A Marriage Between Heaven and Earth

Liu Guimei happened to look up and saw Yang Wuni passing by, so she immediately waved for her to come inside.

"Sister-in-law, I need to talk to my aunt. I'll come to your room later."

Yang Wuni disliked Guan Shu and didn't like visiting their house.

"Wu Ni, come in first, I have a question for you."

Liu Guimei, who was holding the child and found it inconvenient to get down, waved her hand vigorously, insisting that Yang Wuni go into her room first.

Helpless, Yang Wuni reluctantly pushed open Liu Guimei's door and sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) at the head of her house.

"Wu Ni, do you know what? I saw it from the back window of my house."

Your neighbor, Zheng Meizhi, comes to your second sister-in-law's house every day.

Your second sister-in-law, that silly woman, still acted like nothing was wrong and brought out a stool for people to sit on.

I can come all this way, what woman would want your second brother?

The way your second brother looks at that woman is different from how he looks at others.

"If those two weren't having an affair, I, Liu Guimei, would walk out of Zhangzhuang headfirst."

As if she had finally found someone to talk to, Liu Guimei started chattering away.

"Sister-in-law, why are you so nosy? Let others do whatever they want, it won't affect our lives."

It's not like your older brother found one for you, so why do you care?

My second sister-in-law actually knows everything, but she just doesn't say it.

If she were like you, her family would be doomed.

Ten children eating, drinking, and relieving themselves every day—we'd go crazy if we had to deal with that.

Look at my second sister-in-law, she keeps ten children standing at attention.

My second brother is good-looking, so it's normal for him to attract women.

In my opinion, as long as he doesn't spend his money on outsiders, my second sister-in-law will definitely ignore him.

Yang Wuni initially wanted to leave as soon as possible, so she didn't go along with what Liu Guimei said.

As they talked, he found it interesting and began to tell Liu Guimei the truth.

"Wu Ni, I knew you would know what's going on here."

Just tell your sister-in-law, did Zheng Meizhi sleep with your second brother or not?

Liu Guimei's curiosity led her to approach Yang Wuni.

He fawned over Yang Wuni, pressing his face close to hers, eager to know how far things had progressed.

"Sister-in-law, I'm not Zheng Meizhi, how would I know if she's asleep or not?"

"How about I go ask around now and tell you you want to know?"

Yang Wuni playfully lifted her leg to leave, making a gesture as if she really wanted to ask.

"Wu Ni, you mustn't go. I didn't tell you to go and ask."

Even if you asked about that, I reckon they wouldn't be able to tell you.

Liu Guimei turned around and put her nipple to the mouth of the child in her arms.

The child was hungry and shook his little head, looking for a nipple.

He put the nipple in his mouth and sucked on it with a "slurping" sound.

"Sister-in-law, you finally understand. If you can find out the answer, can it still be considered cheating?"

Everyone knows this, but no one can tell.

By the time you can finally say it, things will be in big trouble.

Let's just watch and see what they do, but don't pry.

It wouldn't be worth it if people said we were gossiping.

When I first arrived, Zheng Meizhi stayed in Zhang Changyao's bed and wouldn't leave.

That woman's the type to poop anything, we'd better not mess with her.

Yang Wuni peeked mysteriously out of Liu Guimei's window.

Feeling guilty, he tiptoed out of the door and went into Zhang Shuhua's room.

"Wu Ni, why are you leaving? I haven't finished speaking yet."

Liu Guimei, still wanting more, wanted to keep Yang Wuni and chat with her a little longer.

A woman who had been cooped up in her house for months felt an unusual warmth towards anyone who came in from outside.

"Wu Ni, don't listen to your sister-in-law's nonsense, she's just jealous of your second sister-in-law."

Whenever a woman comes to your second brother's house, she says that your second brother is having an affair with that woman.

In the past, your second sister-in-law listened to her every whim and fought with your second brother all the time.

These past few years, no matter how much she says it, your second sister-in-law doesn't believe her, so she's stopped coming to the backyard.

Zhang Shuhua used her blue and white floral sweater to make diapers for Guan Shu's children on the kang (a heated brick bed).

The small pieces were stacked together and were taller than a tobacco basket.

The remaining scraps, those that weren't big enough, were piled together, looking like they were about to be thrown away.

"Auntie, do you still want these scraps of sweater fabric?"

Yang Wuni took a liking to these scraps of cloth, shook them out, and examined them.

She figured she could piece together a small dishcloth to cover a cutting board.

"Wu Ni, when you give birth, use these diapers that I cut up."

Half of this stack belongs to your sister-in-law, and the other half belongs to you.

The sweater is soft and absorbent, won't sag on a child's bottom, and is easy to wash.

Go back and take your half when you get back.

If you can use these scraps of cloth, take them with you.

My eyes hurt, and I can't see the patchwork scraps well. It's better to give them to me than to use them myself.

Zhang Shuhua cut the diaper in half and pushed it, along with the scraps of cloth, to Yang Wuni's side.

"Auntie, you're so kind to me, even more so than my dad."

"Wu Ni, don't blame your father. How could a man like him think of such espionage matters?"

The fact that he is in good health now is a blessing that you children have earned.

Don't be fooled by his appearance; he's always full of energy, fawning over Widow Xing.

Actually, his health wasn't very good; he was just putting on a brave face.

When the children were young, he supported the family alone, working hard but no one cared about him.

The children are always given the best food first, while the children themselves go hungry if there's nothing to eat.

When they were starving, they would bite into raw pickled vegetables and drink cold water to swell up their bellies.

Your mother-in-law looks down on him; whether he lives or dies, nobody cares.

When the two of you do that at night, your mother-in-law acts like she's been raped by a bad guy.

They scratched your father-in-law's body until it was covered in blood, and then it healed layer after layer.

My poor fifth brother suffered terribly in order to have several children.

She's been fighting and dying, and I've never seen her smile once.

Despite his constant indulgence, she still couldn't make it to the end of their relationship.

She heartlessly abandoned her children and ran off with another man.

This man really chose his wife carefully; he couldn't force her if she didn't want to.

A forced marriage will ultimately bring suffering to yourself and your child.

Yang Wuni was referring to her own father, but Zhang Shuhua thought she was referring to Zhang Kaiju.

She told Yang Wuni about the hardships Zhang Kaiju had endured after getting married.

"Auntie, tell me about my father-in-law and mother-in-law."

I think it was because they were not a good match that this happened.

If two people like each other, and their appearances are not too different.

Such a person should be able to live a long life, and shouldn't be involved in wars.

Yang Wuni steered the conversation toward Guan Shuyun's matter.

I'd like to hear Zhang Shuhua's opinion on the marriage of these two people.

"Wu Ni, where are you going to find two people who are evenly matched?"

Your uncle and I are worlds apart in appearance and temperament.

You and Changyao look like a perfect match, but he's a bookworm and you can't read a single word.

You two just got married, you haven't had much of a period of intimacy yet.

"After you have children and time goes on, you'll understand what it means to say even a single sentence is too much."