Chapter 84 Catching Adultery (2)
"Li Huguo, I really overestimated you!" Ruanqiu glanced around the room, her sneer deepening. "You said the company wasn't doing well and you didn't get much money, but I bet all the money went to Cui Niang..."
The room was furnished with high-end items, including a color TV, mahogany sofas, and even an air conditioner that even they themselves couldn't afford.
The electric fan is still running in Ruanqiu's house. In the summer, when the children get very hot, they can only use a palm leaf fan to keep them cool.
Zhang Qiuxing, who has no blood relation to Li Huguo, is able to eat popsicles and watch TV on the sofa in a warm room.
Ruanqiu's heart sank completely.
The voices of Chen Yun and Gao Ming criticizing Li Huguo could be heard in my ears, but gradually they seemed to become indistinct, as if their voices were veiled.
Looking at the man in front of her, whose face was filled with guilt, her memories of more than twenty years gradually became blurred.
Li Huguo is no longer the boy he once was.
"Cui Niang!" Chen Yun's shout abruptly pulled Ruan Qiu back from her daze. The next moment, her arm was pulled and she was led to the kitchen: "I want to see what kind of shameless woman would get involved with a married man."
Ruanqiu glanced at Chen Yun gratefully.
The Gao couple stood firmly by her side without hesitation, even though Chen Yun was more furious than the person in question, Li Huguo.
"Cui Niang, if you have the nerve to cheat on someone, why are you hiding!"
Cui Niang hid in the corner of the kitchen, her back to the group, her body trembling, and soft sobs drifted out.
"Ruanqiu, listen to me, this isn't Cui Niang's fault..."
The moment Cui Niang started crying, Li Huguo's expression changed drastically as if he had suddenly become possessed, and he even wanted to rush into the kitchen to protect the woman who was huddled in the corner crying.
Gao Ming's eyes widened, and he grabbed Li Huguo by the collar and pulled him back: "Are you out of your mind? How dare you speak up for your mistress?" His raised fist was filled with visible anger: "If you dare say another word, I'll beat you to death."
Chen Yun rushed forward and forcefully pulled Cui Niang out of the kitchen. In the process, a gold earring shaped like a rose suddenly fell to the ground, but no one bothered to pick it up.
"Who are you? If you cause any more trouble, I'll... I'll go to the police station and have you arrested."
Cui'e's mother clearly hadn't figured out what was going on, and in her panic, she still shakily ran to the middle to try and rescue her daughter.
"Your daughter is Li Huguo's mistress." Chen Yun explained coldly, "This is Li Huguo's wife; they've been married for over ten years!"
"What!"
"Grandma, don't get involved in this." Zhang Qiuxing helped Cui Niang's mother back up. "Mom is the one who broke up other people's families. She deserves it today!"
Chen Yun glanced at the girl, who was so calm it was almost cold.
"Cui Niang! Cui Niang, tell me, is it really true?!"
Cui Niang covered her face with one hand, and her silence spoke volumes about whether the current situation was true or false.
"What a tragedy... How could our family have raised a daughter who became someone's concubine... What a tragedy..."
Cui Niang's mother was severely affected by the shock; she trembled and almost collapsed.
Zhang Qiuxing helped the old woman up, then coldly glanced back at her mother: "Grandma, let's go to my house first. It's rented, but the money comes from honest means."
Ruanqiu's earlier guess was actually wrong about Xu Qiuxing. She and Cuiniang had broken off their relationship three years ago, and she had been working outside to support herself.
If her grandmother hadn't called her to come for the New Year's Eve dinner, this upright girl with a strong sense of right and wrong would never have stepped into the room.
With the old man and the young man gone, Chen Yun's long-suppressed anger erupted instantly.
"You little brat, Cui Niang! My mother-in-law kindly gave you a job at the restaurant, and you... you've got your eyes on a man!"
"Are you some kind of maggot from a latrine? You're disgusting!"
“Don’t tell me you don’t know Li Huguo has a family. You’ve seen Li Huguo and Ruanqiu come to my house quite often in the past few years.”
"You like other women's men so much, don't you even look at your own age... Your son isn't much younger than Li Huguo!"
"Shameless thing, yet it knows how to cry! Shedding crocodile tears? If it had any shame, it wouldn't be so eager to climb into a man's bed..."
Cui Niang was eight years older than Li Huguo, and in terms of looks and figure, she was no match for Ruan Qiu. Chen Yun really couldn't understand what Li Huguo saw in her.
clever:"……"
This was the first time I realized how vehemently my wife's insults were.
"Sister-in-law, stop scolding Cui Niang!" Li Huguo's long-suppressed anger finally erupted, and he rushed his head toward Gao Ming like a madman: "It's me who's shameless, it's me who's been pestering Cui Niang, if you want to hit or scold, come at me."
"..."
The room became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Ruanqiu looked down at the ground, seemingly lost in thought. Chen Yun stared coldly at her, while the disappointment in Gao Ming's eyes slowly faded as he shook his head.
“Li Huguo…” Gao Ming sighed, as if even uttering this name was extremely difficult. “I’m giving you two choices now: either break off your relationship with her and beg Ruanqiu for forgiveness, or I, Gao Ming, will pretend I don’t have a friend like you.”
"Gao Ming, are you my friend?!"
“It used to be.” Gao Ming shook his head in disappointment and took two steps back to Chen Yun’s side. “It’s not like that now.”
"Let's go," Ruanqiu suddenly said.
"Ruanqiu, I'll explain to you when I get home. It's really not what you think between us!" Li Huguo finally felt a tremor in his heart.
Having been married for many years, no one knew better than Li Huguo what Ruanqiu was like when they argued.
But now she didn't make a fuss, she just looked at me with cold eyes... as if I were a stranger.
"You and her aren't like that... then what are you like?"
Li Huguo: "I...we..."
“Li Huguo! Now that you’re keeping her outside, act like a man and stop trying to make excuses.” After a slight pause, Ruanqiu took a deep breath: “Let’s part amicably. After you’ve appeased your mistress, come back and get a divorce from me.”
Holding Chen Yun's hand, which was cold and trembling slightly, Ruan Qiu still couldn't control her body due to suffocation, even though she had prepared herself mentally before coming.
Suddenly, Chen Yun noticed that Cui Niang, who had been sobbing, looked up slightly. Her eyes, which she had once thought were gentle and resilient, were now completely replaced by smugness, and the tears seemed to be just floating in her eyes.
"Shameless!"
Chen Yun roared, turned around and glared at Li Huguo before grabbing Cui Niang's collar with one hand: "Only a fool like Li Huguo would be fooled by you, you vixen. Why would he leave his young and beautiful wife at home to follow around a middle-aged woman like you?"
With a "rip," Cui Niang's collar was torn open, and two buttons on her shirt popped off, revealing the purple bra strap underneath.
Gao Ming instantly turned his face away, then took two steps forward to block Li Huguo's path.
"So that's how you kept the man." Chen Yun tugged at the purple ribbon again: "What's Ruanqiu doing standing there! Talking about reason!"
In this situation, no matter how big a hospital director you are or how big a clothing store owner you are, you shouldn't just stand there and talk about reason.
If reasoning were effective, how could Li Huguo and Ruanqiu have gotten together?
"Help! Protect the country and save me!"
“I didn’t mean to get along with Li Huguo. I’m returning him to you. I didn’t want to break up your family.”
"I'm sorry, I really didn't know Li Huguo had a family at first."
"I truly love Li Huguo, I don't ask for any title or status..."
Cui Niang's words completely enraged Ruan Qiu, who grabbed an enamel mug from the table and smashed it at Cui Niang.
The three of them wrestled... or rather, it was two of them unilaterally taking down Cui Niang.
Li Huguo tried to go over there several times, but Gao Ming stopped him each time, warning him in a low voice, "If you dare to go over there, your marriage is truly over!"
The crying continued for a long time.
Chen Yun exhaled through her nose, feeling satisfied even though she knew it was all a deliberate tactic by the scheming mistress.
"Cui Niang!" Li Huguo called out.
Ruanqiu curled her lips and clapped her hands leisurely: "Let's go! Let her have the junk."
The relief in her eyes contrasted sharply with Cui Niang's disheveled state.
Li Huguo's heart skipped a beat, and his gaze involuntarily followed Ruanqiu. He seemed to see the girl who insisted on following him to the Hongri Machinery Factory when he was twenty years old.
With a resolute figure, it slowly turns around, as if once it takes that step, it will never look back.
"Ruanqiu!" Li Huguo called out pleadingly.
Ruanqiu didn't turn around, but simply took Chen Yun's arm and walked towards the door.
"Li Huguo, my face hurts so much."
His desire to chase after her was suddenly pulled back by Cui Niang, and the pitiful woman in his arms instantly aroused Li Huguo's affection.
Li Huguo still chose to stay.
Li Huguo would never know that his decision to stay would plunge his family into an abyss.
Gao Ming sighed and turned to leave.
Back in Guanming Hutong, the group walked home from the entrance of the hutong.
"Thank you." Ruanqiu looked up at the sky, the sadness in her eyes no longer for Li Huguo, but for the only person she still cared about: "Shuai Shuai's grades have dropped, he must have found out something."
"Are you really planning to divorce Li Huguo?"
"Leave." Ruanqiu replied succinctly.
"What about Li Shuaishuai?"
When the topic turned to his son, Li Shuaishuai suddenly appeared deep in the alley.
Several children were still having a snowball fight, having already gone deep into the alley from the entrance. Only a few blurry figures could be seen, but their laughter could be clearly heard.
"Shuai Shuai might be in your hands!" Ruan Qiu stopped and grabbed Chen Yun's hand: "I definitely can't take Li Shuai Shuai with me when I divorce Li Huguo..."
Li Shuaishuai is the only child in three generations of the Li family, and Li Zhong and Fang Fang will never allow Ruanqiu to take Li Shuaishuai away.
Moreover, she knew very well that even if she took the case to court, the child would probably not be awarded to the woman, because the two parties were simply too far apart in terms of circumstances.
Ruanqiu has no relatives left, and she has recently invested all her money in the women's shoe business, which is not good for her child's growth in any way.
“I will probably go to the coast to do business; it’s too bumpy for Shuai Shuai to travel with me.”
Most importantly, Ruanqiu has made up her mind to try her luck on the coast. Regardless of whether she makes a name for herself or not, she doesn't want to stay in Beicheng anytime soon.
"Don't worry."
As a mother, Chen Yun understood how much determination Ruanqiu had to make this decision, and that she herself might have made the same choice.
It's not good for a child to grow up wandering around, especially since he has loving grandparents in Beicheng. Even if Li Huguo is a scoundrel, he won't treat his own son badly.
After much deliberation, it was determined that keeping Li Shuaishuai was the best option.
However, Ruanqiu was still a little worried, which is why she entrusted Li Shuaishuai to Chen Yun and Gao Ming.
"Chen Yun." Tears welled up in her eyes at that moment, and Ruan Qiu hugged Chen Yun tightly: "From today onwards, the only people I can trust in this world are you and Gao Ming!"
"Don't worry, I will definitely take good care of Shuai Shuai." Chen Yun's eyes also reddened involuntarily, and tears slid down her cheeks and disappeared into Ruan Qiu's fashionable coat.
"I'm relieved to hear that!"
"Why don't you come stay at my house for a few days?"
When they arrived at the Li family's door, Ruanqiu stood on the threshold and shook her head at Chen Yun: "I can't rely on you to fight for me forever. What needs to be resolved will be resolved sooner or later."
After saying that, he waved to the two of them.
"Happy Spring Festival."
The sound came from afar, carrying a bright and carefree quality, like the sunshine that always brings a touch of warmth in the cold winter.
Chen Yun sighed.
The couple silently entered their home and went straight to the kitchen, ignoring the curious gazes of the onlookers.
"Li Huguo is truly foolish!"
After learning the whole story, Dong Qiaoying was left with nothing but a sigh of disappointment.
The high-speed rail crew was mostly angry.
The elderly couple truly treated Li Huguo like their own son, and now that he has committed such a morally reprehensible act, everyone feels terrible.
"You dare to do something so shameless!"
Unable to control other people's sons, Gao Tiejun directs his anger towards his own son. With a gloomy face, he warns Gao Ming: "If you dare to do anything to betray Nian'an's mother, I will sever ties with you."
The Gao family would never tolerate someone who starts a relationship and then abandons it. Even if they disliked their eldest son's wife, they would not allow Gao Fei to cheat on her.
"Dad, am I that kind of person?" Gao Ming defended himself, feeling wronged.
"It'd better not be." Gao Tiejun snorted coldly through his nostrils.
"You and Li Huguo are not partners in running a company... how will you get along in the future?" Dong Qiaoying was more worried about this.
"Li Huguo's word doesn't count," Gao Ming replied calmly.
Previously, to save face for Li Huguo, they would only say in front of their elders that it was a company they co-owned.
In fact, Huguo only received 5% of the profits from Anping Transportation, and had no internal management rights.
From the moment Li Huguo dared not follow Gao Ming to collect scrap steel, the two were no longer on the same page.
Gao Ming was even somewhat relieved that the two were not business partners, at least he wouldn't have to pretend to be a snake with Li Huguo because of this identity in the future.
Gao Ming considers himself a principled person, and his bottom line is that even friends of several decades cannot cross it.
“You’re an adult now, and you’ll have to handle all the family matters from now on,” Dong Qiaoying said.
The rich aroma of braised pork trotters wafted from the pot, and several cold dishes that had already been mixed were laid out on the table. There was also chopped meat on the cutting board that had not yet been cooked.
Chen Yun finally remembered... Today is Lunar New Year's Eve.
"Let Li Huguo and his wife handle things first. I'll go find Li Zhong again the day after tomorrow to sound him out," Gao Tiejun said.
"Then I'll wash my hands and come help Mom make dumplings," Chen Yun said with a smile.
Don't let your friend's situation ruin the New Year's atmosphere at home; you shouldn't give your family a sour look.
"We won't be making dumplings for lunch," Dong Qiaoying replied, lifting the pot lid to stir the pig's feet and continuing, "My cousin Erming is coming over for lunch, and we'll invite the eldest son and Gao Lan's families along as well, so we can have a family reunion dinner."
"I didn't ask in detail this morning when Uncle Jiang was with me, but Gao Ming has an uncle?"
"He's my third uncle's cousin. Years ago, he went to Southeast Asia with his fellow villagers to make a living. I heard he married a woman from Hong Kong..."
This uncle can now only be considered Chinese. In previous years, due to special circumstances, he didn't dare to contact his family at all. He didn't even come back when Dong Qiaoying's cousin and his wife passed away.
In recent years, with the relaxation of policies, many overseas Chinese have returned to China to visit relatives, and Uncle Dong's family is no exception.
However, all of his close relatives have passed away one after another, and now his closest relative is his cousin Dong Qiaoying, so it is only natural that he has to visit the Gao family.
"The last time I saw him was when he was seventeen, before he married your father. It's been so many years!"
"oh!"
When relatives from abroad returned to China to visit, Chen Yun couldn't help but think of her cousin's family who had insisted on catching up with Chen Shu a few years ago.
As Li Zheng and Liu Bo'an predicted, they came to apologize for almost causing Chen Shu to be criticized and denounced back then, and also to visit Chen Yingcai's grave.
Before his death, Chen Yingcai told his descendants about reporting Chen Shu, hoping they could ask his cousin for forgiveness on his behalf.
Chen Shu kicked them out of his house and never contacted them again.
Gao Ming's maternal uncle was definitely different from that distant cousin, but Chen Yun still felt something was off, so she didn't ask any further questions.
Only by seeing it with your own eyes can you know whether it's good or bad!
"Hurry up and cook! I reckon they'll be here soon."
After a busy morning, Chen Yun hadn't had time to eat breakfast, so she stayed in the kitchen, sneaking a bite while helping out.
During this time, he also heard from Dong Qiaoying about Zhang He buying a house.
Zhang He wanted to sell his house to raise capital for starting a business, but Zhang Quan and his wife disagreed and there was nothing they could do. Today, in a fit of anger, Aunt Liu drove away the eldest son and his wife, determined to support her youngest son's comeback.
However, what Mr. Cui wanted to buy was the entire courtyard; he didn't even consider Aunt Liu's two rooms.
So Zhang He turned around and tried to persuade Yan Jun and Aunt Luo to sell the house, and almost got hit on the head by Old Jiang.
When talking about the scene at that time, Dong Qiaoying mentioned a very strange point.
Mr. Cui seemed genuinely interested in buying the courtyard house, as he stood there waiting for quite some time before turning away, perhaps feeling hopeless.
Before leaving, he specifically mentioned that if any neighbors wanted to sell their yards, they could contact him; he would take as many as they wanted.
"Why do you think he bought so many courtyards?" Dong Qiaoying asked, puzzled.
The neighbors in Guanming Hutong have complained a lot about the inconvenience of their lives. While flush toilets have been in use outside for a long time, they are still emptying spittoons.
Each family has such a small house, and at mealtimes the courtyard becomes like a restaurant kitchen, so stuffy it's suffocating.
Everyone wants to live in commercial housing, but I never expected that someone would want to live in a traditional courtyard house.
"Who knows!" Chen Yun replied indistinctly, and the next second she reached out and grabbed a steaming hot bun.
Even if dumplings aren't eaten for the New Year's Eve dinner in the northern part of the city, noodles are still a must.
As for buying a courtyard house, it's simply because they saw the potential for appreciation in property value. As for the specific reasons... we'll know soon enough.
Around 11:30, several figures slowly walked in through the courtyard gate.
The man in the lead looked to be in his forties, wearing a full navy blue suit, a gold tie clip on his shirt collar, and a gold watch on his wrist that was dazzling.
"Your cousin lives in such a dilapidated house!"
The woman next to the man had big, wavy hair, wore a fuchsia dress under a black wool coat, and her gold earrings sparkled.
The two teenagers were wearing clothes and shoes with foreign characters printed on them, and they looked to be over fifteen years old.
“Don’t say anything out of line when we go in.” Uncle Dong turned to his wife and two children and warned them sternly: “If things go wrong, our whole family will starve.”
"Okay, I know." The woman held out her hand, her tone slightly coquettish: "I don't think he's poor. Didn't you see that car parked at the intersection? It's quite valuable."
"Good to know!"
The man straightened his collar, his lips curled up into a wide smile, and he instantly put on a warm and enthusiastic expression.
"cousin!"
"Dong Hui?"
The cousin Dong Qiaoying saw no resemblance whatsoever to the young man who had left home years ago; something just felt off about him.
"Look," Chen Yun quietly tugged at Gao Ming's sleeve and whispered, "Look at your cousin's face and hands."
The stark incongruity stemmed from the uncle's rough, dark face contrasting sharply with his brand-new, impeccably tailored suit.
Only those who work hard and are exposed to wind and sun year-round can develop such thick calluses on their fingertips.
"Sister Qiaoying." Dong Hui ran a few steps forward and excitedly grasped Dong Qiaoying's hand: "It's been so many years, but I can still recognize you at a glance."
Regardless of any ulterior motives, this meeting is filled with genuine emotion.
The woman whose lips and skirt were almost the same color, on the other hand, had eyes full of disdain for her surroundings.
There were leftover vegetable leaves by the well, which she hadn't had time to clean up after washing the vegetables that morning. The woman accidentally stepped on them as she passed by and immediately moved two steps to the side in disgust.
Next, Dong Hui and Dong Qiaoying exchanged pleasantries and reminisced, while Chen Yun watched with great interest as the woman patted her skirt and brushed away non-existent dust from the cuffs of her coat.
If it weren't for the woman's equally aged and calloused hands, Chen Yun would have doubted whether her yard was really that dirty.
"Oh dear... come in quickly, come in quickly." Dong Qiaoying wiped away her tears and called everyone into the house: "Erming, tell Gao Lan and Zhou Jianguo to go to the kitchen to bring out the dishes."
Chen Yun followed him into the house.
"Sister Qiaoying, how have you been all these years... If Uncle Hu hadn't told me I lived in Guanming Hutong, my brother and I would never have seen each other."
"Life is much better than before..."
What followed was a series of reflections on everyday life and introductions of each other's families.
The woman with a look of disgust is Dong Hui's wife, Jiang Li. Their son has just turned 18, and their daughter is still in high school.
“Life is better abroad. Look how well these two children are raised.” Dong Qiaoying casually praised them, her gaze sweeping over the two children’s long faces: “They’re obviously children who live in big cities.”
"We're all just trying to make a living. Don't be fooled by how glamorous we seem now... When we first went abroad, we did all sorts of jobs and suffered a lot..."
Dong Hui started by telling the truth, but then his tone changed, and he began to boast about how big his business was overseas.
Chen Yun listened quietly, mostly letting the words go in one ear and out the other, lingering for only half a word.
The woman listened with a proud expression, occasionally making a few humble remarks to indicate that she was definitely not comparable to others.
"Look, you've only talked about me!" Dong Hui wiped the saliva from the corner of his mouth and smiled, gesturing to Chen Yun: "Whose nephew's wife is this?"
"My second son's wife." Dong Qiaoying didn't want to show off, but she felt inferior if she didn't, so she quickly added, "My daughter-in-law is capable. She's the director of the obstetrics and gynecology department at the Workers' Hospital. You didn't know..."
When it comes to flattery, Dong Qiaoying believes she is second to none.
"..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
