Wang Haichao had been a bachelor for decades, with only himself to feed and no one else to worry about. But now, faced with the task of sending Liu Cuilan to the hospital, he really didn't want to go.
Besides, he didn't have a single cent to his name. How could he go to the county town?
Seeing that Wang Haichao had no intention of taking Liu Cuilan to the county hospital, Wang Xiaohong said angrily, "What kind of man are you? All talk and sweet words to trick people, but when something real happens, you chicken out!"
"No money, how can we go? You get the money!" Wang Haichao replied irritably.
"My mother is with you, so she's your wife. If you have no money, go borrow some! You have to get her treated. This illness was caused by you anyway. If anything happens to her, I'll report you to the police station!"
As Wang Xiaohong spoke, she looked at the flatbed cart. Her heart clenched tightly at the sight. "Mom! Mom..."
Wang Xiaohong called out several times, but Liu Cuilan did not open her eyes.
Suddenly, Wang Haibao shouted, "Brother, look, she's bleeding..."
He was squatting by the wall, pointing under the cart. Everyone quickly looked where he was pointing and saw blood dripping through the gaps in the wooden planks of the cart bed.
Wang Xiaohong was terrified. She ran out to beg the doctor to save Liu Cuilan.
The doctor said impatiently, "Didn't I tell you to go to the county hospital? We don't have the equipment here!"
They had no money for the county hospital. Wang Xiaohong was so anxious that tears streamed down her face.
She ran out of the clinic and headed down the street towards home. Right then, she saw Zhou Zhijun riding a bicycle towards her.
Last night, Chuntao had gotten her period and was using that coarse, stiff old cloth. Afraid it would chafe her, he had come to the street after breakfast, planning to buy two jin of toilet paper for her and get some other things.
"Uncle Zhijun, I was just looking for you! My mom fainted. I want to borrow some money to send her to the city!"
Wang Xiaohong's eyes were red, and as she spoke, tears rolled down.
Zhou Zhijun realized then that Chuntao hadn't told him the whole truth. "How did it get so serious?"
"Uncle Zhijun, I don't have time to explain in detail. Do you have any money on you?"
He had brought twenty yuan with him, which was definitely not enough for a trip to the county hospital.
He took the money out and handed it to her. "That's all I have in my pocket."
In the past, he had helped her out of respect for Wang Laohan.
Now that Liu Cuilan had a man, Zhou Zhijun really didn't want to get involved in her affairs anymore. But Wang Xiaohong was pleading with him, and he couldn't bring himself to refuse.
"Take this first. I'll go home and try to get some more." He turned his bicycle around and pedaled off.
In those years when every penny had to be stretched thin, no family had much money. Not being in debt was considered doing well.
Zhou Zhijun was skilled at farming and had good harvests every year.
He also knew how to build walls and sometimes went to the brick kiln to stack raw bricks. He worked tirelessly all year round. His family didn't have many expenses, but over the years, he had helped the Wang family a lot.
His sister-in-law, seeing him help the Wang family, felt unbalanced, as if she had suffered a great loss. She would borrow money from him for every little thing, so over the years he hadn't managed to save much.
Last night, after returning from Chuntao's room, he lay in bed thinking that from now on, he wouldn't lend money to anyone else. He wanted to spend his money on the woman he cherished.
He returned home, took forty yuan in cash from the cabinet, and was about to leave when Aunt Zhou saw him. "Second Son, what are you doing with so much money?"
Aunt Zhou couldn't stand Liu Cuilan's shrewish and unreasonable behavior. Even if Zhou Zhijun wanted to marry her, she, as his mother, would be the first to object.
What made her even angrier was that night when Liu Cuilan said in front of so many people that Zhou Zhijun was 'no good'. Wasn't that just making her son lose face?
Zhou Zhijun had helped her family for a full four years. Not only was she ungrateful, she also slandered him like that. Aunt Zhou was furious.
Zhou Zhijun said, "Mom, calm down. From now on, we'll just have nothing to do with her, that's all."
But Aunt Zhou said, "That won't do. Forget about all the work you've done for her over the years, but the borrowed money must be paid back!"
"Okay, Mom, I'll make her pay it back."
"You... if I say you're foolish, you're not really foolish. If I say you're not foolish, look how you helped Liu Cuilan all this time, and in the end you got nothing out of it!"
Coming back for money, Zhou Zhijun didn't dare tell his mother the truth and made up an excuse before leaving.
Out of the forty yuan, he kept ten, planning to buy things for Chuntao.
When Wang Haichao saw Zhou Zhijun arrive, he quickly put on an ingratiating smile. "Brother Zhijun, could you do us a favor and take Cuilan to the county hospital?"
"I have things to do!" Zhou Zhijun didn't even look at him, turned around, and left.
If something really happened to Liu Cuilan, Wang Haichao wouldn't be able to escape responsibility either, which made him nervous.
The morning bus to the city had already left, so they had to spend two yuan to hire a large three-wheeled vehicle. They bumped along the road all the way to the county hospital.
At the county hospital, the doctor immediately performed surgery to remove the shards of glass and gave Wang Haichao a stern lecture.
"You're playing with fire! A serious infection could be fatal. Don't mess around like that in the future!"
"Understood!" Wang Haichao nodded repeatedly. "Can we go back now?"
"The injury is quite serious. She needs anti-inflammatory treatment. Stay for a few days. If there are no major issues, then you can go back."
...
Zhou Zhijun went to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy toilet paper. He stood in front of the counter for a long time, too embarrassed to speak up.
The salesclerk was a middle-aged woman sitting there cracking melon seeds. She glanced up at him. "What do you want?"
Zhou Zhijun steeled himself and quickly pointed at the toilet paper. "Give me two jin of that!"
He then pointed towards the groceries section. "A pack of brown sugar, and a box of pastries!"
He thought of Chuntao's clothes, which were too tight and small, especially the undershirt inside, which was almost bursting at the seams and had several patches.
He wanted to buy some fabric to make clothes for her. He thought about it, but he didn't buy any. He knew she wouldn't accept it.
Liu Cuilan seemed seriously ill and wouldn't be back from the county hospital anytime soon. Zhou Zhijun thought to himself, what a pity that such a perfect opportunity was right in front of him, yet he couldn't do anything!
But then he reconsidered. Even if he couldn't do that, he could still go see her every night. Just holding her made his heart feel as sweet as if he'd drunk honey.
He didn't dare take the things he bought back home. Instead, he hid them in a secluded spot in his own field.
After dark, he went to the river to bathe and didn't go back immediately.
The summer heat was intense. People in the village went to bed late. Many gathered at the village entrance with fans to cool off. They were all sharp-eyed and keen-eared, always on the lookout for some fresh gossip or amusement!
Zhou Zhijun wandered in the fields until midnight, estimating that no one was at the village entrance anymore before heading back.
Chuntao, who was already malnourished, felt weak in the legs after losing so much blood from her period. Her vision kept blurring. She didn't even feel like making dinner. After feeding the pigs, she just lay down.
But she couldn't sleep at all. The scenes from last night kept swirling in her mind.
Zhou Zhijun's sturdy physique, his heavy breathing, the rough feel of his hands moving over her body, the burning heat of his palms, him even helping her with the sanitary belt... all of it unsettled her, making her cheeks feel hot again.
His words also lingered in her ears. "I truly cherish you... it has nothing to do with Liu Cuilan..."
A subtle feeling seemed to be quietly growing in Chuntao's heart—something a little sweet, a little bitter, and a little timid.
But this feeling had just surfaced when she suppressed it with hatred.
Zhou Zhijun had bullied her in the melon field, and last night he came to her home, looking at her, a pure and innocent person, completely exposed... She should hate him, not have such thoughts.
She gritted her teeth and cursed in her heart, "Shameless!"
Chuntao was drifting into a daze when she suddenly felt a great rush of warmth flow out, soaking through the coarse cloth pad beneath her once again.
Her legs felt weak, and she walked as if floating. After changing in the outhouse, she had just stepped one foot over the threshold when someone wrapped their arms around her waist from behind.
The man's exhaled breath was scorching hot. She trembled all over, and a scream caught in her throat.
