Chapter 28: Their Whole Family Has Slanted Eyes

Su Heng pushed 20 large sacks of grain down from above.

Su Mao watched, jumping with rage but feeling helpless. He knew that if he started a quarrel with Su Heng, it would draw the neighbors' attention, and he feared the entire family would end up in jail.

Once Su Heng came down, he said indignantly, "You truly are a fine grandfather, watching us starve while you sit on this. These twenty bags, less than two thousand catties in total, are our rations for the year that we gave to you. I am taking them all back. If you ever try to take things from our house again, I will make sure the whole village knows about it."

Su Mao clutched his chest, his lips trembling; he was genuinely furious. "Fine... fine, take them back, but you must not let anyone else know."

Su Heng was no fool. The sacks were full of new grain, and since his uncle worked at the grain station, he knew he had to tell his father. This was no small matter; he couldn't afford for it to implicate them later.

He said coldly, "We are only taking back our own rations for this year. If Grandma or my uncle's family goes to our house to cause a scene tomorrow, I will certainly take it to the village and let everyone judge who is right."

Su Mao instantly broke into a cold sweat. "Alright, your grandmother won't go there. You are all my children; we are one family—why would we want to be a laughingstock for others?"

He had to appease them first and then discuss it with the old woman when she returned home.

Just then, Su Wanwan walked in carrying a basket. She looked at the sacks on the ground and said, "Second Brother, I’ve brought over the cart from Grandfather’s house. Let’s load it up quickly."

Su Mao hurriedly grabbed his grandson and said, "You can't take it away now. If you haul it back like this, won't everyone in the village see?"

Su Heng knew what they were planning. "I don't care. We are taking it now. If anyone asks, I'll just say this is our family's grain for the year and that my grandfather gave it back to us."

He was done with being secretive. He didn't want the suspicion to fall on them later; he wanted to do this openly, as this grain belonged to their family in the first place.

Su Heng shouldered one heavy sack and carried another in his hand, moving effortlessly as he walked toward the door. He clearly felt stronger than before, and he didn't feel the slightest bit of fatigue from his daily chores.

Watching Su Heng carry the heavy bags with such ease, Su Mao pondered. He wasn't one of their own blood; none of their family members in generations had ever been this strong.

Su Wanwan walked up to her grandfather and scrutinized him very seriously.

Su Mao didn't know what the girl was up to, but her gaze made his skin crawl. Wondering if there was something on his face, he rubbed his cheeks.

Su Wanwan pulled her second brother in front of their grandfather and said, "Second Brother, look closely at Grandfather's face. Haven't you noticed the problem?"

Su Mao frowned. "What problem? Stop spouting nonsense; there is no problem."

Su Heng gave Su Mao a disdainful look. "Just a black heart."

Su Mao was livid. "You... is that how your father taught you?"

Su Wanwan continued, "Look closely at Grandfather's nose: a flat bridge, a bulbous garlic nose, with nostrils that are clearly flared, just like pig nostrils. In a word: ugly.

"But every one of us has a high bridge, a naturally smooth line, a rounded tip, and it curves slightly upward from the side. In a word: beautiful."

Su Heng looked back and forth between Su Wanwan and Su Mao, nodding repeatedly. "My uncle's whole family has those same pig noses."

Su Mao was furious, smoking with rage at these two little beasts, but he dared not lash out. "I'm going to tell your father later that this is how you talk to your elders."

Su Wanwan continued, "Look at Grandfather's eyes. Grandfather and Grandmother both have single eyelids, and they're small. Uncle’s whole family has single eyelids too, and so do the aunts. Our whole family has double eyelids, and our eyes are big."

Su Heng nodded fervently. "Their whole family has squinty eyes."

"And our whole family has curly hair, while Grandfather, Grandmother, Uncle, and the aunts all have straight hair."

"Second Brother, look again. Our whole family has fair skin, while they are all dark and swarthy. Plus, Grandfather, Uncle, and the aunts are all under 1.6 meters tall. Our father, Big Brother, and Second Brother are all over 1.8 meters. Even I am taller than Uncle's family—I'm 1.65 meters, and what's more..."

Before Su Wanwan could continue, Su Mao interrupted her, "You child, what silly things are you saying? We work in the fields every day, so of course we're dark. Everyone's eyes are different sizes, that's normal. As for the height, it's because your father ate well growing up."

Su Heng said coldly, "Don't we work in the fields every day too? Why aren't we tanned? And how come I heard my father say he went hungry every day as a child, while Uncle's family was kept plump and round, all of them like little short stumps?"

The more Su Heng looked, the more he felt his sister was right. Why hadn't he noticed it before? There really wasn't a single feature they shared.

He retorted, "Why don't you tell me, Father, which part of you looks like these two black-hearted people?"

Su Mao's face turned as pale as paper. They weren't his biological children, so of course they didn't look alike. He had no answer and hurriedly changed the subject. "Hurry up and move the grain."

Su Heng continued moving the grain. Soon, all of it was loaded onto the cart. He didn't forget to take eight chairs as well. Those belonged to their family too.

They couldn't fit it all in one trip, so they would come back for the rest later.

Su Mao felt a sharp pain in his heart. This much grain would have been enough to feed his family for a year.

Su Heng looked at his sister's basket. "Can you carry it? If not, I will."

Su Wanwan looked at Su Mao and said, "It's not much, just a jar of oil and some flour. I can carry it."

Su Mao peeked into the basket and saw it really was just those two items.

He was relieved the girl only took a jar of oil and hadn't touched the cured meat or eggs yet. It was a stroke of luck, though even these two items made his heart ache.

Su Heng looked at Su Mao. "Black-hearted old man, if the old woman goes to our house to cause a scene tomorrow or says anything to my father, I won't guarantee what I might say to the village."

Su Mao was seething, but he dared not act out, nodding repeatedly. "We're all family; it's the same whether you eat it or we do."

After they left, Su Mao looked on with a vicious gaze, quickly shutting the gate, and strode off toward his daughter-in-law's maiden home.

Back home, Su Heng quickly unloaded the grain, while Su Wanwan set down her basket and hurried to the utility room. She took the grain, oil, and eggs she had hidden in her space and placed them there.

She then went outside to see her brother vividly describing the events to their parents, including their suspicion that they weren't blood-related.

Once Su Heng finished his report, Su Wanwan mentioned the cured meat and oil she had brought back.

Su Heng hadn't expected his sister to be so capable. He walked to the utility room and his eyes widened at the sight of the supplies on the floor, especially the seven large slabs of cured meat. He said indignantly, "That old man Su is truly black-hearted."

Though Su Jianjun hadn't seen the grain his son described, he knew there was something suspicious going on.

Seeing her father frowning in thought, Su Wanwan realized that since they had discovered the grain at the old house today, the old man would surely try to move it.

There would definitely be action tonight.