DLRC – Chapter 10 Come and See

Only then did Yu Wei lift her eyelids to give the woman a second glance. So it was the same woman who had injured her little Huihui’s head yesterday.

Before Yu Wei could say anything, Yuan Guifang jumped in, “Yanyan, what are you doing? My Wei is heading out. Don’t block the doorway.”

Yuan Guifang thought Yu Wei was going out to patch things up with Factory Director Luo. She was so excited she could hardly contain herself, desperately hoping Yu Wei could win Luo Dongshen’s heart back this time.

But this Fang Yanyan—who usually cozied up to their family—what was with her today? Just because they no longer had Director Luo backing them, she was immediately turning up her nose and stepping all over them?

Sure enough, everyone’s suspicions were right. Fang Yanyan let out a cold snort and didn’t even look at Yuan Guifang. “What, I haven’t even come to settle scores for what happened to my son yesterday, and this is the attitude I get from you, Aunt Yu?”

She had heard early this morning that that seductive little vixen from the Yu family had angered the deputy director of Lucheng Garment Factory yesterday. He’d gotten so mad he directly kicked her out of her comfy office job.

Fang Yanyan was thrilled to hear Yu Wei had fallen flat on her face. She’d brought her son Da Niu here bright and early, deliberately looking to stir up trouble.

At this hour, most neighbors had already gone off to work. The ones left were all women at home—nothing much to do—so of course, they came out to see the commotion.

Fang Yanyan had apparently been holding a grudge against Yu Wei for a long time. Now that Yu Wei was down and out, how could she pass up the chance to mock her?

Anyway, Director Luo had already dumped her. What was there to be afraid of now?

Yu Wei? Her father didn’t care, her mother didn’t love her, even her own brothers wanted nothing to do with her. On top of that, she had a child dragging her down, no real skills to speak of—what kind of storm could she possibly stir up?

Fang Yanyan was fearless, at least she had her man backing her up. But Yu Wei? Completely alone.

Yuan Guifang’s face changed instantly when she heard this, but without Luo Dongshen on their side anymore, even her usual imposing presence had deflated.

She thought back to how things used to be—every neighbor envied them. Now that Yu Wei had been abandoned, they all came running to kick her while she was down?

Yuan Guifang was furious, but Yu Wei looked perfectly calm, not even sparing Fang Yanyan a glance.

Yu Wei turned to Yu Hui and asked gently, “Tell Mommy, when you were playing with Da Niu yesterday, did you hit him?”

The little guy understood what kind of situation he was in. He pressed his lips together and shook his head firmly. “No.”

His small lips opened and closed, “I didn’t hit Da Niu.”

Yu Wei smiled. That smile finally settled the nervous flutter in Yu Hui’s little heart. She ruffled his hair as she smiled, “Our little Huihui is such a good boy!”

But when she turned back to Fang Yanyan, her face turned cold. She said clearly and coldly, “Did you hear that? Our Huihui did not hit your Da Niu.”

Fang Yanyan flared up. “You say he didn’t hit him, so that means he didn’t?!”

“And what makes you think my Huihui did hit him?” Yu Wei fired back.

Anyone with eyes could tell who’d bully who. Was this woman alright in the head? This wasn’t just picking a fight—how long had she been storing up this grudge?

“Mom…” As the two squared off, little Da Niu rolled his eyes and mumbled quietly, “Yu Hui didn’t hit me…”

Fang Yanyan instantly panicked. She yanked her son’s arm and shouted, “Da Niu, what nonsense are you spouting?! Mommy’s right here—you don’t have to be scared of Yu Wei!”

Yu Wei: “…”

Even her own son said Yu Hui didn’t hit him. Was this woman suffering from some kind of persecution complex?

“Do you actually have something to say, or not?” Yu Wei asked, clearly speechless.

Fang Yanyan didn’t pick up on the sarcasm in Yu Wei’s tone. For a moment, she was confused by the polite “you” Yu Wei used, and thought Yu Wei was scared and trying to flatter her.

“I don’t have anything to say—but my son does!” she said as she yanked up Da Niu’s shirt and pointed to his stomach.

“Look at this! There’s a scratch on his belly—we found it right after he played with your kid yesterday. It wasn’t there before! Don’t you try to weasel out of this!”

Now Yu Wei was truly speechless.

She stared at Da Niu’s bare belly, where there was a faint red mark that looked exactly like it had been scratched by a fingernail. All she could think was one word: shameless.

“Where would her little Huihui get fingernails from? Hah, how ridiculous.”

But that sentence was like a fuse, instantly lighting up Fang Yanyan’s temper. She lunged forward like a shrew and grabbed Yu Hui. The little guy was caught off guard and got yanked over. He lost his footing, stumbled, and fell hard onto the cement ground.

Tears welled up in his eyes from the pain, and he looked around in confusion, not understanding why this woman, Fang Yanyan, had suddenly grabbed him. His small frame was trembling.

Yu Wei’s pupils contracted, and rage surged up instantly. She took two steps forward and slapped Fang Yanyan square across the face!

The onlookers around gasped, while Fang Yanyan shrieked and roared.

“Ah—Yu Wei!”

“Shut your filthy mouth!” Yu Wei pulled her son into her arms, instinctively taking on the fierce posture of a mother protecting her cub.

Yu Wei channeled all the bravado she had from brawling with thugs in her younger years and caught Fang Yanyan’s arm just as she was about to strike back.

Despite looking like a delicate and frail woman, Yu Wei’s strength was not at all inferior to the burly Fang Yanyan. As the two women locked in a standoff, Fang Yanyan quickly realized she was at a disadvantage and began flailing wildly—slapping, kicking.

Luckily, Yuan Guifang, who had been frozen in shock, finally snapped back to her senses and rushed up to help her daughter subdue the madwoman.

Yu Wei seized the opportunity and viciously kicked Fang Yanyan in the calf. The pain made her double over and gasp sharply. Without looking back, Yu Wei picked up her child and strode straight out of the courtyard.

Behind them, Fang Yanyan lost it completely. She tried to shake off Yuan Guifang’s grip and chase after Yu Wei, but Yuan Guifang reacted quickly and yanked her back with surprising strength. The two women ended up yelling at each other in the courtyard, spewing venom with every word.

Even though she had slapped that woman several times, Yu Wei’s heart still clenched painfully after walking a long way and seeing the scraped marks on her son’s pale little face from the fall on the cement.

“Does it hurt, Huihui?”

Of course it hurt—he was just a child with soft, tender skin. But he sniffled and shook his head, then buried his face in the crook of Yu Wei’s neck, rubbing against her as if trying to soothe the sting.

Yu Wei gently patted her son’s thin back, patiently comforting the little heart that had just been hurt by Fang Yanyan.

Fortunately, the little guy was sensible, obedient, and not one to cry easily. After walking for a while, both mother and son gradually calmed down.

There was no way she was going to look for Luo Dongshen anymore—he had just been an excuse. What she really needed to do now was find a place to live. She couldn’t stay in that house for even another second.

Thinking about this, her desire to move out grew stronger. Before they knew it, the two of them had wandered to the entrance of a park. The sign read: “Yingshan Park.”

Parks in this era were mostly free, especially in small cities like this one. People could come and go as they pleased. After thinking for a moment, Yu Wei took Yu Hui by the hand and walked inside.

The park was quite big, with mountains, water, and trees. The scenery was genuinely beautiful, and the greenery stretched out as far as the eye could see.

Eventually, they stopped in a secluded corner of the park. Yu Wei sat down on the grass with Yu Hui, then pulled out a few leftover biscuits and a piece of bread from her pants pocket—leftovers from yesterday.

“Here, have something to eat.”

Yu Wei placed the last fruit cake into Yu Hui’s small hand. He obediently held it and took a tiny bite. The sweet taste spread through his mouth, and he looked up at Yu Wei, his eyes full of confusion.

He stretched out the cake toward Yu Wei, offering her a bite.

Yu Wei paused for a moment, then smiled and gently pushed his thin hand away. “I’m not eating. You eat.”

There was only this little bit left. It was just enough for his tiny bird-like appetite. She was an adult—missing one breakfast wouldn’t kill her.

Yu Hui slowly pulled his hand back and nibbled on the cake in small bites, his big eyes watching her all the while. Listening to the birds chirping cheerfully around them, his nervous heart gradually relaxed, and the pain on his little face faded too.

He curiously looked around, taking everything in. It was a completely new experience. It was his first time in a park, his first time seeing mountains, lakes, and so many trees. The lush green scenery soaked into his heart.

Meanwhile, Yu Wei was staring at her phone, deep in thought. She was considering whether she should start livestreaming again to earn some money.

But even if she wanted to stream, what could she broadcast? She used to be a food blogger, but in this era, where were the resources to cook like in the future? Even if they existed, she’d have to buy them. And she couldn’t even afford breakfast right now.

In a time like this, it felt like no job was truly reliable—except factory work. Working in a factory meant stable income, good pay, decent benefits, and if she played her cards right, she might even marry into a good family afterward.

By 1981, self-employment was officially recognized by the state, but back then, hardly anyone dared to be the first to try. Overall, people were still very conservative and unwilling to take bold risks.

Things had only slowly started improving in the past few years.

Yu Wei had always thought of herself as someone who could sit still, but after coming here and seeing her little one and their bare-bones life, she realized she couldn’t keep living like this.

Could she really settle for this? Could anyone?

Forget living in luxury—she couldn’t accept having nothing. Even soap for bathing was shared by the whole household.

That might be normal for people of this era, but it was precisely these “little things” that Yu Wei found unbearable.

With that thought, her finger unconsciously tapped on the “Jiumi Livestream” app on her phone. She opened it and looked at the meager count of 1,600 followers under “My Channel,” and a wave of pressure hit her like a mountain.

After wrestling with herself for a while, she finally typed out a line of text and set it as her livestream cover:

“Come see! Your Little Mermaid Streamer Has Time-Traveled to the 1980s!”