"Go home quickly and talk to your father-in-law about the funeral arrangements," someone said.
This woman's insults were truly outrageous. Although the Chen family was notorious in the village for their favoritism, it was still quite unseemly for her to say in public that her husband wasn't her parents' biological son.
The workers here are all male laborers, so they are more likely to empathize with Chen Jiancheng.
However, out of pity for Huang Meijuan, no one dared to utter a word of blame.
Bai Shiqing thought that she had helped her with everything she needed to do, so this was more than enough. She shouldn't interfere in the rest of the family matters.
"Big brother, Jiaojiao is still walking behind. I'll ride my bike to bring her back."
"Alright, go ahead." Bai Shihai felt a void in his chest because of this.
After Bai Shiqing rode away on her bicycle, Huang Meijuan had no choice but to return to the Chen family home.
No matter how despicable the Chen family is, this matter still needs to be resolved.
Bai Shihai reached out and grabbed Chen Jiancheng, instructing him, "You're a man, you have to take responsibility at times like this, don't blame your wife."
Chen Jiancheng didn't say anything, carrying the child in his arms and walking ahead, completely ignoring how hard Huang Meijuan was struggling to walk behind him with a limp.
"Give me the child!"
"Chen Jiancheng, give me the child!"
Huang Meijuan's cries were heartbreaking to hear, but no one could do anything about it.
Bai Shiqing met up with Bai Jiaojiao, who was walking halfway, and breathed a heavy sigh of relief: "We should have taken her to the health center this morning."
Bai Shiqing has very high moral standards, and she felt a little guilty.
Once you've handled something like this, regardless of whether you're responsible or not, you'll always feel regret.
Bai Jiaojiao felt the same way. She comforted Bai Shiqing, "Second sister, we've done our best."
Bai Shiqing took out the five yuan and returned it to Bai Jiaojiao: "It's really pitiful, but it's better that he left early, otherwise this child will have to follow in his father's footsteps. Is the Chen family poor? Uncle Chen earned thirty yuan a month at the factory, and now that he's retired, he has a pension. Who in our village has that much money? It's all being used to subsidize that guy in town. Everyone says Chen Jiancheng is honest and filial, but what good is that? He's just making his wife and children suffer with him."
It only costs a few dollars to go to the health center, but Mr. Chen didn't take it seriously and thought that heatstroke wasn't a big deal, so he tried to get away with it.
No one's heart is hard; Huang Meijuan didn't come to work in the afternoon, and Chen Hong didn't say a word.
She asked herself honestly, even if she didn't like her daughter-in-law, her eldest grandson was still her own flesh and blood.
The news spread throughout the village that Li Lide had spent the entire afternoon at the Chen family's house mediating the conflict. Zhuangzhuang, still in his swaddling clothes, was placed on the table while the couple argued incessantly at home.
The Chen father and son were determined to shift the blame onto Huang Meijuan. Huang Meijuan, her face covered in tears, left holding Zhuangzhuang's body.
Children this age cannot be buried in the ancestral graveyard. There is a dry ditch on the south side of the mountain. When a child in the village dies, they are wrapped up in something and buried here. There is no grave mound, and they can't be found again. So they just give up on the idea.
Huang Meijuan herself could barely walk properly, and someone couldn't bear to see her like that, so they took an iron shovel and went over to dig a hole for her.
Huang Meijuan didn't say a word, her eyes were filled with tears.
She didn't know what to do anymore. The whole world was as dark as this shady ravine, and she felt as if her heart had been buried inside.
Everyone says Chen Jiancheng is honest, and even Huang Meijuan's parents think this son-in-law is good. They all say that Huang Meijuan is suffering a little now, but as long as she gets through it, she will definitely have a good life with such a man.
Huang Meijuan has been enduring this until now because of this sentence, but she really doesn't want to endure it anymore.
Honesty is nothing but cowardice.
She's such a grown woman, yet she still believes whatever her father says. If Huang Meijuan dares to say a word more, Chen Jiancheng will teach her a lesson for being unfilial.
Her family was poor. Back then, her dowry didn't even include a trunk. She entered the Chen family with just a bundle and five yuan that her parents had managed to scrape together.
The Chen family looked down on her, but they still let her in. Why?
Because the Chen family doesn't care about their eldest son, Chen Jiancheng!
She asked for little dowry, and was obedient and hardworking, making her the perfect person to marry into the family and serve the whole household.
Huang Meijuan cried out all her grievances at Zhuangzhuang's grave. The people who came to help her stood in the ravine, listening to the howling wind in the valley, and felt a chill in their hearts. They all quickly left together, leaving her alone, with no one to care for her.
Zheng Xu returned with Shen Heng, beaming with pride, as they harnessed the tractor. Today had gone very smoothly; both sows were probably carrying piglets. Once they gave birth, their Shili Village would have a new addition to the family!
In the past, when the tractor came to the village, the villagers would definitely come over to see it. But Zheng Xu drove the tractor back to the pigsty and didn't see anyone on the road.
"Brother Xu, what's going on today?" Zheng Xu asked casually, but then heard Old Xu say, "Jiancheng's son is gone."
That's it?
Zheng Xu's good mood vanished instantly, as if it had fallen from the sky: "How come it's gone?"
Zheng Xu was carrying a bag of dried wild vegetables in his arms. Yesterday, Huang Meijuan's mother heard that they were coming again today, so she specially asked Secretary Huang to bring them to Huang Meijuan for him.
Huangjiazhuang is a rocky mountain. Who knows how long the old lady saved up that bag of dried wild vegetables?
The dried wild vegetables in Zheng Xu's arms were still warm. He composed himself and said, "Old Xu, keep a close eye on these two pigs. I'm going to take a look."
Shen Heng jumped off the car at the village entrance, eager to go back and see his wife. When he got home, he saw Bai Jiaojiao crying and pounding dough: "Why are you crying?"
Shen Heng was terrified; his heart felt like it was being electrified, fearing the consequences he couldn't bear.
Bai Jiaojiao didn't know if she felt sorry for Huang Meijuan or was still scared, but she couldn't help crying when she got home.
She didn't expect Shen Heng to come back so early: "Brother Heng, Sister Meijuan lost her baby."
Bai Jiaojiao leaned against Shen Heng's chest, wiping away her tears. Shen Heng, unusually, did not hug her, but leaned back and said, "I washed my hands and changed my clothes. I spent half a day in the pigsty, and it smelled like pig manure."
Bai Jiaojiao pouted as she watched Shen Heng enter the house. After seeing Shen Heng, her urge to cry lessened a bit, probably because seeing him made her feel at ease.
After tidying himself up, Shen Heng asked about Zhuangzhuang's condition and said with his eyes down, "Some people shouldn't be born if they can't be raised. They can't even feed themselves, and they have to drag another life down with them and suffer."
Shen Heng looked somber, perhaps thinking about his past.
Bai Jiaojiao leaned against Shen Heng's chest and wrapped her arms around his waist: "What should we do about Sister Meijuan? If she gets a divorce, I don't know if her family will support her."
Shen Heng glanced at Bai Jiaojiao, making sure she meant nothing by it, before saying, "What are you thinking about all day? Divorce, divorce, is divorce such an easy thing?"
Shen Heng tightened his grip on Bai Jiaojiao's waist.
He spent two hundred yuan to marry his wife, so don't let her run away.
"Chen Jiancheng is simply not up to the task. Living with a man like that would be torture."
But these days, unless someone commits murder or arson, divorces are rare unless life is truly unbearable.
If Bai Jiaojiao were Huang Meijuan, she would have divorced her, but she is not Huang Meijuan and has no right to make decisions for her.
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