278: Adoption Contract

Wang Cheng and Chu Yifeng heard villagers discussing the Wang family as they returned to the Guan’s Village. Granny Wang was quite unreconciled after Wang Cheng drove them out, so she once again spread rumors during their absence. This time, she said that Papa Wang was not willing to take responsibility for his parents and drove them out of the house. She put the hat of unfilial piety on Papa Wang’s head. Now, whenever villagers saw Wang Cheng’s household, they would think ‘so this is how society is today, parents can not take care of their children, but their children still have to take care of them’. Once he entered the house, Wang Cheng saw Papa Wang and Mama Wang sitting in the living room with wronged expressions.

"Chengcheng, Xiao Chu, you guys are back. Have you had lunch? Do you want me to cook a meal for you?" Mama Wang stood up and poked Papa Wang with a finger, and the two of them quickly acted as if nothing had happened.

"No need, Mother, we’ve already eaten." Wang Cheng pressed Mama Wang back down onto the sofa. "I have heard that Granny and the others have come out to make trouble again."

Mama Wang sighed, "Your mother went to the jam factory today and found that several workers did not come to work; some said they had family emergencies while others said they were sick. Also, your third aunt just called and said that many people over at the jam shop are saying that your dad is unfilial, so fewer and fewer customers are buying jam."

"It seems that my eldest uncle and the others were well prepared."

"We can’t continue like this. Do you have any ideas, Chengcheng? Your dad does not even dare to step out of the door with things like this."

If they couldn’t put an end to the rumors, they would have to move away. However, they were both used to this neighborhood and didn’t want to move again after they’d recently moved.

Wang Cheng put his arms around Mama Wang's shoulders and hugged her. "Dad, Mother, don't worry. I found a permanent solution to this problem when I went out this morning."

While the two were still surprised, Chu Yifeng suddenly held out a wooden box.

Wang Cheng took the box and handed it to Papa Wang.

Papa Wang was stunned for a moment before he could accept it. He said with a puzzled look on his face, "Chengcheng, what are you giving me this box for?"

"It contains a contract. I hope that you’ll try to calm down and think rationally after reading it, Dad. You can ask me any questions you have," Wang Cheng said solemnly.

When Papa Wang saw that he was so serious, he couldn’t help but feel nervous. He had to exchange a glance with Mama Wang before he built up the courage to open the box. He first took out the jade pendant and handed it to Mama Wang, without bothering to read the inscribed character. Then, he picked up the contract. Because the contract was from fifty-one years ago, the paper was very old. However, it could still be seen that it was well preserved. The two words ‘Adoption Contract’ on the front page were still perfectly solid.

Papa Wang suddenly had a bad premonition. If this was a random adoption contract, his son wouldn’t have bothered showing it to him like this.

The adoption contract had familiar names written as the giver and the adoptive parents. Looking further down, the two words Wang Hongxin appeared as the adoptee. This was the name the Wang De husband and wife had given him immediately after they first decided to adopt him.

Papa Wang thought he was hallucinating and vigorously shook his head, but the words still existed on the contract. He was not the biological son of the Wang De husband and wife? He had thought that this kind of outrageous situation happening to his son was a rare case on its own, but he actually encountered the same thing?

When Mama Wang saw his disoriented expression, she immediately took the contract to read it for herself. As she finished reading it, she couldn't help but be stunned. "Chengcheng, what the hell is going on? How could your dad not be the biological son of his parents?”

Papa Wang finally came back to his senses when he heard her words. He thought back to what his son had just said, and couldn't help but knead his temples. "Chengcheng, you can answer, your dad is strong enough."

Wang Cheng told the two of the causes and effects of the situation. What should come would come after all, they’d know at some point.

"Dad, I know you might find it difficult to accept this fact, but I have verified this matter with Uncle Wang Bo; the old village chief told him of this before he died."

"Give me some time to think about it." Papa Wang was somewhat unable to accept this fact. He had known since he was a young child that he was not liked by his parents, Granny Wang’s favoritism was quite obvious. He had never understood before, and thought that as long as he did a good job, his parents would definitely like him. However, no matter how hard he worked, the Wang De husband and wife always treated him badly. Although he still wished to be loved by his parents when he grew up, he was not as persistent as he was when he was young. He had also wondered whether or not he was their biological son, but such a situation was rare after all. Additionally, with the characters of the Wang De husband and wife, how could they adopt some child when they already had two children?

Wang Cheng said: "Dad, now that we have this contract, we can prove that you are not the biological son of the Wang De husband and wife. As long as you pass on the news and the reason why the Wang De husband and wife adopted you in the first place, no one in the village will say you are unfilial again."

"But..." Papa Wang was still hesitant.

"No buts, Dad. It's because you aren’t their biological son that the Wang De husband and wife have so recklessly acted against you. They hold no affection for you at all. Why should you use your hot face to stick to their cold ass*? They are the ones who should be apologizing. Everyone knows how well you’ve treated them over the years. However, what did they do for you? Now that they don’t have money, they want to take money from you. They haven’t even considered that you aren’t going to work right now. Where could you get so much money from? They just want the money of our household. And if you did give it to them, they would definitely be unsatisfied, and these kinds of things would happen again in the future," Wang Cheng attempted to persuade Papa Wang. Everything was ready now, they only needed permission.

[T/N: *enthusiasm on one side meant with indifference on the other side]

"Yes, Hongxin. This wouldn’t have been possible before, but now that we know you aren’t related by blood, we don't need to worry about it. You heard what our son said just now." Mama Wang joined the ranks of persuasion. She had long hoped to make a clear distinction from Li and her family. "The Wang De husband and wife did not adopt you unconditionally, they just used the money left by your biological mother to buy a house and live a good life. These things should have belonged to you, but instead, what did they do? Not only did they occupy what should have belonged to you, but they’ve also arrogantly reached out to you for more money. Even for foster parents, that’s too much."

Now that the mother and son had gone into battle together, Papa Wang was shaken.

Chu Yifeng folded his arms and crossed one leg over the other, lightly adding: "Uncle Wang, even if you’re not looking out for yourself, you must still look out for your family."

It was this final sentence that successfully convinced Papa Wang.

In his heart, family was more important than anything else. The Wang De husband and his wife were not as precious to him as Mama Wang and their children. If the former was detrimental to the latter, he would definitely choose to save the latter without hesitation.

Wang Cheng gave Chu Yifeng a thumbs up.

After his confirmation, they began to implement the plan.

The first step is to release the news. Just as Li knew how to spread rumors, this was not Wang Cheng’s first time doing such things, he knew how to get the job done.

Early the next morning, Li went to the market with a basket to buy vegetables.

She usually used this routine to spread rumors about Papa Wang. However, today’s atmosphere was obviously different than normal. When Li went to the stall where she usually bought pork, several people who had been chatting in full swing suddenly quieted down when they saw her coming. Li didn't notice anything wrong, and asked the stall owner to cut a pork leg for her as normal. "I want one with a little more meat, ah."

The male stall owner looked at her as he was cutting the meat, and suddenly laughed: "Li, I heard that Wang Hongxin is not your mother-in-law's biological son."

Li was stunned. A minute later, she immediately sputtered and retorted: "Who said such nonsense? How can Wang Hongxin not be my mother-in-law's biological son? Even when he dies, he’ll still be a ghost of the Wang family. My mother-in-law worked hard to raise him, but now, he doesn't want to support my mother-in-law and father-in-law? What can I say, he’s just plain ungrateful."

"But I’ve heard that Wang Hongxin was indeed adopted by your mother-in-law - there is even evidence. Some elders from the Wang’s Village know about it, and there’s also supposedly an adoption contract. Everyone’s been talking about it today, haven't you heard of it?" The stall owner laughed innocently, as if saying ‘we all know the truth, so don't even think about fooling us’.

Li's face changed. "What adoption contract?"

The stall owner had an expression that said ‘you really must not know’, and explained, “It was the agreement signed by your mother-in-law when she adopted Wang Hongxin. The giver at that time was the deceased Old Village Chief Wang. His son was also in-the-know and explained everything. By the way, when your mother-in-law adopted Wang Hongxin, she took his biological mother’s jewelry. When you all were still in the Wang’s Village, the big house you lived in was bought using the jewelry of Wang Hongxin's biological mother."

"Impossible!" Li saw that everyone around her had gloating expressions, they’d obviously all known about this already.

A nearby woman who was also buying pork immediately sneered and said: "How is it impossible? The elders from the Wang Village have already agreed, and the adoption contract clearly exists - there were even people who testified. However, I heard that your mother-in-law never did as written in the adoption contract and spent money from another child’s biological mothers. In the end, she reached out and asked for more money. I’ve never seen such a cheeky person. If things hadn’t been exposed, everyone wouldn’t have known that such a shameless person could actually exist."

Everyone around was watching the interesting drama.

Li didn't dare to stay any longer and ran home, stumbling along the way.

***

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