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Chen Shian was stunned by the slap, and after a long while, he finally regained his senses. Holding his burning face, he cried out pitifully, “Father, why did you hit me? Why can’t we just talk things through?”
Old Man Chen stepped forward and gave him a heavy blow to the head. “Talk things through? Did you talk things through with me? It’s bad enough that you were dishonest while working as an apprentice in someone else’s shop, but you even conspired with your wife to deceive your father and mother, saying that you were pregnant!”
As he spoke, he turned around, grabbed a broom, and began striking Chen Shian’s back. “Pregnant! Pregnant! How can you joke about something so serious as a child?!”
Chen Shian, still dazed from the cold water earlier, was shaken awake by the beating. He quickly stood up and said, “Father, Father, I didn’t deceive you! I didn’t! It was my wife who told me this herself. If you don’t believe me, you can ask her!”
He said this and turned to search for Sun Shi, his wife.
Finally, he found her lying on the bed. Seeing the bloodstained bandages on the floor, he was taken aback. “Father, mother, what’s going on? What happened to my wife?”
Aunt Chen sighed and said, “That good wife of yours threw a tantrum and fell onto some broken shards of porcelain in the snow, injuring her abdomen.”
Chen Shian immediately panicked. He crouched down beside Sun Shi and asked anxiously, “Wife, wife, what happened? Is the baby all right?”
Aunt Chen coldly snorted, “What’s ‘all right’? She wasn’t even pregnant to begin with.”
Chen Shian froze, his mind recalling what Old Man Chen had just said, and suddenly everything clicked. He turned to Aunt Chen and asked, “Mother, is it possible there’s been some misunderstanding? My wife wouldn’t lie about something like this.”
Dr. Li, who had been standing aside, had not left yet.
Aunt Chen pointed at him and said, “Can the doctor be wrong?”
Chen Shian now noticed Dr. Li in the room. He quickly stood up and asked, “Is it true? My wife isn’t pregnant?”
Dr. Li glanced at the family and frowned slightly, answering slowly, “Yes, your wife is not pregnant.”
Chen Shian was stunned, unable to comprehend the situation.
At this moment, Sun Shi, who had been unconscious, finally woke up. She opened her eyes and looked around the room. Although her face was pale, the fiery temper was still evident in her gaze.
“What happened to me?” she asked weakly.
She moved slightly and cried out in pain, “Ouch!”
Aunt Chen shot her a stern look and said, “You, the eldest daughter-in-law, have a bad temper on a regular day, but how could you use a child as a lie? Your father and I are old, and we can’t bear this kind of shock.”
Sun Shi, seeing her lie exposed, bit her lip and stubbornly insisted, “You’re all talking nonsense! I was indeed pregnant, and a doctor from the county examined me. It’s just that now… now I’m no longer pregnant. It must have been because you two hit me today, and I fell and bumped my belly. That’s why the baby’s gone.”
She then looked at Chen Shian with tear-filled eyes and said, “Husband, your father and mother hit me today, and I fell on my belly. It must be because of that, that’s why the baby’s gone.”
Chen Shian, hearing this, actually believed her. “Father, mother, is that really what happened?”
Aunt Chen lowered her head in guilt. “Yes, she did fall, but it was her own fault for being careless. Besides, the doctor said she wasn’t even pregnant.”
She glanced at Dr. Li and added, “Did the doctor say that?”
Chen Shian wasn’t a fool and had started to realize something. He stepped forward, put his arm around Sun Shi, and said to Aunt Chen and Old Man Chen, “Father, mother, let’s just let this go. Everyone has made mistakes today. Regardless of whether my wife was pregnant or not, look at her—she’s been hurt today. If this gets out, it won’t be good.”
Old Man Chen was furious. He pointed at Chen Shian’s nose and said, “I don’t care. Both of you need to leave today. I never want to see you again!”
With that, he stormed out, slamming the door behind him.
Dr. Li, not wanting to get involved in their family matters, also left.
That left Chen Shian and his wife, Sun Shi, who exchanged knowing looks.
At the same time, Wan Chunmei and Old Tan at home overheard some of the commotion and couldn’t help but feel a mix of sympathy and concern.
Old Tan couldn’t help but reproach Wan Chunmei. “Next time something like this happens, don’t intervene.”
Wan Chunmei, feeling wronged, replied, “I didn’t intervene. I only went to call Dr. Li. How could I just stand by when someone might get seriously hurt?”
“Well, I suppose that’s reasonable,” Old Tan nodded, focusing back on washing the chicken in his hands.
At that moment, there was a knock on the door. “Xiao Tan, Xiao Tan.”
Old Tan froze, exchanging a glance with Wan Chunmei.
Wan Chunmei signaled with her eyes, asking him to go open the door.
Old Tan, feeling uneasy, slowly got up and opened the door. There stood Old Man Chen, looking rather melancholic.
“Xiao Tan, may I come in and sit for a while?”
Old Tan quickly nodded, “Of course, of course! Please, come in and sit down.”
Note: Xiao Tan means Little Tan