Chapter 78 – The K*dnapped Aunt
Under Xu Jinning’s puzzled gaze, Zhang Ailian explained the reason.
Below Zhang Ailian, who was 36 years old this year, there was also a younger sister. Her younger sister was a whole 15 years younger than her.
That means she was only 21 years old this year.
At the time when her mother gave birth to her, she didn’t conceive for several years, thinking that there wouldn’t be any more children afterwards. Unexpectedly, more than ten years later, she became pregnant again.
Since she was already pregnant, it wasn’t appropriate to t*rminate the pregnancy. It was fate that brought the child into the world.
At that time, Zhang Ailian hadn’t married yet and almost treated this younger sister like a daughter.
But it was unexpected that when the younger sister was five years old, human tr*ffickers came to the village. Several children from Dongfeng Production Brigade were abd*cted, and her sister was one of them.
For the next sixteen years, she had never been found.
“Mom wants you to know that you still have an aunt, but don’t mention it in front of your grandmother.”
Xu Jinning nodded, indicating she understood.
Bringing it up in front of her grandmother would surely bring back memories and cause her pain.
“There are two reasons for bringing you back this time. In fact, I should have taken you back within two days of your return.”
But at that time, Xu Jinning wasn’t in good health. Recently, the little girl’s health had improved, so Zhang Ailian felt more at ease taking her out.
Also, she heard that her mother’s health wasn’t very good lately, so as her daughter, she needed to go and see her.
Along the way, Zhang Ailian continued to talk to Xu Jinning about some family matters.
Listening, Xu Jinning felt that the composition of her grandmother’s family was actually quite simple.
Grandfather had passed away, grandmother was still alive, and the aunt had been kidnapped.
Currently, grandmother lived with her uncle and aunt. They had four children together. The first three were daughters, the eldest two were married, the third daughter was 16 years old and still considering marriage, while the youngest son was only 14 years old and still unmarried.
“Whether it’s your grandmother, uncle, aunt, your cousin, or your nephew, they are all easy to get along with. Don’t worry when you go there.”
“Mm.”
Xu Jinning liked this harmonious and friendly family relationship.
The two of them walked and chatted along the way, during which Zhang Ailian also mentioned various sights they passed by.
Unknowingly, they arrived at Dongfeng Production Brigade.
“Ailian, you’ve come to see your mother.”
“Ailian, you’re back. Hey, who’s the girl next to you?”
“Ailian…”
Along the way, they met many people who greeted Zhang Ailian or whom Zhang Ailian greeted first.
These were all people Zhang Ailian had known and gotten along well with during the more than ten years she lived in Dongfeng Production Brigade before she got married.
“This is my daughter, Xu Jinning. Ningning, call her Aunt Fang.”
…
Zhang Ailian also introduced each person to Xu Jinning and then talked about how they met and helped each other before getting married.
Although Xu Jinning didn’t remember everyone clearly, when her mother introduced them, she listened attentively and greeted them when necessary without any impatience.
On the contrary, she felt it was a rather magical experience.
The feeling of being introduced to others by her mother as her daughter was really nice.
That strong sense of involvement made her deeply feel that yes, this was the feeling, this was family!
“Hey, Ailian, you’re here.” Unconsciously, they reached the entrance of Zhang’s house, and just as a woman in her thirties came out, her eyes lit up when she saw Zhang Ailian.
“Sister-in-law, I’m here.” Zhang Ailian waved with a smile and then approached with Xu Jinning.
Bai Xiuhu, the woman in front of them, after exchanging greetings with Zhang Ailian, looked at the girl next to her, faintly guessing something in her heart.
“Could this be…”
“Yes, this is Ningning, my little girl.”
“Ningning, call me Aunt.”
“Aunt.”
Xu Jinning obediently called out. It turned out that in the city, aunts are called “舅妈 jiùmā” but here in the countryside, aunts are called “妗子/jìnzi.”
“Hey, good, it’s good that you’re back. In the future, with your parents and your siblings, you will definitely have a better life.” Bai Xiuhu held Xu Jinning’s hand gently and said tenderly.
Bai Xiuhu was indeed a gentle person, with gentle facial features, a gentle voice, and tone.
Her eyes seemed to be as gentle as water, truly a gentle and soft-hearted person.
To be honest, Bai Xiuhu was shocked when she found out that her elder sister’s previous daughter, Xu Fangfang, wasn’t her biological child and that her biological child had returned.
She had originally planned to visit Qinghe Production Brigade, but coincidentally, her mother-in-law had been unwell and bedridden recently, so she hadn’t gone. She had planned to wait until her mother-in-law’s condition improved before going.
She hadn’t expected her elder sister to bring back the newly recognized daughter first.
Looking at this girl, she could tell that her previous life hadn’t been easy. Ah, being separated from one’s biological parents since childhood, which child could have a good life?
But now that she had returned, that was what mattered.
“Look at me, how can I let you stand at the door? Come in quickly. You’ll have lunch here today.”
“Your brother and Nannan are probably still at the village committee. They might not be back until noon.”
During the journey, Xu Jinning also learned from her mother that her uncle, Zhang Yuanshan, was the head of Dongfeng Production Brigade.
Nannan, at 14 years old and having graduated from junior high school, was the village’s scorekeeper.
Juanjuan, the 16-year-old third daughter, was currently staying at home to help out.
She used to work a lot before, exposed to wind and sun, which made her skin rough and tan.
Now, she planned to look better, so she needed to take care of her skin at home.
Upon entering the house, Xu Jinning also saw her cousin Juanjuan.
Indeed, her skin wasn’t as fair, but her overall health seemed much better than hers.
She didn’t know if her skin would become fairer in the future. It seemed she would need to apply more snowflake cream.
Soon, Xu Jinning also saw her grandmother who was bedridden.
However, when they arrived, the elderly person had just fallen asleep.
They quietly glanced at her and then exited the room.
Zhang Ailian asked Xu Jinning to talk to Juanjuan in the yard while she went to the kitchen to help with cooking.
Xu Jinning talked with her cousin for a while, but soon, they ran out of topics.
She didn’t talk much herself, and her cousin seemed to be quite introverted as well.
They didn’t have much to talk about.
Xu Jinning, after greeting her, left on her own.
While wandering around the house, she ended up at the entrance to the kitchen without realizing it.
She also heard the voices of the two inside talking.
At first, she intended to leave, but the conversation between the two caught her attention.
“Mother fell ill this time. The doctor said her health is actually not a major problem, but the main issue is her mental state.”
“She’s still worried about sister-in-law deep down.”
“She said she’s been dreaming of sister-in-law a lot lately. Sister-in-law asks her in her dreams why she doesn’t come to find her. She says she’s not doing well, she misses her mother, and she misses home.”
**TN
Doomsday Spiritual Artifact Master is now completed~ You can now binge-read it~ Enjoy~ 🙂
Ugh. The agony!