He Tiantian recognized the voice all too well; it was none other than Liu Shi's voice.
Her house was close to the dilapidated temple, so any noise in the courtyard could be clearly heard by several neighboring families.
"What's going on?" Liu Yonghe doesn't come here often, so he naturally doesn't know what's going on.
Wang Dazhuang was also completely bewildered.
Sister-in-law Yulan was used to it. "Let's eat. It's the New Year, and Zhao San's house is just so unlucky. They're always arguing and making a scene. Poor Da Gou and Er Gou, they're so young and they have to suffer with their parents!"
As Yulan spoke, she rolled her eyes, clearly looking down on this family from the bottom of her heart.
Liu Yonghe nodded; he knew Zhao San all too well. Zhao San had been in the same work group as him at the mine. Zhao San was a troublemaker in the village, and he wasn't reliable at the mine either.
They spend their days swindling and cheating with the other local thugs. If it weren't for the dangerous work in the mine and the difficulty in finding workers, they would probably have been fired long ago.
While the outside world was bustling with activity, He Tiantian and her family calmly enjoyed their New Year's feast.
The group devoured the food, finishing off both large bowls of meat broth and not leaving a single grain of white rice.
After finishing their meal, He Tiantian nudged Yulan's mother's arm and said, "Come on, let's go see what's going on."
She was simply curious. The Liu family's house was noisy all the time, but it had never been this chaotic as today. Moreover, she thought she heard Zhao Tingzhang's voice.
When they arrived at the Liu family's house, it was already surrounded by other villagers.
"That Zhao San is a real scoundrel, he actually cheated on his wife with someone else."
"Yes, Liu was unlucky too. She bore children for Zhao San, but in the end, she ended up like this."
The villagers were all pointing and whispering, and He Tiantian couldn't help but listen to a few words.
She was somewhat surprised. Could it be that Liu had caught Zhao San and Widow Zhang having that little affair? Sure enough, there are no secrets that stay hidden forever.
"Come on, let's go take a look ahead." Yulan's mother pulled He Tiantian and squeezed forward.
He Tiantian also spotted Zhao Yanniang, who seemed to have been there for quite some time. Sure enough, Zhao Yanniang was always at the forefront of gossip.
Liu knelt on the ground, looking miserable, while Zhao San leaned against the door, seemingly unconcerned. Zhao Tingzhang, on the other hand, moved a stool and sat in the middle to judge the matter.
Zhao's cousins, along with the old and young men by the door, were all present at that moment.
"Chief, say something! I've borne two sons for Zhao San, and now he wants to divorce me?" Liu cried, her hair disheveled and her clothes torn.
It seems that the couple had already reached the point of fighting before this happened.
"Yes, I'm going to divorce you! If my parents hadn't stopped me back then, I wouldn't have married you!" Zhao San acted as if Liu Shi had married above her station, without any guilt whatsoever.
Zhao Dagou stood to the side; he looked to be about fifteen years old. Most of the other kids his age in the village were already married, but his marriage was still nowhere in sight.
The reason was that his father, Zhao San, had a bad reputation, and no family dared to marry their daughter into such a family. A woman named Liu asked a matchmaker to introduce several men, but when she mentioned that Zhao Dagou's father was Zhao San, they all made up an excuse to decline.
At this moment, Zhao Dagou said calmly, "Mother, I support you separating from my father."
"Huh?" Madam Liu looked at her eldest son with some confusion.
“But I’m not asking my father to divorce you. You two should get a divorce. I’ll go with my mother and take you to town to find a job. I’ll take care of you.”
Zhao Dagou's words in front of everyone made some people think that he was a filial son.
He Tiantian couldn't help but look at Zhao Dagou, a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy who still looked quite immature. Zhao Dagou was tall and thin, but thankfully his personality didn't come from his father.
"You unfilial dog! You want me to divorce your mother? Dream on!" Zhao San got angry as soon as he heard this and kicked Zhao Dagou.
He was absolutely against divorce; in his family for hundreds of generations, no man had ever been divorced.
If he gets a divorce, it would be a disgrace to him as a man!
"Enough!" Zhao, the village head, slammed his pipe down on the stool beneath him. "Zhao San, why are you hitting the child? I think you've gone too far!"
Zhao, the village head, felt a headache coming on. Even during the New Year holiday, he couldn't have a moment's peace. There were so many cases to settle, from one household to another!
After listening for so long, he finally understood.
Zhao Tingzhang cleared his throat, looked at Liu Shi kneeling on the ground, and asked, "You said Zhao San has other women outside, do you have any evidence? Or have you found out who they are with?"
Liu was taken aback by the question; she hadn't caught them in the act. She'd sensed something was off when Zhao San returned earlier that day.
She leaned closer and smelled the faint scent of rouge on Zhao San. She never used, nor could she afford, such precious things, so what else could it be but that Zhao San was having an affair?
Liu explained the whole story in detail, and Zhao San, who was standing to the side, did not refute it.
Judging from this, even without evidence, Chief Zhao was pretty much certain that it was true.
He frowned. "Zhao San, who are you having an affair with? Tell us the truth right now. Our Changfeng Village has been known for its simple and honest people for thousands of years, and we absolutely will not allow such a filthy thing to happen."
When Widow Zhang, who was standing in the crowd, heard these words, her heart jumped into her throat.
Liu wanted to know more about who the woman who seduced her man was, so she raised her sad face and glanced into the crowd.
Finally, their gaze fell upon He Tiantian...
The man in her family mentioned this woman, He, the most, and Zhao San hadn't bothered her during the previous arguments between the children.
Liu held a grudge against this matter.
When He Tiantian met Liu Shi's vicious gaze, a bad feeling immediately washed over her. Please, was she going to drag her down with her?
If that's the case, then she'll have no choice but to tell the truth.
"Chief, there are only so many women in our village. Zhao San, who is married, is naturally someone we wouldn't dare to mess with, and unmarried girls wouldn't even look at him. So, what's left are the widows?" Liu sneered. "There are only two widows in the entire Changfeng Village. Who else could it be!"
Seeing that his secret was about to be exposed, Zhao San pointed at Liu Shi and cursed, "Don't you dare spout nonsense! You want a divorce, don't you? Fine! A divorce it is! Now get out of this house!"
Liu looked at Zhao San with a mournful expression. Ha, she never expected her husband to be so protective of that widow.
They were willing to sign the divorce papers, but wouldn't even reveal who the widow was.
"Mother, I'm going to pack my things. I'll take you with me after I get the divorce papers," Zhao Dagou said before going into the house.
Although Zhao Ergou was only a year younger than his brother, he was a good-for-nothing, just like his father.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
