Early the next morning, Liu Weidong arrived at the Sun family as promised.
He handed Liu Guiying 200 yuan and told her to quickly return it to Aunt Ma.
Liu Guiying didn’t accept it. She said she already had money, but during the family separation, she simply didn’t want to benefit Sun Jianguo.
Liu Weidong didn’t insist. He only told her that if she ever ran short of money, she should just ask him.
After Liu Weidong left, Liu Guiying went to Ma Hongxia’s house and returned the 200 yuan to Aunt Ma. Ma Hongxia said the same thing Liu Weidong had said—if she ever needed money again, she could just ask.
Early in the morning, these two people left Liu Guiying both amused and touched.
While Liu Guiying was dealing with the Sun family and maneuvering through their conflicts, Sun Xiumei’s husband Zhang Xin took a few days off from work. Overjoyed, he prepared to go home and take his wife to the hospital for delivery.
But when he got home, he was stunned—his wife was gone, and so was the child.
Thinking that she might have already gone into labor, he rushed out in panic to look for her. Just as he stepped outside, he was stopped by his neighbor, Aunt Wu.
“Xiaoxin, you’re back?”
“Yes, Aunt Wu, I just got back. Have you seen my wife? Has she started having contractions?” Otherwise, how could there be no one at home?
Aunt Wu looked at Zhang Xin with a complicated expression.
“Xiaoxin, I shouldn’t be the one telling you this, but your family has gone too far. How could you send a wife who is about to give birth back to her parents’ home?”
“I heard from your mother that your younger brother was bringing his girlfriend home, and there wasn’t enough space, so your wife and little Fang were sent back to your mother-in-law’s house. Poor Xiumei… she’s such a good girl.”
Zhang Xin’s heart sank instantly. He knew he wasn’t as favored as his eldest brother or as doted on as his youngest brother, but he never expected his mother wouldn’t even bother maintaining appearances anymore.
He had no idea whether Xiumei and Xiao Fang had safely settled at her parents’ home. No one could answer him.
A sudden panic rose in his heart. Without thinking further, he turned and ran toward the town.
Watching him disappear like the wind, Aunt Wu sighed, “What a sin…”
Then she hurried off toward the village shop, eager to share her latest news with her friends. She had things to do too.
In town, Liu Guiying looked at the lively courtyard and felt a sense of relief. She had finally driven out the “pesky rats,” and even the air felt fresher.
Just then, the gate creaked open. She turned and saw her son-in-law suddenly appear before her, filled with complicated emotions.
In her past life, after Xiumei left, her son-in-law never remarried. He raised Xiao Fang alone while she worked, and the child stayed in the village.
But what he didn’t know was that, although all of her salary (minus living expenses) was sent back home, Xiao Fang was never properly taken care of.
At that time, she was hosting many students at home. To earn extra money to support the younger children’s schooling, she set up a large pot in the yard and boiled water for them—five cents for a small kettle, seven cents for a large one.
She also helped steam rice for them. The students brought their own grain, and she cooked it for them to earn some hard-earned money. She was busy every day like a spinning top, only occasionally finding time to visit Xiao Fang.
Thinking about Xiao Fang’s later fate, she often regretted in her old age that if she had just brought the child home, maybe she wouldn’t have been deceived into marriage by Li Ruhua and ended up with an abusive husband.
Now seeing Zhang Xin, she wanted to scold him—but remembering that in her past life he had, in a moment of rage after seeing Xiao Fang being abused, accidentally killed the abuser and spent the rest of his life in prison, she couldn’t bring herself to speak harshly.
She also had to admit she hadn’t fully fulfilled her role as a grandmother.
“Mom… Xiumei… I’m sorry. I didn’t expect my mother to…”
Zhang Xin knelt before his mother-in-law, overwhelmed with guilt. The anxiety he had carried all day finally broke down.
Liu Guiying looked at his handsome face. Unlike his weary and defeated appearance in the previous life, she felt a bit softened and stepped forward.
“Good child, your mother is your mother, and you are you. I won’t blame you unfairly. But I must say this clearly—this time she took advantage of the situation and sent Xiumei away at such a critical moment. Who knows what she might do next time?”
“I can’t leave my daughter in that kind of family. If she can’t leave this time, I won’t let her go back with you. I can support her and the children myself.”
No matter how much she felt for her son-in-law, she could no longer gamble with her daughter’s life.
Zhang Xin, seeing that she not only didn’t blame him but comforted him instead, felt even more emotional.
In just one day, he had gone from despair to warmth. This also made him finally firm in his decision.
Looking at his wife, who hadn’t said a single word since he entered, he suddenly felt that if he continued being indecisive, he might end up completely alone.
That was not what he wanted. He and Xiumei had gone from campus love to marriage step by step. He didn’t want to lose her.
“Mom, I’ll listen to you. I promise that from now on, no one will come before Xiumei and the children.”
He made his decision firmly.
His mother was just his mother. He had never truly received maternal love anyway—what was there to cling to now? With Xiumei, there was home.
“Alright. Go back and pack your things. Bring everything Xiumei prepared for the child. Ask your elder brother to bring a cart and go with you. Remember—don’t argue, don’t provoke them. Endure these few days. I’ll handle the rest.”
Liu Guiying worried the young man might ruin her plan and carefully instructed him.
“Okay, Mom, I understand.”
After Sun Jianjun, Liu Guiying had gained another “little follower.”
Zhang Xin came quickly and left quickly, but his mood was completely different.
Aunt Wu had just finished sharing her news with her friends and was heading home to cook when she saw Zhang Xin return again—this time with another man.
“Xiaoxin, why are you back again? Is Xiumei alright?”
“She’s fine, thank you for your concern. This is my wife’s elder brother. We’re here to pack things and take her to town for delivery.”
Zhang Xin introduced him.
Sun Jianjun nodded.
Aunt Wu immediately looked enlightened.
“Oh, so this is Xiumei’s brother! Such a fine young man. Where do you work? Are you married? Auntie can introduce someone for you…”
Cough cough. “Aunt Wu, my brother-in-law works at the supply and marketing cooperative in town, and his child is already old enough to walk. No need to trouble you.”
Zhang Xin quickly interrupted, seeing his brother-in-law’s flushed face.
“Oh! Supply and marketing cooperative—that’s a good job. I knew Xiumei wasn’t like what your mother said. That dowry back then, we all saw it ourselves.”
“Your mother-in-law is a capable and reasonable woman too. Xiaoxin, your good fortune is still ahead. Your parents will have plenty of regrets later.”
Aunt Wu glanced at the Sun family house and shook her head.
Zhang Xin awkwardly nodded. “Yes, Aunt Wu, we still have things to do. We’ll head back to pack.”
Aunt Wu waved her hand, thinking whether she should make another trip to the village shop instead. Cooking could wait.