EBE Chapter 54: Hiding Yourself is the Best Policy
Chapter 54: Hiding Yourself is the Best Policy
This trip left a deep scar, forever etched in Lin Yue and Gong Yong's hearts, one they would never forget. They realized with absolute certainty that when their skills were not strong enough, they must never rashly wander out, or they might really lose their lives.
Since then, they have put away their former recklessness and impulsiveness, and devoted more time and energy to cultivation. Every morning, when the first rays of sunlight shine into the window, they begin their diligent practice; every night, when the stars fill the sky, they are still studying the techniques.
The children seem to have matured a lot, no longer pestering their parents to go out, but instead quietly staying by their side, working together to improve themselves. This family exudes an atmosphere of resilience and striving, as they are all making the fullest preparations for the challenges they may face in the future.
Gong Yong and Lin Yue both longed for such a peaceful life, but reality told them that it was almost a pipe dream.
As time went by, Gong Yong's parents back home somehow heard rumors that Gong Yong and Lin Yue had made a fortune in Rongcheng and even bought a villa. They began to wonder, "How could they have such good fortune without inviting us to live in Rongcheng?" The elderly couple thought to themselves, "We raised our son for so long, supporting his education, and now that he's successful, he doesn't seem to care about us at all." So, they decided to come to Rongcheng to see for themselves.
Rongcheng not only has an eldest son, Gong Yong, but also a second son, Gong Qiang. Gong Qiang also bought a house and lives with his wife and two children, a son and a daughter, in the western part of Rongcheng, about 20 kilometers away from Gong Yong. Strangely, after the eldest son, Gong Yong, and Lin Yue finished buying and renovating their house, they didn't invite Gong Yong's parents to live with them. Similarly, after the second son finished renovating his house, he didn't invite them either, but instead brought his parents-in-law to help take care of the children. This completely baffled the two elderly people, who couldn't understand it no matter how hard they tried.
They murmured amongst themselves the whole way, filled with doubt and dissatisfaction, thinking that they must ask their sons for clarification when they saw them.
Lin Yue never imagined that after marrying Gong Yong, every time she went back to her hometown, his parents would have a major argument every three days and several minor arguments every day. This kind of life made Lin Yue feel extremely troubled; the family could not be harmonious and was always filled with quarrels.
Moreover, Gong Yong's parents had been helping Gong Qiang take care of the children, and both children were now grown up. Previously, Lin Yue had never expected her relationship with her mother-in-law to become so strained. Every girl marries into a family with the hope of a good life, but reality slapped her hard in the face. Perhaps your enthusiasm and good intentions are seen as signs of being bullied by others.
For the first four or five years, Lin Yue would always go back to her hometown to buy two or three sets of clothes for both sets of parents, including winter and summer clothes, shoes, underwear, and so on. She would also give Gong Yong's parents several thousand yuan. Gong Yong's younger brother, however, never gave the elderly couple any money; instead, he extorted money from them. Before their third child was born, Gong Yong's two children only brought their two daughters home. The elderly couple never bought clothes for their children, but instead bought many clothes for their brother's two children.
One day, Gong Yong's parents-in-law had to go home to care for his grandfather, so they asked Gong Yong's parents to come and look after the child. They made excuses and refused to come. Finally, the grandfather arrived, only to find the child's shoes were wet and he had no shoes to wear. Gong Yong didn't have time to buy any, and Lin Yue was busy at work and couldn't go either. The old man preferred the child to go barefoot rather than go downstairs to the supermarket to buy a pair. Gong Yong found this strange and said, "Dad, you can just buy a pair from the store downstairs." This puzzled Gong Yong, who finally realized that the old man didn't want to spend money.
Another time, the grandmother came to visit during summer vacation and said that the child's underwear was a bit old and she wanted to buy new ones. Lin Yue thought to herself, "Weren't the child's underwear just bought? How could they be old?" Gong Yong said, "Mom, since you think the child's underwear is old, just go downstairs and buy a few pairs." But in the end, Gong Yong's mother, who was also the child's grandmother, still didn't buy him any new underwear.
Whether it was shoes, underwear, or other small details of daily life, Lin Yue gradually noticed that the elderly couple would buy anything for Gong Qiang's two children, but treated Gong Yong's children as if they weren't their own grandchildren, refusing to buy them anything. Later, Lin Yue realized this and withdrew her previous affection. Since the elderly couple couldn't treat their own children equally and weren't kind to them, why should she be kind to them? Thinking it was unnecessary, she stopped buying clothes for the elderly couple and stopped giving them money. As for how much Gong Yong should give, that was between them. After all, the three children had grown up without the two elderly people ever taking care of them for even a single day.
On another occasion, Lin Yue said, "The first ten years depend on the mother-in-law, the next ten years depend on the daughter-in-law." When Gong Yong returned home, he had a huge argument with Lin Yue over this one sentence. Gong Yong questioned Lin Yue about why she said such a thing, and Lin Yue firmly stated that it was the truth.
"You treated me badly for the first ten years of my life, and now that you're sick, old, and unable to walk, you want to rely on me? How is that possible? When I needed your help the most, not a single one of you came. Since you weren't willing to help when I needed it, why should I help you when you need it?" This was Lin Yue's response to Gong Yong. The couple started arguing fiercely over this statement.
Yes, giving your heart may not get a response, but taking it back is always possible. Lin Yue had three children. The first two were daughters, and her mother-in-law never visited. The first time her father-in-law came, he gave her 1,000 yuan and brought six chickens—this was after the birth of her first daughter. The second time, he gave her 200 yuan, five jin of pork ribs, and six chickens, nothing else—this was after the birth of her second daughter, and her father-in-law even said he wanted to have a son. The third child was a son, and her mother-in-law finally came, but left after less than seven days.
After two or three days in the hospital, when Lin Yue returned home, her mother-in-law saw that Gong Yong had gone to work and only made her a bowl of cabbage and a bowl of chicken soup; nothing else. This was the treatment she received on her third day back from her postpartum confinement period. Lin Yue took a picture and sent it to Gong Yong, asking what kind of food he was getting. Later, Gong Yong took leave to come back and take care of Lin Yue during her postpartum confinement. To be honest, her mother-in-law had taken care of her for the first two months, so her breast milk was plentiful, and Lin Yue's condition recovered well. But during the third month, when her mother-in-law came to take care of her, Lin Yue even had to get out of bed to wash the baby's clothes and diapers herself.
Lin Yue suddenly realized that her mother-in-law wasn't her own mother, not her biological mother. During her postpartum period, her mother-in-law hadn't coaxed her to eat or made her anything she wanted. In the few days after Gong Yong returned from her postpartum period, whenever he was around, her mother-in-law would cry and make a scene in front of him. Lin Yue felt she hadn't said anything harsh during her postpartum period, and she didn't understand why her mother-in-law cried every time Gong Yong came back. She didn't know what her mother-in-law was muttering about, and she just felt annoyed and uncomfortable, to the point that her milk supply was almost gone. But as soon as her mother-in-law left, Lin Yue's milk supply returned.
You really can't get angry, cry, or overthink during your postpartum period, or you'll really have no milk. After experiencing all this, Lin Yue became increasingly disheartened about her relationship with her mother-in-law.
Why is this? Lin Yue and Gong Yong, who had been high school classmates all the way to university, graduated and started working, had such a deep relationship. They went through many hardships to finally get married, but their feelings gradually faded away in the trivialities of daily life.
Especially during the economic downturn and with various debt collection pressures mounting, Lin Yue even considered divorce. The words spoken by her mother-in-law and father-in-law repeatedly jeopardized their already fragile family, nearly destroying their marital bond.
If Lin Yue hadn't accidentally met Chang Hun Xueyang, unexpectedly obtained the Fire Cloud Immortal Cauldron from the old man, and also met the Rat Spirit and Willow Tree Spirit, their lives might not have turned around. Now, having finally bought a villa, half of it is used as a place for cultivation and healing, while the other half is only used for occasional residence.
These two old men were actually planning to take over the villa; that was their intention. It's unclear what Lin Yue's reaction will be when she finds out, or whether this will cause another huge uproar in the family.
There was another incident that remained a thorn in Lin Yue's side, one that she could never shake off. One time, her mother-in-law brought Gong Qiang's two children to visit Gong Yong. At that time, Lin Yue only had two daughters and no sons yet. While her mother-in-law was instigating the children, she said, "Oh dear, after your uncle's two daughters get married, all these things will be yours."
Lin Yue overheard this remark upon her return. Later, while his grandmother was out buying groceries, Gong Qiang's son said the same thing to Lin Yue: "These will all be mine in the future." At that moment, Lin Yue suddenly understood what her father-in-law had once said. Back when she was in confinement after giving birth to her second child, her father-in-law had actually expressed his hope that she would have another child, a son. Lin Yue was disgusted at the time. She retorted to the old man, "Is there a throne in the family that needs to be inherited?" After saying this, Lin Yue turned and went back to her master bedroom to carefully care for her second daughter. Because of this remark, and because he saw it was yet another daughter, her father-in-law only gave her two hundred yuan.
This is what differential treatment is all about. Therefore, a person's heart doesn't turn cold overnight; what breaks the camel's back isn't the last straw, but the accumulated damage over time. As the saying goes, poverty-stricken couples face a hundred sorrows; even the strongest feelings can slowly fade away under the weight of difficult external conditions and constant erosion from family members.
So when the elderly couple arrived, they didn't go to Gong Yong's house immediately, but instead went to Gong Qiang's house. Gong Qiang's house was cramped, with only two bedrooms, two living rooms, and one bathroom. Gong Yong's house, although it used to be a three-bedroom, one-living room, one-bathroom, and one-kitchen house, also had three children. Therefore, the elderly couple didn't have a dedicated place to live with either of their sons.
When they heard that Gong Yong had bought another villa, the elderly couple thought they would finally have a place to live. So, they first went to Gong Qiang's house and asked him to drive them to Gong Yong's new house. However, when they arrived at the new house, they couldn't get in because the property management was very strict. In addition, Gong Yong and Lin Yue had been being chased recently, and security measures were extremely tight. Even though the visitors were Gong Yong's parents, they were not allowed to enter.
Left with no other choice, Gong Qiang called Gong Yong and said, "Brother, Mom and Dad are here and want to visit your villa and stay there."
Gong Yong responded, "It's not convenient over there. If they want to stay, let them stay at the old house first."
Gong Qiang said, "Aren't all the old houses full?"
Gong Yong said, "During the period when the child was in school, we didn't go to the villa; we only stayed in this old house."
Gong Qiang said, "Since you're living in this old house for your child's schooling, and the villa is empty, why don't you let Mom and the others live there?"
Gong Yong said, "It's not convenient over there."
Gong Qiang was a little angry and said, "Is there something inconvenient about it?"
Gong Yong said, "This house was bought by Lin Yue, not by me."
Gong Qiang said, "Isn't this house yours and my wife's? It's all marital property."
Gong Yong replied, "All the money in this house was earned by Lin Yue, not by me."
Gong Qiang said, "Do you two make such clear distinctions?"
Gong Yong said, “You know, when I was a child, my mother lent money to my uncle, and my mother and father always fought. After I got married, I managed my salary, and Lin Yue managed hers. My husband and I never really managed our finances. I was the one who paid for the household expenses because I had to raise the child. Lin Yue stayed home to take care of the child for almost ten years, and she worked for a year or two in between, which was also her income, and it was also used for the child.”
Gong Qiang said, "Then what are you trying to say?"
Gong Yong said, "You can only move into that villa with your sister-in-law's permission. I can't bring her in without her consent."
Gong Qiang said, "You're so useless, you're just controlled by your wife."
Gong Yong said, "I am willing to be managed by my wife."
Gong Qiang said, "Then Mom, I'll pull you over first. Mom and Dad, I'll pull you over first."
Gong Yong said, "We can bring him over. He can live in the old house, and we'll live together. Our youngest son can sleep with me and you for now. Our eldest and second daughters can sleep in the bunk beds in the small bedroom, and there's another bedroom where the two elderly people can stay temporarily."
For a moment, the two brothers fell silent. Gong Qiang on the other end of the phone seemed to still be dissatisfied with his brother's attitude, while Gong Yong sighed helplessly, thinking about how to properly handle this complicated family situation.
Gong Yong got home from get off work, and the family of five enjoyed a sumptuous dinner. That night, lying in bed, Gong Yong tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Finally, Lin Yue couldn't help but ask, "Why can't you sleep tonight? Is something wrong? If you keep tossing and turning like this, Xiao Bao will wake up soon."
Gong Yong said, "My parents came over. They heard somewhere that we bought a villa and wanted to come and live in it."
Lin Yue responded with a "Mm".
Gong Yong continued, "They're with Gong Qiang now, and they'll bring them over tomorrow. How about we send them to the villa?"
Lin Yue answered decisively, "No."
Seeing Lin Yue's decisive answer, Gong Yong knew she was unhappy, so he said, "Then let them stay in our old house. We're short-staffed to pick up and drop off the children right now."
Lin Yue said, "Our family of five is already insecure. How many different groups of people are watching us? Do you think they can't catch our family of five? But if they arrest the elderly couple, wouldn't that be the same? They're using threats and inducements to coerce you?"
Gong Yong thought about it and agreed that it was true; with two more elderly people involved, being exposed to the world meant greater danger.
Gong Yong felt something was amiss, so he got up, ran to the balcony, and called Gong Qiang. Gong Qiang glanced at the screen; it was already 1 a.m., and muttered, "Brother, you're still calling me."
Gong Yong said, "Don't send Mom and Dad over yet, just leave them with you. If they really don't have a place to stay, I'll send you some money to rent a place for them in your neighborhood. They can stay in the living room tonight and use the sofa as a bed."
When Gong Qiang's phone rang, he took it and went outside to the balcony to answer it. Gong Yong repeated, "I really can't make it here."
Gong Qiang asked anxiously, "Brother, what happened on your end?"
Gong Yong said, "I am being watched by many forces, so it is not very safe. I cannot expose my parents to these people; it is very unsafe."
Gong Qiang asked urgently, "Brother, what exactly happened on your end? Can you tell me?"
Gong Yong said, "There are many things that are inconvenient to talk about. Right now, our family of five is being protected by people from the government, the National Security Bureau, and the armed forces. But if my parents are exposed again, it could easily lead to trouble."
Gong Qiang said, "Is it really that mysterious?"
Gong Yong said, "It's really that mysterious. I'll transfer 20,000 yuan to you via WeChat in a bit. Rent a small apartment in your neighborhood, close to you, take good care of your parents, and don't show up in front of us easily. Explain to your parents that it's not that we don't want them to stay at the villa, but that the villa is being secretly watched by many spies and special individuals. Our whole family is being watched. That's all I can tell you. Protect your little family and take good care of your parents."
After hanging up the phone, Gong Yong breathed a sigh of relief and returned to bed. Lin Yue asked, "Did you handle it?" Gong Yong nodded. In the quiet night, the two of them were lost in thought, but gradually fell asleep.