Chapter 46: The Fang Family Farce After Fang
  's mother had been in the hospital for a week, the doctor finally gave the OK to release her, advising her to rest at home and avoid extreme emotional fluctuations.

  Fang Qing thanked her profusely and took her mother home on her tricycle. After regaining consciousness, Fang's mother couldn't stop thinking about the family restaurant. It had been closed for several days, and she frowned in pain, feeling the loss was too great, and insisted on reopening it.

  But Fang Qing, frightened by her mother this time, refused to let her worry about anything else. "Mom, just rest up. Don't worry about the restaurant. My aunt will be here this afternoon. With us here, you can rest easy." After

  settling her mother down, Fang Qing hurried back to school.

  She and her brother had been taking turns caring for her mother at the hospital, and Fang Qing had to juggle her studies. She was so busy that her heels kicked the back of her head. As she entered the school gate, she bumped into someone.

  "Sorry, sorry, I didn't look where I was going..." Fang Qing apologized hastily, looking up with a sigh of relief.

  "Fang Qing? Where are you going in such a hurry?" Wen Ning felt a dull pain in his chest from being hit, and he glanced at Fang Qing, who had obviously lost weight, in surprise.

  "My mom was discharged from the hospital today, and I just got back from home. I took a leave of absence this morning, and I have to go back to the classroom to make up for my morning classes." Fang Qing greeted him with a smile.

  Wen Ning was puzzled. "Your grades are already very good. You don't have to work so hard. You have to learn to relax. It's not

  good to be so tense all the time." Fang Qing sighed sourly. "No, I can't. I'm already feeling the strain. If

  I don't work harder, I'll soon be left behind. I'm not like you. You can just see and calculate. I'm not that smart..." Wen Ning smiled faintly and nodded in understanding. "Okay, then go ahead. If you need any help, tell Erling and we'll help you."

  Fang Qing smiled gratefully and ran off with her schoolbag.

  Wen Ning stood there watching her rush into the building so rashly she nearly bumped into the doorframe. He bit his lip to stifle a laugh, then turned around and suddenly remembered he'd forgotten to tell her his birthday was next weekend. "Never mind, let Wen Ling tell her."

  ...

  Because Old Madam Fang and his eldest aunt had caused a scene at the restaurant, sending his wife to the hospital, Father Fang felt he needed to reason with them. He took a day off and went to their house to address them. To his surprise, his eldest sister-in-law and mother threw them out. They even turned the tables, accusing the second branch of the family of neglecting their elderly parents and being unfilial. Upon

  returning home, Father Fang sat in the courtyard, fuming. He couldn't understand how they'd become like this, having been a family.

  The more he thought about it, the more frustrated he felt. It was fine if his mother didn't like him, but now his entire family was being disliked as well. And they were constantly talking bad about his family behind their backs. What deep-seated grudge was this?

  Father Fang, unable to understand, simply drank to himself and drifted off to sleep.

  Unexpectedly, the next day, the neighborhood director arrived at the Fang family's home, claiming someone had filed a real-name complaint alleging elderly abuse, failure to support, and lack of living expenses.

  He demanded that the couple provide Mrs. Fang with living expenses on time each month, or he would sue her and prevent her from ever working in the government again.

  The Fang family's drama spread like wildfire throughout the neighborhood, with residents pointing fingers at the family. Some, however, who knew the inside story, criticized Mrs. Fang's cruelty, demanding she leave her own son in such a humiliating situation.

  Finally, unable to bear it any longer, Fang's father approached the neighborhood director, requesting mediation. Director Xing found a convenient time and summoned the entire Fang family to the neighborhood office, where the two families discussed the matter.

  However, Mrs. Fang's stubbornness and the domineering nature of her eldest daughter-in-law ultimately thwarted the mediation.

  Seeing her small restaurant prosper, Mrs. Fang, at the instigation of her eldest daughter-in-law, took her son to court, demanding that her second son pay her 150 yuan a month for living expenses, plus an additional 50 yuan every quarter for medical expenses.

  After conducting investigations and visits, the attorney finally understood the specific circumstances of the Fang family and presented compelling evidence in court, proving that Fang Decai had consistently contributed to his mother's living expenses every month since their marriage and had also been responsible for all household expenses. Furthermore, when the family split up, Fang Decai offered to keep his mother with him, but it was Mrs. Fang herself who declined. Therefore, the claim that Fang Decai's family failed to support their elderly parents was completely false.

  Conversely, Mrs. Fang's other children had never inquired about her well-being or contributed a cent to her retirement.

  In court, the other children of the Fang family were mortified by the evidence presented by the lawyer, and the eldest daughter-in

  -law was so angry she almost wanted to bury her head in the ground. Old Mrs. Fang, sitting in the plaintiff's seat, remained unfazed, arguing, "This is my son. I can ask whoever I want for money. They have to give me whatever I want. It's none of your business!" The judge shook his head helplessly at Old Mrs. Fang's unreasonableness. It was truly difficult for an honest judge to judge a family matter. Faced with such an unreasonable person, the judge felt sorry for Fang Decai's family.

  Finally, based on all the evidence and witness testimony, and in accordance with the latest wage levels in Jingtan County, the judge ordered Fang Decai's family to pay Old Mrs. Fang 45 yuan per month in living expenses.

  Upon hearing this ruling, Old Mrs. Fang was furious and cursed the judge, accusing him of colluding with Fang Decai's family to bully her. Her eldest son, Fang Decheng, quickly grabbed his mother and said, "Mom, it's illegal to insult a judge. Please stop talking!"

  Old Mrs. Fang continued to curse, but the guard warned her that she would be detained if she continued to insult the officer, and she finally shut up.

  Leaving the courtroom, Old Mrs. Fang was filled with frustration. She was clearly in the right, yet how had it ended up like this? Not only had her request for two hundred yuan a month been rejected, but the court also found nothing wrong with her second son's family. Didn't that mean she was wrong?

  The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. This time, she didn't need anyone to support her. She stormed out of the courthouse, her cane in hand, cursing as she went, saying how the world had changed and how people's hearts had become evil.

  Seeing that her mother had already left, her eldest aunt, Fang Cuilian, felt awkward staying here, so she made an excuse and left too, without mentioning anything about her mother's living expenses. Her uncle scratched his head in frustration. He'd tried to persuade their mother, but to no avail. He told his second brother, Fang Decai, that he had things to do and slipped away as well. His younger uncle sighed, patted his second brother on the shoulder, and turned back home.

  Fang Decai looked at the verdict in his hand, and although he felt relieved, he couldn't be happy.

  Fang Qing came home from school and found the atmosphere at home strange. After asking, he found out that his father had won the lawsuit. But thinking about the usual expressions of his grandmother and others, he knew that something unpleasant must have happened again.

  (End of this chapter)