The Stepmother's Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era-Chapter 15 - Why can’t he come back if he’s gone to sea and not to a funeral
Chapter 15: Chapter 15 Why can’t he come back if he’s gone to sea and not to a funeral?
Chapter 15 -15 Why can’t he come back if he’s gone to sea and not to a funeral?
Dad’s going out to sea, and he’ll never come back!
He’s so useless, even living a whole other life he still couldn’t save Dad.
The more Pei Ziheng thought about it, the more anxious he became, and the more anxious he became, the sadder he felt; large tears fell one after another.
Initially a bit angry, Shen Mingzhu, upon seeing her stepson cry his eyes out, couldn’t stay mad anymore.
“Hey, don’t cry, okay?
I’m not even mad, and you’re crying?
Stop crying…”
With no experience in comforting children, Shen Mingzhu could only clumsily wipe the child’s tears with a handkerchief.
Pei Ziheng pushed her away and, with red eyes, started ranting at her, “Get away from me!
You bad woman, my dad’s never coming back!
It’s all your fault!
Wuu wuu wuu…”
“Tsk, Tsk, Tsk, don’t talk nonsense.
Your dad’s just gone out to sea, not to a funeral.
How could he not come back? ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom
He said on the phone that if everything goes smoothly, he’ll be back before the Spring Festival.”
What?
Pei Yang would be back for the Spring Festival?
On the verge of tears, Pei Ziheng stared blankly at Shen Mingzhu, “Really?
Did Dad really say he’ll be back for the Spring Festival?”
“Lying makes me a dog.”
Pei Ziheng hiccupped through his sobbing, and with his little head, he meticulously recalled the previous life—Pei Yang had his accident at the end of March the following year.
This year’s Spring Festival was at the end of January which meant that if this sea trip went smoothly, the accident would happen on the next one.
That meant he still had a chance.
As long as he could prevent Pei Yang from going out to sea the next time, he could change the outcome of Pei Yang’s untimely demise.
Pei Ziheng breathed a silent sigh of relief.
Shen Mingzhu also breathed a sigh of relief, relieved that he’d finally stopped crying.
He sure was difficult to soothe.
Pei Ziheng’s original plan was to gather enough money for the fare and then sneak off to Xicheng Port to find Pei Yang, but for a child not yet five years old, this was evidently fraught with difficulties, buying a ticket being one of them—who would sell a ticket to a kid under five?
Otherwise, should he ask that bad woman to take him?
If she agreed to take him to Xicheng Port, he might even consider not kicking her out.
“Can you take me to see my dad?”
To the request made by her stepson, Shen Mingzhu wasn’t the least bit surprised.
For a four- or five-year-old kid, it would be strange not to look for his dad.
“As long as you behave and don’t get into mischief, when the winter break comes, I can take you to where your dad works, and you can also greet him at the docks to give him a surprise.”
The condition Shen Mingzhu laid out was incredibly simple for Pei Ziheng.
“It’s a deal.
Whoever reneges will meet a bad end.”
“What’s this dying or living, you’re not allowed to say these things anymore.” After a pause, Shen Mingzhu teased him, “You can use idioms, too?
Who taught you that?”
“Grandma.”
Seeing Shen Mingzhu nod without suspicion, Pei Ziheng breathed another silent sigh of relief.
Bad woman, you better not be lying to me, otherwise I’ll show you what regret looks like.
——
After stepping out of the Civil Affairs Bureau with Zhou Shuhuan and looking at the bright red marriage certificate in her hand, Shen Baolan felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders, her anxious heart finally settled.
Now that the wedding was over and the marriage certificate issued, she was firmly tied to Zhou Shuhuan.
All she needed to do was wait patiently for a few years until Zhou Shuhuan made his fortune, then she could lead a good life.
The happier Shen Baolan thought about it, the more she realized there was still something missing.
Looking at her quiet husband beside her, Shen Baolan took the initiative to speak up, “Shuhuan, about the gift money we received today, is it going to be kept by mom?”
Zhou Shuhuan looked at her, “Baolan, in our family, it’s always been mom who calls the shots, and she is the one who manages the money.
Dad and I hand over our monthly wages to her, and you’ll do the same from now on.”
Although she was prepared, Shen Baolan’s heart still skipped a beat, “I have to turn it all in?
Can’t I save some of it myself?”
Zhou Shuhuan clearly hadn’t expected her to think this way and paused before speaking, “In the past, Xiaohao’s mom also turned her salary over to the family.”
This statement effectively pinned down the ambitious Shen Baolan.
Although she couldn’t compete with Zhou Shuhuan’s ex-wife in terms of family background or education, she was full of ambition—to be an even more virtuous daughter-in-law than Zhou Shuhuan’s ex-wife had been.
“Alright, I’ll listen to you, I’ll give it all to mom to keep safe.
It’s the same if mom helps us save,” she acquiesced.
Seeing his second wife so understanding, Zhou Shuhuan smiled too.
When they got home, the guests had already left.
Neighbors were helping clean up the tables, chairs, leftover food, wedding candies, and alcohol, among other things.
Shen Baolan, as the new bride, didn’t put on any airs and rolled up her sleeves to work diligently, earning high praise from the neighbors.
Everyone said that Shen Baolan was a good catch—virtuous and competent—making Ma Sufen beam with joy, her smile barely fitting her face.
By evening, after cleaning up, they noticed the grandson Zhou Hao was fussy for some reason, crying nonstop.
Ma Sufen was busy trying to soothe the child while Shen Baolan took it upon herself to cook.
There was plenty of leftover food from the wedding feast.
She reheated a few dishes and stored the rest in the fridge, which would be good for several more days.
While reheating the food, Shen Baolan marveled at city life, where cooking didn’t require lighting a fire but simply using gas, so clean and convenient, and water was available right from the tap—everything was wonderful.
Dinner was served quickly, and the family of five sat down to the meal.
Seeing her stepson refusing to open his mouth for the food that Ma Sufen was feeding him, Shen Baolan wanted to show her willingness, “Mom, let me do it.
You eat first.”
Ma Sufen was exhausted from trying to appease the child, so she was happy to let her daughter-in-law take over.
“Xiaohao, come on, open your mouth and eat.
If you eat up, you’ll grow tall…”
Confident, Shen Baolan scooped up a spoonful of food, only for the stepson to show no consideration by raising his hand and “smack”, overturning the bowl.
“Waah—”
Zhou Hao opened his mouth and burst into loud cries.
Shen Baolan, in panic, couldn’t soothe him after much effort, and Ma Sufen had to set aside her chopsticks and take her grandson to calm him.
Seeing her mother-in-law’s displeasure, Shen Baolan quickly grabbed a broom to clean the floor.
“Just know how to eat, not even offering to help with the child!”
Although her mother-in-law was shouting at her father-in-law, it made Shen Baolan, who had just picked up her bowl, feel extremely awkward, as if the complaint was a veiled criticism of her.
After an effort to finish the meal, Shen Baolan volunteered to clean up the kitchen and then boiled water for everyone to bathe.
By the time she returned to the bridal room, it was already 10 p.m.
Zhou Shuhuan was leaning against the headboard reading a book, which he closed and put on the bedside table when he saw her enter.
“Close the door,” he said.
“Oh.”
The room, filled with red, made Shen Baolan’s face blush.
With her eyes tightly closed, she let Zhou Shuhuan reach out to undo her collar when suddenly, from the next room, came the crying of Zhou Hao, who was calling out for “Mommy.”
Zhou Shuhuan, feeling helpless, said, “Wait for me a minute.
I’m going to check on Xiaohao,” and then he left.
Looking at the closed door, Shen Baolan bashfully covered her face.
The crying next door finally stopped.
Shen Baolan, both nervous and expectant, watched the door.
A minute passed.
Five minutes passed.
Left waiting, Shen Baolan couldn’t stay in bed any longer; she got dressed and went out to see what was happening.
Ma Sufen wore reading glasses and was sewing in the living room.
She glanced up when she saw her come out, “Shuhuan took Xiaohao to his mother’s place.”
On what was supposed to be a special wedding night, her husband was with his son at his ex-wife’s place; Shen Baolan felt utterly miserable but had to endure it.
It wasn’t until almost 1 a.m.
that Zhou Shuhuan came back.
After a day of commotion, he was thoroughly exhausted and had no energy left for their wedding night; he undressed and fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
Shen Baolan, who had been waiting the whole night, was hugely upset, but then she remembered that Shen Mingzhu hadn’t spent her wedding night with Pei Yang, and she felt slightly mollified.
