Three Women in the Cage

Finally, a month later, Yang Yu was released from confinement. She looked a little frail afterward. It was the busy farming season, so Zhang Erfa naturally had to go out to work and couldn't stay home with her. Although he had been at home for a month, he hadn't been able to help much.

Originally, Zhang's mother was supposed to help with the housework at home, but the thought of her first grandchild becoming a little girl made her angry and she didn't want to stay home. She thought about how she had been alone at home before, taking care of the children, doing the housework, and doing the farm work. She wanted to teach Yang Yu a lesson and get her to take on these chores, figuring she wouldn't dare resist. Having a child made her feel more concerned, and not being able to give the Zhang family their first big, fat grandchild, she figured she wouldn't feel confident anymore, so she followed Yang Yu out to work without worrying about it.

When she woke up that morning, the house was empty, so quiet that even a falling leaf could be heard. Yang Yu fed the child, waited for her to fall asleep, and put her in bed. Then she went to the kitchen. Looking at the cold pot, she felt like accepting her fate for the first time. She didn't even have the strength to resist. She just had to endure it. For the sake of her unloved child, they could only depend on each other for now. She couldn't bother her parents anymore.

With a sigh, he quickly set to work, feeling a little weak, not as agile as before. As he was awkwardly lighting the fire to cook, he heard a cry from the back room. Yang Yu quickly ran in, picked up the crying child, and patted her to comfort her while feeding her. After she calmed down, he wanted to put her back, but the baby became restless as soon as he put her down. He tried several times, but still couldn't put her down. So he held her in his arms and went back to the kitchen.

With one hand, she continued to light the fire in the earthen stove, while holding the baby in the other. After the fire was set, she stood up, stirred the pot with one hand, and continued to hold the baby with the other. Perhaps because of the smoke, or perhaps because being held like this made the baby uncomfortable, she kept crying. Yang Yu could only rock her, humming a song from time to time to comfort her.

After finally falling asleep, the baby still refused to sleep alone in the quilt. As long as he left the familiar smell, he would wake up and cry. There was no other way, Yang Yu found a cloth sling and slung it over his shoulders. This made it easier to work. Because coaxing the baby had delayed him, Yang Yu had to move more quickly.

When Yang's parents came to visit Yang Yu and their granddaughter with a bag of eggs and a piece of pork, they saw Yang Yu carrying a sleeping baby on her shoulder strap, cutting vegetables with one hand and stirring in the pot with the other, squatting down from time to time to add some wood to the earthen stove. Her body was a little weak, and she was not as efficient as before when doing things. Her busy little body was so focused that she did not notice their arrival.

Looking at her daughter, Yang's mother thought she owed her so much back home. She had thought she would marry someone better and have an easier life, but she hadn't expected it to be even harder in a new place. She used to feel a little sorry for her at home, but now she was worried no one cared. Suddenly, a mixture of emotions washed over her, and she burst into tears. Yang's father stood aside, silent for a moment. Finally, Yang's mother wiped her eyes, shook her lips, and said, "Yu'er, look, we're here to see you." Smiling, she pulled Yang's father over and walked inside.

Yang Yu was stunned when she heard the familiar voice. She turned around and looked at her parents who were approaching with some surprise. "Dad, Mom, why are you here?" "I came to see my grandson. I've been wanting to come for a long time. I thought that during the confinement period, there are so many newborns and children are more likely to get sick. I was looking forward to coming to see him when he was out of confinement," Yang's mother said, holding Yang Yu's hand.

"Why have you lost so much weight? Didn't you take care of yourself after your confinement? You're still nursing a baby, how could you possibly be wasting your energy like this? How did your mother-in-law take care of you?" Yang's mother asked, a little annoyed. "Oh, I came to see my grandson. Now that you have a child, don't cause trouble," Yang's father said, a little worried that Yang's mother and her in-laws would argue. "Mom, they took good care of you. You've all been taking care of yourself. Maybe you haven't recovered yet," Yang Yu said, not wanting to bother them with these things.

Yang's mother knew her daughter didn't want them to worry. She sighed, knowing that now that they had a baby, it would be hard to cause any conflict. She also knew the family's superficiality. "Here, here are the eggs and pork we brought just for you. Keep them hidden and nourish yourself. Don't let them see," Yang's mother said, insisting that Yang Yu go ahead and hide first.

Yang Yu, desperate for meat, gave up resisting, thinking of giving her child some nourishment, and went to hide. When she emerged, she hurriedly invited her parents to sit down. Mother Yang smiled and said, "Why are we being so polite? Leave us alone. Come, let me see our eldest granddaughter," and she came to help untie the shoulder straps.

"Oh, you're sleeping so soundly, your little face is so cute," Yang's mother laughed and teased the child, while Yang's father was watching beside her with a kind face. Yang Yu saw that her parents did not dislike their granddaughter at all, and watched happily from the side.

"You just keep busy. We will help you take care of the children. We won't help you with anything in normal times. You will have a hard time in the future. You can't rely on your mother-in-law and others, alas," Yang's mother kept sighing.

Just like that, with the visit from her parents, Yang Yu instantly felt warmed up, and she felt much more relaxed when doing things. She wished that this moment of warmth could last longer. When she thought of the indifference of this family and how they took it for granted that they ordered her to work, she felt depressed and suffocated, wanting to escape.

Yang Yu wanted to keep his parents here for lunch before going back. However, his parents did not want to run into Zhang's father and the others, fearing that they would complain and make Yang Yu's life even more difficult. So they planned to leave before they came back, which was equivalent to not having been there at all, and they would not know what they brought.

Seeing that they were about to return, Yang's parents could only get up reluctantly, put the child back on Yang Yu's shoulder bag, gave him some instructions, and then left reluctantly.

After Yang's parents left, Yang Yu quietly took two eggs and boiled them. Smelling the eggs' fragrance, Yang Yu swallowed her saliva, peeled the eggshells with some excitement, and then opened her mouth wide and began to eat with big mouthfuls. It was so fragrant and delicious. She had been thinking about the taste for a long time, and finally she could taste it. Yang Yu was very satisfied. Those things could only be secretly prepared and eaten when they were not around. Usually, they disliked their granddaughter and said it was a waste. Yang Yu had not eaten anything oily in a long time.

After a while, Zhang's father and others came back. Yang Yu brought the food to the table. When they were about to eat together, the child on her back started crying again at an inappropriate time. Yang Yu could only put down the bowl, stand up, and coax the child while walking and rocking. After the child calmed down a little, she went to the table, picked up the bowl and scooped up a few mouthfuls of rice. The slightly oily dishes on the table were almost all eaten. Yang Yu had no choice but to pick up some food and put it in the bowl, and started to eat it voraciously. She really wanted to eat something oily.

Maybe the days to come will be like this. I hope it won’t get any worse, but it seems to be getting worse and worse.