When Qin's mother heard that they wanted to report the matter to the police, her face changed. She claimed that the Ma family had no sense of decency whatsoever. She was the child's biological grandmother, and no one was more heartbroken than she was that something had happened to the child. Yet at a time like this, the Ma family had come to make trouble. It was simply outrageous.
Qin Dongping also felt that the Ma family was causing trouble for no reason. As the child's father, he had lost his son, his daughter had met with disaster, and his wife was still lying in the hospital. Why couldn't they show him a little understanding? Did they think he wanted anything to happen to the child? She was his own flesh and blood. They had come not to help, but to make trouble. What kind of relatives behaved like that?
But whenever the Ma family thought of their niece dying with nothing but a straw mat, only to be thrown into the mountains and devoured by wild wolves, they simply could not accept it. They insisted that the child be buried in the ground. The villagers also looked down on the Qin family's actions, believing them to be utterly heartless.
Faced with the doubts of the entire village, the Qin family knew they still had to live there in the future. If they gained a bad reputation, it would even make it difficult for their children to find spouses someday. In the end, they agreed to the Ma family's demand and arranged for the child to be buried.
The Ma family was not well-off, but they still managed to scrape together fifteen yuan to buy the child a ready-made outfit.
Ma Ling changed her niece's clothes while sobbing. When she used scissors to cut open the clothing, which had frozen stiff as ice, she discovered bruises on the child's body. Ma Ling flew into a rage and slapped Qin Dongping across the face.
“Qin Dongping, you beast! Look at Big Girl! Who gave her those injuries? I’m going to report you. Your whole family are murderers!”
Only then did Qin Dongping see the shocking wounds covering his daughter’s body. For the first time, he began to suspect his own mother. He demanded to know what had happened to the child.
Qin's mother planted her hands on her hips and pointed at Qin Dongping, showing not the slightest trace of guilt.
“How should I know? You good-for-nothing brat, I’m your mother! You actually suspect me? I admit I favor boys over girls, but I would never hit her. Who knows whether she already had those injuries when she came back with you?”
Qin Dongping's sister-in-law said that the bruises might have been caused by the frozen clothes rubbing against her skin, or perhaps by something in the river scraping her.
Qin Dongping believed her again. His eyes red, he held Big Girl in his arms and cried for a long time, repeatedly apologizing to her. Even when the Ma family continued insisting on reporting the matter to the police, he did everything he could to stop them.
He said that reporting it would mean an autopsy. He did not want the child to suffer again. He wanted her to be laid to rest with her body intact.
“Just a moment ago, you wanted to wrap her in a mat and throw her into the mountains. Now you’re afraid of an autopsy? Qin Dongping, are you really worried about the child suffering, or are you trying to hide something?”
The Ma family's eldest brother charged forward with red-rimmed eyes and pinned Qin Dongping to the snowy ground, raining punches down on him. One look at the bruises and wounds made it clear they had not been caused by rubbing. He had never imagined that his sister’s husband would be such a useless coward.
“The child belongs to the Qin family. This has nothing to do with the Ma family,” Qin Dongping said. His patience had finally reached its limit. During this period, one problem after another had descended upon his family, pressing down on him until he could barely breathe. He began fighting the Ma family's eldest brother like a madman. In the end, the village team leader had to call people over to separate them.
“Qin Dongping, the child isn’t yours alone. She’s part of the Ma family too. We’re taking her into town together. We have to let her mother see her. If Ma Juan never gets to see her, she’ll hate you for the rest of her life.”
Ma Juan's eldest sister knew that they had the advantage in numbers in the village, but it would be better to take the child into town and let her younger sister decide what to do.
At that moment, Qin Dongping suddenly remembered the look in Ma Juan’s eyes when she had thrown the kitchen knife. He also realized how important the child was to her. If he did not let her see the child even once, Ma Juan might go mad. He would not even dare close his eyes at night.
In the end, with the unanimous agreement of the villagers, they borrowed a tractor from the village and brought the child here. Whether or not to report the matter to the police would be decided jointly by Ma Juan and Qin Dongping.
After listening to her eldest sister’s account, Ma Juan unexpectedly grew calm. She neither cried nor made a scene. In a composed voice, she said each word clearly:
“I want to report it to the police.”
Xiao Mandong glanced at the clock and stopped listening. She took ten ten-yuan notes from her pocket and placed them beside Ma Juan’s pillow.
“Consider this money a loan. You have many expenses to deal with right now. Pay me back whenever you have the means.”
She knew that helping someone through an emergency was different from supporting someone indefinitely. A hundred yuan was nothing to her, but to Ma Juan, it might give her the courage to stand up to the Qin family. Perhaps it would help her seek justice for her child.
“Doctor Xiao...” Ma Juan’s throat tightened. She did not know what to say. In the end, she could only whisper, “Thank you.”
Meanwhile, Gu Jianghan took more than an hour to return to his grandaunt’s house. Without even turning on the light, he hastily pulled off his coat, which was covered in the chill of the outdoors, and climbed straight into bed. The heated kang was warm and comfortable, and the exhaustion that had overtaken his entire body soon dragged him into a deep sleep.
But his sleep was terribly restless. His dreams were filled with chaotic images—the warmth of Xiao Mandong crashing into his arms, the sensation of her forehead striking his chin, the blush on her cheeks, the softness of her waist beneath his supporting hand, and the delicate fragrance lingering at her neck. He could not escape them...
He tried desperately to steady his mind. Although he seemed to know that he was dreaming, he could not break free of the dream no matter how hard he tried.
It was not until dawn that he suddenly woke up. Gu Jianghan’s face flushed bright red. His Adam’s apple bobbed as embarrassment and shame welled up inside him. He cursed himself for becoming so shameless that he could actually entertain such disgraceful thoughts.
After listening to the movements outside and glancing at his younger brother on the other side of the kang, he hurriedly got up and changed into clean clothes. He yanked off the sheet, bundled it up, and walked into the courtyard. Though he looked calm and self-possessed on the outside, his heart was pounding like a drum as he washed the sheet in the biting cold water.
“Oh, you foolish boy! Did you wet the bed? Why are you washing the sheet so early in the morning? And you didn’t even heat any water. The water’s freezing! What if you make yourself sick?”
Grandma Gu’s voice sounded behind him, making Gu Jianghan’s scalp prickle. His heart nearly jumped into his throat.
“Grandma... I... I drank too much yesterday and threw up on the sheet, so I wanted to wash it early.”
Even he did not believe the excuse he had come up with.
“Brother, what were you groaning about before you threw up?”
With a smack, the dripping-wet sheet landed on Gu Shaoting’s face, and the brothers began chasing one another around the courtyard.
After they had fooled around for a while, Grandma Gu came out of the house carrying a basin of hot water. Looking at her grandsons, she smiled without exposing him.
“All right, all right, stop fooling around. Use the hot water to finish washing the sheet. It’s cold out, so it won’t dry easily.”
Avoiding his grandmother’s knowing smile, Gu Jianghan quickly finished washing the sheet and hung it outside to drip-dry before returning indoors with her.
He had a busy day ahead. He needed to follow up on Xiaoli’s case, so he quickly finished breakfast and prepared to leave.
“Jianghan, find some time to bring Xiao here for Grandma to meet. It’s been so many years since I last saw her, and I’ve missed her.”
How could she not know what her grandson was thinking? She had watched both boys grow up. She had noticed the changes in them over the past few days. If he truly liked Xiao, that would be wonderful. He was nearly thirty and still unmarried. If this continued, she would have no way to answer to her daughter-in-law in the afterlife.
If only they could settle down soon. Then, before she died, she might even get to hold a great-grandson. A great-granddaughter would be even better, of course—she had never raised a girl in her life.
“All right, Grandma.” With that, Gu Jianghan fled as if for his life.
