Chapter 182 Tragedy
Jiang Xiaoxiao glanced at Liu Guizhi and knew what she was thinking.
This Liu Guizhi was truly a simple person, unable to hide any thoughts, which were plainly visible on her face.
No wonder her mother-in-law could just throw her out without a penny; honestly, such a person couldn't outplay even the average person.
"Are there any cases in your village where married daughters have their household registration moved back? There must be some precedents, right? It can't be that there are none at all?"
Jiang Xiaoxiao asked this question with the intention of solving it for her. Since she was here, she wanted to see the matter through to the end.
If she didn't resolve the issue of the household registration, there would be no ration to eat, and this family would inevitably walk the same path as they did in the past life.
Liu Guizhi thought for a moment, "There are, but not many, only four or five cases, similar to mine, all widows. But those are all relatives of village cadres. A family like ours has no connections with the village cadre, so naturally, we can't find any pathway."
"Whether it works or not, you have to try at least once. How do you know it won't work without trying? The situation at home is already like this; how much worse can it get?"
Jiang Xiaoxiao jumped off the kang; she heard that Song Moting and Fan Jianguo had returned.
The way they spoke had already revealed their presence as they entered the house carrying firewood.
Without a word, Song Moting directly took the firewood he had chopped to light the kang, as the room was freezing, and he didn't want Jiang Xiaoxiao to get cold.
Jiang Xiaoxiao's expression was not good.
She looked at the silent boy who had entered with them, Liu Shuren.
Even though she had only seen Liu Shuren once, it had left a deep impression on her, mainly because he had helped her and, unfortunately, caused trouble for the child.
At this moment, Liu Shuren hadn't fully grown, but his features already hinted at how he would look in the future.
A 12-year-old boy, perhaps due to a series of recent events, though silent, had a certain maturity and stubbornness in his eyes.
However, that sense of maturity and stubbornness shattered the moment he saw his sister.
The vulnerability in his eyes caused a flash of light to appear in them.
"Big sister! Why did you come back so late?"
There was resentment and anger in his voice; he had wired his sister long ago, but didn't expect her to return only now.
It had been three months since their parents passed away.
Although he knew his sister was married far away, no matter how far, the train took just two days and nights.
Their parents only wanted to see their sister one last time, but no one expected she would never come back.
When their father died, he didn't close his eyes, as he was waiting for his daughter.
Liu Guizhi's tears flowed uncontrollably; seeing her brother's stubborn expression, she knew he was angry and resentful, blaming her.
"Hei, sister only just received the news. Your brother-in-law passed away, and my mother-in-law kept all the letters from my family tightly. I honestly didn't know, and if it weren't for a kind person in the village telling me, I wouldn't have known about such a big thing happening at home.
When I found out, I rushed back overnight, but still came too late. What happened to Mom and Dad, how could they just suddenly be gone?"
Liu Guizhi couldn't comprehend how her parents, who were in relatively good health without any major illnesses, could just be gone.
Upon hearing this, Liu Shuren couldn't hold back and cried aloud.
"It was all because of second uncle. They didn't have any firewood but insisted on coming to our house to cry. Grandma was fanning the flames, and in the end, our father let second uncle take all the firewood from home.
With no firewood at home, Mom and Dad had to go up the mountain to chop wood.
But three months ago, heavy snow blocked the mountain, and you can imagine how difficult the path was. Mom and Dad accidentally fell into a snowdrift, and Dad was seriously injured, breaking his ribs against the rocks. There was no way to get him to the county hospital.
Dad painfully passed at home, and Mom was even more pitiful. By the time they found her, Mom was frozen stiff.
Before Dad left, he said I was the only man in the family and I had to take care of my sister and little sister. But just after Dad and Mom passed, second uncle came to take everything from our house, claiming he accrued debts for their funeral.
Anything that could be taken was taken, even most of the food. I couldn't stop him at all.
I just hate that I didn't grow up sooner."
Hatred was evident in the boy's eyes.
Liu Guizhi hugged her brother and sobbed.
Never would she have guessed that her parents would die in such a miserable way.
Jiang Xiaoxiao and the others were all looking at each other, their hearts realizing that anything could happen in this world.
There was always something more tragic than the worst case.
Just look at Liu Guizhi's family to realize that there are so many injustices in this world.
If not for meeting Fan Jianguo, perhaps Liu Guizhi and the children would have been abducted, and the future of the siblings would have been unimaginably dire.
Jiang Xiaoxiao finally understood why Liu Shuren ended up the way he did in the past life—it was all because of the family's tragic circumstances.
Yet despite such tragic experiences, Liu Shuren retained his passion and kindness, always willing to help others.
Just this alone shows how well their parents raised them.
"Alright, stop crying; now is not the time for tears. Right now, the urgent thing is to go find the brigade leader and quickly get your and Pingping's household registrations sorted out. Otherwise, more troubles will come in the future. What matters now is figuring out how you three sisters can survive, as crying won't solve anything?"
Jiang Xiaoxiao knew her words didn't sound comforting, but how else could she console them?
Liu Guizhi, hearing this, quickly wiped away her tears.
Liu Shuren looked at Jiang Xiaoxiao, "Who is this?"
"This is your Sister Jiang. If it weren't for them helping your big sister, who knows, Pingping and I might have been abducted by traffickers on the road."
Liu Shuren immediately felt immensely grateful, "Thank you, thank you."
Jiang Xiaoxiao helplessly shook her head. Liu Shuren was just as Liu Shuren.
"Sister Guizhi, take two bars of soap and a pack of brown sugar. We're going to see the brigade leader. Hide those things in your clothes so no one notices."
These are extraordinary times, calling for extraordinary measures.
Liu Guizhi looked at Jiang Xiaoxiao in a daze; these items were valuable.
Moreover, the leader used to throw away any gifts people offered, so how could he possibly accept theirs?
Song Moting thought for a moment, "Perhaps I should go instead. Give me Sister Guizhi's household registration and I'll take the items. As an outsider, it might be easier for me to say certain things, and if Sister Guizhi goes, should the leader really flip out, how would she continue living in this village?"
Jiang Xiaoxiao thought for a moment and agreed with Song Moting.
Liu Guizhi needed to live in this village in the future. If the leader did indeed blow up on the spot, it could become a scene.
If villagers heard of this, Liu Guizhi might face gossip and criticism.
How would she, a widow with three children, manage to live in the village?
No matter how one put it, Song Moting's city looks, especially arriving in a county jeep, served as a slight deterrent to the brigade leader.
Adding to this, Song Moting was unfamiliar; let the brigade leader guess his intentions. Perhaps that guessing might even get things done.
Jiang Xiaoxiao nodded in agreement.
Fan Jianguo had a sudden thought and said, "I'll go too!"
Being the director of the supply and marketing cooperative, it was appropriate for him to be involved in such social matters.
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