Chapter 4

This matter wouldn’t come to light until several years later.

By then, Father Gu was no longer the brigade leader—no, the village chief. In the years to come, there would be fewer cadres in the village, and the title of “brigade leader” would be replaced with “village chief.”

After Gu Dahai built his factory, he brought the whole Gu family to the capital.

But even after Gu Dahai made it big, Mother Gu didn’t divorce him, so Father Gu continued enjoying the “blessing of two wives.”

“Auntie, don’t you think it’s strange? Zhou Lanhua has been married into the Yang family for six years, but she’s only had one child, Daniu. It’s not that Zhou Lanhua can’t have children—it’s Yang Tieniu who can’t. Yang Tieniu went hunting in the mountains and was mauled by a bear, losing an arm. But after that, Zhou Lanhua suddenly got pregnant and gave birth to Erniu.”

“Isn’t that unbelievable? How could it be such a coincidence? There’s only one truth: both Daniu and Erniu are Father Gu’s children.”

“In fact, Yang Tieniu probably knew all along that Daniu wasn’t his child. But he kept it a secret from the Yang family, because he wasn’t favored there. If the family found out even his only son wasn’t really his, they’d treat him even worse.

In the countryside, having a son meant more property and a bigger share of the house during division.”

Cui Hehua’s mouth fell open in shock.

The series of bombshells left her stunned.

“I was born and raised in Peach Blossom Village,” she said in disbelief, “and even I didn’t know about this. How could you?”

Song Wanyue replied coolly, “I was lucky. I happened to see Father Gu take Zhou Lanhua to the county hospital. I was curious, so I followed them. That’s when I found out.”

“But I don’t think Zhang Shufen knows. As far as I can tell, those two have no contact in the daytime. Whether they sneak out at night to fool around—I can’t say.”

In those days, saying someone snuck out at night usually implied adultery.

“As for marriage,” Song Wanyue added, “there’s always someone who turns a blind eye. I think Zhang Shufen probably suspects something, but not the whole truth. To secretly father children like Daniu and Erniu, you need guts.”

Cui Hehua frowned, puzzled. “That’s true. Zhou Lanhua had been married to Yang Tieniu for two years without conceiving. She was bullied by her mother-in-law, beaten by Yang Tieniu, and probably broke down mentally, which led to something like ‘borrowing seed’ to have children.”

That was common in the countryside.

If a woman couldn’t bear children, her in-laws would despise her, her husband would be displeased, and she couldn’t afford medical treatment.

Before a family split, all the money was controlled by the mother-in-law.

When the Yang family divided property, Yang Tieniu got less since he only had one son.

Father Yang and Mother Yang urged him to be generous—after all, it was just one son, and he’d have to rely on nephews for support later.

If he hadn’t had even that one son, he wouldn’t have gotten two rooms in the house at all.

Song Wanyue then suggested, “Auntie, if you want to see Zhang Shufen suffer, hehe, just follow Father Gu tonight and watch.”

A woman’s jealousy and ambition could be terrifying.

“So, just one question—are you in or out?”

Excited, Cui Hehua agreed immediately: “Of course I’m in! I’ve disliked Zhang Shufen for a long time—always trying to compete with me. Just wait, I’ll go tell my family.”

And she pocketed twenty yuan for it.

With the position of brigade leader dangling as bait, they had to take the gamble.

Cui Hehua called over her youngest daughter, Zhang Yan. “Go find your father and tell him to watch me tonight and act accordingly. This time, we’re going to drag the Gu family down. Remember that, Yanzi.”

Then she told the Zhang family, “Remember—Song Wanyue, the educated youth, went home to change clothes and then came to work. That’s all we know. Nothing else.”

Though Cui Hehua looked gentle on the surface, in the Zhang family she ruled with absolute authority—even Accountant Zhang obeyed her.

Seeing the Zhang family’s collective agreement, Song Wanyue was reassured.

Now they were all in the same boat.

Buying votes with money—no need to doubt, that was exactly how Father Gu had gotten elected. Everyone who voted for him received an egg. Large families got a pound or two. Eggs cost seventy cents a pound back then—that was a fortune in the ’60s.

Suddenly, noises came from the educated youth dormitory.

Song Wanyue pressed her lips together and said, “No need to stare at me. Let’s go watch the commotion.”

Cui Hehua enthusiastically linked arms with her.

“Don’t worry, Wanyue. Auntie is on your side. The Gu family is shameless.”

Gu Hongmei was already in the yard with the village children.

Inside, the act had just finished.

“Wanyue, I’ll take responsibility, don’t worry,” Gu Dahai said confidently.

She had given him her body—who else could she marry if not him?

Gu Dahai, with his thick brows, square face, and upright appearance, was very attractive in those days.

Beside him, Zhou Shanshan had already fainted from exhaustion.

Not far away, Zhang Shufen lay unconscious as well. The system had carefully measured the dosage—Gu Dahai got a lighter dose, Zhou Shanshan a heavier one.

The curtains were drawn; even though it was daytime, the room was dim.

Savoring the pleasure just now, Gu Dahai reached out toward the person next to him.

“Hm? You haven’t answered me. Wake up.”

Exhausted, Zhou Shanshan could barely open her eyes. “Mm… it hurts… I just want to sleep a little more.”

Everyone outside exchanged looks.

Someone was having an affair at the educated youth dormitory.

Hiding in the backyard, Gu Hongmei felt as though struck by lightning when she heard the voices. She had brought the children to call the villagers—but how could it be them?

Where was Song Wanyue?

Gu Dahai suddenly sensed something was wrong. Why was it Shanshan’s voice? Wasn’t it supposed to be Song Wanyue?

By now, the dormitory was surrounded.

Accountant Zhang, Zhang Youlin, aware of his wife’s scheme, had even called in the village elders.

Still under the drug’s influence, Gu Dahai couldn’t resist. He lunged at Zhou Shanshan.

“My darling, Shanshan, I missed you so much. Let’s remarry!”

Just then, Wang Qiang slammed the door open.

Rural wooden doors were easy to break if they weren’t locked.

The crowd swarmed inside.

The unmarried young men of the village rushed in first—only to be stunned at the sight.

Zhou Shanshan, fair-skinned, curvy, and delicate-looking, was every bit the “little white flower” beauty. To the men of the village, she was the picture of loveliness.

Gu Dahai was hugging her, kissing her wildly, while Zhang Shufen lay naked beside them. All three were bare.

Cui Hehua gasped, covering her mouth. “Oh my! Isn’t that the divorced Gu Dahai with Zhou Shanshan? And… Zhang Shufen is here too? I—I can’t take this, my eyes are going blind!”

Hearing this, Song Wanyue lowered her head and chuckled softly.

She knew Zhang Shufen hadn’t actually been touched—only stripped and left to the side. But the villagers didn’t know that.

And indeed, Gu Dahai had always been pampered by Zhang Shufen, being the youngest son.

Wang Qiang screamed, “Oh no! The Gu family has lost all sense of decency—three of them in bed together! Elders of the village, come look, what a disgrace!”

The crowd erupted into chatter.

“My goodness, Zhang Shufen is unbelievable! Could it be that Zhou Shanshan divorced because she knew about her and Dahai?”

“Very possible. But you can’t deny Zhou the educated youth is prettier. Look at that body—fair, tender—like fresh water.”

“Zhang Shufen, an old hag, fighting a young girl for her son? Shameless!”

“Exactly. Judging from what we just saw, this isn’t the first or second time, either.”

“Right, just that the village boys happened to catch them today. Who knows how many times before?”

The commotion stunned even the three inside.

Zhang Shufen, seeing the situation clearly, roared in anger: “Get out, all of you! Or you’ll regret it!”

How had she ended up on the same bed with Dahai and Zhou Shanshan?

Could it be that Song Wanyue had seen through her scheme?

Zhou Shanshan let out a terrified scream. “Ahhh!”