Before the mission, the younger brother came to tell them about his marriage, saying it was to repay a debt of gratitude.
Li Xinran scoffed at this. “Do you think you’re some kind of worm from the Bai family? Repaying a debt of gratitude…”
However, since her parents didn’t say anything, Li Xinran had no say in the matter. But seeing this pretty young wife in front of her today, she understood.
This isn’t my brother repaying a debt of gratitude; it’s clearly lust at first sight.
However, she was forced into marriage despite the favor owed, and she certainly didn’t approve of her sister-in-law’s character.
Xu Zhizhi stepped forward with a smile, “Mom and Dad, sister, my name is Xu Zhizhi.”
Li’s mother glanced at her son with a complicated expression. Earlier, her son had said that his wife refused to come with him to the army, and that she was a bit selfish…
Anyway, the daughter-in-law that the son talks about doesn’t seem very likable!
Looking at it today, Li’s mother thinks it’s alright. Is her son’s expectation too high?
And she calls herself “Mom”! A biological daughter can be as fierce as a donkey when she’s angry, while this daughter-in-law is so soft, fair-skinned, and smells so good.
This was the woman of Li Ma’s dreams, and she immediately exclaimed in delight.
“Good child, you’ve come all this way, you must be tired from the journey…”
It’s already quite remarkable that such a delicate girl would agree to come with Wenzhu to join the army. And now she’s even braving the rain to come see them late at night.
This person must love their dog son very much!
Thinking of the bad things her son had said about his daughter-in-law, Li’s mother glared at Li Wenzhu with annoyance.
“Why are you coming over so late at night? What if your daughter-in-law gets cold?”
As soon as she finished speaking, Li Xinran looked at her mother with surprise. What nonsense was her mother talking about? Had she accepted this selfish daughter-in-law so quickly?
Where is the dignity of a mother-in-law?
“Mom, it’s not hard work. I’m happy to stay with Wenzhu,” Xu Zhizhi said sincerely.
Li Xinran rolled her eyes again. She had previously refused to go with her brother to the army, making him send all his allowance back to her parents’ home, and even threatening him to sever ties with their parents.
What’s going on here?
Li Xinran suspected that her sister-in-law had ulterior motives, and immediately questioned her in a cold voice.
“Xu Zhizhi, what kind of wicked idea are you hatching?”
Li’s mother pulled her furious daughter back, “Xinran, what nonsense are you talking about!”
Li Wenzhu had instructed Li Xinran not to tell her parents about Xu Zhizhi. Now, seeing her own mother protecting this selfish woman, Li Xinran had a bellyful of complaints but nowhere to vent them, her little face turning red with pent-up anger.
“Mom, don’t be fooled by her appearance. I don’t like her anyway.”
“Xinran!” The usually loving father glared at his daughter.
Li Ma hurriedly pushed her daughter into the house, saying, “Go, the soles I sewed yesterday are still a bit off, go and add a couple more stitches.”
The atmosphere inside the room was dropping to freezing point.
Xu Zhizhi quickly opened the basket she had brought.
“Mom and Dad, Sister Xinran, I brought you cotton-padded coats. They’re a bit old, but the cotton inside is all new. I also brought cotton-padded shoes, as well as cured meat and sausages from my hometown. This is my first time here, so I don’t know what you need. But we’ll be closer in the future, so just tell me what you need and I’ll go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy it and bring it over.”
Take the items out one by one and lay them on the floor.
A dazzling array of goods, everything imaginable.
Xu Zhizhi added, “I originally wanted to make a few more cotton pants, but I didn’t see my sister and parents, so I don’t know the sizes. However, I’ve already filled them with some cotton and cloth.”
With tears in her eyes and a smile on her face, Li’s mother said, “Mom knows how to do it. It’s kind of you to think of everything so thoroughly.”
The child didn’t mind their family’s current situation and even gave them so many things; that’s a great kindness.
Li’s mother gently pulled the child over, stroking Xu Zhizhi’s delicate arm. “Wenzhu is a kind-hearted person. If he ever has a bad temper, we’re sorry for what’s happening in our family right now!”
Before being sent down to the countryside, Li’s mother, Zhang Lan, was the chief physician of the provincial military hospital. She had the opportunity to go back in the past two years, but because of Li’s father’s case, she made up her mind and stayed on the farm.
Xu Zhizhi lowered her head and chuckled softly, “Wenzhu is very good to me.”
Zhang Lan beamed, “Okay, okay, okay.”
This child has thin arms and legs, and there are bruises around his eyes; it’s likely due to insufficient blood and energy.
Zhang Lan’s biological father is a national-level traditional Chinese medicine doctor, and she was influenced by him from a young age.
Feeling Xu Zhizhi’s pulse, her lips trembled slightly, “Child, you, you’re pregnant?”
Is she going to be a grandmother?
Because of Li’s father’s case, she originally planned to stay at Qingshan Farm and be a simple farmer.
But now, she sensed hope in her daughter-in-law’s pulse, and a light returned to her eyes.
The Li family is about to welcome a new member!
She never imagined she would have grandchildren again, given how her home has become.
But now that they’re expecting a grandchild, Zhang Lan feels that she and her husband shouldn’t continue to be so downcast. So many people have had their cases overturned; they can’t give up until the very last moment.
When Li Zhiyuan, the father, heard that his daughter-in-law was pregnant, his tired, sallow eyes brightened. He looked at his son.
“Wenzhu, is this true?”
Li Wenzhu nodded. “Yes, it’s been more than three months.”
The lifeless wooden house seemed to come alive suddenly, and even Li Xinran, who had been looking down on Xu Zhizhi, showed surprise on her face.
She wondered if she had misheard. Was the wicked daughter-in-law who refused to go with the army and even cut off her family now pregnant?
Will she keep this child?
Will I disappoint my parents again?
Over the years, as my parents watched their old friends leave, they accumulated disappointment time and time again.
If she hadn’t been there to watch over them, she would have been truly afraid that her parents wouldn’t have made it through!
She hoped Xu Zhizhi would have a child, but she was also afraid that this would be another hopeless one!
Li Xinran’s eyes churned with emotion as she stared intently at Xu Zhizhi, “Will you give birth to the child?”
“certainly!”
Xu Zhizhi replied resolutely, and while speaking, she looked at Li’s parents, “Mom and Dad, you must take good care of your health, because you will be taking care of your grandchildren in the future.”
Zhang Lan’s tears were already falling as she leaned on Li Zhiyuan’s shoulder and sobbed softly.
“Okay, for the sake of our grandson, our whole family must live well.”
Li Zhiyuan half-embraced his wife, saying, “Good child, you are a benefactor to our Li family.”
“No, no, no, Dad, please don’t say that.”
Xu Zhizhi felt ashamed; this label was a bit too much. Really, she was just a fragile animal who just wanted to live a life of doing nothing!
Li Zhiyuan patted his wife, “When a new daughter-in-law comes to visit, we, as her parents-in-law, should bring something.”
Zhang Lan stopped crying, turned around, and took out a large wooden box from inside the house.
“Child, we hid this when we came here. Consider it your betrothal gift. Don’t worry, Mom won’t let you be born with a bad reputation.”
Now that we have a grandson, we must wash away the stain on our reputation.
She will write a letter to the organization soon. If one letter is not enough, she will write several more. The organization will eventually see them.
…
The family chatted until midnight, when Mr. and Mrs. Li started to urge them to leave.
“I see thick clouds today, it’s likely to rain in the next few days, you should go back early and don’t come over during this time.”
rain!
right,
Xu Zhizhi suddenly looked up at the roof. Thick straw covered the room completely, but remembering how the wind and rain in the book had ripped the straw off the roof, she panicked and grabbed Zhang Lan.
“Mom, this roof doesn’t look very sturdy. How about we replace it with tiles? They’re more durable and can withstand wind and snow!”
Li Xinran pouted and made sarcastic remarks from the side, “You really don’t know how to talk when you’re not in the situation. Where did you get the tiles? Farms don’t build houses, so tiles are hard to come by. Besides, I just laid straw on the roof two days ago. You’re telling me it’s not tight? Are you blind?”