"Dabao! Mom didn't know. Mom really didn't know that we can't use pot ash. The older generation did it this way! You...you won't blame mom, will you?" Wu Jinfeng explained incoherently, and finally asked carefully.
Wu Jinfeng wasn't stupid. She was the one who made the pot ash. Even if she didn't say it now, wouldn't Zhou Jiaqin tell her? She might as well be honest with her son. After all, she didn't mean to disfigure Zhou Jiaqin, did she?
"Mom, I know you mean well. How can I blame you?" Zhou Zhigang's words immediately put Wu Jinfeng at ease.
Wu Jinfeng feared her son's estrangement from her. Even though Li Chunjiao hadn't explicitly blamed her in her tears, she could still detect a hint of resentment. Her eldest son was supposed to support her in her old age, and if she soured on his relationship with his eldest daughter-in-law, she would be the one to suffer.
Who knew that the pot ash would cause disfigurement? Didn't Zhou Jiaqin use the pot ash to stop the bleeding on his face?
Thinking of this, Wu Jinfeng's drooping waist suddenly straightened up a little.
Wu Jinfeng was smart enough not to explain the pot ash issue to her daughter-in-law, but she was somewhat confident about Zhou Zhigang, who was usually quite filial to his parents.
"What about Chunjiao? Will she hate her mother?" Wu Jinfeng saw that her son was beginning to talk, so she quickly took advantage of the situation. The most important thing at the moment was to get her son to control his daughter-in-law and prevent Li Chunjiao from blaming her for this.
"No, Mom, don't worry!" Zhou Zhigang comforted Wu Jinfeng and turned around to go to the kitchen.
Seeing his son like that, Zhou Zhigang felt heartbroken. But, with his mother on one side and his son on the other, what else could he do? Blame his mother, letting others point fingers at him and call him unfilial? Blame his son, this naughty boy, who's practically dead. He was so delirious with fever last night that he couldn't even speak.
It was all his fault, that prodigal wife of his. She was never home all day. Otherwise, she wouldn't have left the second boy unattended and unruly. Zhou Zhigang's anger was completely directed at Li Chunjiao.
Li Chunjiao didn't know that her husband hated her. While she was busy making breakfast, she felt sorry for her son Zhou Jiaqin.
Zhou Jiaqin had been a mischievous child since childhood, and countless children in Zhoujia Village had been bullied by him. Li Chunjiao often apologized to others on her son's behalf.
After Li Chunjiao apologized, she didn't care much. After all, her children didn't suffer any losses in the fight, only Zhou Jiaqin got to beat others. Li Chunjiao never taught her children to get along well with the other children in the village.
That's how it is in the countryside. If a child is good, the parents might secretly be happy. Li Chunjiao never thought that Zhou Jiaqin would get hurt one day.
Li Chunjiao was overcome with grief when she recalled the doctor's words. The doctor had said Zhou Jiaqin's facial injuries weren't serious, and that they would heal after a few days of rest and bleeding. However, the ash from the pot had smeared the pebbles onto the flesh and blood, causing a secondary inflammation. Now, the small scars on Zhou Jiaqin's face were threatening to transform into large, dark pits.
It's already difficult for rural boys to find wives, let alone what Zhou Jiaqin's facial scars might look like once they heal. Generally speaking, unattractive men are much more likely to remain single than the average person. Even if they manage to find a wife, they'll have to pay a much higher bride price than the average person. Li Chunjiao's heart ached whenever she thought of this.
Zhou Zhigang also felt regretful. His regret wasn't that he hadn't taken good care of his child, but that he shouldn't have married Li Chunjiao. This woman wasn't only ugly, but she couldn't even raise a child. Unlike the woman he had envisioned, she wouldn't raise a child to be well-behaved and adorable.
Zhou Meimei hid under the stove, lighting a fire, her eyes flickering from father to mother. Her father looked terrifying today, his eyes glaring as if they could spit fire. Her mother, on the other hand, looked distracted, which made Zhou Meimei anxious.
Li Chunjiao was preoccupied with her own worries. During this period, there were too many things going on at home, which made her exhausted. Ever since Zhou Zhigang slapped her twice for no reason that day, Li Chunjiao felt that things had not been going well.
After a few days of suspicion, Li Chunjiao finally put her mind at ease about Zhou Zhigang. Two days ago, Li Chunjiao's mother sent someone to bring a letter saying that something had happened at home and asked her to go back to her parents' home.
After reporting to her mother-in-law yesterday, Li Chunjiao returned to her parents' home early in the morning with her daughter Zhou Meimei. The matter at her parents' home wasn't a big deal, but it wasn't a small one either. Li Chunjiao's mother immediately asked to borrow fifty yuan, saying her nephew had fallen in love with a girl and was determined to marry her. The family was demanding an eighty-yuan betrothal gift before they would let the girl marry.
Li Chunjiao's brothers were all farmers, so where would they get so much money? The whole family pooled their money together, but only managed to come up with thirty. They were really at their wit's end, so they thought of Li Chunjiao.
Li Chunjiao finally managed to get her mother to reduce the amount from fifty yuan to thirty yuan. This was already two-thirds of Li Chunjiao's wealth. Li Chunjiao didn't dare let Zhou Zhigang know, so she went back to her parents' home early in the morning to give the money without telling Zhou Zhigang.
After finishing her mother's affairs, Li Chunjiao hurried back to Zhoujia Village at noon, and was called by her cousin Li Cuilian. Li Cuilian didn't say anything to Li Chunjiao, but asked her to invite her daughter-in-law to the noodle shop in town.
Li Chunjiao didn't know what Li Cuilian was trying to do, but in the village, Li Cuilian always said something and Li Chunjiao helped her do it. After meeting her daughter-in-law, Li Chunjiao was about to go home when Li Cuilian pulled her away and they went to Sanhe Town together.
Zhou Meimei never left Li Chunjiao's side during this period, even going to her grandmother's house early in the morning, Zhou Meimei also followed. When Li Chunjiao was going to Sanhe Town, Zhou Meimei followed as usual.
Although Li Cuilian was not happy with Zhou Meimei's lack of tact, she endured it because Li Chunjiao was easy to command.
Li Chunjiao took Zhou Meimei to wander around Sanhe Town, but Li Cuilian went straight to the noodle shop to meet her daughter-in-law.
Li Chunjiao didn't know what Li Cuilian and her daughter-in-law were whispering about. When she returned home in the evening, Li Cuilian's face was full of anger, and her daughter-in-law was also frowning and glaring.
Because of this delay, a whole day had passed.
The women returned to Zhoujia Village one after another. Along the way, Li Chunjiao was afraid to ask what had happened. The look in her daughter-in-law's eyes was also cold, and the coldness made Li Chunjiao feel uneasy.
When Li Chunjiao and Zhou Meimei returned home, it was already dark. Seeing her son Zhou Jiaqin lying on the bed, Li Chunjiao thought that he had eaten dinner at his mother-in-law's house and did not pay much attention.
In the middle of the night, Zhou Jiaqin developed a fever. Li Chunjiao was frightened and woke Zhou Zhigang up. The couple took the child to the town hospital. Zhou Meimei, not wanting to be left alone, followed.
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