Secretary Chen found every word he had planned to say stuck in his throat, unable to get out.
After a moment, he turned to Xie Mingzhu and asked, “Comrade Xie, is this also your demand?”
A cold look flashed across Xie Mingzhu’s face. She glanced briefly at Qin Haoyu and the other two before speaking clearly: “I, Xie Mingzhu, do not keep trash!”
The meaning was unmistakable—Qin Haoyu was nothing but garbage.
Qin Haoyu’s handsome face flushed deep red. If Xie Shaoqian had not been standing there, he would have slapped her right then and there.
Zhang Zenglan’s face turned ashen as well. To have her son, whom she thought so highly of, called trash made her want to scream and curse. But she had always prided herself on holding her temper; no matter how furious she felt inside, she forced herself to swallow it down.
With a heavy thud, she dropped to her knees again in front of Xie Mingzhu, tears streaming down her face as if they cost nothing. “Mingzhu, I know Haoyu did wrong this time. But you’ve known each other for quite a while now—what should or shouldn’t have happened has already happened. There must still be some affection between you. Can’t you forgive him, just for my sake?”
She reached out and grabbed Xie Mingzhu’s legs, speaking through sobs. “If only you will forgive Haoyu, I swear I’ll send Xiao Qing far away where you’ll never have to see her again! She won’t ever appear before you!”
Xie Mingzhu stepped back two paces, her expression completely blank. This woman was truly vicious. Before her marriage to Qin Haoyu, their relationship had been perfectly innocent and proper, yet now she twisted it to sound as if they had already done something shameful.
“I am a young woman from a respectable family, and my relationship with Qin Haoyu has always been pure and proper. I would never do anything so disgusting. You have no right to slander me,” Xie Mingzhu said in a calm, sharp tone. “If you keep spreading lies, I will have you charged as well!”
Without waiting for Zhang Zenglan to reply, she turned to Qin Haoyu and raised her voice: “Our marriage is hereby annulled. I demand the return of all my dowry.”
Hearing this, Xie Shaoqian looked at her closely. In her eyes there was nothing but utter loathing—no softness, no hesitation at all.
Earlier, in a letter from their eldest brother, he had read that she was determined to marry this Qin man no matter what. Yet now, looking at her, she seemed completely indifferent to him. Could it be that she had discovered his shameful secret long ago and had kept quiet just to strike back with full force on her wedding day? If she had only found out today, surely there would be some other emotion mixed in.
If that was indeed the case, his little sister had truly grown up!
Xie Mingzhu caught the faint look of approval in her brother’s eyes and felt puzzled, but paid it no mind. She continued: “The bride price your Qin family gave me amounts to sixty‑four yuan in total, plus one cotton quilt weighing six jin and twelve feet of cotton cloth.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, murmurs of surprise spread through the crowd. Everyone knew that the Xie family had sent a generous dowry; it had arrived with gongs and drums from Shanghai in a light truck. They had all seen the bicycle and sewing machine with their own eyes and had felt so envious at the time.
But they never imagined that the Qin family had offered such a pitiful amount in return—far less than what was customary even back then.
“My family sent one bicycle, one sewing machine, two wristwatches, and five hundred yuan in cash. Everything else is listed here in detail.”
She took out the inventory of her dowry that she had written that afternoon and handed it to Xie Shaoqian.
The Qin family was poor and could not afford much, but Xie Mingzhu was different—she had two fathers: her birth father and her adoptive father. Both had feared she would be mistreated in her husband’s home, so they had made sure her dowry was as substantial as possible.
Xie Shaoqian glanced over the list and could not help but roll his eyes inwardly. It was practically charity!
Holding the paper, he turned to the young men standing nearby and said aloud: “We need help carrying things. Anyone who lends a hand will get five yuan for their trouble.”
At the offer of five yuan just for moving items, the young men present did not hesitate for a moment—they immediately sprang into action.
Xie Shaoqian directed them to load the belongings. Zhang Zenglan wanted to stop them, but she was powerless. Her greatest worry now was how to keep Qin Haoyu and Qin Qing from being taken away.
Qin Haoyu stood there pale and panicked, glancing helplessly at his mother.
Zhang Zenglan, having run out of clever excuses, resorted to throwing a loud, dramatic tantrum on the spot.
Seeing her blocking the way, Secretary Chen shouted: “If you knew it would come to this, you should have acted properly from the start! You foolish woman! Look what you’ve turned your children into! Instead of standing in our way, you’d do better to go and beg Comrade Xie for mercy!”
Hearing this, Xie Mingzhu rolled her eyes and suddenly pretended to faint. “Brother… I feel so dizzy. Please take me back to the educated youths’ dormitory first.”
Since she had begun her wedding journey from there, it was only natural that she would return.
Xie Shaoqian could not help but shake his head with a smile. Even after all these years apart, his little sister was still as mischievous as when she was a child.
He stepped forward to support her, then turned to Secretary Chen. “Secretary Chen, my sister has been so upset and angered by this whole family that she has collapsed. I must look after her. I leave this matter in your hands—I trust you will handle it properly.”
His words left Secretary Chen with no room to argue. The official could only nod in agreement. “Rest assured, I will give both you and Comrade Xie a full and fair resolution.”
Xie Shaoqian gave a slight nod, then helped Xie Mingzhu walk toward the gate. Before leaving, he made sure to take the larger items and the five hundred yuan in cash.
Zhang Zenglan naturally tried to hold onto the money, but with so many people watching, she dared not openly steal her daughter‑in‑law’s dowry and had no choice but to hand it over.
Just as the two were about to leave, Zhang Zenglan lunged forward again, trying to grab Xie Mingzhu’s legs.
Xie Shaoqian reacted instantly—he kicked her hard in the stomach, in exactly the same spot where she had once kicked Xie Mingzhu in her past life, causing her to lose her child.
As Xie Mingzhu looked down at the woman writhing on the ground and at Qin Haoyu and Qin Qing, who were being pulled back and looking utterly disheveled, the heavy weight that had long pressed on her heart finally lifted a little.
“Brother, let’s go.”
Xie Shaoqian signaled the young men carrying the belongings to follow them, and together they headed back toward the educated youths’ compound.
No sooner had they stepped out of the gate than they nearly collided with a man rushing straight toward them.
Xie Shaoqian acted swiftly: one arm steadied his sister, while the other pressed firmly against the stranger’s chest.
“Watch where you’re going!” he said sharply.
But the man paid no attention to him. His dark eyes, which had been dim a moment before, now shone with a bright, intense light, fixed entirely on Xie Mingzhu. Slowly, tears welled up in his eyes and spilled over.
“You’re alive… it’s so good to see you alive.”
Xie Mingzhu frowned, staring at this man who did not even bother to hide his tears in front of her.
“Huo Xuan?” she asked in surprise.
Hadn’t he already returned to the city? How could he possibly be standing here now? And what on earth did he mean by those words?