Heilongjiang Military District was an old military district, and after years of development, it had become a well-built place.
It was already past quitting time, and the three-story office building was quiet.
But Wu Guihua and her two children walked ahead, while Li Hongyuan—the giant panda—and Wang Yun—the disheveled pig-headed woman—followed all the way behind.
Everyone voluntarily went back to work overtime, returning to the offices to fetch water and mop the floors. In short, their goal was to pass by the Political Commissar’s office.
“Have you heard? Teacher Wang isn’t Battalion Commander Li’s wife?”
“I heard, of course I heard! It’s the biggest scandal of the new year. They’re usually so close they can barely walk without sticking together, and it turns out they were having an affair…”
“Oh, it’s too embarrassing. I can’t even say it!”
“Exactly! Those two have some nerve. Especially Battalion Commander Li, who’s always so serious. Who would’ve thought he was like that behind closed doors…”
“Hahaha! Calls her Sister-in-law to her face, and calls her ‘Sister-in-law’ in bed! Hahaha!”
Political Commissar Huang pushed hard at the office door again, then quietly explained what had happened to Regimental Commander Liu Hongjun and Deputy Regimental Commander Yu Jianguo, who had hurried over.
All three had their brows knitted so tightly they could have pinched a mosquito to death. They were more disappointed in Li Hongyuan than ever before.
Wang Yun had been caught completely off guard earlier. Her mind had been racing the whole way here, but she still hadn’t come up with a good plan.
When she first arrived at the military family compound, she had kept a low profile for a while, afraid things would get awkward if her identity was exposed. But she was even more afraid that Li Hongyuan wouldn’t look after her and the children, so getting him into bed and making their relationship as husband and wife a reality had seemed like the best choice.
For all these years, she had kept up the act successfully. Her mother-in-law had also kept Wu Guihua firmly under control, so little by little, Wang Yun had let her guard down. She had even forgotten Wu Guihua existed.
She never expected Wu Guihua to suddenly show up!
Wang Yun gritted her teeth, dropped to her knees in front of Wu Guihua, and burst into loud sobs.
“Guihua, this really is a misunderstanding. It’s all because I’ve had such a hard life. My husband died young, and people in the village bullied me while I was raising two children alone. Hongyuan remembered what he owed his elder brother, so he brought me and the children here to take care of us.
“I was afraid people would gossip and ruin Hongyuan’s future, so I never dared say anything… I’m only his sister-in-law. Sob, sob. That’s why this misunderstanding kept getting worse.
“Don’t worry. Even though we live in the same house, Hongyuan has always slept on the floor. There’s nothing improper between us!
“I’ll take the children and leave to make a life on our own. I’ll never trouble Hongyuan again, even if it kills me. As long as you’re doing well, I don’t mind suffering or being bullied…”
Wang Yun wept so pitifully that her tears fell like rain. In her disheveled state, she made Li Hongyuan’s heart ache. He hurried to help her up, and his anger toward Wu Guihua grew even stronger.
“Comrade Wu, what exactly are you trying to do? You come here and start hitting people, making a huge scene. Aren’t you ashamed? How many times have I told you? I promised Elder Brother I’d take good care of my sister-in-law and her children. I can’t go back on my word!
“My sister-in-law has suffered enough already. You can’t bully her too! She’s in poor health…”
Wu Guihua’s hands were itching to hit someone again!
“You two are really an eye-opener! One of you takes care of his widowed sister-in-law right into bed, while preaching about kindness and righteousness. The other clings to her younger Uncle, leeching off her sister-in-law, and still claims to be innocent.
“You’re a perfect pair of shameless dogs. Do you think everyone else is blind and stupid?
“Aren’t you afraid Elder Brother’s coffin lid won’t hold him down? He might climb out in the middle of the night and come settle accounts with you! Who gave you the nerve to do this—one of those blind bears from the mountains?”
Afraid they would start fighting again, Political Commissar Huang quickly stepped between them.
“Comrade Wu, please calm down. There may be some misunderstanding here. Um… you brought the children here this time because you had something to discuss, didn’t you? Go ahead and tell us. If it can be resolved, we’ll help resolve it.”
Wu Guihua had no desire to waste her breath either. After all, no matter how clear the facts were, they couldn’t shake a pair of shameless people pretending not to understand.
“Political Commissar Huang, I’m not usually at the Military District, but you see these two shameless people every day. You pass them in the halls morning and night. Whether they’re innocent or really living as husband and wife, you know better than I do!
“But that’s not why I came today. Because before I’m Comrade Wu, I’m a mother!”
Wu Guihua pulled Li Lan forward. “This is my eldest daughter. She just got into Normal University, but Wang Yun egged Li Hongyuan and my mother-in-law on to pressure her into giving her admission letter to Li Jiaojiao. My daughter is quick-tempered and takes things to heart. She nearly jumped into an ice hole!
“I have to stand up for her today and get this grievance off her chest!”
Then she pulled forward her younger son, Li Xiaojun, who was shrinking his neck like a thin little monkey.
“This is my younger son, Li Xiaojun. My mother-in-law beat him out of my womb with a broom handle when I was eight months pregnant. From the moment he was born, he was on medicine—sick every three days, seriously ill every five. Li Hongyuan has never once looked after him, and hasn’t given him a single cent!”
Finally, Wu Guihua yanked up her sleeve, revealing row upon row of bruised needle marks.
“Children are born of their father and raised by their mother. I’ve already sold all my blood for them. I really can’t do it anymore. Now it’s their father’s turn to fulfill his responsibilities.
“I demand that Li Hongyuan hand over the allowances he’s received all these years and give me at least half. And I’m sending my eldest daughter to university. From now on, Li Xiaojun will live with Li Hongyuan and be raised by him!
“As for whether Li Hongyuan and Wang Yun keep sharing a bed, or whether your army doesn’t care about the nation’s monogamy policy and allows Li Hongyuan to keep two women at his side—that’s for you to decide. I don’t care!”
Political Commissar Huang had no answer for her. Regimental Commander Liu Hongjun and Deputy Regimental Commander Yu lowered their heads too.
It was simply too shameful!
A legitimate wife, neglected for more than a decade, had suddenly come to see her husband and discovered that he was supporting two family branches and had built a second home with his sister-in-law. Most people would have been demanding a divorce and making a life-or-death scene by now.
But Wu Guihua wasn’t quibbling over that, nor was she accusing the army of negligence and covering it up. All she asked was that her husband take responsibility for supporting his family and stop forcing her to sell her blood…
Anyone who heard it would feel their heart ache!
If their own daughters had been treated like that, they would have pulled out a gun and shot the wretched son-in-law dead long ago!
Wang Yun was frantic. She wanted to get out of this predicament quickly, but absolutely not by giving up half their assets.
“Guihua, I know you’re angry, but Hongyuan has had a hard time all these years too. I’m in poor health, and Jiaojiao…”
“If you’re in poor health, shouldn’t you be paying for your own treatment?”
Wu Guihua sneered. “When the supply and marketing cooperative’s truck hit Elder Brother and killed him, the cooperative gave you one thousand yuan and a job placement. But you cried and insisted on following Li Hongyuan to his military post, then turned around and sold the job for six hundred yuan.
“Where did all that money go? Don’t tell me you saved it all while living off Li Hongyuan’s allowances to support yourself and the children.
“No wonder he has no money to support his mother or his own children, and every autumn he takes all the fine grain the family is allocated! Anyone who didn’t know better would think he’d joined the army and the country wasn’t feeding him!”
Wang Yun was stung by the accusation and angry, but all she could do was tug at Li Hongyuan’s sleeve.
Li Hongyuan was angry too. Wasn’t it a daughter-in-law’s duty to look after her mother-in-law and the children? How come the wives of his fellow soldiers could keep going, but Wu Guihua had to come here and make a scene?
And she was asking for an outrageous amount. More than ten years of allowances—even half of them would come to three thousand yuan. That was far too much!