Lin Xiangxiu had never been one to back down easily since childhood. This stubbornness had gotten her into trouble multiple times, earning her scoldings from Mother Lin, yet she always held her head high.
If it was her mistake, she would admit it. But if it wasn’t, why should she?
Like now, for instance. Lin Xiangxiu couldn’t figure out what she had done wrong. Lin Shuping was her husband, and when they got married, he had promised her a good life.
Now that Lin Shuping had a stable job, she had brought their child to join him. What was wrong with that?
Why was Lin Shuping treating her like some beggar he wanted to shoo away?
Her sharp retort reminded Lin Shuping of her temper. He felt a headache coming on and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Why did you come so suddenly? When are you planning to go back?”
“I’m not going back,” Lin Xiangxiu said. “We can’t go back. I had a fight with your mother. She won’t let us return, so we came to find you.”
As she spoke, she took Lin Xiao’s hand and turned her face away. “Your mother and I just don’t get along. Our personalities clash.”
Lin Shuping’s face was full of impatience, and his words were pure complaint. “She raised you since you were little. Can’t you just give in to her? Did you have to pick a fight? Now that you’ve been kicked out, you come running to me. You don’t know how to do anything. If you stay here, you won’t find a job. You’ll only be a burden to me.”
As he spoke, a look of regret crossed his face.
“Xiu Xiu, you’re from the countryside. You won’t make it in Shencheng. You’d be better off taking some money and going back to apologize to my mom. If you beg her and admit you were wrong, she’ll let you back in.”
“You don’t understand anything here. You’ll only embarrass me.”
Lin Shuping continued, “I really regret it now. I shouldn’t have married you back then, and I definitely shouldn’t have had a child. Now I’m stuck with all this trouble.”
Lin Xiangxiu found his words deeply hurtful. They angered her, and she didn’t want Lin Xiao to hear them.
She didn’t want Lin Xiao to think she was an unwanted child.
Pulling her daughter close and covering her ears, Lin Xiangxiu finally spoke: “You should regret it, but you shouldn’t blame me. When your mother used the fact that she raised me to force me to marry you, you didn’t say no. You were the one who took off your pants. You were the one who wanted a child. Now you’re ashamed of us? That’s just shameless.”
“Lin Shuping, you always think you’re so great because you’re a college graduate, that you’re eight hundred times better than me. Did college not teach you to take responsibility for your own actions?” Her tone carried a faint mockery.
Lin Shuping had been about to speak, but her words left him speechless. He opened his mouth, but no retort came out.
Lin Xiangxiu looked up at Lin Shuping, her fists unconsciously clenching at her sides. Her voice held a probing tone as she asked, “Where are you living now?” What kind of work do you do?”
“I don’t have much money left. We can’t stay at the inn much longer. When are you taking us to your dorm?”
With these questions thrown at him, Lin Shuping finally understood completely. Xiu Xiu didn’t want to go home. This time, she was determined to come to him with their child.
And by the looks of it, she was already eager to move in with him.
Lin Shuping felt like his head was about to explode. He wanted to find an excuse to brush her off, but he knew very well that Lin Xiangxiu wasn’t someone easily fooled.
He thought it over and realized he couldn’t hide the truth any longer. He had to come clean.
After hesitating for a while, Lin Shuping finally walked into the kitchen, found a small stool to sit on, and hung his head as he said, “To be honest with you, I’m already married here. My wife graduated from a technical secondary school, and we have a lot in common. She’s pregnant now. You can’t move in with us. If anything happens to my wife, no one can bear the responsibility.”
Lin Xiao looked curiously at the uncle who had entered, her innocent eyes wide open. She didn’t recognize this person, nor did she know he was her own father.
Lin Xiangxiu, however, narrowed her eyes slightly. After a moment’s thought, she patted her daughter’s bottom and said, “Xiaoxiao, go outside first. Mom needs to talk to him, and it’s not suitable for a child to hear.”
“Don’t run around. Go find Aunt Hong and watch TV,” Lin Xiangxiu added immediately.
Lin Xiao pouted, “But I haven’t finished eating yet.”
“Take it with you,” Lin Xiangxiu said, handing the enamel mug to her daughter.
After Lin Xiao pattered away, Lin Xiangxiu also pulled over a stool and sat down, facing Lin Shuping. “You’re married? Then what about me and Xiaoxiao?”
Lin Shuping awkwardly averted his gaze, his mouth opening and closing before he suddenly flushed red and argued defensively, “What we had doesn’t even count as a marriage! No marriage certificate, no wedding banquet—what kind of marriage is that? The country advocates free love now. What we had was an arranged marriage—it doesn’t count! Go out and ask around—who still follows the child bride tradition these days?”
“Oh, so when we got married in the countryside, you didn’t call it an arranged marriage. When I was giving birth, you didn’t say anything either. Now that the child is grown and we’ve come to find you, you suddenly say it doesn’t count and call it an arranged marriage. You have an answer for everything—college students really have thick skin.” Lin Xiangxiu curled her lips, feeling as if she had seen this scene in a dream before.
Could that terrible dream be true?
“Anyway, we can’t go back. I don’t care if you have a wife or not—you have to find us a place to stay here and get me a job,” Lin Xiangxiu tested him further.
This time, Lin Shuping didn’t speak. He lowered his head, his face ashen, lost in thought.
After a while, he suddenly perked up and looked in Lin Xiangxiu’s direction, as if sizing her up.
After a few glances, Lin Shuping suddenly said, “If you want a job, it’s just about making money. I can give you one here.”
“What job?” Lin Xiangxiu showed no surprise.
Lin Shuping, being a teacher, was quite articulate. He started with a preamble, adopting a sincere tone, “Xiu Xiu, listen to me. You’re from the countryside, you speak with an accent, and you have no education. You won’t find a proper job in Shencheng—decent workplaces won’t hire you. You can only work for private employers. I was thinking… if you really want to stay, you could come work as a nanny in our home.”
Lin Xiangxiu: “Oh, so I go to your house? What about your current wife then? Is she willing to be the ‘second wife’?”
Lin Shuping’s face turned ashen again. He took two deep breaths before continuing, “You can’t say you’re my wife. Just say you’re a distant relative. It just so happens that my wife is pregnant now, and her parents don’t have time to take care of her. The nannies we’ve found from outside aren’t suitable. I thought since you’re good at cooking and efficient at handling tasks, I’d consider letting you stay.”
“You just want to earn money to raise the child. I’ll pay you a salary—seventy yuan a month.”
Nowadays, anyone could easily find a job and earn ninety yuan a month. Lin Shuping knew his offer was low, but he felt the need to justify himself. “The pay isn’t high, but it’s much better than what you’d get back home. Besides, I’ll cover your food and lodging, rent a place for you—seventy yuan is already quite a lot.”
Seeing Lin Xiangxiu’s stony expression, Lin Shuping gritted his teeth and added, “If you agree, I can arrange for Xiaoxiao to attend school in the city. Later, you can try to get a loan to buy a house and register her here. She’d become a city girl—much better than being a wild child in the countryside.”
“Don’t you want to change Xiaoxiao’s fate?”
At these words, Lin Xiangxiu’s pupils suddenly contracted. What the man said was exactly what she had heard in her dream—even his tone and attitude were identical.
She stared blankly at Lin Shuping, noticing the arrogance and disdain on his face, as if he had already guessed she would agree—or that she had no choice, this being her last lifeline.
But now, realizing the dream had been real, Lin Xiangxiu thought differently.
She remained silent, her mind racing as she considered how to stay in Shencheng and make a life for herself and Xiaoxiao.
Or perhaps they didn’t have to stay in Shencheng—any place to settle down would do, as long as she could find work and raise Xiaoxiao well.
Just as Lin Xiangxiu was lost in these thoughts, Lin Shuping’s next words infuriated her completely.
Leaning back in his chair, he suddenly curled his lips and said coldly, “Xiu Xiu, if you don’t agree, you’ll have to figure it out yourself. I won’t help anymore. After all, we never held a wedding banquet or got a marriage certificate. How can you prove Xiaoxiao is my child? Maybe she’s someone else’s?”
Before he could finish, Lin Xiangxiu was trembling with rage. Holding an enamel mug in her hand, she lifted it and dumped a bowl of steaming Qingguo Noodles over Lin Shuping’s head.
“You bastard!” she hissed through gritted teeth.