Back to 1984: Earning Money, Raising Kids, and Keeping the Household Busy

Chapter 42 Rainy Night Stalking
After boarding the boat, they didn't rest; they continued fishing.

The night was very stuffy, and the chirping of insects and birds all around seemed off; it looked like the weather was about to change.

As Lin Qin was muttering to herself, she cast her line and caught a blackfish weighing over two pounds.

After seeing it clearly by the light of the kerosene lamp, Lin Qin was astonished, "It's so big!"

She had tried catching snakehead fish before, but the biggest one she'd ever caught was only a little over a pound. They're not easy to catch.

Chen Wenjun was also somewhat surprised. He put the fish into the bucket and cast his line as well.

Another black carp came up, weighing over a pound.

The two fished for two hours, and almost all of them caught snakehead fish, some big and some small, which was really strange.

Just then, a flash of lightning streaked across the sky. Chen Wenjun immediately told Lin Qin to go into the back cabin, and he used a bamboo pole to steer the boat to the familiar shore.

After Chen Wenjun finished doing these things, the sound of rain pattering came from the bamboo awning, and soon after, a torrential downpour began outside.

Lin Qin, who had just lain down, quickly got up, took a wooden plank, and placed it outside the cabin door to block a wave of rainwater and prevent water from flowing inside if the rain was too heavy.

When the rain started, the water surface boiled, and even though the five-masted boat was big enough, it still swayed in the wind and rain.

Lying inside, listening to the pattering rain, my mind was filled with worries about leaks, water seeping in, or the wind damaging things. I was so anxious that I couldn't sleep soundly at all.

Like Lin Qin, Fang Aiguo also had trouble sleeping.

He packed his bags during the day, planning to leave overnight, but to his utter surprise, the heavens sent down a torrential downpour, disrupting all his plans.

Liu Fang thought the rain was timely and advised, "Why don't you stay and wait for the weather to improve?"

Fang Aiguo interrupted her sharply, "What do women know! If this drags on any longer, I'm finished! Let it rain! It's perfect weather, no one's outside, we won't be noticed if we leave. Get my rain boots and my raincoat."

Liu Fang wasn't very willing, but she couldn't persuade Fang Aiguo otherwise, so she had no choice but to prepare everything for him.

Fang Aiguo put on his raincoat and rain boots, picked up his luggage bag, and disappeared into the darkness, quickly vanishing from his doorstep.

At this moment, Zhuo Feng and Li Guang, who were waiting at the crossroads near Fangshan Village, finally saw Fang Aiguo leaving the village after feeding on mosquitoes all day.

Li Guang instantly perked up, "Damn! The boss was right, Fang Aiguo really was planning to sneak away!"

Although they couldn't see each other's faces clearly in the darkness, the large suitcase was very eye-catching. Apart from Fang Aiguo, no one would travel far in this weather at this time.

Zhuo Feng quickly covered his mouth, "Keep your voice down, let's follow him secretly first, and arrest him if we find anything wrong!"

If it weren't for the need to find a breakthrough with Fang Aiguo and capture Fang Meixiang, they wouldn't have gone through all this trouble.

The two of them maintained a distance that was neither too close nor too far from Fang Aiguo.

The rainy night not only provided convenience for Fang Aiguo, but also helped Zhuo Feng and Li Guang. Even if the two made a lot of noise, Fang Aiguo would not notice.

And so, they followed Fang Aiguo all the way to the city.

Zhuo Feng asked in a low voice, puzzled, "This isn't the train station. It looks like he's going to stay with someone else!"

"Let's follow them and see!"

The two followed Liu to the street where the family lived, and watched Fang Aiguo enter the alley. For safety's sake, they waited quite a while before walking into the courtyard as if nothing had happened.

From a distance, we could hear voices coming from one of the houses.

Fang Meixiang was particularly surprised by Fang Aiguo's arrival from afar. Although she was puzzled, she calmly introduced Fang Aiguo to her in-laws.

Seeing that Fang Aiguo was well-dressed and had a particularly dignified demeanor, Ma Cuihua's eyes lit up instantly. She immediately started probing into Fang Aiguo's background, "I heard from Yongming that Aying went to the same school as him, and that she's from here. I didn't even know what his in-laws did!" Fang Aiguo twitched the corners of his mouth and replied politely and distantly, "I'm just the village secretary, I don't do anything."

"Wow! He's the village secretary! No wonder he can train college graduates!" Ma Cuihua was overjoyed, and Fang Aiguo was even more enthusiastic.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Liu Yongguo asked, "Is there something important that you've come over so late, in-law?"

Fang Aiguo glanced at Fang Meixiang and pondered for a moment, then said, "I'm going on a long trip. My train leaves early tomorrow morning, so I was just thinking of coming over tonight to see Meixiang. It's nothing serious."

Ma Cuihua's family assumed Fang Aiguo was out on important business and smiled even more broadly. Only Fang Meixiang sensed something was amiss, but she didn't dare to ask in front of the Liu family.

Liu Yongming said very considerately, "Mom, my father-in-law has to take the bus early tomorrow morning. How about Ali stays with you tonight, and let Aying sleep in Ali's room while I share a room with my father-in-law?"

Ma Cuihua nodded, "That works too!"

Liu Li wasn't very happy, but the whole family had made up their minds, so she had no say in the matter.

After Ma Cuihua and the others left.

Fang Meixiang made an excuse to send Liu Yongming away and asked worriedly, "Dad, what happened?"

With a loud "bang!", the gate to the Liu family's courtyard was kicked open.

Fang Aiguo's expression changed drastically, and he made a move to run away, but he was caught by a group of policemen as soon as he rushed into the yard.

The police shouted, "Police are on duty, nobody move!"

Zhuo Feng and Li Guang rushed into the room and saw Fang Meixiang, who was heavily pregnant. Their faces darkened. "Captain! Fang Meixiang is here!"

"What...what are you going to do?" Fang Meixiang asked, clutching her stomach in terror.

Ma Cuihua rushed out of the house, looking at the dozen or so policemen who had barged in with suspicion and disbelief. "We haven't done anything wrong, what are you doing here?"

Zhuo Feng glanced at Ma Cuihua, and considering her age, said expressionlessly, "Fang Meixiang impersonated someone else to go to university, and we have arrested her according to the law."

Fang Meixiang's face drained of color instantly, her eyes widened and lost focus.

Ma Cuihua stubbornly argued, "There is no one in our family named Fang Meixiang. Have you arrested the wrong person?"

Zhuo Feng sneered, "That's right! The woman in front of us is actually named Fang Meixiang. She impersonated Fang Ying to attend a junior college in the provincial capital. The provincial polytechnic college has already reported the incident to the police. The police, together with the education bureau, are thoroughly investigating this kind of heinous crime and have her arrested!"

Fang Meixiang panicked and shouted, "I won't go! I won't go! You can't arrest me! I'm innocent! I'm innocent!"

Li Guang spat, "You almost ruined someone's life, you disregarded the law, and you're not guilty? Who is? Stop talking nonsense and come with us!"

Fang Meixiang suddenly lay on the ground and screamed in pain, "My stomach hurts! My stomach hurts!"

Zhuo Feng and his companions exchanged glances, their expressions grim.

This woman must be faking it!

Just then, Xu Manzhi suddenly pointed at Fang Meixiang's skirt and exclaimed, "It looks like her water broke! She's really going into labor!"

Several police officers had to take Fang Meixiang to the hospital first.

The others took Fang Aiguo away first.

Liu Yongming, who was standing to the side, was dumbfounded.

(End of this chapter)