Country Love: Xie Dajiao, 37, is pregnant!

Just then, Liu Ying's mother returned. Since everyone was eating, she didn't want to stay too long. When she came back, she overheard what had happened; it sounded like Liu Ying was on the phone.

Liu Ying's mother stepped forward and snatched the microphone. Just as she was about to speak, she heard a busy tone on the other end of the line. Liu Ying had already hung up.

Liu Yingniang held the phone for two seconds, then slammed it back down, turned around, pointed at Liu Neng's nose, her hand trembling with anger:

"You! Liu Neng, I'm speechless! For ten thousand yuan, you've even ruined your daughter's marriage? You'll only be honest when Liu Ying has a falling out with Zhao Yutian, has trouble with her in-laws, and the two kids get divorced! Do you think the Zhao family's money is so easy to take? You're really causing trouble for your daughter!"

"What divorce? You're talking nonsense."

Liu Neng sat down on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) with a smug look on his face, picked up the half-pack of cigarettes, took one out and put it in his mouth, forgetting to light it.

"You don't know that Yingzi is the one who calls the shots in the Zhao family? Zhao Yutian listens to her. Ten thousand yuan is no big deal. It's not enough to warrant a divorce. Besides, I didn't ask for the money. My daughter wanted to give it to me because she felt sorry for me."

He shook his head, his face full of smugness:

"Having a daughter is wonderful; it was worth raising her for nothing."

"Just keep acting like this! What, does Yingzi's child not have your Liu family bloodline? Does everything belong to the Zhao family? Are they a bastard?"

No matter how much Liu Ying's mother scolded him, Liu Neng didn't talk back. He just sat there happily smoking, feeling much more at ease.

Liu Ying's mother angrily turned and went to that room, refusing to live in the same room as Liu Neng, and shouted outside:

"Wait until Liu Ying is bullied and goes back to her parents' home, then we'll see where you put your face!"

……

After hanging up the phone, Liu Ying, wearing cotton slippers with exposed frayed edges and her cotton-padded coat open and unbuttoned, went straight to Zhao Si's room.

Since becoming pregnant, she has become increasingly lazy about grooming herself. Her hair is a messy, unkempt mess, like a bird's nest. She hasn't washed her face properly, and it's shiny with oil. She holds half a bag of spiced melon seeds in her hand, cracking them as she walks, spitting the shells out at her feet.

She leaned against the doorframe and asked casually:

"Dad, you know about how you were scammed, right?"

Zhao Si held a damp rag in his hand and smacked his lips:

"How could I not know? It's all over the village. I was talking about it with Wang Laoqi this morning, saying... that being greedy for small gains leads to big losses."

Liu Ying didn't respond to that, and instead looked at Zhao Yutian, speaking in a casual tone as if she were discussing what to have for dinner:

"Yutian, my dad is having a mental breakdown at home right now. He's crying and wailing, and he's even threatening to kill himself. Let's pay for this 10,000 yuan. Didn't you just sell a truckload of flowers a few days ago? Let's scrape together the money and send it to my dad, okay? Be a good boy."

As soon as he said that, the room fell silent, with only the ticking of the clock on the wall.

The rag in Zhao Si's hand fell onto the table with a thud, and he opened his mouth but couldn't say a word.

Zhao Yutian stopped what he was doing, looked up at her, and thought he had misheard.

Yutian's mother's face fell instantly. Without saying a word, she draped her apron over the back of the chair, turned around, lifted the curtain, and went out.

Liu Ying glanced at her retreating figure, a forced smile playing on her lips, and said:

"Dad, what does Mom mean by this? Is she unwilling? It's just ten thousand yuan, is it really necessary to give her such a hard time?"

Zhao Yutian suppressed his anger and turned to leave, the curtain being flung high into the air.

"Hey, what happened?"

Liu Ying blinked and unconsciously touched her stomach, pretending that nothing was wrong.

Zhao Si quickly smoothed things over, chuckling as he said:

"Yingzi, this matter... this matter is a bit too big. Please sit down, we... we'll go outside and discuss it, okay?"

"What's the point of researching this?"

Liu Ying pursed her lips, placed her hand on her stomach, and immediately gained confidence:

"My dad got scammed, isn't it only right that our family contribute some money? Once I give you your grandson, you won't be worried about not getting your money back, will you?"

"That's not how it works..."

Zhao Siqian laughed twice:

"You rest first, we'll go out and talk for a bit and then come right back."

Beside the flower stand in the courtyard, Yutian's mother squatted down, rubbing her hands together, panting heavily with anger, her chest heaving. Zhao Yutian leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, his face long and drawn.

Zhao Si lifted the curtain and came out, glancing left and right, then lowered his voice so Liu Ying wouldn't hear:

"What are you two doing? Both of you looking so sullen, aren't you afraid Yingzi will see? It's just about money!"

"What's wrong with looking at it?"

Yutian's mother's voice immediately rose:

"Hey fourth brother, you make it sound so easy. What are you going to do with all that money? Don't you know how much money we have? Are we still paying off the loan on the flower nursery? Are we still going to buy supplies? Are we still going to refuel? Do you think we can eat without spending money? How can you just give it to us like that? That's not a thousand! That's ten thousand! You just give it to us like that?"

"that is!"

Zhao Yutian chimed in, angrily saying:

"Ever since Liu Ying got pregnant, look what Liu Neng has done to us, father and son! And now he's been tricked by his own greed for small gains, and we have to pay for it too? That's not fair!"

"Alright, stop complaining!"

Zhao Si waved his hand and sighed:

"What can we do? Yingzi is pregnant now. What if she gets sick from getting upset? Giving birth to a healthy, chubby boy is better than anything else. Let her suffer a little for now. We can earn the money later."

"Easy for you to say!"

Yutian's mother rolled her eyes at him:

"Why don't you earn it yourself? All you do is talk nice things all day."

Just as they were arguing, the curtain was lifted, and Liu Ying sauntered out.

Her hair was still messy, and although she was also pregnant, she looked more than ten years older than Xie Xiaomei. Her face was shiny with oil, and she was wearing slippers with the heels flattened. She looked slovenly no matter how you looked at her.

She stood in the middle of the courtyard, and she no longer looked like she had when she first married into the family.

"I've been listening in here for ages. What's wrong? Does your family have a big problem with my dad? It's just ten thousand yuan, is it really necessary for the whole family to get together and grumble about it?"

"Yingzi, that's not it."

Zhao Si quickly smoothed things over, taking two steps forward to greet them:

"It's not about the money, it's about..."

"It's all about money, isn't it?"

Liu Ying interrupted him, cracked open another sunflower seed, and spat the shell far away:

"My father raised me all these years, what's wrong with spending 10,000 yuan of your money? Zhao Yutian, what did you promise my father when you married me? I haven't even asked you to do anything yet, and you're already feeling sorry for me?"

"Once I give birth to a big, healthy son, your Zhao family line will be continued. What's ten thousand yuan? If you're so calculating with me, I won't have the baby!"

As she spoke, she deliberately touched her belly, as if the child inside her was her trump card, and everyone had to give way to her.

"Liu Ying, what are you saying!"

Zhao Yutian immediately became furious and took a step forward, but his mother pulled him back.

"Are you being reasonable? This isn't a small amount, it's ten thousand! You don't do any work, and it would take the three of us working from dawn till dusk to earn that back. Why should we cover your father's debts? He was cheated by greed, why should we pay for it?"

"Ever since you got pregnant, how have we treated you? We do whatever you say, and you still can't be reasonable just because you're pregnant!"

"Can you just shut up a bit?"

Zhao Si quickly grabbed Zhao Yutian's arm, pulled him back forcefully, and kicked him in the buttocks.

"What's wrong? I'm just feeling down, what's wrong with saying a few words?"

Zhao Yutian swung his arm, almost causing Zhao Si to stumble.

"Dad, you're just spoiling him. He'll develop problems sooner or later!"

"What are you complaining about? What are you complaining about!"

Zhao Si glared at him, puffing out his beard and staring intently:

"What's wrong with enduring some hardship for the sake of the children?"

Zhao Yutian, panting heavily, looked at Liu Ying and softened his tone:

"Yingzi, we know it's not easy for you to be pregnant, and our family has been very accommodating. But we have to be reasonable, right? Ten thousand yuan is no small amount. Can we think of another way? My parents have had a really tough time."

Liu Ying crossed her arms, turned her head away, snorted through her nose, and rolled her eyes.

"I knew your family wouldn't be willing to part with it. Fine, you won't take it, huh? If you don't take it, I'm going back to my parents' house. I'll go cry with my dad. I'm not having this child anymore. Whoever wants to have it can have it!"

After saying that, he turned around and walked into the house, his slippers flattened with each step.

The three people in the courtyard looked at each other. Zhao Si squatted on the steps, his hat tossed aside, and sighed.

"Alright, alright, stop arguing. Just take it, make do and take it over. If you really get upset and something happens to the child, that would be a case of losing more than you gain."

Yutian's mother stood to the side, not daring to argue further. She sighed heavily, turned around, and went into the house to rummage for money, her steps as heavy as if they were made of lead.