RPAGF Chapter 405 Giving up on you, my lifeline, is the best way I can repay you...
Chapter 405 Giving up on you, my lifeline, is the best way I can repay you...
Weinan District.
Inside the dormitory building for employees of a textile factory.
Chen Zhonghua has been so worried these past few days that he doesn't even find drinking enjoyable anymore.
His eldest daughter, Chen Ping, who had been away from home for a long time, suddenly returned, and was even brought back by the police. He didn't care what the neighbors were gossiping about.
What worries him is the job that his eldest son took over. If it is really returned to Chen Ping, then he will have to go to the countryside.
How could his precious eldest son endure that hardship?
Besides, it was precisely because of this job that his son found it easy to find a partner. Chen Zhonghua thought about it again and again and felt that this job absolutely could not be returned to Chen Ping.
He slapped his forehead in frustration.
Eh!
He actually had an idea: why not just sign Chen Ping up for the rural assignment? That way, the Revolutionary Committee wouldn't have to keep an eye on their family anymore.
As for the official explanation, just say that Chen Ping volunteered to go to the countryside. After all, she was a young woman who had been missing for so long. Even if rumors don't spread now because of the police, she will still be gossiped about sooner or later.
It would be better to take this opportunity to get rid of her; it would save us trouble and preserve the family's reputation.
Don't be fooled by the nice words of the police officer who brought her back; the fact that she had been to a den of thieves cannot be ignored.
Moreover, a textile factory would probably not want an employee with such a tarnished reputation as her.
The more Chen Zhonghua thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. His brows, which had been furrowed for many days, finally relaxed. He looked up and called to his second daughter, who was squatting by the bedroom door, engrossed in pasting matchboxes.
"You brat, go get me some snacks to go with my drinks!"
Chen Erping was startled by his voice and almost poked the matchbox logo with the glue in her hand. She quickly separated the items and put them away.
These jobs were originally found from other people; if they weren't done well, they wouldn't give them back.
Chen Erping stood up in a panic, so timid that she wished she could shrink her head into her stomach. She huddled up in her small frame, looking only eleven or twelve years old despite being fourteen.
"Home, Mom has locked up all the food at home."
"You son of a bitch, that bitch is really vicious. She doesn't want me to eat, huh? I'll smash it for you, let's see what lock you'll do then!"
Chen Zhonghua's face immediately darkened, and he leaped up like a monkey to find something to smash the small cabinet where the grain was stored.
Chen Erping's tears streamed down her face, but she didn't dare to cry out loud. She just instinctively hugged her head, her trembling body already limp and powerless. She still tried her best to move her body and shrink into the corner of the wall.
"Bang!"
Every time Chen Zhonghua hit her, Chen Erping would tremble in shock. This was because she had been beaten so often that she had developed a psychological trauma.
Hearing the noise, a younger girl slowly walked from the bedroom behind her to the door. Upon seeing Chen Zhonghua's ferocious face, she was so frightened that she wet her pants.
She, too, only shed tears, without making a sound.
When Chen Erping saw her, her tears flowed even faster. She mustered her courage and waved to her—Sanping, go inside and close the door.
"Bang bang bang."
The sound of things being smashed coming from the Chen family's house was incessant and could be heard throughout the entire tenement building.
The neighbors who had someone at home opened their doors and looked in the direction of the Chen family's house, but no one came over; they all seemed to have gotten used to it.
Of course, some people frowned and wanted to go over and take a look.
The Chen family's children never cry when they're beaten. Judging from this commotion, they might actually hurt someone and no one would even know.
"Hey, where are you going?"
The woman who was stopped had a head of gray hair, but she looked to be only in her forties. She was wearing a diagonally-buttoned jacket, the kind that old rural women often wore, with many patches on it.
She was stopped, and looked a little anxious. "Oh dear, there are so many children in this room, and not one of them has made a sound. Could something be wrong?"
The old woman who had stopped them glanced at the Chen family, sighed, turned back, and whispered to her:
"Old woman, I'm just trying to warn you, it's best not to get involved in their family affairs, or you'll definitely get yourself into trouble. You've been here for quite a while now, and you still haven't figured this out?"
The woman sighed, "How could I not know? But... won't something bad happen?"
Others glared at her irritably, their eyes filled with disdain. "Mind your own business! What's it to you?!"
"Wang Cuihua, how can you speak so rudely? You don't even raise your own child properly, yet you gloat and watch other people's children suffer. Are you even human? We're all mothers, how can you be so cold-blooded?!"
The woman was furious. She could let others talk, but this vixen who only knew how to dress up all day long made her feel annoyed just hearing her speak.
These days, everyone is struggling financially, but this woman is different. She doesn't care about her children at all, but she makes sure she has enough to eat and drink.
The woman had seen her children drink unboiled water from hunger countless times!
Wang Cuihua pouted and rolled her eyes, "If you have such a kind heart, why don't you give my child anything to eat? Besides, I gave birth to him, and I can raise him however I want. It's none of your business!"
After saying that, she swayed her hips and walked home in a few steps.
With a "bang," the door slammed shut in front of everyone.
"What kind of people are you?!"
The woman was so angry that her hands trembled.
The old woman pressed her hand down, pulled the person closer to her, and wore a mysterious expression.
"You're new here, so you don't know. Chen Zhonghua used to have a very good relationship with Wang Cuihua's man. They often drank and played cards together, wandered around the streets, and never did anything worthwhile."
Later, her husband drank himself to death, and there were even rumors about Wang Cuihua and Chen Zhonghua, but there was never any evidence, and people just talked about it.
But..."
The old woman blinked and gestured with her chin towards the Chen family's direction. "See? That woman's heart is definitely with Chen Zhonghua!"
The woman also looked over.
The sounds from the Chen family were no longer audible, but their second daughter emerged with her neck hunched over.
You can tell from what she's holding that she's going to cook.
The woman was even angrier.
Good heavens, it's only a little past three o'clock, what kind of meal is this? Besides, wouldn't we be wasting a coal briquette?!
Chen Erping was only concerned with tidying up and making food, seemingly oblivious to the onlookers.
The woman sighed again; she was also puzzled.
"Sister-in-law Hongying is such a good person. She's a textile factory worker. How could she have fallen for such a man who can't earn money and just stays at home doing nothing all day?"
Is it just because of his face?
Even if it's beautiful, it can't fill your stomach. I think she's either blind or obsessed!
"Who knows? This house was a dormitory allocated by the factory after Hongying got married. We don't know anything about what happened between the two of them before."
The old woman was quite saddened.
As she spoke, she suddenly realized that she hadn't seen Chen Ping in a long time.
"Wait a minute, where's Chen Ping? Why is Er Ping cooking? Didn't she not go to work?"
"I have to go out of town on business, Grandma Zhang."
The two people who were talking were suddenly startled by a voice coming from behind them.
Stroking their wildly beating hearts, the two turned around to look. Goodness, they couldn't just gossip about people behind their backs; they'd been caught red-handed.
"Ahem, it's Chen Ping..."
The sound stopped abruptly; they were stunned by the tall man standing behind Chen Ping.
Goodness, who is this? He's so handsome!
Are they police officers? They do look like it, but why aren't they wearing uniforms?
The two women were filled with doubt and wild thoughts, but Chen Ping didn't look at them.
She stared intently at the little girl standing on tiptoe to chop vegetables in front of her house, as if she were seeing her younger self in her.
Her dark pupils quickly welled with tears; she hadn't felt the urge to cry in a long time.
Chu Yunting was extremely worried and asked her, "What's wrong?"
Chen Ping turned around and smiled at him with her eyes crinkling, but in her heart she felt like she had been torn to pieces countless times.
She said, "Didn't you want to visit my home? Chu Yunting, welcome!"
Then, turning slightly to the side, she pointed at Chen Erping, who had turned to look at her upon hearing her voice and was silently shedding tears. Her smile grew wider and wider.
"That's my family. She's one of my five younger siblings. Do you know how many people are in my family? Eight people."
Do you know how big my house is? Twenty square meters!
Do you know how poor my family is? We never even have enough to eat!
Chen Ping finished speaking very quickly, as if afraid that if she slowed down even a little, she wouldn't have the courage to continue.
She turned back to look at Chu Yunting, and said clearly and deliberately, "Go inside and take a look..."
...Leave immediately after you finish reading, and don't look back.
Giving up on you, my lifeline, is the best way I can repay you...