Chapter 60

That wasn’t the worst of it. What completely broke Lu Jiaojiao’s spirit was seeing her own younger brother, Lu Wenhua, amidst the crowd of onlookers. 

Lu Wenhua stood there, watching his sister lying motionless on the wooden board. Not only did he remain indifferent, but his eyes darted around slyly like a thief. 

When he saw that Shen Guixiang finally handed over the medical fees, Lu Wenhua visibly relaxed, didn’t spare her a glance, and slipped out of the crowd. 

From her understanding of her mother, Liu Chunhua, and stepfather, Lu Jianguo, she knew they had sent Lu Wenhua to check on the situation, not out of concern but out of fear of being burdened with her medical expenses. 

In the same brigade, such a commotion had gathered a crowd of onlookers at the clinic. Yet Lu Jianguo and Liu Chunhua were nowhere to be seen. 

Lu Jianguo’s absence didn’t surprise her, but Liu Chunhua was her biological mother! 

Her own daughter had nearly died from a fall, and yet Liu Chunhua didn’t bother to show up, simply to avoid paying the medical fees. 

She figured that only when Lu Wenhua returned to report that Shen Guixiang had already covered the costs would her mother finally make an appearance. 

Then there was Lu Baiwei. Despite being her sister—albeit a step-sister—Lu Jiaojiao had called her “sister” for so many years. 

Even so, Lu Baiwei let her lie there on the wooden board, like a corpse for everyone to gawk at, and wouldn’t even advance the medical costs for her. 

But none of this was what devastated Lu Jiaojiao the most. 

What broke her entirely was Yin Zhihuo. 

She ended up in this state because she was so terrified of him. Hearing him kick the door in panic, she climbed the window and fell. 

As her husband, Yin Zhihuo didn’t show a shred of care for her after she fell. Since the moment she opened her eyes, his attention had been entirely focused on her sister, Lu Baiwei. 

Even as Lu Baiwei argued with Shen Guixiang about the medical fees, Yin Zhihuo’s eyes were glued to her, enchanted, as if she were the only one in the room. 

If he was so infatuated with Lu Baiwei, why had he jumped into a haystack with her on a whim? 

How ridiculous. 

As she was carried out of the clinic, lying flat on a makeshift stretcher made from wooden planks, tears streamed down her face in despair. 

Once the crowd of onlookers dispersed, He Ting arrived with Tang Jingchuan and Comrade Qian, the public office worker. 

Lu Baiwei had abruptly left her meal, and the injured party turned out to be Lu Jiaojiao. Knowing how scheming Lu Baiwei’s maternal family was, He Ting hurriedly scarfed down his meal and rushed to the brigade clinic, worried that Lu Baiwei might suffer at their hands. 

Tang Jingchuan and Comrade Qian, having nearly finished their meal, came along as well. 

Remembering the malicious woman Lu Jianguo had married, who had tried to push Lu Jiaojiao into interfering with Lu Baiwei and He Ting’s engagement, nearly pairing Lu Baiwei with the likes of Yin Zhihuo’s family, Tang Jingchuan fumed. 

“What kind of people are they? Can’t even spare 2.40 yuan for medical fees?” 

“Whoever marries into that kind of family is doomed.” 

Comrade Qian, a practical and diligent public office worker, had seen plenty of cases like this. Many brigades under the commune dealt with families refusing to pay medical fees at their clinics. 

Comrade Qian was a practical and efficient commune official. Across all the brigades under the commune, cases of unpaid medical fees at clinics were not uncommon. 

Lu Baiwei’s method of dealing with such cases caught his attention. 

Of course! 

Why hadn’t they thought of using interest penalties to deal with those who deliberately delayed paying collective dues? 

By adding interest to unpaid fees and deducting it from year-end work points, the problem could be effectively managed. 

Work points were used to exchange for grain. Wasn’t every family working hard to earn points for food? 

Lu Baiwei’s approach to dealing with Shen Guixiang’s unreasonable behavior gave Comrade Qian a fresh perspective on managing the commune. 

“Old Tang, you know, your niece’s method for handling people who intentionally default on collective property is brilliant. I used to hesitate to enforce such measures, but now I’ll go back and issue a directive. From now on, those who delay paying collective dues for a year will have to pay interest. Let’s see if anyone dares to shirk their responsibilities again.” 

“This is a great idea. I need to head back to the commune and implement this right away.” 

True to his word, Comrade Qian waved at Tang Jingchuan. “Alright, I’m off now. I’ll send you to the county town tomorrow to catch your ride back to the army.” 

Having completed the task of transferring the household registrations for He Yunqi and He Yunran and spent a few days with his family, Tang Jingchuan decided it was time to return to the army. 

The next day, Comrade Qian came to Xiangyang Brigade to take Tang Jingchuan to the county town. After seeing him off, Lu Baiwei returned to the brigade clinic, only to find Lu Jianguo at her doorstep. 

At the time, Lu Baiwei was examining a piece of homespun cloth He Ting had bought for her as part of their wedding gifts. Together with Tang Yunling, she was planning to sew new outfits for the two children. 

It wasn’t that she couldn’t afford better imported fabric, but He Yunqi had quickly adapted to rural life, and after just a few days in Xiangyang Brigade, he was already rolling in the dirt with the local kids. 

He often came home with his clothes caked in mud, so sewing him a set of sturdy homespun clothes meant he could roll around as much as he liked. Homespun fabric was durable and easy to wash. 

As Lu Baiwei was marking sizes on the cloth with chalk, a loud cough sounded at the entrance of the clinic. 

“Baiwei, you’ve really disappointed your father.” 

She looked up to see Lu Jianguo striding into the room, hands clasped behind his back. 

“Yesterday, your brother told me you refused to advance the medical fees for Jiaojiao,” he said, his tone accusatory. 

“Jiaojiao might not be your biological sister—she came along with your Aunt Chunhua when she remarried—but she grew up with me and calls me ‘Dad.’ She’s been calling you ‘sister’ for so many years.” 

“Even if the bones are broken, they’re still connected by tendons. How could you turn your back on her?” 

What kind of person behaves like this? 

What kind of person is this?! 

Lu Baiwei continued focusing on her work and didn’t respond, but Tang Yunling couldn’t hold back anymore. 

“Oh? Uncle, did you care whether she lived or died?” 

Tang Yunling slammed the scissors she was holding onto the table with a loud clank. “Yesterday, I saw Lu Wenhua standing around watching the commotion. So, what? He spent all that time staring but didn’t bother to tell you that his sister had her head bashed in?” 

“‘Even if the bones are broken, the tendons are still connected,’ huh? She calls you Dad, so why didn’t you pay her medical fees?” 

“And it’s one thing if you didn’t come, but where’s her biological mom? Why hasn’t she shown up to check on her?” 

Tang Yunling picked up the scissors and twirled them in her hand. “You, the so-called loving father who claims to care most about Lu Jiaojiao, and her biological mother aren’t stepping up, yet here you are pestering my cousin Baiwei to cover her medical expenses?” 

“Uncle, how can you have such thick skin?” 

Lu Jianguo was rendered speechless by her sharp words. 

He pointed at Tang Yunling, his voice stammering. “You…you…” 

“You what?” Tang Yunling snapped. 

Suddenly, the scissors in her hand slipped and flew toward Lu Jianguo. 

If he hadn’t dodged quickly, they would have hit him right in the face, startling him so much that his heart nearly leapt out of his chest. 

“Oops, my bad. Slipped,” Tang Yunling said innocently as she bent to pick up the scissors. Then she stood up with a bright smile. “Uncle, why are you still here? Waiting for us to invite you to stay for lunch?” 

What a nerve-racking situation! 

Almost getting stabbed by scissors, Lu Jianguo’s chest heaved violently with anger. 

He was terrified of Tang Jingchuan. Knowing that Tang Jingchuan had already left Xiangyang Brigade and that He Ting was busy at the brigade office, he had dared to show up at the clinic. 

Yet, despite all his calculations, he hadn’t anticipated encountering Tang Yunling. 

What was with the Tang family’s daughters? They were so fierce! 

Carrying scissors and nearly stabbing people—who would dare marry someone like that in the future? 

But even though he thought this, Lu Jianguo didn’t dare voice it aloud. 

“Baiwei,” he said, trying to save face, “I came to the clinic to ask—was Jiaojiao’s injury really caused by the Yin family?”