Reborn in a small village in the 1990s

Chapter 269

Cheng Jinxiang frowned, pulled Zhao Dage over, and said, "Dage, what are you going to do? It's a long way, it's better not to go."

Cheng Jinxiang felt that Zhao Dage was still too young and she was worried about sending him to such a far place.

The others also felt that Zhao Da'e was too young. Although she was quite clever, who could guarantee that she would be safe on such a long journey, which would take several days and nights? If something happened, Zhao Da'e, being so young, would have no way to handle it.

Zhao Da'e's attitude was unusually firm. In her past life, her aunt was the best person to her. In fact, compared to her eldest aunt, Cheng Jinxi, Zhao Da'e felt that her aunt was the best to her. You could also tell from their ages. Cheng Jinxi's age was particularly striking, already in her forties. Zhao Da'e's second aunt was also quite old, but when it came to Zhao Da'e's mother and aunt, the age difference suddenly became huge.

Zhao Da'e's mother is twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old this year, and her aunt is only twenty-four or twenty-five. In her previous life, by the time Zhao Da'e grew up, her aunt was already very old and her words carried no weight.

That's beside the point, of course. Actually, in her past life, her aunt was extremely kind to Zhao Da'e. It was Zhao Da'e's father, Zhao Tiesheng, who helped bring Cheng Jinxiao back. At that time, six-year-old Zhao Da'e knew nothing. She was at an age where she didn't understand anything.

This rebirth has already changed too much. The Zhao family has been torn apart by Zhao Da'e. Even if Zhao Tiesheng wanted to go now, Zhao Da'e wouldn't agree. So he might as well go himself.

Although Zhao Da'e had never traveled far and wide to do business, he at least knew what a train was...

The rest of the family members are illiterate, so it's really easy for them to get lost when they go out.

“I’ll go. I’ll go with my older cousin. I’m the most free person in the family, and with my older brother there, I won’t get lost. My older brother is a big traveler and he’ll make sure he doesn’t lose me.”

Zhou Tianfu thought Zhao Da'e's words made sense. "Third Aunt, you can let Da'e come with me. I'll be a bit bored on the way to pick up Auntie by myself. Da'e will keep me company and help me pass the time. I'll take good care of Da'e, so don't worry."

Zhou Tianfu knew that Qiqihar was a very far place, and it would take several days to get there by train. He didn't want to take such a long train journey by himself, as he would be bored to death. Taking the goose with him would be good, as it would give him company.

Cheng Jinxi thought it was a good idea. "Jinxiang, why don't we let Da'e go? Da'e is clever, so Tianfu won't lose out by taking him. Plus, he can see the outside world. It's great. Besides, Da'e is still a child, so he doesn't need to buy tickets for trains. We just need to prepare food for him for a few days."

Cheng Jinxiang thought it made sense; it would allow the goose to see the outside world, and since the goose was clever, it could help Tianfu. Deep down, Cheng Jinxiang even had the illusion that Zhao the goose not only knew the way but could also read…

“Alright, if Da’e wants to go, then let her go.” Cheng Jinxiang said, then looked at Zhou Tianfu, “Tianfu, Da’e is your sister. If you’re taking her with you, remember to take good care of her. When there are many people, hold her hand and don’t let her get lost.”

Zhou Tianfu nodded and patted his chest confidently, saying, "Don't worry, Auntie, I will take good care of Da'e. I will take her with me wherever I go and I will never let her get lost."

Hearing this, Cheng Jinxiang felt a little relieved.

Cheng Rongguo said from the side, "In that case, let Tianfu set off the day after tomorrow. Qiqihar is far from here. The sooner we go to pick up Jinxiao, the sooner we can come back for the New Year. The day after tomorrow, I will borrow a tricycle from the village to take the two of them to the train station."

Wang was extremely weak, but her heart was full of anticipation, and her eyes were shining. "Well said, if you bring your sister back soon, I can die in peace."

Since Cheng Jinxiao married far away, she hasn't come to the village much. The journey is too long, and it takes time and energy to come back. Besides, married daughters can't visit their parents' home often; they have to stay at their husband's home. So, Wang Shi hasn't seen her youngest daughter for a long time.

Zhu Yufeng had no objection to this. Anyway, it had been agreed beforehand that Cheng Jinxiao would not live in the Cheng family for long. Once she was brought over, she could just find someone to marry as soon as possible.

After everything was decided, Cheng Jinxi took Zhou Tianfu, Zhao Da'e and others home.

On the way, Zhou Chunwen walked to the back, looking preoccupied. Zhou Chunhong saw this and asked curiously, "Big sister...big...big sister...she...she...she..."

The people in front stopped, and Cheng Jinxi watched Zhou Chunwen walk to the back and urged, "Chunwen, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and catch up."

Zhao Da'e also came over and tugged at Zhou Chunwen's clothes, shaking her arm, "Big sister, hurry up and go, what are you thinking about?"

Zhou Tianfu noticed that Zhou Chunwen was acting strangely, so he asked, "Chunwen, what's wrong? You look like you have something on your mind."

Cheng Jinxi noticed Zhou Chunwen's unusual behavior and went over to look at her, asking in confusion, "Chunwen, what's wrong with you?"

After hesitating for a moment, Zhou Chunwen finally asked Cheng Jinxi the question that had been troubling her for a long time, "Mom, if I suffer any grievances in my husband's family in the future, can I still go back to my parents' home?"

When Cheng Jinxi heard this was the question, she breathed a sigh of relief. What kind of question was this? She said matter-of-factly, "Of course you can go back to your parents' home. If you suffer any grievances in your husband's family in the future, just go back to your parents' home. We won't put up with this."

Zhou Chunwen's nose tingled with emotion, and she asked again, "But if I come back again, will there still be a place for me to stay at home? I don't think so..."

These words startled Cheng Jinxi slightly. She felt a pang of sadness and walked over to take Zhou Chunwen's hand. "Silly child, what are you saying?"

Zhou Chunwen felt a pang of sadness. She pulled her hand away, turned away, and refused to look at Cheng Jinxi. "Mom, just like you said today, my older brother is getting married soon. He'll definitely have to move out to a separate room. What about my sister and me? Where will we live? Even if we get a new room later, will it really be our room? After I get married, this room will probably become my future nephew's room. Where will I stay when I go back to my parents' home? If my husband's family can't accept me, I still won't have a place to stay when I go back to my parents' home. Mom, am I right?"

Today's experience served as a wake-up call for Zhou Chunwen. This home belongs to her eldest brother, and there's nothing for her, a girl, to do in the future. She's going to get married, and her future home should be in her husband's family. But how can someone from another family truly integrate into the family? Just like today, when her aunt and uncle had a fight and wanted to get a divorce, her family members were all very resistant to her coming back. The reason was simple: there was no place for her to live here.

Will she be like this in the future?

It's likely. Just like today, when Mom was thinking about my eldest brother's wedding and needed to make room for him, all she could think about was my eldest brother. She didn't think about herself or my younger sister, Zhou Chunhong, at all.

Cheng Jinxi felt uneasy and said somewhat awkwardly, "Chunwen, what are you saying? You're not married yet, and besides, I'm the one who calls the shots in the family..."

Zhou Chunhong was a little confused. She didn't know why her older sister would think so much. "Big...big...big sister, you...you...are overthinking it..."

Zhou Chunwen gave a wry smile. She was 16 years old this year, and in two more years she would be an adult. At that time, she would get married, and sooner or later she would encounter such a thing.

However, seeing Cheng Jinxi's reaction now, which was awkward and perfunctory, with nice words but no concrete actions, Zhou Chunwen felt uncomfortable.

When Zhou Tianfu heard Zhou Chunwen say these words, he was even more dismissive. He came over to comfort Zhou Chunwen and said, "Chunwen, don't think about these things. If you suffer any grievances in your husband's family in the future, just come back. There will always be a place for you in the Zhou family."

With Zhou Tianfu coming to the rescue, Cheng Jinxi relaxed and continued Zhou Tianfu's words, "That's right, Chunwen, don't overthink it. Look at your older brother, with his guarantee, aren't you at ease? Let's go home quickly, don't talk about these uncertainties, we can talk about these things after you get married."

Zhou Chunwen fell silent, lowered her head, and hummed in response, looking somewhat listless. She saw through her mother's perfunctory attitude and didn't believe her older brother's promises. The only reason her brother could say such things was because he was not yet married and had no children. Zhou Chunwen was not sure whether he would act as he said he would after he got married and had children.

However, asking any more questions after that would be pointless.

On the way home, Zhou Chunwen walked to the very back, looking sullen.

Cheng Jinxi saw this and felt both angry and helpless. "What's wrong with Chunwen today? She doesn't do any work all day and just keeps thinking about all sorts of things. I'm busy with Tianfu's dowry money, and she's still thinking about what will happen after she gets married. I think it would be better if she got married sooner, and then the dowry money could be used to help Tianfu find a wife, so I don't have to worry about her all the time."

Although that's what she said, Zhou Chunwen's words today really touched Cheng Jinxi's heart. She also felt very bad. If she had to blame someone, she should blame her family for being poor. Why couldn't they afford to build an extra room when they were building their new house? Otherwise, she wouldn't be in such a predicament now, having to worry about the bride price and the affairs of her two daughters. It's really tough.

Seeing that Zhou Chunwen was in a bad mood, Zhao Da'e specially ran over to her side, took her hand, and said, "Big sister, don't think too much..."

Seeing Zhao Da'e comforting her, Zhou Chunwen felt a warmth in her heart. She ruffled Zhao Da'e's hair and said helplessly, "Da'e, look at what happened to my aunt today. She got divorced and wanted to go back to her parents' home, but everyone in her family refused and didn't want her to come back. It's just that there's no place for her to stay at home. Her parents' home has now become her uncle's home, and her room has become her future nephew's room. I just feel sad. I will encounter this kind of thing in the future."

Zhou Chunwen felt wronged, and afterwards she gave a bitter smile, "You're still young, you wouldn't understand even if I told you."

Zhao Da'e scoffed, pouting, "Big sister, you're just asking for trouble. I don't even need to wait until later, I already have nowhere to live..."

These words made Zhou Chunwen laugh out loud, and her gloom dissipated considerably. She reached out and flicked Zhao Da'e's head, laughing, "You're right. You're much worse off than me..."

……

...

In the past day or two, Cheng Jinxi has been keeping busy at home. Zhou Tianfu and Zhao Da'e are about to take the train to pick up Cheng Jinxiao. The journey is long and they can't let her go hungry. Besides, the food outside is expensive and not very healthy, not as healthy as what they make themselves.

However, it's visibly that Zhou Chunwen's mental state hasn't been good since she returned. She's probably suffered some kind of emotional trauma. Unlike Zhou Chunhong and Zhao Da'e, who are younger, Zhou Chunwen, despite constantly saying she doesn't want to get married, is actually approaching marriageable age.

If things don't go well for her in the future, and she gets married and divorced, her fate will probably be the same as her aunt's. Although on the surface the Zhou family is much better than the Zhao family in terms of favoring sons over daughters, they're not that much better at heart. The family property still belongs to the son; Zhou Chunwen doesn't get a single penny. These past few days, Zhou Chunwen has been absent-minded, thinking: "What the hell am I going to live if I get divorced?"

The main issue is that I'm not even married yet, and I'm almost homeless? I'll have to make room for my older brother and sister-in-law...

Seeing that Zhou Chunwen seemed dazed, Cheng Jinxi called Zhao Dage into the house and said, "Dage, your older sister hasn't been feeling well these past few days..."

Zhao Da'e felt helpless. She said to Cheng Jinxi, "Auntie, my eldest sister isn't always mentally sound... I guess she saw that my aunt had nowhere to go, and she felt the same way, that she was also going to have nowhere to live."

Cheng Jinxi also felt helpless; she had seen through it all. If she could speak up, she would have already done so, but she was too proud to say anything. The family's circumstances were indeed difficult. But her son's marriage couldn't be delayed. She couldn't let him remain a bachelor...

Ugh……

“Big Goose, you’re easier to talk to, and Chunwen is more receptive to what I say. Chunwen might not believe me if I say it. Over the years, I have indeed been somewhat biased towards your older cousin and neglected your older cousin and the others. This is my fault. Please help me out and say some good things for me so that Chunwen won’t overthink it. I’ve noticed that Chunwen has been listless and dispirited these past few days, and it makes me feel bad too.”

Zhao Da'e was a little helpless. She spread her hands and said, "Auntie, this only works if you say it yourself. Besides, I'm going to Qiqihar with my older cousin to pick up Auntie tomorrow. It will probably be several days before I come back. I don't have time to talk to my older cousin."

Zhao Da'e is not going to take this hot potato.

Cheng Jinxi said helplessly, "You're leaving tomorrow, not today. You can talk to me tonight."

Zhao Da'e had no choice but to tell the truth, "Auntie, I can't get involved in this."

Zhao Da'e couldn't handle this kind of thing; she didn't even have a place to live yet. She'd have to leave when Zhou Tianfu got married. There was nothing she could do. His son was getting married, so everything had to be prioritized for him. Even if Zhou Chunwen was right, she had to move out; there was no way around it.

Are you suggesting we build a new house?

Where would I get the money?

After saying that, Zhao Da'e quickly slipped away, afraid of being caught by Cheng Jinxi.

The one who tied the knot must untie it. Sometimes, what my aunt says is more effective than what she says, but she just doesn't have the face to say it.