Reborn in 1966

Chapter 82 Miscarriage

Grandpa felt dizzy and grabbed Uncle Shengquan's hand, his lips trembling as he said, "What's wrong? I just went to her house this afternoon, and Xuan was perfectly fine."

Grandpa Shengquan said, "Uncle, you should come with my aunt to take a look first. We can talk as we walk along the road."

When Grandpa saw Grandma leave the house, he quickly said, "Call Shengsi and his wife, and tell the second son and his wife and the third son's family to help look after the children at home. We're going out for a bit."

Grandma saw that Grandpa's face was not good, so she didn't ask any more questions. She tiptoed over to tell her second grandpa and second grandma. When she got to the yard, she saw that Shengsi and his wife were already waiting at the gate. She quickly followed them out.

After locking the door, Grandma asked, "Shengquan, what happened?"

Grandpa said, "Don't ask too many questions, you'll know when we get there." He took bigger and bigger steps.

Grandma had bound feet and couldn't walk fast. Mr. and Mrs. Shen supported her on either side, and only then could they barely keep up with Grandpa, who was walking very fast ahead, as well as Grandpa Shengquan, who was also supporting Grandpa on the side.

It was pitch black, there was no moon in the sky, and the stars only twinkled brightly. The path underfoot was unclear, and Grandma stumbled along, finally seeing Grandpa and Shengquan enter a courtyard. Looking closer, she realized it was Doctor Wang's house.

Grandma wondered to herself, what was he doing at Doctor Wang's house in the middle of the night? She could tell from her husband's anxious expression that she couldn't figure it out.

Upon entering Dr. Wang's consultation room, Grandma saw Xiaohe and Xiaoxia standing in front of a bed, their faces covered in tears, and Zhao Tiezhu squatting beside them, his hands covering his head. Grandma's heart jumped. Looking at the bed, she saw her little daughter lying there, her eyes closed, her face pale and lifeless, with only her chest rising and falling slightly, indicating that her little daughter was still breathing.

Grandma said, "What's wrong? What's wrong? Tiezhu, what's wrong with Xuanxuan?"

Dr. Wang said, "Auntie, don't worry, Xuan is fine. She'll be alright with some rest. Please don't be anxious."

Grandpa said, "Tiezhu, tell me what happened. Xuanxuan was fine when I went there this afternoon. How could she have become like this in such a short time? Tell me what happened."

When Zhao Tiezhu saw his father-in-law's family, he looked ashamed, called out "Dad," and then lowered his head.

Seeing her sister-in-law lying unconscious on the bed, and her two nephews crying uncontrollably, Shen's mother quickly pulled the two children into her arms and said, "Good children, don't cry, don't cry, your mother is alright, she's alright."

The little river cried, "My little brother is gone! My little brother is gone!"

Looking at her pale-faced sister-in-law lying on the bed, Shen's mother felt a pang of sadness. Hearing his nephew's words, and then looking at his own little daughter, Grandpa closed his eyes, his lips trembling. Hearing Xiaohe's words, Grandma grabbed her daughter's hand and burst into tears. Shen's father looked at his little sister and sadly turned his head away.

Dr. Wang said to Grandpa, "Grandpa, don't be sad. Xuan is fine. Take her home and let her rest and recover. In two years, she can give you a big, healthy grandson."

Grandpa said, "Dr. Wang, could you please prescribe some medicine? It's getting late, let's take the child home now."

Dr. Wang said, "Sir, don't worry. Let Xuan stay here with me for one night. We'll take her home to recuperate tomorrow. I need to take another look at her."

Grandpa said, "Alright then, I'll take these two children home. I'll leave them to you tonight."

Grandpa said to Grandma, "Honey, the child is fine. Let's go home and pack up. We'll come back early tomorrow morning to take our daughter home and raise her."

Grandma wiped away her tears and said, "Okay, I'll go home and pack up now. You and your wife can stay here with your sister tonight, and take her home first thing tomorrow morning."

The elderly couple didn't even glance at their son-in-law once.

Sheng Quan accompanied the elderly couple and their two children home. Shen's mother sat by the bedside, keeping Aunt Xuan company while she remained unconscious. Shen's father, holding his brother-in-law's hand, asked at the door of the examination room, "Tiezhu, what happened to Xuanxuan?"

Tie Zhu said, "Brother, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have taken Xuanxuan to my uncle's house. I should have pulled my mother away first when Xuanxuan was arguing with her."

Upon hearing that the miscarriage was caused by arguing with his mother-in-law, Mr. Shen said, "Tell me what happened properly."

So Zhao Tiezhu explained everything clearly, from his father-in-law's visit in the afternoon, to accompanying his father-in-law to his uncle and aunt's house, and then to accompanying Aunt Xuan to her uncle's house.

Only then did Shen's father realize that his father had gone to his sister's house that afternoon. From his father's perspective, this trip was mandatory. Regardless of the reason why Zhao Tiezhu's mother said those things, the Zhao and Tian families were related by marriage, and they had to at least show some respect.

Mr. Shen sighed and said, "Didn't you know Xuanxuan was pregnant?"

Zhao Tiezhu said, "I don't know. Xuanxuan didn't know she was pregnant either. These days, the village is busy with the autumn harvest, and the work is very tiring. She also had a lot of anger in her heart, which led to the miscarriage."

Shen's father said, "Tiezhu, it seems your parents want Xuanxuan to stay at home and be cared for. I think you should go back tomorrow and help Xuanxuan get ready. Let her stay at home for a while before going back."

Zhao Tiezhu was conflicted. His wife had gone back to her parents' home to recover after the accident, and it was all because of his mother that she was in this situation. He felt uneasy no matter how he thought about it. But the accident had already happened, and his mother hadn't come to see her yet. He decided to let his wife go back to her parents' home to recover, and let others say what they wanted. His wife's health was the most important thing.

Thinking of this, Zhao Tiezhu nodded and said to Shen's father, "Brother, I'll go home early tomorrow morning to pack my things. Xiaoxia and Xiaohe will also stay at home with us. Please take good care of them, Father and Mother."

Actually, when Shen's father said these words to Zhao Tiezhu, he was afraid that Zhao Tiezhu would disagree. His sister had miscarried because of her mother-in-law, and the source of the conflict between his sister and mother-in-law was that his brother's wife had gone back to her parents' home. Now that his sister was back, she was going to get a hard slap across Zhao Tiezhu's mother's face, with a crisp sound. In the two villages, everyone knew who was in charge. Everyone knew what Zhao Tiezhu's mother had said before. Now that this happened, let's see how this old woman still has the face to talk nonsense outside.

Although Mr. Shen was very sad that his sister's baby was gone, he also felt refreshed and relieved. It felt so good to have let out a good sigh of relief.

Before long, Aunt Xuan woke up and saw her sister-in-law sitting by the bed. Tears streamed silently down her face.

Seeing this, Shen's mother felt very sad. As a woman, it would be a lie to say that she wasn't heartbroken to see her child leave her like this, but she still had to comfort her sister-in-law.

Mother Shen said, "Little sister, don't cry, you'll ruin your eyes."

Aunt Xuan held her sister-in-law's hand and sobbed, "Sister-in-law, why is my life so miserable? Why did I have to be stuck with such a mother-in-law?"

Mother Shen said, "Little sister, what's done is done. There's no use thinking about it anymore. Our parents have gone home to pack up. We'll go home to stay first thing tomorrow morning and stay for a month."

Aunt Xuan gritted her teeth and said, "Fine, I'm going to risk it all. I'll stay at my parents' house for a full month and see what that old woman says. I'll see if she still has the nerve to talk nonsense outside."

Hearing his wife say this from the doorway, Zhao Tiezhu felt terrible. But then he thought of the blood his wife had shed and his child who had died before birth. He felt a surge of resentment towards his mother. His mother was willing to risk everything, and he was going all out this time too. What use was face? Could he get his child back if he had face?

Zhao Tiezhu entered the house and said to his wife, "Xuanxuan, you will go home with your parents first thing tomorrow morning. I will go back to our place to pack some food and bring it over. You, Xiaoxia, and Xiaohe will stay at your parents' house. Don't worry about the leave from the team. Let's get better first and then talk about other things."

Looking at her husband, Aunt Xuan felt that all the grievances she had suffered were worth it. Holding Zhao Tiezhu's hand, she cried and said, "Tiezhu, it's good that you can understand, it's good that you can understand, waaaaaah."

Zhao Tiezhu felt a pang of sadness. His wife had been with him for so many years, yet she hadn't enjoyed any happiness. He knew exactly what kind of people were in his family. Every time they worked, his wife was always at the front, but when it came time to enjoy life, she had to watch others from behind. Xuanxuan had suffered.

Zhao Tiezhu said, "You don't need to worry about things at home. I'll take care of the chickens. You don't need to think about anything else. Just stay with our parents and take good care of yourself. Xuanxuan, you've suffered so much all these years."

The couple started crying while talking, and Mr. and Mrs. Shen rushed over to comfort them.

After Grandpa and Grandma took Xiaoxia and Xiaohe home, the children were still on the kang (a heated brick bed) and hadn't gone to sleep yet. Third Grandma stayed in the room with the children, waiting for Grandpa and Grandma to return.

They were all surprised to see Xiaoxia and Xiaohe arrive. Although the two families lived close by, they had never been seen coming to each other's homes in the middle of the night before. Moreover, Xiaoxia and Xiaohe looked like they had been crying. Looking at their grandparents, they also looked unwell.

Pei Yin wondered where things had gone wrong. She watched Pei Tian talking to Xiao He, and in no time, she learned the whole story from Xiao He's incoherent words. She couldn't help but sigh. Why were there so many people rushing to court death?

Grandpa and Grandma were rummaging through drawers and cabinets looking for bedding. Grandma was discussing with Grandpa how to arrange for the three of them to sleep while searching. Grandpa was holding his pipe and occasionally grunted. Peiyin felt that Grandpa must be extremely sad. If it weren't for her trip that afternoon, perhaps none of these things would have happened to his youngest daughter.

Third Grandma looked at her eldest brother and sister-in-law and said, "Elder brother and sister-in-law, why don't you let Xuanxuan and the two children come and live with me?"

Grandpa and Grandma looked up at their reclusive younger brother and sister-in-law. It would be a lie to say they weren't moved; it was all for their family's sake.

Grandma San's usual activity area is the backyard. She only comes over to help out when there's something going on in the front yard. She cooks all her meals in the backyard. The fact that she told me today that she and her two children could come and stay with me is already a huge help to Grandpa and Grandma.

With so many children in the family, there are only so many places for them to sleep. The less busy room is empty, but we can't let the mother and her two children live there.

Grandma said, "His third aunt, I..."

Third Grandma said, "Sister-in-law, I've watched Xuanxuan grow up since she was little. It hurts me to see her suffer like this. Let the three of them go to the backyard to keep me company. I'll help you take care of them."