Back To The 80s-Chapter 298 - 308: Torn Apart (Additional 680 Monthly Tickets)_1
Gu Xiaobei didn’t say anything more, washing her hands and preparing to knead dough for cooking, after all, she hoped that a big family could be more harmonious and beautiful.
Fang Jing was helping to pick the vegetables, incessantly chattering, "If mom could get better, wouldn’t it be nice for the whole family to be together? And Ruirui, when will she grow a heart?"
"Aiguo is so protective of her; she behaves like a little punk. I genuinely don’t want Aiguo to have to deal with this mess. Ruirui is an adult now; how her life turns out is her own choice. She can’t blame others later."
"Besides, the in-laws are still around, why should Lu Aiguo worry? The more I think about it, the more angry I get, but I can’t say anything."
Listening to this, Gu Xiaobei understood Fang Jing’s thoughts; after all, they were just sisters-in-law.
In the living room, Wen Xiuqing was still holding Mo Wang, her face full of excitement, her eyes glistening with tears. She stared at Mo Wang foolishly, and Little Mo Wang widened his eyes, unblinkingly returning his grandma’s gaze.
Lu Zhanguo, cradling Xiaopang, sat off to the side, watching the pair of loving grandmother and grandson, lost in thought.
This side of his mother was something he had never seen. In his memory, Wen Xiuqing was always cold-hearted and irritable, often losing her temper over small matters. Even if she seemed caring towards them, her words were always delivered in a cold tone.
Wen Xiuqing looked at Little Mo Wang’s innocent eyes and mouth opening and closing, full of curiosity. She seemed to see images from thirty years ago when she held Yuanchao and Zhanguo in her arms.
Because it was during the Korean War, she named her twin sons Yuanchao and Zhanguo.
Back then, the two children were also delicate and lovely. If it wasn’t for Qin Ximei...
As Wen Xiuqing thought about this, her eyes constricted with a dangerous glint.
For lunch, Gu Xiaobei and Fang Jing made stewed noodles. Wen Xiuqing surprisingly ate half a bowl more. After eating, a look of joy on her face, she returned to her room.
Left behind, Gu Xiaobei and Fang Jing looked at each other, today’s events were too out of the ordinary.
While putting the children to sleep for their afternoon nap, Gu Xiaobei couldn’t help but ask Lu Zhanguo: "Mom seems to have had an epiphany today."
Lu Zhanguo also seemed perplexed, nodding, "Aiguo and Ruirui were never brought up by mom, she hired nannies for them right from birth."
"I guess it’s because elder brother’s demise had a significant impact on mom," Gu Xiaobei assumed that Wen Xiuqing could never get over that tragedy, feeling responsible for the Lu family’s loss.
Lu Zhanguo nodded, uniquely opening up about the past.
Back in the day, Wen Xiuqing was pregnant and living in Zhangbei Rural while Lu Songyuan was at the front, unable to return home for three to four years.
At that time, Qin Ximei was also pregnant, a little further along than Wen Xiuqing.
Qin Ximei had a stillbirth in the early winter, and two months after that, Wen Xiuqing gave birth to the Zhanguo brothers.
Life was tough for everyone at that time, and Qin Ximei helped Wen Xiuqing with the farm work daily, even bringing home food from the communal cafeteria for them.
When one-year-old Zhanguo got a stomach upset, he soiled himself and the Kang bed. Wen Xiuqing was a clean person. No matter how tired, she would always make sure that the children and the house were tidy.
Seeing Zhanguo in that state, Wen Xiuqing, too busy cleaning to eat, decided to run to the river to clean the Kang sheet. Seeing Zhanguo dehydrated and feeble from diarrhea, she carried him on her back and left sleeping Yuanchao inside the room.
Wen Xiuqing went to the river with Zhanguo on her back, quickly washed the Kang sheet, and almost ran back home because she was worried about her child.
But when she arrived home and opened the door, she saw Little Yuanchao headfirst in the small chamber pot, lifeless.
For the first time, Wen Xiuqing lost her composure and cried loudly. This brought Qin Ximei to the scene, who later helped bury Little Yuanchao in Chaos Tomb.
Unable to bear the shock, Wen Xiuqing almost suffered a nervous breakdown, holding Zhanguo and crying and laughing alternately every day. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶
Later, the elder Lu in the Northeast army, upon hearing about this, personally came to take Zhanguo to his side.
After hearing this, Gu Xiaobei felt a lump in her throat. But why was Qin Ximei involved in this too? Suddenly, she had a thought and asked Lu Zhanguo: "Since mom is such a clean person, why was there excrement in the small chamber pot? According to mom’s personality, she would definitely have cleaned it before leaving to wash the Kang sheet."
Lu Zhanguo was taken aback, furrowing his brows, "Could it be that elder brother was also harmed by Qin Ximei?"
Gu Xiaobei nodded and said: "Look at Qin Ximei, she’s so deceitful, there’s nothing she wouldn’t do. But it’s impossible to investigate and ascertain the truth about that time now."
Lu Zhanguo squinted his eyes, remaining silent for a moment before saying, "If it really was her, there would be ways to make her confess."
Gu Xiaobei even ventured a wilder guess: "Do you think elder brother might not have died and was taken away by Qin Ximei?"
Lu Zhanguo shook his head, "Impossible, mom is a doctor. How could she not judge death correctly?"
Gu Xiaobei shook her head, "Anything associated with Qin Ximei becomes possible. Moreover, mom back then was terrified herself; she probably had lost her judgment."
Lu Zhanguo, sparked by this line of thought, asked eagerly: "Where do you think Qin Ximei might have thrown the child?"
Gu Xiaobei was left wrestling with the dilemma. If the eldest son of the Lu family was alive, who knew if Qin Ximei had abandoned the child or given him away.
Additionally, another possibility was that the old witch had suffocated him. Gu Xiaobei shivered at the thought of this latter possibility. Considering life was challenging back then, and every family had many children, who would want to raise an extra one? Moreover, Qin Ximei would certainly not keep the child around, making the prospect of him being dead all the more likely.
Gu Xiaobei said, "If murder was not punishable by law, I’d genuinely want to torture Qin Ximei to death. This woman is too malicious. And mom has been living with a tiger by her side all these years, treating them so well."
Lu Zhanguo suddenly remembered what Wen Xiuqing had said that day, if she were indeed siding with Qin Ximei, he would have ended up marrying Yuan Tan instead of Gu Xiaobei. Could there possibly be some hidden circumstances? Did their mother know about this?
Lu Zhanguo realized that they didn’t truly understand Wen Xiuqing, and they never really tried to understand or care for her, either.
In the afternoon when Lu Aiguo returned home, Lu Zhanguo called him into Lu Songyuan’s study. The two brothers whispered for a long time, emerging with grave expressions on their faces.
Lu Aiguo, who had spent more time around Wen Xiuqing, had long noticed that her mental health was slightly off. But he dared not say anything, fearing that it might agitate Wen Xiuqing. He didn’t dare to tell anyone else either, keeping it bottled up within himself. Each day, he would clown around, allowing Wen Xiuqing to scold him, providing her an outlet to vent her feelings.
Today, after hearing about the past incidents from Lu Zhanguo, the more they talked, the more things seemed askew. Qin Ximei was always present whenever there was an incident. Furthermore, Lu Aiguo and Lu Ruixue remembered that while in public, Qin Ximei would always appear kind, but behind closed doors, she was very harsh.
In the end, both of them decided to confront Qin Ximei and clear up the confusion. If they were overthinking, they would settle the score over her attempt to steal Mo Wang. But if it indeed was Qin Ximei who had caused all these incidents, they would not let her off lightly.
