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Hearing Zhou Weihai’s words, which could either be a compliment or a release of his own frustrations, the men’s faces all turned dark.
"Can still give birth!" Xie Jingwen exclaimed right after, his voice tinged with envy.
The comment left the faces of several men as dark as before, albeit now flushed to the color of pig liver.
Xie Jingwen wasn’t young anymore, but he and his wife had been trying for many years without success to conceive a child.
Pushed to the limit by his elderly mother, it wasn’t until four years ago that the couple reluctantly went to the hospital for a check-up together. They found out that both had issues.
He had some kind of congenital low vitality, while his wife had a bit of a cold womb.
After more than ten years of marriage, they were still childless, and nothing pained them more than the sight of other families with their lively children.
Now at thirty-five, the idea of adopting a child didn’t sit well with him, and yet, he and his wife hadn’t given up hope and were looking for ways to cure their ailments.
Naturally, they were the most envious of Yan Jinsu giving birth to twins, a boy, and a girl!
They had heard that a new company in their province had developed a type of medicine that could help women conceive more easily. Although not pricey per se, the medicine had to be taken for at least a month, which did add up to a substantial amount when the total cost was considered.
"Enough," Xie Jingqiang, irritated, glared at his younger brother and muttered in a low voice:
"Jingwen, don’t get too ahead of yourself. Whether it’s a boy or a girl, as long as it’s your child, that’s what counts! Hurry up and buy it to try. If you’re short on money, tell me how much you need."
This was his blood brother, after all. If there was no child to carry on the family line, wouldn’t he have to adopt out one of his own? If it really came to that, his wife would be beside herself with anger! Besides, all of his children were grown now, and adopting out would just harm the relationships.
Seeing that the situation had mostly calmed down and convinced that the Wild Wolf wouldn’t return, and with the added precaution of having lit fires at the trailhead near the mountain, the whole of Qingfeng Village lit up bright.
As darkness deepened, the exhausted group slowly made their way back to the village committee building.
After the scare of being surrounded by a Wild Wolf, who could go home and sleep in peace?
Still, thinking of the family members at home, worried and frightened, each man still made a point to stop by his home before returning to the village committee.
Upon arriving home, Zhou Weihai saw his old wife and young daughter attending to Zhou Guoqing’s wounds.
Except for the shorts tied around his waist, his entire lower body was exposed. Though his back was unscathed, both his arms and thighs were slashed several times, which made his father swear angrily at the sight of his son in such a state:
"You rascal, look at the trouble you’ve gotten yourself into, almost losing your life and dragging others’ children into it as well! Why did you hide? Now not only have you lost your face, but I’ve lost mine too, and you still look excited about it. Do you want to get in trouble again?"
His wife didn’t see, but he sure did – if it wasn’t for Xie Jingchen’s wife’s quick reaction, their son wouldn’t just be in danger of dying, he could’ve lost half his life! The shock and panic made him tremble!
Mrs. Zhou couldn’t bear to see her youngest son looking so despondent, so she waved her hand, directing her husband to leave quickly: "Fine, both your son and I have become a nuisance to you. Now that there’s nothing wrong at home, if there’s still something to do in the village, then go quickly, don’t be a bother!"
Seeing this, Zhou Weihai sighed, shook his head in resignation, admitting defeat against his wife, and left for the village committee meeting with one last stern look at his youngest son.
Now at home, there were only two children left, each tucked under his wife’s wings like chicks. He really had no standing now!
After Yan Jinsu returned, she updated her sister-in-law on the situation. Her sister-in-law, a woman alone, didn’t dare to sleep in the east wing and had to sit in the main hall dozing off at the table with her family.
Upon seeing this, Yan Jinsu thought it was almost better not to sleep. Since she was courageous and afraid of nothing at night, she decided to investigate this Wild Wolf matter.
It was already eleven o’clock at night. After telling her dad, she said she would go check on the west wing and, if nothing was amiss, she would go straight to sleep in her own room, leaving the kids to sleep here.
Her dad wanted to stop her but knew his Third Son’s Wife always had her own strong opinions, and she wouldn’t listen to him. Moreover, she left the children behind and went back by herself, which was also to avoid any suspicions.
Lin Xiaofen, after getting frightened and hearing that there was nothing wrong, found a long bench, sat down, and managed to fall asleep in minutes.
Inside, the children were all huddled together sleeping, with only Zhou Xiuhua’s arms holding Xiaojiu and Xiao Shi. There was an empty spot next to them, clearly reserved for the old man to sleep.
There was his eldest daughter-in-law outside, so Xie Tiesheng didn’t think it proper to sit outside. It was better to just make do for the night. There would definitely be a big village meeting tomorrow, and he needed his rest to have the energy for it.
Thinking thus, Xie Tiesheng soon fell asleep...
Yan Jinsu made sure everyone in the house was tucked in, then firmly locked the front door to prevent any wild beasts from breaking in. She quickly changed into black clothes and swiftly melted into the night.
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