Chapter 664: He Has to Take Responsibility for Me!

Chapter 664 He'd Better Step Up!

Before long, Old Lady Qian put the matter behind her.

She'd almost forgotten—she missed the last episode last night and had no idea what happened.

She had to hurry out and ask around.

Of all people, she ran into Xu Lihua while asking.

Xu Lihua laughed and started taunting her.

"Just the other day, someone was badmouthing, 'What kind of trash drama is Jiang Yu writing? It’s not good at all! Anyone who watches it will regret it!'"

"And now what are you doing? Sneaking around to ask, scared someone’ll catch you."

Thankfully, Old Lady Qian was dark-skinned, or her face would’ve turned beet red.

She shot Xu Lihua a furious glare, burning with shame and anger. "So what if I watched it? Who says I can’t watch this show?!"

Xu Lihua curled her lip. "If you want to watch it, then watch it openly. Biting the hand that feeds you—people like you are something else."

As Old Lady Qian lunged at her, the bystanders quickly intervened.

"Take it easy, Old Xu."

"It’s just a show—don’t blow a gasket."

"Old Qian, if the Fus won’t share their TV, just go to Jiang Yu’s house to watch."

Old Lady Qian turned her face away with a huff. "Like I’d watch at her place! I’ll just have my son buy a TV, and I’ll watch at home!"

Just then, Jiang Yu overheard and quipped, "Then tell Deng to hurry up and get one. If he waits any longer, the drama will be over. Watch at home, and you won’t have to go around asking about the plot."

Old Lady Qian flushed hot with embarrassment, but she stubbornly retorted, "Even if my family buys a TV, I won’t watch your show!"

Jiang Yu shrugged indifferently. "Talk to me when you’ve got a TV."

With that, she ignored Old Lady Qian and walked straight out of the alley.

At the factory, Zhao Yuehong was waiting at the gate to confront her.

"I want to see Wu Jinshun! Get him out here!"

Jiang Yu replied bluntly, "If you want to see him, go to his house. Don’t cause a scene at work."

Zhao Yuehong went pale, and she clutched at Jiang Yu’s sleeve.

"If I could find him, I wouldn’t be here blocking you. He’s been staying in the dormitory, not even going home. I can’t even talk to him."

Jiang Yu brushed her hand away, annoyed. "If he refuses to see you, you should know his stance. Why keep hounding him?"

Zhao Yuehong stomped her foot hard. "I want to divorce Zhang Datou, but he’s demanding I pay him back—and I don’t have the money."

Zhang Datou said she could either repay him or bear him a son.

Zhao Yuehong was barren—everyone knew that.

"I left Zhang Datou for him—he owes me!"

Jiang Yu's temples throbbed twice—those words made her sick to hear.

"Then which man did you divorce Wu Jinshun for? So Wu Jinshun was just your fallback guy, waiting to pick up the pieces after you'd had your fun out there?"

Zhao Yuehong’s face burned with shame, flushing red then pale.

She ducked her head, shamefaced, clutching her sleeves.

"We're all women. People climb upward—women always marry up. If you hadn't chosen Section Chief He back then, what ability did you have to stay in the city? Everything you have now—didn’t you get it all by clinging to men?"

Dealing with someone like this, Jiang Yu just thought they weren’t on the same page. She turned to leave when He Tingyue cut in.

"Who told you my wife got all this because of me?"

Zhao Yuehong wasn’t afraid of Jiang Yu because she was a young woman.

But He Tingyue had an imposing presence that made her flustered just meeting his gaze.

"She got into Factory No. 2 on her own merit. Every step she took to get here is clear as day. If you’ve got a problem, take it up with the factory instead of badmouthing her here."

Zhao Yuehong stumbled back two steps, panicked.

"Section Chief He, I... I didn’t mean it like that."

He Tingyue was about to say more, but Jiang Yu stopped him.

"Let her be. Let’s go."

They hadn’t gone far when they heard a furious shout.

"You trying to be the death of me? I got up at dawn to boil your medicine, and you slunk off without a peep! Come home with me now—the medicine’s no good cold!"

Zhao Yuehong was being dragged away, her face screwed up in disgust.

"I’m not going back! I already told you, I want a divorce from Zhang Datou! When I married him, I said my health’s no good—I can’t have kids. I ain’t swallowing that swill!"

The speaker was her current mother-in-law, Old Lady Zhang.

Zhang Datou was her only son, and she’d worn herself ragged fretting over his wedding.

After finally marrying him off, Zhao Yuehong went and made a mess.

"I know your health’s no good, which is why I’ve been trying everything to help you recover. Yuehong, listen to me—stop thinking about divorce. My Datou has been more than good to you!"

Zhao Yuehong pushed her off, scowling.

"Shut your trap. My business with Zhang Datou is none of your concern, and I won’t take any damn medicine!"

Old Lady Zhang let herself drop to the ground, howling and beating her thighs.

"My life’s nothing but misery! I finally saw my son get married, only to end up with a daughter-in-law like this! Yuehong, what exactly is wrong with my Datou? Tell me, and I’ll make him change, alright?"

"Before the wedding, you said you wanted your brother to get a job. Datou shelled out a fortune greasing palms to get your brother into the factory, and then you got him fired without so much as a heads-up. You’ve been two-timing and flighty, and Datou still put up with you! Why on earth do you still want a divorce?"

"Yuehong, I’m on my knees here—just stick with Datou! Deputy Section Chief Wu could be a damn minister—he’s still done with you!"

Old Lady Zhang’s howls could wake the dead, drawing a crowd in no time.

Hardly anyone at the Second State Cotton Mill didn't know about Zhao Yuehong's dirty laundry.

"Comrade Zhao Yuehong, it's not easy to find a man who genuinely cares for you these days. Quit stirring up drama."

"Don't take this the wrong way, but even if you drive Big Head [a nickname] away, do you think Deputy Section Chief Wu will remarry you?"

"Deputy Section Chief Wu has already made it clear—he won’t take you back. Give it up!"

"Big Head has been decent to you. You should be grateful, or you’ll end up with nothing at all."

Zhao Yuehong, completely broken, finally faced reality under everyone's persuasion.

Wu Jinshun was the man she had abandoned with her own hands—there was no way he’d go back to her.

Her heart sank with disappointment as she lowered her head and looked at Old Lady Zhang.

"I’ll go back with you."

Old Lady Zhang scrambled up from the ground, grabbed her hand warmly, holding no grudges.

"These medicines—I got them from Witch Zhu in Panjia Alley. They're supposed to work wonders, and they cost me a full five yuan! From now on, listen to me, take the medicine properly, get your health in order, and have a healthy baby boy. Live a good life with Big Head—isn’t that better than Wu Jinshun, stuck being a bachelor?"

Jiang Yu had been watching the scene unfold and was about to leave when she heard the name "Witch Zhu." She paused.

"How dare that Witch Zhu still sell medicine."

He Tingyue was puzzled. "What about her?"

He didn’t often chat with the old folks in the compound, so he wasn’t as well-informed as Jiang Yu.

As they walked, Jiang Yu explained.

"Last year, a newlywed woman in our residential compound was forced by her husband to take Witch Zhu’s medicine when she was newly pregnant. After two months, she lost the baby and was half-dead herself."

It shouldn’t have been so severe, but the family was superstitious. When signs of miscarriage appeared, they didn’t send her to the hospital—instead, they brought in Witch Zhu.

Witch Zhu wasn’t a doctor—what did she know about medicine?

After days of delay, the woman was bleeding heavily before they finally took her to the hospital.

The incident caused quite a stir, and Witch Zhu caught some heat.

But she was old and kept threatening to dash her brains out. In the end, they let it go, and she kept her head down for a while.

Who knew she’d dare to pull this scam again so soon?

"Now that we’re smashing the Four Olds [a Cultural Revolution campaign to destroy old ideas, culture, customs, and habits], people like her still spread feudal superstitions and brew these potions. It’s mostly women who suffer—we can’t just ignore it."

The fact that Witch Zhu dared to operate so openly showed how long the state had tolerated her.

He Tingyue nodded decisively. "I’ll have someone keep an eye on her and figure out how to handle her."