Chapter 38 Nonsense
They looked at each other, their eyes filled with fear.
No one dared to stand up and speak up for their elder brother.
"My mom spent so much money, how am I going to get married in the future? You can't even control your wife, and instead you hit me?"
Lu Fuquan shook his head and glared at his father.
He deliberately raised his voice as he spoke, his eyes fixed on Shen Cuifen.
Upon hearing this, Old Lady Zhao immediately chimed in.
"That's right, why did you hit Zhonghe! If she keeps messing things up like this, we'll be broke sooner or later! Zhonghe is right, how much did the family spend on his education? How will he get married in the future? Are we going to rely on my meager retirement savings to fill the hole?"
Shen Cuifen sneered and retorted without any mercy.
"You dare say you've squandered all your money? You're not even afraid of being laughed at! You supported his education? He dropped out of school before finishing junior high to play games at internet cafes. Every year, I had to bribe the teachers to keep him from being kicked out. His shoes are cleaner than the clothes I wash, and his phone is more expensive than my rice cooker. And all of this was earned by you?"
Lu Weidong idles away his days, spending all the little money he earns on his children's education.
His own pants were worn out at the knees, his shirt collar was yellowed, and he had to wash them repeatedly.
Sometimes, when he couldn't afford the tuition fees for his child, he had no choice but to beg for help.
Shen Cuifen's younger brother once secretly slipped her two hundred yuan, saying it was for his nephew's book fees.
With that kind of financial situation, how dare they claim to be poor?
"Shen Cuifen, have I spoiled you too much? You're not grateful for my kindness, and you're taking advantage of my kindness instead?"
Lu Weidong finally spoke, his voice low and deep.
He stood at the door, looking at Shen Cuifen with a gloomy expression.
That slap today completely crossed his bottom line.
"Jianguo is so old now! When I was his age, I was already pregnant!"
Grandma Zhao wiped away her tears and sobbed as she spoke.
She recalled the hardships she endured in her youth.
She gave birth to three children before the age of thirty, without any postpartum care or nourishing soups, and worked from dawn till dusk every day.
She felt that Shen Cuifen was too immature.
Getting married and starting a career is a big deal for a son, so the daughter-in-law should be obedient and compliant.
How can someone be publicly humiliated like this?
"You don't even think about your son's feelings. Do you even deserve to be called the daughter-in-law of the Shen family?"
She became more and more agitated as she spoke, pointing her finger at Shen Cuifen's nose.
In her view, once a woman enters the Lu family, she must bow her head and do her job.
How can we still talk about reason?
It would have been better if we hadn't brought it up, but now that we have.
Shen Cuifen's anger flared up instantly, and she wished she could kill Lu Weidong with her own hands.
She didn't marry Lu Weidong willingly at all.
After that incident, her father was so angry that he grabbed a stick and beat Lu Weidong severely, insisting on sending him to jail.
When the wooden stick hit his back, Lu Weidong howled like a pig being slaughtered.
Shen's father was determined to call the police and bring this beast to justice.
But then Old Lady Zhao suddenly rushed out and seized on the weakness of Shen's parents.
"If you really dare to send my son to jail, does your daughter even want to live? Her reputation is ruined, how will she face anyone in the future? How will she get married?"
"The deed is done, what respectable family would want her? Can you bear to see her grow old alone for the rest of her life?"
She knelt down with a thud, hugged her mother's legs, and burst into tears.
At that moment, Shen's mother bit her lip until it bled, and her voice trembled.
We can take care of her for the rest of her life!
Old Mrs. Zhao, however, kept sneering.
"Support her for life? You make it sound so easy! She has four siblings. Who would want to marry into your family in the future? Do you think anyone will come to propose marriage now? What family doesn't care about reputation and dignity? Who would dare to marry someone like her?"
Back then, once a woman lost her chastity, it was as if her face had been peeled off.
Rumors spread like wildfire through the village.
Everyone blamed her, saying she seduced him and that she brought trouble upon herself by dressing too scantily.
No one bothered to ask what happened that night, and no one bothered to verify the truth.
She became the "unclean" one.
Shen's mother immediately started fighting with Zhao's mother.
With red eyes, she grabbed Old Lady Zhao's hair and punched her mercilessly.
Blood flowed down her forehead, staining her collar red, but she did not let go.
She screamed, the sound seeming to be squeezed out from deep within her throat.
"If you dare say another word, I'll fight you to the death! Do you have a daughter? Do you even have a daughter?!"
Shen Cuifen's father also pulled out a knife.
The knife, which usually hangs on the kitchen wall and is used for chopping meat and vegetables, was now tightly gripped in his hand.
He prepared for the worst.
If the other party dares to make a move today, he will not back down.
But Shen Cuifen understood that it didn't matter if she died.
How can we just stand by and watch our parents and siblings be dragged into the mire?
The family's reputation is already teetering on the brink of collapse.
If another conflict breaks out, the Shen family may really be unable to gain a foothold in the village.
That cry of "I'll marry you" was like a knife, cutting off all her escape routes.
In the end, the Shen family sent her to the Lu family without taking a single penny of betrothal gifts.
Most villagers were just there to watch the spectacle, but few felt any sympathy.
The Lu family didn't say it to her face, but secretly they treated her as a form of compensation.
She was forced into pregnancy, and her mental state had long since collapsed.
She still remembers the pain of her wedding night.
She resisted and cried out, but no one heard her or cared.
I miscarried before my first pregnancy was due, and the baby didn't survive.
That day she lay on the floor in front of the bed, covered in blood, clutching the corner of the blanket in her hand.
At that time, she had truly resigned herself to her fate.
She no longer expected anyone to save her, nor did she fantasize about the future.
She was just living, living day by day.
She learned to bow her head, to remain silent, and to never utter a word in rebuttal when others humiliated her.
"Ha, so you can't find a wife so you're going to learn from me? Rape someone? But if I knew he dared to do something like that, I'd definitely send him to jail!"
Shen Cuifen stared coldly at Lu Weidong.
Lu Weidong's face turned pale, and he was restless.
His lips trembled, cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and his fingers gripped his knees tightly.
He hadn't expected her to say something like that.
"What nonsense are you spouting!"
He finally shouted it out, but his voice was very weak.
"Whether I'm lying or not, you know best in your heart."
If it weren't for her daughter, she would definitely make Lu Weidong pay with his life after she came back!
The daughters are not married yet; their lives are just beginning.
If people found out their father was a rapist, their lives would be ruined.
"Mom...did you just say something?"
Lu Xiuye's voice was trembling.
If I heard correctly, Shen Cuifen just said that Lu Weidong raped her before they got married.
Lu Xiuye froze, her ears ringing.
She opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
She recalled how Lu Weidong would often beat and kick her mother when she was a child.
I recall my mother silently enduring everything and never resisting.
I thought of the oppressive atmosphere at home that had been there for years.
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