Chapter 98 No one will save her if she misses out.

“She’s fine, very well,” the man said. “I can’t tell you where she is; didn’t you two get divorced?”

That man had already found out that Guo Peng and Li Hui were divorced.

“You’re both divorced, her affairs have nothing to do with you. My relationship with her was a free choice; we can be together, it’s none of your business, you understand?” the man said. “If you continue like this, you’re restricting my freedom! Can’t you still forget him? Are you trying to have your cake and eat it too? Haven’t you already remarried?”

Yes, they're already divorced, so Guo Peng let go of her hand.

As soon as Guo Peng let go, the man ran away immediately, not daring to stay any longer. After all, it was bad luck that he had sold Li Hui to a small village; he shouldn't have returned to Nancheng.

After the man ran away, Guo Peng didn't think about chasing after him. Why would he chase after him? Would he ask Li Hui how she was doing?

Guo Peng stood there for a long time, feeling utterly ridiculous. Li Hui had eloped with another man, and she loved him so much; what had he been saying to him? It turned out these people already knew he was divorced, but Li Hui still hadn't come to pick up the child.

Indeed, Li Hui doesn't care about Guo Furong at all; Guo Furong was raised by Guo's mother. Li Hui has no affection for this niece; she might even see her as a burden. Just like how Guo Peng had to deal with Guo Furong's situation before remarrying, he needed to let people know his attitude towards his adopted daughter.

Guo's mother and her family were worried that Guo Peng's second wife wouldn't be satisfied with Guo Furong, which is why they didn't let Guo Peng raise any more children. However, this child is still considered Guo Peng's adopted daughter. Because she is an adopted daughter, not his biological child, no family planning officials have come to their door to force Guo's sister-in-law to have an abortion now that she is pregnant.

Many people knew about this incident, so naturally they wouldn't make things difficult for Guo Peng and his wife.

Guo Peng returned home dejectedly, and his sister-in-law immediately noticed the problem.

"Is there anything going on at work?" Sister-in-law Guo had prepared the meal and served Guo Peng some rice.

"I saw the man who eloped with Li Hui today," Guo Peng said.

"So...did you ask him about Li Hui?" Sister-in-law Guo asked.

“They know I’ve divorced Li Hui,” Guo Peng said. “Li Hui doesn’t even want her own niece anymore.”

"Didn't Yani say she was taking care of Furong?" Sister-in-law Guo said. "She's a girl and can't eat much. If Yani doesn't take care of her and sends her back to the Li family, she won't have a good life. Since Yani is willing to take care of her, let Yani take care of her."

Sister-in-law Guo didn't mention sending Guo Furong back to the Li family. The Guo family had already made their decision, and it wasn't up to Sister-in-law Guo to decide.

“You…you should just stop thinking about her. You’re divorced, so she can just marry that man, right?” Sister-in-law Guo said. “She likes him so much, she’ll definitely be very happy.”

"Hmm." Guo Peng nodded. That was the person Li Hui liked, unlike him. Li Hui didn't like him at all. The reason Li Hui chose to marry him in the first place was because Qin Yizhou's wife and child came to join him at the military base, and Li Hui couldn't keep an eye on Qin Yizhou anymore.

In a remote village, Li Hui fantasized that someone would fall from the sky to save her, but no one came to her rescue.

Li Hui had to work in the countryside, chopping pitcher plants and raising pigs. If she didn't work, she wouldn't eat and would be beaten. Li Hui had no choice but to work. Before, when she was with Guo Peng, she only cooked, and if she didn't want to cook, she could get food from the canteen. She didn't have to work so hard. Guo Peng gave her most of his salary each month, and Li Hui lived a very comfortable life.

Having vegetables on the table is already quite good.

There are often dried radishes, pickled vegetables, and mustard greens on the table. The mustard greens grow very well, and you can peel off the leaves one by one to eat. After peeling off one leaf, the other leaves continue to grow.

At first, Li Hui couldn't eat any of this, but since no one prepared anything good for her to eat, she had no choice but to eat. Drinking porridge and eating sweet potatoes was a regular occurrence; meat was practically unavailable. Even if there was meat, it wasn't something Li Hui could eat.

Li Hui wasn't pregnant, and those people wouldn't give her any good food, at most they'd make her take medicine. Li Hui didn't want to take the medicine; she was afraid of ending up like Gao Xiuxiu.

Sometimes the women would watch Li Hui drink her medicine, and Li Hui would try to vomit it up afterward so that the women wouldn't see it. If they did see it, they would think that Li Hui was deliberately not having children, and they would beat her again.

Since Li Hui eloped willingly, Guo Peng didn't notice anything amiss with the man. As for the man's panic and running away upon seeing Guo Peng, that's explainable. He was a mistress; that's why he felt guilty and afraid. What mistress wouldn't be afraid of the wife?

Guo Peng was originally a soldier, and that person couldn't outrun him, so he was even more afraid—he was afraid of being beaten. Guo Peng didn't hit that person; what was the point of hitting him? Hitting him would have turned it into a brawl, which would have a bad influence. Guo Peng held back, didn't hit him, and even let him escape.

In this way, Guo Peng wouldn't have discovered the problem with the male mistress, so he wouldn't have investigated and therefore wouldn't have known that Li Hui had been sold by that man.

Ultimately, it was Li Hui's own doing that led to the current situation.

Li Hui once told those people that she needed to recover her health before she could give birth, meaning she wanted them to feed her well. Those people would never feed her well; they would only say that other women in the village didn't eat as well, yet they still gave birth, so why couldn't Li Hui?

"She just eats all day long, but doesn't lay eggs," the woman said to her husband. "Could she really be infertile?"

The woman was also a little worried that Li Hui couldn't have children, since her family had spent a lot of money to buy Li Hui.

"It will be ready in a few years," the man said.

"That's true. Some people have to wait several years to get pregnant. It's not like they can get pregnant all at once," the woman said. "She's not young anymore. It's not easy for her to give birth when she's older."

"It's good that you can give birth," the man said.

The house was tiny, with wooden walls, and Li Hui overheard a conversation between her current in-laws.

Li Hui desperately wanted them to let her go; she couldn't have children, and their presence was pointless. However, all those excuses had already been used by the trafficked women, so Li Hui's reasons were useless. Some women who claimed they couldn't have children still ended up pregnant.

Those people assumed Li Hui was saying those things because she wanted to leave, and didn't take her words seriously. Li Hui's husband pulled her close and started trying to conceive; he wanted to have a child quickly.

When Li Hui went to the village, her husband often kept an eye on her. Compared to the other women in the village, Li Hui was considered relatively fair-skinned and pretty. As she walked along the village roads, some people even whistled at her. Li Hui could only hurry along; she would rather have only her current man than be slept with by multiple men.

It's better that she can't have children. If she can't have children, her current in-laws won't wait for her to give birth and then sell her to someone else.

Some men in the village couldn't find wives, so they took turns using the women. They didn't care whether the women were happy or not; all they cared about was getting the women pregnant and having them give birth to their children.

This wicked place is hidden deep in the mountains. Many people in the surrounding area know about it, but they all pretend not to know and no one goes out to report it to the police.

Three days passed quickly. The loan sharks came to collect their debts from Jiang Ersao. This time, Jiang Erge stayed home. Jiang Erge was pale; he had even sold his blood to raise money. He managed to borrow some more money and sublet the shop, deciding not to use it anymore. After all, he was just a stinky tofu seller, not a noodle or rice vendor; he didn't need a shop. He could just push his cart out to sell stinky tofu.

Aunt Yu had originally planned not to take out any money, hoping that the loan sharks would scare Jiang Ersao a bit more, but unexpectedly, she saw Jiang Erge take out the money.

Just now, the loan sharks were still harassing Jiang Ersao.

"You have to pay back the money you borrowed." The loan shark was relatively mild-mannered towards Jiang Ersao; he was much harsher towards other families.

Even though these people considered themselves relatively mild-mannered, Jiang Ersao was still somewhat afraid.

"I will pay you back, but I don't have that much money on hand," said Jiang Ersao. "Go to the Song family; they are our relatives, and they are wealthy."

Upon hearing this, Aunt Yu felt that Jiang Ersao was despicable. Before Aunt Yu could speak, Jiang Erge walked in from outside.

"Four hundred yuan, it's all here, count it," Jiang Erge said. "Once you take the money, we won't owe you anything, so don't come back."

The loan shark counted the money, made sure there were no problems, and then left.

Those people had just gotten divorced, and Jiang Erge was already unsteady on his feet. Jiang Ersao didn't even offer to help him up, so Aunt Yu quickly assisted him.

When Aunt Yu saw Jiang Erge's pale face, she immediately thought of a possibility, "Did you go to sell your blood? Did you?"

"Yes..." Brother Jiang was weak and had sold a lot of blood.

"How could you go and sell your blood?" Aunt Yu thought Jiang Erge would try to borrow more money, but she never expected her son to sell his blood. "Sit down, sit down."

Aunt Yu then looked at Sister-in-law Jiang next to her, her voice urgent, "It's all because of you that your husband had to sell his blood. What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and go cook some brown sugar eggs."

"It wasn't me who made him sell his blood," Jiang Ersao muttered, but she still hurried off to prepare food.

Looking at her husband's haggard and pale face, Jiang Ersao was also a little scared. She never expected that her husband would go and sell his blood—blood, no other substance.

"If you can't borrow money, are you really going to sell your blood?" Aunt Yu said. "Even your wife knows how to threaten people, don't you?"

Aunt Yu was driven crazy by Jiang Erge. Selling blood? Is that something you can do?

"If you do this, will you still be able to set up your stall?" Aunt Yu asked. "You should rest at home for the next few days."

"We still owe money..." Jiang Erge was still thinking about the money he and his wife owed.

"You can pay it back slowly once you set up your stall. The money from relatives is easy to handle; it's not like it's loan sharking," Aunt Yu said. "You understand?"

"I know." Of course, Jiang Erge knew that he could borrow money from relatives without paying interest. However, Jiang Erge was not happy when he thought about the money his family owed. He originally thought that they could live a better life after returning to the capital, but who would have thought that their lives would turn out like this.

Jiang Erge's voice was muffled. He sat there with a bad expression and was in a bad mood.

Jiang Ersao quickly cooked food for Jiang Erge, while Aunt Yu gave Jiang Ersao a cold look.

"Next time, will you still dare to borrow money from loan sharks? This isn't just borrowing from loan sharks, it's practically trying to kill your man!" Aunt Yu said through gritted teeth.

When Song Fenglan learned that Jiang Erge had sold his blood to pay off high-interest loans, she was stunned.

"Why did you go and sell your blood?" Song Fenglan asked her mother.

When Song's mother came to visit Song Fenglan, she mentioned this matter to her daughter.

"I guess he couldn't borrow money anywhere, so he went to sell his blood," said Song's mother. "Your aunt was thinking of telling everyone not to lend him money, to let him experience the difficulty of borrowing money, and to let your second cousin's wife suffer as well. Who knew that your second cousin would run off to sell his blood without saying a word? Is blood something you can just sell whenever you want? After paying off the loan sharks, your second cousin couldn't even stand up. Luckily, your aunt caught him, saying that your second cousin's wife doesn't even know how to help someone."

When Aunt Yu came to see Song's mother, she was crying her eyes out. All she wanted was to teach her second son and daughter-in-law a lesson, but they ended up like this. Aunt Yu didn't know what to say, it made it seem like she had forced her second son to sell his blood.

“When we were in the countryside, we longed to go back to the city. But once we got back, we started longing for other people’s good lives,” said Song’s mother. “If you’re always comparing yourself to others, you’ll be comparing yourself to others your whole life. There are so many people in the world. Some people are talented in certain areas, and some people are richer. If you’re always comparing yourself to others, it’ll never end. Your aunt said that your second cousin’s wife just wants to be richer than our family. Our money is what our ancestors accumulated over generations.”

Although a lot of money was spent during the war, there was still a considerable amount left. That money was earned through the hard work of generations of ancestors, and the Song family remembered their ancestral teachings: money doesn't just come from sitting around. Second Brother Song was sometimes so busy that he didn't have much time to go home and spend with his wife and children; this was trading time for money.

"Their family is like this..." Song's mother didn't think it had anything to do with the Song family. "Your eldest cousin's wife didn't think that much, but your second cousin's wife thought a lot."

"Perhaps they suffered too much in the countryside." Song Fenglan didn't know what to say. If it were her, she would definitely make sure to see if it was a worthwhile investment and wouldn't just give money to those people for nothing.

Many people are just tricking others into investing, and then they pocket the investors' money.

No matter the era, there will always be people who illegally raise funds.

Those people use other people's money to wear gold and silver, buy cars, and dress like rich people. In reality, everything they own is not their own, but rather something they have plundered from others.

A man pretended to be a wealthy man and borrowed a luxury car. The woman, wanting the man's money, got together with him and even lent him money to start a business.

There are all sorts of things, and you need to have the ability to judge. Jiang Ersao clearly lacked the ability to judge; she was too focused on getting rich quick and didn't consider other issues at all, such as whether she would lose money. She only thought that since she had invested, she would definitely make money.

"That's why I said your eldest sister-in-law is very good," said Song's mother. "Even your aunt can't control your second cousin's wife."

Mother Song didn't try to suppress her sister-in-law too much; as long as her sister-in-law did things properly, Mother Song wouldn't say anything. If

If Sister-in-law Song does something wrong, her mother will teach her a lesson, but she will also give her face and not let her feel ashamed.

"And now?" Song Fenglan asked.

"Your second cousin needs to rest for a while. He shouldn't go out to set up his stall for a while," said Song's mother. "He sublet his original shop, so at least he can get some money. But without a shop, he can't sell things in the shop anymore. He'll have to push a cart out to sell things, which means he'll be exposed to the wind and sun."

“He can sell stinky tofu without a shop.” Song Fenglan saw him setting up a stall when she went out.

"It's just so hard," Song's mother sighed. "Your aunt arranged so much for them, but they've turned out like this. If we didn't arrange anything, they wouldn't have a good life; but even with arrangements, they still cause so much trouble."

"..." Song Fenglan remained silent. She couldn't help them except by lending them money.

“Even so, your aunt didn’t say anything about letting your second cousin work at his company,” said Song’s mother. “She only said it would be good for him to set up a stall, to give him more experience and let him know how hard it is to make money. I just hope that after this experience, the two of them won’t dream of getting rich overnight. If they really could get rich, they would bring their own relatives along, not them. Besides, if they could get rich, they wouldn’t bring their own relatives; they could bring their own family.”

"Hmm." Song Fenglan nodded. "Mom, if you don't want to hear about Auntie's unpleasant experiences..."

“I’m just listening to what your aunt says, I don’t care,” said Song’s mother. “It’s not like my son or daughter turned out that way, it’s your aunt’s children.”

“They’re all just trivial matters,” Song Fenglan said.

“Life is like this, full of trivial things,” Song’s mother sighed. “It’s all so mundane, especially for families like your aunt’s. Poverty makes everything miserable for couples, but your aunt is still considered lucky. Her children’s generation is not as well off as your aunt. Your aunt doesn’t dare to give them all her money because she’s worried that she won’t have any money to spend when she gets old, so she has to prepare in advance.”

Leaving aside Aunt Yu, even the Song family doesn't put all their money into business; they still have a backup plan. The different branches of the Song family do different things, so having more diverse options means more future possibilities.

If Brother Jiang and his wife don't do things properly, they'll drag their children down in the future.

"That's not necessarily true. Maybe they'll be rich in the future." Song Fenglan thought that Aunt Yu's family had a house in the capital, which gave them an advantage over many people. Their children could take the college entrance examination in the capital, making it easier for them to get into good universities. If the house were to be demolished and redeveloped, becoming rich overnight wouldn't be a dream.

But those things didn't happen now; they have to wait. Things will naturally get better later.

“Yes, maybe they’ll have money in the future,” said Song’s mother. “I’ve asked your sister-in-law to go and take a look; you don’t need to go.”

Sister-in-law Song sent some blood-tonifying supplements over. According to Aunt Yu, the Song family did not lend money, so the supplements did not count as a loan.

Song's mother thought that Jiang's second brother was also stubborn, and that he didn't know how to persuade his elders more. The Tang family, on the other hand, were more shameless. They went to Song's third aunt again and again, completely ignoring whether Song's third aunt refused them or not. Even if Song's third aunt refused once or twice, they would still go.

The Tang family believed that if they appeared in front of Aunt Song more often, Aunt Song would eventually soften her heart.

Jiang Erge doesn't know how to be persistent. If he had been persistent, his family would never have let him sell his blood.

“There’s no danger to their lives, so consider it a lesson,” said Song’s mother. “When your aunt said that, I could tell she was also helpless.”

“How could we not feel helpless? We hadn’t actually come to the point of selling our blood…” Song Fenglan said, “My second cousin’s family has no money… After this incident, things will get better.”

After talking with Song Fenglan for a while, Song's mother went back first.

Qin Zihang peeked out from upstairs, and Song Fenglan noticed him.

"Come down," Song Fenglan said.

"Mom." Qin Zihang came downstairs and ran to Song Fenglan. "Mom, can I get a lot of money by selling my blood?"

“No,” Song Fenglan said. “It’s okay to donate blood when it’s appropriate, but you can’t sell blood. Many places that sell blood are not regulated. Selling blood can be addictive, which is harmful to your health and is not suitable.”

"My second cousin sold it." Qin Zihang had just heard it all.

“That’s your second cousin, not you,” Song Fenglan said. “You can’t sell your blood. Even if you’re a child, you can’t sell your blood, let alone force others to do so.”

Song Fenglan worried that her son was going astray; selling blood was not a good thing. In Song Fenglan's previous life, there were people who sold their kidneys to buy mobile phones. Selling kidneys in illegal workshops caused health problems, and by then it was too late to regret it.

In some novels, the male lead would readily make the female lead cut out his kidneys and heart; Song Fenglan disliked those kinds of angst. But they were, after all, living in a derivative world of the novel, and Song Fenglan didn't know all the novels written by the original author; some authors even co-authored series with their best friends.

Song Fenglan was also worried that if someone with a brain disorder were to appear, she would just have to teach her son more.

"Doesn't my second cousin understand?" Qin Zihang asked. "Didn't my aunt teach him?"

“He’s just out of money and can’t borrow any, so he thinks he’s got nowhere to go,” Song Fenglan said. “With so many relatives around, how could he really have nowhere to go? If he tries, he can always get away with it. He should be humble, lower his head, and let others know his sincerity.”

Jiang Erge didn't say much to Jiang Ersao. Even when he went to borrow money to sell his blood, he didn't say anything bad about Jiang Ersao.

Song Fenglan didn't know what to say. Was Jiang Erge tough? Yes, he was tough. He didn't ask his relatives to lend him money. Instead, he sold his own blood. But he didn't say much to Jiang Ersao. Was his toughness in the right place?

You have to understand that these days, selling blood can easily lead to infection if not handled properly; some people never even change the needles they use.

Song Fenglan genuinely felt that Jiang Erge shouldn't have acted that way. Aunt Yu couldn't possibly force Jiang Erge to his death; she just wanted Jiang Erge and his wife to realize their mistake.

"I will never do that again," Qin Zihang said. "If there is a problem, I have my parents, my uncle, and many, many other people."

“Yes, there are many, many people.” Song Fenglan nodded. “Even if there is really no other way in the end, don’t be afraid. Just live shamelessly and don’t think too much.”

"No, no, that won't happen," Qin Zihang quickly shook his head.

It's unclear who told Shi Guilan about Guo Peng meeting Li Hui, but Guo Peng clearly didn't meet Li Hui; he met the man who eloped with her. Shi Guilan called Guo Peng to ask about Li Hui.

“I didn’t see her,” Guo Peng said.

"Everyone says you saw her, but why didn't you see her?" Shi Guilan asked.

"I really didn't see her, I only saw the man she eloped with." Guo Peng sneered. "I've already divorced Li Hui, she eloped with another man. If you want to find her, you should go find that man, not me."

“This…it’s because we can’t find that man,” Shi Guilan said. “Li Hui hasn’t contacted the family at all. It’s been so long, not a single phone call. She used to call me.”

At first, Shi Guilan thought that Li Hui might be afraid of what others would say about her, so she didn't dare to make the call. However, Shi Guilan was also worried that something might have happened to Li Hui.

"Did you see her or not?" Shi Guilan asked. "You two were married for several years after all, Li Hui, she..."

“She only met her current man once, and then he ran away, and she hasn’t seen him since,” Guo Peng said. “I don’t even know if they’re in Nancheng. If you want to find them, you can come and find them yourselves.”

Guo Peng hung up the phone. These people only knew to ask him about Li Hui; how could he know anything about her? If Guo Peng knew where Li Hui was, perhaps he would have gone over and asked her: "I've been so good to you, why did you betray me?"

Guo Peng didn't go looking for Li Hui. Why bother? She didn't love him. If he went to her, she would only hide from him. And if she did see him, she might even start cursing and swearing.

Shi Guilan frowned as she looked at the telephone receiver in her hand.

"Have you finished your call?" someone urged from behind.

"It's over, it's over," Shi Guilan said hurriedly.

Shi Guilan was a little worried that something might happen to Li Hui. Li Hui and Guo Peng were divorced, so Li Hui could be with anyone now.

That evening, when Staff Officer Xu returned, Shi Guilan asked him what to do about the matter.

“Your cousin left with someone else on her own, and Guo Peng divorced her. She’s a free person; she can go wherever she wants,” Staff Officer Xu said.

“But she hasn’t called me at all, not even once a month before,” Shi Guilan said. “She would tell me everything that happened to her…”

“She eloped with someone, which is not something to be proud of. How could she possibly have the nerve to call you?” Staff Officer Xu said.

“It’s shameful, she must be feeling bad too. She’s not the kind of person who can keep quiet, she’ll definitely find someone to talk to,” Shi Guilan said.

“She might not have told you, but she could have told others. Once you know, it’s the same as your whole family knowing, and your cousin’s family knowing too,” Staff Officer Xu said. “There’s no need to make things so complicated; just let them handle it themselves.”

“I didn’t want to complicate things,” Shi Guilan sighed. “But there’s nothing I can do. She’s not home; if something unexpected happens…”

"Did you let her elope with someone?" Staff Officer Xu asked. "Did she tell you before she eloped?"

“No, she didn’t tell me. How could she tell me something like that?” Shi Guilan said. “If she had told me, I definitely wouldn’t have let her elope with someone else. I would have made her think it over carefully. Does she really think those men are reliable? Maybe they’re just after something new. It’s an affair without a matchmaker. She’s still a married woman…”

“That’s right,” Staff Officer Xu said. “You yourself know that what you’re saying is not pleasant to hear at all. Maybe your cousin just feels that life isn’t very good right now. She’ll call again when life gets better.”

"Is that possible?" Shi Guilan frowned.

"Why not?" Staff Officer Xu said. "We're in the Northwest, not in the South City; the two places are so far apart. Stop thinking about your cousin all the time. If you have time, think more about your child's studies. With such poor grades, does he not want to continue his education?"

"His grades aren't something I can just improve because I say they're good," Shi Guilan said. "Li Hui, she..."

"Alright, stop talking about her." Staff Officer Xu said impatiently.

If Li Hui disappeared without any reason, and if she hadn't left that letter, perhaps they could have reported it to the police and asked them to search for her.

But Li Hui left behind such a letter. Li Hui is still an adult. Even if they go to the police, the police will not listen to them and go to find Li Hui.

Staff Officer Xu thought that Shi Guilan's words were completely useless and would only make others unhappy. Staff Officer Xu didn't want to know more about the terrible things Li Hui had done. He knew that Guo Peng hadn't treated Li Hui too badly, and Shi Guilan herself had previously said that Guo Peng was quite good.

Seeing that Staff Officer Xu didn't want to talk, Shi Guilan stopped talking about Li Hui.

That's how people are. When they do something drastic, everyone else assumes they're doing just fine and never considers that they're suffering.

Guo Peng told his sister-in-law about the phone call from Shi Guilan, fearing that the Li family might also call and affect his pregnant wife.

“I’m divorced from Li Hui, and I don’t want to know where she is,” Guo Peng said. “It’s impossible for me to go looking for her. I met the man who eloped with her, and these people think I’ve seen Li Hui. If anyone asks you, just say I haven’t seen Li Hui, and I don’t know where she is.”

"Okay, good." Sister-in-law Guo nodded. "Haven't you resolved things between you and Li Hui? Why are those people still asking you?"

“They can keep Guo Furong here,” Guo Peng said.

"That's true..." Sister-in-law Guo thought to herself, those people are really despicable. They couldn't contact Li Hui themselves, so they should have tried to find her instead of saying those things to Guo Peng. Guo Peng had no idea about those things.

Li Hui eloped with someone, so naturally she was avoiding Guo Peng and wouldn't let him know. Even if they divorced, Li Hui might not want to see Guo Peng.

"Is the baby alright?" Guo Peng asked, looking at his sister-in-law's belly.

"It's alright, it's alright," said Sister-in-law Guo. "Mom brings me chicken soup every few days and also gives me big chicken legs. Ya Ni is good too; she's willing to give me the big chicken legs from her house."

When Guo's mother brought chicken soup, she put two large chicken legs in it, and the rest was for Fan Yani and the others. Guo's mother contributed some money, and Fan Yani also contributed money. Fan Yani didn't speak ill of Guo's mother. During Fan Yani's postpartum period and before giving birth, Guo's mother also did her best to prepare food for Fan Yani.

"My sister-in-law said that since I'm heavy and it's inconvenient for me to come over for a meal, I can just tell her what I want to eat," said Sister-in-law Guo. "She said that since it's a special period, they won't charge me, but once this period is over, they won't be so polite to us anymore."

Sister-in-law Guo increasingly felt that the Guo family members were all very nice, so why couldn't Li Hui get along with those people? Ultimately, it was because Li Hui was aloof and unwilling to associate with these people; she thought they weren't clean and considered them country bumpkins. Sister-in-law Guo didn't think so. Fan Yani and the others were earning their living with their own hands, and they were doing very well.

In front of Brother Guo, Sister-in-law Guo was always quite reserved; she never spoke ill of the Guo family. Mainly because the Guo family treated her well, she didn't have the face to speak ill of them.

Hearing his sister-in-law's words, Guo Peng thought his wife was quite good. He still longed for someone like his sister-in-law who understood how to consider the family. If his sister-in-law did well, he, as the eldest brother, would feel proud and wouldn't look too bad in front of his younger siblings.

Song Fenglan did not visit Jiang Erge, but she had some tonics sent over.

There were many tonics in Jiang Erge's room, and when Jiang Ersao saw them, she felt uncomfortable again.

“You went to them to borrow money, but they refused. Now that you’ve sold your blood to pay off the loan sharks, they’re giving you health supplements.” Jiang Ersao looked at the supplements. “These supplements aren’t cheap stuff, are they?”

“It’s not cheap.” Aunt Yu came over; she couldn’t stand Jiang Ersao saying such things. “Your husband spoils you too much. Even with your husband like this, you still say these things.”

"Mom, that's true. If they had lent us the money in the first place..."

"It was my fault for not letting them lend you money, it wasn't their problem," Aunt Yu said. "If you have to blame someone, blame yourself. Who told you to borrow from loan sharks? Borrowing money from relatives is one thing, but borrowing from loan sharks? Are you crazy?"

Jiang Ersao didn't think she was crazy. "It's just this once, there won't be a next time."

This time, such a big mistake has occurred. Jiang Ersao thought that she would be more careful when making investments next time, and would not be fooled by these people.

“Tell your husband to take good care of himself these next few days,” Aunt Yu said. “Second son, don’t neglect your own health. If you fall ill, your wife won’t be able to support the children.”

"Yes, Mom." Jiang Erge really wanted to go out and set up his stall as soon as possible, but he was too weak and didn't have enough energy, so he had to listen to his mother and stay at home to rest.

When the neighbors learned that Jiang Erge had sold his blood to pay off his debts, they all wondered why the Song family hadn't lent him money. They thought the Song family was too cold-blooded, especially since Song Fenglan had lived in the Jiang family's house for many years. Aunt Yu explained to them that she wanted to teach her second son and his wife a lesson, which was why she hadn't allowed her relatives to lend them money.

When the neighbors saw the tonics the Song family had brought, they thought the Song family was nice. Who would have thought that Brother Jiang would sell his blood? The Song family was probably also stunned by Brother Jiang's actions.

"With so many relatives around, how could he really go and sell his blood?"

"I married a terrible wife, and now I'm borrowing money from loan sharks? Is that something I should be lending money to?"

"It would be better not to get married in the countryside and to come back here to get married."

"That's right. At least he has a city household registration. There will always be someone willing to marry him. It's not like he can't find a wife."

"It's just that I've gotten much older."

"Men aren't afraid of getting older, it's women who are."

...

People outside were talking about the Jiang family, and they all sighed with regret. Jiang Ersao was a huge mistake; if Jiang Erge hadn't married her, life would have been much better.

As Jiang Ersao went out, she noticed people pointing and whispering about her, which made her extremely uncomfortable. She was only trying to earn more money to improve her family's life; if she had known those people were just trying to scam her, she would never have invested.

Now look what's happened; she's been scammed out of her money, and her husband even has to sell his blood to recover.

Jiang Ersao was heartbroken. If only she had known earlier, things wouldn't have turned out this way. It would be a lie to say Jiang Ersao hadn't learned her lesson; she was terrified. She dared not borrow from loan sharks again. She had only borrowed once, and this had happened. If it happened again, she couldn't bear to let her husband sell his blood to pay off the debt.

The money owed to those relatives still needs to be repaid; it's not that it's not owed.

Jiang Ersao regretted it. She shouldn't have invested in the first place. If she hadn't invested, she wouldn't have been scammed, and they wouldn't have had to borrow money from all over the place. Now they were so in debt, and they could only work hard to earn money to pay it off.

Jiang Ersao still didn't dare to go to the Song family, afraid they would criticize her. The Jiang family's attitude towards Jiang Ersao had worsened considerably; they naturally felt much more sorry for Jiang Erge. Jiang Erge asked the Jiang family not to blame Jiang Ersao anymore, but it was impossible for them to truly not blame her.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see the changes in the Jiang family. Jiang Ersao thought that if the Jiang family was like this, then the Song family must be even more so.

Jiang Ersao became a little more diligent, and she wasn't as fussy when washing clothes for her children and husband.

A relative of Tang Shaotao's superior was unmarried. The superior inquired about Tang Shaotao's sister, asking, "Is your sister still unmarried? Has she graduated from university?"

"I've graduated," Tang Shaotao said.

“My nephew is quite good. We can let them meet, and we can also try to get your sister back to work in the capital,” the superior said. “It would be so nice to have a family together, all reunited.”

"Let me ask." Tang Shaotao nodded, not refusing.

When Tang Lu received Tang Shaotao's call, she just felt that Tang Shaotao was out of his mind.

“Impossible, I can’t go back,” Tang Lu said. “I’m a pilot, what could I do if I went back? Do they want me to be a housewife at home, or do some other simple job? Do they want me to be controlled by them for the rest of my life?”

Tang Lu found it ridiculous. She had thought her older brother had a change of heart and was concerned about her, but she never expected that it was all for her marriage.

"You're going to sell me out to pave the way for your promotion, aren't you?" Tang Lu sneered.

"No, I'm doing this for your own good. You're getting on in years, you'll eventually have to get married," Tang Shaotao said. "How long can a woman like you be a pilot?"

"How long you stay is none of your business." Tang Lu didn't want to talk to Tang Shaotao anymore and hung up the phone directly.

Jian Lili was right next to Tang Lu. When she saw Tang Lu hang up the phone, she asked, "Are you really going back to get married?"