I Became Rich by Eating Melons in the Era of Literature (1970s)

　　Jiang Youtao and the others didn't know what was going on, but they ran after them, and Zhao Yonglan followed as well.

　　All the male educated youth except Zhou Zhenfeng also followed.

　　Wang Shanxi asked again, and Li Yunying was about to cry: "Six years ago, the last time I went to see Wang Yuan, we had a big fight. When I was leaving, she softened her temper and said that if something happened to her one day, she would ask someone to tell me to go see her no matter what."

　　Over the years, Wang Yuan never asked anyone to pass a message to her. They would only meet in the commune on rainy days or on market days every month. Sometimes they didn't even say a word to each other, but they felt at ease just by seeing each other.

　　And every time they met, she brought her three daughters with her. Jiang Youtao said that when she met Wang Yuan this morning, she brought the younger one with her. What about the two older ones?

　　Wang Shanxi's expression also became solemn: "Let's hurry up." The two of them started running, and Jiang Youtao and others followed them.

　　The Zhang family that Wang Yuan married into lived in the Zhangjia Village brigade next door, which was relatively close to the commune. One could reach it by walking through the fields between the two villages.

　　There were no educated youth in the Zhangjia Village Brigade. As soon as Jiang Youtao and her companions entered the village, they attracted a lot of attention. Jiang Youtao and Gu Nianwei lagged behind by a few steps and took a short breath. An old lady who looked to be in very good health caught up with them.

　　"Where are you going? Are you going to Zhang Xingzhu's house?" The old lady looked to be in her fifties or sixties, but her steps were very fast.

　　Jiang Youtao said: "If his family has a son named Zhang Zhihui, then that's it."

　　The old lady clapped her hands and said, "That's right, that's right. You are friends of the third daughter-in-law of Zhang Xingzhu's family, right? Are you all educated youth? Oh, I was wondering why you didn't come a few days ago. The Zhang Xingzhu family is really wicked. The fourth and fifth sons of Zhang Xingzhu's family have never been able to marry. A few days ago, they heard from somewhere that the fourth and fifth sons couldn't marry because of the three daughters of the third son's family."

　　"Zhang Xingzhu's old woman took advantage of the situation and sent the two children to Houliang Gang in the back mountain. There were wolves in Houliang Gang. When his third daughter-in-law came back and found out, she only found the children's torn clothes."

　　The old lady had a look of compassion on her face. Jiang Youtao and Gu Nianwei stopped walking, as did Wang Shanxi and Li Yunying. After the old lady finished speaking, Li Yunying's legs went weak and she was about to fall to the ground, but Wang Shanxi supported her.

　　Zhao Yonglan had never heard of such a horrifying thing, her face turned pale: "Beast, beast, how could there be such a beast."

　　Jiang Youtao took out a few candies from her pocket and stuffed them into the old lady's big hands: "Auntie, are there any children in our village who know the way to the commune? Could you please help us go to the commune police station to report the case? We will reward you handsomely after the matter is completed."

　　Seeing them like this, the old lady sighed and said to Jiang Youtao, "Girl, I am telling you this because I feel sorry for the third daughter-in-law, but we will never report it to the police. Our village is different from other villages. We are all surnamed Zhang. Going back three generations, we all have the same ancestor. You can go by yourselves. I don't want this candy. Give it to the third daughter-in-law to sweeten her mouth. God has mercy on her. She is so pitiful."

　　The old lady sighed and left. Liu Yingjun said, "I have practiced sprinting in school. I will go. You try to delay as much as possible."

　　After Liu Yingjun finished speaking, he ran away. It only took ten minutes to run from Zhangjia Village to the commune.

　　But in Zhangjia Village, which is so close to the commune, a girl was thrown into the mountains to be eaten by wolves. And even after a long time, no news of the incident spread. What a terrible clan concept, what a terrible clan village!

　　Jiang Youtao held Gu Nianwei's hand tightly, and they looked around together.

　　Many people from Zhangjia Village were standing on both sides of the road. They looked at them expressionlessly. Jiang Youtao suddenly felt that this village was like a giant beast that swallowed people.

　　Gu Nianwei patted Jiang Youtao's hand and told her not to be afraid.

　　The people from Zhangjia Village saw Jiang Youtao and others looking at them, and a middle-aged man with more say said, "You can go ahead. We in Zhangjia Village still have conscience."

　　The behavior of Zhang Xingzhu's family has angered the people of Zhangjia Village. How difficult is it to find a wife these days? If the cancer of Zhangjia Village is not removed, which woman will be willing to marry in Zhangjia Village? Who can guarantee that the child they give birth to will be a son? Who is not afraid that the daughter they give birth to will be thrown away in such a ridiculous name?

　　Jiang Youtao and the others didn't say anything, but just quickened their pace towards Zhang Zhihui's house.

　　Li Yunying had been to Zhang Zhihui's house before, so she led the way.

　　The door of Zhang Zhihui's house was closed tightly. Everyone's faces looked even uglier, and a bad premonition loomed in their hearts.

　　You know, in the countryside, no one usually closes the yard door during the day.

　　Li Yunying took a deep breath and pushed open the door.

　　Wang Yuan was sitting in the yard wearing the same clothes she wore when she first went to the countryside. Li Yunying immediately remembered how Wang Yuan looked when she first met her.

　　That summer was very hot. Wang Yuan was wearing a goose yellow short-sleeved shirt. Her jet-black hair was braided into two braids hanging in front of her chest, with two red hairbands at the ends. She had big, round eyes, and two small dimples on her cheeks when she smiled.

　　She is one year younger than her and calls her Sister Yunying.

　　Now Wang Yuan is still wearing that dress, but it feels empty on her body and doesn't fit her at all, as if she is wearing someone else's clothes.

　　"Sister Yunying, you're here." Wang Yuan still called Li Yunying "Sister Yunying" as she did many years ago. Her expression was unexpectedly gentle: "I guessed that you would definitely come today. I changed into the clothes we wore when we just went to the countryside. Do they look good?"

　　Wang Yuan stood up and turned around. Li Yunying covered her mouth and nodded repeatedly. Wang Yuan smiled, and tears came down as she smiled: "Sister Yunying, I regret it so much. I should have listened to you and not been fooled by the sweet words of men. I often think that if I had listened to you, I would not have ended up like this today."

　　The child next to Wang Yuan tugged at her pants. Wang Yuan bent down and picked her up, kissed her cheek, and pointed at Li Yunying and said, "Shuning, this is your Aunt Yunying. Mom often told you this. Do you remember?"

　　Shu Ning looked at Wang Yuan, then at Li Yunying. Her confused look made people feel particularly pity for her.

　　Wang Yuan kissed her head, smiled and said in a gentle tone: "Go and let Aunt Yunying hug you, okay? Aunt Yunying has never hugged you before."

　　Wang Yuan put Shu Ning on the ground and pushed her towards Li Yunying. She was a very well-behaved and obedient child. She walked towards Li Yunying hesitantly and looked back at Wang Yuan. Wang Yuan kept looking at her with a smile and encouragement in her eyes.

　　She walked step by step to Li Yunying's side, and Li Yunying quickly bent down and picked her up: "Wang Yuan, what do you want to do?"

　　Not only Li Yunying, but even Jiang Youtao and the others noticed that something was wrong.

　　Wang Yuan changed from squatting to sitting, and when she looked up and spoke, she was panting, as if she had used up a lot of strength just now holding the child. Wang Yuan did not answer Li Yunying's words, but raised her head and told her about the past.

　　"I know. You must think I'm cruel. You came to see me with good intentions, so how could I be so heartless? Not only did I kick you out, but I also said a lot of unpleasant things. You must hate me. I know everything."

　　"But you didn't know at that time, did you? Zhang Zhihui's fourth brother has also reached the time to get married. I heard his family say that when you come next time, they will drug you and make it a done deal with his fourth brother. You are my best friend and sister. I have already entered the purgatory of the Zhang family, how can I drag you down with me?"

　　After getting married, Wang Yuan realized that the man who said sweet words to her and took her to look for beautiful flowers all over the mountains was actually very cold-hearted. He married her simply because he was old enough. She was young, spoiled by her family, and easy to deceive. She was also rich and educated.

　　The Zhang family is a man-eating beast. Zhang Zhihui's eldest brother and second brother's families are not easy to get along with. The two families fight overtly and covertly for a little bit of resources. She married into the family so that they could unite and fight against her together.

　　His two younger brothers were about the same age as her, and they always looked at her with lustful eyes. She told Zhang Zhihui and Zhang Zhihui did not blame his two younger brothers, but blamed her instead, saying that it was because she was too naive that they had bad intentions towards her.

　　She wanted to divorce, but Zhang Zhihui disagreed and used Li Yunying to threaten her, saying that if she divorced, he would go to Liushugou and destroy all the educated youth, and let them die with their marriages.

　　Wang Yuan knew that Zhang Zhihui could do this, he was a madman, and she was scared.

　　When her eldest daughter Boning was born and just came out of confinement, she heard Zhang Zhihui and his family plotting. Wang Yuan was shocked and scared. She would not and could not let Li Yunying enter the Zhang family.

　　Li Yunying thought about many reasons for Wang Yuan's change, but she had never thought of this reason. She looked at Wang Yuan in shock: "Why didn't you tell me?"

　　Wang Yuan still had that smile on her face: "If I tell you, will you leave me alone? I'm afraid that I'll get you involved."

　　"Sister Yunying, I have let down many people in my life. I am sorry to my parents. They spoiled me growing up, but for a man, I broke up with them. For so many years, I haven't even written them a letter. Sometimes it's not that I don't want to write, but I don't know what to say after I do."

　　"I feel sorry for my three daughters. I brought them into this world, but I never let them live a good life. They live worse than cattle and horses in this family. It's all my fault."

　　"The day they were sent to the mountains, I went to the fields because if I didn't go to earn work points, the four of us would starve to death. Not long after I went to the fields, someone came to tell me that they were sent to the mountains. I chased after them like crazy, but it was too late. Yunying, do you know that there is a valley on the back of the mountain with a lot of broken stones, and there are many wild wolves nearby, and many vultures flying in the sky."

　　"When I found the place, the gravel was dark red, and the pieces of their clothes were scattered around the gravel. The fabric for their clothes was the one you sent last year. It was a light red floral pattern. I made two dresses for them, and they loved them very much. They even said they wanted to thank Aunt Yunying in person."

　　"But when they really met you, they didn't dare to speak again. They were so shy. This personality is actually not like me at all." Wang Yuan covered her face with her hands, tears sliding from her fingertips.

　　Wang Shanxi and the others were all crying. Jiang Youtao lay on Gu Nianwei's shoulder, tears streaming down her face. The people from Zhangjia Village who came to watch the fun were also wiping their tears with their hands.

　　Li Yunying cried silently.

　　"Yunying, have you gone to the police?"

　　Li Yunying choked up and nodded: "He went. Liu Yingjun went. You haven't seen Liu Yingjun, right? He is an educated youth who went to the countryside this year."

　　"This name is really nice, but I wonder if Liu Yingjun is as handsome as his name." Wang Yuan wiped away her tears and chatted as if she was just chatting about family matters.

　　Li Yunying didn't dare to ask Zhang Zhihui and the others where they had gone, and Jiang Youtao and the others didn't dare to ask either. The people in Zhangjia Village guessed it, but no one said anything.

　　Wang Yuan sat there in a daze, and no one spoke. Obviously, this small yard was filled with many people, but it was so quiet that it seemed as if no one was there.

　　Liu Yingjun finally arrived with three policemen, and Yang, the section chief of the town's Youth Office, also arrived. They were in such a hurry that their hair was all messed up and they were breathing heavily.

　　Wang Yuan's eyes fell on Liu Yingjun, and she smiled and said to Li Yunying, "Sister Yunying, he is really as handsome as his name."

　　She no longer paid attention to Li Yunying's reply, but looked at the police officers, pointed at the door behind her and said, "Go in, the Zhang family is inside."

　　The three police officers looked at each other, their hearts sank, and they went to open the door with serious expressions.

　　The Zhang family was in the house, but they didn't make any noise at the arrival of so many people. They already had some bad guesses.

　　The door opened.

　　In the middle of the room was a round wooden table with food on it. More than twenty members of the Zhang family, big and small, were sitting around the table, spreading out horizontally and vertically, filling the entire room.

　　There was still white foam at the corners of their mouths. Several of them had been stabbed many times. Blood was flowing from their bodies to the door. There was a pile of ashes next to the door, which had been soaked with blood. The room was filled with a strong smell of blood.

　　The older policeman squatted down and put his hand on the neck of the person closest to him, then shook his head at the others: "There is no breath."

　　Everyone's eyes were on Wang Yuan, and some of the timid ones took several steps back.

　　Wang Yuan still maintained the same posture while sitting on the doorstep, her expression showing relief.

　　"At noon today, the whole family asked me to cook. While I was cooking, they scolded me. Old lady Zhang said I was a money-loser and a slut, and that my three daughters were also money-losers and were the jinx that prevented her fourth and fifth sons from getting married."

　　"She said that they should have been drowned at birth, and that letting them live for a few years was already a result of her kindness. She also told me to give the third child to her. Only if the third child was thrown into the back beam, her fourth and fifth children could get married."

　　"She also said that I was still young and could have more children. Anyway, they were just three money-losing children. If they died, they died. It was their honor to be able to make some contribution to the family. My husband said nothing about this. When his mother asked him what he thought, he said he would do whatever his mother wanted."

　　"His fourth brother said it was all my fault. If I hadn't stopped him at that time, he would have had a wife long ago. His fifth brother said if they couldn't find a wife, let me give birth to their children. My husband agreed."

　　"Don't you think it's ridiculous? In a civilized society, there is actually such a family. You must have asked, they deserved it, so why did Zhang's first wife and Zhang' second wife also have to die?"

　　"Because my daughter was thrown into the Houliang Gang to feed the wolves. It was their wives who suggested it. My Boning and Zhongning clearly did not offend them, but they wanted them to die. Tell me, what are such vicious people doing in this world? Since they killed my child, their children should also be buried with my child. Isn't this fair?"

　　Wang Yuan's face was filled with madness. When she mentioned her two daughters, she finally burst into tears: "My Boning, my Zhongning, my mother's heart aches so much, so much."

　　The police officers didn't say anything, but there were cries coming from all around.

　　After killing so many people, Wang Yuan didn't think of running away, nor did she want to live. When no one was paying attention, she took out a packet of medicine powder, poured it into her mouth, swallowed it, and took out a candy from her pocket.

　　That was what Jiang Youtao gave her in the morning, and now she was using it to suppress the bitter taste of the rat poison.

　　She chewed the candy, looked at Jiang Youtao and smiled: "Thank you for the candy, it's very sweet."

　　Wang Yuan's life was too bitter. She hadn't tasted sweetness for a long, long time.

　　On her way back from the commune in the morning, she put a candy in her mouth, and the sweetness went from the tip of her tongue into her heart. But she didn't intend to stop, she just looked at her Shu Ning and decided not to let Shu Ning take the medicine.

　　Her daughter has never tasted sweetness since she was born. Her sisters have already passed away, but she shouldn't have passed away so early. She is still so young and has not seen the vastness and colorfulness of this world.

　　She looked at Li Yunying and said, "Sister Yunying, in my life, I have only asked you for one thing, which is that when I ask someone to speak for you, you can come and see me. Now I want to ask you for the second thing, which is that you can send a telegram to my parents and ask them to take Shuning away. My parents will take good care of her, but before they come, please help me take care of Shuning for a few days."

　　Li Yunying stuffed Shu Ning into Wang Shanxi's arms and ran over to pull her: "Don't say that, come on, I'll take you to the clinic. Let's spit out the medicine quickly, and you take care of your child yourself. She is still so young, how can you bear to leave like that."

　　A path automatically separated from the crowd.

　　Wang Yuan followed her and said, "It's no use. I took the medicine once before you came. I'm afraid the medicine has already entered my internal organs and there's no hope. Sister Yunying, you're the person I trust the most. Promise me, okay?"

　　Wang Yuan fell to the ground, and her nose and gums began to bleed. Li Yunying tried to wipe them with her hands and clothes, but she could never wipe them clean.

　　Wang Yuan stared at Li Yunying, who nodded while crying. Wang Yuan smiled and turned to look at Shuning in Wang Shanxi's arms. Shuning was frightened by the sudden change and was crying loudly. Wang Shanxi was trying to coax her in a panic.

　　Wang Yuan had a gentle smile on her face.

　　My Shu Ning, when you grow up, don't be like your mother and believe in the sweet words of men. It's like coptis wrapped in sugar. After the thin layer of sugar is eaten, what's left is bitterness.

　　My dear Shu Ning, I hope you will have peace, happiness, health and joy in your life.