The 1970s: Married First, Fell in Love Later-Chapter 105 - 104: Cried Fiercely

"You damn monster! Look at Ruanruan’s hand! You’ve scratched it until it’s bleeding! How can you be so cruel as to snatch a toy from a child? Are you a bandit?"

Gao Cuiyun shot a glare at Ruanruan. "Mom, my son wants to play with it. What’s the big deal if he plays with it for a little while?"

Mrs. He rolled her eyes at her. "This is Ruanruan’s. Why should she give it to your son? If you’re so capable, go buy one yourself. You’re never that impressive outside the home, but you sure know how to throw your weight around with family. Ruanruan just hit her head, too. If something really happens to her, just you wait and see how He Lang and his wife settle the score with you when they get back."

The moment Gao Cuiyun heard He Lang and his wife mentioned, she remembered they were not to be trifled with. She was clearly still spooked from their last fight. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

She snatched the toy from her son’s hands and threw it at Mrs. He’s feet.

"Fine, we won’t play with it! Is that good enough for you? Mom, I’m not trying to criticize you, but you’re way too biased toward the third brother’s family. She’s just a girl, yet you dote on her like she’s the apple of your eye. My son is your grandson too, so how come I never see you dote on him like this?"

With his toy suddenly gone, the boy in her arms started wailing again.

The Nine Rings hit the ground, and two of the rings instantly broke as the puzzle scattered.

When Ruanruan saw her toy was broken, she cried even harder.

Mrs. He was instantly livid.

Just then, Mr. He happened to return from outside, holding his tobacco pouch.

"What’s wrong with Ruanruan? Let Grandpa see. What are you crying about?"

Mrs. He thrust Ruanruan into Mr. He’s arms, picked up a stick from the courtyard, and started hitting Gao Cuiyun with it.

"Have you no shame? You’re completely out of control! Who do you think you’re throwing things at? Have I been too easy on you? Not only did you bully a child, but you also broke her toy. You’re a grown woman, why can’t you ever act like a decent human being? I’m going to beat you to death today! I’ll teach you to throw things! I’ll teach you!"

"Ouch! That hurts! Mom, I’m still holding your grandson! Mom~"

Gao Cuiyun dodged around the courtyard, still holding her child.

But Mrs. He landed nearly every blow, and all they could hear was Gao Cuiyun repeatedly crying, "Ouch, it hurts."

Seeing this, Ruanruan actually stopped crying. Her big, watery eyes just watched Mrs. He and Gao Cuiyun chase each other around the courtyard.

Mr. He, holding Ruanruan, saw that she had stopped crying. He stroked her little face and, after a moment, called out to his wife, "Alright, that’s enough! Be careful not to hit the child."

Only then did Mrs. He stop, planting her hands on her hips and panting heavily.

"I don’t know what sins the He Family committed to have married a curse like you into our family. If you cause any more trouble, you can just get out!"

Gao Cuiyun put her child down and kept rubbing the spots where she had been hit.

"Mom, that girl hit my son and you didn’t care. I gave her one little push, and you won’t let it go. It’s so unfair," Gao Cuiyun muttered.

Mrs. He refused to indulge her. "So what if I’m biased? I just happen to like girls. What’s it to you? It’s none of your business. If you have a problem with it, your family can move out. Don’t be an eyesore here."

"Why should we be the ones to move out?"

Mrs. He snorted coldly. "On the grounds that this is *my* house. If there’s truly no room for you here, then you can scram."

Gao Cuiyun was furious, but she didn’t dare to truly challenge Mrs. He, or she’d just get another beating.

So, she could only dejectedly pick up her son and retreat to her room.

Mrs. He also went inside to check on Ruanruan. She examined the back of her head for a long time, and only when she saw it wasn’t swollen did she finally feel relieved.

She glanced at the back of Ruanruan’s hand, her brow furrowing tightly.

"He Lang and his wife will probably be back today. They entrusted their child to me, and I didn’t even watch her properly. Why did I have to go and do the laundry?"

Mr. He took Ruanruan’s little hand to have a look. "It’s nothing, just a small scratch. Your daughter-in-law won’t say anything. Besides, these things are unavoidable when kids are playing."

Mrs. He gritted her teeth. "That Gao Cuiyun... I don’t even know what to say about her. She actually pushed Ruanruan down over a single toy. It scared me to death at that moment. She’s a grown woman, and Ruanruan is so little. If something had really happened, how could we ever explain it to them?"

"Just be more careful in the future. Didn’t you already give her a beating?"

At the mention of this, Mrs. He sighed. "She was holding her child, so I couldn’t really hit her with full force. She probably won’t learn her lesson anyway."

Xue Yue and He Lang returned in the afternoon.

After returning the vehicle to the transportation team, the two of them rode their bicycles back.

Xue Yue was wearing the long dress she had bought the day before.

The two of them headed straight for the old He Family residence.

There were quite a few people in the village at this time. Seeing Xue Yue’s attire and the large and small bags hanging from their bicycle, they started to gossip amongst themselves.

Someone came up to greet them.

"He Lang, where’d you take your wife?"

He Lang smiled and replied, "We took a trip to the provincial capital."

"Oh, that’s pretty far, isn’t it?"

"It’s alright. We drove."

"Are you heading to your parents’ house to pick up your daughter?"

He Lang nodded. "Yes."

"You’d better hurry then. I heard your daughter crying her heart out in the courtyard this morning."

Xue Yue and He Lang exchanged a look and hurried toward the old residence.

The courtyard was quiet when they entered.

"Mom, we’re back," He Lang called into the house.

Then, they saw Mrs. He come out, holding Ruanruan.

The moment Ruanruan saw her mother and father, her lip quivered and she started to cry, stretching her arms out to them for a hug.

Xue Yue’s heart softened, and she hurried over to take her.

She kissed her face several times. "Ruanruan, Mommy and Daddy are back. Don’t cry now, be good."

He Lang leaned in too, kissing the top of Ruanruan’s head. "Sweetheart, don’t cry. Mommy and Daddy bought you some nice new toys. We’ll give them to you when we get home, okay?"

Ruanruan clung tightly to Xue Yue’s neck, refusing to let go or acknowledge them.

He Lang asked Mrs. He, "Has she been fussy these past two days?"

"No, but at night she kept looking for you in the room. Your father and I took turns holding her, and she’d fall asleep once she got tired enough."

"Thank you for all the trouble, you and Dad," Xue Yue said.

Mrs. He waved her hand. "It was nothing. It’s just that this morning, while playing with your second brother’s son, she got a little scratch on her hand. It’s a bit red. And the toy you brought over got broken."

He Lang glanced at his daughter. "It’s fine. If it’s broken, it’s broken."

"Mom, we’ll be heading back now then."

"Alright, I’ll go get the key for you."

Leaving the old residence, He Lang pushed the bicycle while Xue Yue walked home, holding Ruanruan.

Even after they got home, Ruanruan still wouldn’t let go of Xue Yue.

He Lang took out the toys he had bought for Ruanruan.

"Ruanruan, look what this is."

Xue Yue tried to coax her too. "Ruanruan, look, it’s a doll. Isn’t it pretty?"

Xue Yue held the doll in front of her.

When Ruanruan saw it, she finally loosened her grip on Xue Yue’s neck and reached out to take it.

He Lang put batteries in the toy train and pressed the switch, and it started to chug along.

"Ruanruan, look over here."