Chuntao covered her mouth, fighting back the tears that welled up and swirled in her eyes.
"Tao!" Aunt Zhou, seeing her face growing paler, rubbed her hands together anxiously. "Wait here, I'll go get Zhao Qingjiang right now!"
"Godmother, don't go. I'll be fine after a little sleep!" Chuntao reached out and tugged at her hem, her voice trembling.
Zhou Zhijun watched from the side, his eyes red with anxiety. "If you're sick, you need medicine. How can sleep cure it?"
Saying this, he reached out to help her up. "Come on, go sleep on the bed in the east room..."
Zhou Zhijun helped Chuntao to the bed in the east room, but Chuntao suddenly grabbed his wrist, tears streaming down her face.
She pleaded tearfully, "Brother Zhijun, don't go... I have something to tell you!"
"What is it? Tell me." Zhou Zhijun frowned deeply, turning his hand to grasp her freezing one while wiping the tears from her face with his other hand.
"My time of the month... is five days late. I'm afraid... afraid I might be expecting..."
"Expecting? Expecting what?" Zhou Zhijun didn't register it for a moment.
A blush suddenly rushed to Chuntao's pale cheeks. Lowering her eyes, she didn't dare look at him. "Brother Zhijun, I'm afraid I'm having a baby!"
"What? Say that again!" Zhou Zhijun's pupils shrank sharply, his voice rising an octave.
Chuntao's voice dropped even lower. "My time should have come a while ago, but it still hasn't. I'm afraid... what if I really am pregnant..."
"Don't cry! If you really are, I'll take you away immediately!" Zhou Zhijun looked at her with heartache, his heart filled with both shock and joy.
A relative of his had gotten a sterilization injection just a year ago, yet his wife still got pregnant again.
He had thought the injection would last at least a year or half a year. Who knew it would be so useless and lose its effect after just two months?
But that was fine too. He would take her far away, and next year they could live their lives holding their baby.
The corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up slightly. He leaned in close to Chuntao's ear, his tone light and gentle. "Tao, if you're pregnant, I'll take you away. We'll have the baby, and the two of us can be parents!"
Chuntao's small face burned hot, her heart pounding with uncertainty. "Where could we even go..."
"No matter where we go, I will protect you. Don't be afraid!"
Zhou Zhijun knew clearly that this was only Chuntao's guess. He wanted to take her to see Zhao Qingjiang, but he was afraid that if she really was pregnant, it would be trouble if the news got out.
He squeezed her hand tightly, looking at her tenderly. "Today I'll go to the commune police station and ask again..."
In the kitchen, Aunt Zhou stirred the dough drop soup, her mind racing with suspicion.
She was an experienced woman who had given birth to five children in a row. Chuntao's dry heaving just now didn't look like a bad stomach at all; it looked like she was expecting!
The more Aunt Zhou thought about it, the more alarmed she became, and the hand gripping the ladle couldn't help but tremble.
If she really was pregnant, in a place like Wangjia Village, the gossip alone could drown a person!
Flustered, she cracked two eggs into the pot to poach them, scooped them into a coarse porcelain bowl, and carried it toward the east room.
Hearing footsteps, Zhou Zhijun quickly let go of Chuntao's hand.
"Tao, are you feeling any better?" Aunt Zhou placed the bowl on the nightstand, sat on the edge of the bed, and took Chuntao's hand, rubbing it gently.
As soon as Chuntao smelled the food, her stomach churned violently again. She quickly pressed a hand to her chest, pressing her lips tightly together, not even daring to breathe.
Aunt Zhou let out a long sigh and turned to order Zhou Zhijun, "Go to the kitchen and cut a few slices of ginger for her to hold in her mouth. It will suppress the nausea!"
"Oh!"
Zhou Zhijun suddenly remembered when his eldest sister, Zhou Zhicai, was pregnant. She had returned to her family home for the Mid-Autumn Festival and wanted to throw up at the sight of food. His mother had also given her ginger slices to hold in her mouth to soothe her.
Soon, Zhou Zhijun returned holding a few thin slices of ginger.
Aunt Zhou picked up a slice and offered it to Chuntao's lips. "Keep this in your mouth. It will settle your stomach and make you feel much better."
Chuntao opened her mouth and took the ginger. As the spicy flavor spread, her stomach indeed felt less uncomfortable.
"Zhijun, go find your father and tell him to come back for breakfast!" Aunt Zhou sent him away, wanting to ask Chuntao for the truth.
But seeing Chuntao's embarrassed and distressed look, she was afraid of touching a sore spot. The words reached her lips, but she swallowed them back.
For breakfast, Chuntao only drank half a bowl of porridge, and Aunt Zhou forced her to eat one of the poached eggs.
Her entire body felt as soft as if she had no bones. Lying in bed, her heart tossed and turned, unable to find peace.
After eating breakfast, Zhou Zhijun let Chuntao know he was leaving and pedaled his bicycle toward the commune.
He wanted to ask Wu Mingwei for help to get Chuntao a household registration book, so they could openly marry and have a child. But the police at the station said Wu Mingwei was away on a business trip and wouldn't be back for several months.
"If the woman doesn't have a household registration book, can we get a marriage certificate with a certificate from the village?"
"That used to happen in the past, but isn't it a special period right now? Family planning work is very strict, and all documents must be complete!"
The policeman spoke with absolute certainty. Zhou Zhijun knew clearly that if they couldn't get a marriage certificate, Chuntao's pregnancy couldn't be made public.
Zhou Zhijun returned home and walked into the east room. He saw that Chuntao had fallen asleep. Aunt Zhou sat by the bed, holding a fan in one hand and a handkerchief in the other, fanning her while wiping the sweat from her forehead.
"Is she asleep?" Zhou Zhijun asked, lowering his voice.
"Where did you go?" Aunt Zhou replied softly, the palm-leaf fan in her hand never stopping.
"I went to the commune to see if Wu Mingwei was back. I wanted her to help get Tao a household registration book, but they said she won't be back for months!"
Aunt Zhou frowned but said nothing.
She thought to herself: if Chuntao really is pregnant, we need to quickly find her a husband's family to marry into. But without a household registration book, she can't get a marriage certificate! What should we do?
Zhou Zhijun couldn't bear to wake Chuntao. He pulled up a small stool to sit by the bed, watching over her quietly.
Aunt Zhou suddenly put down the fan and lowered her voice, "Zhijun, come outside. I have something to ask you!"
Saying that, she stood up and walked to the doorway of the east room.
Zhou Zhijun's heart skipped a beat, and he followed her out.
Could his mother have figured it out? Or had Chuntao confessed to her?
However, he felt quite calm. Sooner or later, his parents had to know about him and Chuntao.
"Mother, what is it?"
"Zhijun, tell me the truth..."
Just as Aunt Zhou started to speak, a flurry of messy footsteps suddenly came from the courtyard gate, mixed with a few rough-voiced shouts.
The two turned their heads to look outside and saw that it was actually the commune's joint defense squad. They had already entered the courtyard, each wearing a stern expression, their dark, piercing eyes sweeping toward the house.
