Chapter Nineteenth: Preferring Sons Over Daughters

  Summer vacation has arrived, Xia Meng returned to City B, while Li Han flew back to the other side of the ocean.

  Xia Meng returned home on the first day, and waited until after 9 pm, but her parents still hadn't come home. Xia Meng went online, turned on the TV, but there weren't any programs she liked to watch, so she washed up and went to sleep.

  In the middle of the night, Xia Meng heard a fierce quarrel coming from the next room: "Divorce? No divorce!" It was her mother's desperate and painful voice.

  "Keep your voice down, the kid is back home!" The father's lowered voice sounded somewhat guilty and lacking in confidence.

  "If you had thought of your children, you wouldn't have done this!" The mother continued to shout.

  "If you let Xia Meng know, we'll see each other in court!" Her father's voice was not loud, but his tone was firm. Xia Meng pulled over the quilt and covered her head, she didn't want to hear this.

  Xia Meng woke up the next morning at over 9 o'clock. There was a note on the table: "Mengmeng, Dad and Mom have something to do at the company and left early. You go downstairs to eat breakfast and then go visit Grandpa and Grandma."

  Xia Meng has already realized that her parents' emotions are problematic.

  Grandpa and grandma were indifferent to Xia Meng's arrival. They still resented that Xia Meng was not a boy.

  The Xia family had a single heir for five generations. Xia Meng's grandfather was named Xia Haitao, and his father was a wealthy capitalist named Xia Fu'an. Xia Haitao was born during a tumultuous period in Chinese society, and Xia Fu'an was kidnapped by warlords and never heard from again, leaving his fate unknown. Xia Fu'an's young wife became a widow and remained unmarried for the rest of her life, raising Xia Haitao on her own. As a result, Xia Haitao naturally became the hope of the entire family. No matter how society changed, Xia Haitao's widowed mother spared no expense to protect the only heir of the Xia family. She poured all her heart and soul into Xia Haitao.

  Perhaps because of his mother's doting, perhaps because of her inability to teach him properly, or perhaps due to the family's good living conditions, Xia Haitao learned how to gamble at the age of 8 and grew up to be a spendthrift who indulged in drinking, whoring, and gambling without restraint. Later, when the revolutionary movement arrived, Xia Haitao's home was confiscated, and all his assets were seized by the state. The Xia family thus declined, but Xia Haitao never changed his bad habits of eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling.

  Xia Haitao was tall, handsome and elegant, a talented young man with a promising future. He caught the eye of a high-ranking official's daughter, who was dark-skinned, short, and had an unpleasant expression. She was not well-liked by her father at home, but unfortunately, her mother had passed away early, and she had a very poor relationship with her stepmother, so she was eager to get married as soon as possible. After the official's daughter took a liking to Xia Haitao, she began to pursue him aggressively. Perhaps Xia Haitao was also attracted to her family background, so he accepted the ugly official's daughter as his wife. Xia Haitao's ability to survive in the treacherous and bloody world had a great deal to do with his marriage to a woman with a good background.

  Summer Dream Grandma is ugly, but kind-hearted. Although she was born into a high-ranking family, she doesn't have any airs about her. She follows the tradition of "marrying a chicken and following the chicken, marrying a dog and following the dog". Her handsome husband spends all day outside flirting with other women and cold-shouldering her, yet she works hard without complaint, respects her mother-in-law, educates her son to be knowledgeable and reasonable, and he even gets into his dream university.

  After Xia Meng's father, Xia Xiuke got married, Xia Haitao became more and more addicted to gambling outside. In Xia Meng's memory, her grandfather almost went out to gamble every day, regardless of wind or rain, and even more exaggeratedly, there were often women he had slept with who came to their home to quarrel.

  Therefore, Xia Xiuzhe looked down on his own father. Also because he had a father of his own, he was discriminated against and ostracized everywhere in school. He also hated his own father for being cold and unfeeling towards his mother. Therefore, he felt even more pitiful and sympathetic towards his own mother, and was exceptionally filial to her.

  But what disappointed and enraged Xia Meng's grandmother was that after her son Xia Xiukai grew up, he brought back a rural daughter-in-law Lin Lian whom she didn't like.

  The Xia family's lineage had been passed down for five generations, but it ended with Xia Xiuke and Lin Lian. They gave birth to a daughter instead of a son, which made Grandpa and Grandma Xia extremely angry and resentful. No matter what, they couldn't accept the fact that there was no one to inherit the family line.

  Xiǎ Mèng is naturally kind and optimistic, she has never minded the cold attitude of the elderly. After entering her grandmother's house, she took the initiative to clean up, washing and tidying up the house until dinner time. After Xiǎ Mèng's grandmother finished cooking, she instructed Xiǎ Mèng to go downstairs to the card room to find her grandfather to come home for dinner.

  "Xia Meng arrived at the card room. "I heard your granddaughter is back? She's doing very well in her studies in City A, isn't she?" said Grandfather's card friend."

  "What's the use of having good grades, she's a girl after all, and will eventually get married. What a sin! Our old Xia family will become extinct!" Grandfather Xia Hai Tao said with a sigh.

  "Grandpa, dinner is ready, let's go home and eat!"

  Xia Haitao looked up at Xia Meng: "You're the unlucky star, aren't you? You came and I lost money right away!" Xia Meng thought to herself, I just got here, how can you blame me for your loss?!

  After lunch, Xia Meng stayed and took out all the winter quilts of her grandparents to wash. Then she cut grandma's hair, fingernails and toenails.

  "Oh, if only you were a boy! After Grandma passed away, how can I explain to your great-grandmother that the Xia family line has ended?" Grandma sat on the sofa, looking at busy Xia Meng, muttering tearfully.

  "Grandma, what era is this now? I'm not worse than boys!" Xia Meng said with a smile, "Grandma, my academic performance is very good and my physical education grades are also excellent! If it's a fight, the boys can't even beat me!"

  "But you will end up marrying someone anyway!"

  "Grandma, I won't marry a man, I'll bring a man home to marry me!" Xia Meng said, dragging her feet and making a face at her grandma.

  "Silly girl! Since ancient times, there's never been a woman who marries a man!"

  "Then it's all set! In the future, I'll marry a man and bring him back to our Xia family, and when we have kids, they'll be surnamed Xia too, how about that?" Xia Meng put down the mop and sat beside her grandmother, comforting her.

  "To be honest, I quite like you, but as soon as I think that you're a girl..."

  "Grandma, I love you the most, because you are the most lovely old lady!" Xia Meng hugged her grandma and kissed her. The old lady's face revealed a hint of a smile. Her son was filial to her, but he had been strong-willed and restrained in his emotions since childhood, never expressing affection towards her. Her husband, on the other hand, was disgusted with her, and she couldn't feel any warmth from him either. But Xia Meng, her granddaughter, no matter how coldly she behaved, always smiled and cooed at her, being affectionate and loving towards her. Deep down in the old lady's heart, she actually loved her granddaughter very much.

  In the evening, Xia Meng's grandfather returned from playing cards, probably having lost money and being in a bad mood.

  "Xia Meng, do you know that your father and mother are getting a divorce now?" Xia Meng's grandfather said to Xia Meng. Xia Meng's grandmother gave the old man a look, saying in a low voice: "Why tell the child?"

  "Xiǎ Mèng, go back home, your dad and mom are probably back! " Xiǎ Mèng's grandma hastily pushed her out of the door. After closing the door, Xiǎ Mèng heard intense arguing inside. "The child is in high school now, don't affect her studies!"

  "Are you crazy?! How much longer are we going to wait?!" Xia Meng's grandfather shouted hoarsely at his wife.

  Could it be that Dad and Mom are really going to get a divorce? Xia Meng walked on the street with a dazed expression. No, Dad and Mom can't get a divorce, I have to do something to save my family.