The woman had already been dragged away by two men, while several others pinned Zhou Xiaowei down, binding his legs with cloth strips.
Zhou Xiaowei kicked one man in the face, making him wince and gasp through clenched teeth.
"Damn it, if you don't behave, I'll kill you!"
He struggled with all his might, and the men, using every ounce of their strength, finally tied him up securely.
None of them noticed the truck heading their way until the screech of brakes exploded in the night, making them whip their heads around.
The headlights blazed bright in the darkness, blinding the men.
"Run..." As realization struck, the men scattered in panic, plunging into a ditch beside the road to flee.
Zhou Xiaowei, bound hand and foot, lay helpless in the middle of the dirt road and called out to the truck cab, "Help me untie the ropes!"
Baldy Zhang hopped out of the driver’s seat first. Leaning in for a closer look, he gasped and stumbled back half a step before yelling, "Zhou Xiaowei!"
Hearing his shout, Liu Cuilan quickly jumped down from the truck bed and asked urgently, "Zhou Xiaowei, what are you doing here in the dead of night?"
"I got robbed and tied up!"
Baldy Zhang and Liu Cuilan exchanged bewildered glances. Why wasn’t Zhou Xiaowei home asleep at this hour? His bicycle lay knocked over nearby.
Baldy Zhang’s eyes darted around. "Zhou Xiaowei, are you heading to Dongshan overnight?"
Director Zhang, standing in the truck bed, leaned out to look forward and barked impatiently, "What’s the holdup? What’s going on?"
The driver also got out. Baldy Zhang hurried to the side of the truck bed and lowered his voice. "Director Zhang, up ahead is Zhou Xiaowei, Zhou Zhijun’s nephew. The kid must be heading to tip him off!"
"Tip him off?" Director Zhang’s brow furrowed into a tight knot. "Has he delivered the message or not?"
"I saw him in the village earlier today. He must have just left now, but got caught by the robbers. What do we do?"
Director Zhang’s brow furrowed even deeper. He tapped his fingers hard on the railing of the truck bed twice and said in a low, fierce voice, "Good, he hasn’t tipped him off yet. This is a gift from heaven!"
He leaned closer, his voice dropping to barely a whisper, laced with ruthlessness. "Don’t waste time. Get him in the truck first! Find some cloth to stuff in his mouth, don’t let him make a sound!"
Baldy Zhang hesitated for a moment, about to agree, when one of Director Zhang’s men spoke up timidly, "Director, if we kidnap him, what if—"
"What if what?" Director Zhang’s eyes widened, his tone suddenly harsh. "Zhou Zhijun hiding out in the mountains to have a baby is defying the law!"
He jabbed a finger toward the front of the truck. "This kid going to warn him makes him an accomplice! Take him back first. Once we catch Zhou Zhijun, we’ll settle accounts together!"
With that, he shot Baldy Zhang a look. "Go untie the ropes. Don’t loosen them completely—tie his arms behind his back and gag him tight."
Baldy Zhang first pulled the cloth strip out of Zhou Xiaowei’s mouth, then replaced it with a coarse hemp rag, cramming it firmly between his teeth.
As he reached down to untie the ropes on Zhou Xiaowei’s legs, Zhou Xiaowei gave a sudden lurch. Baldy Zhang quickly pressed down on his shoulder.
Two more family planning office workers joined in, grabbing his arms and twisting them behind his back.
The driver seized the chance to use spare ropes to retie his wrists and ankles, leaving just enough slack for dragging.
"Lift him up!" Director Zhang urged, bending down to help.
Together, they hoisted the struggling Zhou Xiaowei into the truck bed, wrapping him tightly in a tarp, leaving only a narrow slit for air.
Baldy Zhang stayed beside him, his foot on the edge of the tarp to keep him from moving.
Director Zhang sat in the truck bed and shouted to the driver, "Drive faster! The kid didn’t deliver the message, so Zhou Zhijun won’t be on guard. We have to take him down tonight!"
The truck started again, the wheels grinding over the dirt road with a creaking sound, unusually loud in the silent night.
In the truck bed, Zhou Xiaowei, gagged, could only let out muffled groans.
He twisted desperately, the ropes cutting into his wrists and ankles, but the pain was nothing compared to the turmoil in his heart.
"Director Zhang, don’t worry! Li Chun Tao’s belly is big enough—she can’t get away!" Baldy Zhang said with certainty.
Liu Cuilan chimed in, "That slut—this time, let’s see how she talks her way out of it!"
Liu Cuilan was deeply afraid of Zhou Zhijun and hadn’t wanted to come tonight, only agreeing to let Baldy Zhang lead the way. But Baldy Zhang had forced her, so she had no choice but to grit her teeth and follow.
Now, she felt only relief that Zhou Xiaowei hadn’t succeeded in warning anyone. Tonight, Zhou Zhijun was a fish in a barrel.
With nothing left to fear, she couldn’t stop her stream of curses. "That shameless pair, they’ve been too bold!
The whole village knew they were carrying on, and they still had the nerve to deny it. Now that we’ve caught them, let’s see what they have to say..."
Their words stabbed into Zhou Xiaowei’s ears like daggers.
He had never believed those nasty rumors.
Chuntao, that gentle, clean woman, and his second uncle, that steady, upright man—how could they ever do such a thing?
The villagers gossiped out of boredom; he took it as idle chatter and forgot it.
But now, coming from Liu Cuilan and Baldy Zhang with such vicious certainty, it felt like his blood had frozen solid. His mind went blank with shock.
He recalled his grandmother’s words, the way his second uncle protected Chuntao, how he had scolded him for being too obvious…
All those details he had overlooked before now surged back—each one unusual.
Was Chuntao’s belly really carrying his second uncle’s child?
Zhou Xiaowei’s chest felt as if a heavy stone were pressing down on it, suffocating him. His nose stung, and he lost even the strength to struggle.
He loved Chuntao. From the first moment he saw her, he believed there was no finer woman in the world.
At first, it was only a secret crush. Later, when he learned that Chuntao and Wang Jieshi weren’t really husband and wife, he let his thoughts wander deeper.
This was a new era now, with freedom in marriage. Chuntao was his grandmother’s adopted daughter, no blood relation—he could pursue her openly.
But Chuntao had been hidden away by his grandmother and second uncle. Now he realized there really seemed to be something between her and his second uncle!
At that moment, all his hopes shattered, completely and utterly.
Chuntao was his second uncle’s woman. It broke his heart, and he struggled to accept it.
But even more, he was worried about her. If the family planning officers caught her, what would happen to her, her unborn child, and his second uncle? He dared not imagine it.
Listening to the wind outside the truck and Liu Cuilan’s curses, Zhou Xiaowei felt a mess of pain, confusion, fear, and urgency.
He regretted it deeply. If only he hadn’t bothered with that woman, he wouldn’t have ended up like this.
He wanted to shout, to run, to warn Chuntao to flee. But he could do nothing, only let the truck carry him closer and closer to Liujia Gully.
At Liujia Gully in Dongshan, Chuntao lay flat on her bed, her heart restless, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
Her belly was showing now. Zhou Zhijun, afraid to press against her at night, had made a narrow wooden bed and placed it beside hers.
Zhou Zhijun was also awake. Hearing her sigh again and again, he asked in a low voice, "Tao, what’s wrong? Something bothering you?"
"Nothing. I just feel unsettled inside. I can’t sleep."
Zhou Zhijun knew she was sensitive and prone to overthinking, so he reached out and gently patted her arm, comforting her. "Don't worry, just take good care of yourself. Once the baby in your belly is born, everything will be fine."
His large hand slowly moved onto her rounded stomach, his palm pressed against her warm skin, where he could feel the gentle movements inside.
In a soft voice, he said, "Tao, I'm sure there are two babies in there. Do you want a boy or a girl?"
"I want one boy and one girl."
Over the past month or so, the babies inside her had been kicking her a lot. Second Aunt Zhou said they must both be boys, but Chuntao was hoping for one of each.
Family planning was strictly enforced now. If she had sons, especially two of them, she wouldn't be able to have any more children in this lifetime. In her heart, she always wished for a daughter.
She wasn't prejudiced against boys; she just thought daughters were more caring—a mother's little padded jacket.
If she was truly carrying twins, it would be perfect to have one boy and one girl. Her life would be complete.
Zhou Zhijun chuckled softly, his voice full of affection. "Tao, you're dreaming big, and I feel the same way! A son like me—strong and hardworking—and a daughter like you—beautiful and thoughtful. Having two at once would make me laugh even in my sleep!"
"From now on, I'll earn the money and support the family. You can stay at home and do nothing, let these two little ones look after you—one will bring you foot-washing water, the other will massage your back and knees..."
As Chuntao listened to him paint this rosy picture, the corners of her mouth lifted, and her eyes curved into crescent moons.
Her voice was sweet and gentle, carrying a joy she couldn't hide. "If you say so, I'll just wait around to enjoy a life of luxury."
"That's only natural. Since you've chosen me, you deserve to be happy."
Zhou Zhijun's hand remained on her belly, feeling the movements inside, his eyes full of anticipation. "Tao, I've already thought it through. Once the babies are born, we'll go and get our marriage certificate.
Then I'll contract the river dam in our village, raise fish, and get rich. Within two years, we can become ten-thousand-yuan households."
"When the village gets electricity, I'll buy you a big color TV first, then a fridge and a washing machine. I'll also get you gold rings and gold earrings, so you can be the most dazzling wife in the village..."
Listening to these warm promises, the anxiety in Chuntao's heart gradually faded, replaced by a full sense of sweetness and hope for the future.
She edged closer to Zhou Zhijun, leaning against his arm, her fingers lightly resting on the back of his hand, savoring this moment of stability and happiness.
But she didn't know that a truck was racing down the mountain road.
A storm was quietly approaching—one that concerned her, her children, and Zhou Zhijun's fate—about to shatter the brief peace and beauty of this remote mountain village.
