Witty Wife, Better Life-Chapter 773 - 763: If You Have Compassion, You Come

"Heh, sister-in-law Yunfang, don’t try to scare me, I’m not someone who’s frightened easily," Li Xianghe didn’t believe her at all. "She’s just a woman, and you’re blowing this out of proportion. Stuff about harming the state and collective interests, she’s not capable of that."

Seeing that Li Xianghe wasn’t taking her words to heart, Shen Yunfang didn’t want to continue. She had said her part to warn her; what she did next was out of her control.

"That’s your problem, not mine. Now step aside, I need to go up and cook." fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

"That won’t do, sister-in-law. The person came to see you; how can you just walk away? I know you have a temper, Yunfang, but I still have to advise you: it’s better to resolve enmity than to prolong it. After all, you two were good friends who grew up together. You can’t just ignore everything just because of a small dispute, can you? If others saw this, wouldn’t they think you’re heartless? Then who would dare socialize with you in the future? Right?" Li Xianghe said, pretending to have Yunfang’s best interest at heart, "Ah, I feel quite sorry for Shen Yingxue. How about this—I’ll be the peacemaker, have her apologize to you, and then things can go back to how they were." She snickered smugly to herself, I’ll let you put on airs, I’ll let you be stingy, in front of all these people, let’s see if you still want to save face.

Li Xianghe had asked her sister-in-law Yunfang a while back to chip in some money to help treat her own daughter Niuniu’s illness. But sister-in-law Yunfang, acting just like Huang Shiren, didn’t give a dime. Moreover, her own husband Sun Chengbin insisted on having her brother-in-law take a look and planned to take Niuniu to the doctor. To get treatment for the child at home, they had been pinching pennies for months; she didn’t dare reply to several letters from the Zheng family back home asking for money. She genuinely didn’t have the funds.

"You, an outsider, don’t need to worry about our matters. First deal with your own family’s mess before talking. And if you really feel sorry for her, you can take her into your home. See if she needs food or clothing; just support her yourself," Shen Yunfang wasn’t taking her bait.

"You’re really joking. My own home is struggling to make ends meet, how could I help anyone else?" Li Xianghe couldn’t possibly bring someone else into her home when she herself could barely afford meals, "But it’s different for you, sister-in-law. Everyone in our residential compound knows you’re the big boss, monopolizing so much land. Even the smallest crumb from your table would be enough for others to live on, wouldn’t you agree?"

"Exactly, Xianghe’s got a point. In our compound, it’s Yunfang who’s the most successful, a college graduate, a teacher, and now you’re running such a big business. With so much money, you can’t forget your poor relatives," one military spouse said with a thick layer of envy.

Clearly, there had been no shortage of envy, jealousy, and resentment towards Shen Yunfang.

"That’s right, we have to be conscientious. It’s not right for us military spouses to forget our roots once we’ve made it."

"Oh, don’t say that, Yunfang isn’t like that," another military spouse tried to smooth things over.

"Whether she’s like that or not, we’re all watching. This young woman is genuinely pitiful. If my own situation weren’t so tough, I would definitely help out," another chimed in.

Shen Yunfang stood at the stairwell entrance with a basket of vegetables, listening to the surrounding military spouses condemning her one after another.

She glanced over those present, understanding the few types of expressions; some were jealous, some were watching as if it were a joke, and some... were vicious.

That must be the real emotion hidden beneath Shen Yingxue’s pitiful appearance, Shen Yunfang thought.

"Are you all done talking?" Yunfang shifted the vegetable basket from her left hand to her right, clearly growing impatient.

Upon hearing her speak like this, everyone shut their mouths. After all, they were just there for the spectacle, but they didn’t dare to offend her. They were aware that the farm would occasionally hire temporary workers from the military district, and these military spouses were keen on maintaining good relations with her, hoping to follow along for the opportunity to earn some pocket money when work was available.

"I understand your feelings now; you just pity her, right? If you truly feel sorry for a woman who’s just been caught up in a scandal with Chen two days ago, then you’re more than welcome to extend your kindness. As for me, I don’t look up to women who seduce others’ husbands. I don’t have such a generous heart to understand her, forgive her, or help her," Yunfang bluntly exposed Shen Yingxue’s identity for all to see.

She knew exactly what gnawed at the hearts of these idle old women: the seductresses who specialized in luring men.

Those who were gathered around were mostly military spouses from rural areas, the majority illiterate, with their only survival skill being working the fields. After coming here, their skills had no place, hence they felt inferior. Some sought to prove their importance and assert their presence through more aggressive means, including arguing about anything and everything. Even if their husbands merely brushed by a female fly outdoors, they would face an interrogation by their wives when they returned home. It was a clear sign of insecurity.

What these insecure military spouses hated the most were visits from the cultural troupes to perform and comfort them, and what they feared the most was their husbands getting injured, for they would then come into contact with the young nurses.

Indeed, even though the military spouses surrounding Shen Yingxue didn’t have much political sensitivity, the moment they heard she was a vixen who specifically seduced men, they immediately stepped back as if they had seen something filthy.

Shen Yingxue couldn’t even continue crying, the comforting crowd had turned into onlookers, a gap too large for her heart to bear.

"Li Xianghe, how could you bring such a person into our courtyard? Not just anyone can come in here," one military spouse complained discontentedly, her glances sharp as knives sweeping over both Shen Yingxue and Li Xianghe, whom Xianghe had brought in.

"You – you got it wrong, don’t just listen to her nonsense," Xianghe blurted out without expecting such a revelation, "How can you say such things about someone, Yunfang? If you don’t want to help, just say so straight up. It’s not right to wrong someone like that, she’s also a girl."

"Heh, I wronged her?" Yunfang looked at the woman still sitting on the ground, covering her face and weeping, with a cold laugh, "Shen Yingxue, go on, tell me if I have wronged you. You came this morning to accuse me, saying I had caused the downfall of your paramour; you haven’t forgotten that so quickly, have you?"

"Moreover, since you already know that this woman was once my good friend, then you should also know that she has been married before and even has a child. She was simply kicked out by her in-laws for doing something despicable, and sent back to her parents’ home, and her in-laws didn’t even want the child who was still in her womb at that time. Let’s not discuss who was right or wrong in that situation, just let me tell you that calling her a ’girl’ is not quite accurate. Those who have been married and have had children should be called women, just like us."

"No, it’s not like that, not what you’re saying," Shen Yingxue pathetically shook her head, defending herself. She didn’t want anyone to know about her past; ever since she arrived here, she had left everything from her old home behind, and no one here knew she had been married and had a child.