How could a grown man like Zhou Zhijun guess the hidden meaning behind Chuntao's words?
Besides, he had gotten a vasectomy long ago and didn't even think in that direction. After speaking, he walked straight to the north room.
Chuntao's heart, however, felt as if it were being squeezed tightly by a giant, icy hand, plunging instantly into an abyss of despair.
It was over, it was really over this time! What if she really was pregnant? What should she do?
Images of women with half-shaved heads being tied up and paraded through the streets flashed through her mind, and tears instantly filled her eyes.
"Tao, what's wrong?" Seeing her like this, Aunt Zhou couldn't help but ask softly, "Is something the matter?"
"No... nothing!" Chuntao hurriedly raised her hand to wipe the corners of her eyes, managing to force a slight smile.
Aunt Zhou felt a bit suspicious in her heart. Why would Zhijun suddenly mention the twentieth for no reason?
Seeing that Chuntao was unwilling to say more, she couldn't press further and just sighed silently.
Chuntao picked up the bowl of warm fennel water and forced herself to take a few sips.
After lying down, Aunt Zhou's even snoring soon sounded, but Chuntao tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
She had been timid since she was a child, but she had never felt so suffocated by fear as she did tonight.
Her man was known by everyone in the village to be impotent. If she got pregnant, wouldn't it be obvious?
When the time came, she wouldn't just be cursed behind her back by the whole village, but by the entire commune as well.
Staying awake with her eyes open until dawn, Chuntao felt a splitting headache, her eyes dry and swollen.
Her whole body lacked strength. When she bent down to wash her face, her vision went black, and she swayed, almost falling. She quickly grabbed the washbasin stand to steady herself.
"Tao, still feeling so unwell?" Hearing the noise, Zhou Zhijun quickly stepped over to support her, his face full of worry.
Aunt Zhou, who was cooking in the kitchen, heard the sound and also walked to the kitchen door. "Your body is too weak! Don't delay, go see Qingjiang right now!"
Zhou Zhijun handed her a clean towel and said softly, "Wipe your face, I'll help you over there."
The gossipy women in the village always loved to wag their tongues and make up rumors about Chuntao.
If Zhou Zhijun helped Chuntao go see a doctor, they would definitely start talking nonsense again.
Aunt Zhou untied her apron, threw it on the stove, and said to Zhou Zhijun, "You stay home and tend the fire, I'll take Tao!
Let Qingjiang take her pulse properly, prescribe a couple of herbal remedies, and help her recover!"
"Godmother, I'm really fine!" Chuntao waved her hands in a panic, her voice trembling. "It was just too hot last night, I didn't sleep well. I'll be fine after a short rest!"
Although she had never had a child, she had heard her grandmother say that taking a pulse could reveal a pregnancy! How could she dare to go?
"How can that be okay?" Aunt Zhou said without leaving any room for argument, stepping forward to hold her arm. "Let's go. It will be troublesome if a minor illness drags on into a major one!"
"Granny! Sister-in-law!"
Just then, Wang Xiaoming walked through the door carrying half a sack of watermelons.
"You child, why did you carry so many melons here?" Aunt Zhou asked, unable to help but scold him mildly when she saw him.
"The weather has been ridiculously hot these past few days, and you haven't had time to go to the fields to pick any, so I picked a few and brought them over to help you cool off!"
"With Li Chuntao gone, who will take care of your brother?"
Wang Xiaohong felt even more conflicted in her heart, but she still stiffened her neck and replied, "If you're so capable, go yourself! I'm not going! The police already said that she and my brother aren't even a married couple! She can live wherever she wants!"
Liu Cuilan, having been rebuffed, cursed, "You wretched girl, you have the temper of a stubborn donkey! If you don't go, you'll regret it later!"
After cursing, she stomped all the way to the melon field in the east gully to find Wang Xiaoming.
These days, Wang Xiaoming's mind was also in a mess, and he felt very depressed.
Yesterday, when he went to Qingshan Street to sell watermelons, he stopped by the school to take a look, only to find out that he was three points short of getting into the key high school.
The cutoff scores for technical and normal schools were even higher than those for high school, so he couldn't even dream of those.
There were only two paths laid out before him: either return home to farm, or repeat a year and take the exam again next year.
But Chuntao was gone, his brother needed someone to serve him, and there was a pile of farm work in the fields. If he repeated the year, who would carry the heavy burden of the family?
No matter how unwilling he was, he could only accept it. Wang Xiaoming lay in the melon shed, looking up at the fragmented moonlight leaking through the roof, his heart aching with bitterness.
Previously, he had sworn to get into a university, earn a state grain ration, and repay Chuntao properly.
But now, he hadn't even gotten into high school, so what was the point of talking about repayment? Forget it, maybe it was for the best that he didn't pass, saving him from even more regret.
Just as his thoughts were running wild, Liu Cuilan's shrill voice pierced his ears.
"Xiaoming! Do you want to continue going to school? If you do, go and drag Li Chuntao back from Zhou Zhijun's house! If she doesn't serve your brother, you can forget about going to school!"
Chuntao was a good person, and Wang Xiaoming felt for her from the bottom of his heart.
Over the years, he had seen and remembered all the suffering Chuntao had endured in the Wang family.
Even after he found out about her and Zhou Zhijun, he didn't blame her in the slightest.
Zhou Zhijun could protect her and treat her well; wasn't that a good thing for Chuntao?
He wanted to go to school, but he didn't want to build his future on Chuntao's suffering.
Even if he went to school like that, his conscience would never be at peace for the rest of his life.
"Whether she leaves or not is her business! Whether I go to school or not is my own business!" Wang Xiaoming stiffened his neck and shot back crossly.
"How can you be so ignorant, child!" Liu Cuilan slapped her thigh in agitation.
"I'm doing this for your own good! With her gone, not only will you not be able to go to school, but it will be hard for you to find a wife in the future!
As long as you call Li Chuntao back home and have her obediently serve your brother, this burden will have nothing to do with you anymore! You'll be able to go to school with peace of mind!"
"I'd rather not go to school and stay a bachelor my whole life than do something so wicked!"
Wang Xiaoming sat up abruptly from the bed, his eyes red as he growled, "I actually wish she had left sooner! She suffered in our house for over four years, and what kind of life did she live?"
Wang Xiaoming didn't blame Chuntao, but lately, with one miserable thing after another happening at home, he was so busy he barely had time to breathe, let alone visit her.
He could tell that his sister Wang Xiaohong's attitude towards Chuntao had changed and become very cold.
Chuntao was a person who valued loyalty and affection; she must be feeling terrible inside.
He was afraid Chuntao would mistakenly think that he blamed her just like Wang Xiaohong did. If that happened, wouldn't the bitterness in her heart double?
He had to let Chuntao know that no matter what decision she made, he was on her side.
In his heart, she would always be his gentle and kind sister-in-law.
Therefore, at the crack of dawn, he picked half a sack of watermelons and carried them over to Zhou Zhijun's house.
Zhou Zhijun quickly stepped forward to help him unload the sack of watermelons from his shoulder and asked casually, "Has Brother Xiaowei been helping you sell melons these past few days?"
"Yes! Brother Xiaowei comes to help me every day!"
Chuntao's face was as pale as paper, her lips devoid of any color, and dark circles shadowed her eyes. His heart instantly clenched.
"Sister-in-law, what's wrong? Are you sick?" He took a few quick strides towards her, his voice full of worry.
"No... I'm fine..." Chuntao looked up at Wang Xiaoming, her nose stinging as tears began to fall like rain.
She had thought that everyone in the Wang family hated her to the core, but it turned out she was wrong.
But the better Wang Xiaoming treated her, the more guilty Chuntao felt, as if a heavy stone was weighing down on her heart.
"Xiaoming, the food is almost ready. Come inside and eat something before you go!" Aunt Zhou supported Chuntao as they walked toward the kitchen, turning her head to call out to Wang Xiaoming.
"No thanks, Granny, my sister should have finished cooking by now too!" Wang Xiaoming's gaze fell once again on Chuntao's pale face.
He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a wad of crumpled small bills, walked quickly over to Chuntao, and firmly pressed them into her hand. "Sister-in-law, this is the money I made selling melons these past few days. Take it! Buy some nutritious food to build up your strength!"
The money from selling watermelons a while ago had all been spent on medical bills for Liu Cuilan and Wang Jieshi.
Chuntao was actually still worried about his school tuition.
Now that Wang Xiaoming was giving her money instead, she hurriedly pushed it back. "You keep this money! Save it for your schooling!"
Wang Xiaoming didn't dare tell her that he was dropping out of school. He held her hands down to stop her from refusing. "Take it! There are still a lot of watermelons left in the field to sell. I'll have money for school!"
After saying that, afraid that Chuntao would decline again, he turned around and strode outside.
Chuntao wanted to chase after him, but her legs were so terribly weak that she couldn't stand up at all.
Clutching the crumpled bills in her hand, her chest tightened, and that feeling of nausea surged up once again. She quickly covered her mouth.
