“Sister Mandong, my grandma asked me to bring you these red date cakes. I never thought saving my brother would cause you so much trouble. But don’t worry—I’ll tell my dad as soon as I get home and have him deal with Section Chief Tang.”
As she spoke, Qian Yuxiu took a large package of red date cakes from her bag. She set them down and was about to leave.
“Why are you in such a hurry? Sit for a while,” Xiao Mandong said, trying to pull Qian Yuxiu back down.
“No, no, I have to go home and keep arguing with my mom. She introduced me to someone, but I didn’t like him, so we’re in the middle of a huge fight. The kind of marriage I want has to be based on love—the sort where your heart skips a beat the moment you meet. Well, never mind that. I have to go back and convince my mom to understand.”
With that, she hurried out.
Xiao Mandong put some of the red date cakes into a smaller bag and then went to Qi Yuqing’s home. That meal had been one emotional roller coaster after another.
The food had already gone cold, so Qi Yuqing reheated it and brought it back to the table.
Xiao Mandong took a couple of bites and asked casually, “Sister Yuqing, do you know much about Cui Lijuan?”
She wanted to find out what kind of person Cui Lijuan was and what her current circumstances were, so Xiaoli could be mentally prepared.
Qi Yuqing picked up a bite of food with her chopsticks and fell silent for several seconds.
“Cui Lijuan? I don’t know her very well, but I’ve heard a thing or two. She and Section Chief Tang seem to get along all right. Anyway, this is the first time I’ve ever seen them arguing in public after all these years.”
She paused and gave a bitter laugh.
“But a lot of things are just a façade. Take me, for example. Zhang Chenghui and I were married for twenty years. To outsiders, we seemed to have a perfectly good marriage, but who knew what he was doing behind my back…”
Tang Jing was Section Chief Tang’s biological niece. Her father had died young, and her mother had run off, leaving no one to care for the child. Apparently, Tang Jing had already been living with him before he got married. Over the years, he had treated her like his own daughter. The reason he did not let her call him ‘Dad’ was that he did not want his brother to have no one to tend his grave in the future.
Tang Guanshan’s biological mother had died when he was young. After his stepmother entered the family, she constantly beat and cursed him and his older brother. His brother’s wife had once jumped into the water to save a girl. Afraid that the girl’s reputation would be ruined, her family had no choice but to marry her off to him.
When Section Chief Tang reached marriageable age, his stepmother did not care about finding him a wife. As he grew older, it became even harder for him to find someone.
His stepmother later had a son and a daughter. Tang Guanshan’s father had originally intended to leave his job to the son born to his second wife.
No one knew what methods Tang Guanshan had used, but the position ultimately fell into his hands. He even drove his stepmother, younger brother, and younger sister out of the house, forcing them to return to their rural hometown. Ever since he started working at the hospital, everything had gone smoothly for him. He had built good connections in every direction.
As for Cui Lijuan, her mother was paralyzed and could barely walk, while she had three older brothers. None of them was willing to take responsibility, so they all pushed their mother onto her. She had no choice but to bring her mother with her when she married into the Tang family.
Xiao Mandong was somewhat surprised. “She brought her mother with her when she got married?”
“Of course she did.” Qi Yuqing sighed. “That’s what people mean when they say she married him for her mother’s sake. Otherwise, she never would have married Tang Guanshan. At the time, Tang Guanshan had just taken over the job, was already fairly old, and had a child in tow. It was only in the past couple of years that their household started doing better. Before that, with a bedridden woman at home and a child in school, they were barely scraping by.”
Xiao Mandong set down her chopsticks and looked at her. “Didn’t they have any children of their own?”
Qi Yuqing shook her head, a trace of helplessness on her face.
“Apparently, she got pregnant once, but miscarried. I heard Tang Jing was the one who didn’t want the baby.”
At that moment, a loud crash came from upstairs, startling them both.
Qi Yuqing pressed a hand to her chest. “Living next door to them is such terrible luck. Fortunately, I’ll be moving soon anyway. The hospital is taking this apartment back.”
“Sister Yuqing, they’re taking the apartment back?”
When she heard Qi Yuqing say she was leaving, Xiao Mandong felt a little empty inside. She wondered whether there was something wrong with her personality. In both of her lives, she had never had many friends. She and Qi Yuqing were able to talk easily, so if Qi Yuqing moved away, Xiao Mandong would be the only one left in the residential compound. She suddenly realized she might not be able to adjust.
“Zhang Chenghui was the one who was assigned this apartment. Since something happened to him, the hospital is definitely going to take it back. There are plenty of people waiting for housing, so they can’t let me keep occupying it forever. But don’t worry—I’m moving back to my father’s place. It’s only one entrance farther away.”
As she cleared the dishes, Qi Yuqing continued chatting with Xiao Mandong.
“I’ll take you over to meet my family sometime.”
Another loud crash came from upstairs. Then an old woman’s shrill, cutting voice rang out:
“What kind of sin did our Qin family commit to end up with a daughter-in-law like you? You’ve already had two girls, and now that you’re pregnant with a third, it’s another one of the same! You useless woman! My son has such a good job, but there won’t even be anyone to take over for him someday. What hope is there for this family?”
“Mom… the baby hasn’t even been born yet, and you’re already saying it’s a girl. You’re even telling me to have an abortion. I’m six months pregnant already! Whether it’s a boy or a girl, it’s still a child of the Qin family. How can you be so cruel?”
“You little tramp, are you deaf? Didn’t I say you can give birth if you want? I’ll take those two girls back to the countryside and raise them myself. You two just give me enough money each month to feed them. Have your eldest brother’s second boy adopted into your family—you only need to raise one child. That way, you’ll have someone to support you in your old age. Even if the child in your belly is a girl, I’ll accept her. But you wicked slut refuse to agree no matter what! Do you want my third son to have no one to mourn him and perform the funeral rites when he dies?”
Qi Yuqing pointed upstairs.
“The man works in the hospital pharmacy. His name is Qin Dongping, and his wife is Ma Juan. She doesn’t have a job and stays home to look after the children. This is her third pregnancy. Her mother-in-law came a couple of days ago, and after having someone tell her fortune, she decided the baby was another girl. That’s when she started making trouble.”
Xiao Mandong could not understand people who valued boys over girls. They were women themselves, yet they spent every day despising daughters. They were alive and well, but all they could think about was having someone perform funeral rites for them after death. They really had too much time on their hands.
“Ah… Qin Dongping, are you even a man? I’m carrying your child, and you’re just going to let your mother beat me?”
The commotion upstairs grew louder and louder. Before long, voices from people gathered in the hallway drifted in as well.
These days, apart from watching the excitement, people did not seem to have much entertainment.
She tugged on Qi Yuqing’s sleeve. “Come on. Let’s go take a look.”
The two of them put on their padded coats and opened the door. The hallway was already packed with people.
A middle-aged woman in a floral padded jacket had both hands tucked into her sleeves and was sniffling from the cold. She greeted Xiao Mandong with a smile.
“Oh, so you’re the new Doctor Xiao? I’m Doctor Fu’s mother-in-law. You can call me Auntie Gao. My goodness, you’re such a pretty girl. Shall I find you a husband? I can definitely find someone with excellent qualifications in every respect.”
Xiao Mandong glanced at her without replying.
The woman did not seem offended. She continued standing there with a cheerful smile, but inside, she had already begun making calculations.
This Doctor Xiao had an apartment, a job, and was divorced without any children. What excellent conditions! Her nephew was twenty-six this year. His family had too many children and was so poor they could barely scrape together a living, which was why he had never managed to find a wife.
If everything worked out, they could even save on the bride price. Doctor Xiao was a twice-married woman, after all, and if she married an unmarried young man, she wouldn’t be getting the short end of the stick. Once she got pregnant after a year or so, she could give up her job as well. Then her nephew would have a job—if he couldn’t become a doctor, he could at least work in the logistics department.
Just look at that waist, those hips. The more Aunt Fu looked, the more satisfied she became. The more she imagined it, the happier she felt, until her face split into a grin like the sole of a worn-out shoe.
Xiao Mandong felt uncomfortable under her gaze and was just about to speak when another scream rang out from upstairs.
“Oh, for goodness’ sake, Dr. Qin! Can’t your family keep it down? What time is it? My grandson has school tomorrow!”
Aunt Fu pursed her lips. It was so late, yet they were still making such a racket. Her two grandsons had only just fallen asleep!
The moment Aunt Fu finished speaking, the tightly closed door upstairs suddenly flew open. Qin Dongping came rushing out with Ma Juan in his arms. Ma Juan’s face was deathly pale, and she was clutching her stomach.
“How did she lose so much blood? Make way!” The Women’s Director hurried over, but her face went white at the sight. She quickly began dispersing the people blocking the stairwell.
“Move aside! Don’t crowd the passage!”
Only then did the crowd hurriedly split apart, clearing a path.
Qin Dongping carried Ma Juan downstairs, with the Women’s Director following close behind at a jog.
Seeing her daughter-in-law covered in blood, Qin’s mother leaned against the doorframe, trembling. Just moments earlier, inside the room, Ma Juan had said that she would only raise her own children and that no one should even think about taking her children away. She had also said that mutton could never be stuck onto dog meat—she would never raise someone else’s bastard.
In a fit of rage, Qin’s mother had slapped Ma Juan twice. Who could have known that Ma Juan would lose her footing and fall?
What a useless woman. She couldn’t even stay standing after two slaps. And now she was bleeding so much—it was truly frightening.
“Cry, cry, cry! What are you crying for? Your mother isn’t dead!” Qin’s mother had only just recovered from her shock when she saw her two granddaughters clinging to the doorframe and crying. Her fear was immediately replaced by anger.
This wasn’t her fault. Who could blame her when Ma Juan couldn’t give birth to a boy? Besides, she hadn’t pushed her very hard. If the child was lost, then it was simply fate. It was never meant to be one of the Qin family’s children.
Qin’s mother grabbed both girls and started dragging them outside. “Hurry up, you two little money-losers.” Though she was reluctant, she still had to go to the hospital and take a look, lest people gossip and her son’s job be affected.
