Lu Chengzhang and Zhou Qiongying looked bewildered, neither of them knew where these two children came from. The older one’s clothes looked like the standard attire for the shop’s apprentices, but what about the younger one?
They exchanged a glance, both wearing the same expression of confusion.
Fortunately, Lu Chengzong was just as puzzled and asked about it. That’s when Lu Chengzhang and Zhou Qiongying learned that they had taken in two children, with the older one apprenticed in the shop and the younger one being cared for at home, supposedly to play with Yu Ge’er and Rui Ge’er.
“Is the little one bought as a maid for Yu Ge’er and Rui Ge’er?”
With the precedent of Babao accompanying Lu Chengxiao, Zhou Qiongying instinctively thought so and asked.
Ge An tensed up and instinctively grabbed the hand of his younger sister, watching Zhou Qiongying with some caution.
He knew exactly what being a slave meant. When they escaped, they didn’t want to be sold as slaves. They would rather beg and live as outcasts than become servants.
Being only nine years old, he couldn’t hide his emotions. Everyone in the hall could see it.
Lu Xun frowned and glanced at his second daughter-in-law. As a father-in-law, he couldn’t interfere with his daughter-in-law. Chen Shi had gone to arrange the food and happened to be away.
Seeing this, Qin Shi patted the little girl’s shoulder reassuringly and smiled at Zhou Qiongying. “Sister, you’re joking. We’re just a humble family. Yu Ge’er and Rui Ge’er are so young, why would they need a maid? It’s just that father saw Ge An’s cleverness and took him in as an apprentice at the shop, while mother found Xiaoya cute and pitied her loneliness, so she brought her into the family to help support these siblings for a few years.”
Zhou Qiongying didn’t have any ill intentions. It was just a normal household practice to take in such young children as maids, right? Giving away a child for free… She pulled the corner of her lips. “I misunderstood. Parents are truly benevolent.”
Ge An’s tense body finally relaxed. His reactions just now were subconscious. Now he felt somewhat guilty for inconveniencing the Lu family’s old lady. There was a hint of shame on his face.
Lu Xun smiled and waved to Ge An, calling him over and asking about his situation and whether he was adapting well to studying in the shop. Seeing Ge An answering each question earnestly, he smiled and said, “No need to rush back to the shop at noon. Have a meal here with your sister, and then go back in the afternoon.”
Ge An nodded and knelt down to kowtow to Lu Xun, saying, “I will always remember the kindness of the old lady. I will definitely work hard in Lufeng in the future to repay the kindness of the old lady today.”
His voice was childish but filled with unwavering determination.
Lu Xun quickly helped him up. “You’re a good child. Let’s not talk about this today. Let’s enjoy the festival happily. Go and talk to your sister.”
Ge An agreed and turned to Liu Yanqing. “Brother Liu, my sister and I are doing well now. Please tell Liu Yu’er for me. When I grow up a bit more, I’ll take my sister to see her.”
His expression was unusually serious. Liu Yanqing smiled, and Lu Chengxiao, who was beside him, couldn’t help but chuckle. He squatted down and asked him, “You want to go see your Liu Yu’er?”
Ge An pursed his lips and nodded. The little girl beside him was even quicker to respond, nodding and saying, “Want to.”
Her eyes sparkled as she looked at Lu Chengxiao.
Lu Chengxiao found it amusing and said, “Alright, if you want to see your Liu Yu’er, you don’t have to wait until you’re grown up.”
Pausing here to build suspense, he provoked the little girl to ask eagerly, “Then what should we do?”
What to do? Of course, there was nothing special to do. Lu Chengxiao thought to himself that Liu Yu would also like to see these two children. He smiled and said, “Next time, I’ll take you to see her.”
“Really?” The little children’s eyes lit up with joy.
Lu Chengxiao laughed. “Yes, it’s true. Your Liu Yu’er must also want to see you.”
Ge An and the little girl looked at each other and smiled. Ge An said, “Then I’ll wait until Third Young Master is free.”
Lu Chengxiao raised his eyebrows. Liu Yu was his sister, so he was Young Master San.
Without saying anything, he smiled and let the two children go play.
Xiaoya now had her own room in the Lu family, not far from where Babao lived. She pulled her brother to see her room. After wandering for over a year, this place finally felt somewhat like home to the siblings.
It wasn’t until now that Zhou Qiongying finally understood. These two children were indeed related to that Liu Yu.
After lunch, when the men sent Liu Yanqing away, Lu Chengzhang returned to the room. Zhou Qiongying said, “This Liu Yu is really something. Even before entering the house, she’s managed to have the in-laws help take care of two children.”
Lu Chengzhang remained silent. He couldn’t help but think that his parents really favored his younger brother. The engagement hadn’t even been arranged yet, and they were already taking on such responsibilities.
Zhou Qiongying shook her head. “Big sister-in-law is really foolish. Isn’t it tiring enough to raise two children of her own? Now she’s taken in another one. That Liu Yu may be kind, but she’s just making trouble. Letting big sister-in-law do all the work.”
Lu Chengzhang was annoyed and interrupted her. “Enough, don’t talk about these things. We’re not involved since we’re in the county.”
Zhou Qiongying realized it as well. With children to take care of, Big Sister-in-law wouldn’t be able to go to the county. The ones benefiting from this were her and her husband.
In the main room of the Lu family, Lu Xun and Chen Shi were discussing the events of the day, specifically about Lu Chengzhang’s family.
They recounted how Lu Chengzhang and Zhou Qiongying reacted to the fabric that Liu Yu made for Lu Shuang and the incident with the Ge siblings. Chen Shi said, “The second daughter-in-law may be petty.”
Chen Shi handed a handkerchief to Lu Xun to wipe his face and continued, “She’s not bad, just a bit petty.”
After Lu Xun wiped his face, she tossed the handkerchief into the basin and said, “The second daughter-in-law is scheming, but the big sister-in-law is simple-minded. It’s like a pile of wood.”
She shook her head as she spoke and said to Lu Xun, “You should pay more attention in the future. Straighten her out if she goes astray. Don’t let there be any conflicts between siblings-in-law. Once there are conflicts, it’s hard to get along. As for the second daughter-in-law… Let her stay in the county for another month or two. When the time comes, whether she’s pregnant or not, I’ll make sure she comes back. Yu Lan is honest and doesn’t care much. As for Chengzong, he’s even more straightforward. We shouldn’t indulge the second couple.”
Lu Xun nodded. “Okay, I’ll do as you say. I’ll keep an eye on Chengzhang. As for the second daughter-in-law, there are some things I can’t say. Ultimately, you’re the better mother-in-law.”
Zhou Qiongying was still dreaming of staying in the county for a long time, unaware that the old couple had already discussed tightening the reins on the two couples.
~
At the same time, in Liujiacun, just as noon was passing and people were waking up from their naps, Wen Shi started to give birth.
With a pale face, Liu Sanlang ran to the neighboring village to fetch the midwife they had arranged in advance. By the time he hurriedly brought her back home, it was already the hour of giving birth.
The Liu family had been in turmoil lately. Ever since Lin Shi returned and found out that their father had sent them and the third household away to help the main household sell Liu Yu, Lin Shi’s agitation hadn’t stopped. She used to fear Liu Kangsheng, but now she dared to confront him openly.
During the time of planting, it was discovered that their own few acres of land were being worked on by the son of the Liu family’s main household. They found out that they had lost a few acres of land for nothing, and Liu Kangsheng stubbornly refused to explain the reason.
This was outrageous!
Lin Shi became a demon, causing quite a scene, standing outside the courtyard every day gossiping with neighbors, mocking the in-laws and the eldest household. The whole village had been watching the commotion for half a month.
Since Liu Yu was sold, the entire Liu family no longer resembled a family. Liu Kangsheng had a stern face, Liu Dalang had been bedridden for ten days, and when he came out, he exuded an inexplicable gloominess. Wu Shi’s face had never brightened up either. With Lin Shi cursing the heavens and the earth every day, this family was in complete disarray.
Wen Shi was pregnant and counting the days until delivery, so she hadn’t interfered in Lin Shi’s commotion until this afternoon. Suddenly, she realized that no one in the household could be relied upon. Fortunately, Liu Sanlang had just left to go to the fields, and he hadn’t gone far when Wen Shi sent her daughter Er Ya to deliver a message.
The midwife was an experienced hand at childbirth. Hearing that Liu Sanlang came to call for her on the afternoon of May 4th, she felt uneasy. When she examined Wen Shi, she found that her cervix was only dilated to one finger’s width, and she was in urgent need.
May was considered an unlucky month, and May 5th was considered an especially unlucky and ominous day. Children born on May 5th were often considered ominous and believed to bring disasters to their parents. There was a saying that “those born in May will be as tall as a door frame, but will bring misfortune to their parents.” Therefore, many children born on May 5th were fostered by others, or even abandoned or killed.
Wen Shi didn’t have labor early or late, but she chose the afternoon of May 4th. The midwife hoped that since Wen Shi had already given birth once before, this time it would be faster. If not, this child might face many tribulations in the future.
Wang Shi was fetched back from the fields by her granddaughter. After looking at Wen Shi for a moment, she immediately started boiling water. As she boiled the water, she suddenly remembered the superstition about giving birth on May 5th being unlucky. Her heart skipped a beat, and she entered Wen Shi’s room to urge her to hurry and give birth before midnight.
When the midwife heard Wang Shi’s words, she breathed a sigh of relief and comforted Wen Shi, “This is your second child, so theoretically, it should only take two or three hours.”
Wen Shi also knew this saying and wanted it to happen quickly. However, giving birth was not something she could rush. The baby’s position wasn’t right, so the child was slow to come out.
The child was born when the rooster crowed at the fourth watch of the night.
A baby girl.
Liu Kangsheng’s face had been extremely ugly since the hour of Zi. When he heard that it was a girl, he immediately turned and went back to the main house.
In the eastern room, Liu Dalang and his wife breathed a sigh of relief when they heard it was a girl. Liu Dalang closed his eyes, opened the door, and went straight to the main house.
“Now I understand. All this is because of this child, an ominous person! She hasn’t even been born yet, and she’s already bringing calamity upon me…”
“Father, this child cannot be kept.”
Liu Dalang’s face was full of malice.
On that day, Wang Shi had already been sent away. If Wen Shi hadn’t suddenly experienced abdominal pain halfway, and if Wang Shi hadn’t come back, how could his father have issued that vow to disown his descendants?
Even the scissors used by Liu Yu, Liu Dalang suspected they were given by Wang Shi.
That single stab had become an incessant nightmare for Liu Dalang every night.
Liu Yu, Wen Shi, Wang Shi – he wouldn’t spare any of them.
Even Liu Kangsheng, who issued the vow, hadn’t noticed Wu Jin’s misfortune at the front of the car at the time, but Liu Dalang held him completely responsible.
Liu Kangsheng evidently also thought of that ominous vow. He believed that the child Wen Shi gave birth to in her womb had become a disaster to the Liu family.
As soon as he put down his pipe, he walked out. “Third brother, come here!”
Wen Shi had just fainted from the pain. In her daze, she heard her father-in-law’s stern call for her husband to come over. Her heart tightened, and she grabbed the midwife’s hand, “Auntie, when was my child born? Is it a boy or a girl?”
The midwife, feeling sorry for her, truthfully replied, “At the fourth watch, it’s a girl.”
Wen Shi’s already pale face turned even paler. After a while, she suddenly reacted and grabbed the midwife’s hand, “My child, my child, Auntie, bring the child to me.”
The midwife had been delivering babies for decades and had seen many rural secrets. With a sigh, she took the child from Wang Shi and handed her to Wen Shi.
As soon as the child was settled, Liu Sanlang entered, his face pale, not much better than Wen Shi, who had lost a lot of blood. The midwife quickly left, instructing Wang Shi on postpartum care. She didn’t even drink a sip of the tea offered as thanks by Wang Shi before leaving in the dark.
Seeing her husband’s expression, Wen Shi guessed what had happened. She asked with a stern face, “What did your father say?”
Liu Sanlang didn’t say anything, why his own father…
Liu Sanlang’s lips trembled, unable to utter a word.
His father actually wanted him to drown his newborn child. How could his father do this, just because the child was born on May 5th?
Wen Shi’s eyes turned bloodshot as she stared at Liu Sanlang. After a while, seeing him trembling all over, she finally spoke, “Divide the family! We’ll raise our child ourselves. If he wants to harm anyone, let him harm us as the parents.”
Liu Sanlang suddenly looked at Wen Shi. Dividing the family had been suggested by Wen Shi before, but at this moment, Liu Sanlang was still dumbfounded.
Wen Shi repeated, “Divide the family, or divorce.”
The word “divorce” hit him like a heavy hammer, leaving Liu Sanlang stunned. “No, no divorce. I also didn’t agree with what my father said.”
Wen Shi reiterated, “Divide the family, or divorce.”
Liu Sanlang deeply loved and respected Wen Shi. He always listened to her. Now, with Wen Shi holding the baby in her arms, and his own biological father asking him to kill his daughter, he felt a lump in his throat. After rolling it around for a while, he finally nodded, “Okay, let’s divide the family.”
Sansukini: How despicable. It’s not the child’s fault that these adults did some bad things. Bad things are in store for Wen Shi and her family but this novel rewards the good and punishes evil.
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