Chapter 4

Chapter 4 The villagers crowded around Liu Siyue as they escorted her to the entrance of the Liu Family home. Before Liu Siyue could step forward to knock, a warmhearted villager had already begun calling out, “Brother Dahu, open the door! Your daughter has come back!” When Liu Siyue’s mother, Huang Lanhua, heard that her daughter had returned, she assumed it was her eldest daughter. Grumbling curses under her breath, she opened the door and said, “You should stay in the mountains where you belong. Now you’ve come back to mooch off us again.” When the door opened, she saw that it was not her eldest daughter but a woman standing before her with a child in her arms. She did not recognize her at first and stood there in a daze for a while before finally asking, “Are you Siyue?” “Mother, I’m Siyue. Your daughter has come home.” Huang Lanhua’s expression immediately fell. “What did you come back for? We told you when you left that you were no longer a member of the Liu Family. Hurry back to the Lu Family. Don’t bring bad luck to this household.” “Mother, I only gave birth a few days ago, and the Lu Family divorced me. I have nowhere else to go. Mother, please let me come home.” “Did you do something to anger your In-laws' Family? Is that why they divorced you and sent you back?” “Mother, I didn’t.” “That’s impossible. You’re a divorced, unlucky wretch. Leave at once. Don’t bring your bad luck into our home.” “I’m telling you, give up any thought of returning home. Our family doesn’t raise idle eaters.” Liu Siyue immediately fell to her knees. “Mother, I’ll work hard once I’m home. I only ask that you give my daughter and me somewhere to stay.” “Get out of here! Don’t make me say anything worse. There’s a pregnant woman in this family. If she’s touched by your bad luck, the consequences will be grave.” “Madam Huang, Siyue is your daughter. She’s in trouble now. Even if you won’t let her come home, how can you speak to her this way?” A man’s voice came from behind Madam Huang. “You’re all such kind people. If you feel sorry for her, then take her into your own home!” That single sentence left everyone speechless. “What an unreasonable family!” the villagers grumbled angrily, but they were not about to miss such an entertaining spectacle. They wanted to see what the Liu Family would do with the girl. Another rough male voice came from inside the house. “Why waste your breath? Drive her away! You damned girl, are you even a member of the Liu Family? Why did you come running back? Whether you live or die has nothing to do with us!” “Father, Mother, Elder Brother, Second Brother, how can you be so heartless? Are you trying to force my daughter and me to our deaths? I’m your own daughter, your own younger sister!” “Don’t talk about being an own daughter or younger sister. A married woman who’s been divorced has the nerve to return to her Birth Family? You’re simply bringing shame on the Liu Family. How will the Liu Family’s children ever find spouses in the future? We can barely keep the legitimate grandchildren fed. How could we possibly have extra grain to feed an outsider?” “Elder Sister-in-law is absolutely right. Go back where you came from. Return to your husband’s family and admit your mistake. Perhaps they’ll take pity on you and let you stay.” As Liu Siyue looked at the two women speaking, she roughly guessed their identities from their conversation. They must be her two Sisters-in-law. When she had left home, her elder and second brothers had not yet married. Liu Dahu turned to the villagers. “Uncles and aunts, have you finished all the work in your fields? Have you fed the chickens at home? Standing around here won’t get any of it done for you. Hurry up and disperse. “Qingshan, close the door!” Liu Qingshan was Liu Siyue’s elder brother. As he slammed the door shut, he also closed off Liu Siyue’s last hope. She sank into complete despair. The road before her was utterly dark, and she no longer had the courage to go on living. She bowed toward the Liu Family and knocked her head against the ground three times. Then, holding the child, she walked step by step toward the village entrance. When she reached an Earthen Cliff near the edge of the village, she gazed at the place where she had grown up. The mountains rose and fell in the distance, and beside her stood the towering old locust tree. A smile spread across her face as she looked down at the infant in her arms. “Daughter, Mother is sorry. I brought you into this world, but I can’t protect you. If I leave you alone in this world, you won’t be able to survive either. It’s better if we go together. With Mother beside you, you won’t be so afraid.” As soon as the thought arose, the earth beneath her feet gave way. Her entire body rolled down the earthen slope of the cliff, and a passing villager happened to see it. “Oh no! Somebody come quickly! The Liu girl jumped off the cliff! Come save her!” Several villagers hurried over. They stood at the top and looked down, but none of them was willing to climb down, afraid they would become entangled in the matter and be unable to extricate themselves. Later, Liu Youtian and his son arrived and immediately went down to rescue her without a word. The Earthen Cliff was only seven or eight meters high, but it was quite steep, and the bottom was covered mostly in loose rocks and weeds. Several villagers, afraid they would not make it in time if they took the long way around, slowly gripped the small trees growing along the cliff and eased themselves down bit by bit. They saw that Liu Siyue’s head had struck a rock, and blood was still pouring from the wound. The child remained tightly clutched in her arms. Liu Shitou first took the child from Liu Siyue’s arms. The baby had been well protected and was unharmed. Liu Youtian quickly scooped up a handful of dirt from the ground, rubbed it between his hands, and smeared it directly over the wound. Then he carried Liu Siyue and hurried back to the village by the long route, with Liu Shitou following closely behind. They took her straight to Liu Dahu’s home. “Dahu, open the door! Siyue jumped off the cliff! Open the door!” Liu Shitou pounded on the door until it went bang, bang, bang, but there was no response from inside. The entire Liu Dahu family had heard them clearly. How could they dare make a sound, much less open the door? Liu Shitou turned to his father. “Father, what do we do if they won’t open the door?” “Shitou, go call a doctor. I’ll take Siyue to her Second Uncle’s home.” “Father, Uncle Dawang’s family is already struggling. Won’t taking her there just add to their burden?” “Stop talking nonsense and go! Do I need you to teach me what to do?” Liu Youtian hurriedly carried Liu Siyue toward Liu Dawang’s home. The two households were quite far apart, and by the time he arrived, he was drenched in sweat. The moment he entered, he called out, “Dawang, hurry! Your niece Siyue jumped off a cliff!” Hearing the voice, Liu Ruyun came out from the rear courtyard. “Uncle Youtian, what did you just say? Who’s the person you’re carrying?” “Ruyun, your Younger Cousin Sister Siyue jumped off a cliff and was injured. I’ve already sent Shitou to call a doctor.” Liu Ruyun took one look and realized it truly was her cousin. Although her appearance had changed considerably, she could still recognize her at a glance. “Uncle Youtian, hurry and put her on the bed.” Liu Ruyun’s mother, Feng Yuzhen, came trembling out with the aid of a crutch. “Yun’er, what happened? I heard you say something about Siyue?” “Mother, why did you come out? Hurry back inside and lie down. I’ll tell you in a moment. Don’t worry.” She helped her mother back to bed. Soon afterward, Liu Shitou arrived at the Liu Dawang household with Doctor Wu, pulling the doctor along at a brisk jog. He was so exhausted that he was gasping for breath. “Uncle Wu, hurry and examine Siyue.” Liu Ruyun watched Doctor Wu anxiously. Doctor Wu had already heard the general details from Liu Shitou on the way there. He first examined the external injury. The dirt on Liu Siyue’s forehead had been soaked through with blood and had clotted into a mass. Doctor Wu removed the clot. Fortunately, the bleeding from the wound had already stopped. He quickly treated and bandaged it before beginning to take her pulse. “Her pulse is weak and erratic. The situation isn’t good. She must have given birth only a few days ago, and her qi and blood are severely depleted. On top of her long-term malnutrition, she’s just lost so much blood. I can only do my best. Whether she survives will depend on her fate.” Doctor Wu wrote out a prescription. “Come with me to get these medicines and decoct them for her. If she hasn’t regained consciousness within two days, then…” Doctor Wu shook his head. Everyone understood what he left unsaid.