Chapter 96 This chapter is about Tang Mingmei's storyline (but it's not recommended...)
Li's mother was so frightened by Tang Mingmei's appearance that it took her a beat to react and refute her.
"Why should I give you money? You're usually so capable, always saying you have a job and get paid, don't you?"
Tang Mingmei just wanted to take her daughter to see a doctor as soon as possible. Suppressing her anger, she gritted her teeth and said, "Just because Li Dazhu gives you half of your salary every month, and now his daughter is sick and needs money for medical treatment..."
Normally, hearing that a child is sick would cause worry, even if you don't like it.
But Li's mother was not normal; she only listened to the first half of Tang Mingmei's words and was very unhappy.
“That’s his living expenses. When Dazhu took over his father’s job, it was agreed that he would be responsible for all the household expenses. It’s only because Baohua isn’t married yet that he can still give her a little every month. Otherwise, with so many people in the family, that little salary wouldn’t be enough.”
Tang Mingmei wanted to laugh when she heard this.
A few dozen yuan a month? Who lives such a lavish lifestyle?
For some reason, she immediately thought of Tang Mingli.
For a family like the Fu family, their monthly expenses must be more than just a few dozen yuan.
Tang Mingmei's feelings were very complicated, but the next second, her attention was drawn away by her daughter's crying.
She didn't care what her mother-in-law said; she just wanted money.
"Give me ten yuan quickly, I need to take my child to see a doctor."
Li's mother refused, saying, "You should spend your own money."
"Xiaoxin has been sick several times this month, and I've run out of money."
Li's mother blurted out, "If you run out of money, ask your parents for more. Don't ask me for more."
Tang Mingmei was about to lose her temper and yelled at her mother-in-law, "Give me the money now!"
If it weren't for the fact that she lived too far from her parents' home, she would rather take her daughter and go to her parents than stay here begging for money from this old woman.
Startled by Tang Mingmei's outburst, Li's mother instinctively took a step back, muttered "crazy" under her breath, and tried to retreat to her room, but Tang Mingmei held her tightly.
"Money, give me the money."
All Tang Mingmei could think about was money.
She once thought that the days she spent in the Fu family, where she was treated with utmost respect, were the most humiliating period of her short and limited life.
However, it was only at this moment that she truly understood what it meant to lose one's dignity.
Even knowing how much the other party despises you, you still have to ask, like a mad beggar.
Having no choice—this is the true despair of having no choice.
Just as the two were arguing, Li's father, who had gone out, returned.
Seeing this, he frowned and said in an unhappy tone, "What are you guys up to now?"
When Li's mother saw her husband, it was as if she had seen a savior. She hurriedly shouted, "Come and help me! Tang Mingmei has gone mad!"
Tang Mingmei didn't care what they were saying, she just kept repeating "Give me money".
Upon hearing this, Mr. Li asked, "What does she need the money for?"
Li's mother told him, "Li Xin is sick, and she asked me for money to take the child to see a doctor."
Whether out of a pang of pity for the still-crying child, or perhaps because he didn't want to see the two of them so embarrassed, Mr. Li impatiently told his wife to quickly give Tang Mingmei a few yuan so she could take the child to see a doctor.
Li's mother remained stubborn and refused, and Li Fu said to her, "If the neighbors hear this, it will be a laughing stock."
Their family had already become a laughingstock in front of others enough people. Thinking of this, Li's father regretted coming back so early.
This house is so annoying that you can't stand being there for even a few seconds.
Under persuasion from Li's father, Li's mother reluctantly gave Tang Mingmei ten yuan.
Tang Mingmei took the money and immediately picked up her child and went out the door.
A cool breeze blows by, making people feel chilly not only on their bodies but also in their hearts.
Tang Mingmei held the child in both arms, biting her lower lip tightly to stop herself from crying.
-
Around 6 p.m., Li Dazhu got off work and returned home.
Normally at this time, my wife would be hiding in the room with our daughter, taking a break.
However, when I came back today, I found the room empty.
He frowned subconsciously and asked his mother, who was cooking, "Where's Tang Mingmei?"
Hearing that they had taken the child to the hospital, he finally relaxed.
As long as it's not a case of her taking her child back to her parents' home for no reason, it's fine.
Although he knew that even if she went back to her parents' home, her parents-in-law would definitely try to persuade her to come back, he still found her frequent trips back to her parents' home very distasteful.
Not long after, Li's mother finished preparing dinner.
She walked from the kitchen to the doorway, looking towards the stairwell, muttering, "Why isn't he back yet?"
Li Dazhu thought his mother was talking about Tang Mingmei, so he casually replied, "Maybe there are a lot of patients at the hospital today."
I was talking about your sister.
Although Li Baohua's relationship with her family remains strained because of Deng Qingyuan's affair, her mother still cares about her daughter because she is her biological daughter.
Li Dazhu, having misunderstood his mother, sneered.
Not long after, Li Baohua also returned.
Fearing the food would get cold, Li's mother called for dinner, ignoring the fact that Tang Mingmei hadn't returned yet.
After finishing dinner, Li Dazhu checked the time and realized it was almost 7:30, and it was completely dark outside. He started to worry that his wife hadn't brought the children back yet.
The doctors have all gone home; it shouldn't take this long to see a doctor, no matter what the illness is.
He hesitated whether to go look for it, but then he thought about how cold it was outside and backed down.
Let's wait a little longer. If they haven't returned yet, we'll check again.
They waited and waited until 8 p.m.
Li Dazhu couldn't sit still any longer. He stood up and complained impatiently, "There's really nothing I can do well. Even taking the child to see a doctor takes so long."
Little did he know that Tang Mingmei thought her child simply had a cold and fever, but the doctor told her after examining the child that it was pneumonia.
Even for adults, pneumonia can range from mild to severe, let alone for such a small baby.
The doctor immediately recommended hospitalization.
When Tang Mingmei heard that not being hospitalized might be life-threatening, she dared not disagree and immediately arranged for her child to be hospitalized.
If I need to be hospitalized, the ten or so yuan I have on me is definitely not enough.
She wanted to go back to Li Dazhu to ask for it back, but she couldn't leave her child alone in the hospital.
Let's get them admitted to the hospital first. Maybe Li Dazhu will realize something's wrong when he sees they haven't gone home yet and come to the hospital to find them.
Tang Mingmei comforted herself in this way.
But in fact, she had an absurd guess: if Li Dazhu knew that his daughter was hospitalized, she didn't know if he would be willing to pay for it.
Thinking of this, Tang Mingmei finally let the tears she had been holding back all the way fall.
The nurse came to give the child an IV drip and happened to see it. Thinking she was worried about the child, she comforted her, saying, "Your child's condition isn't very serious, so don't worry too much."
This was good news, and Tang Mingmei nodded gratefully at her.
After half a bottle of medicine was administered, the child gradually stopped crying and fell asleep peacefully. Tang Mingmei finally felt much relieved.
But looking at her sleeping daughter, she couldn't help but shed tears again.
The doctor said that my daughter could be discharged from the hospital in three to five days at the earliest, but it could take ten days to half a month at the latest.
Her poor daughter—it was because she hadn't taken good care of her that the weak and pitiful child had to suffer like this.
Tang Mingmei stayed with her child, filled with guilt and tears, until it was 10 p.m.
Li Dazhu, whom she had wondered if he would come to the hospital to look for them, finally appeared at the door of the ward.
Li Dazhu had obviously been searching for a long time; his forehead was sweating despite the cold weather, and his chest was heaving from panting heavily.
Upon finally seeing Tang Mingmei, he immediately spoke in an annoyed tone: "How come you..."
He was speaking loudly, and a passing nurse stopped him, saying, "This is a hospital, watch your voice."
Although Li Dazhu treated Tang Mingmei very badly, he was quite well-mannered in front of outsiders.
He immediately shut up when the nurse told him to.
After the nurse left, he spoke again: "Why didn't you say anything? I've been looking for you everywhere."
I was more careful with my volume this time.
Tang Mingmei found it amusing and retorted, "What do you mean? That I'd leave my daughter alone in the hospital?"
Li Dazhu was truly stumped by the question.
If they have a phone at home, they even said they could borrow the hospital's phone to make a call home.
Unable to find a reason, Li Dazhu still blamed Tang Mingmei, but fearing she would go crazy, he quickly changed the subject after scolding her.
What happened to my daughter?
Actually, he roughly knew what was going on. He had found his way here by asking around.
Hearing that Li Dazhu still cared about his daughter, Tang Mingmei felt a little better and told him, "The doctor said it's pneumonia, and she needs to be hospitalized."
As she spoke, she finally looked him straight in the eye. "I only have ten yuan on me, which I've already used to prepay my hospital fees. Do you have any money with you?"
Li Dazhu naturally carried money with him, quite a bit, about seventy or eighty yuan.
He wasn't happy about spending the money he had saved through frugality.
"Having a daughter means she's always getting sick, and all we do is spend money."
It's unclear whether he was blaming his wife or his daughter.
Anyway, Tang Mingmei was furious. If she wasn't afraid of waking her daughter, she would definitely be arguing with him right now.
She suppressed her anger and made Li Dazhu hand over the money he had brought.
Li Dazhu reluctantly took out a wad of cash from his pocket, intending to count out a few bills to give away, but Tang Mingmei snatched it away.
Tang Mingmei sneered, "Are you even human? Your daughter is in the hospital, and you expect to be satisfied with just ten or twenty yuan?"
Li Dazhu hated it most when she spoke to him in that tone, as if she were so superior and he was so filthy.
But pneumonia can indeed be a serious or minor illness, and giving ten or twenty yuan might not be enough.
With a heavy heart, Li Dazhu had no choice but to accept it.
"Alright, here you go."
As she spoke, she looked at her daughter on the hospital bed with some disdain.
He stood at the door the whole time, never stepping into the ward.
He had heard people say that pneumonia is contagious.
Now that he had confirmed that his daughter was in the hospital, he saw no need to stay any longer and left, saying, "I'll come see my daughter again tomorrow."
Tang Mingmei watched his retreating figure as if he were fleeing, and couldn't help but grit her teeth.
He arrived at the hospital without even asking if he had finished eating, and the person lying in the hospital bed with an IV drip was his own daughter, yet he didn't even bother to go near her, leaving so coldly.
Even if it's a daughter, she's still his child, and possibly his only child.
but……
Tang Mingmei suddenly had a thought: Did Li Dazhu and his heartless family even hope that something would happen to their daughter?
As soon as this thought came to mind, Tang Mingmei gasped.
She tried to stop thinking about it, but she couldn't control herself.
If something really happens to their daughter, wouldn't that give them a reason to have another child?
Tang Mingmei became increasingly shocked and desperate as she thought about it.
Now that things have come to this, she can no longer deceive herself. God gave her a second chance at life, but she is living a worse life than in her first life.
Perhaps she already understood this, but she just kept refusing to admit it.
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