Zhou Pandi ran toward home like a wisp of smoke, with Liu Cuilan's wailing echoing behind her.
"I didn't write it! I don't even know how to read, how could I write it?"
Several village security guards completely ignored Liu Cuilan's tearful pleas. They tied her arms with a long rope and fastened the other end to the back seat of a bicycle.
"Let's go. You can explain yourself properly at the commune!"
But Liu Cuilan plopped down on the ground, stopping her wailing.
With red eyes, she shouted, "I'm not going! I'd rather die than go! I didn't write anything. Why are you framing an innocent person..."
Since Liu Cuilan stubbornly refused to move, two security guards simply hoisted her up and dragged her away.
Zhou Zhijun also felt doubtful. Liu Cuilan was indeed completely illiterate; she definitely couldn't have written that report letter.
However, for someone like her, it was good to take her to the commune for interrogation to crush her unreasonable arrogance.
Who wrote the report letter? The first person Zhou Zhijun thought of was Zhou Zhaodi.
That day, when she was eavesdropping outside the gate, she heard the sounds of Chuntao dry heaving.
After breakfast today, he went to the commune and read the report letter himself.
But the wording and writing style of that letter were simply not something Zhou Zhaodi, who hadn't even finished elementary school, could produce.
If not Zhou Zhaodi, then it had to be Zhou Pandi!
Zhou Zhijun looked up and scanned the chaotic crowd. Zhou Pandi, who had just been there, was nowhere to be seen! He stepped on his bicycle pedals and chased toward the front of the village.
He hadn't gone far before he stopped abruptly, his brows furrowed tightly.
Confront her directly? No good.
That girl Zhou Pandi had a glib tongue and was full of schemes.
Without solid evidence, she would definitely cry to the heavens claiming innocence, and even turn the tables, accusing him, a grown man, of bullying a little girl.
Zhou Zhijun gritted his teeth, spat on the ground, and turned back.
The report letter wasn't written by Liu Cuilan. With her temper, she would definitely deny it to her death.
She and Zhou Zhaodi already had bad blood. Once at the commune, she would definitely drag Zhou Zhaodi into it.
As long as the security guards found Zhou Zhaodi, they could follow the vine to find the melon, and Zhou Pandi wouldn't be able to escape!
A smug smile curled the corners of Zhou Zhijun's mouth as he thought to himself, what a good show of dogs biting dogs. This time, no one will get away!
The security guards dragged Liu Cuilan away, and Officer Wang also left.
The villagers finally dispersed in twos and threes, still discussing the matter with lingering interest.
Aunt Zhou hurried back home. Chuntao was sitting on the edge of the bed in a daze, and Zhou Hongxia sat next to her, holding an insole and embroidering it stitch by stitch.
Before Aunt Zhou even caught her breath, she couldn't wait to share the good news with Chuntao.
"Chuntao! Liu Cuilan framed someone and was taken away by the security guards! Let her taste what it's like to be locked up!"
Chuntao was suddenly stunned, her eyes widening in surprise. Then, tears streamed down her face like pearls from a broken string.
"Woo woo woo..."
She could no longer hold back and covered her face, crying out loud, pouring out all the grievances, bitterness, and humiliation of the past four years.
Aunt Zhou pulled her trembling shoulders into her arms, gently patting her back, her voice also choking with emotion.
"Cry, Chuntao, cry it all out! Wash away all the past unhappiness with your tears. From now on, your days will only be smooth and happy!"
Cloudy old tears rolled down Aunt Zhou's cheeks, dropping one by one onto the top of Chuntao's head.
Zhou Hongxia stood aside, clutching the insole in one hand and quietly wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes with the other.
Zhou Zhijun walked to the door of the inner room. Just as his hand reached out to lift the door curtain, he heard Chuntao's muffled crying and Aunt Zhou's gentle words of comfort from inside, and he silently pulled his hand back.
He turned and left the east room, squatted under the old locust tree in the courtyard, rolled a cigarette, and started smoking.
Chuntao's body...
He needed to find a reliable place and take her for a quiet medical checkup.
If she wasn't pregnant, they would hold a grand wedding banquet first and get the marriage certificate later.
If she really was pregnant... Zhou Zhijun took a drag of his cigarette, his brows furrowing.
Then he would have to take her away, far away. Otherwise, if the villagers started making trouble, the consequences would be severe.
The crying in the east room gradually softened and finally stopped completely.
Aunt Zhou's loud voice came through the window, "Chuntao, it's alright! All the misfortune is in the past. From now on, your life will only be bright!"
Aunt Zhou took out a handkerchief and wiped the tear stains from Chuntao's face, her tone full of joy.
Zhou Hongxia also chimed in, "Sister-in-law Chuntao, no one can bully you anymore. You won't have to suffer like that ever again..."
She suddenly remembered what Wang Xiaohong had secretly told her that night, saying that Chuntao and her second uncle might have been together for a long time.
At that time, Zhou Hongxia thought that if they really ended up together, it would be a good thing.
Her second uncle was thirty-five this year and still a bachelor.
He was over ten years older than Chuntao. If he married her, he would definitely cherish her like a precious treasure.
Chuntao was beautiful and kind-hearted, and she would definitely live wholeheartedly with her second uncle.
When the time came to have a chubby baby, their life would be more beautiful than that of immortals!
"That's wonderful!" Zhou Hongxia thought to herself, and the words slipped out of her mouth uncontrollably.
"Sister-in-law Chuntao is a free woman now. The people in the village won't be able to gossip anymore!"
"Yes!" Aunt Zhou wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.
Changing the subject, she said, "Your godmother will find a good family for you. We'll live a good life and have a chubby baby!"
At the mention of having a baby, Aunt Zhou's brows furrowed imperceptibly.
Chuntao was absolutely pregnant. This was all the sin committed by those bastards Wang Jieshi and Wang Haichao!
This child absolutely could not be kept!
She pondered over and over in her mind how to resolve this.
Going to a proper hospital for an abortion was out of the question; without a marriage certificate or a letter from the production brigade, they wouldn't perform the procedure.
Find the midwife in the neighboring village to do it secretly? The risk was too great. If anything went wrong, Chuntao's life would be on the line.
Besides, if this passed through the midwife's hands, it would spread sooner or later.
Then there would be a lot of gossip again. It would be like a toad crawling on your foot—it doesn't bite, but it disgusts you!
Aunt Zhou really couldn't think of a perfect solution. She decided to discuss it with Zhijun tonight and see if he had any good ideas.
She didn't even want her husband to know about this. After all, it wasn't a glorious matter, and the fewer people who knew, the better.
Meanwhile, Chuntao felt as if her heart was being repeatedly sliced by a dull knife, the pain making her gasp for air.
She was a free woman, but if she really was pregnant with a child...
She wasn't afraid of Liu Cuilan and the others coming to make trouble; she was afraid they would report it to the authorities.
Get rid of it? Zhou Zhijun would definitely not agree.
She had wanted to end it all, but he had saved her.
No one knew that compared to death, she was more afraid of living in constant fear and anxiety.
Fear and anxiety engulfed her like a flood, coupled with the waves of nausea in her stomach. She only managed to force down half a bowl of porridge for dinner.
Aunt Zhou looked at her pale face, her heart aching. She made her a mug of malted milk extract, but Chuntao couldn't drink a single sip.
It wasn't until she saw Chuntao fall into a dazed sleep that Aunt Zhou quietly closed the door and went to the north room.
"Zhijun, I have something to tell you!"
Zhou Zhijun was not asleep yet. He sat on the edge of the bed, pondering where would be the safest place to take Chuntao for a medical checkup.
"What is it?" he asked, looking up at Aunt Zhou, whose face was heavy with concern.
"Judging by Chuntao's condition, she is definitely pregnant..."
Before Aunt Zhou could even finish her sentence, Zhou Zhijun sprang to his feet.
"Mother, she hasn't even been examined yet. How can you be so sure?" he pressed urgently.
"I gave birth to the five of you siblings. What kind of signs haven't I seen? I have been through it all, how could I be wrong?" Aunt Zhou said with absolute certainty.
Zhou Zhijun's heart skipped a beat, followed immediately by an uncontrollable surge of joy.
Next year, he was going to be a father!
As if he could already see a precious, chubby little baby, the corners of his mouth could not help but curl upward.
Aunt Zhou, however, let out a heavy sigh, her brows knitting tightly together in distress.
"Alas, this is all the wicked doing of Wang Jieshi and those bastards! This child... we have to get rid of it quickly! The longer we wait, the harder it will be..."
