Chapter 54: Your Aunt Was Actually Married

Even after walking a long distance, Jing Xi could still faintly hear the voices of the Zhang family trio talking.

She hadn’t expected that they, dressed so properly, were actually on their way to set up a marriage for Zhang Jianjun.

She had heard Auntie Wang mention before that Wang Cuihua had high standards. This time, aiming for an educated family, it seemed like she had pinned all her hopes on this match.

But none of this had anything to do with her.

When she arrived at the village office, she happened to run into Zhou Ming and his family passing by. Just as she was wondering whether to greet them, the couple walked straight over.

“Xiao Jing, are you here to see the village chief?”

Jing Xi smiled and responded, “Uncle Zhou, Auntie Zhao, yes, I have something to discuss with the village chief.”

Zhou Ming nodded, while Zhao Qin glanced around, making sure no one else was nearby, before stepping closer to Jing Xi.

“Xiao Jing, we were actually planning to visit your house to find you. That day, when Zhang Rui came over, I forgot to tell her something important. Since you’re here, I thought it’d be better to tell you directly.”

Jing Xi looked at Zhao Qin, her heart suddenly pounding a little faster.

Zhao Qin continued, “There was a time when I was close to your aunt. Actually, it was because of something that happened. Do you remember that your aunt was once married?”

Jing Xi thought for a moment. She really didn’t know about that.

“I… I really didn’t know!”

Zhao Qin nodded. “That makes sense! This isn’t really the best place to talk about it. Why don’t you come to my house? I’ll explain everything properly.”

Jing Xi agreed and followed the couple to their home.

In recent years, the Zhou family had earned some money from farming, so their house and courtyard were well-maintained. The moment she stepped inside, she could feel how spacious and bright it was.

After pouring them some tea, Zhou Ming tactfully left for the courtyard, giving the two women some privacy.

Zhao Qin took Jing Xi’s hand and sighed. “Your aunt was a pitiful person. It’s understandable that you don’t remember her marriage since you weren’t even born at the time.”

Jing Xi frowned. “She never mentioned anything about it to me.”

“She only told me not long before she passed away. We were sitting in the courtyard peeling peanuts together—you were in elementary school at the time. Somehow, we got onto the topic of marriage, and that’s when she told me that she had actually been married before.”

“Then, once when we went to the town market together, we ran into a man. Your aunt turned pale at the sight of him. When I asked her what was wrong, she told me that he was her ex-husband.”

“Out of curiosity, I asked her why they divorced so quickly. She told me that they had never officially registered their marriage. Their elders had just arranged a simple ceremony, and the two families had shared a meal at the groom’s house—that was all.”

Jing Xi pressed her lips together. She hadn’t known any of this.

Seeing the change in her expression, Zhao Qin hesitated. “Xiao Jing, do you want me to continue?”

“Yes, Auntie Zhao, please go on. I’m listening.”

Zhao Qin sighed. “Alright. That man worked at a mine in Nanzhen. His family was well-off—both his parents were government employees with stable jobs. But your aunt was orphaned at a young age, had no money, and was from the countryside. In their eyes, she was ‘marrying up,’ so his family was never satisfied with her. They never allowed her to officially marry into their home, which is why they never registered the marriage.”

Upon hearing this, Jing Xi understood most of it.

That era had been highly conservative, placing great importance on social class distinctions.

And nearly twenty years ago, even before she was born, those unspoken class barriers must have been even more rigid.

Zhao Qin continued, “But no matter what, at the time, your maternal grandaunt and that man had a decent relationship. So even though they never officially registered their marriage, she still moved into his house. Not only did she have to take care of his parents, but he also had two younger brothers, and she was the one looking after them as well.”

Jing Xi thought for a moment about one person taking care of an entire household. “That must have been exhausting, having to take care of so many people.”

“Exactly! All the household chores fell on her shoulders. And in order to gain her in-laws’ acceptance as quickly as possible, she did everything she could, whether it was her responsibility or not. But even so, she never got any appreciation. She once told me that she suffered a lot of mistreatment.”

Jing Xi could imagine it.

“Auntie, then why did they get divorced?”

Zhao Qin glanced at her empty teacup, lost in memories of when Yuzhu had told her about what had happened back then.

“Your grandaunt was married to that man for a year when her mother-in-law fell ill. It wasn’t a serious illness—just a persistent cold, headaches, and occasional fevers. But no matter what, she never fully recovered. When they took her to the hospital, the doctors couldn’t find anything wrong. They just told her to rest and recuperate. So, this went on and on.

Then, for some reason, that old woman suddenly accused your grandaunt of poisoning her food, saying that’s why she wasn’t getting better!”

Jing Xi was shocked. “That’s a blatant false accusation! My grandaunt was a hardworking, quiet woman. How could she ever do something like that?”

Zhao Qin sighed. “Exactly! But at the time, her husband knew his parents didn’t like her, so he didn’t believe it. He knew his mother was just making trouble. Even his two younger brothers spoke up for your grandaunt. But that only made the old woman even angrier!”

Zhao Qin continued, “So that old hag started making a huge scene—crying, throwing tantrums, even threatening to kill herself. She demanded that her son cut ties with your grandaunt. She even wanted to send the food from their house for testing, to see if it had been poisoned.

Their family lived in a government-assigned apartment, and every time she made a fuss, the entire floor was affected. Over time, people actually started believing the rumors. Eventually, some people even openly speculated that your grandaunt had really poisoned her mother-in-law’s food.”

Household gossip is the worst when it spreads. Once a rumor starts, it evolves into countless different versions.

Jing Xi understood this all too well.

Especially since her grandaunt had always been in a weak and giving position in that household.

“Over time, you could hear people in the courtyard whispering about it. The more people talked, the less they cared about whether she was around to hear it. Some busybodies even had the audacity to ask your grandaunt to her face if she had really poisoned her mother-in-law. It drove her to tears! But what good was crying? After crying, she still had to get up and take care of that wretched old woman!”

Zhao Qin became angrier as she spoke, gripping her teacup so tightly that her fingertips turned white.

Jing Xi was even more upset.

Although she wasn’t the original owner of this body and had no personal emotional connection to Yuzhu, her physical body still carried residual feelings. Hearing this story made her feel deeply unsettled.

“And then what happened?”

“In the end, the old hag’s health kept getting worse. One time, she even collapsed at home from shock. Your grandaunt’s ex-husband then suggested that she go back to her family home for a while, so that his distant aunt and cousin could take care of things instead.

Your grandaunt had no choice but to leave the house and return to the village, waiting for news from her husband.”

A distant aunt and cousin?

Jing Xi immediately felt something was off.

“Aunt Zhao… don’t tell me my grandaunt’s ex-husband ended up with that cousin? And then, all of a sudden, his mother’s illness got better?”

Zhao Qin’s eyes widened in shock as she stared at Jing Xi. “How did you know?!”