Aunt Zhou trotted towards the Wangs' courtyard. Just as she reached the kitchen door, she heard Wang Jieshi still shouting in the main room, "I decide what to do with my wife. Outsiders should mind their own business..."
Aunt Zhou's face darkened even more, and she suddenly raised her voice, "Wang Jieshi! Who are you talking to?"
Wang Jieshi didn't expect Aunt Zhou to come suddenly. The words on the tip of his tongue were abruptly swallowed back.
He knew that Aunt Zhou was well - known in the village for "protecting her own." He felt a bit nervous, but still said, "Grandma Zhou, who I'm talking to has nothing to do with you. You don't need to worry about it."
"Has nothing to do with me?" Aunt Zhou walked into the main room in a few steps and pointed at the inner room door. "Chuntao is my adopted daughter recognized by my own mouth. When she is wronged, how can I, her godmother, not care?"
Her sharp eyes swept across Wang Jieshi's flushed face. "I asked Zhijun to buy malted milk essence, brown sugar, pastries, and pork from the commune supply and marketing cooperative. They were specially for Chuntao to nourish her body. Why did you let Xiaohong throw them away?"
Wang Jieshi was left speechless by the question, but still argued unreasonably, "She is my wife. What she eats and drinks should be up to me. There's no need for outsiders to send things!"
"Outsiders?" Aunt Zhou sneered, sat down on the threshold, and slapped her hands on her knees.
She raised her voice loudly, "If you really loved her as your wife, would she have fainted from exhaustion?
You ran away on your wedding night, leaving her in a living widowhood for so many years. Don't you know what kind of life she's been living?
Now that you're back, if you don't feel sorry for her, it's fine. But you even want to throw away the nourishing things I bought for her. Is there such a man in the world?"
Aunt Zhou's words left Wang Jieshi speechless. His face was as red as a piece of red cloth.
Chuntao wasn't asleep at all in the bed. She heard everything clearly outside.
She struggled to sit up from the bed and wanted to go out to persuade them, but then she heard Aunt Zhou's voice ring out again.
"Let me tell you, Wang Jieshi. Since Chuntao has recognized me as her godmother, when my own daughter is wronged, I can't just sit back and do nothing!
In the future, she should be well - nourished and have enough rest. If you dare to make things difficult for her again, don't blame this old woman for being unkind. I'll drag you to the village head to reason it out!"
Wang Jieshi sat on the chair, his face turning red and then white. His chest heaved with anger, but he couldn't say a single word to refute.
Wang Xiaohong, who was making a fire in the kitchen, felt both relieved and touched when she heard Aunt Zhou standing up for Chuntao.
She thought that with Aunt Zhou and Zhou Zhijun protecting her, no one would dare to bully her sister - in - law casually in the future.
Chuntao peeked out through the curtain. Her nose felt sour, and the tears welled up in her eyes again.
In her whole life, except for her grandma and her brother, no one had ever protected her like this.
She covered her mouth, afraid to make a sound. These tears were not out of sadness, but out of the feeling of being cared about.
She wiped away the tears that kept flowing like a spring. Her fingertips were cold, but her heart was warm.
In this hard - endured life, she could taste a bit of the sweetness of being loved. This little bit of sweetness was enough to support her to keep going.
After Aunt Zhou made such a fuss, Wang Jieshi really didn't dare to say a word.
A few days later, early in the morning, Wang Jieshi stuffed the more than thirty yuan that Wang Xiaohong gave him into his pocket and went to see an old Chinese doctor with Wang Haichao.
He had a problem with one of his legs, so Wang Haibao, Wang Haichao's younger brother, pulled him there in a wheelbarrow.
The Wang Haichao brothers were well - known for being lazy and gluttonous. But now they were enthusiastically pulling Wang Jieshi to see a doctor. Wang Xiaohong was suspicious and thought there was something wrong.
"Brother, don't go with them! Wait until Xiaoming comes back on Sunday. The two of us will take you there!" But Wang Jieshi didn't listen to the advice and insisted on going.
Wang Haichao smiled playfully and persuaded, "Xiaohong, don't worry. It's okay. With me and your Uncle Haibao with him, how could we lose your brother?"
There's no such thing as a free lunch! They must have some ulterior motives. Since Wang Xiaohong couldn't stop Wang Jieshi, she simply didn't care anymore. She thought that he would learn his lesson after suffering a setback.
As for Zhou Zhaodi, that night Zhou Zhijun caught her with Baldy Zhang and gave her a stern warning. She behaved herself for a few days, but then she felt so pent - up that she went to chat aimlessly with Huang Meili.
At noon, Zhou Zhimin and his wife were cooking in the kitchen when Zhou Zhaodi waddled in.
Zhou Zhimin had never liked her. When he saw her come in, he didn't even lift his eyelids and ignored her.
When he heard her mention the matter between Zhou Zhijun and Li Chuntao again, his face immediately fell. "Zhaodi, don't spread groundless rumors. Did you see it or catch them in the act?"
Zhou Zhaodi shouted defiantly, "I didn't see it and I didn't catch them, but they must be having an affair!"
"To accuse someone of theft, you need to catch the thief with the stolen goods; to accuse someone of adultery, you need to catch the couple in the act! If my second brother hears what you're saying, you'll be in big trouble!" Zhou Zhimin warned in a low voice.
Huang Meili turned to stare at Zhou Zhimin, and said sourly, "You still keep calling him 'second brother'. But he doesn't treat you as a family member. He and that Li Chuntao are a close - knit family!"
At this time, Zhou Xiaoying and Zhou Xiaomei came back from the fields with grass baskets on their backs. Hearing what Huang Meili said, Zhou Xiaoying immediately picked up the conversation.
"My mother is right! That day I was cutting grass in the field east of the village. I saw my second uncle carrying a net bag full of nice things and giving them to Wang Xiaohong!
They have the surname Wang, and we have the surname Zhou. Why is he so nice to them? When my younger brother went to my grandma's house and wanted a white bun, she was even reluctant to give it to him! And she recognized that Li Chuntao as her adopted daughter!"
Zhou Xiaomei also chimed in, "That's right. I also saw my second uncle helping their family sell watermelons and plow the fields!"
"Look, look, even the kids know..." Before Zhou Zhaodi could finish her sentence, she was interrupted by Zhou Zhimin. "Your food at home must be getting cold. Go home and have your meal quickly!"
Zhou Zhaodi didn't dare to say more. Afraid that Zhou Zhimin would pass on her words to Zhou Zhijun, she gave him a fierce look and mumbled, "So what if you're afraid I'll eat your food?" Then she waddled away.
Zhou Zhimin then looked at Zhou Xiaoying and Zhou Xiaomei seriously and said, "You two kids, don't spread gossips outside.
Li Chuntao is your grandma's adopted daughter. It's only right for your grandma and your second uncle to be nice to her!"
Although he said so, he felt unbalanced in his heart. Zhou Zhijun cared more about Li Chuntao than about him, his own younger brother.
However, Zhou Zhijun was not an unfeeling person. He had never been stingy with food, daily necessities, or money when helping him. So even though he was angry, he couldn't say anything.
Hearing what he said, Huang Meili got excited again. "Adopted daughter? You're her real son. Is an adopted daughter closer or a real son closer?"
Zhou Zhimin didn't want to argue with her and changed the topic. "One takes after those one associates with. Stay away from Zhou Zhaodi in the future. It won't do you any good!"
Huang Meili didn't say anything more, but she was thinking about borrowing money from Zhou Zhijun.
She couldn't let him spend all his money on an outsider. She wanted to get a share of it. Any share would be a gain.
When Wang Jieshi and the others were pushing the wheelbarrow to see the old Chinese doctor, Zhou Zhijun was just pushing his bicycle out of the door and happened to run into them.
Wang Haichao greeted Zhou Zhijun playfully, but Zhou Zhijun didn't even lift his eyelids and rode straight past them.
On the way to the middle of the village, Zhou Zhijun saw Wang Xiaohong coming back carrying a pair of buckets. He stopped his bike and asked, "Where's your brother?"
Wang Xiaohong didn't hide anything and replied, "My brother went to see an old Chinese doctor with Wang Haichao and the others. They said they'll be back tomorrow."
Hearing this, Zhou Zhijun was overjoyed. A strong, uncontrollable urge welled up in him instantly.
He had been busy building houses these days. The hole in the wheat straw stack had been discovered, and there was also the incident of Chuntao fainting. He hadn't been with her for a long time and was extremely impatient.
The day the house he was building was completed, the host wanted to keep him for the completion meal, but Zhou Zhijun had no interest in that.
He made an excuse that he had something to do at home, quickly ate two white buns and drank a bowl of cabbage and tofu soup, and then left.
Instead of going straight home, he went to Nangang.
There was an open - access bathhouse in the oilfield family compound in Nangang. It cost fifty cents for a ticket. He wanted to have a good wash to get rid of the sweat and earthy smell on his body.
After taking a bath, he went to the store in the oilfield compound.
He heard from others that there was a kind of candy called chocolate in the oilfield store. Urban couples gave it to each other when they were in love.
He thought that since city people gave it, it must be a good thing, so he decided to buy a pack for Chuntao to try.
He spent three yuan on a pack of chocolate, which was much more expensive than ordinary fruit candies, but he didn't mind spending the money on the woman he adored.
When he got home, it was completely dark. Aunt Zhou and Old Man Zhou had finished their soup. As it was getting colder, the old couple had already got into bed early.
As soon as Zhou Zhijun entered the yard, Aunt Zhou shouted from inside the house, "Zhijun, I made some fried buns and some noodle dumplings. They're kept warm in the pot. Go and have some quickly!"
"I've already eaten!" Zhou Zhijun replied.
At this moment, he wasn't even interested in the most delicious food. His mind was full of Chuntao.
The past memories kept swirling in his mind, like a hundred cat's claws scratching at his heart.
He glanced at Chuntao's yard. The dim yellow light was still on in her room, and a hazy figure was reflected on the window paper. His longing for her was like the creeping vines in the wheat field, so overwhelming that it made him feel uncomfortable!
Wang Jieshi wasn't home tonight. It was a once - in - a - lifetime opportunity! But that girl Wang Xiaohong was still there. He had to think of a way to get her out of the way...
