Suppressing her anger, Qi's mother looked at Wei Shuqing with a face full of grievance. Suddenly, she stood up and slowly knelt down in front of Wei Shuqing. The people on the street chattered, "Old Mrs. Qi, if you have something to say, just say it. What are you doing?"
Grandma Qi shook her head, her eyes red-rimmed. "Little Wei, I know you've suffered a lot since you came into this family. I don't expect you to forgive me today, but this grudge is only growing deeper. It's better to resolve a feud than to let it fester! I'm kneeling before you today, and we'll wipe the slate clean. From now on, I'll recognize you as my daughter..."
Wei Shuqing sat sideways, sobbing uncontrollably. "Grandma, how far are you trying to push me?" she said, wiping away her tears. "From the moment you walked in the door, you said you would treat me like your own daughter, but I was really scared. You're all talk and no action, sucking my blood and sweat and trying to kill me! You've been hoarding my 36 yuan a month salary. I only keep two yuan each month, and even with that, I, a pregnant woman, can't bear to buy myself anything to eat. I give it all to Qi Zhijun."
Then she plopped down on the ground, covering her face, "How could I be so stupid! Your whole family treated me like that, and I still poured my heart out to Qi Zhijun, sincerely wanting to live with him, even handing over my salary. But did any of you even treat me like a human being? After we separated, with less burden, Qi Zhijun and I went to live separately. Because I was too weak after the miscarriage and didn't want to slow down the delivery, I went to work in the cafeteria. I took care of everything at home and outside. But that day I was on the night shift, and I asked Qi Zhijun to watch the baby. Qi's three grandchildren came to..." They fought over food in my house, beating my son so badly his head was bleeding, and his body, face, and neck were covered in bruises. Those three little beasts were trying to kill me! My son is only a year and a half old! When I went to their house, guess what? Their precious grandson was still cooking for him! The whole family was happy. Did you think about what patriotism is like then? Did you worry about anything? My son's life isn't as painful as your grandson losing a hair!" Some soft-hearted older women and young wives also shed tears. One young wife handed Wei Shuqing a glass of water.
Wei Shuqing didn't stand on ceremony. After drinking a cup and saying thank you, she said, "But that bastard Qi Zhijun acted like nothing happened. He even advised me to be magnanimous and forgive them. I'm a mother. My child, who was more than two months pregnant, died at their hands. This one is already a year and a half old. How could I not say a word after beating me like this? I just wanted to go and ask them how they could act so calmly as if nothing had happened. As soon as I went in, before I could say two words, the older one tried to headbutt me. I dodged, and he bumped his head on the corner of the table and bled. The Qi family's old man and woman were heartbroken and had a heart attack and were hospitalized."
At this point, she suddenly stood up and looked at Qi's mother with grief and indignation, "Now you're trying to take my child away from me? If you really love your child so much, how can you bear to distort the truth and claim that I hit Wang Dong, forcing your own daughter-in-law to divorce you? You don't even deserve to be called human beings! Even animals know how to love their own children!" Turning to Director Wang, she said, "That son of a bitch Qi Zhijun, he acted like nothing happened when his own son was injured like that, but he acted like his nephew's injury was his life. He was instigated by his family to go to my workplace, block me, beat me, and force me to divorce him. That's how we got divorced. The house he signed for, the child, and the 36 yuan of our joint savings are mine. I won't pursue the 1708 yuan his family owes me."
Another person said, "Does their family still owe you money?"
Wei Shuqing smiled sheepishly, “It’s the living expenses I pay every month. Grandma Qi always says that no one in the family eats or uses my money, and that the money is for me to save. So I can’t control how she spends money on Qi Zhifang and her three nephews. My family got angry when they heard this, so they asked them to return the money, and they admitted it. Actually, I didn’t intend to ask for it back. I just wanted to scare them and make them behave. They took it seriously.”
Everyone nodded, but all looked at Qi's mother with hostility. Qi's mother forced a tough stance and said, "I'm not going to talk to you about that. Give me back my grandson!"
Wei Shuqing said, "I definitely won't give the child to you. If they truly loved their child, why would they force their son to divorce a woman who just had a miscarriage and has a one-and-a-half-year-old grandson for the sake of their grandson? I don't understand why you're fighting over him now when you've never properly raised him. Director Wang, I used to work at a clothing factory, and my son went to the factory's daycare. Ask him what he looked like when he first went there—sallow and thin, barely recognizable. Look at him now!" She then took a recent photo of the child and handed it to Director Wang, saying, "This is what my current husband's parents looked like after raising him for a while. The child is very happy now. I can't give him to them. Besides, when I divorced Qi Zhijun, I signed a disclaimer of kinship. He admitted it himself; the child has nothing to do with him. He won't raise the child when he's young, and the child won't support him in his old age. Furthermore, I don't trust Qi Zhifang's three children at home. They have criminal records."
Director Wang nodded and said, "Grandma Qi, why are you doing this? You don't want such a good daughter-in-law and grandson. You've already lost them, but you still want to cause trouble. I don't know what you're thinking. There's no dispute about the house and the children. They belong to Wei Shuqing. There are records of it. You shouldn't waste your energy. Go back and take good care of your three grandsons. Your family doesn't lack children. I think Qi Zhijun is still young and can have more children. Alright, everyone's busy. Go back!"
Qi's mother was so angry that she trembled and couldn't speak. Wei Shuqing glanced at her and said, "Then I'll go back first, Director. I'm sorry to have troubled you."
After exchanging a few polite words, Wei Shuqing walked to the doorway. She watched as Qi's mother, her face sallow and lips bloodless, walked out slowly with her head held high, her back still straight. Wei Shuqing crossed her arms and watched. Qi's mother stopped and sized up this former daughter-in-law who had once been full of sharp-tongued and petty-bourgeois air. She pursed her lips into a straight line and did not speak.
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