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The man held Ding Cuihua tightly in his arms, feeling a pang of affection. Ding Cuihua pouted unhappily and playfully touched him. "Shu Ge, you haven't come to see me in such a long time. I thought I was going to die from missing you!"
"I missed you too! When I was out there, all I could think about was you!" The man kissed her on the lips and hurried to comfort her. He finally sighed in relief when he saw her smile.
The two of them fidgeted restlessly, the man playfully pinching Ding Cuihua, causing her to squeal with laughter.
"Have you been with that Lu guy while I was gone?"
"What are you talking about, Shu Ge? I'm yours! That Lu guy is nothing!"
"You old temptress, always trying to seduce me!"
Meanwhile, Lu Zheng covered Lu Chen's ears as they left with Wen Qian.
Wen Qian felt a bit regretful; if it weren't for her son, she would have loved to stay and watch, waiting for Ding Cuihua to come out so she could surprise her.
Fortunately, they left early; otherwise, the inappropriate scenes that followed would have tainted their eyes.
Ding Cuihua lay breathlessly in the man's embrace, shyly circling her fingers on his chest. "Shu Ge, you're still so amazing!"
Shu Ge was exhausted and saw stars before him as he held Ding Cuihua close. "As long as you're satisfied! It's all because I missed you too much!"
He suddenly frowned and sighed. "I haven't been able to go out lately."
Ding Cuihua quickly sat up. "Why not?"
"I got scammed and lost all my money; I can't go out!"
"I have some! I'll get it for you!" Ding Cuihua pulled out gold bars and cash hidden in her clothes and handed them to him.
The man's eyes widened in surprise as he joyfully embraced Ding Cuihua and kissed her fiercely. "My dear! You're truly amazing!"
Ding Cuihua leaned into him shyly and playfully punched his arm. "Shu Ge, I'm not as amazing as you! Don't be so polite with me!"
"You've been working hard outside; don't worry with me around."
A few days ago, while they were in town, they ran into Lu Zheng's comrades who were planning to have a meal together before Lu Zheng returned.
They tidied up and prepared to go.
Wen Qian and Lu Chen hopped onto the back of a bicycle while Lu Zheng pedaled energetically in front.
They hadn't seen Lu Yao's figure inside the house; it seemed they would be able to behave for a while longer!
Upon arriving in town, they first stopped by the supply and marketing cooperative to buy some gifts before heading down an alley to knock on a door. A cheerful female voice soon echoed from inside.
"Coming! Coming!"
The woman inside was slightly plump with a round face that lit up with friendliness; one could tell from her voice that she was straightforward.
"Lu Zheng is here! Come in! My husband Zhang Li was just talking about you!"
After speaking, she looked at Wen Qian and Lu Chen with a smile in her eyes. "So this is my sister-in-law and my nephew! Come in, come in!"
Wen Qian couldn't help but smile back at her warmth.
The woman was Meng Fang; her husband Zhang Li was an official at the steel factory and also Lu Zheng's comrade who had returned after retiring from military service.
In the yard, there was another family; the man's name was Yang Yong, and his wife was Zhang Liu, who had a young boy about a year old.
"Old Lu, you've finally come! We were just saying how slow you are; you'll have to drink a penalty cup later!"
Lu Zheng smiled, looking somewhat helplessly at Wen Qian, his eyes filled with inquiry.
Now everyone in the yard was looking at Wen Qian. Her cheeks flushed slightly, feeling a bit embarrassed, but fortunately, her dark clothing concealed it.
Yang Yong raised his hand and wrapped it around Lu Zheng's arm, grinning mischievously. "Old Lu, I didn’t realize you were also under your wife’s thumb!"
Wen Qian, in her words, inadvertently expressed a hint of reproach. She looked at Lu Zheng, who was staring at her intently. "If you want to drink, go ahead, just don’t get drunk."
Lu Zheng nodded seriously, as if he had received a military order. The people in the yard couldn’t help but burst into laughter at his demeanor.
Yang Yong and Zhang Li exchanged amused glances as they watched Lu Zheng.
The three men chatted together while a few children played nearby. Lu Chen was a bit shy but gradually began to smile under the enthusiastic encouragement of the other kids.
Wen Qian, Meng Fang, and Zhang Liu were engaged in conversation.
During their talk, Zhang Liu realized which village Wen Qian was from and looked at her curiously. "Do you know Zhang Yan? She married into your village."
Wen Qian paused her movements for a moment and nodded. "I know her; she’s from our village."
"You know her? That’s good to hear," Zhang Liu said as she moved her stool closer to Wen Qian, her face alight with eager gossip. "Zhang Yan is from our village too. I heard that something happened with her in-laws recently; it caused quite a stir. Both she and her husband ended up in the police station!"
"And two children went missing too! It’s really pitiful."
When Zhang Yan's family heard about it, they rushed to your village that very afternoon.
Wen Qian nodded repeatedly; she was aware of these events and shared them for Meng Fang's benefit.
As Meng Fang listened, a sense of familiarity washed over her. She interrupted, saying, "I know about this; my husband Zhang told me that it’s related to the people they were trying to catch—quite a big deal!"
"Exactly! Zhang Yan’s family was anxious when they saw their daughter in trouble!"
"But her in-laws were quite resourceful; they rescued her the next day and brought Zhang Yan back home. However, I heard from someone in the village that she was tied up when they brought her back."
"It’s said that Zhang Yan wanted to return home all along but got beaten up by the Zhang family before she finally behaved."
Wen Qian casually asked, "So how is she doing now?"
At this point, Zhang Liu clicked her tongue sympathetically and spoke with a tone of pity. "I heard from people in the village that after Zhang Yan returned, she was married off overnight by her family—though it wasn’t really marriage; she was sold."
Wen Qian raised an eyebrow. "Wasn’t Zhang Yan quite favored in the Zhang family?"
The Zhang family had gone to great lengths for their daughter and had even traveled back and forth several times for her sake. The rumors outside the village and Zhang Yan's own words all hinted at how much the family cherished her.
Expressing her confusion aloud, Wen Qian asked again. Zhang Liu scoffed slightly. "It’s not about favoring their daughter; it’s more like selling their daughter."
"In your village, everyone says she was favored; we don’t see it that way—we say she was just taking things from her in-laws back to her family."
"Do you know why the Zhang family so readily let Zhang Yan marry into your village? Why does everyone else say she was favored?" Meng Fang questioned curiously. "Could it be because that family is wealthy?"
Zhang Liu shook her head mysteriously. "The rumor about her being favored was deliberately spread by the Zhang family just to demand a higher bride price."
She then looked at Wen Qian again. "The reason she could marry into your village is that your family offered the highest bride price and was also easier to bully."
"I heard that your family just moved there recently and has no relatives or connections; the Zhang family is powerful enough to keep them under control."
Upon hearing this, Wen Qian couldn’t help but smile slightly; the amusement in her eyes was hard to conceal.
Lu Fu had calculated everything but hadn’t anticipated this twist of fate.
He had been tempted by the large number of Zhang family members and had spent a considerable sum to marry Zhang Yan, only to find that he had fallen right into the trap set by the Zhang family.
At this point, Wen Qian recalled something. Every time Zhang Yan returned to her maternal home, she would bring back a lot of things; if she had nothing to bring, she would rather not return at all. Each time she came back, it was just a few single men, their faces showing signs of hardship.
Meng Fang curiously asked, "What about her now?"
"I heard she was sold to a village nearby. The man there is abusive; his previous wife was beaten to death. How tragic!"
To be honest, it was clear that the Zhang family had no intention of helping after Zhang Yan and Lu Yao were taken to the police station. They had threatened Lu's father and managed to find a suitable buyer for Zhang Yan, which indicated that the Zhang family had already plotted everything out.
"Are they really that ruthless?" Meng Fang shook her head in sympathy.
Zhang Liu observed the expressions of Wen Qian and Meng Fang before continuing. "This matter wasn't initiated by the Zhang family; it was actually the idea of their third daughter-in-law. She’s an educated youth from the city and quite clever!"
Initially, news had spread early in the village about Zhang Yan being taken to the police station, and it seemed she might not come out again. The Zhang family didn't react at first and didn't plan to intervene. However, later on, I overheard their third daughter-in-law saying in the village that if Zhang Yan ended up in prison, it would also affect the Zhang family and possibly ruin the futures of several children. That’s when the Zhang family became concerned.
It all made sense now. The third daughter-in-law from the city was indeed sharp and knowledgeable. If Zhang Yan really didn’t come out, the Zhang family would be affected, but who in the village could have thought so far ahead?
She must have persuaded the Zhang family members to quickly sell Zhang Yan to another family; it seemed she had long been contemplating this. However, one must acknowledge that Zhang Yan had managed to live quite well in the Zhang household for so long; she must have some wits about her.
Wen Qian's thoughts were interrupted by Zhang Liu's words. "I heard that Zhang Yan has been beaten consistently; that man has issues with his legs and is somewhat mentally unstable."
Wen Qian had a gut feeling that Zhang Yan would return again in a couple of days.
"Alas, it's really the sister-in-law at her new home who is pitiful. I heard that as soon as she got married, her husband started cheating and hasn’t returned for several days; they’ve both been worn down terribly."
Every time Zhang Yan returned to the village, she would boast about how she managed things at home and how she bullied her sister-in-law.
As she spoke, Zhang Liu suddenly paused. "I just remembered that there’s a family in your village with the surname Lu as well. Could they be related to your Lu?"
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