poison!" Chi Yong grew displeased.

Hearing that, he realized his son, although involved in the mistake, wasn't the main conspirator. He only saw the girl looking for rat poison; she certainly hadn't let him see where she hid the money. At the same age, with the same upbringing, why were the two children so different?

Chi Wu never considered that his daughter was overly clever. Chi Yong, however, focused on his son's shortcomings. Perhaps this was a matter of one’s nature; if someone like Chi Yong couldn't make a success of himself, it must be fate.

Why was his foolish son so very dull?