Reborn in the 1970s — Married a Proud Rough Man

”What did you hear?” someone asked, playing along.

”The daughter-in-law of the Li Family at the Mechanical Factory drank pesticide,” an older woman said.

”The Mechanical Factory? Which Li Family’s daughter-in-law?” someone asked.

”My daughter-in-law works at the Mechanical Factory. She came back and told me about it yesterday. It’s *that* Li Family, the one whose daughter-in-law works at the state-owned restaurant,” the older woman said.

”Oh, are you talking about Liu Guanfu’s maiden family?” another woman asked.

”Yes, yes, that’s it! Liu Guanfu’s maiden family.” The older woman had been discreet just a moment ago, but now she wasn’t holding back at all. ”My daughter-in-law said she drank a whole bottle. Her family tried to make her vomit, and she threw up a lot, but she still died. It was a gruesome death.”

”Life is getting better these days. Why couldn’t she see that?” someone asked in confusion.

”Who knows what she was thinking? Her whole family works at the Mechanical Factory, and she had a job too, at the state-owned restaurant. A cushy job, at that. But she drank pesticide and died. A pity, such a pity,” someone said with regret.

”My daughter-in-law said it was because she had argued with her mother-in-law and gotten beaten by her husband. She had a fiery temper and refused to put up with any slight, so she started a fight with her husband right in front of her in-laws. In the end, her in-laws and husband beat her brutally. Being so hot-headed, she couldn’t take it and grabbed the pesticide and drank it in a fit of rage. Her in-laws and husband just watched her, stunned on the spot. By the time they snapped out of it and rushed to grab the bottle, she had already drunk the whole thing,” the older woman said.

”Sigh!” someone lamented.

Qin Mei stood behind them, listening quietly.

The older woman continued, ”My daughter-in-law said that when the woman’s family heard the terrible news about their daughter, they showed up at their door. They caused a huge ruckus at her wake, even smashing the memorial altar. It got so bad that the neighborhood committee, Director Jie, and the patrol team were all called in.”

”What? It got that big?” someone said, shocked.

”What happened then? How was it resolved?” someone asked.

”How else could it be resolved? Their daughter was dead, so of course, it was about compensation. And her own family... they knew she wasn’t getting along with her in-laws but never once stepped up to support her. They had to wait for a tragedy to happen before showing up to demand justice. What good is justice when the person is already dead? If my daughter was being bullied by her in-laws, I’d turn their whole house upside down,” the older woman said, filled with righteous indignation.

”In the next alley, a few days ago, a young wife also drank pesticide. She didn’t drink much and was saved by Doctor Qiao.”

”I went back to my parents’ home yesterday and heard from my sister-in-law that in their compound, someone also drank pesticide. They couldn’t save her; she died on the way to the hospital.”

”At least we in the city know to send them to the hospital. When a young wife in the countryside drinks pesticide, they don’t even bother. They just watch with wide eyes, waiting for you to die. After you’re dead, they don’t even set up a memorial. They just wrap you in a straw mat, dig a hole, and bury you.”

”Yes, yes, it’s the same in my relative’s village.”

”And another thing...”

Qin Mei was listening with great interest, so much so that she didn’t notice someone approaching.

”Why drink the pesticide herself? Why not give it to her in-laws? If you’re not afraid to die, why be afraid of poisoning their whole family? If it were me, I’d definitely drag the entire family down with me as company. That way, I wouldn’t be lonely on the Yellow Springs Road,” Qin Mei couldn’t help but interject.

”...” The crowd all turned to look at Qin Mei.

’First glance, this girl is really pretty. Second glance, this girl looks a little familiar. Third glance, isn’t this Doctor Qiao’s daughter-in-law?’

This conversation had taken a turn... Standing behind Qin Mei, her in-laws were trembling.

Grandpa, Granny, Xu Chunyan holding Jie You’s hand, along with Jie Jingchen and Jie Jingjue.

The crowd’s gaze on Qin Mei shifted from horror to concern. Qin Mei didn’t understand and wasn’t shy about asking, ”What? Was I wrong?”

”...” The crowd said nothing, just looked behind Qin Mei.

Only then did Qin Mei belatedly turn around. Seeing the people standing behind her, she froze, utterly dumbfounded. It was a scene of pure social death!

’How long have they been standing behind me?’ she wondered. She had been so engrossed in listening that she hadn’t even noticed anyone approach.

She recalled what she had said. ”If it were me, I’d definitely drag the entire family down with me as company. That way, I wouldn’t be lonely on the Yellow Springs Road.”

She wasn’t just bad-mouthing her in-laws; she was talking about killing them.

”Haha.” Qin Mei gave an awkward laugh. Her guilty gaze shifted from Grandpa and the others to Jie Jingchen. She wanted to explain, but it felt futile. The words were already out. Could she really have the nerve to deny it?

Except for Jie Jingchen, who remained perfectly calm, the expressions on everyone else’s faces were priceless.

With Granny’s personality, hearing Qin Mei talk about dragging their whole family down with her, she should have at least cursed her out a few times. But to Qin Mei’s surprise, Granny said nothing at all. She just took Grandpa’s hand and turned to go home.