Chapter 603 | Chapter 604 | Chapter 605
Chapter 603: Li Juhua’s Country In-Laws
“Jingjing, you must be hungry, right?”
“Third Aunt made your favorite pastries and meat.”
“That’s right, Great-Grandma bought you the finest set of drawing pens.”
Feeling the warmth and care from her family, Gu Jingjing’s eyes instantly welled with tears. She felt she didn’t deserve to be treated with such dedication by everyone.
“Little Sister! Brother bought you candies with his own pocket money.”
Gu Jinfang stepped forward and slung an arm around Gu Jingjing’s shoulder. Seeing his lack of manners, Sister-in-Law Gu crossly batted his hand away.
“Go on now. Are you treating your sister like a boy, putting your arm around her shoulder like that?”
Sister-in-Law Gu shot Gu Jinfang a thoroughly exasperated glare before leading Gu Jingjing upstairs to the room the family had prepared for her.
When Gu Jingjing saw that the room was filled with all her belongings—including her favorite drawing board and sketchbooks, and even the drawings she had done over the past few years, which had been framed and hung nicely on the wall—she realized something.
After all the twists and turns, this was still her home.
Downstairs, Grandma Gu noted the situation and glanced at Father Gu. Father Gu walked out the door and looked down coldly at Gu Tinghao, who was squatting outside.
“Dad…”
“I’m not your dad.”
Father Gu didn’t soften his stance in the slightest. Now that the family had been divided, it didn’t even matter if this son never came back to fulfill his filial duties in the future, so long as the money arrived on time.
“Don’t bother coming back from now on. Just make sure you provide the elder support money and Jingjing’s child support on time.”
“Dad!”
Gu Tinghao looked at Father Gu in utter shock. Was Father Gu actually planning to cast him out of the family completely?
“I said, don’t call me Dad!”
“I don’t have an irresponsible son like you.”
“Saying it out loud makes me feel embarrassed!”
Father Gu let out a cold snort. Having delivered exactly what Grandma Gu had instructed, he turned back around and shut the main door firmly.
Grandma Gu’s exact words had been: “There’s no reason to let him live so free and easy without a care in the world. What needs to be given must be given.”
Since Gu Tinghao hadn’t spared a single thought for his family’s feelings, there was no need for them to worry about whether Gu Tinghao’s life would be comfortable or not.
A man in his thirties with a stable job and several thousand yuan in savings had no excuse not to make ends meet.
They had done everything they were supposed to do and helped where they were supposed to help. The rest would depend on his own luck.
Grandma Gu put on a smile and went upstairs to call Gu Jingjing down for dinner. Gu Jingjing obediently followed her downstairs.
“Alright, alright~”
“Everything is in the past now. We mustn’t dwell on it anymore.”
With just a few words, Grandma Gu turned the page on the whole ordeal, at least easing Gu Jingjing’s heart so she wouldn’t overthink things.
“These little hands need to be nurtured properly. We can’t let them leave a scar.”
Grandma Gu’s eyes welled with tears automatically when she saw the wrist where the stitches had just been removed. She quickly turned her head away to wipe them dry.
“Come, Jingjing, eat a bit more.”
Grandma Gu scooped some of the dishes Gu Jingjing liked into her bowl. Gu Jingjing kept her head down in silence, eating quietly.
“Sister~”
Yi Yi tugged at the corner of Gu Jingjing’s clothes. Gu Jingjing looked down at her. Yi Yi didn’t say anything, but flashed a bright smile.
“Be happy~”
Hearing her words, Gu Jingjing managed a slight twitch of her lips and nodded. She picked up her chopsticks and transferred the piece of meat from her own bowl into Yi Yi’s.
“For Yi Yi?”
Yi Yi’s eyes went wide and her little mouth fell open, looking at her in pure disbelief.
“Mm.”
Gu Jingjing turned her head back and fell silent again. Yi Yi, however, was thrilled. She kept chattering away in her ear, sharing all the interesting things that had happened to her recently.
Even though Gu Jingjing didn’t react, Yi Yi wasn’t discouraged at all, fully capable of entertaining herself and finishing her stories all on her own.
As for whether her older sister was actually listening, that was a whole different story.
The adults in the household watched the only two girls in the family. One was quiet while the other was boisterous; they actually complemented each other perfectly.
After finishing dinner, Sheng Wanyan and Gu Tingxiao took the children back to their own place, and Aunt Hu tag-teamed along with them.
“I’m heading out for a bit.”
Seeing Gu Tingxiao heading out in the dead of night, Sheng Wanyan couldn’t help but ask, “Where to?”
“You’ll find out in a few days.”
Sheng Wanyan gave him a puzzled look. Gu Tingxiao planted a soft kiss on her forehead and left the house.
Sheng Wanyan smiled and shook her head. Going out when the night was dark and the wind was high usually meant nothing good was brewing.
Upon waking up the next day, Sheng Wanyan’s family prepared to return to Beijing University. Before leaving, she went to check on Gu Jingjing. Seeing that she had started using her uninjured hand to draw in her room, Sheng Wanyan felt a bit more relieved.
“The doctor prescribed some mood-stabilizing medication for Jingjing, but I don’t know if it’s actually doing any good.”
Sister-in-Law Gu was filled with worry. All medicines carried a degree of toxicity, and she was terrified her daughter’s health would deteriorate if she took too much of it.
“Let her take it for now to stabilize her condition first.”
Grandpa Gu spoke up, and Sister-in-Law Gu nodded in agreement. For now, this was their only option.
However, Sheng Wanyan knew that foreign countries had very advanced methods for treating depression, and their psychologists were undeniably professional in this field.
“When the time comes, let’s see if we can take Jingjing abroad for a checkup.”
“The last time I went to Hong Kong, I heard that foreign psychologists are quite good.”
Sheng Wanyan offered the suggestion, throwing the family into deep thought. Given the political backgrounds and statuses of the family members, going abroad was practically out of the question.
They weren’t allowed to leave the country without state clearance. Even Sister-in-Law Gu, who worked in the Bureau of Education, needed approval from higher-up leadership to go abroad.
“We’ll see when the time comes if there’s an opportunity to take Jingjing for a checkup.”
“Right now, it’s not suitable yet.”
Grandpa Gu had his own calculations in mind. Gu Jingjing’s current physical and mental state wasn’t fit for a long journey.
She couldn’t even manage going to school; they had already arranged a temporary academic suspension so she could recuperate at home.
Time trickled by. Gu Tinghao had tried to visit Gu Jingjing, but the moment she saw him, she would start throwing things to smash him. Mother Gu simply didn’t dare let her be triggered at all.
Seeing her in this state, Gu Tinghao didn’t dare provoke her any further and stopped showing up in front of her after that.
Gu Tinghao no longer disturbed Gu Jingjing, but he provided the elder support money and child support on time every month.
With her illness brought under control, Gu Jingjing eventually returned to school to resume her classes. Gu Tinghao could only ever stand far away at the school gates to watch her from a distance.
Lailai and Maomao had also learned to toddle around. They were becoming increasingly active and mischievous, leaving Sheng Wanyan physically and mentally exhausted from disciplining them.
There were times when even Gu Tingxiao couldn’t keep a handle on the three children. Whenever Yi Yi got into a rowdy mood, she would lead her two younger brothers to raise hell together.
Every time they were ordered to stand in the corner as punishment, the three children would line up perfectly—not a single one left out.
Even when Father and Mother Gu visited, they couldn’t necessarily control the three little monkeys in the house. Father Gu was actually starting to wonder if they should just be sent off to the military camp.
Meanwhile, Sheng Wanyan returned to her university, only to find a massive piece of drama waiting to be watched.
As it turned out, Li Juhua’s country husband and mother-in-law had brought their two children to the Capital to find her!
The moment Li Juhua saw her country husband coming to the school to look for her, she lost her mind with panic, not even daring to step out of the school gates.
But Li Juhua’s mother-in-law was no pushover either. She went straight into the school to throw a massive tantrum, making her way all the way up to the Dean of Students’ office!
“Li Juhua abandoned her husband and children! She doesn’t deserve to study at a university!”
“This wretched woman! She hasn’t returned for three whole years, abandoning even her own children!”
“How can there be such a heartless woman in this world!”
“Once she passed the college entrance exam and turned into a golden phoenix, she started looking down on her country in-laws!”
Li Juhua was summoned to the Dean of Students’ office. The moment she saw the man, the mother-in-law, and the children inside, her legs went completely weak.
Chapter 604: Stealing a University Place
Seeing how neatly dressed Li Juhua was, looking just like a city dweller, and then looking at their own clothes that were covered in several patches, Li Juhua’s mother-in-law instantly turned red with rage.
“Mom!”
“Mom!”
The two children ran over to hug her thighs, but Li Juhua instantly pushed them away as a conditioned reflex.
“No… I’m not your mother.”
She was a university student, someone who would work for a state-owned unit in the future. She was absolutely not the mother of these two country children.
“Mom…”
The two children looked at Li Juhua, completely at a loss. Hearing this, Li Juhua’s mother-in-law instantly rushed forward, grabbed her by the hair, and started beating her!
“You godforsaken wretch! The moment you achieve success and wealth, you abandon your husband and children!”
“Heartless bitch! Your travel expenses to come here and study were all paid for by our family.”
“Have you no shame? Huh! You haven’t gone back to visit even once in three whole years.”
“Even if you raise a dog, it knows how to repay its master!”
Li Juhua was pinned to the ground and beaten by her mother-in-law, who kept tearing at her hair. Very soon, word of this incident spread throughout the entire school.
People nowadays utterly loathed those who abandoned their spouses and children.
Wasn’t this just out of fear that her country in-laws would drag her down? It was bad enough that she didn’t want her in-laws, but she could even abandon her own children.
She really was something else!
Sheng Wanyan caught wind of it, and the next day, she saw Li Juhua coming to class with a face full of red swelling.
She kept her head lowered the entire time, terrified that everyone would come to mock her. This was a family and moral issue, so the school couldn’t interfere.
Word had it that Li Juhua had settled her in-laws into a guest house, and for some unknown reason, both sides had stopped making a scene.
Sheng Wanyan didn’t go around asking either. There was no need for her to poke her nose into other people’s family business.
She had better just manage her own small patch of ground properly, lest the three children at home turn the house upside down.
However, the more Sheng Wanyan wanted to avoid trouble, the more trouble seemed to find its way to her door.
When Sheng Wanyan returned to the dormitory to rest after finishing lunch, her hand was intimately grabbed by Li Juhua.
Several girls in the dormitory shot her a meaningful look. Li Juhua was exceptionally warm and polite to them today; there was definitely something fishy going on.
“Wanyan, you’re back!”
“Here, let me give you some candy.”
Li Juhua took out two White Rabbit milk candies to give her. Sheng Wanyan didn’t say anything, simply placing them down on the desk.
“I don’t eat candy. My teeth aren’t good.”
Sheng Wanyan refused. Hearing her claim that she didn’t eat candy, Wei Lili and Lin Meili instantly found it amusing.
She clearly ate plenty of it usually. When they went to the grocery store to buy things, she even treated them all together.
Li Juhua looked at her awkwardly. Sheng Wanyan didn’t want to have much interaction with her. “I’m going to rest now.”
With that, Sheng Wanyan prepared to climb into bed to rest, but Li Juhua hurriedly stopped her, stammering out what was actually on her mind.
“Wanyan… could you lend me 1,000 yuan?”
The moment Li Juhua said this, the expressions of the other girls in the dormitory completely changed, and they all put their candies back down.
They knew it; she had come prepared.
Sheng Wanyan was so angry she laughed upon hearing her words. Had she perhaps forgotten what happened before?
She hadn’t even settled the score with her yet for trying to morally hijack her last time.
“Wanyan… I promise I’ll return it to you as soon as possible.”
“We’re roommates and classmates.”
“Your business is doing so well too, so you probably won’t mind lending me this little bit of pocket change, right?”
Li Juhua watched her expression as she spoke. Sheng Wanyan looked back at her, her eyes completely cold.
“I do mind.”
“What!?”
Li Juhua didn’t register it at first. Sheng Wanyan repeated herself clearly: “I mind.”
Li Juhua heard it perfectly clearly this time. She had never expected Sheng Wanyan to refuse her request so bluntly!
They were classmates after all, and even lived in the same dormitory. She actually refused to give her face to this extent!
“No… you earn so much money, what’s wrong with lending me a little?”
“It’s not like I won’t return it to you.”
Sheng Wanyan shook off her hand and treated her with a cold shoulder, her words firm and unwavering.
“What does how much money I earn have to do with you?”
“Besides… you and I don’t seem to be close, right?”
“You!!!”
Exasperated, Li Juhua pointed a finger at her. Sheng Wanyan couldn’t be bothered to indulge her, pushing her hand aside as she climbed up onto her bed.
“Sheng Wanyan! You are way too stingy!”
“You won’t even lend a helping hand when someone is in difficulty. Aren’t you afraid everyone will find out how selfish you are?”
“I’m not afraid. Go ahead and say whatever you want.”
Sheng Wanyan rolled her eyes. Did she really think everyone was as foolish as she was?
Everyone knew exactly who they could afford to offend and who they couldn’t. Furthermore, they were already in their junior year, and many things had to be viewed through the lens of mutual benefit.
“You!!!”
Li Juhua was furious. Seeing her like this, she could only swallow the anger in her heart and turn her gaze toward Wei Lili.
“I don’t have any either! I still rely on my family to support me.”
Wei Lili lay down to rest the moment she finished speaking. Just like Sheng Wanyan, she pulled up her blanket, closed her eyes, and stopped talking.
The others in the dormitory similarly ignored her and went to sleep. Where on earth would they get 1,000 yuan!
Where did Li Juhua get the nerve to call this pocket change? If she was so capable, why didn’t she bring out 1,000 yuan to lend to them instead!
Nowadays, an ordinary, average family might not even have 1,000 yuan in savings. How did she have the face to open her mouth!
Seeing that everyone in the dormitory was ignoring her and unwilling to lend a helping hand, Li Juhua’s heart swelled with intense hatred!
The gaze she directed at the girls in the dormitory was filled with fury. Why did everyone look down on her!
And Sheng Wanyan! Earning so much every month, yet she wasn’t even willing to take out 1,000 yuan to help her out in an emergency—and to think she had even patronized her business!
She would absolutely not let Sheng Wanyan’s business continue to run so smoothly! If she lost the patronage of these students, let’s see how she would make money then.
Li Juhua thought of something. For the next few days, she didn’t return to the dormitory at all, while the business at Sheng Wanyan’s clothing store grew more explosive by the day.
“Have you heard? Word is that wearing clothes from the ‘Huayi Clothing Store’ gives you a rash.”
“Bullshit! I’ve been wearing them for so long and I’m perfectly fine.”
“Exactly. The styles are pretty and the quality is great.”
The students who hadn’t bought from there looked at everyone half-believingly, but in the end, they were swayed by what they heard.
“Is that real or fake?”
“If you don’t believe it, just go buy one to try and you’ll know. Would I lie to you?”
Just like that, Sheng Wanyan’s clothing store became packed to the brim, and the small workshop had to work overtime through the night to process orders.
When the ladies in the workshop and the clerks in the store received their wages, they couldn’t stop smiling from ear to ear.
A few days later, Sheng Wanyan finally found out exactly why Li Juhua had been borrowing money everywhere. This matter had become so massive that even the principal had stepped in to resolve it.
“Li Juhua stole someone else’s university admission notice!”
“She stole someone else’s future!”
Listening to her classmates’ gossip, Sheng Wanyan was utterly shocked. Stealing someone else’s university place was effectively ruining a person’s entire life.
“I heard her country in-laws were threatening her, demanding 1,000 yuan to keep their mouths shut.”
“She didn’t have the money, so her mother-in-law came to the school to report her.”
“How did the school handle it?”
“She has been expelled, and she is permanently barred from admission to any university!”
The students felt a shiver run down their spines when they heard this. This meant Li Juhua was completely ruined for the rest of her life; she would never have another chance to get an education.
“Oh heavens! The classmate whose place was stolen by her—wouldn’t they have thrown themselves into a river out of despair?”
Chapter 605: Gu Tinghao’s Partner Visits
“You actually hit the nail right on the head.”
“What!?”
“Word is, when her university admission notice was stolen, she lost her mind from the shock.”
“She spent every single day wandering around the village, searching everywhere for her admission notice. Later on, she accidentally took a wrong step, fell into the river…”
“And lost her life.”
!!!!!
This news was a massive shock. They could never have imagined that a university student who originally had a boundless future would end up with such a tragic end.
“Doesn’t that mean there is a human life on Li Juhua’s hands!”
“Exactly! If it weren’t for Li Juhua, how could that other person have ended up like that?”
Wei Lili and the other girls looked on with eyes full of sorrow. They also felt a lingering dread—to think that someone who had lived with them for three whole years was actually such a vicious person.
Li Juhua was escorted back to the dormitory by the school leadership and the public security officers to pack up her belongings and leave. She was no longer that high-and-mighty university student.
Instead, she was a thief who had stolen someone else’s university place, someone whom everyone despised and yelled at.
Li Juhua felt bitter hatred in her heart. If only Sheng Wanyan had been willing to help her, she wouldn’t have ended up like this.
No matter how resentful Li Juhua felt inside, she couldn’t change this outcome. When a person does wrong, they have to pay for it sooner or later.
As Li Juhua was led out of the school by the public security officers, the students who had just finished their midday classes gathered to watch the spectacle. Some people even started shouting curses at her.
When Li Juhua saw Sheng Wanyan walking out of the teaching building looking glamorous and pristine, she completely blew a fuse.
“Sheng Wanyan! You bitch!”
“You’re the one who ruined me! It’s all because you refused to help me out!”
“You caused this! You bitch! You wretched woman!”
“Your business is so huge, yet you weren’t even willing to help me out with a mere 1,000 yuan!”
Li Juhua went completely mad, screaming curses non-stop until the public security officers hurriedly dragged her away. What a complete lunatic.
“Where does this person get the nerve? She actually had the face to ask Student Sheng Wanyan to lend her 1,000 yuan.”
“Exactly. When she didn’t get the help, she actually held a grudge.”
“Well, she has so much money, so helping out a bit wouldn’t have been a big deal…”
A few students held a different perspective, but the moment these words left their mouths, they were immediately swarmed and shot down by the others.
“How can you even say such a thing!”
“If she had helped, wouldn’t Student Sheng Wanyan be abetting a criminal?”
“If she had helped, wouldn’t the student whose place was stolen have died in vain? She would never have gotten justice for her entire life!”
The students debated fiercely back and forth. Seeing that these students had so much free time on their hands, the school leadership instructed the specialized teachers to increase the academic workload.
Once they were too busy with their studies, they no longer had time for gossip.
Sheng Wanyan listened to the gossip while eating in the cafeteria. Evil brings its own reward; since there was a human life on her hands, it was only a matter of time before she had to pay it back.
As time moved forward, this incident was gradually forgotten by everyone, only brought up occasionally as an cautionary example.
The children grew bigger day by day, and the year 1980 flew by in a flash. Toward the end of the year, Sheng Wanyan learned from Mother Gu that Gu Tinghao had a new partner and said he wanted to bring her home to meet everyone.
He had already broken up with the previous woman, who was reportedly a colleague from his government department unit. His current partner was a student from the Normal University, whom he had met during an exchange between the two schools.
Gu Tinghao was no longer acting willfully. Having decided to get married, he went to inform Mother Gu. Mother Gu didn’t say much, nor did she ever let him step through the front door.
Whatever matters they had were always resolved right at the threshold. In her heart, Mother Gu felt extremely relieved that Jingjing was already a child of the first branch.
To change two women within a single year—even she looked down on Gu Tinghao! Needless to say, she doubted how well he could possibly treat Gu Jingjing.
Yet, no matter what, he was still her son. For a major event like her son getting married, it was impossible for Mother Gu not to show her face.
Gu Tinghao brought his partner home over the weekend to meet the elders. Sheng Wanyan had arranged beforehand for Yi Yi to take Jingjing out to play.
“Third Aunt, I understand.”
This was the longest sentence Gu Jingjing had spoken in the past six months, making Sheng Wanyan’s heart tremble slightly.
“My dad… Fourth Uncle is all on his own, so it’s only right for him to marry a wife.”
Hearing the way she addressed Gu Tinghao, Sheng Wanyan remained dazed for a long time. The girl understood everything; she no longer wanted Gu Tinghao as a father.
“Jingjing…”
“Third Aunt, I’m taking my little sister out to play now.”
“We’ll come back later for dinner.”
Gu Jingjing forced a smile as she held Yi Yi’s hand and walked out the door. But Sheng Wanyan’s heart ached with an intense soreness, making it almost hard to breathe.
Such a wonderful child… Why didn’t her parents cherish her?
Since the family had already been divided and this was a second marriage, there was naturally no reason for the Gu family to pour in both money and effort.
However, Mother Gu could still distinguish things clearly. This future fourth daughter-in-law could not be lumped together with the previous two women.
She was herself, and others were others.
If they were to take the grievances that didn’t belong to her and take them out on her head, then the Gu family would be acting beneath human decency.
Therefore, what needed to be respected was respected, and what needed to be prepared was prepared. At the very least, this meal had to be made presentable.
“Mom, let me prepare some food that the younger children can eat.”
Mother Gu was preparing the main dishes, but Chouwa, Lailai, and Maomao couldn’t just eat anything yet. They still needed some softer foods prepared.
“Alright, you handle that.”
Lailai and Maomao would be turning two in a little while. With their chubby appearance, anyone who saw them would adore them.
Every time she held them in her arms, Sheng Wanyan felt like she was holding a ball—completely round and roly-poly.
Mother Gu prepared eight dishes, while Sheng Wanyan prepared some soft and healthy foods, which were brought to the table one after another.
In the afternoon, Gu Tinghao returned with his future wife. Her name was Yang Dongxia, a student at the Capital Normal University and from the same graduating class as Gu Tinghao.
Yang Dongxia was a native of Xinjiang Province. She was 25 years old this year—a full six years younger than Gu Tinghao. She had never been married before and was the fifth child in her family.
She had older brothers and sisters above her, making her the youngest. Her father was a soldier in Xinjiang, and her mother was a housewife. By now, her older brothers and sisters had all established their own families.
When Gu Tinghao brought Yang Dongxia to the compound, Yang Dongxia was startled by the sight of the compound, standing properly and not daring to look around randomly.
“Why didn’t you tell me before about your family…”
“There’s nothing much to say. You already know my situation.”
“I have a daughter, and right now… the family is still angry with me.”
Gu Tinghao laid out all his background to Yang Dongxia. Since they were going to start a family, they needed to be completely transparent with each other.
Yang Dongxia knew he had a daughter who was currently registered under Gu Tinghao’s eldest brother’s name.
Although she didn’t know the exact details of what had happened, she understood perfectly well in her heart that it must have been a significant ordeal.
She had set her heart on Gu Tinghao as a person, not his family background.
“I need to provide elder support for my parents and child support. Being with me puts you at a disadvantage.”
Hearing his words, Yang Dongxia hurriedly shook her head. There was nothing to feel disadvantaged about. Besides, this was exactly what a son and a father ought to do.
“It’s no hardship…”
Hearing her words, Gu Tinghao smiled and took her hand, leading her up to the front door of the house.
Yang Dongxia followed Gu Tinghao into the Gu residence. Mother Gu had also changed into a set of new clothes and was waiting, and all the family elders were present at home.
“Grandpa, Grandma, Dad, Mom, Big Brother, Big Sister-in-Law, Third Brother, Third Sister-in-Law.”
“This is my partner, Yang Dongxia.”
Gu Tinghao introduced her to the family elders, and Yang Dongxia nervously greeted everyone.
“Hello, Grandpa Gu, Grandma Gu, Uncle, Aunt, Big Brother, Big Sister-in-Law, Third Brother, Third Sister-in-Law.”
