Chapter 4: Starting with catching the mother-in-law in an affair – is that right? She wants…
"Because we're going to catch a rapist."
Hu Honghua's head felt like it was hit by a hammer, and the echo of Shi Meilan's voice was buzzing.
"Come over early tonight."
Because we are going to catch a rapist.
"Come secretly."
We're going to catch a rapist.
"Auntie needs you."
Going to catch an adulterer.
"You should go back early and get some rest."
Catch/adulterate.
"I'm talking to you, do you hear me?" Aunt Shi's beautiful almond-shaped eyes widened slightly as she asked, "What are you daydreaming about?"
Hu Honghua suddenly came back to her senses and nodded vigorously. She instinctively wanted to answer loudly, but then she remembered that this thing couldn't be answered loudly, so she lowered her voice with a nervous look on her face: "Don't worry, auntie, I heard it."
Shi Meilan was satisfied and nodded, "Go back early."
Hu Honghua nodded and walked back in a daze.
Lijia Village is a small village. There are about a hundred households from the beginning to the end of the village. The houses are opposite each other and connected on the left and right. The two old Li families are in the middle of the village, but Hu Honghua's family is close to the foot of the mountain. To return to the village, they have to walk all the way back.
It was around six or seven in the evening. The red setting sun looked like an egg yolk, hanging far away at the end of the village. The clouds were dyed with an orange luster, and the bright light shone on the roofs of every household, as well as on Hu Honghua's way home.
As Hu Honghua walked back, she saw many aunts and sisters sitting on small benches in front of their homes, eating melon seeds and chatting with her.
"Oh, is the little red flower from Old Hu's family going to Old Li's house again?"
"You're running away like this without getting married?"
"Where's Tianci? Why didn't I send you back?"
There are no secrets in the village. Every household lives so close to each other that everyone can hear clearly who is getting married to whom, and it is inevitable that they will gossip behind their backs.
Shi Meilan is usually competitive and willing to fight with anyone. Others dare not say anything to Shi Meilan, so they secretly say a few words to Hu Honghua, using sarcastic and ambiguous tones to make some sarcastic remarks.
"Be careful with the little red flower, the ones on the pole are worthless."
"I heard that your Aunt Shi has been very busy lately, going from village to village to visit other girls."
"The eldest son of Li Laoer is going to take the college entrance exam, and he doesn't look down on ordinary people."
Of course Hu Honghua knew that this group of people had bad intentions. When they spoke, they looked at Hu Honghua with anticipation and excitement, hoping that Hu Honghua would come and have a quarrel with them. They then repeatedly refuted, saying that they did not mean that, saying that they were thinking about Hu Honghua, and it would be best if they could make Hu Honghua cry, which would be even more fun and enough for them to savor for several days.
Anyway, Hu Honghua's family background is not good, she has few children and no land. In addition, Hu Honghua is stupid, so she is considered a lower-class person in the village and can be bullied by anyone. They are numerous and powerful, so there is no need to be afraid of Hu Honghua, a little girl.
Gossips often do this, taking pleasure in teasing and playing with the sincerity and dignity of a younger girl. The more you react, the more amused they find it.
Hu Honghua's counterattack was also cowardly - she pretended not to hear, lowered her head and walked away quickly.
Otherwise, Shi Meilan must have looked down on her in her past life! She was really unpresentable and had no temper at all. If someone stepped on her head or spit on her, she would just wipe it clean silently.
Others say that she is not ambitious enough, and hey, they are right.
Bully her, then go ahead and enjoy it! She won't even dare to say a word!
Hu Honghua ran all the way back home on the hot summer dirt road.
The Hu family's yard is about the same size as the Li family's, but it is located in a remote area and has only two houses. It is a simple loess and cement house with walls made of yellow mud mixed with stones. It is not as exquisite and beautiful as the Li family's, and the walls are also low. People walking by from the outside can see the back of the uncle inside.
My uncle was very tall, and the low wall only reached his chest. A man in his thirties was in the prime of his life, with bulging muscles on his arms and several healed scars visible on his broad back. As he moved, beads of sweat, shining in the setting sun, rolled down his bronze back, rolled to his waist, and could no longer be seen below.
She ran closer and closer, and from her running angle she saw that her uncle was killing a wild boar in the yard.
My uncle held a heavy machete in his hand, and he chopped it down suddenly. The dull sound of flesh being cut through suddenly spread throughout the yard. The machete scraped smoothly through the flesh, and the bones and flesh separated. Blood splattered on the ground, and broken bones pointed straight up at the sky. The smell of blood floated throughout the yard.
With a turn, Hu Chengjun's entire face was revealed.
He was a typical sturdy man, with heavy tendon muscles all over his body, narrow and sharp cheeks and jaw, his hair shaved into the shortest stubble, and some beard roots sticking out from his jaw. His pair of single eyes were drooping calmly, staring boredly at the things in his hands that he had handled thousands of times.
A huge monster was being disassembled into pieces by him. With a poke of the knife, he picked it up neatly and threw it onto the chopping board. From the fur to the flesh and bones all over the body, Hu Chengjun cleaned it up neatly.
Because his arms were exerting force, the muscles in his upper body were also tensed, and a clear arc of muscle appeared on his chest. There was a blue vein on his bulging right chest that jumped with his movements and looked hot.
Hu Honghua admired him very much.
Her uncle Hu Chengjun is the most famous hunter in the nearby town. He can hunt wild boars by himself, even if more than a dozen people dare not.
At this age, restaurants outside and big hotels in town like to collect wild boars. Wild boars are not as difficult to hunt as tigers because they are expensive and there are many of them in the mountains. So my uncle made a lot of money recently and bought her books and new clothes.
"Uncle." When Hu Honghua ran to the door, she slowed down her pace, lowered her voice, and looked at her uncle timidly.
Her uncle was a man of few words and never ate at the same table with her. He basically made decisions for her without explaining the reasons to her, and she didn't dare to argue. Moreover, her uncle was very busy and was often not at home for ten days or a month.
Her uncle was willing to spend all the money he earned on her, which must have shown that he loved her very much. However, she didn't dare to get too close to her uncle. She felt that her uncle looked even more fierce than Aunt Shi.
Aunt Shi just has a loud voice, likes to scold people, and never suffers any loss, but Aunt Shi will not do anything cruel or evil. Aunt Shi is a very reasonable person, and she will not enjoy gossiping like those gossipy women at the entrance of the village. She quarrels and scolds people only because others have done something wrong, so she thinks Aunt Shi is a person who is fierce on the outside but warm on the inside.
As long as you don't do anything wrong, Aunt Shi won't bully you.
But Hu Honghua felt cold when her uncle stood there with a machete. She tightened her clothes and heard her uncle say "hmm" in a low voice.
Uncle rarely talks to others, including Hu Honghua. Most of the time, Uncle is like a silent mountain, standing there silently day after day, year after year.
Hu Honghua hesitated at the gate of the yard for two seconds.
In just two seconds, Hu Chengjun turned his head, looked at Hu Honghua with his sharp eyes, and asked, "What's the matter?"
As soon as Hu Honghua made the slightest movement, the dead mountain suddenly came alive. Heavy edges and corners were revealed under the hard stones, and a dull earthy smell and pressure came over. The trees looked at her quietly, and the branches swayed in the wind, as if they wanted to dig open Hu Honghua's mouth to see what secrets were hidden under her tongue.
Hu Honghua didn't want to say it. Aunt Shi said that she couldn't tell anyone else. But Hu Chengjun chopped the chopping board with the machete in his hand. Hu Honghua let out a dry "ah" and couldn't hold it anymore. She stumbled over what Aunt Shi had asked her to do today.
"Aunt Shi asked me to come over tonight."
"Aunt Shi said that Uncle Li is having an affair."
"With Aunt Wang next door."
"Let me not be discovered by others."
"He said he would take me to catch an adulterer."
After the words "catch/adulterate" were spoken, the yard fell silent.
Hu Chengjun, standing behind the chopping board, looked at Hu Honghua with a frown.
Hu Honghua's face flushed red, and after she told the story, she seemed to feel guilty for betraying Aunt Shi - she was weak in nature, and if others forced her, she would lower her head and run away, hiding back home, but if Hu Chengjun forced her, she had nowhere to run, and home was her only place to stay, so Hu Chengjun could easily force the truth out of her.
Hu Honghua seemed more and more embarrassed. She stood there holding the corner of her clothes, not daring to move. She just stared at Hu Chengjun in panic with her eyes open.
It's over, it's all out! I'm sorry, Aunt Shi!
Her uncle was still standing there, his brows cold and his face expressionless, he just stared at her intently.
Hu Honghua was a little nervous.
She was afraid that her uncle would not let her go.
Her uncle didn't like her to do dangerous things, and he didn't like her to play with bad friends. She only wanted her to read books and study. If she wasn't so stupid, she would definitely pay for her education. In the past, her uncle didn't let her go out at night, for fear that she would learn bad things from others.
What's more, this time she got involved with Aunt Shi to catch an adulterer. Her uncle will definitely make her stay at home and not allow her to go anywhere.
She couldn't not go! If she didn't go, what would Aunt Shi do?
Hu Honghua must go!
She opened her mouth, gritted her teeth, and struggled to decide between "crying and begging Second Uncle" or "throwing a tantrum and threatening Second Uncle right there and then." Finally, she timidly blurted out, "Please, Second Uncle."
A loser, of course, it's always been like this.
If she could really come up with some solution, she wouldn't be completely helpless.
Hu Chengjun, who was standing in the yard, frowned and looked at her for a long time. Finally, he said "hmm" and turned around to continue chopping meat.
Hu Honghua exclaimed in shock.
Could it be that uncle let her do bad things so easily?
Hu Honghua didn't know why it went so smoothly, but she didn't dare ask too much. Instead, she kept this unusual agreement and quickly returned to the house.
The house has only two rooms, east and west, with a kitchen in the middle. In the back kitchen, there are some meals made by Hu Chengjun - some food cooked with only salt, and the rice seems to be half-cooked.
This is how Second Uncle cooks. Hu Honghua ate this way as a child, and she can still eat this way now. She ate a few mouthfuls of rice and left the kitchen.
When she returned to her west room, Hu Chengjun was still standing in the yard chopping meat.
The tall figure was burned into a hot orange by the setting sun, and the figure was stretched very long. The face still looked expressionless, as if he was deep in thought.
There was still some remaining meat in front of him. He had originally planned to finish it within ten minutes, but now, he couldn't bring himself to cut it.
The knife in his hand suddenly became very heavy and he couldn't even lift it. He stood in the yard, but it seemed as if he was thrown into an unknown cave, quietly and briefly falling into a state of silence.
Hu Chengjun stood silently in the yard until a moment later, then he raised his head and looked outside.
It was setting outside, the last ray of sunset glow was submerged at the bottom of the mountain, and a point of almost sticky light was hooked in the clouds. This color made Hu Chengjun suddenly remember the first time he met Shi Meilan.
That happened in the next village. He was injured while hunting and stopped to rest outside the village. Shi Meilan passed by and gave him a bowl of water.
The water was clear and sweet, and the man was bright and free-spirited, but he was not very good-looking, as he was covered in dust and mud stained with blood.
She probably no longer remembers those stories that happened a long, long time ago. Only those who are moved will remember them. But she put away the bowl and ran towards her own story.
He wanted to catch up, but when he looked down at the mud on his feet, the embarrassing patches on his trousers, thought of his little niece at home, and calculated the debt his brother owed, he couldn't catch up.
Those things were too heavy, pressing him down, down, down, into the soil. He could only watch from afar as the red color drifted further and further away.
Later, a girl from the next village married into the family, wearing a red wedding dress. The wind blew up her veil, and he saw a face brighter than the morning glow. Standing next to her was the village chief's son, who was well-educated, could write poetry, was gentle and elegant, and the suit he wore was particularly eye-catching.
At that time, he was still in a state of disgrace. A man without money, his bones were weak, and he couldn't even lift his head. He didn't eat long at that meal. He left at the height of the party, and his stomach was still heavy and painful. Even after a long time, he refused to think about that lively time.
He had no connection with her until later, when he rescued Li Jianye in the woods.
A feast of wine brought about a good marriage.
When Li Jianye said this, his mind was a little dazed, and those thoughts that were deeply suppressed in his heart and could not be seen in the light suddenly emerged and urged him to agree.
He could not be her husband and wife in this life, but it was good that they shared the same blood.
But who would have thought that Li Jianye would actually——
The last ray of sunset in the distance had already set. The knife in his hand unconsciously chopped on the spine, but the position was wrong. The shock made Hu Chengjun's hand numb for a moment, and he suddenly came to his senses.
When a person wakes up, the past events will fall to the other side of the mountain like the setting sun, and will never be retrieved.
Only then did he realize that he had been in a daze for so long, but his thoughts were still out of control. He thought, Li Jianye had cheated... and given Shi Meilan's personality, she would definitely not let it go.
But... Hu Chengjun didn't understand, what use could Hu Honghua be?
When he turned his head again, he could see that the light in the west room was still on - it seemed that someone was walking back and forth next to the candlelight, and the swaying shadow symbolized the owner's uneasy heart.
Hu Honghua is timid and cannot handle things. A small thing can make her toss and turn and unable to sleep at night, let alone a big thing like "catching an adulterer". She estimated that she would not be able to sleep tonight.
Hu Chengjun lowered his eyelids, but ultimately did not stop it.
Forget it, let them be. Anyway, Hu Honghua will not suffer any loss if she follows Shi Meilan.
With Shi Meilan's personality, it's a blessing that she doesn't harm others.
Hu Chengjun put away the machete in his hand, packed all the meat, put it in the car, and walked towards the town.
It is hot in the summer and he cannot store too much meat. He needs to send the meat to the town overnight and sell it.
Hu Chengjun has a special tricycle and can reach the town by riding it in half a night.
He went out from the end of the village and passed by the smoke from the cooking fires throughout the village. When he passed by the Li family, he couldn't help but take a look.
The Li family is divided into the Big Li Family and the Small Li Family. The Big Li Family is the home of the eldest Li family member, Li Jianjun, where Li Jianjun and his wife live. They have a son and a daughter, and there are also Old Man Li and Old Lady Li above them.
Xiao Li's family is the home of Li Jianye and Shi Meilan, and it houses two brothers, Li Tianci and Li Tianfu.
When the Li family split up, Old Man Li and Old Lady Li followed the eldest brother Li, intending to let the eldest brother take care of them in their old age. That’s why the homestead and house of the old Li family were bigger, but it was a pity——
When Hu Chengjun turned his head, there was no one in Li Laoer's house, not even any smoke rising from the kitchen. The doors and windows were dark, and he had no idea what the people inside were doing.
There were two people sitting at the door of the Li family's house, eating melons and talking together. They were Li's eldest sister-in-law, Zhao Erjie, and Li's old lady. No one knew what the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were talking about, but they were staring at the door of Li Laoer's house all the time.
Hu Chengjun took a glance, then without stopping, rode his tricycle away from the Li family.
It gets dark early in the village. The moon hangs behind the clouds, shining brightly on the road beneath your feet. At this time, most people are eating or resting. The wheels of the cars roll over the ground, making a rustling sound.
Hu Chengjun had just ridden his bike out of the village when he saw Li Jianye and Li Tianci coming back from outside the village.
Li Jianye and Li Tianci have the same phoenix eyes. They both wear white shirts and look gentle and proper. From their demeanor, you can tell from a distance that they are from Li Laoer's family.
Outsiders often say, "Who would wear a white shirt?" If you don't know them, you might think they are educated youth.
——
They had just finished school.
Li Jianye went to school in the evening and took out all the money in the school. Then he attended an evening self-study class. After everything was over, he went back to the Li family with Li Tianci.
The Li family has two sons. One, Li Tianci, looks like Li Jianye from birth. He loves reading and is smart. The other, Li Tianfu, only knows how to play and fight. Fortunately, he is strong and can do farm work. He has a quick temper, just like Shi Meilan.
Li Tianfu didn't like studying, so he came down to work early, and the Li family only supported Li Tianci.
Li Jianye hoped that his child could go to college. College! How glorious it would be for Lijia Village to be the first high school student!
On the way home, Li Jianye told Li Tianci about his time in Beijing.
It was a clear night with a bright moon in the sky, its faint glow illuminating the earth. Li Tianci held the book in his hand, stepped on the hard ground, and listened with a calm expression.
Li Tianci had heard these words a thousand times. They were like chewed sugarcane, so bland that no sweetness could be tasted. But Li Jianye insisted on telling him, so he had no choice but to listen.
At this time, Hu Chengjun's tricycle slowly came over.
When he saw Hu Chengjun, Li Tianci's face darkened - he still remembered that his marriage was arranged by Hu Chengjun after a few drinks.
Both his parents said that one should get married first and then start a career. He must get married before going out to study, and it would be best if he had a child before leaving home. This way he would have a bloodline and someone would be able to take care of his parents, so that he could settle down.
Although he was talented and felt that he had a bright future, he was unwilling to marry someone he didn't like. However, his family provided him with everything he ate, used, and wore, and he couldn't object to what his family had decided.
He came from a good family, was a good student, and could go to college in the future. Countless people wanted to marry him, but he fell into the hands of Hu Honghua, that stupid and foolish woman. Of course he was annoyed, so he pretended not to see Hu Chengjun and refused to say hello.
Li Jianye and Hu Chengjun nodded.
As they passed each other, Hu Chengjun glanced at Li Jianye.
Li Jianye was carrying a military green Liberation bag filled with books. It looked bulging. He kept protecting the bag with his hands along the way and had no idea what was inside.
In just a glance, Hu Chengjun rode past on his bike.
Li Jianye has already taken Li Tianci back to the Li family.
——
When they returned to Li's house, they saw that the lights were off and there was no smoke coming out of the chimney, as if there was no fire.
That's not right.
Normally, the Li family would be busy preparing dinner at this time, so why is it still dark today?
Where is Shi Meilan going?
Li Jianye remembered that he had climbed over the wall to go to the next door this afternoon, and his heart began to beat fast. He even walked faster. He and Li Tianci had just walked to the door and passed by the Li family compound when, as luck would have it, he saw his sarcastic sister-in-law and his mother standing at the door, blocking the way. She put her hands on her waist and asked him, "Li Jianye! Did you ask me to borrow money this afternoon? Come on, tell me in front of our mother!"
Li Tianci on the side looked at his father suspiciously - Dad asked his aunt to borrow money?
Li Jianye's eyes went dark.
This cheap-mouthed old woman! Why does she say everything?
"Son, is this true?" The old lady of the Li family was very thin, her back hunched as she stood at the door. However, her wrinkled eyes shone with a cunning shrewdness, making her look like a weasel. She walked over to Li Jianye and asked, "Tell me, is Shi Meilan forcing you to give money to support her family again? Is Shi Meilan forcing you to borrow money because she's spent all her money?"
"Oh!" Li Jianye shook off his mother's hand and said, "That's not true. That was the tuition I borrowed for Tianci. He's going to go out to study and it will definitely cost a lot of money. It has nothing to do with Shi Meilan. Okay, don't mention this anymore and don't tell Shi Meilan about it!"
After saying that, Li Jianye dragged Li Tianci back to his own courtyard. During this time, he heard his sister-in-law and Old Lady Li say in a sarcastic tone, "Did you see that? You married a wife and forgot your mother. You don't even bother to care about you."
Li Jianye pretended not to hear and just sighed. He whispered to Li Tianci, who had returned home with him, "Don't tell your mother about this. She's going to be annoyed too."
He was also smart, so he managed to get away with it.
Li Tianci nodded.
At this time, the two of them had just entered the yard when they happened to see Li Tianfu coming out of the main room, who was holding a raw cucumber and chewing it.
"Brother, Dad." Seeing Li Tianci and Li Jianye, Li Tianfu hugged his 1.80-meter-tall self distressedly and said with a look of grievance, "Mom is sick. She said she twisted her waist at noon and can't get up. She's sleeping in the east room now. There's no one at home to cook. I'm so hungry. Dad, can you make something?"
No wonder they didn't fire, it turned out Shi Meilan was sick.
How could Li Jianye cook? He used to eat his mother's cooking, and later he ate Shi Meilan's cooking. He had never cooked before, so he just said, "A gentleman should stay away from the kitchen. Just nibble on two cucumbers."
Li Tianci was also a little hungry, but he couldn't possibly cook, as women cooked. So he said, "I'm not hungry. I'm going back to my room to read."
"Oh, right, brother!" Speaking of reading, Li Tianfu had something else to say: "Someone came over today and brought you two books. I put them in your room."
That someone is Hu Honghua. Li Tianci looks down on her, but she comes to stick to him every day.
Li Tianci certainly understood that, because Hu Honghua liked him, and he was so outstanding, it was natural for Hu Honghua to like him.
But he didn't like Hu Honghua, so he didn't say anything and quickly returned to the back east room.
Li Jianye was supposed to sleep in the east room, but when he opened the door and saw Shi Meilan was really sleeping, he suddenly changed his mind and said, "Your mother is sick, let her have a good rest. I'll sleep in the west room."
Li Jianye went to the west room, Li Tianci returned to the east room, and Li Tianfu could only reluctantly return to the west room while eating cucumber.
A family of four, each person has his own room and sleeps in his own bed.
I don’t know whether other people slept or not, but Li Jianye was so excited that he couldn’t sleep for half the night. As soon as it got dark, he sneaked into the house with his Jiefang bag and climbed over the wall to the next room.
He couldn't wait to take credit for it to Yu Lian'er.
Yu Lianer certainly didn't expect that he would get the money so quickly!
——
At the same time, Hu Honghua also went out.
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