Chapter 396 I Still Have to Go Back

Chapter 396: I Still Have to Go Back

After dinner in the evening, Jiang Yu brewed a pot of tea and sat with her family in the central living room to chat.

The tea leaves were a gift from Lai Liuzi earlier, said to be from the south.

She couldn’t discern much about its quality, only that it tasted refreshing and helped cut the grease.

“Sis, when will *The Spark of Fire* be finished? I can’t wait to see Li Donggui on TV.”

Jiang Yu rested her chin on her hand. “I haven’t asked, but I heard the book will be published first. I’ll grab you a few copies later—you can show them to your colleagues.”

Fei Yan was now a teacher with plenty of free time and had made several like-minded new friends.

“Great! Get them signed later—they’ll totally keep them as keepsakes.”

Who knows—once the show airs, Jiang Yu might become famous, and the books could become hard to find.

Seeing how late it was, Jiang Yu yawned and prepared to head back to her room to rest.

“I gotta hit the bathroom. Fei Yan, are you coming?”

Fei Yan quickly stood up. “Yeah!”

She was most afraid of going to the communal outhouse alone at night. If she didn’t go before bed, she’d wake up desperate to pee in the middle of the night, and then she’d have to get up early to dump the chamber pot.

Cold nights were fine, but in summer, leaving waste in the pot overnight reeked like hell.

Lilan had just finished her last problem set and followed them out.

The trio reached the restroom when Lilan suddenly stopped dead.

“Sis, you hear that crying?”

Fei Yan clung to Jiang Yu’s arm in fright. “Lilan, don’t scare me!”

Lilan shrank behind them, and the three huddled together.

“Sis, I really heard it.”

Jiang Yu swallowed hard, steeling herself.

“Both of you, step back. I’ll go check. This is a new society—no room for superstitions!”

She swung the flashlight beam forward and knocked on the restroom door.

“Who’s crying in there? Stop pretending and come out!”

The crying stopped abruptly, making Lilan shriek, “Ahhh! It’s coming out!”

Fei Yan angrily covered her mouth. “Quit yelling! I wasn’t scared by the ghost—you’re the one scaring me to death!”

Jiang Yu swung the flashlight beam—then jumped when she saw a figure emerge.

Only after making out who it was did she exhale, frowning.

“Xiang Hong? What’re you doing here?”

Fu Xianghong, sickly thin and ghostly pale, looked downright haunted now.

"I just feel awful, with nobody to talk to, so I came to the bathroom to cry."

She couldn’t go back to her in-laws’ home, and her own family disapproved of her—she didn’t even know where she could go anymore.

If it weren’t for her illness, she wouldn’t have realized how disliked she really was.

Even though Fu Xianghong usually had a lot of little faults, seeing her in such a state, Jiang Yu and He Feiyan couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.

Jiang Yu was also someone without the backing of her own family. The difference was, she relied neither on her birth family nor her in-laws but made her own way.

Naturally, this was harder, but it also gave her the confidence to walk away at any time.

"Sister Xiang Hong, come out first. Whatever it is, you have to talk about it. Just crying won’t solve anything."

He Feiyan stepped forward and helped her out.

Jiang Yu felt nothing was more urgent than using the toilet, so she asked Fu Xianghong to wait outside while they did their business first.

Fu Xianghong’s pent-up emotions were abruptly stifled.

After they finished, Jiang Yu finally turned to her.

"Sister Xiang Hong, is your condition getting worse?"

Fu Xianghong shook her head, choking back sobs. "The doctor said after the surgery, with proper rest, I could live another fifteen or twenty years with no problem."

Jiang Yu was shocked—this meant Fu Xianghong’s illness wasn’t as hopeless as everyone had imagined.

She distinctly remembered that in her dream, Fu Xianghong had died within these two years, likely because she couldn’t afford treatment and was left to deteriorate.

"If that’s the case, why are you crying?"

"Boo-hoo-hoo~ Boo-hoo-hoo~ Boo~"

Fu Xianghong wailed like an ambulance siren, with a weird rhythm that sent shivers down the spines of Jiang Yu and the others.

Even their sympathy had limits with this performance.

He Lilan hugged herself, unnerved. "Sister Xiang Hong, please stop crying. You’re freaking me out."

Fu Xianghong: "..."

The moment she opened her mouth, tears streamed down uncontrollably.

"I went home tonight to see my two children."

As soon as she said this, Jiang Yu understood.

She must have seen Zhang Chunhua and Liu Dagui being all lovey-dovey and gotten upset.

"What did you see?" He Feiyan asked.

Fu Xianghong covered her mouth and sobbed loudly. "Liu Dagui has no shame! I’m not even dead yet, and he’s already looking for the next woman—he even brought her home to live with him! He could’ve picked anyone, but how could he choose Zhang Chunhua? She’s a known flirt, and she’s his own sister-in-law!"

Why did Liu Dayong divorce Zhang Chunhua in the first place? It was because of her rotten morals.

No sooner had she been thrown out of the Liu household than Liu Dagui let her move right back in.

Just thinking about it made Fu Xianghong’s cheeks burn with humiliation.

"All these years, I've devoted myself to him at home, taken care of his parents, and carried on the Liu family line. Now that I'm sick, they all can't wait for me to die. It breaks my heart!"

Once Fu Xianghong started talking, it was like a broken faucet—just kept running.

She repeated the same words over and over, each word dripping with complaint about how heartless Liu Dagui was.

After venting about her in-laws, she began complaining about how Lin Hongxia treated her poorly.

She even blamed the heavens themselves.

Jiang Yu could naturally understand her suffering, but there was no point in complaining.

"Sister Xianghong, what do you plan to do now?"

Fu Xianghong trailed off, and she looked at her helplessly.

"What can I do?"

Jiang Yu sighed. "Liu Dagui could do something like this while you're sick—it shows he’s unreliable. Haven’t you ever thought about leaving him?"

Fu Xianghong’s voice turned sharp. "Leave? Over my dead body! After devoting myself to this man all these years, just to hand him over to Zhang Chunhua? Never!"

He Feiyan gaped in disbelief when she heard this.

"If you divorce, you won’t have to wait on him or his parents anymore. Isn’t that better?"

Fu Xianghong, who had just been complaining about them, now couldn’t help but defend them upon hearing He Feiyan’s words.

"Feiyan, it’s a woman's duty to serve her husband and in-laws. That attitude of your sister-in-law's—you mustn’t learn from her. I’ve already made up my mind. Once I recover, I’m going back. I refuse to believe Zhang Chunhua could be as considerate as me. Given time, Liu Dagui will remember how good I was to him."

Let Zhang Chunhua wait on Liu Dagui for a while—once he compares, he’ll realize how good I was.

He Feiyan. It made her blood boil.

She regretted even trying to persuade her—it was infuriating.

Jiang Yu had always known the saying, "You can't reason someone out of something they weren't reasoned into." Now that she understood Fu Xianghong’s choice, she saw no point in arguing.

Her eyes flashed with sarcasm. "In that case, Sister Xianghong, you should take care of yourself. Only by recovering can you take care of your husband for a long time."

Fu Xianghong thought of her illness, and her face fell again.

"I know. It’s just that seeing Zhang Chunhua today made me upset. Now that I’ve talked to you all, I feel much better."

He Feiyan pursed her lips in frustration. *You feel better—I’m the one suffering now.*

Watching Fu Xianghong enter the courtyard, He Lilan muttered, "Why must women exist just to serve men?"

He Feiyan snapped. "Why do you remember nonsense like this? You don’t even memorize things this well when you study!"

He Lilan sulked. "I’m just curious! Sister Xianghong is sick. The man she served for years won’t pay for her treatment or even visit her. Why does she still want to serve him? Is he the Emperor of Heaven himself?"

Jiang Yu gave a wry smile. "We can’t control others—only ourselves. Lilan, you and your brother are the same. Focus on your studies. Whether you choose family life or a career later, the most important thing is your own happiness. Feiyan, the same goes for you—your happiness comes first."

He Feiyan tilted her head. "Sister-in-law, what if you want to work but no one helps take care of the kids?"

Jiang Yu lifted her chin, her tone firm. "Your eldest brother would never put me in that position. If I couldn’t bear to give up my career but reality demanded sacrifice, then perhaps we shouldn't have children."