"Auntie, are you okay?" The young nurse looked at the middle-aged woman in front of her with a little sympathy. Could she be the wife of Jiang Dachuan? It was said that they were both country people and had to rely on the work points they earned to eat. Now that the man was lame, he had to recuperate for some time, and the burden on the family would be heavier in the future.
"Don't worry, as long as Jiang Dachuan's leg is healed, it won't affect his ability to work in the fields in the future. Sister, don't worry." The young nurse kindly advised.
Fan Xiaojuan was a little confused and didn't listen carefully to what the nurse said. All she could think about was that her husband was lame and would be a useless person in the future.
Didn’t you see that his father-in-law had a lame leg and couldn’t even do heavy work? He only earned a few work points every day and couldn’t even feed himself. If it weren’t for the subsidies from the army, the family wouldn’t have lived such a comfortable life. But Jiangcheng had subsidies, but their family didn’t.
"By the way, Jiang Dachuan's medical expenses have not been paid yet. If you are his family member, remember to go to the front and pay the money, otherwise it will be deducted from the work points of the team."
The young nurse also had things to do, so seeing that she was not making any noise, she gave her a few casual instructions and turned to leave.
"What? The medical expenses haven't been paid yet? Those two old guys haven't paid a penny." The reason why Fan Xiaojuan hid for so long before coming out was that she wanted to shirk the medical expenses. But now after hearing what the nurse said, they have to pay for it themselves. Why?
The nurse who was about to leave was stopped by her words, frowning with some dissatisfaction. What's wrong with this elder sister? Aren't the old couple upstairs Jiang Dachuan's parents? Why does she call them old things directly? It's too uncultured.
"Several people rushed to bring him here last night, so they didn't remember to bring money. The hospital has recorded it in the account first. We have a certificate from your village. If you can't pay the money when the time comes, we will use your work points to pay it back."
After saying that, he ignored her and turned away.
"Hey, nurse, nurse--" Fan Xiaojuan patted her butt, stood up from the ground, picked up her bag and chased after her. She still had to find out how much the medical expenses would cost.
******
When Mo Dashuan drove his donkey cart back to Qingshan Village, it was already completely light. Many villagers had already gotten up and were outside fetching water and chopping firewood. These tasks had to be done before going to work.
"Dahai." As soon as the donkey cart entered the village, it was stopped by passing villagers. The villagers looked hurried and panicked.
Just as he was about to speak, he saw Jiang Yiliu being held in Jiang Dahai's arms. He paused for a moment and revealed a hint of joy: "So the child went to the county town with you. Your wife thought something happened to the child. Now the whole family is looking for him in the village. They are almost going crazy. You should take the child back quickly."
Jiang Yiliu had forgotten that he did not say hello to anyone when he went out yesterday. Ruan Ruan, the only one who woke up for a while, was also confused. Even if she remembered, she only remembered that he got up and went out, but she didn't know that he followed them to the county town. They must have been very anxious when they woke up in the morning and couldn't find him.
Jiang Yiluo cursed himself in his heart. He always thought that he was reborn and understood better than anyone else, but he did such an unreliable thing.
"Thank you, Dashan, I will take the child back now." Jiang Dahai also remembered that he took his son away yesterday and his family didn't know about it. His wife must be worried crazy now, thinking that something happened to the child.
"Uncle Bai, please walk back slowly. I will take Xiaobao home first to prevent them from getting too anxious." Jiang Dahai greeted Bai Fangqiu, picked up his son and ran home.
"Go quickly, go quickly." Bai Fangqiu urged urgently. He was so anxious that he actually forgot about this matter.
Jiang Dahai ran all the way with his son in his arms, and soon arrived at the door of his house. The door to the yard was still open. There was no adult at home. Only the two children, Sini and Ruanruan, were sitting on the steps of the main hall with red and swollen eyes. When they saw Jiang Dahai coming in with Jiang Yiluo, they hurried to greet them.
"Brother, brother." Si Ni cried and laughed, pulling at Jiang Dahai's legs, wanting her father to put her brother down.
"Where did you go? Mom and Grandpa Ruan went out to look for you. Some people said you might have been carried into the mountains by a wild boar. Mom and my eldest sister were terrified."
Si Ni sobbed and touched her brother's little face. She didn't say anything, but she was also scared.
"Fourth sister." Jiang Yilu felt a little regretful. At that time, he just wanted to go and see the situation at his second uncle's house. He didn't think too much about it. He had long forgotten that he was still a five-year-old child, an age that could easily make adults worry.
"Jiang Xiaobao——"
A woman yelled outside the house, "You damn child, why are you and your father going to the county town? It's the middle of the night. Are you trying to scare me to death?"
Gu Dongmei rushed in angrily. She was just looking for someone at the foot of the mountain. A villager came over to tell her that her son was back. It turned out that he had gone to the county town with Dahai and others last night.
Gu Dongmei suddenly felt relieved after being worried all morning, but she couldn't control her anger.
She could never forget how she felt when she woke up in the morning and her eldest daughter told her that her son was missing. And when she heard Ruan Ruan say that her son seemed to have gotten up in the middle of the night and went out with them, the panic in her heart became even more uncontrollable.
There were many kind people in the village. After they knew that Xiaobao ran away in the middle of the night and never came back, they helped her look for him. But there were also some people who had a bad relationship with her family. They said something scary in a sarcastic way, such as wild boars coming down the mountain and biting people. This made Gu Dongmei's already nervous heart even more panicked.
"You dead child, you're not sleeping in the middle of the night and just running around." Gu Dongmei's eyes turned red with anger. She picked up a branch from the pile of tree branches drying in the yard, raised her hand and hit her son with it.
It is common for people in the village to beat their children. Isn't it said that beating is the way to success? Even someone as obedient as Dani was beaten by her parents when she was a child, not to mention Erni, who had a bad temper. She was beaten every now and then when she was a child.
The only one who had never been touched was Jiang Yilu. Not only because of the indulgence of the two elders of the Jiang family, but also because Gu Dongmei, as a mother, did not dare to hit the child.
"I told you not to be disobedient, so I told you to run away in the middle of the night." Gu Dongmei pulled her son with one hand and hit his butt with a branch with the other hand.
Jiang Yilu grimaced in pain, but he didn't dare to scream or resist, because it was indeed his fault.
"Mom——" Dani wanted to stop her, but was stopped by Erni.
Erni's eyes were red and swollen, and her clothes were a little messy. She had known long ago that her brother was missing and had gone to look for him with her family. Now seeing her brother being beaten, even though she felt bad, she still stopped her eldest sister and wanted to teach her brother a lesson.
This time it was because I went with my dad and the others, but next time, what should I do if I really encounter a wild boar or other wild beasts?
Others had never seen Gu Dongmei so angry before. In the past, everyone had the impression that she was just a docile and even a little timid person. Now seeing her explode like this, they didn't know what to do.
Ruan Ruan and Sini hugged each other and looked at Jiang Yilu who was being beaten, with their eyes closed and their mouths pouted as if they might cry in the next second.
"Okay, okay, Xiaobao is just a child, is there a mother as cruel as you?" Jiang Dahai hurried over to stop him, but was pushed away by Gu Dongmei.
"The child is ignorant, and you are also ignorant. You didn't even come home and tell me. Do you know how anxious I was? Do you know? Ah?"
Gu Dongmei stopped beating the child. She just squatted on the ground and burst into tears.
"Let's go, it's time to go to work, so stop standing around and watching." Ruan Yuanjiang said to the villagers who were watching outside the yard.
Everyone looked at the sky and realized it was indeed getting late. The excitement could be seen at any time. If they earned a few less work points, it would mean one day's food shortage, so they all took their things and left.
Ruan Yuanjiang and Huo Wu were outsiders after all, so they followed Bai Fangqiu, who arrived late, and walked towards the brigade headquarters.
"Dongmei." Jiang Dahai pushed Gu Dongmei's shoulder, but Gu Dongmei pushed him away with one hand. Jiang Dahai was helpless and looked at the children around him helplessly.
"Little brother, you should apologize to mom." Jiang Dani reminded Jiang Yilu who was standing beside her. Her mother was just angry that her brother left without telling her. Once her brother apologized, her mother's mood would naturally improve.
The wound on Jiang Yilu's buttocks was still burning with pain. Gu Dongmei had no mercy on him this time. He looked at the crying woman in front of him. She was in her thirties, and after years of hard work, she looked no different from a woman in her forties. She covered her face with her hands, which were covered with red, swollen, and cracked chilblains, and her ten fingers were swollen like carrots.
In the five years since his rebirth, he cared about his sisters, his grandparents who controlled their fate, and even the second branch of the Jiang family who might pose a threat to them, but he rarely cared about the woman in front of him.
Parents are the most special existence for every child. Jiang Yilu's hatred for them is so deep that it is better to say that Jiang Laidie's love for them in the previous life was so deep.
Whenever he favored his two cousins from his second uncle's family because of his parents' foolish filial piety, she always wished that his parents would shift their attention to her and her sisters. Although she expressed hatred, she was always hoping for the best in her heart.
The relationship between parents and children is a knot that cannot be untied.
"Don't call me mom." Gu Dongmei said bluntly.
It is said that mothers know their children best, and Gu Dongmei is no exception. Since Jiang Yilu was born, he has always been an obedient and sensible child. Even when he was a baby, he cried like other children, and at most cried a few times when he was hungry or had diarrhea. It can be said that he is the easiest child Gu Dongmei has ever raised, not to mention that the birth of this son has made life much easier for her and her daughter. She has always valued her son Jiang Yilu the most.
But this child was born with a layer of distance between her and him. Sometimes when he smiled at her, she felt that the smile was fake. Gu Dongmei couldn't understand why she was not good enough to the child, and why he could be so caring to his sisters, but so cold to her, the mother who gave birth to him after ten months of pregnancy.
Gu Dongmei covered her face, feeling extremely uncomfortable.
"Mom, I'm sorry, I was wrong." Jiang Yilu had not figured out how to balance the gap between his past life and this life, but what happened today was indeed his fault, and he did have to admit this mistake to Gu Dongmei.
"Okay, the child has apologized, and this matter is mainly my fault. Xiaobao is only five years old, he doesn't know anything. It's all my fault. I should have sent Xiaobao home last night. At the very least, I should come back and explain myself." Seeing that his son had admitted his mistake, Jiang Dahai hurriedly persuaded his wife.
Gu Dongmei's anger was just an outburst that had been suppressed for a long time. She herself didn't know why she got so angry. And she knew in her heart that when the two elders of the Jiang family came back and knew that Xiaobao was beaten, she would definitely not escape a scolding. But she just couldn't get over it.
That was her son, the son she gave birth to after ten months of pregnancy.
"Mom——" Jiang Dani called carefully from the side.
Gu Dongmei was silent for a while, then stood up and said, "Forget it, it's almost too late for you to go to school, hurry up and get ready, breakfast isn't cooked yet, just take a few steamed buns and eat something."
After saying that, Gu Dongmei went to the kitchen. The older ones could be fed with steamed buns, but the younger ones had to eat hot food.
It seemed that the matter had come to an end, and everyone had a relaxed smile on their face. Only Jiang Yilu felt heavy in his heart, because he knew that in his mother's heart, the matter was not over yet.
"Xiaobao, I'll take you into the house to apply some medicine. Your butt must hurt. Don't be naughty in the future and make your family worry about you." Jiang Dani took her brother's hand and went into the house, muttering to herself.
Jiang Yiliu smiled bitterly in his heart. He was still worried about his elder sister yesterday. He didn't expect that it was his stupid behavior that made the whole family worry about him. After his rebirth, he was too conceited. In his previous life, he would tell Meiling before going out for something. How come he forgot it after his rebirth?
"hiss--"
The medicated oil applied to his buttocks caused a burning pain, and Jiang Yilu couldn't help but let out a soft cry.
At this time, there were several bruises all over his white buttocks. The skin was not broken, but it was terribly red and swollen.
"It's time for you to..." Erni and her elder sister applied medicine to their younger brother together. One of them slapped Jiang Yilu's butt hard, and he almost jumped up in pain.
"If you know it hurts, you won't do such a stupid thing. What does Second Uncle's family have to do with us? You ran out in the middle of the night to watch the fun. Your grandparents and parents are here. Why would they need you, a little kid?" Erni rubbed the wound on her brother's butt vigorously. "Bear with it. I'll help you rub the blood clots. You will suffer less then."
"Si Ni, please take care. My elder sister and I are not here at noon. Remember to apply the medicine to your brother again." Er Ni reminded her fourth sister who was standing beside her.
Si Ni and Ruan Ruan watched their actions closely, without blinking, and nodded vigorously.
"Eat a candy, and the pain will go away." Sanni saw her brother's face flushed, and thought it was in too much pain, so she stuffed a candy into his mouth. This was given to her by Jiang Yilu last night, and she had originally planned to take it to school to eat today.
Jiang Yilu held the candy in his mouth and pulled his pants, which were pulled to his knees, up a little bit, at least covering his thighs. He felt a little relieved.
He is a boy in this life, and he feels a little embarrassed to be looked at like this by girls other than his sister.
Dani and the others had to go to school, so they helped him apply medicine, took some dry food and left in a hurry. Gu Dongmei cooked some porridge in the kitchen and also hurried to work.
Jiang Dahai took half a day off. He also had to go to Jiang Dachuan's house to see his wife and ask her to go to the hospital.
******
"Fan Xiaojuan - Fan Xiaojuan -"
The courtyard of Jiang Dachuan's house was wide open, but the front door was locked. Jiang Dahai knocked on the door, but no one responded. He shouted a few more times inside, but still no response.
Jiang Dahai walked around the yard and leaned over to look in from the window. The room was very clean, the quilt on the kang was neatly folded, and there was no one in the room.
"O sea, what are you doing here?"
Hadn't the Jiang family's first and second wives fallen out a long time ago? Why did Jiang Dahai suddenly appear here? An old lady from Jiang Dachuan's neighbor's house came out to pour water and saw Jiang Dahai in the yard, and greeted him.
"Auntie, have you met Fan Xiaojuan and loved the country and the party?" Jiang Dahai asked the old lady.
"The patriots who love the Party went to school early in the morning. I saw Xiaojuan making breakfast for them, but I didn't see Dachuan. Where did he go?"
The old lady obviously didn't know that Jiang Dachuan was bitten by a wild boar, but by today, I'm afraid everyone in the village would know about it. After all, quite a few people saw this scene yesterday, and the village is not that big, so such a big thing would spread throughout the village in no time.
"Something happened to Dachuan, Auntie, do you know where Fan Xiaojuan went?" Jiang Dahai didn't give any details, but asked the old lady anxiously.
"I saw her send the two children away, and then she left in a hurry carrying a small package. She must have been gone for an hour or two." The old lady looked at Jiang Dahai suspiciously, and she began to wonder what was going on with Jiang Dachuan's family. Did the couple have a fight, and Fan Xiaojuan went back to her parents' home out of anger?
"Dahai, what happened? Please tell me." Fan Xiaojuan was a hot-tempered person and had bad relations with her neighbors. Her two children were also troublemakers and often bullied the children nearby. However, it was just a quarrel between children and adults could not get involved. They could only keep a note of it in their hearts. The old lady was waiting to see Jiang Dachuan's family make a fool of themselves.
Moreover, the women in the village like to gossip about other people. The old lady held a basin and approached the Jiang family's courtyard, looking at Jiang Dahai with curiosity, waiting for his answer.
"It's nothing, Auntie. I'll go back first. If you see my brother's wife, come to my house and tell me." Jiang Dahai greeted the old lady and turned to leave.
The old lady didn't get any news, and was a little disappointed. She walked back into the house with the basin.
On the way back, Jiang Dahai wondered, Fan Xiaojuan must be going to the county town with the things in her hands, right?
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