The seventh day of the Lunar New Year.
There was only one day left until the Civil Affairs Bureau resumed work.
Lin Wanyi had been waiting and waiting for this very day.
Wang Keke was bored at home and threw a tantrum, clamoring to go out.
Left with no choice, Lin Wanyi decided to take her to an indoor playground.
Wang Hao tagged along, refusing to leave her side for even a single step. He was terrified that if he wasn't careful, Lin Wanyi would go to the hospital for an abortion again.
In truth, even if he hadn't followed her, Lin Wanyi wouldn't have gone.
She was getting the paperwork done tomorrow; how could she have surgery today?
While Wang Keke bounced happily on the trampoline, Lin Wanyi received a message from Chen Tingting:
"That Liu Siyue from your village is a match. Her family will be heading over soon, but the police said there's a heavy snowstorm over there and the highways are closed.
"They can't get there that fast. I heard her family is going crazy with worry."
Lin Wanyi let out a huge sigh of relief.
She immediately messaged Wu Qin to ask:
"How is Liu Siyue doing?"
Wu Qin replied, "I don't know. It's so cold that everyone is staying indoors. Her family's doors are shut tight; no one can get in."
A good while later, she added:
"Do you think she didn't make it? Sigh, I don't know, I really don't know."
Lin Wanyi desperately wanted to go back right now and take Liu Siyue away, but her own life was a complete mess.
In this vast, heavy snow, if she set foot in that village again, she would never be able to leave.
Wu Qin suddenly sent another message:
"Wang Hao's aunt got dragged back again. You wouldn't even guess where she ran off to.
"On such a freezing day, she jumped into the river, thinking no one would look for her there. Unfortunately, they still found her.
"Sigh, sigh!"
She sighed heavily several times.
Little did Lin Wanyi know, at that very moment, Wu Qin was holding her son and feeling secretly thankful:
Thank goodness she didn't have a daughter. It wasn't that she favored boys over girls, but that being a daughter here was simply too miserable.
The women in this village, and even the women in this entire region, all suffered.
It was only a matter of degree.
Lin Wanyi didn't expect to run into Chen Qingxiu here.
She had also brought her son out to play.
This was the first time Wang Keke had met this cousin of hers.
Chen Qingxiu glanced at Lin Wanyi's belly. She looked like she wanted to say something, but ultimately kept silent.
Lin Wanyi, however, spoke up first:
"Sister-in-law, you know about it?"
Chen Qingxiu nodded. "Why? After everything that's happened, why are you still carrying his child?
"Lin Wanyi, you are a human being, a living, breathing person. You can walk and jump; why must you trap yourself here?
"I don't understand. I really don't understand why you would still have a child for him."
Lin Wanyi's eyes reddened. She tried desperately to hold back her tears, but couldn't.
There were too many people around, and she didn't want to lose her composure in public.
Chen Qingxiu suddenly felt guilty. She shouldn't have been so blunt.
She knew Lin Wanyi must have her own difficulties, and she shouldn't have questioned her based on her own perspective.
They were not the same.
She handed Lin Wanyi a tissue and silently watched her cry.
After a long while, Lin Wanyi finally managed to suppress her tears:
"Sister-in-law, this isn't a child I want. I don't want this.
"It was Wang Hao. His whole family ganged up to bully me. I got pregnant with this child without knowing anything at all.
"I truly didn't know anything."
Chen Qingxiu was so furious she wanted to hit someone.
She told Lin Wanyi:
"Abort it. Since it's not a child you want, abort it. Otherwise, you'll regret it for the rest of your life.
"Wanyi, you have to make up your mind and never look back. The Wang family is a trap, and Wangjia Village is the biggest fiery pit of hell.
"You finally managed to jump out of it; don't ever go back in."
Lin Wanyi nodded vigorously. Without them noticing, Wang Hao had appeared behind Chen Qingxiu:
"Sister-in-law, aren't you sticking your nose a bit too far into other people's business?
"My brother broke our uncle's nose, and we haven't even settled that score with you yet.
"You shouldn't talk so much."
Chen Qingxiu wasn't afraid of him at all. She said:
"Wang Hao, I look down on you too. You've been exploited by your parents your whole life, and even by your uncle.
"You don't know how to fight back, and you drag your own wife down to suffer with you.
"What kind of man are you? You're far worse than your brother in that regard."
"Sister-in-law..."
Wang Hao raised his voice, but Chen Qingxiu replied coldly:
"Don't call me sister-in-law. You don't deserve to!"
Chen Qingxiu took her son by the hand and left, leaving Lin Wanyi with a heart riddled with wounds.
Wang Hao felt uneasy; he had heard what Chen Qingxiu said.
He also knew that the Lin family was waiting for tomorrow, waiting to see how they could get him to the Civil Affairs Bureau to divorce.
Both he and Lin Wanyi were well aware of the situation: one was determined to divorce, and the other was absolutely refusing to.
They were both waiting, waiting for the eighth day of the New Year.
Waiting to see what move the other would make, waiting to see how this would all end.
To coax Lin Wanyi into a good mood, Wang Hao bought a lot of small cakes. But as soon as they got home, Wang Meijuan handed them straight to her own son.
Wang Hao couldn't believe that Wang Meijuan had come over again, and had even brought her son, Li Borui.
She handed the cakes to Li Borui:
"Son, look at the little cakes your uncle bought for you. You can't afford these back in Lijia Village, can you?
"The city is much better, isn't it?"
Wang Hao asked her in disbelief:
"How did you get here? The heavy snow closed all the roads. How did you make it over?"
Wang Meijuan laughed:
"Haha, Borui was at his aunt's place the last couple of days. He wasn't in the countryside at all. Otherwise, where do you think I slept last night?"
Wang Keke wanted to eat some cake too, but Li Borui hugged all three of them to his chest;
"Mine! They're all mine. No one is allowed to take them from me."
Wang Keke shed tears of grievance and looked at Lin Wanyi:
"Mommy, I want to eat cake too."
Without a word, Lin Wanyi snatched all three cakes right out of Li Borui's arms and gave them to Wang Keke:
"Eat up. They were bought for you in the first place."
Wang Keke happily followed Li Suhua back to her room, while Li Borui grabbed onto Wang Meijuan and bawled loudly.
Wang Meijuan practically jumped up and cursed at Lin Wanyi:
"You dead bitch! It's just a cake, why are you being so petty?
"Can your money-losing daughter even eat three by herself? Why did you snatch them from my son?"
Lin Wanyi didn't even look at her. She grabbed her and dragged her toward the door:
"I told you before, give me half a million to buy this house, or else don't step one foot in here.
"Wang Meijuan, you truly have no shame."
Just as Wang Meijuan tried to call out to Wang Hao, Lin Wanyi slammed the door in her face.
She yelled and cursed outside the door for a long time, but after no one paid her any attention, she finally left with Li Borui.
Lin Wanyi sat by the window, thinking about how tomorrow was the eighth day of the New Year.
She wanted time to move faster, even faster.
She wished she could just close her eyes and open them to find it was already tomorrow.
She read over the divorce agreement she had typed up long ago, again and again.
Half the house for each, half the savings for each, Wang Keke would go to her, and Wang Hao would pay one thousand a month in child support.
She thought it was very reasonable; she wasn't taking advantage of Wang Hao for a single cent.
Separated by only a wall, Wang Hao was also looking out the window at the heavy snow.
But he was rubbing his phone in his hand.
On the phone were videos of Lin Wanyi.
Videos of him torturing and abusing her in various ways.
He made up his mind. If Lin Wanyi insisted on a divorce, if she insisted on leaving.
Then he would release the videos.
He absolutely could not let Lin Wanyi leave this place...
