Chapter 25
Since its establishment, Guangming Subdistrict Office has never encountered such an outrageous case.
Not to mention Ye Manzhi was confused, even the experienced Aunt Feng was confused.
Feng Chaoyang stared at the carefully preserved marriage certificate for a long time.
First of all, it can be confirmed from the official seal that this marriage certificate was not issued by the Guangming Sub-district Office.
This is good news for her, the staff member responsible for marriage registration. At least she will not be held accountable.
However, the bad news is that this marriage certificate was issued by the district chief!
When Qi Maolin and Qiu Xiaoyan got married, Guangming Street had not yet established a street office.
In the city, if there is no street office in your area, you have to go to the city or district to get a marriage certificate.
Their marriage certificate was issued by the district government at that time.
District Chief XXX’s name was clearly written at the end of the marriage certificate.
As far as Feng Chaoyang knows, this XXX has now been promoted to the city government...
Of course, it is impossible for the district chief to personally handle the marriage registration for the newlyweds. The registration work is handled by a dedicated person, and he only plays the role of signing each marriage certificate.
But this is not an easy thing to say!
Aunt Qi seemed to not understand what was happening and stared at the two street officials.
Qi Maolin even suspected that his ears had been completely bitten by Qiu Xiaoyan. How could he not understand?
Looking at the dazed mother and son, Ye Manzhi asked, "Qi Maolin, were you there when you and your wife registered your marriage?"
"Isn't that nonsense? How could I not be present at my wedding? Qiu Xiaoyan and I went to get the marriage certificate together!"
Ye Manzhi was puzzled and said, "Since you personally obtained the marriage certificate, the name on it isn't yours. Didn't you notice?"
Qi Maolin suddenly felt wronged, "I can't read!"
"Oh," Aunt Feng glanced at the newspaper on the bed, "How can you read a newspaper if you can't read?"
"I learned to read in a fleet literacy class, and I really couldn't read when I got my license!"
Even now, he can only pass the time by looking at pictures and comic strips in the newspaper.
If he had been educated, he would have found a way to work in a factory long ago. Who would still ride a tricycle?
Ye Manzhi and Aunt Feng both felt that something was wrong and asked about the young couple in detail.
It was finally confirmed that Qi Maolin and Qiu Xiaoyan were both illiterate at the time, and their marriage certificate was kept in the bottom of the box by Aunt Qi after they received it.
If Qi Maolin hadn't wanted to divorce, this marriage certificate would never have seen the light of day!
The situation was so outrageous that the four people present were stunned.
Aunt Feng thought to herself, the name on the marriage certificate is not mine, so why should I get a divorce?
If they want to divorce, will it be Qi Chenggong or Qi Maolin who goes?
She had encountered cases where the names of people getting married were written incorrectly before, but most of the time it was because the staff made typos.
She had never heard of someone writing their son's name as their father-in-law's!
This matter needs to be reported back.
Because of this bizarre episode, Qi Maolin's divorce request had to be put on hold for the time being.
Ye Manzhi and Aunt Feng returned to the neighborhood committee office and reported the matter.
After seeing everyone's shocked faces, Ye Manzhi finally felt relieved. This was really not something she was making a fuss about. Anyone who heard about it would be confused!
However, before everyone could discuss how to deal with the follow-up issues, Aunt Qi ran to the street office with her son.
She did not walk into the office openly, but stood at the door, leaning half of her body in, and waved to Ye Manyi, who was sitting at the door, to come out.
Aunt Qi's eyes were still red and her hair was disheveled. Ye Manzhi could imagine what a thrilling experience the Qi family had gone through after they left, with all the crying, making a fuss and even threatening to hang themselves.
At this time, Aunt Qi just took her hand, forced a smile and said, "Comrade Xiaoye, the name is written wrong anyway. Look at this marriage certificate matter, can you just pretend you don't know anything?"
Hearing this, Ye Manzhi was silent for a moment. She didn't answer yes or no, but asked, "Auntie, does Qi Maolin still want to divorce Qiu Xiaoyan?"
"Divorce!" Qi Maolin said unbearably, "I dare not sleep in the same bed with her. What if she bites my ear while I'm asleep?"
Ye Manzhi patiently explained: "If you want to divorce, you must submit your original marriage certificate to the district office when you divorce. This is a must..."
Aunt Qi said anxiously, "Cadre Xiaoye, I'm not completely clueless. I attended your class when the street was promoting the Marriage Law. Marriages before liberation didn't have marriage certificates, and everyone got divorced, didn't they? Just treat Mao Lin and Qiu Xiaoyan's marriage certificate as if it were lost. Can you handle it as if it were a lost marriage certificate?"
After she finished speaking, she reached into her trouser pocket, grabbed something, and then quickly stuffed it into Ye Manzhi's hand like a thief. She also considerately covered Ye Manzhi's hand with both hands and helped her clench her fist.
Ye Manzhi didn't see clearly what was stuffed in his palm, but he knew it was money by the feel.
She had only been working for over a month and she was already bribed?
"Auntie, let's talk about what's going on," Ye Manzhi quickly put the money back in her hand. "Writing the wrong name on the marriage certificate is a big deal. We informed our leader right after we got back. Now not only the two of us know about this, but our leader knows about it too."
If the mother and daughter had reacted faster and proposed this solution when they were at Qi's house, there might have been some room for maneuver.
But after she and Aunt Feng came back, they explained the situation to everyone. It was impossible to hide it!
She could only try her best to keep the matter within the street office and prevent the scandal of a father-in-law and daughter-in-law getting a marriage certificate from spreading outside.
She really couldn't do anything else.
Qi Maolin grabbed his hair and asked, "Leader, what can we do about this?"
Ye Manzhi was complaining in her heart. She didn't know what to do. Just when she was about to discuss a solution with her leader, you guys came.
But she still deliberately pretended to be very knowledgeable and professional and said, "The simplest solution is for you not to divorce. If you don't divorce, then you don't need a marriage certificate, and the problem will naturally be solved."
As long as the parties involved do not make a fuss, the street office will not force them to renew their marriage certificate. This is entirely voluntary.
Qi Maolin said with a bitter face: "I have to leave you."
He was already afraid of Qiu Xiaoyan, and when he thought about the fact that she and his own father were on the same marriage certificate, he felt even more uncomfortable.
He and his elder brother have no children, and his parents are hoping that he will have children as soon as possible.
In this situation, how can he have a child?
"If you must divorce, you must communicate with Qiu Xiaoyan. This marriage certificate is not yours alone. I'm sure Qiu Xiaoyan wouldn't want to see this happen."
Ye Manzhi persuaded the mother and son to go back temporarily, and then reported the incident of being almost bribed to his leader.
Mulan frowned and said, "Their marriage certificate is really a troublesome matter. I wonder who was in charge of it in the district at the time. How could they make such a low-level mistake?"
"When they got their marriage certificate, they didn't need to fill out the Marriage Registration Application Form. They just needed to bring their household register and a letter of introduction to the district office to register," Aunt Feng speculated with a frown. "Perhaps the staff mistakenly wrote the name of the head of the household from the Qi family's household register when filling out the marriage certificate."
In any case, this was a major work mistake made by the relevant staff. Now that the victim has come to them, they must report it to the district as soon as possible.
And the other party involved, Qiu Xiaoyan, also needs to be communicated with.
Biting off half a man's ear is considered intentional injury, and Qiu Xiaoyan had been imprisoned before. The Qi family had once threatened that if Qiu Xiaoyan didn't divorce, they would not sign a letter of forgiveness and would make her spend the rest of her life in prison.
It was not until Qiu Xiaoyan's eldest brother came forward to negotiate with the Qi family and promised to let his sister divorce as soon as possible that he was able to successfully rescue her and take her back to her parents' home.
Brother Qiu is nearly twenty years older than Qiu Xiaoyan. He plays the role of both father and mother to his younger sister, and raised her single-handedly. In the eyes of the Qi family, he is half of Qiu Xiaoyan's family.
However, nowadays people emphasize freedom of marriage, and Qiu Xiaoyan is determined not to divorce, so Brother Qiu can't do anything about it.
In order to mediate the divorce, Ye Manzhi, Aunt Feng, and a district official traveled across half the city and brought the news of the wrong marriage certificate to Brother Qiu's home.
After listening to this with a sullen face, Brother Qiu slammed the table and cursed, "This old man is so shameless!"
The district official explained in a low voice, "Comrade Qi Chenggong was also unaware of this. When he found out, he almost fainted on the spot."
If this matter were to get out, who knows how it would be misinterpreted. It would definitely be a scandal.
Brother Qiu turned around to look at his sister and advised her, "After something like this, you can't stay in the Qi family any longer. Living in the same house with that old Qi, aren't you upset? What's so good about staying in such a family? Leave Qi Maolin and I'll find you a good family so you can have children and live your life as usual!"
The two brothers of the Qi family didn't know what was going on and had not been able to have a child until now.
The eldest daughter-in-law's brother is an officer, so the Qi family didn't dare to push too hard, so they went hard on their youngest son and his wife, spending the whole day preparing some talismans and medicinal juices for Qiu Xiaoyan to drink.
Brother Qiu is not an unreasonable person. Since my sister is married, it is only a matter of time before she has children.
So, I never interfered in my sister's marriage before.
But the premise of all this is that the son-in-law must be a good person!
Ever since he knew that Qi Maolin had an affair with a prostitute, he didn't want his sister to continue living with Qi Maolin.
Unable to quit pornography, gambling and drugs, Qi Maolin has developed evil thoughts and may not be able to live a good life in the future.
Qiu Xiaoyan didn't think too much and asked directly: "Then who am I married to now?"
"Qi Maolin."
"Then the marriage certificate we obtained before doesn't count?"
Ye Manzhi glanced at Aunt Feng, and seeing that she had no intention of coming forward to explain, she took the initiative to say:
"Your father-in-law, Qi Chenggong, had been married to your mother-in-law for many years before this marriage certificate was issued. Although they didn't obtain a marriage certificate due to historical reasons, their marriage was a fait accompli and recognized by everyone. For example, their parents, relatives, friends, leaders, neighbors, and other acquaintances knew they were husband and wife. This de facto marriage is recognized in custom and judicial practice. Qi Chenggong was already married before this, so obtaining a marriage certificate would constitute bigamy, so this subsequent marriage certificate is invalid."
Qiu Xiaoyan asked, "Is Qi Chenggong guilty of bigamy now? Can he be sentenced?"
"..." Ye Manzhi said seriously, "The main characteristic of bigamy is subjective intentionality, knowingly committing the crime, but Qi Chenggong was not aware of this before."
Qi Chenggong can be considered a victim of the staff's mistakes.
Qiu Xiaoyan sat on the kang and pondered for a long time. She stretched out her hand and said, "Did you bring the marriage certificate? Let me take a look first."
The district people's committee clerk has one copy, and the other is with the Qi family.
After all, Qiu Xiaoyan was the person involved, so he handed over the marriage certificate without much thought.
"I only touched the marriage certificate on the first day I got it, and since then it's been kept by my mother-in-law. No wonder she always treats me with indifference! So this is why!"
Qiu Xiaoyan folded the marriage certificate, lifted the hem of her shirt, and quickly stuffed it into her waistband.
"..." Ye Manzhi spoke frankly, "Aunt Qi is illiterate. She doesn't know that the wrong name is written on the marriage certificate."
Qiu Xiaoyan chuckled softly and said to the three of them, "You guys go back. I won't divorce you! I've tried so many medicinal herbs and folk remedies over the years, and even the childbirth position was dictated to me by that old hag. It was clearly her son who was having an affair, and I caught him, but instead of teaching him a lesson, she's spreading the news of my whispering! I won't let this go!"
Nowadays, before getting married, you have to find a matchmaker and understand the situation of both parties clearly.
With her reputation, she might not marry into a good family again, unless she marries far away.
But she is not the only one who made the mistake, so why should she leave her hometown?
When street officials mediate divorces, they usually don't persuade people to divorce. After all, all they know is how the couple appears to be acting, and no one can truly tell what the couple's relationship is like. If someone later regrets the divorce, the street officials are likely to be criticized.
Therefore, they generally do not ask people to divorce. If they really cannot handle the case, they will directly send it to the district or court.
However, Aunt Feng looked at the anxious Brother Qiu, then glanced at the stubborn Qiu Xiaoyan, and said something rare: "The Qi family is not a good match. They blew up the manure pit and splashed all over. You should listen to your brother's advice."
After hearing her description, Ye Manzhi almost laughed out loud, but Qiu Xiaoyan did not listen to her advice. She took the invalid marriage certificate and rushed back to the military industrial compound that day.
The Qi family's affair is not very glorious. According to the Qi family, it is best to resolve it quietly and not spread it outside to expand the impact.
This is actually what the streets and districts mean. After all, this is a work error by the marriage registration authority. Who would publicize their mistakes for no reason?
Therefore, the street office spoke with one voice and kept the news secret.
Qiu Xiaoyan calculated that they didn't dare let anyone know, so on the first day of returning to the military industrial compound, she would kick her mother-in-law and Qi Maolin out of the house.
Aunt Qi was worried about being overheard, so she lowered her voice and said, "This is my home. Why are you kicking me out? Mao Lin is about to divorce you. You should be the one leaving!"
"Haha," Qiu Xiaoyan tossed out the marriage certificate. "It's mine and Qi Chenggong's name on it. Didn't you say this house belongs to you and the old man, and you could kick Mao Lin and me out to live alone at any time? Fine, now this house belongs to Qi Chenggong and me!"
Aunt Qi was so angry that she felt dizzy. "The street officials said that this marriage certificate is not valid!"
"Then I'll take my marriage certificate to the hospital and ask if it works! Anyway, you guys have ruined my reputation, I'm going to give up my dignity!"
Speaking of this, Qiu Xiaoyan suddenly felt sad. She forced herself to suppress the bitterness and forced back the tears.
She made a fuss at the Qi family for a week and insisted on kicking Qi Maolin and Aunt Qi out of the house.
The house was allocated to Qi Chenggong by the factory, and Qi Chenggong originally had the most say.
But Lao Qi was caught between his daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law. When his daughter-in-law scolded him for being unruly, he became silent.
Originally, he was also a victim in this incident, but after his daughter-in-law made such a fuss, he became the one who was in the wrong.
Qi Chenggong huddled in the corner and dared not speak. He had no choice but to pack up his bedding and move to the workshop to live.
Therefore, the first person to be driven out of the Qi family was Qi Chenggong.
Qiu Xiaoyan didn't hold back her voice when she was making a scene, but the neighbors already knew what they should have known.
When Ye Manzhi returned home from get off work, Chang Yue'e asked her about this matter.
Since she couldn't hide the truth anyway, she simply nodded and admitted it.
But she actually couldn't understand Qiu Xiaoyan's purpose for being so outrageous.
"The two old people are in a de facto marriage. Even though the two young people have the wrong names on the marriage certificate, they are still in a de facto marriage. Why does she insist on kicking Aunt Qi and Qi Maolin out of the house? Not to mention that she can't kick them out, even if she really kicks them out, what good will it do her? She can't really live with her father-in-law, so what will happen then!"
Chang Yue'e was crocheting socks and said without looking up, "Let's vent our anger first. Many people in our compound know about the Qi family's secret remedy for conceiving a child. In recent years, in order to have a child with Qi Maolin, Qiu Xiaoyan even used boy's urine. I heard that her health was severely damaged by it. And now Qi Maolin is going out to have an affair with someone else. How can she bear this?"
"Didn't she already bite Qi Maolin's ear?"
Chang Yue'e laughed: "Just wait and see, Xiao Chou doesn't seem to be a heartless person. She keeps acting up all day long, so there must be some reason."
Ye Manzhi couldn't think of any reason why she would act like this, but after waiting for a few days, there was suddenly a major development in the Qi family's affairs.
Because Qiu Xiaoyan caused unrest in the Qi family, Old Man Qi hid away, Aunt Qi fainted several times out of anger, and Qi Maolin was also driven out of the house by her. Qi Maolin's sister-in-law couldn't stand it anymore, so she talked to Qiu Xiaoyan alone and asked her how to calm down.
Qiu Xiaoyan was straightforward and said on the spot that she wanted eight hundred yuan!
After giving the money, she immediately divorced Qi Maolin and left!
Everyone in the compound was stunned by her loud mouth.
Eight hundred yuan!
Who has 800 yuan in savings?
These days, an ordinary worker's salary is only 20 or 30 yuan, while a technician above level 7 may earn over a hundred yuan. But Lao Qi is just an ordinary worker, and he has to support a whole family with his salary. How can he save 800 yuan?
However, there is a reason why Qiu Xiaoyan made such an offer.
The Qi family did not split up, and none of the money Qi Maolin earned from riding the bicycle fell into her hands. It was all given to her mother-in-law.
A dozen yuan a month, after three or four years of accumulation, it would amount to several hundred yuan.
Although she did not give birth to a child for the Qi family over the years, she suffered a lot from taking medicine and seeing a doctor.
Anyway, she could raise the price and pay the money on the spot, so there was no way she could leave the Qi family empty-handed.
Qi's eldest sister-in-law negotiated the price down to 350 yuan, and Qiu Xiaoyan agreed to this number.
But Aunt Qi refused to agree no matter what. It was obvious that Qiu Xiaoyan had bitten off her son's ear and was the one at fault. If the two divorced, her family would not have to pay a penny.
Now they want to take 350 yuan from her family. She would rather give the old man to Qiu Xiaoyan than give out these more than 300 yuan.
Old Qi came home and discussed with her: "Is 200 yuan okay?"
"Give me 300 yuan, and I'll leave without saying anything," Qiu Xiaoyan said with a chuckle. "If you give me 200 yuan, I'll tell everyone about Qi Maolin's affair with a prostitute, and see who dares to marry their daughter to your family!"
*
The latest news Ye Manzhi heard was that Qiu Xiaoyan took a big bite out of the old Qi family and left with 300 yuan.
What does three hundred yuan mean?
She can use the money to buy a small house in the suburbs to live in.
Ye Manzhi sighed again, saying that one should not underestimate anyone.
Although Qiu Xiaoyan is uneducated and quite reckless, she is quite wise.
If both spouses agree to divorce, there is no need for street mediation and they can go directly to the district office to divorce.
Ye Manzhi and Aunt Feng both breathed a sigh of relief. Qiu Xiaoyan was really too noisy!
"Director, there's been so much going on in the streets lately, it's making people nervous," Liu Jinbao suggested. "Can we organize some entertainment activities to help everyone relax?"
Wei Zhen, who holds multiple positions, including Welfare Committee Member and Arts Committee Member, agreed immediately, saying, "I recently attended a meeting at the Cultural Bureau, and the district leaders mentioned enriching residents' leisure time and asked the subdistrict to take the initiative in organizing some cultural and entertainment activities."
"How about contacting a movie theater and having them show a couple of movies on our street?"
Mulan wants to do big things with little money. Cleaning the streets and repairing ditches require a lot of money, so she doesn't want to spend money on entertainment activities.
It is absolutely impossible to organize a quyi performance on a grand scale like Liu Jinbao and Zhuang Ting!
Mulan was willing to spend a little money, but when it came to Zhang Qinjian, he simply didn't spend a penny.
"You have to pay to show a movie, are there any activities that don't cost money?"
Everyone: “…”
If you don’t spend money, who will serve you?
Even if it is an acquaintance who is asking for help, you have to treat them to a meal after you invite them!
Ye Manzhi was eager to try, and raised her hand and said, "I heard that many units have organized ballroom dancing. Can we organize ballroom dancing classes in each neighborhood committee?"
She emphasized, "Ballroom dancing is free. We can find a few residents who can dance and serve as teachers in each neighborhood committee. We can gather together those who want to learn, and dance the cha-cha in the courtyard every night after dinner. It's so exciting!"
Zhang Qinjian rarely praised Ye Manzhi: "Well, Xiaoye, this is a good idea. It doesn't cost money, and it can also exercise the body and cultivate sentiment!"
Ye Manzhi was praised, but before she could feel happy, she heard him continue to criticize her: "However, you should pay attention to the impact when dancing. Women should dress appropriately, not too flashy."
“…”
Mulan interrupted, "Xiaoye, this is a really good idea. Ballroom dancing is all the rage in all major organizations right now, and we can't fall behind. Wei Zhen should organize and mobilize everyone who wants to learn, and have them go to the neighborhood committees and sign up. Residents have been busy with the four pest control efforts lately, and they're really tired. They really need some entertainment to relax and unwind."
She glanced at the four new comrades and added, "Especially the young people in our neighborhood office, it would be great if they could all learn to ballroom dance. I heard that Factory 656 and several surrounding units are planning to jointly organize some ballroom dances for unmarried young men and women to socialize. Our neighborhood office could also participate and create some opportunities for you unmarried men and women."
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