nycdaug Chapter 167 The wound is on the child's body, but the pain is in the mother's heart.
Chapter 167 The wound is on the child's body, but the pain is in the mother's heart.
The old woman looked at her daughter nervously, seemingly wanting to say something but stopping herself several times. Meng Jiuhe also looked very nervous.
With a "clatter," the knife fell to the ground, and Zhang Yueniang hugged her daughter and burst into tears.
"My poor daughter! How could those heartless bastards treat you like this? It's all my fault for being too weak and incompetent to protect you."
The old woman limped over and put her arm around the two of them, sniffling and crying, "Moon Girl, calm down, we'll think of another way."
Meng Jiuxia also looked nervous, holding Xu Chaoyan's hand, her heart in her throat: "What should we do now, sister-in-law?"
Xu Chaoyan was also thinking about this problem; if it dragged on any longer, Yaya definitely wouldn't be able to take it.
She picked up a few candies and waved them in front of the little girl: "Look what this is, do you want some?" The little girl's attention was drawn to the candies.
Zhang Yueniang glanced at her, as if she had made a great decision, her hand holding the knife trembling uncontrollably.
Xu Chaoyan gave her an encouraging look, and the old woman gently patted her daughter's shoulder, comforting her with a few words: "Mother will always be by your side."
Xu Chaoyan picked up the wine jug again and poured it onto the knife. She whispered in her ear, "Sister, don't let your hand shake. Just make a light cut and leave the rest to me. I believe you can do it."
Zhang Yueniang glanced at her and nodded: "Mm."
Meng Jiuhe came over and took her hand, looking nervous: "Wife, are you sure you can handle this?"
Seeing Meng Jiu's concern for her, she squeezed his hand back and whispered, "Don't worry, I'll take a closer look in a bit."
She just asked the old lady to get her a needle. If she had tweezers or something, the effect would be better.
Zhang Yueniang tremblingly raised her hand to her daughter's head. Xu Chaoyan and Meng Jiuxia kept coaxing Yaya to play, while the old lady held her granddaughter tightly, afraid that she would move around too much.
"Mother, you must remember what I just said."
"Yeah, remember."
Zhang Yueniang gently scratched the bag, and Ya Ya couldn't help but hiss.
"Ya Ya, just bear with it, it'll be over soon."
Zhang Yueniang was heartbroken. The injury was on her daughter's body, but the pain was hers. At this moment, she wished she could take her daughter's place and suffer the pain herself. Tears streamed down her face.
"Mom, if I don't feel pain, does that mean Yaya's illness will get better soon?"
Zhang Yueniang turned around, wiped away her tears, and put on a relaxed expression: "Just bear with it a little longer, and Yaya will never feel pain again."
Zhang Yueniang scratched the previous mark with a little more force, and immediately, bright red blood seeped out of the small pouch.
Zhang Yueniang's hands trembled, and her heart skipped a beat. Looking at the bright red blood, tears welled up and fell uncontrollably.
Zhang Xuyang quickly stepped forward: "Sister, don't panic. I have some cotton cloth here to stop Yaya's bleeding first."
Xu Chaoyan took the cotton cloth and poured some more wine on it. She looked at Ya Ya and coaxed her gently, "Ya Ya, don't be afraid. Auntie will just take a look. It's like being stung by a bee. Can you bear with it?"
The little girl nodded obediently. She used a cotton cloth to wipe away the bloodstains around her, and gently peeled back the wound to reveal the tip of an embroidery needle. Her heart clenched.
How could someone be so heartless as to stab their own granddaughter in the head? The needle looks quite old, with some rust on it; it was probably inserted when the child was born.
Seeing her solemn expression, Yue Niang asked in a trembling voice, "How is it? Did you discover anything?"
Xu Chaoyan nodded, gesturing for her to come over: "Come and take a look."
Meng Jiuhe also watched closely from the side. The needle looked quite old, and it would probably be difficult to remove it.
Xu Chaoyan handed the cotton cloth to Yueniang: "Could you first help her wipe away the bloodstains around her? Let me think about how to do this."
She pulled Meng Jiuhe outside to discuss the matter: "This needle has probably been stuck in for quite some time. Only the tip is sticking out, so it will probably be difficult to pull it out. Husband, do you have any ideas?"
Meng Jiuhe knew from Xu Chaoyan's expression that this was a tricky problem. Now that the needle was sticking out, it would indeed be difficult to pull it out.
She was also somewhat worried: "My wife, I don't know what to do either."
Xu Chaoyan had just considered it. If she took a small embroidery needle, threaded it through, and pulled it out directly, what if she hurt the little girl if she didn't use the right force?
She did think of something hard, but they couldn't find it. She'd heard the strings were quite sturdy, but given their current situation, they probably couldn't find it anyway. Besides, the strings were a bit too thick to fit through.
They discussed it back and forth, but couldn't find a good solution, so they could only go back and tell each other what was on their minds.
Zhang Yueniang had just seen the needle sticking out of the wound, and her heart was clenched with pain. She couldn't believe that her mother-in-law could be so cruel as to stick the needle into her daughter's head. Judging from the appearance, it must have been inserted when the child was only a few months old.
She raised her sleeve to wipe away her tears: "Madam Meng, thanks to you this time, I was able to find the root of the problem. I just took a look and there's a needle eye sticking out there. How about I thread a hemp rope through it and pull it out with force?"
Xu Chaoyan quickly stopped her: "Sister, this needle has been stuck in there for quite some time. Is the rope sturdy? What if one of the sections breaks inside?"
She sighed helplessly, "It's better to have a short pain than a long one. I have to try no matter what. If it succeeds, it means she's not meant to die. If something unexpected happens, that's her fate too. I will definitely avenge Ya Ya and make sure her whole family never has a moment of peace. Even if I die, I'll take someone down with me."
Yue Niang went back to her room and found a thread. Xu Chaoyan jumped on it a couple of times and saw that it was quite sturdy. She then disinfected the thread and the needle again and threaded it through the eye of the needle.
Xu Chaoyan disinfected the surrounding area with a cotton cloth again. Zhang Yueniang turned her face away, whispered a few words of comfort to her daughter, and kissed her on the cheek.
"Ya Ya, just bear with it, it'll be over soon."
The little girl nodded obediently and chatted and laughed with them.
With a single, forceful pull, Yue Niang yanked the needle out more than halfway.
Ya Ya hissed again, biting her lips tightly together. Although her eyes were full of tears, she held them back. Her nose was also red, making her look pitiful.
Xu Chaoyan handed over a piece of cotton cloth: "If Yaya is in pain, you can bite it."
Zhang Yueniang changed the thread again and pulled it out forcefully. When a bloodstained embroidery needle was dropped on the table, everyone's hearts clenched.
The embroidery needle was not only stained with blood but also rusty. Xu Chaoyan disinfected the wound again and applied hemostatic medicine.
"This wound isn't big, but it's been there for a while. We'll go see a doctor to get some medicine later. Children have weak immune systems, and the wound might get infected."
The Zhang family members breathed a sigh of relief. After offering a few words of comfort, Zhang Xuyang said he would go get the medicine.
It was getting late, and Meng Jiu and the others should head back. Before leaving, they told them to let them know if anything came up.
All the way, Meng Jiuxia held her hand tightly and said with a pained expression, "Sister-in-law, Ya Ya's grandmother is so cruel. She could do such a thing. Luckily, my wicked grandmother didn't do such a thing."
Meng Jiuhe said unconsciously, "How do you know your grandmother isn't heartless?"
"What."
Meng Jiuxia also looked surprised: "I was also abused when I was a child, how come I've never heard you mention it?"
Meng Jiuhe realized he had misspoke and quickly fell silent, but under Xu Chaoyan's gaze, he had no choice but to speak.
“When you were little, your grandmother disliked you because you were a girl. Once, when she was working in the fields and your parents weren’t around, she dumped you into the ditch with a basket on her back. I happened to see it from a short distance away and went to pick you up.”
Meng Jiuxia snorted twice: "No wonder he's always been lukewarm towards me, he only likes my second uncle's family."
Xu Chaoyan took her hand and said, "From now on, your sister-in-law will treat you well."
three days later
The roosters crowed outside again and again, and the rain drizzled incessantly, dripping rhythmically onto the tiles. Meng Jiuhe was still lying in bed, unwilling to get up, even though Xu Chaoyan had already kicked him several times.
"You should get up."
Meng Jiuhe pulled her close, his voice slightly hoarse: "No rush today, lie down with me for a while longer, I'm resting today." Then his hands began to wander, roaming along her neckline.
Here's some gossip: The ex-husband gave his ex-wife money he'd swindled from his mistress, and she used that money to buy cigarettes and bouquets for her younger boyfriend. (The mistress's money came from a sugar daddy.)