After Li Qiuxiang and the other two left, Qi Zhijun stared blankly at Qi Zhifang. He felt as if he had fallen into a deep abyss, utterly despondent. He couldn't understand why the family he had protected at the cost of his wife and children was so selfish.
Xiao Cui looked at Qi Zhifang and sneered, "You really have a black heart. You'd rather watch your own mother and your own child eat chaff and wild vegetables, work day and night making shoe soles, and go to the countryside in the Northwest, than not dress yourself up in a glamorous way."
If you have any conscience, you should take Mom away and take care of her yourself. Don't let people say you're unfilial! And since you've married into a better family, don't squeeze into this cramped little house. Move out now!
Qi Zhijun looked at Xiao Hu and Qi Zhifang coldly and said, "Xiao Cui is right, Fangzi! You're over 40 years old, it's time to learn to take responsibility for yourself. Mom isn't fit to be home alone in her current condition. If you can't take care of her, you should send her to a nursing home tomorrow!"
After they finished speaking, the couple left. On the way back, they both thought of Wei Shuqing without prior arrangement. Xiao Cui thought to herself, "Wei Shuqing was farsighted. She made the decisive decision to divorce Qi Zhijun, so she wouldn't have to face this rotten mess of more than ten years." She also hated herself for not being decisive enough back then. Ten years! That was enough to wear down her pride and arrogance.
Seeing her once tall and handsome husband now a gray-haired, fifty-year-old man, she felt a pang of sadness and suddenly wondered how Wei Shuqing was doing now.
Qi Zhijun was filled with remorse. "Shuqing, my life has turned out like this. Don't you think this is my retribution? Yes, it must be retribution!" He knew that if he hadn't divorced Wei Shuqing and she was still at home, although there had been arguments at home over the past ten years, his family wouldn't have ended up so tragically, and he wouldn't be living like a sixty-year-old man at fifty! Besides, he had a son who would definitely help him share the burden…
When only Xiao Hu and Qi Zhifang were left, Xiao Hu opened his mouth but couldn't get anything out of him. Qi Zhifang sat in a chair, covered her face with her hands and cried bitterly, saying, "Why are they all forcing me like this? What did I do wrong? Why are they treating me like this? They're all just after money, they don't care about money or shame, they're trying to drive me to my death!"
Xiao Hu couldn't bear to blame the woman, so he could only comfort her, saying, "Fangzi, you rest for a bit, I have to go back to work." He hugged his precious child for a while and then went back.
He now understood that Wang Dong's wife was no pushover, so he and his sister shouldn't count on her. Qi Zhijun, harboring resentment towards Qi Zhifang and her daughter, also wouldn't expect him to help. He'd have to rely on himself. If necessary, he'd borrow some money and send the old lady to a nursing home. Staying home like this every day wasn't sustainable.
Qi Zhifang returned to her bedroom and looked at her mother, who was staring at her with a crooked mouth and tearful eyes. She cried out, "Mom, you won't blame me, you can understand me, right? I really can't take care of you right now, please forgive me! If you have to blame someone, blame Wei Shuqing. If she hadn't divorced me, how could our family have ended up like this?"
I'm a mother too. I have a daughter to take care of and my own family to manage. I can't be with you all the time. Please don't blame me; I have my reasons!
Tears streamed down Qi's mother's face; it was unclear whether she regretted her actions, as she sobbed softly.
Qi Zhifang just sat there blankly, not moving, lost in thought.
The next morning, Li Qiuxiang ate breakfast as usual. While Wang Hong was still waiting to get ready, Li Qiuxiang said, "I'll get ready today, you go to work!"
Wang Hong found it strange, as Li Qiuxiang was usually the most impatient with these kinds of things, and said with a smile, "Sister-in-law, let me do it!"
Li Qiuxiang frowned and said, "Just leave when I tell you to. Come back early after get off work to cook for my grandma."
Seeing that Li Qiuxiang seemed about to lose her temper, Wang Hong quickly agreed. Wang Dong also felt that Li Qiuxiang was acting strangely today, but since she hadn't caused him any trouble, it was best to slip away as soon as possible.
After everyone left, she slowly walked over to Qi's mother, still in her uniform, pushing her bicycle. Before even entering the door, she called out, "Qi Zhifang, I'm here today to watch you take the old lady to the nursing home. It's two hundred yuan a year, which we families split equally. We've already paid for three years in advance, so don't try to fool me!"
Good heavens, the neighbors were all whispering. Li Qiuxiang had finally done something right. The sanatorium, which cost only 200 yuan a year, was quite comfortable. Qi's mother had eaten boiled cabbage stalks for most of her life, but she never expected that all the good fortune she had accumulated would lead to a good place for her in her old age.
Hearing Li Qiuxiang's voice was like hearing a million ducks quacking at once. Qi Zhifang was extremely annoyed. She was penniless. If Li Qiuxiang had told her a day earlier, she would have paid the money directly. Where was she going to get the money now?
Thinking that Lin Huaihua, that damned woman, actually wanted to take 1,300 yuan from her, she burst into tears again. How much work would she have to do with that!
Qi Zhijun pretended not to hear, having already lost face, and went straight to work with Xiao Cui. Li Qiuxiang didn't stop the two of them either; she was there to annoy Qi Zhifang, and if Qi Zhifang couldn't handle it, she planned to annoy Xiao Hu instead. These two old guys were like toads, constantly jumping on people's feet, not biting but disgusting.
Anyway, she had plenty of time today. She asked someone to speak to the team leader, and she was going to handle a dispute about someone not taking care of elderly people. She was determined to get revenge today.
Qi Zhifang stayed inside without saying a word or coming out. Li Qiuxiang picked up a stool and sat in the middle of the yard. "Qi Zhifang, hurry up! Weren't you so good at talking before? You told the leader that your family was poor and that you couldn't support your children and mother with your meager salary. You even managed to fool such a big leader. You really went to great lengths, taking the food coupons and twenty yuan that they gave you every month."
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