Zhao Xiuli had been in a pretty good mood these past few days.
Her son had built a pig farm, and of the tens of thousands of yuan Lu Mosheng had handed over during the family separation, she had kept everything that hadn’t been spent on construction.
She was humming a tune while washing clothes when the second aunt came looking for her. The woman wore a stern expression as she asked, “Guess who I ran into in town today?”
“Who?”
“Song Jiayan’s wife!” The second aunt clicked her tongue. “That daughter-in-law of yours is really something! I ran into her in town today. Somehow, she’d gotten her hands on a bunch of rabbits and was selling them there. She made quite a bit of money!”
After thinking for a moment, the second aunt continued, “I thought we were all from the same village, and since the young couple had separated from the family, life probably wasn’t easy for them. I figured I’d help them out a little. But guess what? She refused to sell me a rabbit! And that wasn’t all. She even badmouthed you behind your back…”
“What did she say about me?” Zhao Xiuli’s good mood vanished instantly, and her face darkened.
“Don’t get angry when you hear this,” the second aunt said slowly. “She called you a heartless, wicked woman who came up with all sorts of ways to abuse her daughter-in-law. She said you’re one person in public and another in private. She even said Heaven must be blind, because it failed to lock you up for the rest of your life!”
By the time the second aunt finished speaking, Zhao Xiuli’s eyes were practically spitting fire.
The second aunt hurried to comfort her.
“Honestly, Song Jiayan’s wife is far too sharp-tongued. With a mouth like hers, she can twist things this way and that until even the best reputation is ruined!”
“I’m the one who knows you best. Ever since you married Song Jiayan’s father, haven’t you worked yourself to the bone to keep this family going? Meanwhile, look at Song Jiayan’s wife. After marrying into the Song family, she wouldn’t even wash her own clothes or do any housework. She just sat around waiting to be served, with food brought to her and clothes handed to her!”
“As for why you went and destroyed those baical skullcap plants, wasn’t it because she drove you to it?”
Every word the second aunt spoke struck a chord deep in Zhao Xiuli’s heart.
After calming herself for a moment, Zhao Xiuli gritted her teeth and spat out, “That black-hearted Lu Mosheng! She’s going around spreading lies about me everywhere. If I let her enjoy another peaceful day, then my name isn’t Zhao!”
…
“Ah-choo!”
Sitting on the bed and counting the money she’d earned from selling rabbits, Lu Mosheng rubbed her nose. She had sneezed several times in a row and wondered whether she was catching a cold.
She had earned more than ninety yuan from selling the rabbits.
Adding that to the money from selling grain last time, she now had nearly two hundred yuan.
Looking down at her large pregnant belly, Lu Mosheng realized that her baby would be born in just another two months. She needed to start preparing things for the baby in advance.
After putting the money away, she settled in for the evening.
That night, a steady drizzle began outside, accompanied by deafening thunder.
The rain was so heavy that the lingzhi mushrooms and baical skullcap crops could easily be damaged or washed away.
Song Jiayan grabbed his raincoat, opened the door, and rushed outside. His figure quickly disappeared into the stormy night.
Lu Mosheng waited for a long time, but Song Jiayan still hadn’t returned.
After thinking it over, she picked up a raincoat, opened the door, and plunged into the torrential rain.
The downpour was so intense that her vision quickly became blurred.
After searching for a long time, she finally found Song Jiayan standing beside the lingzhi field.
He was busy reinforcing the mushroom shed.
Even though he was wearing a raincoat, his clothes were completely soaked through.
Lu Mosheng shouted over the sound of the rain, “I’ll help you!”
She joined Song Jiayan in reinforcing the shed, even though he repeatedly urged her to go back inside and stop getting drenched.
Nearly an hour later, they finally finished securing the shed.
By then, Lu Mosheng was shivering uncontrollably from the cold.
Song Jiayan carried her back into the house, lit a fire, and helped her out of her soaking-wet clothes. He stripped off his own wet clothes as well and pulled her into his arms to keep her warm.
The two of them wrapped themselves in a quilt, their bare skin pressed together.
By the following morning, Lu Mosheng had inevitably developed a fever.
Song Jiayan took her to the township clinic. As soon as they arrived, they overheard several people discussing the previous night’s storm.
“The rain last night was unbelievable! Even the pigsty I just built at home was washed away…”
“Forget your pigsty. The newly built pig farm in Songjia Village collapsed, too!”
“Really? Is that true?”
“Of course! Didn’t I tell you my daughter married into Songjia Village? She came to visit me today and told me all about it. The pig farm had only been finished a couple of days ago, and the collapse even crushed a whole bunch of piglets to death…”