Chapter 44 Xiao Liansheng

The next morning, after eating two bowls of authentic old Beijing fried noodles, the two brothers' families of six went to the Forbidden City Yiheyuan for a walk. They heard that there were giant pandas in the zoo, and Xiaohu and Doudou's eyes were shining with anticipation. Qin Jiao waved his hand and invited everyone to go see the pandas!

Doudou likes all kinds of small animals. The little insects that her aunt made for her are still her favorites. She plays with them every day. By the way, she was angry a few days ago because Zhao Haiyang picked a grasshopper from her.

At that time, the adults didn't know why she was angry, but they knew that she was emotionally stable and would not cry or make a fuss even if she was angry, so no one took it to heart. It was not until one day when Lao He was cleaning her car that he found a grasshopper was missing and one of the ropes hanging the little animal was empty that he realized it and became angry.

But since he didn't see with his own eyes who picked it, and it was a small thing, he couldn't get angry. He just warned his family not to leave Doudou and the Zhao siblings alone in the future.

Absolutely not.

He has always been a very easy-going person, and when he made such a serious request that day, Qin Guihua took it very seriously and really promised to take Doudou with her wherever she went.

Speaking of which, the relationship between He Liansheng and Zhao Qingsong became subtle from some day on. Although they still greeted each other normally when they met, and chatted for a few minutes when they ran into each other at work, he just felt that the relationship between the two of them had changed.

He Liansheng was not a fool, he knew that Zhao Qingsong now blamed all his misfortunes on him, he was very disdainful of this, but due to their past friendship, he could say hello when they met, but he did not mention a word about Comrade Xiao Qin and Dou Dou, nor the work tasks assigned to him by Mr. Chen.

Isn't this a form of defense?

Thinking of this, he frowned, put the girl on his neck, and began to point at various animals and introduce them.

Xiaohu was unwilling to stay with his parents, so he hugged his uncle's legs and listened attentively, "Uncle knows so much!"

"You said it very well!" Unlike his father, who never told him anything and didn't have such good patience.

Hong Xia saw it all and couldn't hide her smile, "My sister-in-law is really capable. She knows how to teach people."

"No way. Marriage is all about compromise and tolerance."

"Speaking of which, my brother-in-law is also a miserable man. It is really his blessing to meet such a good daughter-in-law like you."

Lao He was willing to tell her everything, but he rarely talked about his family and childhood. Qin Ju immediately became interested, "Sister-in-law, tell me quickly. I'm not afraid of you laughing at me if I tell you the truth. Although we have been married for almost four years, I still don't know much about him."

Hong Xia hesitated for a moment, and then, seeing that the two brothers were walking in front with Xiao Hu, she lowered her voice and said, "His second uncle had a miserable life, and his parents had a poor relationship."

It turned out that He's father reluctantly married He's mother because He's mother was pregnant. Perhaps it was out of his remaining sense of responsibility, or perhaps he was afraid that He's mother would go to work and ruin her future, so he had to compromise. Their relationship after marriage was also ordinary, and quarrels were common, and the root cause was still He's father's white moonlight who was far away abroad.

The first child born was He Baosheng.

"After several years of quarreling, Xiaohu's grandmother finally came to her senses and decided to divorce him rather than let him die."

"But on the day before the divorce, it happened that she was found out to be pregnant for more than a month... and then the divorce didn't go through." Hong Xia's face turned red with embarrassment. It was really embarrassing for a daughter-in-law to talk about such things with her parents-in-law.

Qin Ju suddenly realized that because of the arrival of this child, He's father had to compromise again. In his mind, this child was no longer a child, but a stumbling block that prevented him from running towards freedom and white moonlight, and even a shame of his life!

For He's mother, she had already agreed to a divorce, but the appearance of this child gave her a glimmer of hope: the man could marry her for the first child, and maybe fall in love with her for the second child. She initially regarded this child as the salvation of her marriage and the light of her life... However, the fact is that the scumbag's heart would not stay for her.

Then, this "marriage redemption" and "light of hope" is a useless thing and a disaster!

Qin Ju's eyes suddenly turned red. "What happened next?"

"Even if I don't tell you, you can imagine how his second uncle lived when he was a child. That was... Oh, forget it. I can't say anything bad about my parents-in-law, but as a parent, why can't you be nicer to your own child?"

She had heard her husband say that the second child's life as a child was not good enough, even worse than the farmhands of the landlords and rich people. He was often hungry and waterless, and was beaten and scolded. Even when they quarreled, they took it out on him, as if the unhappiness of their marriage was caused by this child. But she didn't think about it. If they hadn't been unable to control their own bodies, how could this child have been born?

Qin Jue was also filled with hatred. What kind of rubbish were these parents? They were clearly arguing for a divorce but they still wanted to have sex. Would they die if they didn't have sex? Would buying a condom make them go bankrupt? They had sex and still left a child. If they really wanted a divorce, couldn't they buy abortion pills? Couldn't they have an abortion? Why did they bring this child into this fucked up world!

Throughout his childhood, Liansheng was constantly being told by his parents that he was a disgrace, a waste, and a burden. Probably until he was old enough to go out on his own to join the army, he didn't feel any kindness at all, right?

How can such a person like children? How can he look forward to having children? How can he believe in love?

Qin Ju pinched his own hands and barely managed to control the sourness in his throat.

She finally understood why he had emphasized to her from the beginning that he had not decided whether or not to have children. It was because he himself was not a happy child and he did not want to bring another child into this fucked up world.

"Thank you, sister-in-law."

Hong Xia didn't understand. "Well, why are you thanking me? When I got married, his second uncle had already joined the army, so we didn't have many opportunities to meet. But Baosheng always said that he felt guilty for not being able to protect his younger brother several times when he was young because he was weak."

He Baosheng is not much older than He Liansheng, he is still a child, Qin Ju will not blame him. Besides, judging from the scene of yesterday's meeting, He Baosheng has feelings for his brother, which shows that the two brothers got along well when they were young. Although their parents did not love them, at least they still had a brother to depend on, right?

Qin Ju looked at the man who was feeding the young lady and introducing each kind of animal patiently and carefully. Her heart seemed to be filled with something: sour, uncomfortable, and fortunate.

"Seeing how patient he is with the child, Baosheng and I feel relieved. I am also afraid that the incident back then would leave a psychological shadow on him."

Qin Ju's heart skipped a beat. Was there something else that she didn't know?

Seeing her expression, Hong Xia sighed, "He didn't tell you that his leg was accidentally injured while trying to save a child on the battlefield. The child seemed to be from a farmer's family near their military area. He was bribed by enemy spies to enter a training area. When Lian Sheng rescued him, he insisted that he accidentally walked into the mountains, so Lian Sheng sent him home. Who knew that he was tricked into a trap set by a hunter on the way. His leg was injured by the blade in the trap. The trap was too deep, so he was trapped for three days and two nights. When he climbed out, his leg was completely broken. Later, he went to a big hospital for treatment, but the doctor shook his head and said it was too late."

Qinjiu's nose felt sore.

Yes, he has been trapped for such a long time and missed the best time for treatment. Even a god cannot cure him. I have been giving him physical therapy every night for the past few years, and using acupuncture to relieve the pain, but it can only help him regain normal function and reduce the limitations. His bones are really injured.

Qin Ju couldn't imagine how desperate he must have been during those three days and two nights of being trapped, and what made him persevere and get out.

"That little spy is a piece of shit. The land of our Dragon Country gave birth to him and raised him for so many years, but he was bought off with just a few eggs. He even picked on our People's Liberation Army to bully. He deceived Lian Sheng, but in fact he just wanted... wanted..." to kill him.

Hong Xia, a cultured person, was so angry that she cursed. She had taught so many children, some were naughty, some loved to fight, and some were naughty, but she had never seen such a bad one. Adults usually have no defense against children, let alone the children of local farmers. No one would have thought that he could be so bad.

No wonder he said "some children are devils" on the train that day. It turned out to be because of this incident. Qin Qi asked quickly, "What happened next?"

"Later, after Liansheng crawled out, the child was captured, and we found out that there were many children in their village who were bought like this. But no one else got any useful information, except this bad guy. He actually drew a topographic map of the military region. With Liansheng's identification, he was naturally imprisoned. Because of his meritorious service, the military region leader said he would promote him, but he applied for a demobilization, which surprised me."

Others didn't understand why he didn't strike while the iron was hot and move up. Even Zhao Qingsong thought that He Liansheng had missed the chance to turn things around. But only Qin Ju knew that he was disappointed.

They are disappointed with the country's future "flowers". The soldiers are charging into battle and shedding blood and sweat at the front, but these children do bad things for a little favor, and even dare to kill people at a young age.

Admittedly, this was due to the backwardness of the local area and the lack of education, but at that time he was stuck in a dead end and could not accept this cruel fact, so he left the barracks and went to Haicheng to become an ordinary technician.

Qin Ju really wanted to hug him at this moment. He found him in the crowd. He was holding Doudou and introducing the animals in the cages one by one. As if sensing his wife's gaze, he turned around, nodded to her comfortingly, and continued talking to Doudou.

Even though he didn't say anything, Qin Ju's eyes were red.

Doudou has a good memory. She can remember the animals her father introduced to her after just one visit. Unlike her brother, she would not remember the name of the animal she saw before after walking for a while. Sometimes I would ask her again, and she would answer cleverly. She is very talkative.

But she is really a curious baby. She asks "What is this" whenever she sees something. By the end of the tour, brother Xiaohu couldn't stand her questions any more, but Second Uncle was still so patient.

"Second Uncle is really amazing. There is nothing he doesn't know."

"My second uncle is so good to my sister."

Qin Ju was amused and touched the swirl on his head. "Your father is good too. Look how tired he must be carrying things for us all the way."

He Baosheng was the typical type of person who didn't say much. He helped the two children carry their coats, water bottles, and backpacks filled with various foods. He walked at the back without saying a word, protecting everyone.

After coming out of the zoo at around five in the afternoon, the six of us went straight to my parents-in-law’s house.

After they came back from the Great Northern Wilderness, the hospital reallocated dormitories for them. Even though the dormitory was not far from their eldest son's home, they refused to move in.

Qin Ju originally brought some money with her before she left, intending to buy some food and nutritional supplements when she went to her in-laws' house. But today, she learned about what happened to He Liansheng when he was a child. She bought food? She didn't even want to give them anything to eat!

If it weren't for the fact that they had sent Doudou some clothes and a small blanket, Qin Ju would not have wanted to come here today at all.

*

The old couple lived on the third floor. Qin Ju walked at the end. Dou Dou, held by one hand each from his father and brother, hopped to the door like a little rabbit.

After knocking several times, the door finally opened from the inside, revealing a fair, delicate and shiny face of a middle-aged handsome man.

Qin Ju used to think that old He was a handsome man with a handsome face and a gentle temperament, but now after seeing He Rong, she realized that his father is even more handsome!

He really is that kind of elegant and graceful man, as beautiful as jade. Even after living in the countryside for so many years, he still has no sun spots or wrinkles on his face... No wonder An Shuzhen got pregnant before marriage for him and gave birth to a child to keep him.

Such a handsome man, not only women are irresistible, but even men may not be immune. Qin Ju, who already hated him in her heart, was still shocked by him.

"You are..." He Rong looked at the tall, thin, and not-so-good-looking young man in front of him, and he seemed to have dug deep into his distant memory and finally remembered, "Oh, second brother, you're so big now!"

silence.

Qin Ju did not force Liansheng to congratulate him. He called him "Dad" in a very calm manner and taught Doudou, who was looking up, to call him "Grandpa".

Doudou looked at his father who didn't open his mouth, then looked at "Grandpa", and then his little head turned and he focused on the messy graffiti of the children on the wall.

Qin Ju felt amused in her heart. This was what it meant to have a father-daughter bond.

"Hey, here you are. You're married and have kids." He Rong smiled awkwardly and quickly called downstairs to An Shuzhen. He didn't ask them whether they had eaten, whether they were hungry, or how old their child was or what his name was.

Of course, even the eldest son He Baosheng and his family of three received the same treatment. Hong Xia also looked like she was used to it, and sat there without saying a word after being called "Dad". Xiaohu was usually such an active child, but now he sat there obediently, not daring to look around.

The atmosphere was too depressing. He Rong took the initiative to talk to the only adult stranger, Qin Ju, and asked her where she was from and what she did. He guessed that she had been lonely on the farm for a long time and there were not many people to chat with. It was rare for him to meet such a "cheerful and talkative" daughter-in-law. He didn't understand and looked down on her. He started to talk about his own artistic achievements.

Yes, he still calls himself one of the first cellists in Singapore. He talks about hand shape, fingering, legato and scale, David Popper and "The Tears of Jacqueline". Finally, he sighs that the cello is a true reflection of his melancholy and sad life.

Qin Ju was about to vomit, and so were the others.

After a while, my mother-in-law An Shuzhen finally came back.

An Shuzhen is very tall among lesbians, and is extremely thin. She has sunken cheeks, drooping mouth corners, deep nasolabial folds, large but lifeless eyes, and her eyeballs are obviously protruding, as if she could get angry at any moment... It can be seen that she must have been a beauty when she was young, but she did not have the androgynous charm of He Rong.

She looked at He Liansheng deeply and asked, "Are you here?"

"Mother."

Then, she stopped looking at He Liansheng, as if he was just a symbol, and instead stretched out her hand to Qin Ju, "Hello, I'm An Shuzhen, He Liansheng's mother."

Even though her tone was calm, Qin Jue had the illusion that she would fly into a rage if she disagreed with him.

Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes observation, auscultation, questioning and palpation, and facial features can actually reveal the disease.

An Shuzhen's eyes were bulging, the root of her nose was blue, her cheeks were abnormally flushed, and her lips were dry and chapped. Based on Qin Jue's experience, she was a depressed but angry person, the kind who would go hysterical if she disagreed with someone.

Qin Ju didn't expect that her first meeting with her mother-in-law would be so formal and mechanical.

She seemed not like a mother, but just a functioning machine. When she saw Doudou, she smiled rarely. She wanted to reach out and touch Doudou's chubby cheeks, but was afraid that the old coil in her hand would hurt her.

"Doudou, this is grandma, call me grandma."

"Grandma." This time she called out, and her voice was very clear.

An Shuzhen smiled again, "Okay, that's great."

The rest of the time, they just stared at each other. The parents didn't care whether their son had eaten after the long journey, or whether he was hungry. The son didn't call him father or mother, or ask how they had been doing in the past few years.

Finally, Xiaohu couldn't help it and rubbed his stomach, saying he was hungry. An Shuzhen then remembered that they had to cook. Qin Ju and Hong Xia quickly got up and said that they should go home to eat so as not to disturb the two elders.

An Shuzhen did not try to persuade him to stay, and finally walked him to the door. Then, when no one was paying attention, she stuffed a small handkerchief into Qin Ju's hand and said, "I have let Lian Sheng down for all these years. You should live a good life from now on."

After saying this, she turned back without waiting for Qin Ju's reaction. Because there were so many people around, it was not convenient for Qin Ju to open the handkerchief in public. She went all the way back to Chunhua Hutong, then she quietly pulled Lao He and opened the handkerchief bag.

Inside, there was actually a ring.

The ring is golden, and even after so many years it still has a dazzling golden glow, which shows that the quality is very good. It is inlaid with an emerald the size of a fingernail, which is very beautiful and obviously worth a lot of money.

Qin Ju was quite shocked. She didn't expect her mother-in-law to give her such a good thing. In fact, they themselves were not doing well. Although her job was restored, there was no guarantee that her salary for so many years would be fully repaid. As for He Rong, he was fired long before going to the Great Northern Wilderness. He had no salary and was supported by her mother-in-law. She had just gone to the kitchen to take a look. There were only two or three pounds of coarse grains in it, and there was not much oil in the oil pot.

This ring is obviously worth a fortune. If she takes it to a trust store or the black market, she can sell it for at least several thousand dollars!

Lao He's eyes flashed when he saw the ring. After a long silence, he suddenly felt relieved.

He just sighed and said, "Just take it."

If he remembered correctly, this ring was given to his mother by her grandmother when she first married into the He family. At that time, the He family had already fallen on hard times, and this ring was considered the most valuable heirloom. Because of this ring, his mother thought she was recognized by the entire He family, and that as long as she was filial to her parents-in-law, served He Rong, and raised their children, she would have a happy marriage. Later, even when the couple had the most intense quarrel, He Rong forced her to hand over the ring, but she refused.

Later, He Rong was fired and forced his mother to pay the money, claiming that the whole family had no money to eat, but his mother refused to pay.

Perhaps, this is her last defense of this marriage.

Qin Ju was speechless for a long time after hearing this. It was true that her mother-in-law was not a good mother, but now she was giving He Liansheng the most valuable thing, the thing she had always cared about the most, the thing that symbolized her love and dignity. It was actually a kind of atonement.

"Forget it, let's just keep it and give it to Doudou later."

"good."

She knew that if she gave it directly to He Liansheng, He Liansheng would definitely not accept it, so she gave it to Qin Jue in a roundabout way. There is no doubt that Qin Ju will keep it for Doudou in the future.

"I'll go there again tomorrow." Just when Qin Ju thought the people around him had fallen asleep, he suddenly said.

"Okay, buy some rice, flour, grain and oil for her grandmother. I think there's not much left in the kitchen." This time they brought a lot of national grain and oil coupons with them, so buying things would just cost them some money.

"By the way, I have to go out early tomorrow morning. If it's inconvenient for you to buy things, I'll take Doudou with me. We may eat out at noon."

Tomorrow, Qin Ju is going to meet a very important person.