He Tiantian moved to the city ten years ago to pay for her husband's leg treatment. Her hometown was a small mountain village in Huai City, Anhui Province, where land income was meager and there were no other sources of income, leading to financial difficulties. So, she used all her savings and borrowed some money from friends and relatives to open a braised meat shop in Huai City. She learned the recipe while helping a village chef, and after some improvements, the taste was even better.
The shop had already started to turn a profit in just six months. Because of its delicious taste, He Tiantian's diligence, the spotless cleanliness of her shop, and her warm hospitality and sweet talk, the nearby residents all liked to buy braised meat and cold dishes from her shop.
Over the past decade, He Tiantian has built a business with her own hands, moving from a shantytown with a monthly rent of 100 yuan to a clean three-bedroom, two-living-room apartment.
Over the years, she has had no children, but He Tiantian has a kind husband, an understanding mother-in-law, a respectful sister-in-law, and a close nephew. She feels very content, and no matter how hard or tiring it is, it is all worth it.
However, these are all illusions. Happiness built on lies is like a colorful bubble blown from soapy water; it bursts as soon as it's punctured, leaving only mottled specks of foam.
That thorn originated from a recording pen.
My nephew, Zhou Zhicheng, is twenty years old and studies at a second-tier university in this city. Sometimes he skips class to play games, so he bought a voice recorder and had someone record the teacher's lectures for him so he could listen to them when he had free time.
While tidying up Zhou Zhicheng's room, He Tiantian accidentally bumped into the recording pen, which fell to the ground.
Somehow, the switch turned on automatically.
Worried that she might break the recording pen, He Tiantian quickly squatted down to pick it up.
Suddenly, the sound from inside made He Tiantian startle.
“Mom, my sister-in-law is really capable. I’ve heard she earns two or three hundred thousand a year, more than I do as a teacher,” Qi Fangfang said. “From now on, I’ll come here for dinner after get off work.”
"You're such a cheapskate. Did you eat too little here before?" He Tiantian recognized the voice; it was her mother-in-law. "You two are at work, while Zhicheng has grown up here since he was little. Not to mention his food and clothing, I even paid for his tuition. You two never give him any money. What more do you want?"
Hearing her mother's words, Qi Fangfang chuckled and said, "Mom, isn't it because my brother doesn't have any children? My brother will never have any children of his own in this life. So, Zhicheng will take care of you and my brother in your old age and see you off when you die. What's wrong with spoiling Zhicheng a little more now?"
Hearing this, He Tiantian felt sad. Alas, she and her husband had been married for so many years, but they had no children, which was the regret of her life.
Because she couldn't have children, and it was her fault that she couldn't have any, she always felt guilty in this family. Even when her husband was drunk and acted irrationally towards her, she didn't take it to heart; she also tolerated the things her mother-in-law and sister-in-law said that made her uncomfortable.
"My grandson doesn't actually bear the Qi surname!" Qi's mother sighed. "The Qi family line is about to end."
Hearing her mother-in-law's sigh, He Tiantian felt even more ashamed.
“Mom, although my eldest brother has a leg problem, he's otherwise healthy. My sister-in-law can't have children, so why not spend some money to have a child with someone else? Even if we don't divorce her, we can bring the child back and raise it ourselves; it will still be our Qi family bloodline!” Qi Fangfang asked, puzzled. She had thought about this before, but seeing that her mother and brother liked Zhicheng, she never said anything. Now that her brother and sister-in-law are getting old and have taken so much medicine without having children, they've given up, and that's why she finally spoke up.
Is your sister-in-law unable to have children?
These five short words almost made He Tiantian teeter on the brink of collapse. When she was young, she took so many medications in an attempt to have a child, but to no avail. Now that she's older, her mother-in-law and husband have given up on the idea of having a child.
Spend some money to have children with other women?
Even if they don't divorce, if they take the child in and raise it, it will still be part of the Qi family bloodline.
My sister-in-law actually had such thoughts!
He Tiantian felt a bitter taste in her mouth. All those years of sincere devotion had been rewarded with this kind of thinking from her sister-in-law. Was all that respect she'd shown her just a facade?
Before I could think about it, the recording pen picked up a rustling sound, followed by Qi's mother's voice: "Hey, if it were really as you say, and it's your sister-in-law's problem, I would have kicked her out long ago. Why would I still have her around now?"
"Huh?" Qi Fangfang exclaimed in surprise from the recording pen, "Mom...Mom...It's not my sister-in-law's problem, could it be that my brother can't have children?"
He Tiantian was also stunned. After three years of marriage without children, her mother-in-law took her and her husband to the county town to see her mother-in-law's sister's son for medical treatment. After the examination, it was said that the problem was with her, that her fallopian tubes were blocked and adhered, and that she could not get pregnant. Her husband, Qi Jianguo, had no problem.
Why do I hear my mother-in-law say something different now than she did back then?
“It’s your older brother’s problem. When he was fourteen, he fell from a tree and broke his egg. Although he was taken to the hospital and the family’s money was spent, and although he seemed fine on the surface, he can’t have children now,” said Mother Qi. “Sigh, your older brother will never have his own children in this life.”
Did you break the egg dumpling?
Could this be interpreted as the testicles being shattered?
That thing is broken. Even if there's sperm inside, it's dead. You'll never be able to have a child!
"Then...then you took your sister-in-law to the hospital, and the examination showed that it was her problem?" Qi Fangfang asked doubtfully, wondering if she had remembered wrong.
He Tiantian was also very curious and wanted to continue listening.
"Hehe, I asked your cousin for help, saying that your sister-in-law can't have children," Mother Qi said smugly. "If your sister-in-law knew it wasn't her problem, but your brother's, she wouldn't still be living with him! She certainly wouldn't be so obedient and hardworking in this family, never fighting or grabbing, letting me do whatever I want!"
"Ah..." Qi Fangfang exclaimed again, "It's so...it's so that's how it is...no wonder...I didn't know there was such a thing in the family."
Qi Fangfang knew her mother well; she was very shrewd. There was only one male in the family, her eldest brother. If her sister-in-law couldn't have children, her mother definitely wouldn't treat her sister-in-law as kindly as she did now.
Qi's mother's words struck He Tiantian like a bolt from the blue. She could no longer stand, her legs gave way, and she collapsed to the ground, unable to support her heavy body.
When she first learned she couldn't have children, she felt guilty. Her mother-in-law comforted her, saying that regardless of whether she could have children or not, she would always be the daughter-in-law of the Qi family. Her husband was honest and kind, and he treated her well as always. Although he didn't shower her with sweet words, he was always obedient and caring. So even when her husband treated her badly or sometimes lost his temper, she would assume it was because he had a bad leg and was in a bad mood, and she wouldn't get angry with him, always tolerating it.
Because her in-laws treated her well, she devoted herself to living a rural life. She helped her sister-in-law with her studies and they both passed the university entrance exam. However, because her father-in-law was in poor health and her husband had difficulty walking, she voluntarily gave up her university opportunity so that her sister-in-law could go to school. She worked at home, supported her parents-in-law, took care of her husband, and supported her sister-in-law's education.
She endured so much hardship and toil, yet she had no regrets. However, today she learned the truth, a truth so cruel!
“You’re a young lady, there are many things you don’t know. Your sister-in-law is beautiful, and your older brother fell for her at first sight. But your sister-in-law is pretty and a city girl, how could she possibly be interested in your older brother! Your father and I went to great lengths to get your sister-in-law and your older brother together,” said Mother Qi. Although her son had a hidden illness, she was very proud to have found him a literate and beautiful city girl.
The girls in the city are really something else. They're not only beautiful, but also hardworking and literate—the best they've ever seen in Qi Family Village. She set up another scheme, making her daughter-in-law, He Tiantian, believe that she couldn't have children. And sure enough, He Tiantian obediently stayed and lived a quiet life in the Qi family.
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