The village chief remained silent for a long time, then sighed and said:
“Mrs. Zhang, I watched Dayong grow up. Although he has a wild nature, he is not a bad person. He just has a bad temper like his father, like a bull. I will talk to him properly and make him live a good life with you.”
After hearing this, Madam Zhang stopped crying abruptly. She wiped away her tears, remained silent for a long time, then took a deep breath and continued:
"Village chief, I want to get a divorce from Qi Dayong!"
After saying those words, Zhang Niangzi seemed to have all her strength suddenly drained away.
The anger that had been building up inside me suddenly dissipated.
She had thought it would be difficult to say those words, but now that she had actually said them, Zhang Niangzi felt a sense of relief.
She looked at the village chief and said firmly, "Village chief, I don't want to continue living with Qi Dayong. I want a divorce."
Zhang Niangzi's words were like a small stone thrown into the ocean.
For a moment, the surrounding air became quieter.
Pei Yao and Yun Niang silently gave Zhang Niangzi a thumbs up.
The village chief was also taken aback by Zhang Niangzi's words, and frowned as he said, "You want to divorce Qi Dayong? Do you know that in this village, we only divorce wives, we don't have the concept of 'separation'?"
Madam Zhang knew this, which is why her eyes dimmed for a moment.
The people in Liujia Village are relatively conservative, and almost no women have ever proposed to divorce their husbands.
After finishing his speech, Village Chief Liu fell silent again, but some people in the crowd couldn't sit still any longer.
Especially men.
An impatient man said, "Zhang, how can a woman like you propose a divorce from your husband? This has never happened before in our village. If you do this, we will all be laughed at by other villages."
"Yes, if we set this precedent, what if my wife wants a divorce later?"
"The village chief can't let them get a divorce."
"Dayong, go and control your wife, or she's going to cause a huge uproar."
The voices from the crowd made Village Chief Liu frown deeply, and he remained silent for a long time.
Even Qi Dayong, who had just been making a ruckus, was now silent and didn't say a word.
He stared blankly at Madam Zhang.
They didn't seem to have processed what Zhang Niangzi had said yet.
Seeing that Qi Dayong remained silent, the village chief looked at Zhang Shi solemnly and asked, "Zhang Shi, do you really want a divorce?"
Zhang nodded firmly: "Village chief, I'm not joking. I've been married into the Qi family for fifteen years. When I first came here, my mother-in-law was in poor health. I took care of her by her bedside, changing her excrement and urine, even more diligently than her son, Qi Dayong, until she passed away."
In these fifteen years, I've given birth to three children for him. Although I couldn't give him a son, all three of my daughters are well-behaved and obedient. I've worked hard for this family every day, and I haven't wronged Qi Dayong in any way. But all he does is drink and party. He beats me all the time, and now he's even gotten involved with Widow Xia. I really can't live like this anymore..."
Zhang was usually a woman of few words, and this was the first time anyone had ever heard her speak so much.
Village Chief Liu didn't say much, but turned his head to look at Qi Dayong, who was still standing there in a daze not far away.
Urged on by everyone, Qi Dayong seemed to suddenly realize something and looked up at Zhang Niangzi's side.
He turned around, grabbed a stick from the side, and ran over with a fierce look on his face.
Pei Dalang and Shen Yu reacted quickly and tried to stop Qi Dayong.
However, after a few men from Liujia Village realized what was happening, they quickly surrounded Pei Dalang and his group.
"Brothers, this is a matter between our village and has nothing to do with you, so please don't interfere."
One of the villagers looked at Pei Dalang and his group coldly.
"Qi Dayong will beat Zhang Niangzi to death!" Pei Yao glared at them intently, but the men acted as if they hadn't heard her and blocked her way.
Pei Yao tried several times but couldn't get through. These people were like a wall of flesh, blocking her way.
Qi Dayong had already reached Zhang Niangzi's side, and it looked like the stick was about to fall on her. Pei Yao anxiously shouted to Zhang Niangzi:
"Zhang Niangzi, run!"
Zhang Niangzi looked up and took a deep look at the village chief and the villagers around her. They were almost completely unmoved by Qi Dayong's actions.
Although the women felt sorry for Zhang Niangzi, they dared not step forward in this situation.
I had no choice but to silently turn my head away.
Zhang Niangzi's children rushed forward and threw themselves on her, trying to protect her.
Qi Dayong raised his stick: "I'll beat you to death, you shameless dead woman! You dare to mention divorce? You're not worthy! I'm already being lenient by not divorcing you."
Zhang Niangzi was often beaten, and every time she was beaten, she would shrink back like a turtle.
They desperately protected their head and face.
This time, however, he didn't shrink back like before. Instead, he raised his head and stared intently at Qi Dayong.
She shielded the three children behind her thin frame.
Because she was so thin, Zhang Niangzi's eyes appeared exceptionally large.
The eyes were so big that Qi Dayong had the illusion that they looked like the eyes of a dying cow.
Seeing his wife and daughter crying, Qi Dayong hesitated for a moment before swinging the stick, which he would normally do without hesitation.
He and Zhang Niangzi stared at each other for a while.
The child behind him stopped crying and looked timidly at Qi Dayong.
Qi Xiaochun sobbed, clearly terrified of Qi Dayong, but she still managed to whimper, "Father, please don't hit Mother."
The other two children whispered, "Father, don't hit Mother anymore, Mother is already hurt."
Qi Dayong stared blankly at the three children.
for a long time……..
He surprisingly threw the stick in his hand aside.
The moment the stick was thrown, Zhang Niangzi instinctively dodged.
Qi Dayong threw a sentence at Zhang Niangzi and the village chief:
"Divorce is impossible unless I die. You are a member of the Qi family in life and in death."
After Qi Dayong finished speaking, he went straight back to the courtyard. He slammed the door shut, and you could hear him locking the courtyard from inside.
They ignored Zhang and the children who were still on the ground outside the door.
Madam Zhang lowered her head and gave a bitter smile, saying nothing more.
The village chief glanced at Zhang and said:
“Mrs. Zhang, stop making a scene. Take the child and go back. There’s no precedent for divorce in the village. It’s shameful for a woman to ask her husband for a divorce. It’ll bring shame to our village.”
And you, who used to be such an honest and upright person, how did you end up wanting a divorce because of a widow named Xia?
Qi Dayong's affairs with other women are not a one-off occurrence.
He had previously seduced several young widows.
Liujia Village is near the sea, and many men who went out to sea to earn some money never returned.
As a result, the number of widows increased.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com