“She scolded the woman so fiercely that no one could stop her. Then the old woman wanted her daughter-in-law, who had just given birth to a child, to be discharged from the hospital immediately. She did not want her to continue staying in the hospital to waste money. The fool knelt on the ground and begged her mother to wait a few more days until the hospital said she could be discharged. The old woman was so angry that she returned to the countryside on the same day. Within a day, she sold all the chickens, ducks, and pigs in the house. Some of them were even sold at a low price. She said that even if she lost money, she would not let that woman off so easily!”
“The fool’s wife stayed in the hospital for four to five days, and then she carried her daughter out of the hospital and went home. The old woman sold all her things, but she did not prepare anything for the woman’s confinement period. My friend’s grandmother decided to help the woman; she killed chickens and ducks at her home to cook for the woman. My friend’s mother also helped to care for the fool’s wife.”
“Your friend’s family is very kind.” Jiang Yao sighed. Chickens and ducks were precious at that time; even eggs were expensive too. However, that family had killed and given those animals to the woman.
“Yes, my friend’s grandparents and parents are very nice people. I have been to their home in the county, and their parents are very kind.” Lu Xiaoxiao grinned. “Her grandmother’s cooking is even better than Auntie’s!”
“Let’s talk about the child.” If Lu Xingzhi did not interrupt Lu Xiaoxiao, he bet that she could talk about her friend’s grandmother’s cooking skills for more than half an hour.
Lu Xiaoxiao touched the tip of her nose. “That fool saw how his mother treated his wife and daughter, so he went to his mother and begged her to treat them better. The old woman said that she would not treat them well unless they got rid of the baby girl and she got a grandson as soon as possible. Did I also mention that the old woman destroyed the fortune-teller’s stall after she left the hospital?”
“No.”
Jiang Yao nodded. “Did the fool really agree to get rid of his daughter?”
“The old woman said that if he disagreed, then she would throw his wife and daughter out of the house. If he protected them, then she would disown him as well.” Lu Xiaoxiao gritted her teeth as she said, “That fool is really a coward. He didn’t speak up, and he didn’t have any opinions. He hid it from his wife and let his mother take the child away. I heard that the old woman buried the child alive. Some even saw wild dogs eating the baby’s corpse. The fool lied to his wife; he told her that the baby was sick and needed to go to the hospital. After two days, the woman finally realized that something was wrong. Then, she found out that the baby had died. She went to the mountains frantically to look for her baby, but she only found a pool of blood and nothing else. She fainted in the mountains in the middle of the night.”
After that, there was no need to continue to ask about it. Jiang Yao and the rest could guess that the fool’s wife must have hated the old woman to death. She must have also hated her husband because he hid it from her.
It was just as Jiang Yao thought; Lu Xiaoxiao continued to say, “The fool carried his wife home from the mountains. After that, his wife never spoke to him or looked at him again. My friend’s family tried to persuade her for a long time, but the fool’s wife still did not say a word. Then, one day, the fool’s wife suddenly went to my friend’s house. Without saying anything else, she thanked my friend’s family and gave them ten bucks. She wanted to thank them for their help and repay them with money. Two days later, she left without a word and had never come back.”
