The kerosene lamp in the room hadn’t been blown out; a large lamp flower had formed on the wick, and the dim yellow light was gradually fading.
The breathing of the two people on the bed slowly steadied. Zhou Dana rolled over to the edge of the bed and lay down, reaching out to pull out his tobacco pipe, lighting it leisurely and taking a slow puff.
“How’s that? Feeling good?” He turned his head to look at Huang Meili, his tone full of pride. “That was satisfying, right?”
Huang Meili puckered her lips and teased him, “You usually act all serious, but how can you be so shameless now?”
“You like this kind of thing, don’t you?” Zhou Dana’s face was full of a smile, his eyes glued to her.
She really did like this. Zhou Zhimin used to say the same to coax her, but lately, he rarely mentioned it.
Since she had to get up early the next day, Huang Meili quickly got to the point. “I want to ask you something. How did Zhou Zhijun and Li Chun Tao get their marriage certificate? Was it you who gave them the proof?”
Zhou Dana took another puff of his pipe, frowning slightly. “Don’t listen to Zhou Xiaowei’s nonsense. Without the brigade’s proof, they wouldn’t have been able to get a marriage certificate at all!”
“How could they not get it? I heard they even got the birth permit!” Huang Meili added quickly.
Zhou Dana’s tone was firm. “That’s all lies! Zhou Xiaowei spread that just because he’s afraid Liu Cuilan will cause a scene!”
Huang Meili still wasn’t convinced. “Liu Cuilan said Secretary Wang has to handle this matter, and Zhou Zhijun would be charged with being a scoundrel!”
Those words weighed heavily on Zhou Dana’s heart. Wasn’t he and Huang Meili doing this kind of scoundrel business too?
Such things weren’t uncommon in the countryside. As long as both parties agreed and no one caught them, there was no problem.
But if they were caught red-handed, there was no way to escape.
“That’s hard to say. Liu Cuilan didn’t catch them in the act; she’s just talking. Who would believe that?” Zhou Dana said vaguely.
“Liu Cuilan wants to find a few people to testify that they’re having an affair!”
Huang Meili stared at Zhou Dana, pressing him, “If someone did testify, would it work?”
“How could they testify? Who in our village really caught them?”
Zhou Dana snorted coldly. “No one caught them in the act, no one grabbed their wrist. Even if it’s true, there’s no way to convict them!”
Huang Meili wasn’t convinced. “But Li Chun Tao is pregnant! Wang Jieshi is a cripple; the child must be Zhou Zhijun’s, no one else’s!”
Zhou Dana got up, flicking the pipe into the fire pit, his face darkening. “That kid Zhou Zhijun is the worst kind of scoundrel…”
If it weren’t for Zhou Zhijun and Li Chun Tao’s mess, Pandi wouldn’t have gotten into trouble.
Now that she’s lost her job and has aftereffects, it’s uncertain if she’ll ever marry a good family.
He had long suspected Zhou Zhijun and Li Chun Tao were involved, but never caught solid evidence.
If Li Chun Tao really is pregnant, Zhou Zhijun might have to go to jail—that’s exactly what he’s hoping for.
“Li Chun Tao is pregnant? Is that for real?” Zhou Dana suddenly sat up, frowning as he pressed for an answer.
Huang Meili pursed her lips, her tone certain. “How could it be fake? Liu Cuilan and Baldy Zhang both saw it with their own eyes. Li Chun Tao’s belly is huge—looks like she’s about to give birth!”
“Think about it, Li Chun Tao only left the Wang family six months ago. If she’s about to give birth now, she must have gotten pregnant before she left. If it’s not Zhou Zhijun, then who else could it be?”
A ruthless glint flashed in Zhou Dana’s eyes. “If this is true, then we’re in for quite a show!”
Huang Meili hurriedly asked, “You mean Liu Cuilan could actually win the lawsuit?”
“I’m more than half sure of it!”
Huang Meili finally felt a weight lift off her chest and quickly started getting dressed.
But Zhou Dana grabbed her hand. “Why the rush? Let’s do it again!”
“I have to get up early tomorrow to catch the market! It’s already past midnight, I need to get home!”
Huang Meili pulled her hand free, hastily pulled up her pants, and headed for the door.
Outside, a shadow slipped aside. Once Huang Meili was out of sight, the shadow darted to the door, flung it open, grabbed the broom behind it, and swung it toward Zhou Dana lying on the bed.
“You shameless Zhou Dana! How dare you cheat on me behind my back! I swear, if I don’t beat you black and blue tonight, I’m no woman!”
The woman cursed as she lunged onto the bed, clawing wildly at Zhou Dana’s face. Zhou Dana panicked and quickly pulled the quilt over his head.
“What are you doing? Talk it out like adults, don’t hit me!” Zhou Dana shouted muffled under the quilt.
“I’m going to hit you! I’ll scratch your face up so everyone in Wangjia Village can see what kind of scum you are!” The woman tugged fiercely at the quilt covering his head, her strength surprisingly strong.
“Enough!” Zhou Dana shouted loudly. “Do you want everyone in the village to know about us?”
Her hands froze suddenly. She let go of the quilt, her eyes red and full of tears as she cursed, “Zhou Dana, you’re not human! You tricked me onto your damn sinking ship, tricked me into giving you a son, and now you think I’m too old and have a new flame, right?”
Zhou Dana slowly pulled off the quilt, putting on a sincere expression as he coaxed softly, “Calm down. You gave me such a fine son, how could I ever dislike you?”
He reached out and pulled the woman to sit beside him. “Come here, don’t be angry.”
“If you don’t dislike me, then why are you messing around with that bitch Huang Meili? Tell me, what does she have that I don’t? What could possibly make you lose your mind over her?” Her eyes were swollen red, her voice full of grievance and anger.
Zhou Dana tossed his pipe on the floor by the bedside, speaking with a mix of indifference and flattery, “That woman isn’t even worthy to wipe your shoes. She’s not even a tenth of you.”
“Don’t try to sweet-talk me! If she’s not better than me, then why do you sleep with her? No wonder you’ve been useless when you’re with me lately. All your energy’s been spent on that bitch! I’ve been worrying about you every day, buying you nourishing stuff. Tell me, do you have a conscience for doing this?”
The woman’s anger grew, and tears began to fall uncontrollably.
Zhou Dana, still not wearing his pants, quickly jumped off the bed, took off her shoes, and reached to unfasten her waistband. “You’re cold. Come into bed, I’ll warm you up.”
He pulled her close and lay back down, softly soothing her, “Don’t cry. I, Zhou Dana, only have eyes for you. The other women are just playthings, nothing serious.”
“I don’t believe it! What about Wang Jinzhi? Were you just playing around with her too?” The woman wiped away her tears, pressing him relentlessly.
“That was all arranged by matchmakers and our parents’ orders. I never had any feelings for her at all!
Ever since I got you, I haven’t even touched her!” Zhou Dana patiently coaxed her, “Don’t be mad, okay?”
But whenever the woman thought about how he had been tangled up with Huang Meili under the covers just now, along with those indecent words she overheard, it felt like a knife was stabbing her heart.
“That shameless Huang Meili, gossiping every day, calling others homewreckers, but it turns out she’s the biggest floozy of all!
When others cheat, it’s either because they don’t have a man or their man is useless. But her? She has a man and still sneaks around on him. She’s utterly despicable!”
Zhou Dana quickly agreed, “You’re right, that woman’s got no shame at all!”
The woman snorted coldly, “It takes two to tango, you’re no saint either!
Listen, you have to cut ties with that cheap woman completely, or I’ll spill everything about us.
If you won’t let me live in peace, then we’re going down together—no one’s going to be happy!”
Zhou Dana hurriedly raised his hands in surrender, “Don’t worry, I’ll cut it off! Completely clean, no more contact with her, I promise!”
After coaxing her for a long while, the woman’s emotions finally settled down.
Zhou Dana quickly changed the subject, his tone full of pride, “Today’s Thursday, right? Our son should be back by Saturday.
I’ll take him to school. The teacher said his entrance exam scores are in the top ten in the class. As long as he doesn’t fall behind, getting into a prestigious university won’t be a problem!”
Mentioning their son made the woman’s eyes well up again, her voice choking with emotion, “I shouldn’t have given our son to you in the first place, letting him call Wang Jinzhi ‘mom’.
I carried him for ten months, but now he’s being raised by someone else. I’ve truly lost out!”
“Raising a kid isn’t easy, but you can rest easy now.
Besides, Wang Jinzhi hasn’t mistreated our son; she treats him better than her own two daughters.
Don’t worry, when our son grows up and becomes capable, I’ll tell him the truth and let him recognize you as his real mother,” Zhou Dana comforted her, patting her back.
The two of them lay there, holding each other, chattering endlessly about their son.
Meanwhile, Huang Meili was running all the way home, rushing straight to the outhouse as soon as she got in.
As she pulled down her pants, she realized she’d forgotten her underwear on Zhou Dana’s bed!
If anyone saw that, it would be the end of her!
Her heart pounding wildly, Huang Meili quickly pulled up her pants and dashed toward the village office, spotting from afar that the light was still on in Zhou Dana’s house.
