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墨書 Inktalez
"What are you doing?" Guo Xiaofang stepped out of the room and frowned when she saw Jia Mingdai busy in the kitchen.
"I'm making breakfast for everyone," Jia Mingdai said cautiously.
"Can you even cook? Don't make a mess in the kitchen," Guo Xiaofang replied, her tone clearly impatient. "Forget it, just go outside. I'll handle it."
Jia Mingdai was pushed out of the kitchen and stood in the yard, watching his wife's busy figure, feeling an indescribable mix of emotions.
He thought about the children. He decided to take the initiative to approach his son and daughter, trying to rebuild their father-son relationship.
"Son, come here. Daddy bought you a toy," Jia Mingdai said as he took out a small car he had bought in Xinjiang from his luggage, squatting down to his 8-year-old son, Guo Xiaobao.
Guo Xiaobao looked at the toy, then at Jia Mingdai, before running over to his grandmother. "Grandma, this uncle keeps talking to me."
"Be good, Xiaobao. Stay away from him," his mother-in-law said as she scooped up her grandson.
The toy car slipped from Jia Mingdai's hands and fell to the ground.
His daughter, Guo Xiaohua, was even more terrified of him. Every time Jia Mingdai tried to hug her, the little girl would cry heart-wrenchingly as if he were some kind of monster.
"Don't cry, Xiaohua. Daddy isn't a bad person," Jia Mingdai tried to comfort her.
"Don't touch my granddaughter!" His mother-in-law rushed over and pushed Jia Mingdai away. "You've scared the child!"
"I am her father!" Jia Mingdai finally couldn't hold back and shouted.
"Father?" His mother-in-law sneered. "The father who hasn't been home for three years? Does the child even know you? Do you deserve to be called a father?"
Those words hit Jia Mingdai like a slap in the face.
Afterward, he placed his hopes on his wife. He thought that after being married, there must be some feelings left between them.
That night, Jia Mingdai tried to have a heart-to-heart talk with his wife.
"Xiaofang, you've worked hard these past three years," he said as he sat on the edge of the bed, watching his wife comb her hair.
"Mm." Guo Xiaofang didn't look back.
"I missed you and the kids so much in Xinjiang; I dreamed about you every night."
"Oh."
"I won't leave again; I'll find something to do at home and spend time with you all."
Guo Xiaofang stopped combing her hair, turned around, and shot him a cold glance. "Aren't you going out? Who's going to support the family? How much can you earn?"
"I can do some odd jobs nearby. Although it doesn't pay much, I—"
"But what?" Guo Xiaofang interrupted him. "How much can you make in a month? A thousand? Two thousand? What good is that?"
Jia Mingdai was left speechless.
"Let me tell you," Guo Xiaofang continued, "this family doesn't need your company; it needs money. You either go out and earn or stay put and don't cause me any trouble."
With that, Guo Xiaofang lay down, turning her back to Jia Mingdai.
Desperate, Jia Mingdai decided to seek help from the outside world. He wanted to talk to the respected elder in the village; perhaps he could change his family's attitude towards him.
"Village Chief Uncle, I want to discuss my family situation with you," Jia Mingdai approached the village head, Old Chen.
After listening to Jia Mingdai's grievances, Old Chen shook his head. "Jia Mingdai, you're in a situation that's different from a normal marriage. You need to understand your position."
"But I'm also part of this family!"
"Part of this family?" Old Chen chuckled bitterly. "You have the surname Jia, they have the surname Guo. The children bear the Guo name, and the house belongs to the Guo family. What part do you play?"
"What about all my contributions over the years?"
"Contributions? That's what you were supposed to do. You married into their family; isn't it your duty to serve them?"
Old Chen's words completely shattered Jia Mingdai's last glimmer of hope. If even the most respected elder in the village viewed him this way, who could he turn to?
Just as Jia Mingdai sank deeper into despair, something even more painful happened.
That afternoon, while at the village shop buying supplies, Jia Mingdai overheard a few women chatting.
"Did you hear? Guo Xiaofang hasn't been behaving herself these years."
"She's been getting close to Boss Wang from the neighboring village. He drives a nice car and often comes to pick her up."
"Is that true?"
"Absolutely! I saw it with my own eyes. While Jia Mingdai was away in Xinjiang for those three years, Boss Wang visited the Guo family quite often."
"Do Mr. and Mrs. Guo know about this?"
"Know? They couldn't care less! They'd prefer it! Boss Wang has money; he's far better than that useless Jia Mingdai."
Jia Mingdai stood at the entrance of the shop, feeling as if the sky had fallen on him.
That night, Jia Mingdai tentatively asked his wife, "Xiaofang, who is Boss Wang?"
Guo Xiaofang's tone clearly showed her panic. "Boss Wang is a friend of mine. He comes by occasionally; what's the problem?"
"A friend?" Jia Mingdai fixed his gaze on his wife's eyes. "What kind of friend?"
"What do you mean by that?" Guo Xiaofang snapped, anger flaring up. "Are you suspecting something?"
"I just want to know..."
"Know what?" At that moment, his mother-in-law burst out of the room, pointing her finger at Jia Mingdai and scolding him.
"You worthless man, how dare you question my daughter? Boss Wang is a thousand times better than you! He drives a nice car and lives in a nice apartment. What do you have? What can you compare with him?"
Her words were tantamount to admitting everything.
Jia Mingdai felt blood rush to his head. "She is my wife!"
"Wife?" His mother-in-law scoffed. "Who my daughter associates with is her own business; who are you to interfere?"
"You... you are bullying me!" Jia Mingdai shouted.
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