Zhang Hongmei asked Lu Jing to put the medicine in Dashan's mouth.

"Auntie, please keep it in your mouth and don't swallow it now."

Another half hour passed, and the room warmed up. Hu Aifen and the others helped Dashan's mother take off her top and let her lie down.

Zhang Hongmei didn't know anything about acupuncture, but she watched Liang Dan insert the needles very skillfully.

Hu Aifen watched from the side. "Hongmei, how is Xiaocui doing?"

"Auntie, I don't know either, and I don't understand. I think my aunt and the others should go to a major hospital in the capital for a checkup."

Look at my aunt's face, it scares me.

"Who can argue with that? It's a terrible tragedy."

Liang Dan checked the time and quickly put the needle away. Hu Aifen and the others hurried over to help her put her clothes back on.

"Auntie, you were lying face down just now, which put pressure on your heart. How are you feeling now?"

"Girl, thank you so much. I feel much better now, and I can breathe easily."

"That's good, but you mustn't be angry anymore."

"Yeah, I'm not angry anymore. I've come to terms with it. Even if I get so angry I die, so what? If I die, my family will fall apart."

Hu Aifen listened, wiping away tears. "Xiaocui, nothing is insurmountable. Dashan is back, that ungrateful wretch. I'll ask him, with his mother like this, does he still want his mother?"

Da Shan, who was just outside, knelt down upon hearing Hu Aifen's words. "Mom, your son is unfilial. I promise I will never make you angry again."

Grandma Dashan lay on the bed with her eyes closed. She didn't speak, but tears streamed down her face.

The people outside pulled Dashan up. "It's done. Stop talking nonsense. Go pick up Wang Xiaorui tomorrow and you can talk to her face to face."

"Uncle Qiangzi, don't worry, she'll definitely come back on her own tomorrow."

Wang Hongxi roughly knew what had happened at Dashan's house. There was a commotion outside, and it was impossible to pretend not to know.

He sat on the kang (a heated brick bed), puffing away on his cigarette. "Is this marriage going to fall through?"

"They can just shut it down like that?"

"You think it can be yellow just because you say so?"

"What about Xiaorui?"

Wang Hongxi fell silent. What could she do? If they really got divorced, it would be difficult to find her again.

"No, absolutely not. How can we let them get away with this? What will happen to Xiaorui in the future? Because of what happened before, Jianshe doesn't even talk to Xiaorui anymore. Who will take care of her when she gets old?"

Wang Hongxi was also worried about this matter. Her son probably knew that what happened last time was just an act, so he even blamed himself for not bringing his grandchildren back for the New Year.

But what can we do now that things have come to this?

"Honey, what if they insist on getting a divorce? What should we do?"

"What else can we do? We can only try to appease the people in the mountains."

"What if that doesn't work?"

Wang Hongxi shook her head, "Then there's nothing we can do."

"No, if we really get divorced, their family will have to give us money. When Xiaorui gets old, she can live on her own if she has money."

"Yes, isn't there a replacement worker? Let him give the job to Xiaorui too. With a job, it'll be easier for her to find someone else."

Wang Hongxi's eyes lit up; this was a good idea. Otherwise, the two of them would become enemies and break up. But it was impossible for their family to let it go like that.

The next morning, Liang Dan came again to give Da Shan's mother acupuncture.

"Girl, I feel much better, thank you so much."

"Auntie, you don't need to be so polite. I can only give you acupuncture for a few more days. We'll be going back on the fifth day of the new year."

"It's alright, Auntie is all better now."

Da Shan was waiting outside. When Liang Dan came out, he asked, "Comrade, how is my mother's condition?"

"You can't get angry anymore. She has a heart condition. It's not a small matter, you all need to be careful."

"Do you have any medicine?"

"Yes, large hospitals should have nitroglycerin tablets. You can go to the hospital and ask."

Today, the villagers of Liujiatun are eating in the canteen. In the morning, all the women came out, with clear division of labor, a routine left over from the old days of communal meals in the canteen.

Zhang Hongmei refused to let the four of them go up the mountain. "If you want to go, do it this afternoon, or better yet, tomorrow. It wouldn't be good if you didn't attend the dinner gathering today."

So the four of them, accompanied by Liu Jingze, played chess at home.

All four of them still knew how to play, but probably because they rarely did. Liu Jingze became their teacher, instructing them in chess. The four of them learned incredibly quickly, grasping concepts instantly.

"Godfather, I think you are better at chess than our chess master."

“I used to teach your mothers too.”

"Really? My mom is pretty good at chess too."

"Hehe, yeah, she's pretty good. Focus, you guys have to break this deadlock today."

Zhang Hongmei remained seated with the old lady on the kang (a heated brick bed), saying, "Grandma, this is really a difficult matter. I don't think Wang Xiaorui will agree."

"Let's wait until she comes back and see how she behaves. If she's smart, Dashan and the others might really have a hard time dealing with her."

"If she were smart, she would have divorced him long ago. Dragging this out isn't good for her."

"She doesn't think that way. Without a man to support her, how can she live?"

Zhang Hongmei thought about it and felt that Wang Xiaorui was also quite pitiful. A woman who is not independent will be hindered in every way.

At noon, everyone gathered in the cafeteria, and the family of six thanked everyone for their hospitality.

"Godfather, this stew is delicious, even better than my grandmother's."

"This is what big pot cooking is all about. Big pot stewed meat is delicious. Don't you have stewed meat on the mountain?"

"Yes, but it doesn't taste good. I can't say, or it won't be available next time."

Looking at his miserable son, Liu Jingze chuckled mischievously, "I'll try to apply to go up the mountain to be your chess teacher, and I'll secretly bring you some delicious food."

"Godfather, it's fine for you to be the master, but please don't bring any food. Our Master Jia has sharp eyes. If he finds out, I reckon he won't let me eat for two days."

"Is he that pitiful?"

"That's right. Let me tell you. Master Jia treats me better than the three of them, you don't know, but the fourth brother gets beaten up almost every day."

"Xiao Si is quite pitiful." Although Liu Jingze said this, he knew that this must have been what Gu Chuanming had told him.

After finishing their meal, the four of them happily led Xiao Li and the others up the mountain. Zhang Hongmei couldn't do anything about it, because so many people came over to greet them.

It wasn't until the afternoon that Da Shan's mother got off the kang (a heated brick bed). But she looked completely listless.

Dashan brought her a steamed egg custard, saying, "Mom, you have to eat some."

"Mmm." Her son used to be unable to cook anything, but now his cooking is even better than hers. Thinking of this, tears streamed down Da Shan's face.

"Mom, don't be like this. It's okay, everything will be alright. The three of us can move to another city to live together in the future."

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm upright and honest, what's there to be afraid of? It's that damned family that's too ashamed to show their faces."