NOVPUB
Chapter 534: Chapter 224 In-laws Fight
Li Hongqi pondered for days but hadn’t figured out how to squeeze some money from his second sister-in-law when he suddenly didn’t need to anymore.
Zheng Guilin had been hospitalized for a month, yet in the end, she could not save the pregnancy. One careless moment, as her mother was helping her to the bathroom, she miscarried.
It turned out to be less trouble; this time, they didn’t even need to perform a dilation and curettage.
Zheng Guilin cried bitterly, blaming heaven and earth, her ancestors, everyone. With her weak body failing to keep the child, she felt the whole world owed her.
Her mother-in-law also cried with her daughter, then feeling pity, she urged her not to cry, reminding her she was in her confinement period and crying too much would hurt her eyes.
But Zheng Guilin wasn’t concerned about that now. The doctor had said that if she didn’t keep this pregnancy, having children in the future would be difficult. Even if she did conceive, she might not be able to maintain the pregnancy, so what future did she have? What family would want a woman who couldn’t bear children?
Zheng Guilin’s mother couldn’t help but join in her daughter’s grievous sobbing.
Ah, all in all, both the Zheng Family and the Li Family were shrouded in a fog of sorrow.
After the grieving, Zheng Guilin’s mother started to consider her daughter’s future. What if her daughter really couldn’t have children? Could she continue living with Li Hongqi? That old woman of the Li Family was not to be trifled with; her daughter could be mistreated there. But if she were to divorce, finding a good match wouldn’t be easy. Who would want a woman who couldn’t bear children? After much thought, she felt her daughter shouldn’t divorce. Looking at all angles, although the mother-in-law could be problematic, the son-in-law was still a good man. For her daughter’s sake, she would have to shift all blame onto the Li Family.
"Our daughter’s marriage to your Li Family has brought eight generations worth of bad luck. We agreed beforehand that after the wedding, you’d buy a house for my daughter in town. But once they married, you went back on your word, forced my daughter to live in the countryside, and it’s because of all the back and forth that she lost her first child! Your Li Family has committed a sin, and now give me back my grandchild!" Zheng Guilin’s mother cried her accusations out to her in-laws, with a compelling flood of tears and heartfelt sincerity.
"How can you blame us for that? It’s your daughter’s misfortune, her body is weak. I’ve never seen any old woman who couldn’t keep a child and still blamed this or that," Qiu Shuping replied, speaking her mind.
But her words poked a hornet’s nest. Zheng Guilin’s mother rose up angrily, ready to scratch Qiu Shuping, "You wretched thing, who are you talking about? Who is the unfortunate one? My daughter grew up at home without a single ailment, but look at her now, marrying into your family for less than two years and she’s lost three children. You old wretch dare say it’s my daughter’s misfortune? I think it must be some vile deed your Li Family has done. It’s retribution for your family’s lack of virtue, the elders’ misdeeds falling upon the youngest."
Qiu Shuping, caught off guard, was scratched, and two bloody streaks appeared on her neck. Never one to back down from a fight, once she recovered, she lashed back with both hands.
How could Li Hongqi let his mother and mother-in-law come to blows? With his father-in-law watching, he could only hold his mother back while trying his best to persuade both parties not to fight, to talk it out instead.
Qiu Shuping was grabbed by her son’s hand, and just like that, she was caught several times by the opposing Zheng mother. She became anxious, "Let go, Hongqi let go of me, or see if I don’t scratch this old thing to death."
Li Hongqi dared not let go. Hearing his old mother’s words, he could only hold on tight.
"Mom, don’t get worked up. We can talk things out; fighting won’t solve any problems." He said this to his mother-in-law before turning to shout at his own mother: "Mom, Xiaolan just lost her child, and she’s already suffering enough. Can’t you just stop causing trouble and let your son catch his breath? Dad, come and help me out here." Old man Li was fumbling behind them, unsure of how to intervene. His wife and in-laws were fighting, and he didn’t know how to break it up.
"This is nonsense, absolute nonsense, stop it right now." He could only stand on the fringe yelling out.
Qiu Shuping was dumbfounded by her son’s scolding, "How, how is this my fault? She was the one who started it."
Li Hongqi didn’t care what she said. Seeing that the two had stopped fighting, he finally let go of his mother’s hand and thumped to his knees in front of his father-in-law and mother-in-law, "Dad, Mom, I’m sorry. You married such a good girl like Xiaolan to me, and I have failed to take care of her properly, making her suffer so much. I, I’m sorry to Xiaolan and to you both." As he spoke, his eyes began to redden.
Old man Li’s heart twisted with pain as he watched his son kneeling in front of outsiders, but being quite blunt, he couldn’t say anything harsh, and could only watch his son humbling himself before his in-laws.
Zheng’s father sighed, bent down to help his son-in-law up, "It’s not entirely your fault, but as a man, you need to be responsible. Xiaolan is now in this state because of you, and you need to give her your word."
Li Hongqi nodded vigorously, "Yes, I must not let Xiaolan suffer with me anymore."
"Empty promises won’t do. Our Xiaolan has been deceived by your family once before, and we won’t be fooled by mere words this time," Zheng’s mother, who had barely been hurt in the skirmish, straightened her hair. Seeing the vanquished state of her adversary, she felt quite pleased.
"We’re not unreasonable people. We don’t need you to do anything excessive, just follow through on the promise you made when you got married and buy the house, so the young couple has a place to stay without all this back and forth. As long as they can live peacefully, that’s enough," Zheng’s father said, with a calculated look in his eyes. "Hongqi is a promising young man who does an excellent job in my department. He’s achieved outstanding performance, but if all his time is wasted commuting, how can he do his job well, how can he strive for improvement? I believe big brother Li, who raised such a fine son, isn’t shortsighted. We mustn’t miss the big picture because of minor issues."
"Right, we don’t ask for anything else. This was what you promised when you got married. My daughter is too frail to withstand such distress now. If they have a house in the county, my daughter can recuperate for a couple of years, and certainly, she will bear you a grandson for the Li Family. Hongqi is now working under our old Zheng, so isn’t his future simply a word from us? We have only this precious daughter, and as long as she lives well and comfortably, none of this will be an issue," Zheng’s mother changed her tone quickly; just minutes after fighting with her in-laws, she could smile so sweetly, truly a talent.
Li Hongqi fell silent. He could tell that his parents-in-law were threatening his family, making his own future a condition. He disliked being threatened, yet he was eager to climb higher.
Old man Li was not foolish, he too understood the in-laws’ implication, but their demand made him furrow his brow. Buying a house in the county would cost at least three to five hundred thousand, which he simply could not afford, especially since his family was already broke after three hospitalizations for his younger son’s wife and the wedding, and they were still burdened with several hundred yuan of debt. Now with talk of buying a house in the county, where could they find the money?
