Chapter 63 : Xiao Yi is disheartened

Liu’s miscarriage had severely damaged her health. The fetus was already fully formed, and inducing labor was extremely difficult. She lost a great deal of blood and nearly died. The doctor stated plainly that in her current condition, it would be very hard for her to conceive again.

When Liu woke up and learned about this, she fainted on the spot. She remained unconscious for a whole day and night, and after waking up, she cried nonstop all day.

At that very moment, Xiao Yi arrived at the house. When Liu heard his voice from inside the room, she was overcome with fear. She knew clearly that once Xiao Yi found out, he would never let it go, divorce was inevitable.

But the worst part wasn’t even divorce, it was that she could no longer bear children. If Xiao Yi really did divorce her, her life would be over. No one would want her.

If she continued living at her parents’ home without bringing them any benefit, they likely wouldn’t tolerate her for long either. Then what would become of her?

She had no way out. So when Xiao Yi came knocking, she panicked and didn’t allow her mother to open the door.

It wasn’t just Liu who was scared, even her mother was terrified. The accident happened under their roof, and the miscarriage occurred in their home. They had lost the Xiao family’s heir and after the induced labor, they found out it was a boy. If the Xiao family found out, they would surely raise a storm.

So the whole family, out of guilt and fear, decided to hole up inside and not answer the door. But truth cannot stay hidden forever. Many villagers had seen Liu being carried down from the mountain that day.

After Xiao Yi learned the truth, he was furious. He stormed back to the Liu household and kicked open the courtyard gate with several hard blows.

He rushed into the room to find Liu. Seeing her lying weakly on the bed, face pale and filled with fear, he realized the miscarriage was real.

He couldn’t hold back anymore. He stepped forward, grabbed her by the neck, and demanded:

“How could you be so cruel? You knew you weren’t in good health, why did you still go up the mountain? Did you never think of the consequences? Liu, how have I ever wronged you? I’ve tolerated how you’ve always favored your family. I wanted to live a good life with you, why couldn’t you just stop? Why?”

He had been looking forward to this child more than anything. The Xiao family had always been blessed with many sons, but in his generation, his second brother had no children, and his eldest sister-in-law had bad luck. That left only Goudan, the youngest child. His parents longed every day for more grandchildren. Liu had gotten pregnant not long after joining their family, and he had been thrilled and full of hope.

The Xiao family had always done right by others. They had never gone against heaven’s will or morality, so why had fate treated them like this? Why had so many misfortunes suddenly fallen upon them?

He couldn’t make sense of it. He couldn’t accept it. Overwhelmed with grief and rage, Xiao Yi lost control.

Liu struggled to breathe under his grip. His fury filled her with fear.

This was the first time she had ever seen Xiao Yi like this, he had always been kind, cheerful, hardworking, and simple. Always smiling.

Hearing the commotion, Liu’s mother, father, and two brothers Liu Jiang and Liu He rushed into the room. Seeing Xiao Yi strangling Liu, they immediately stepped in to stop him.

Liu Jiang and Liu He used all their strength to pull Xiao Yi away, but as soon as Xiao Yi saw Liu Jiang, he became even more furious.

Everything was his fault. It was because Liu Jiang had no ability to get married and kept trying to take advantage of the Xiao family that this disaster had occurred.

Without hesitation, Xiao Yi punched Liu Jiang square in the face.

Liu Jiang was knocked to the ground. Liu He, who was a simple-minded young man, saw his brother getting beaten and immediately started fighting Xiao Yi without a word.

But Xiao Yi had the advantage in both size and strength. He had worked hard for years and had a solid, muscular build, how could the two scrawny Liu brothers possibly match up to him?

In the end, both Liu Jiang and Liu He were badly beaten, their faces swollen and bruised. Xiao Yi had a bruise on his face too, but it wasn’t serious.

All the noise drew the attention of the villagers in Liujia Village. Many people gathered in front of the Liu family’s courtyard, pointing and gossiping.

The Liu family already had a bad reputation in the village, so now everyone was saying they had brought this upon themselves. Xiao Yi wasn’t in the wrong. After all, since Liu returned to her parents’ home, Xiao Yi had come multiple times with rice, flour, meat, and eggs, showing his sincerity. But in the end, they’d gotten his child killed.

Xiao Yi cursed and beat them, and once he calmed down, he looked coldly at Liu, who was huddled in the corner of the kang bed, then swept his gaze across the entire Liu family.

Liu’s father and mother avoided his eyes. Even Liu’s mother, who was usually the most cunning and shameless, knew she was in the wrong now and didn’t dare say a word.

Xiao Yi threw out a harsh sentence:

“Let me tell you, this matter isn’t over. Your family had better give me a proper explanation. And you, Liu Xiu’er, I’ve seen through you. We’re done.”

With that, Xiao Yi turned and walked out. Hearing this, Liu crawled off the bed, clutched at his leg, and cried with snot and tears streaming down her face. She pleaded: “Xiao Yi, I was wrong. I won’t ever do it again. Please don’t leave me. You can’t leave me!”

If he left her, her life would truly be over.

But Xiao Yi was already heartbroken. When he looked at Liu now, his heart no longer stirred at all.

He pushed her away without hesitation and walked out decisively, leaving Liu sobbing on the floor.

But after taking just a few steps, Xiao Yi suddenly remembered something and turned back.

Liu thought he had changed his mind, and hope flickered in her eyes. But Xiao Yi simply walked around her into the main room and picked up the pork and eggs he had brought.

He wasn’t going to let them keep anything.

Xiao Yi walked along the country road with the food in his arms, lost in thought. He didn’t know how long it took before he returned to the stall.

After recounting everything, Xiao Yi sat down dejectedly on a stool and buried his face in his hands.

Only then did Mother Xiao and Jiang Sui learn the full story.

Mother Xiao felt her head spinning and her heart aching, it was unbearable.

What a tragedy. A child who had never even seen the world was gone, just like that.

And what bad luck, to have such a foolish and reckless mother.

Jiang Sui didn’t know what to say either. She could only think that fate had played a cruel trick. But when she saw how pale and heartbroken Mother Xiao looked, she too felt miserable.

“Mother,” Jiang Sui said gently, “things have already come to this point. Being sad and grieving won’t help. You might as well pull yourself together and think about how to deal with Third Brother and Liu. The funeral goods shops in town are still open, let’s go buy some paper, incense, and candles. We can burn them for the child tonight to pray that his soul rests in peace.”

That was the only way Jiang Sui could comfort them. The people of old were deeply superstitious and believed in spirits, so this kind of ritual could at least bring them some solace. It was better than sitting and wallowing in grief.

Hearing this, Mother Xiao nodded in agreement: “Yes. Even though that child never became truly part of our Xiao family, he was still of our blood. We should burn some paper for him.”