Chapter 144: Chapter 134: Breakup, Severing Ties

Grandpa sent Mo Chengfu to invite Secretary Mo and his father over for a drink. Eighth Uncle wasn’t a drinker, so he didn’t come. But as for Secretary Mo, whenever Grandpa extended an invitation, he was sure to be there, no matter the occasion.

The men talked at length over their drinks, so the women and children quickly ate their fill and left. When Yu Changzhang saw Xiao Man and Lin Liuping excusing themselves from the table, he finally remembered the purpose of his visit. He hurried out after them, called for them to stop so he could deliver his message, and then went back to drinking.

It turned out Teacher Yu had called home and asked her father to drop by Xiao Man’s house with a message, mainly for Lin Liuping. She was told she absolutely had to take the day off tomorrow and get on the bus to the county town. Teacher Yu would be waiting for her at the station!

The village cooperative store, much like the village clinic, didn’t have a true Sunday off. You could open a little later, but you had to be there. The people needed you, and you had to be available whenever they called.

Xiao Man sensed that something was up. Otherwise, Teacher Yu wouldn’t have told Lin Liuping to take a day off of work just to rush to the county town for no apparent reason.

"Sister Liu Ping, why don’t I go with you?"

Lin Liuping gave a distracted "oh," then thought for a moment and added, "Tomorrow’s Sunday. What if your soldier boy shows up and you’re not here? We’d have to stay the night in the county town, and Grandpa and Grandma would worry. You should just stay home. I’ll be fine going by myself."

The next day, Lin Liuping came to the cooperative store early to work. Around noon, she closed up shop, walked to the main road to wait, and boarded the bus to the county town.

After ten o’clock on Monday morning, Xiao Man ran to the cooperative store to check on Lin Liuping and found she was already back. Her face was pale and her eyes were dull. The moment she saw Xiao Man, the rims of her eyes turned red. She pulled out a handkerchief to wipe her tears but managed to hold back her sobs.

"What’s wrong?" Xiao Man asked.

Lin Liuping sniffled. When she spoke, her voice was as hoarse as if she had a cold. "I’m breaking up with Huang Hongliang. We’re over!"

"Why?"

Xiao Man remained very calm, but Lin Liuping’s tears flowed like a small stream, quickly soaking her handkerchief. She spoke between sobs, her words halting, "He... he lied to me! He was two-timing me... And it’s not with a stranger. It’s... it’s Lu Meiye! How could she, Lu Meiye, do this? Have I ever done anything wrong to her? Going behind my back to see Huang Hongliang, after lying to me that something urgent had come up! Teacher Yu went to her aunt’s place in the county committee compound and saw them. Huang Hongliang took Lu Meiye grocery shopping, and they went back to his dorm... Teacher Yu’s aunt said, ’Oh, that’s Little Huang’s girlfriend. She’s been here a few times...’ I couldn’t believe it. Last night, Teacher Yu pointed out his door for me. I went and knocked, and Lu Meiye answered. When Huang Hongliang heard my voice, he ran out and tried to explain that Lu Meiye just didn’t have a place to stay and was crashing there. He even pulled me inside to show me his dorm had two beds... An unmarried man and a single woman... he could have gone to his parents’ house, so why did they have to stay in the same room?"

"Did Lu Meiye say anything?"

Lin Liuping shook her head. "No. From start to finish, she just stood there crying without saying a single word... She’s shameless!"

’It’s probably not that she’s shameless, but that she has an ulterior motive.’

"And then what?"

"Then... I’m not much of a fighter, I was just crying. Huang Hongliang was afraid someone would see and start gossiping, so he pulled me inside. I looked up at the clothesline in the small courtyard and saw their clothes—his and Lu Meiye’s, even their underwear—all hanging up to dry together. How could I possibly stay after that? He blocked my way, not letting me leave, so I slapped him across the face and ran out."

"He’ll probably come looking for you again."

"Let him come. I’ve thought it through. I’m making a clean break with him! All this stuff is going back to him!"

Lin Liuping’s face was flushed from crying as she patted a cardboard box on the counter. "Everything he ever gave me, all the letters he wrote—it’s all in here. I’ve packed it all up. I’m not keeping a single thread!"

"Sister Liu Ping, I can tell you really like him. Can you really bear to let him go?"

"So what if I can’t? Am I just supposed to swallow my pride and accept this?" Lin Liuping fiercely wiped her face, her gaze resolute. "How long have we even been dating? And he’s already lying to me like this! His office, his dorm—I’ve never been to either, not even once. But Lu Meiye has stayed over three or four times. They even go grocery shopping and cook together like a couple... Everyone at his job thinks *she’s* his girlfriend. So what does that make me? I can’t stomach this. From this day forward, I, Lin Liuping, don’t know who Lu Meiye is. We’re done!"

Lin Liuping had just sworn to cut ties with them, but not even a few hours later that afternoon, Qiu Xiaohu ran over to tell Xiao Man that a car, driven by Huang Hongliang, was parked in front of the cooperative store. Huang Hongliang was inside talking to Lin Liuping, and another woman was with him. Little Tiger recognized her from Xiao Man’s house—it was Lu Meiye.

’Bringing the other woman along to beg for forgiveness. Huang Hongliang was really a piece of work.’

Xiao Man didn’t run to the cooperative store to watch the drama unfold. Now that things had come to this, Huang Hongliang’s image in Lin Liuping’s eyes was completely shattered. He was no longer an ideal partner. And Lin Liuping had also seen Lu Meiye’s true colors. The objective had been achieved.

’In my past life, there was that roadside robbery. They didn’t want the bicycle or any money; they just dragged her into the mountains and knocked her unconscious. After she was missing for a whole night, her reputation was completely destroyed. It seemed like something Lu Meiye would have orchestrated, because in the end, she was the one who married Huang Hongliang.’

Lin Liuping’s insistence on returning Huang Hongliang’s things and breaking up, along with her refusal to forgive Lu Meiye, triggered a series of much more serious events. Lu Meiye went crying to Stepmother Lin, asking her to mediate. Stepmother Lin immediately berated Lin Liuping, calling her shameless for dating someone in secret and not even letting her own cousin help vet the man. Furious, Lin Liuping retorted. Her stepmother, incensed that Lin Liuping had made her lose face in front of Lu Meiye, grabbed a broom and started beating her. On instinct, Lin Liuping threw a ladleful of pig feed she was holding, splattering it all over her stepmother. At that exact moment, Mr. Lin walked in. Seeing the scene, he strode over and slapped Lin Liuping twice, so hard that she passed out.

When Lin Liuping awoke, she ran to her maternal uncle’s house, crying bitterly, with two red handprints on her face and blood streaming from her nose. Her eldest maternal uncle was the village brigade leader, a man who was usually reasonable and fair. But when he saw his niece’s wretched state, he flew into a rage. With her maternal grandparents also spoiling for a fight, he decided to turn a blind eye. He pretended he knew nothing and let his family, young and old, storm the Lin Family’s home and smash the place up. When the brigade authorities intervened, the uncle’s family agreed to pay for the damages, but they firmly demanded that Lin Liuping be officially removed from the Lin Family’s household registry and be allowed to form her own.

As a young woman of eighteen or nineteen, she was legally entitled to establish her own household. With her consent, the village officials approved the request.

They had raised a daughter to adulthood, only for her to no longer be under their authority. She wouldn’t contribute to the family anymore, and in the future, she could even marry whomever she pleased without their permission. Mr. Lin was filled with regret, as was Stepmother Lin. She had heard that Lin Liuping had landed a great catch from the county town and had been eagerly anticipating a hefty bride price!

But there’s no medicine for regret in this world. Lin Liuping moved out of the Lin Family home, taking up temporary residence in the cooperative store. Her grandmother wanted her to move in with her uncle, but his family was large and their home was small. While her uncle was her own flesh and blood and wouldn’t mind her presence, she had to consider the feelings of his wife. Life was hard for everyone.

After this incident, Lin Liuping would glare daggers at Lu Meiye on sight. The neighborhood women who came to shop heard the whole story from Lin Liuping and joined in berating Lu Meiye. No matter how thick-skinned she was, Lu Meiye was still a young woman. After a few more visits, she didn’t dare show her face at the store again.

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