Chapter 08 Father and Son

He smokes in his bed, even on the toilet, and the smell of smoke is everywhere.

Pu Xiang hated this feeling the most, because he had been "nagging" about this for countless years, but Shi Dafu just wouldn't change his bad habits. If he said a few more words, he would frown and say something unpleasant.

Whenever Pu Xiang thought of those things, she felt a tightness in her chest. She was lucky as she had not developed breast cancer from anger after so many years.

A younger sister from her natal family married a bad man and contracted this disease in her 30s. The only medical technology available at the time was to have an amputation, but she lived for another three years before the disease relapsed and she died.

You can't be angry. There's no point in being angry. You're getting divorced anyway, and she will have nothing to do with this kind of man in the future.

It’s his business how he wants to smoke, he can light the quilt and smoke, or he can pull it while standing upside down and smoke, it’s all up to him!

Thinking of this, Pu Xiang felt much better. This man had been a dull person all his life anyway. After the divorce, without her, the wife whom he despised in every way, just imagine how he would live.

Shi Dafu is a big boss who is too lazy to do any work in the fields or at home.

If there was a competition to select lazy people, he would definitely come back with first place.

When they first got married, Pu Xiang tried to change this man. He didn't need to be very diligent, just do the most basic work.

During the busy farming season, the family would go to the fields together. When they came home, if he didn't need to do the laundry or cook, he could just help fold the clothes or wipe the table.

In rural areas these days, although there are not many old men doing laundry and cooking, there are some, and Shi Dafu's father is a good example.

When Pu Xiang was introduced to a man, she didn't think much of Shi Dafu because he didn't like her type. However, Shi Dafu didn't know that he was not Pu Xiang's type either.

But firstly, the Shi family had good conditions and were the first to build a house, so many girls wanted to marry into their family.

In addition, Shi Hai, the father-in-law, is hardworking and capable, and takes care of everything at home.

Although my mother-in-law is sick and unable to work, their family is well off and they don't need a laborer. Besides, if she is in poor health, she won't have the energy to torture her daughter-in-law, right?

Pu Xiang's parents were satisfied, and Pu Xiang had no reason to disagree. In the end, she agreed to the marriage for the sake of her father-in-law Shi Hai.

Like father, like son. If Shi Dafu is half as good as his father, Pu Xiang will be satisfied with such a husband.

Pu Xiang was not even 19 years old at that time, and she was just 20 years old when she gave birth to Shi Jiajie.

Even after a few decades, he is still a child who knows nothing.

Pu Xiang's parents were very nice to her and sent her to junior high school. Few girls in the village could enjoy this treatment.

There are many children who go back home to work and help take care of their younger siblings before finishing primary school.

So, my parents said that the Shi family had good conditions, and judging from the character of Shi Hai and his wife, they were also pretty good. My father-in-law was capable, and my mother-in-law was sickly, so Pu Xiang would not have a hard time if she married into the family.

It is true that my parents' vision is very different. Pu Xiang did not suffer at the hands of her in-laws.

The only thing I didn't expect was that Shi Dafu was not a good enough man.

He loves to eat but is lazy, has a habit of cheating on his wife, and when he gets old he doesn't even have the slightest affection for his wife. He doesn't have the conscience of a normal person.

Because there was a man smoking heavily in the room, Pu Xiang was hit by the pungent and unpleasant smell of cigarettes when she opened the door.

Shi Dafu was lying there, and Shi Jiajie was also lying there. The father and son just took off their shoes and rolled around on it.

Shi Dafu was better off, as he was an adult and had no work to do, so he was relatively clean. But Shi Jiajie, a kid, had been running around all day, and was covered in sweat and dust. He had just been rolling around on the ground. At this time, the best land in the countryside was cement, and few people even had terrazzo. After rolling around like that, you can imagine how dirty his body was.

Pu Xiang frowned. Under normal circumstances, she would definitely go over and grab the person down, give him a lecture, and then clean the bed.

She doesn't want to be scratched by pebbles, dirt particles, dead branches and leaves in her quilt when she goes to sleep. In this season, there may even be a few dried "thorn balls" (note), which can at best prick people, but can get stuck in her hair and be impossible to get rid of.

Every autumn, there are always a few children crying because they can’t get the frizzles off their hair. Their parents scold them and then have a headache helping them to get rid of the frizzles.

Pu Xiang gave birth to a son with short hair, so she didn't have any vivid memories of the experience.

Pu Xiang just glanced at the two people, one big and one small, on the bed, frowned, then turned around and pulled Mo Jingjing to the side room.

The Shi family's house has three rooms on the first floor. The corridor is in the front. The first room on the upper floor is the westernmost room, where Shi Hai and his wife live. The middle room is the living room, which has a 14-inch black-and-white TV, two old-fashioned wooden sofa chairs, and several square stools.

There is a low cabinet against the north wall, and some miscellaneous items in it.

Pu Xiang walked over and took out two new cotton quilts directly from the cupboard. These were quilts made from the cotton she had grown herself two years ago.

The new quilt was originally intended to be used after the old one was worn out. The older generation and people of their generation have the habit of keeping good things away and are reluctant to use them. No matter how worn out the old one is, it can still be used for three years after sewing it up and patching it up.

After a few decades, this is called eating without suffering.

Pu Xiang didn't care about all this at this time. She just used the cotton she grew to make a quilt, and she could use it whenever she wanted.

Besides, when she gets divorced, she probably won’t be able to take any of these things with her.

That was the way it was these days, the most she could take was a few of her own clothes.

The rest of the things, including people and things, all have the surname Shi.

But these are not important. Pu Xiang didn't think about these things. She found a few clean snakeskin bags and put them on the ground, spread the quilt on it, and found new sheets. At that time, four-piece sets were basically not used in rural areas, and there were no quilt covers. Quilts still needed to be sewn with cloth and thread.

There were no entertainment activities at night in those days like in later generations, and it was still early for bedtime, so she simply took out her needle and thread and sewed a quilt cover for the quilt.

Mo Jingjing was like a little tail, the little girl followed her and watched whatever she did. Seeing this, Pu Xiang asked her to help her pull the quilt and do a little favor.

The little girl was not so nervous because she had something to do.

…

The moment Pu Xiang opened the door, Shi Dafu and his son Shi Jiajie were already prepared for the nagging that would follow.

Especially Shi Jiajie, he had already made up his mind that if his mother came to grab him, he would roll over to his father's side and would never get out of bed.

Humph, who told her to eat all the chicken tonight? It was clearly meant for daddy! She is so mean!

Although Shi Jiajie is only 5 years old, he can see clearly the relationships among the adults in the family.

His mother is fierce, his grandfather is better than his mother, and his grandmother and father love him the most.

And mom has to listen to dad and grandpa and grandma.

However, neither the Shi family father nor his son expected that Pu Xiang would leave like this.

He turned and left without saying a word.

Shi Jiajie was young and couldn't hold back his words: "Why didn't Mom scold me today? What did she do with Mo Jingjing?"

Shi Dafu said: "Wouldn't it be better if she didn't scold you?"

Shi Jiajie thought it was right. His mother didn't scold him because she was scared. His father was just mean to her. Let's see if she dares to eat chicken again in the future!

So I rolled around in bed even happier.

When the door was opened, Shi Dafu also saw the little girl Mo Jingjing, the child from next door, and he recognized her at first sight.

How did you bring the child back?

Shi Dafu wanted to reprimand her and ask her to mind her own business, but when he thought about the fact that they were still arguing, her inappropriate behavior during dinner, and the fact that she even mentioned divorce, he didn't want to take the initiative to talk to her.

She didn't want to live this life anymore, so did she think he did?

He doesn't want to live anymore than she does!

While he was thinking about something, the door of the room was opened again. Shi Dafu took a glance and thought it was Pu Xiang who came back. But when he looked up, he found it was his father Shi Hai.

"Come out with me for a moment."

Shi Hai's expression was not very good, and his face was gloomy.

When Shi Dafu saw his father like this, his heart skipped a beat.

Every time his father shows this expression, something bad is going to happen.

Shi Dafu was not too stupid. He immediately thought of what Pu Xiang said about him and Zhou Fang hiding behind the firewood pile during the quarrel.

"Dad, what's the matter? It's getting late..."

"Come out!"

Shi Hai did not give him any room to retreat, he lowered his voice and scolded him.

Shi Dafu immediately got out of bed dejectedly, put on his slippers, and followed with his head down.

When passing by the middle room, I heard Pu Xiang and the little girl talking in the room. Their voices were soft and gentle.

Gentle?

Shi Dafu thought that the reason he was still connected with Pu Xiang this time must be because he didn't see what she looked like.

The father and son went downstairs and hid in front of the stove at the back.

Before Shi Hai could say anything, he took out a cigarette and started puffing.

The father didn't say anything, and the son Shi Dafu didn't dare to speak either... Who knew which of his words would hit his father's gun.

Shi Hai smoked half a cigarette before he started: "What's going on between you and Zhou Fang?"

That's exactly what happened.

Shi Dafu immediately shook his head: "What could possibly happen between her and me? Jiajie went to kindergarten, and I ran into her and asked her about the situation a few times."

If his voice wasn't so hollow, it would still be convincing.

How could Shi Hai, as a father, not understand what his son was farting? He felt guilty as soon as he heard it.

"Zhou Fang, that woman, has a man and a daughter, and she's still flirting with people. How can she be a good person? Why is she doing this, don't you understand? Just for the money in your pocket. Clear your mind, don't think about your wife, think about your son too. Do you want a divorce, or do you want your son to be accused of having a mistress? You're only relaxing now. If you'd relaxed it a few years ago, you would have been convicted of hooliganism and sent to court. In serious cases, you might even have been shot!"

Shi Hai lived through that era, but Shi Dafu was young at the time and didn't really catch up with anything, so his feelings weren't as deep.

Shi Dafu felt annoyed when he heard his father talking about "back then, back then" all the time. The society has changed a long time ago. Now we have reform and opening up, but why mention a few years ago? It has been several years since the land was distributed to households. In the past, buying and selling something was considered speculation. Now if you go to the streets and look around, you will see that most shops have been allowed to do so for a long time.

"I understand. There is really nothing going on between me and Zhou Fang."

No matter how much Shi Dafu thought in his heart, he had to obey his father's words.

Who let his father control the family's money and power?

Seeing his son like this, Shi Hai knew that he didn't listen, but he was his biological son and he was already a father, so he couldn't say much.

After all, he will still have to rely on him for support in his old age.

All he could do was to comfort his daughter-in-law. Fortunately, the woman had given birth to a child, and his heart was always on the child. Any words about divorce and not wanting the child were just angry words and should not be taken seriously.

"Don't just say you know it. Behave yourself these days and don't make your wife angry again!"

Shi Hai still gave his son a warning.

Shi Dafu agreed to whatever his father said. As for whether he was honest or not, that was another matter.

First, cheer up the old man who has the money in his hand.

The conversation between the father and son was very "successful". As they were returning to the front room one after the other, someone else happened to walk in from outside.

"My uncle and Dafu are both at home. Third sister, bring Jingjing over to play for a while. It's getting late, so I'll take her back to bed."

Zhou Xiaorou didn't see Pu Xiang, but saw the father and son of the Shi family first, and immediately greeted them with a smile.

From Mo Yang's perspective, they are several generations apart in kinship, so the term "uncle" is actually several levels away. It's just a polite title, not a real relative.

This matter has been resolved, and there is still one more thing to be solved.

In his heart, Shi Hai also blamed his daughter-in-law for being ignorant and taking on other people's affairs. Now her stepmother came to him.

But he still didn't show anything on his face.

"Third sister has gone upstairs. Let Jingjing stay here tonight. She and Jiajie will have company to play with. You can come back tomorrow to take her back."

Shi Hai sent Zhou Xiaorou away. He could see clearly that Pu Xiang was in a bad mood tonight. If he let Zhou Xiaorou go up, there would be another fight, so he decided to forget it.

Zhou Xiaorou didn't expect that as soon as she entered the Shi family, she would run into this old guy Shi Hai.

He is the smartest person in the Shi family. If it were Shi Dafu alone, or the old lady Mo A-mei, if she wanted to take Mo Jingjing back, it would only take a few words.

"Uncle, if Jingjing stayed at your house normally, she would have stayed for a few nights, not to mention one night, but today... Jingjing is a disobedient child. I just scolded her and spanked her twice, and Third Sister saw it. She might think that I am a bad stepmother. This is not a big deal. Being a stepmother is not easy. I am mentally prepared. I am just afraid that Third Sister will talk to Mo Yang about it, and Mo Yang will really think that I abused the child and affected the relationship between husband and wife. Uncle, Mo Yang and I have had a hard time, and I just want to live a good life."

Zhou Xiaorou is really willing to sacrifice her reputation and act pitiful to speak for herself.

Before Shi Hai could say anything, Shi Dafu's eyebrows were wrinkled so tightly that they could pinch a fly to death.

"I'll go call my third sister..."

As soon as Shi Dafu opened his mouth, Shi Hai reached out and pulled him behind him, standing between the two of them.

"Don't think too much. Just let the child stay for one night. I will ask my third sister not to tell Mo Yang. Don't worry. Even if the child makes any mistakes in the future, don't hit him. Just talk to him nicely."

No matter how soft-spoken Zhou Xiaorou was or how weak and innocent she looked, it was useless because Shi Haiding hated women like this.

With the appearance of this little devil, she can't do anything, doesn't take good care of the children, and only looks at the old men with crooked eyes. It's just that Mo Yang is unlucky that his wife died of illness and he got married for the second time with a daughter, so it's hard to marry him. Otherwise, it would never be the turn of a woman like this to marry into the family.

Mo Yang is not a fool, he is also helpless because of the child.

From Shi Hai's tone, Zhou Xiaorou realized that she was blocked at the door and couldn't get in. She was furious, but she still had an innocent and pitiful expression on her face, and then she walked away, looking back every few steps.

Shi Hai went over and closed the door, then turned around and saw that his son still had an expression of pity on his face, so he immediately glared at him.

"Don't mess with Zhou Xiaorou!"

This confused son likes this type the most. His vision of people is so bad that he thinks his eyes are on his butt.

Shi Dafu snorted twice, which was considered as his agreement.

"I'm going to take a walk."

Having said that, he quickly opened the door and went out.

It's still early and I can't fall asleep even if I go to bed. The busy farming season is over and everyone has some free time. The weather hasn't gotten completely cold yet. After dinner, we have nothing to do, so we get together to chat and play cards, which is quite entertaining.