Chapter 267 Exile
Xiao Shui peeked out from Zhou Dajun's arms, her face still wet with tears. Her eyes were red like peaches, and tears streamed down her cheeks, splashing onto her collar and leaving a damp stain.
"Bian Jiang... Is Sister Cuifen angry with me?"
Her voice trembled, thick with a nasal tone, and her lips quivered slightly, "It was all my fault for being so stubborn and dragging you here. I shouldn't have come, but I just wanted to see her, to say thank you in person..."
As she spoke, she gently touched the purplish-blue handprint on her face. Her fingertips trembled slightly when they touched the swollen skin, as if she had been awakened by the pain.
Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, as if emotions that had been building up inside her for too long had finally burst forth at this moment.
Zhou Dajun's heart clenched as he watched, feeling as if an invisible hand was gripping his chest, causing him so much pain that he could barely breathe.
He quickly raised his hand and gently wiped away her tears with his rough fingertips, his voice low and full of heartache: "Xiao Shui, don't cry, this really isn't your fault. Even if she is, she should blame me. You just wanted to help me, to give us an explanation, what's wrong with that?"
As he spoke, he simply helped Xiao Shui upstairs, his movements firm and his steps without the slightest hesitation.
Xiao Shui's body was still slightly weak. He put one arm around her waist and used the other to protect her head, afraid that she might bump or hurt herself.
Song Yu'an, growing anxious from behind, shouted, "You can't go up there! This isn't appropriate!"
Zhou Dajun ignored him completely, as if he had only heard a trivial breeze.
Weiwei turned her head and made a face at Song Yu'an, her eyes curving into crescents and the corners of her mouth turned up in a smug look, as if to say, "See, you can't stop him."
Song Yu'an was so angry that he gritted his teeth, his nails almost digging into his palms.
She was afraid that Shen Cuifen was too soft-hearted and would soften her heart with a few tears, and that her daughter would be the one to suffer in the end.
She quickly caught up with him, pulled open the door, and after everyone had entered the house, she slammed the door shut with a loud bang, causing dust to fall from the walls.
Not even a table was moved into the house; the floor was empty except for a few cardboard boxes piled up in the corner, containing some odds and ends of daily necessities.
There weren't even any stools, not even a small folding stool.
Everyone could only squeeze onto Shen Cuifen's narrow single bed, the bed frame creaking under the weight, as if it might fall apart at any moment.
Xiao Shui seemed a little awkward, standing there dawdling for a long time, twisting the hem of her clothes with her fingers, and unconsciously rubbing her toes against the floor.
She dared not sit down, nor dared to get too close. Finally, she gently took Shen Cuifen's hand, her fingertips icy cold and trembling slightly.
Before she could even speak, tears welled up again, falling one after another like beads from a broken string.
“Sister…I know that you gave Bianjiang to me.”
Her voice was choked with sobs, almost incoherent. "You were the one who met him first, you took care of him for so long, you were... the closest person to him after he lost his memory. But you didn't say anything, you just quietly stepped away. I just... just wanted to thank you."
She lowered her head and gently placed her hand on her slightly protruding belly, her movements tender, as if soothing the life within her.
"He's been having a really tough time lately."
Her voice grew softer and softer, filled with heartache and helplessness, "He can't remember anything from the past, but he has to pretend he knows everything; he feels empty inside, but he forces a smile every day, afraid that others will see his unease. I see it all, and it breaks my heart."
Song Yu'an stood at the door, arms crossed, watching the scene coldly. Finally, he couldn't help but interject, "His name is Zhou Dajun! Not Bian Jiang! His name is engraved on his ID card, and he can't just change it because it sounds good to him! Even if he registers and applies for household registration, he can't change his surname!"
Her tone was firm, her gaze fixed on Xiaoshui. "Xiaoshui, Zhou Dajun's household registration is still under the Zhou family's name, it's written clearly in black and white. You want him to change his name? Go back and ask your father-in-law if he agrees. The Zhou family patriarch values rules the most and won't tolerate such nonsense."
She paused, then sneered, "Besides, did he even mention it to you? My family of three brothers just separated recently. When it came time to divide the property, he didn't argue at all and gave it all away. If you really want to live with them, go back to our hometown today and live with them, and see how you manage in the future."
Xiao Shui lowered her head, her fingers tightly gripping the hem of her clothes, her knuckles turning white, her voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz: "Um... Da Jun told me everything."
She sniffed, trying to compose herself. "He felt he had amnesia and was sorry to the Zhou family, so... he didn't want to fight for the family property or cause trouble. He said that being able to come back alive was already a great blessing."
She looked up at Shen Cuifen, her eyes filled with apology and gratitude, and forced a smile, though it was pale and almost devoid of warmth: "Sister Cuifen, please sit down too. Don't stand so far away, the ground is cold."
Song Yu'an had just asked the nurse, and Xiao Shui was only a little over a month old, so there was no sign of her pregnancy.
But in front of Shen Cuifen, she tightly covered her flat stomach with one hand, making exaggerated movements and looking sorrowful, as if she were really carrying a heavy six-month-old fetus in her belly.
Her fingers trembled slightly, her brows furrowed, and her lips quivered as if she were enduring immense pain.
He leaned against the wall, his steps unsteady, as if he might faint at any moment.
Shen Cuifen actually believed it. Her heart tightened, and she quickly reached out to support her arm, speaking softly, "Be careful, don't fall."
She gently helped Xiaoshui sit down in a chair, her voice full of concern, "How can you run around like this? You should lie down and rest properly."
Xiao Shui gripped Shen Cuifen's hand tightly, her knuckles turning white, and tears streamed down her face, falling in strings onto her clothes.
She sobbed, her voice choked with emotion: "Sister, you're so kind... In this family, you're the only one who still treats me like a human being."
"So gentle and smart! I heard you just finished your college entrance exam? That's amazing! Someone as outstanding as you will definitely get into university!"
As she spoke, she wiped away her tears haphazardly with her sleeve, but managed to force a grateful yet humble smile onto her face.
After saying that, she took out a thick stack of banknotes from her bag. It was a stack of brand-new hundred-yuan bills, with neat creases on the edges from the bank's counting.
Song Yu'an glanced at it, quickly calculated in his mind, and estimated that it was close to a thousand yuan.
This amount of money was not small in the late 1980s; it was enough for an average family to live on for half a year.
Xiao Shui forcefully stuffed the stack of money into Shen Cuifen's hand, pressing her fingertips firmly against her palm to prevent her from backing down.
"Sister Cuifen, this is our apology, you must accept it."
Her voice was low, but filled with an earnestness that left no room for refusal: "If we don't accept it, we won't be able to sleep at night; we won't be able to get over this."
This is hardly an apology.
It's clearly a case of paying off the wife and kicking her out!
It is a blatant display of wealth, a naked humiliation, and a trampling of dignity with money.
Song Yu'an was so angry that he trembled all over, his eyes turned red, and he glared fiercely at Zhou Dajun beside him.
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