The "rumor" that Ye Qingshui secretly went to the hospital for an abortion spread throughout the village in a few days.
When she went to work, several women openly stared at her belly.
"Why did you have a child when you were fine? Didn't Xie Zhiqing always want a child?"
“What a pity…”
The couple was so enthusiastic during the spring ploughing, they didn't look like they were going to have an abortion. Only in the more remote places in the valleys could they test the gender of the fetus, and if it was a girl, they would abort it. Such behavior would be looked down upon by the people in Yejia Village.
Having many children and grandchildren is a blessing these days. The conditions are not as bad as in the 1960s when people would starve to death. Even the poorest families would not be so cruel as to kill their own children. Besides, Xie Zhiqing is also an educated man, and his family conditions are good, so there is no need for him to despise his daughter.
The married women in the countryside shook their heads and looked at Ye Qingshui's fair and tender face, her plump chest, which was as pure as water, and couldn't help but look at her with strange eyes.
Could it be that she secretly had an affair with another man?
Even though Ye Qingshui was calm, she was so angry that she laughed: "I have never been pregnant, how can I have a miscarriage? Let me see who is slandering my reputation. I will slap them twice!"
Just one day after the incident started, someone found out that Ye Qingshui had indeed asked the village party secretary to issue a letter of introduction to the city's People's Hospital during that period, which matched the abortion form. For a moment, everyone stared at Xie Zhiqing's head, feeling green.
It's really eye-opening that such a good man can't keep his wife.
The saying that one should marry a virtuous wife is indeed true. When choosing a wife, one should not just look at her face. If she is too pretty, she will turn out to be a cuckold to the man.
Even Zhou Tingting came to ask Ye Qingshui: "Shuiya, you should have never been pregnant, right?"
Ye Qingshui's eyes turned cold, and she said solemnly: "No."
Zhou Tingting saw that Ye Qingshui had misunderstood. She held Ye Qingshui with her warm, rough hands and said sincerely, "I believe you. You will never do such a thing. I am not here to blame you."
After a year of getting along, Zhou Tingting has gotten to know Ye Qingshui's character.
She rarely saw rural girls as motivated as Ye Qingshui. Others would gather together to play mahjong, sleep in, or go to the city to eat, drink and have fun after work. But every time Zhou Tingting went to the Ye family, she would either see Ye Qingshui working or her back as she bent over the table reading a book seriously.
Ye Qingshui is very strict with herself. No matter whether she is making a water-finding instrument or doing manual labor, she is always the most active and enthusiastic. In order to make the water-finding instrument, she ran all over the library and flipped through a thick book seven or eight times.
Zhou Tingting nodded and looked at her with gentle eyes, "I believe you."
She believed that this girl who was able to insist on herself and loudly shout "the one who succeeds comes first" amid the criticism of the crowd must have her own pride.
She believed that the girl who was able to endure the boredom, explore and improve the water-finding instrument over and over again, and finally lead everyone to dig out sweet well water, must have her own persistence.
After Zhou Tingting finished speaking, Sun Lingyu, who was eavesdropping beside her, also said awkwardly:
"I believe you, too."
Sun Lingyu's thoughts were much simpler. She felt that Ye Qingshui was a bit evil. Whenever this happened, those who believed the rumors would end up getting slapped in the face, without exception.
Besides, Ye Qingshui is not such a fool. She would leave such a good husband like Xie Zhiqing and have an affair with someone else.
In addition to thinking that the things that happened to Ye Qingshui were a bit strange, Sun Lingyu also vaguely felt that He Fang was a bit evil. She had framed him and led him into a trap out of the blue during the Chinese New Year. This kind of person was not a good person either.
After returning to the countryside after the Chinese New Year, Sun Lingyu also cut off ties with her.
After Sun Lingyu finished speaking, some young female educated youth began to look at each other in bewilderment. Finally, they mustered up their courage and spoke in a few words:
"Although this rumor seems to be true, but... I still believe you."
This is a girl who once had dinner at the Ye family. She is grateful for the meal and is willing to trust Ye Qingshui.
"I believe in you too, please don't let us down this time!"
The female educated youth clenched her fists. She believed that the man who could lead them to dig a well and save food would not be a bad person.
"Ahem... why are you looking at me?" The few who were left alone coughed awkwardly, and finally smiled. They said to Ye Qingshui:
"After discussion, the people in our dormitory have decided to support you. Qingshui, you must dispel the rumors this time."
The most vicious thing is to slander a woman's innocence, to kill someone with just a nod, and to use this soft knife-like method to alienate the relationship between husband and wife. If Xie Zhiqing can't stand the pressure and divorces, Ye Qingshui will never be able to hold his head up high in his life.
Ye Qingshui was stunned. She didn't expect to hear these words.
She looked at the dozen girls of different ages in front of her. Some were pale and thin, some were bent and hunched over by labor, and some were still innocent and lively, dressed simply. But each of them had a friendly smile on their face, looking at her deeply, with a pair of dark eyes,
Ye Qingshui only felt as if there was a river of warm spring water flowing through her heart, nourishing her heart and calming the anger that had been accumulating in her heart for a long time.
She murmured, "Thank you, thank you, really... I don't know what to say."
This was something Ye Qingshui had never expected. She felt a sore nose and her throat was unable to make any sound.
Ye Qingshui looked at these faces. Those who had misunderstood her, followed the crowd and despised her stood on her side this time and said to her, "Believe in you!"
She thought that this time, like every time in the past, she would still have to stand against the entire village and defend her innocence.
This time, it was no different from every time in the past. Almost everyone wanted the rumors to come true. They secretly laughed at and insulted her in private. She proved her innocence, but in the end all she got in return was insignificant acquiescence.
Everyone assumes that you are not wrong this time, what else do you want?
Zhou Tingting patted Ye Qingshui on the shoulder and said, "Don't just be moved. Think about what to do."
"Why did you go to that hospital that day? What did you do?"
Zhou Tingting said this, then turned to the female educated youth and asked them seriously, "Where did this rumor come from?"
A girl said, "I heard that the note was found by a female compatriot in a dormitory for male educated youth. Who told me about this? Cui Cui, tell me!"
The girl who was named looked up and pointed: "Dahong told me so."
The girl named Dahong said that it was someone else who said it.
After asking questions and following the clues, they finally found another female dormitory.
Ye Qingshui looked at the strange and familiar faces in front of her, and watched them chattering and giving her advice and suggestions. She felt relieved and happy at the same time.
She smiled.
In the past, she always thought that she was no longer at the age where she cared about rumors, and that what others thought of her was not important. As long as she was upright, she had nothing to fear. But it turned out that she felt wronged after being misunderstood so many times.
Ye Qingshui pursed his lips and said, "Please help me pass on a message. I have a few words to say to Zhao Yan, the educated youth."
…
Youth League center, female dormitory.
Zhao Yan heard people in the educated youth dormitory talking about Ye Qingshui's "cheating", and she was terrified every time she heard it.
On this day, everyone in the dormitory went to have lunch, and the empty dormitory was left with only the two of them.
He Fang consoled her earnestly, "Don't be so surprised. This kind of scandal is like lice in the countryside. The more you explain, the more trouble you'll get into. Can Ye Qingshui really come out and prove that she didn't cheat on him?"
"I have bribed the doctor at the hospital. Even if Ye Qingshui points you out, there is nothing he can do. As long as you keep your mouth shut, no one will suspect you."
Zhao Yan's face turned paler and paler, and she was more and more confused: "But you can just write any name, why do you have to pin this on Ye Qingshui?"
He Fang frowned and said, "Who am I doing this for? Think about it yourself. Ye Qingshui has such a good reputation now. If she wants to apply for a worker-peasant-soldier student, she is from a poor peasant family and military family for three generations. How can you have a chance? You have no conscience."
Zhao Yan suddenly stopped talking.
He Fang talked until her lips were worn out, thinking to herself that Zhao Yan was really stupid and held others back. If it were Sun Lingyu, she would have gotten through in one go and wouldn't have bothered her at all.
He Fang paused and prepared to continue: "You——"
There was a knock on the dormitory door: "Is Zhao Yan there? Ye Qingshui is looking for you."
Zhao Yan's body trembled suddenly, and her face turned pale. He Fang gritted her teeth and said, "You'd better keep your mouth shut!"
The other side.
Ye Qingshui told Xie Tingyu about Zhao Yan's incident. Xie Tingyu asked for leave early in the morning and even stopped doing farm work.
There was no sign of Xie Tingyu in the fields. The villagers thought that Xie Zhiqing could not afford to lose face and was too embarrassed to come to work.
Ye Qingshui only knew that he had left for something. The two of them talked about this matter yesterday. She was not too worried about Xie Tingyu's situation. However, she could not resist the pitying looks from the villagers.
After Ye Qingshui finished lunch, Zhou Tingting brought Zhao Yan over.
Zhao Yan didn't have time to eat lunch, and her already pale face became even paler.
Ye Qingshui's eyes fell on this frail woman.
“Why write my name?”
Zhao Yan was silent for a long time, her pale face was extremely calm, and she asked, "Do you want to apply to be a worker-peasant-soldier student?"
Ye Qingshui answered casually: "No, I haven't thought about it."
Knowing that the college entrance examination would be resumed this year, Ye Qingshui never thought about the workers, peasants and soldiers students. The quality of the workers, peasants and soldiers students was not as good as the college students who passed the college entrance examination.
After hearing this, Zhao Yan collapsed and trembled.
Ye Qingshui had no intention of applying to be a worker-peasant-soldier student! Suddenly, Zhao Yan's face turned pale, and complex emotions emerged in her eyes.
She bit her lip and tried her best to suppress the trembling of her body.
Seeing that she looked so frail and pale, Ye Qingshui was afraid that she would faint on the spot, so he gave her a steamed bun.
Zhao Yan's tears fell, and she was struggling fiercely in her heart.
After a while, Zhao Yan did not take the steamed buns. After hesitating for a long time, she finally knelt down and kowtowed to Ye Qingshui.
"I'm sorry, please don't expose me. I didn't write your name on the list, and I didn't pass on the list... I just want to go to college... I didn't intend to hurt you."
She kowtowed vigorously, "I have been here for so many years, I just want to go home."
Zhao Yan kowtowed repeatedly, and soon her forehead was covered with mud and turned slightly blue. The clothes she wore were very old, shabby and mean. Ye Qingshui vaguely remembered that Zhao Yan always wore the same clothes, year after year.
After hearing what Zhao Yan said, Ye Qingshui thought about the time when she went to the hospital for an abortion some time ago. She suddenly felt heavy in her heart and sighed.
She never expected that such a thing would happen around her!
"Did He Fang ask you to do this?"
Ye Qingshui shook his head and said with pity: "You were sold out by her, and you are still counting money for her. You are so stupid! She lost the qualification for selection last year. This time she pushed you in front of me. I must clarify this matter. How can you still have the opportunity to go to college? You failed this time, so the opportunity must have fallen to her again."
"Is it worth what you've paid?"
Zhao Yan's face was pale, and her cold gaze pierced into Ye Qingshui's eyes.
Her voice was filled with endless fatigue and ridicule: "Ye Qingshui, I'm not you. I'm not as lucky as you. You know... I really envy you. If I had half of your luck, I wouldn't do this."
"Please, I finally got this opportunity..."
It was clearly just an accident, but she married Xie Zhiqing as a blessing in disguise. She was just an ordinary village girl, but because she married well, everything went smoothly. By marrying him, she could have enough food to eat and could return to the city.
Ye Qingshui couldn't help but shake his head after hearing this.
Where does her good luck come from that makes people envy her?
In her previous life, she had lived in inferiority and humiliation for the first half of her life, and suffered from rumors. Her grandmother died early, and Xie Tingyu died in a car accident. She misunderstood Xie Tingyu and resented him for her whole life.
If this kind of thing happened to someone else, they would have died of depression a long time ago, right?
Ye Qingshui shook his head hard and seriously corrected Zhao Yan: "If it hadn't happened, I wouldn't care how you got this opportunity. There is one thing I want to correct you, I am not lucky at all. On the contrary, I have always lived a difficult life.
The roads are chosen by people. You only see the superficial scenery of others but fail to see the hardships and tears they pay in private.
Whatever kind of life you want to live, you must work hard in that direction. If you want to have enough food, you must work hard; if you want to go to college, you must study hard and let others recognize your qualities; if you want to live a good life, you must struggle all your life.
Every student who came out of Yejia Village and was selected to be a worker-peasant-soldier student was either an active laborer or a person with outstanding ideological, political and cultural knowledge. They could work hard for this and go to college proudly. What about you? You are willing to sell yourself for the opportunity to go to school today, and sell your soul for a job opportunity tomorrow. Do you envy me? With all due respect, I would never do the same as you. There is something wrong with your thinking from the root. "
"You envy me for marrying Xie Tingyu, but I tell you, without him, I can live a better life with my own hands."
What a pity! If she had waited a year and received that news, would she still sell herself out for such a slim chance?
Zhao Yan shed tears after hearing this, but her face still showed disbelief.
She cried and shook her head, "You don't understand...how precious opportunities are to people like me!"
As soon as Ye Qingshui finished speaking, there was applause from outside the door.
Xie Tingyu slowly opened the door and looked at Ye Qingshui in the room with a smile. His calm face was more sincere than ever before, and he said, "Shui Ya is right."
Zhao Yan looked up and saw a doctor in a white coat standing behind Xie Tingyu. He was the same person who performed surgery on Zhao Yan that day.
Zhao Yan's face turned pale. If she hadn't come to Ye Qingshui for help today, would Xie Zhiqing have asked this doctor to expose her?
Her head hit the ground even harder, banging on the ground and drawing blood.
"I really didn't harm Shuiya this time. I just had an abortion."
Xie Tingyu said: "Get up, if you hadn't been involved in this incident--"
A faint, thoughtful smile appeared on his face.
Ye Qingshui felt that although Zhao Yan was hateful, He Fang, the instigator, should be brought to justice, and Zhao Yan should not be made to suffer for her.
Xie Tingyu said: "How about this, let's give her a taste of her own medicine and let her also feel the pain that Shui Ya went through."
The author has something to say:
Brother Yu: I'm sorry everyone, I'm going to be unreasonable :)
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