Wang Hao sat alone on the train.
The train rumbled on.
He remembered the first time he went back with Lin Wanyi; they had taken this exact same train.
Back then, they were deeply in love, holding hands the entire journey.
Wang Hao was still a bit worried at the time:
What if your parents don't agree? What if they don't like me?
Wanyi, I can't lose you. I have to be with you.
If they don't agree, I'll say I'll marry into your family as a live-in son-in-law.
Lin Wanyi comforted him:
Don't worry, my parents are very kind.
As long as you don't bully me, they'll agree.
Of course...
Lin Wanyi added:
If you really want to marry into my family, that's fine too, Wang Hao. We can settle down in my hometown, okay?
At that time, Wang Hao truly entertained the thought. For love, he was willing to do anything.
But when he told Liu Chunlan about this idea, she almost beat him to death:
Do you want me to die? Wang Hao, your older brother already married into his wife's family. If you do the same, and so far away too...
Do you want the whole village to laugh me to death? What do you expect me to do? What will happen when we get old?
I forbid you from doing that. I will never allow it.
With an anxious heart, he went to meet Lin Wanyi's parents.
To his surprise, they didn't make things difficult for him. They only said:
You must promise to treat Wanyi well for the rest of her life. Marrying you so far from home is truly a gamble with her entire life.
Wang Hao, we don't need a bride price from you. You two can keep that money for yourselves so you won't have as much financial pressure in the future.
But remember this: if our daughter ever suffers even the slightest grievance, we will bring her back immediately.
Looking at the passing wheat fields out the window, Wang Hao's eyes grew wet.
He had broken his promise. He had broken Lin Wanyi's heart after all.
He then remembered the time he brought Lin Wanyi back to Wangjia Village on this same train.
By then, his worries were gone.
They looked forward to a beautiful life together.
He had said:
Wanyi, how many kids do you want? Boys or girls?
I'm fine with either. As long as they're yours, I don't mind.
Wanyi, I will definitely love you for the rest of my life.
I definitely won't let your parents worry.
Anyway, the train is convenient. Whenever you want to visit your parents in the future, you can go back anytime.
Wang Hao didn't dare to think about it anymore.
Because as time went on, he became more and more harsh towards Lin Wanyi, acting less and less like a decent human being.
He even stopped her from going back to attend a funeral just to save on travel expenses.
And he forced her to get pregnant with a second child just because he wanted a son.
When exactly did he change?
He didn't know.
The train slowly pulled into the station, and he stepped off with his luggage.
He hadn't told Lin Wanyi; he wanted to give her a surprise.
On Lin Wanyi's side, Zhao Yulan suddenly came to find Li Suhua:
Suhua, don't cook today. Come eat at my place.
What's going on? What's the occasion today? Li Suhua asked with a smile.
Hahaha, it's my birthday today! Let's go, the whole family should come.
Since it was Zhao Yulan's birthday, Li Suhua couldn't refuse. So, she called for Lin Wanyi and Lin Jiajun:
Let's all go celebrate your aunt's birthday.
Li Suhua went over first. She asked Lin Jiajun to go out and buy some fireworks:
It's your aunt's birthday. It's not good to show up empty-handed.
Lin Jiajun went to the market.
But as he was loading the fireworks into the car, he thought he saw Wang Hao's silhouette.
Thinking he was mistaken, he rubbed his eyes vigorously and looked again.
Sure enough, there was nothing. He must have seen wrong.
Remembering what Lin Wanyi had said, he cautiously circled the market and only relaxed when he was certain Wang Hao wasn't there.
On his way back, his heart was still pounding. Wang Hao had better not show up.
If he dared to come, he absolutely wouldn't let him off.
At that moment, Wang Hao was shopping at a supermarket.
He was here to beg for Lin Wanyi's forgiveness, so he adopted a very, very humble attitude.
He bought a lot of health supplements for Li Suhua, and generously spent twenty thousand yuan on a solid gold bracelet for Lin Wanyi.
Women loved gold. Their neighbor Wu Qin had both arms covered in it, and Lin Wanyi definitely wanted some too.
It was just that she usually didn't mention it, and Wang Hao had pretended not to know.
But today, he had to buy it. He absolutely had to.
You have to spend money to make money.
When Lin Wanyi arrived at Zhao Yulan's house, she was surprised to see Zhao Delin.
Along with his parents, Ma Jinhua and Zhao Qing.
They were all looking Lin Wanyi up and down.
Lin Wanyi felt a bit uncomfortable, but Zhao Yulan pulled her over to Ma Jinhua:
Look, sister-in-law, this is the Wanyi I told you about.
See, I didn't lie to you, right? She's quite pretty, isn't she?
More importantly, she has a good and gentle temper. She is absolutely the ideal candidate for a good daughter-in-law.
Ma Jinhua looked Lin Wanyi up and down:
If she's so great, then why did she get divorced?
Li Suhua's face darkened. Just as she was about to speak, Zhao Delin spoke up first:
Mom, what are you doing? Divorce is a painful matter. Who would get divorced if they were living a good life?
Why are you asking about this?
Ma Jinhua wasn't embarrassed at all:
I'm just asking casually. After all, if I'm taking in a daughter-in-law, she needs to have a clean background. I wouldn't accept any shady women.
Li Suhua's face turned completely black:
Sister-in-law, happy birthday. We won't be staying. Enjoy your family meal.
Zhao Yulan hurriedly stopped her:
What are you doing? It's my birthday, which only comes once a year. Don't ruin the mood.
My sister-in-law is just a straightforward person, don't mind her.
Sit down and eat. Wanyi, you sit down quickly too.
When Lin Jiajun returned with the fireworks, he saw that Li Suhua was angry. But since there were many people around, it wasn't a good time to ask.
He instinctively tried to sit next to Lin Wanyi, but Zhao Yulan pulled him over to Li Suhua's side.
As soon as he walked away, Zhao Delin sat down next to Lin Wanyi.
Lin Wanyi felt very uncomfortable.
Ma Jinhua's gaze was still fixed on her.
Zhao Delin put a piece of pork rib in Lin Wanyi's bowl:
Eat more, look how thin you are.
Lin Wanyi felt repulsed; she didn't like eating food that others put in her bowl.
She silently placed the rib on the table.
Opposite her, Ma Jinhua grew displeased:
Lin Wanyi, those are pork ribs, they cost dozens of yuan a pound.
Are you just going to waste it like that? Besides, my son kindly gave it to you.
Let me tell you, my son never serves food to any woman.
His previous wife had to wait for him to finish eating every meal before she could...
Mom!
Ma Jinhua's words were cut off by Zhao Delin:
It's auntie's birthday. Speak less and eat more.
Ma Jinhua shut her mouth, but she continued to stare at Lin Wanyi.
She looked down on Lin Wanyi.
A divorced woman dragging along a burden of a child.
How could she possibly respect her?
If it weren't for the shortage of women nowadays, and if it weren't for the fact that her son's wife had died making him a second-time groom.
There was no way she would ever consider secondhand goods like Lin Wanyi.
It was only because Zhao Yulan praised her every day, saying she had a good temper and a nice personality.
She also said that she got hundreds of thousands of yuan from the divorce and had money.
Even Lin Jiajun might give her a house.
If it weren't for these things, she wouldn't have even bothered to look Lin Wanyi in the eye.
