Of course, I knew what my wife was up to; it was all about that compensation money from the demolition.
Just now, we left the dinner table on bad terms, and now she's attempting to seduce me with all her coquettish moves.
Does she think I'm that easily fooled?
Even in the past, my compliance with her wasn't driven by a desire for her body; it was more about my love for her. Moreover, now that she's been unfaithful, these tactics have no effect on me.
However, if we're going to play a role, let's make it convincing. That way, she'll lower her guard.
I forcefully pushed her onto the bed and pressed her down.
She played coy, undressing me and saying, "Darling, take it easy. Don't hurt me."
Honestly, despite being married to my wife for so long, whenever she spoke to me in that tone, I couldn't resist. She was just too tempting.
Yet, now I had no inclination for her, as a voice in my head constantly reminded me of her infidelity.
Soon, my shirt was off, and when she reached for my pants, I stopped her.
She looked at me oddly, her face flushed, and asked, "Darling, what are you doing?"
I turned away, sat on the edge of the bed, lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and then said, "I'm too tired today. You go ahead and sleep."
Undeterred, she continued to seduce me, saying, "Come on, we haven't been intimate for so long. Don't you want it? If you're tired, I can be on top."
"Let's talk about it tomorrow!" I said, pushing her hand away.
Realizing my lack of interest, she switched gears and said, "If you don't want that, let's talk about something else."
I remained silent, but I already knew what she wanted to discuss.
"It's about my brother. You know, he's 32 this year. Finally, our relatives introduced a girlfriend to him. She doesn't mind that he's been to jail, but he must buy a house for them."
After a slight pause, she continued, "I think it's normal. Having a house can bring stability. But you know my parents, they don't have much money. As their younger sister, I want to help. What do you think?"
She looked at me expectantly.
Unfortunately, she was going to be disappointed.
In the past, I would have helped, as a hundred and eighty thousand wasn't a big deal back then.
But now, even if I had the money, I wouldn't do it, absolutely not.
However, I didn't want to be harsh, so I changed my tone and said, "I'll consider your brother's situation. Tomorrow, I'll visit our hometown."
After saying that, I walked outside. I really didn't want to share a bed with this woman; it would give me nightmares.
She didn't call me back. Probably, she thought I was going to wash up. Instead, I went to sleep on the sofa.
The next morning, I bought a bus ticket to go back to my hometown. It's a bit far, and there's only a bus.
Having not slept well last night, I quickly fell asleep on the bus.
It was a shaky journey of over six hours.
By 1:30 pm, I finally arrived in my hometown.
Thanks to me investing in road repairs before my bankruptcy, it was now only about half an hour's drive to the county seat.
Back in those days, I was quite influential!
Every time I returned to my village, it was like a superstar entering, and even the village head would come to welcome me.
Now, it's different.
Not only was there no one to welcome me, but the monument erected at the village entrance to thank me for the road construction had disappeared.
How things change!
Now that I've fallen on hard times, everything is gone. Even the merit I once had is now nothing.
Of course, I don't care about these superficial things; it just makes me a little uncomfortable.
I also don't know what's going on in the village recently. As soon as I arrived at the village entrance, I saw many people gathering in front of the village committee. People of all ages from the whole village were there.
I didn't pay much attention and didn't want them to notice me. Keeping my head down, I quickly walked towards home.
Just as I reached the doorstep, I heard a woman's voice in the yard scolding angrily, "Keilee, I'm telling you, if you don't compensate me for these three chickens today, we're not done!"
Keilee is my mom's name. Who is scolding her?
I quickened my pace, pushed open the wooden door at the yard entrance, and saw a stout middle-aged woman standing in front of my mom, exuding anger.
This woman was none other than my third aunt, my dad's sister.
Third aunt was at least a head taller than my mom and weighed probably twice as much. My mom standing in front of her looked very small.
I didn't know what had happened, but there were three dead chickens on the ground, looking like they had been dead for a while.
My mom sounded anxious as she said, "I really didn't use pesticides. My legs are not convenient for farm work in the mountains. Your chickens didn't die because of me."
Third aunt roared at my mom, full of rage, "You're still trying to deny it! Everyone saw you using pesticides in the mountains. The chickens died because of your pesticides. Stop talking nonsense. If you don't pay, I'll go to the village committee and have the village head reason with you."
My mom was so anxious that she stomped her feet. I believed she hadn't used pesticides; her legs indeed couldn't reach the mountains.
She was being framed, and my third aunt was an unreasonable person, well-known for her irrationality in the village.
If I hadn't come back today, I'm afraid my mom would have been taken advantage of again. But now that I've seen it, I won't be as easygoing as my mom.
I walked quickly, spoke up, and said, "You say it's my mom who used pesticides. Did you see it? Also, did you see your chickens eat the vegetables from our land? Without evidence, stop making baseless accusations here!"