Aunt’s love

One day in the spring of 1982, two strangers came to my house after inquiring and said to my grandfather that your Ayako suddenly got an emergency. Go and have a look. If it is too late, you may not be able to see anyone. Ayako is my aunt's name, and these two people must be from Daling Town, my aunt's mother-in-law's family.

Without saying a word, grandpa and his father pushed up their bicycles, turned around and left in a hurry. Grandma was so panicked that she bounced her little feet and went to ask a neighbor to help her hitch the donkey cart. My mother hurriedly called me home while I was playing wildly in the alley, and then we got on the donkey cart and drove towards Daling Town, five miles away. Grandma was crying all the way, and her mother kept comforting her. Unexpectedly, just halfway down the road, I met my grandfather and father walking back. Grandpa, with a livid face, shouted at grandma: "Don't cry! Let's go back quickly." We didn't know what was going on, so we had to rush back in confusion.

When we got home and listened to my father’s explanation, we finally understood the general idea. It turned out that my aunt was not sick at all. It was because she was unruly in her husband's family and had an affair with another man while my uncle was not at home, but was blocked in the house by her husband's family. My aunt's mother-in-law's family did a great job. They quietly locked the door from the outside and sent someone to report the news to our mother-in-law's family. How can grandpa, who has always wanted to be strong all his life, afford to disgrace this person? She made a statement on the spot: She is a member of your Wang family when she lives, and a ghost of your Wang family when she dies. Live or die, it's up to you! Grandpa dropped these tough words and turned around.

Alas?, I can’t see anyone with my old face! Grandpa kept sighing. Grandma, who had always been timid and afraid of things, had no idea anymore and kept complaining: "My little ancestor, you are just living a good life, and you want to die! How can you deal with this? How can you deal with this!"

In those days, there was a saying among rural women: I would rather ask workers to hug their waists than to ask farmers to make a move (meaning to touch). None of them dreamed of marrying someone who would earn royal food! Just like my Aunt Ayako, because she is very handsome and married to a man from Daling Town who works in the city and earns money every month, her aunt's dress, food and drink naturally make her stand out. When they were still wearing thick scarves on their heads, Aunt Ayako had already changed into beautiful colorful gauze scarves; when they were still wearing coarse cotton shoes on their feet, Aunt Ayako had already changed into shiny leather shoes; not to mention those in the countryside Rare woolen trousers and duck down jackets. My aunt became the envy of women in nearby villages, and they all said she was lucky. Who would have known that she would be so lucky that she would do such a shameful thing.

My father has been secretly trying to find out about my aunt. Two days later, he said that Ayako's man came back from the city and slapped Ayako in the face. But the man was unwilling to divorce her. The man said that as long as Ayako broke up with that person, he would continue to live with Ayako. The mother clapped her hands and sighed, this is because our Ayako is lucky and has found a good man. If someone is cruel, divorce will be necessary if such scandal occurs. I just hope that Ayako will have a good life with her family from now on. Women in the nearby villages will not envy her husband's family with such good conditions. Grandma nodded her head in agreement.

Unexpectedly, a few days later, my aunt’s mother-in-law’s family asked someone to send another letter, saying that my aunt had eloped with that wild man! Grandma heard it and immediately started to cry loudly. Grandpa was so angry that he became seriously ill. From then on, he would never let anyone mention the word Ayako in front of him. He said he would just pretend that he had never given birth to this girl!

There was no news from my aunt for many years. Some people said that maybe Ayako was sold to a remote mountain by that wild man; others said that it was probably Ayako who went abroad with that wild man. At this time, my grandma had been paralyzed in bed for more than a year. She didn't dare to say anything in front of her grandfather, but behind her back she often cried and said my aunt's name: Ayako, do you really not want a mother anymore? If you don't come back, I'm afraid we won't even be able to see each other for the last time! Grandma asked my father to inquire secretly. Once my father heard someone say that he had seen someone who looked like my aunt at the market in Zhanggezhuang, sixty miles away. My father went to that area specifically to inquire about it, but came back without success.

Ten years have passed in the blink of an eye. By 1994, I was already a nineteen-year-old young man.

At that time, everyone said that I was in a lucky nest, but no one knew about my suffering. The man works as a worker in the city and is away from home for ten months a year. He spends his days and nights out, so why should I, a woman, be left alone in an empty house? The man gave me plenty of money to spend, but what’s the point of asking for so much money? I'm not happy at all just hanging around and wasting my youth! I don’t know how much money the man earns every month, and he never wants me to know! In fact, all I got was some pocket money! If there is a man who knows both coldness and hotness by your side, you will be willing to endure hardships with him!

Sometimes I also think, is it worth the hardship and hardship I have to endure if I elope with this person? I can’t say whether it was worth it or not, but I definitely don’t regret it. The first few years of planting fruit trees were very difficult, but we went to the fields together to finish the work. I was weeding here, and he was pruning the fruit trees over there. Although I can't see his shadow, I can hear his melodious whistle and feel that he is beside me all the time! Not afraid of your jokes, sister-in-law, I boiled two eggs for him to increase nutrition, but he was reluctant to eat them and put them back in my bowl. Every evening when work was done, he would always bend down and squat in front of me. I said you've been tired for the whole day, forget it. He said, let me carry you on my back, just to relieve my fatigue. ...

As my aunt talked, tears fell again. My mother also cried with her.

...At that moment, I felt that I was the happiest woman in the world! Although it may be painful and tiring for the time being, I can capture a man's love. My happiness is his greatest happiness, so what else can I ask for? What could be happier than having a man hold you at the top of his heart? So as I have gone through these years step by step, I feel very fulfilled and satisfied. The happiness of us women is not for others to see. It is like the shoes we wear on our feet. We know best whether they are comfortable or harsh.

That day I occasionally went to the kitchen, and I was surprised to see the two women crying and crying.

Later in the chat, my mother talked about her aunt and said with emotion that there is a kind of man for whom a woman should elope because he can give the woman she loves true happiness.

Love Aunt