Coming out of her uncle's house, Shumei looked at the familiar villagers along the way and their laughing faces. She always had an illusion that they were saying bad things about her. She felt like she was being mentally raped.
When passing by the storage room, a couple who were returning to their parents' home happened to pass by her. Shumei was distracted and almost bumped into the man's arms. The man, out of kindness, reached out and supported the staggering Shumei.
Shumei was shy, so she thanked him hurriedly and left quickly.
But the man's heart was restless, staring at Shumei's face with a greedy look. Shumei walked a long way away, but he still looked at her without blinking.
His wife couldn't stand it any longer, twisting his ear and yelling, "What are you looking at? If you keep looking, I'll dig your eyes out. What's so good about it? What's so good about a chicken that doesn't lay eggs? You useless thing, get out of here! You're not getting into my bed tonight."
"Wife, let go! It hurts, it hurts, it really hurts!"
"Do you know how painful it is? You brought this upon yourself."
The woman cursed and pulled the man's ear, forcibly dragging him away. Wen Dazui, who was in the storage room, saw this scene and laughed so hard that he fell forward and backward.
The woman must have been furious that Shumei had seduced her man's soul! She deliberately raised her voice to a particularly high level, and Shumei heard every word clearly. The sound was like a piercing sting, piercing Shumei's heart one needle at a time.
It was this scene that made her decide to go to the hospital for a check-up.
That night, she followed her aunt Wang Sufang's advice and told Ji Zong about the things that had been buried in her heart for a long time.
Under the dim light, Shumei looked at Jizong's familiar face and leaned on his shoulder. Jizong was concentrating on counting the meager salary in his hand. Today was the salary payment day, and Jizong had a happy expression on his face.
After much hesitation, Shumei finally spoke to Jizong.
"Ji Zong, do you want a child?"
"Why are you asking this all of a sudden?"
Ji Zong knew exactly what this meant to Shu Mei, and he hadn't mentioned it to her for fear of hurting her. But when Shu Mei brought it up today, it caught him off guard. He grabbed her arms in surprise, his expression as if he was about to accuse her.
"Just tell me whether you want to or not?"
Ji Zong's eyes were a little evasive, he didn't even dare to look Shu Mei in the eye, "Shu Mei, it's late, let's go to bed! Let the baby's affairs take their own course."
From Ji Zong's tone, Shu Mei could tell that he wanted a child and he was taking her feelings into consideration.
"How about we take some time to go to the hospital for a checkup tomorrow?"
"Is it really necessary to go?"
Shumei nodded vigorously. Jizong looked at her eager eyes and didn't know what to say, so he nodded in agreement.
The next day, before daybreak, they borrowed two bicycles from Fu Jun's house and headed to town. It took them over two hours to get there, and then another 40-minute bus ride to the county hospital.
They used their meager savings and traveled back and forth between home and the county hospital for several days.
Today they will finally know the test results. The two of them sat on wooden chairs outside the clinic, waiting anxiously for the doctor to call their number.
Shumei was nervous and frightened, her palms sweating with anxiety. Her legs were trembling slightly with nervousness. Jizong understood her mood and reached out to hold her hand tightly, giving her a look of affirmation.
"Is No. 21 Kang Shumei here?"
Finally, her name was called, and they both walked into the clinic. Shumei stared at the doctor intently, feeling conflicted, both eager and dreading the announcement.
"Kang Shumei, right?"
The doctor looked through the large stack of papers in her hand. After about a minute, the doctor finally spoke.
"Um... um, I'm Kang Shumei..."
"I've reviewed all your test results. There's nothing wrong. Everything is normal."
Is everything normal? Shumei couldn't believe her ears. She was so excited that she didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Tears welled up in her eyes. She grabbed Jizong's hand tightly, not knowing what to say.
"Doctor, if that's the case, then why is it that my wife and I have been married for a year, and her stomach still has no reaction?"
Ji Zong was still relatively calm, and he continued to question the doctor rationally.
"Well, there are many reasons. You can wait and see. Some people take three to five years to conceive. If you're really anxious, I suggest you get checked out. Fertility is a matter for both parties. Just because the woman is healthy doesn't mean you are fine."
"Shall I go check it out?"
Ji Zong looked at the doctor in disbelief, pointed a finger at his nose, and asked in a skeptical tone. "I've always heard that childbirth is only a woman's job. When did men get involved?" After all, he had no higher education, so he naturally couldn't understand such scientific statements.
The doctor began to explain to him carefully, and they listened to the doctor's words, not quite understanding them.
…
After coming out of the clinic, the two sat on the wooden chairs and hesitated for a long time.
Shumei understood what this meant for Jizong. She didn't want to put pressure on him, so she just sat quietly beside him. No matter what Jizong's final decision was, she would support him without hesitation. Without children, at most she could endure a little more ridicule; without children, at most she could adopt one. As long as she could be by Jizong's side, nothing else mattered.
She leaned quietly on Ji Zong's shoulder like a docile little lamb.
People were coming and going in the hospital corridor, and waves of patients were passing back and forth in front of them.
After a long period of inner struggle, Ji Zong finally felt that responsibility overcame his insignificant self-esteem.
"Shumei, let's go! Accompany me to get checked."
Ji Zong stood up and left. Shu Mei was still in shock and hurriedly chased after Ji Zong, asking tentatively, "Ji Zong, have you thought it through? Have you really thought it through?"
"What's there to think about? For your sake, I have to do this check."
A few days later, Ji Zong's test results came back, and surprisingly, the problem was actually with Ji Zong. The doctor said that it would be difficult for them to have children in the future. It might take three to five years, maybe ten to eight years, or maybe only in the next life.
On the way home, Shumei sat on the back of the bicycle, holding Jizong's clothes tightly, and Jizong said nothing all the way.
At this moment, Ji Zong was experiencing a torment of inner pain. He was more worried about Shu Mei than his own pride as a man. The doctor told him that the disease was incurable, and there was no end in sight. Wouldn't that mean Shu Mei would always be the scapegoat? Would she suffer the humiliation of the villagers for him? He truly wanted to die, feeling that he had failed Shu Mei and betrayed her love for him.
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