“Mother, I don’t want anyone from another village, I just want Axiang!” Zhao Datu said angrily, “Mother, tell me the truth, did you ever find a jade bracelet?”
“Jade bracelet?” Aunt Zhao felt a bit guilty. After that incident with the jade bracelet hitting her, she hid it, planning to pawn it for a good price. Now that Zhao Datu was asking, she couldn’t help wondering, could the bracelet belong to Zhao Datu?
“Mother, you don’t need to tell me, I know the jade bracelet is with you, isn’t it? Hurry up and give it back to me, I want to give it to Axiang,” Zhao Datu knew his mother well. Seeing her reaction, he was certain she had it.
To save face, Aunt Zhao immediately argued, “That jade bracelet… I did take it, but it fell from the sky. Who knew it was yours? If I had known it was yours, I would have given it to you already. But really, it’s such a fine item, why would you give it to that wicked girl Axiang? What a waste of money! If you have money, why not buy something tasty for yourself? If you really do want to win back that little hussy Axiang, wouldn’t that be easy? She is still your wife as long as the divorce hasn’t been finalized, and as long as that’s the case, she remains a member of the Zhao Family!”
Zhao Datu’s eyes lit up, “Mother, what are you saying? Could it be you have a way to bring Axiang back to our home?”
Seeing Zhao Datu like that, Aunt Zhao snapped, “Bringing her back to our house? That’s easy. Let’s go find the village head right now!”
…
“Village head, you must judge this matter for us. Axiang is, after all, married into our family. You say we treated her poorly? Okay, we accept that point. But the way she left, that’s not proper, is it? Not to mention our Zhao Family’s rules, even the whole Peach Blossom Village’s customs agree. If she wants to break ties cleanly, she needs to get a divorce first, right? Only a plete divorce can sever ties cleanly!”
In the village head’s house, Aunt Zhao caught them eating and suddenly started talking non-stop.
After a lengthy explanation, the village head got the gist of Aunt Zhao’s point: Axiang’s way of leaving was improper. If she wanted to leave, she should get a divorce first.
“Divorce?” The village head took a deep breath.
In this era, women’s status was not very high. Most men expected women to remain faithful to one husband, prohibiting divorce or remarriage, requiring adherence to the “three obediences and four virtues,” even if the husband died, a woman could not easily remarry. If a divorce was really necessary, it had to be taken to court. Moreover, the court was not very lenient towards women, often punishing them by putting women in jail for nine days or subjecting them to seven days of severe torture to truly be free.
Even so, a divorced woman was not accepted back by her family. However, Axiang’s situation was unusual. She could stay with the fool all her life, but this torture?
“Village head, Axiang wants to leave, and we can’t stop her, but since she wants to leave, she must abide by our customs, right? I’ve already looked into it. Peach Blossom Village had a divorce case about ten years ago. The woman was beaten at the mune for seven days, forty-nine lashes each day. I reckon, if Axiang really wants to leave, she must also endure this punishment. Otherwise, she should just e back and spend her life with my son, Dabao,” Aunt Zhao said indignantly.
Before the village head could respond, the village head’s daughters-in-law from the Niu Family and Ma Family began chattering, “My goodness, forty-nine lashes a day? For seven days?”
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