sbdcsierra Chapter 1716 Zhao Hong's Tragic Get-Beating and Da Long
Chapter 1716 Zhao Hong's Tragic Get-Beating and Da Long
Chapter 1716 Zhao Hong's Tragic Get-Beating and Da Long
April 3, 1988, was a Sunday. It was the day the Xie family went to the Zheng family in Yonglitun to get engaged.
This had little to do with the Zhao family; they were all busy as usual that morning. After getting up, Zhao Jun and Ma Ling went out to walk the bear and feed the dog. Wang Meilan cooked in the house, while Zhao Youcai lay on the kang (heated brick bed) in the west hut, stroking the little lynx with his hand, his little eyes darting around, seemingly pondering something.
For breakfast, we ate white flour steamed buns and tofu pudding that we had exchanged with the tofu shop.
The family and Xing San stood around eating. Xing San slurped up a mouthful of tofu pudding, and when he put down the bowl, he saw a blur before his eyes, and then a steamed bun appeared in his bowl of tofu pudding.
The steamed bun was about the size of a quail egg. It didn't fall out of the old man's mouth; someone threw it into his bowl.
Xing San subconsciously looked at Zhao Hong and saw that the girl winked at him twice. Without saying a word, Xing San picked up the bowl and drank the steamed bun and the rest of the tofu pudding.
Zhao Hong's actions were similar to Xing San's. She finished her tofu pudding, put down her chopsticks, and said, "I'm done eating and I'm leaving the table."
Normally, Wang Meilan would have responded, but today she just kept eating in silence.
Zhao Hong was still young, and her features were not yet fully developed. After getting off the table, she skipped and hopped into the house.
"Second sister, wait for me a moment." Zhao Na said anxiously, grabbing a steamed bun from beside the bowl and taking a bite.
These days, children are taught to cherish food and not waste it. If they feel that the adults have served them too much rice and they can't finish it, they should just say so and ask that some be set aside.
Once you start eating, you must finish all the food in your bowl. And when you leave the table, there can't be a single grain of rice left in your bowl.
If you're eating noodles, and you can't finish a whole steamed bun, you can break it in half or a quarter. But no matter how big you break it, once you start eating it, you have to finish it.
Although Zhao Na was young, she dared not leave any food uneaten, or she would get beaten.
"Eat slowly," Wang Meilan said to Zhao Na, then she put down her chopsticks, got up and said to Ma Ling, "My dear, you can wash the dishes after you finish eating. Mom has something to do in the house."
"Hey!" Ma Ling replied quickly, "Mom, you don't need to worry about it. I'll clean up after we finish eating."
Zhao Jun and Zhao Youcai didn't say anything, but Xing San sensed something was wrong and quickly called out to Wang Meilan, "Sister-in-law, Er Ya gave me a steamed bun just now, this..."
“Brother, it’s not about that.” Wang Meilan said, afraid that Xing San would overthink it. “I was thinking of dealing with her last night.”
After saying that, Wang Meilan walked quickly towards the east room.
As the door slammed shut, Zhao Hong's sobs followed.
"My second sister got beaten up." Although Zhao Na was young, she knew that Zhao Hong wouldn't cry for no reason.
"What's wrong?" Ma Ling asked Zhao Jun in a low voice. Zhao Jun was afraid that Xing San would overthink things, so he quietly told him the reason why Chen Weiyi had told him that Wang Haitao killed his father.
Zhao Jun was not a pedantic person; he knew that the root cause did not lie with his second younger sister.
There are problems between the father and son in the Wang family, and another problem is that Wang Haitao and his wife did not educate their child well.
But Wang Meilan's discipline of Zhao Hong was also a result of Zhao Hong needing to be taught a lesson. The adults had all said not to bring toys to school, but this little girl was disobedient and headstrong; if she wasn't disciplined, what would become of her?
“Wang Jiusheng and his second son don’t get along!” Zhao Youcai said, then suddenly looked at Zhao Jun, thinking to himself: Should I be nicer to this brat too?
Zhao Jun didn't know what Zhao Youcai was thinking, and only said, "Who knows? Even if GA asks him, he won't tell."
No sooner had Zhao Jun finished speaking than the sound of dogs barking rang out from outside. Zhao Jun got off his stool and looked out the window, where he saw Li Ruhai running quickly toward the front of the house.
"What's Ru Hai doing?" Ma Ling, who also saw it, asked. Zhao Jun replied, "He probably offended someone again with his sharp tongue, and they're probably chasing him away."
"Hehe..." Xing San was amused by Zhao Jun's words, while Zhao Youcai said, "This kid has been doing well lately, he hasn't been talking nonsense outside as much."
"Yes." Zhao Jun sat down and said, "He doesn't talk nonsense outside, he talks nonsense at home."
At this point, Zhao Jun smiled and continued, "He's not just being particular about Xiaoyun, he's also constantly beating and bruising Baoyu."
“Then it’s not unjust for him to get beaten up.” As soon as Xing San said this, Li Ruhai pulled the door open and went inside.
After entering the house, Li Ruhai squatted down in the doorway, panting heavily.
"What are you doing?" Zhao Jun had just finished eating. As he walked towards Li Ruhai, he looked out the window and asked, "Who's chasing you?"
“No one’s chasing me, brother.” Li Ruhai stood up, leaning against the wall, and said, “I have important information.”
"Huh?" Zhao Jun was taken aback, and then he heard Ma Ling's voice from behind him: "Ru Hai, have you eaten yet? If not, come up to the table and have a bite. The tofu pudding and stuff are still warm."
Upon hearing Ma Ling's words, Li Ruhai walked towards the dining table.
At this moment, Zhao Youcai and Xing San had finished eating and were preparing to have a cigarette after their meal.
Seeing Li Ruhai walk towards the dining table, Zhao Youcai asked in surprise, "Ruhai, when did you leave home?"
Jin Xiaomei is a decent person; she wouldn't neglect to cook for her husband and children. The fact that Li Ruhai hadn't eaten by mealtime meant he had left home early that morning.
"Hey! Hey!" Li Ruhai took a couple more breaths before answering Zhao Youcai, "Uncle, I left before six o'clock to go to the big pancake shop."
As he spoke, Li Ruhai turned around and called to Zhao Jun, saying, "Brother, I have important intelligence, and I request to report to you privately!"
"Stop talking nonsense!" Xing San grabbed Li Ruhai's arm and said, "Just say it here, let us hear it too!"
Ma Ling nodded repeatedly, no longer in a hurry to pick up the table.
"Fine, I'll tell you." Li Ruhai didn't refuse, which meant it wasn't a big deal, but he lowered his voice and said mysteriously, "I heard this from my sister Mingyue's grandfather."
"What did he say?" Zhao Jun asked in a low voice as well, instantly creating a sense of atmosphere.
“Speaking of which…” Li Ruhai patted Zhao Jun’s arm lightly and said, “Wang Haitao, who attacked us that day, wasn’t born to his father.”
"What?" Zhao Jun, Ma Ling, Zhao Youcai, Xing San, and Xiao Zhaona all widened their eyes in unison.
Wang Meilan, who had just come out of the east corridor, vaguely heard these words, and her anger vanished without a trace. She quickly walked towards the table.
Li Ruhai continued in a low voice, "There used to be a guy in our village named Wang Erxi, don't you know him?"
As soon as Li Ruhai said this, Zhao Youcai and Zhao Jun looked at Wang Meilan in unison.
When Li Ruhai also looked at Wang Meilan, Wang Meilan curled her lips and said, "That's a relative of mine."
As she spoke, Wang Meilan pointed out the window and added, "Wang Dalong's father."
After saying this, Wang Meilan's expression changed. She lowered her head and whispered to Li Ruhai, "What? Is Wang Haitao his son?"
"Ah!" Li Ruhai's eyes widened, and he nodded repeatedly. Then he raised his hands, quickly touching his two thumbs together twice, and said, "Say Wang Haitao's mother and Wang Erxi..."
Li Ruhai didn't finish his sentence, but everyone could understand his gestures.
"Oh my god!" Zhao Youcai's small eyes widened in disbelief.
"Mom," Ma Ling called softly to Wang Meilan, "If that's the case, then Wang Haitao is actually related to our family."
"Absolutely!" Wang Meilan blinked, but quickly realized what she meant and exclaimed, "What relative? He can't do anything to my son!"
“That’s right!” Zhao Jun replied with a smile, then said, “I understand now. Just like what Director Chen said, Wang Jiusheng drank too much that day. Afterwards, Wang Haitao went to borrow money, but he wouldn’t lend it to him.”
I reckon Wang Haitao probably said something else, like accusing Wang Jiusheng of favoritism or something. Wang Jiusheng, emboldened by alcohol, said things like, "You're not my son," and Wang Haitao, in a fit of anger, lost control…
“It’s possible.” Xing San nodded in agreement, but then added, “But it’s not right to say that. After all, Wang Jiusheng raised him all those years. He’s not his own son, but Wang Jiusheng still raised him.”
“I have a feeling…” Zhao Jun chimed in, “Wang Jiusheng is drunk and doesn’t keep his mouth shut. He probably said something about Wang Haitao’s mother.”
"Hey!" Xing San pointed at Zhao Jun and said, "Kid, it must be what you said!"
"Oh dear!" At this moment, Li Ruhai sighed and said, "Don't say anything more, this isn't his biological son."
After saying that, Li Ruhai added, "If it has to be his own son, his son wouldn't be so despicable as to cause a major disaster!"
In Zhao Jun's family, beating one's father and cursing one's mother is considered an act of offense against Heaven and reason.
Upon hearing Li Ruhai's words, Zhao Youcai glanced at Zhao Jun with his small eyes.
Li Ruhai must have been hungry, because he quickly devoured a large steamed bun and a bowl of tofu pudding.
"Ruhai, is there more?" Ma Ling said to Li Ruhai after he finished his bowl of tofu pudding. "I'll get you another bowl!"
"I'm not eating anymore, sister-in-law," Li Ruhai said. "It's past eight o'clock, I was thinking of going to see my brother Chen."
With that, Li Ruhai smiled and said, "Give my brother Chen a pep talk! And tell Aunt Sun a couple of things, tell her not to say anything out of line when she goes to other people's houses!"
"You dare say that?" Xing San laughed and patted Li Ruhai on the shoulder, saying, "If you say that to your Aunt Sun, she'll give you a good slap in the face!"
Li Ruhai laughed heartily, while Zhao Jun said, "Ruhai, let's go together! We'll drive and deliver the car to him."
"Come on, my dear." Wang Meilan called to Ma Ling, who was about to wash the dishes, and said, "Just those two bowls, leave them there, we'll wash them when we get back."
After saying that, Wang Meilan went inside and called Zhao Hong and Zhao Na.
Blood relatives don't hold grudges overnight, and Zhao Hong was young, so she didn't harbor any resentment towards Wang Meilan after being beaten. At Wang Meilan's call, Zhao Hong dressed and came out.
As soon as the family stepped out of their house, someone called out, "Fifth Aunt, Fifth Uncle."
"Hey, Da Long!" Wang Meilan looked up and saw that it was Wang Da Long who was calling them.
Wang Dalong had some unpleasantness with the Zhao family because of those two dogs. But as long as adults don't completely break off relations, they can maintain appearances.
At this moment, Wang Meilan looked at Wei Xiaojuan's bulging belly and asked with a smile, "How are you, Juan'er? Are you vomiting a lot?"
"Not bad, Fifth Aunt." Wei Xiaojuan smiled, looked at Zhao Jun and the others, and asked, "What are you all doing here?"
Logically speaking, if Zhao Jun and the others heard Wei Xiaojuan speaking, they should at least glance at her.
But when Wei Xiaojuan looked over, she saw Zhao Jun, Ma Ling, Zhao Youcai, Li Ruhai, and Xing San all looking at Wang Dalong with strange eyes.
Wei Xiaojuan was taken aback, and Wang Dalong beside her also sensed something was wrong. Wang Dalong didn't know that Zhao Jun and the other four were staring at him like that because of Wang Haitao. At this moment, Wang Dalong assumed that some of his embarrassing secrets had been exposed again.
Wang Dalong's expression changed, and at that moment, the back of a hand slapped him across the face.
"Slap!" Wei Xiaojuan's slap left Zhao Jun and the others dumbfounded.
Wei Xiaojuan wasn't like this before. Is it because she's pregnant that she feels more confident?
Zhao Jun thought this was not a good thing. In his previous life, he watched those TV dramas where daughters-in-law took advantage of their pregnancy to bully their evil mothers-in-law. Although it was satisfying to watch, it wouldn't work in reality.
You're pregnant for ten months, and people tolerate you for ten months, but once the baby is born, they won't even let you have a peaceful postpartum period.
"Sister Juan." Sensing something interesting, Li Ruhai approached Wei Xiaojuan and asked with a smile, "You're really good at this!"
Wei Xiaojuan smiled, then glanced sideways at Wang Dalong, who was smiling wryly, before turning to Li Ruhai and asking, "Ruhai, why were you staring at your brother Dalong like that just now?"
Upon hearing Wei Xiaojuan's words, Wang Dalong's face showed panic, fearing that Li Ruhai might say something.
"Ah, no, no." Li Ruhai said to Wei Xiaojuan with a smile, "It's just that I saw my brother Dalong helping you, the two of you are doing very well."
Zhao Jun and Zhao Youcai nodded repeatedly when Li Ruhai said this. Wang Dalong breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing Li Ruhai's words, but when he looked up, he met Wei Xiaojuan's unfriendly gaze.
“Wang Dalong!” Wei Xiaojuan raised her hand and pointed at Wang Dalong’s nose without any politeness, saying, “My fifth aunt is right here. Let me tell you, if you keep spouting nonsense outside, we’re getting a divorce. Nobody will stay with you.”
This scene left Zhao Jun and his companions completely bewildered. When did Wei Xiaojuan become so fierce?
What's even more astonishing is that Wang Dalong said to Wei Xiaojuan with a forced smile, "No, wife, this time I'll stay home and stay with you. I won't go anywhere else."
Seeing this, Wang Meilan shouted at Wang Dalong, "Dalong, you should live a good life with Xiaojuan!"
"Oh, Fifth Aunt, I know." Knowing that Wang Meilan was giving him a way out, Wang Dalong quickly replied, "I'll definitely live a good life this time."
Hearing him say that, Wang Meilan comforted Wei Xiaojuan again, saying, "Juan'er, your fifth aunt knows you're anxious because you're pregnant, but we can't keep arguing about divorce. What will happen to the child if you two get divorced?"
It's not that Wang Meilan is stubborn; it's just that these days, there are widowed women who don't get divorced. If they can't go on living together, women will take poison or hang themselves, but they still won't get a divorce.
In rural areas, divorce is considered shameful. If a woman gets divorced, the gossip and pointing fingers are unimaginable. Before a divorce, you could still talk to your neighbors and uncles. After a divorce, even the men avoid you.
Another issue is that if you get divorced, you'll have nowhere to go. If you're still married, it's okay to go back to your parents' house every few days for a couple of days. But if you get divorced, not only will your parents' family gossip about you, but will your brothers' wives be happy about it?
It's not just in rural areas; it's quite scary in the city these days too. If a couple wants a divorce, both their workplaces and neighborhood committees have to come and persuade them. Unless there's a huge uproar, the divorce won't happen.
Wei Xiaojuan is heavily pregnant and wants a divorce. What will happen to the child? Unless she has an abortion, the child will be subject to gossip in the future.
Wang Meilan was afraid that Wei Xiaojuan would suffer if she kept bringing up the idea of not getting a divorce.
To Wang Meilan's surprise, Wei Xiaojuan retorted defiantly, "At worst, I'll send the child to a temple after it's born!"
Wang Meilan: "..."
Zhao Jun and the others all looked at Wang Dalong, only to see that Wang Dalong had a bitter expression on his face, obviously he had heard these words many times.
(End of this chapter)