Chapter 1 Is this a last gasp?

There is wind, blowing gently on my face, it feels quite comfortable.

This was the only feeling that the sleeping Hua Xiali had at this moment.

It was unknown how much time had passed before she slowly opened her eyes. Her left eye was swollen and painful, and she couldn't open it at all. She could only open her intact right eye.

What caught my eye was the earthen wall covered with newspapers. The whole room looked simple and empty, without even any decent furniture. There was also a strong smell of Chinese medicine.

Looking at the light shining from the roof, Hua Xiali blinked in confusion. This was the old house where she had lived since she was a child. She had lived here for decades before and after her marriage. She was very familiar with it.

But later the land in the village was expropriated and the house was demolished. Why is this house still intact now?

And she clearly remembered that her ex-husband's mistress came to steal her resettlement house and pushed her down the stairs. The old girl was knocked to death. Could this be a last gasp of energy?

When you look back in your mind, you can see the house where you have lived since you were a child. But can you see your family?

She missed her father, mother, elder sister, elder brother-in-law, younger sister...

She missed them so much that her heart ached in her dreams at midnight.

Could she be allowed to take one last good look at them?

Or could she be reunited with them down there?

Since she didn't accompany them well during her lifetime, let her stay by their side after death. She doesn't want to go anywhere else.

"Xia Li, Xia Li, get up and have lunch." There was a crisp knock on the door and a familiar voice calling out.

Hua Xiali was stunned when she heard this. Was she hallucinating? Otherwise, how could she hear her mother's voice? And that voice sounded so young, not old at all.

Could it be that God heard her cry, knew her regret, and allowed her to take one last look at her mother before she died?

Thinking of this, Hua Xiali shouted excitedly, "Mom, Mom..."

Will she finally get to see her mother?

When Hua's mother heard Hua Xiali's anxious cry, she was very worried and hurriedly opened the door and walked in, "Xia Li, what's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"

When Hua Xiali saw her mother, she rubbed her intact right eye in disbelief and asked in confusion, "Are you my mother? How come you are so young and beautiful?"

The Hua mother in front of me looked to be in her early forties at most. Her skin was dark yellow due to the wind and sun exposure from farm work, but her facial features were very superior, with smooth cheek lines, a clear jawline, thick eyebrows, big eyes, a high nose bridge, and not a trace of excess fat on her face.

You can imagine how amazing they must have been when they were young, otherwise it would not have been possible for these three girls to be so beautiful.

Hua's mother thought Hua Xiali was complimenting her, and her cheeks couldn't help but feel hot. She scolded, "You kid, your mother is only 40 years old, of course you are young and beautiful."

Then he walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, looking down at Hua Xiali's eyes, "How could you be so careless? You saw those kids fighting, and you got involved? You're getting engaged soon, and how can you get engaged when your eyes have been hit with stones? I'll boil some eggs for you later, so you can roll your eyes away..."

Hua Xiali listened to her mother's nagging without any annoyance, and felt particularly warm. When he heard the word "engagement", his eyes widened and he looked at her mother in confusion, "What engagement?"

She is already in her seventies or eighties and is about to be buried. What's the point of getting married?

"Wang Liang and Ding Yong are pursuing you so closely. No matter who you choose, you will be married before the end of this year, right? But mom still supports you to choose Wang Liang. His house is in the village next door, less than ten minutes' walk away, which makes it convenient for you to take care of him at home. Besides, he only has one older sister, so there will be less trouble. Ding Yong's house is too far away, and he has three older sisters. If you marry him, it will be like having four more mothers-in-law, which you won't be able to handle..." Hua's mother started nagging again.

Hua Xiali only realized when she heard the names Wang Liang and Ding Yong that her mother was talking about what happened in 1990, when she was 19 years old.

Before the Chinese New Year this year, she and her elder sister went to the supermarket to buy New Year's goods and met two of her elder sister's elementary school classmates, Wang Liang and Ding Yong. Both Wang Liang and Ding Yong pursued her vigorously at the same time. She listened to the advice of her mother and family members and chose Wang Liang who lived closer to home.

She got engaged to Wang Liang in May 1990 and married him in November.

After marrying Wang Liang, she gave birth to their eldest son the following year. A year later, when she found out she was pregnant again, Wang Liang disappeared and never came back, nor did he bring back a penny. Hua Xiali had to take care of the child alone while pregnant. Not only did her parents-in-law and elder sister-in-law not help, but they also always bullied her.

Especially the eldest sister-in-law, she is more troublesome than ten mothers-in-law.

Later, Hua Xiali raised her two sons with the help of her mother's family. When the youngest son was ten years old, Wang Liang came back with a pregnant woman. In order to give this woman a legitimate status, he divorced her.

It was at this time that Hua Xiali realized what a piece of shit Wang Liang was. It turned out that he had a girlfriend outside, but the other party wanted a dowry of several thousand yuan, which he could not afford. So when he returned to his hometown and saw that Hua Xiali was beautiful, he came to pursue Hua Xiali. In order to make Hua Xiali willingly stay in his house and take care of his parents, he stayed at home for two years, just to let her give birth to a child and completely tie her heart. Then when she got pregnant for the second time, he ran away.

Because he knew Hua Xiali couldn't leave.

The reason I came back to get a divorce was because my girlfriend was getting older, already in her thirties, and I had no choice but to get married.

Hua Xiali was, after all, a high school graduate and had studied in the city for several years. She was not a fool. She had been bullied and suffered for twelve years. How could she let those two scumbags off so easily? So before going to get the divorce certificate, she went directly to the court to sue Wang Liang and his girlfriend.

Even if they can't get compensation, they have to ruin their reputation, or make the child sever ties with Wang Liang and no longer have any relationship with him.

It can also serve as a reminder to rural women that if your husband does not come home during the holidays and does not send money home, he probably has a woman around him.

After all, they are all ordinary farmers with low incomes. If they support one woman, they naturally cannot support a second one. But if they send the money back home, the women outside will naturally not be willing to be with them. Most men choose to treat their wives and children back home badly in order to please the women outside.