DLRC – Chapter 97 The Truth About the Past

As soon as those words left his mouth, Yu Wei seemed to understand something. In an instant, she realized—the original Yu Wei must have had some sort of entanglement with him!

She didn’t refute his words, and her attitude was rather amicable, mainly because she feared he might suddenly lose his temper. So, Yu Wei followed his lead and replied,  “Yes, I’ve lost my memory. I don’t remember anything from the past.”

That was why she wanted to come and ask Huo Mingwang for clarification.

But… if Ge Zheng also knew about the past…

“Ge Zheng.” Yu Wei suddenly called his name. Ge Zheng widened his eyes and glared at her, about to say Are you f**ing pretending?* when Yu Wei continued, “I really don’t remember anything from before. Can you tell me? I want to know why you harbor such hostility toward me.”

Afraid of provoking the already unstable Ge Zheng, she added, “I swear! I really have forgotten. That’s why I came here today—to ask about the past.”

Her attitude was sincere, without the slightest trace of lying. Ge Zheng, a straightforward brute, couldn’t tell the difference anyway. He just looked her up and down suspiciously.

“I have no reason to lie to you. I can’t beat you anyway. I just want to figure out what happened back then. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have come here at all.”

There were only a few rooms on the third floor, and everyone else had gone to a meeting. No one knew Yu Wei was currently cornered in the corridor by Ge Zheng. Fortunately, the man didn’t seem intent on hitting her; otherwise, Yu Wei would have been in serious trouble.

Eventually, Ge Zheng reluctantly chose to believe her words, though he still held some doubts in his heart.

The two of them entered Huo Mingwang’s office, sat down on the sofa, and she listened as he told her about the past.

The office was empty. The door was ajar but not locked—Yu Wei had left it that way because she was afraid this man might suddenly go berserk again. So, while interacting with him, Yu Wei was extremely cautious, fearing that one careless move might set him off.

Fortunately, the man had already been scolded back to reason by Huo Mingwang earlier. Now, being in the same space with Yu Wei, he seemed rather “calm and composed.”

Finally, the truth about what happened after the original Yu Wei went to the countryside was revealed.

The original Yu Wei went down to the countryside at the age of sixteen. She didn’t want to go and strongly resisted being sent to the countryside as an educated youth to suffer.

But Yuan Guifang—her domineering mother—would never allow her to come and go as she pleased. She forcibly sent her still-underage daughter to the countryside to endure hardships.

In fact, Yu Wei originally lived a relatively good life. Both parents were employed, she had an older brother who dropped out of school at fourteen to work, and a younger brother five years her junior.

Although Yuan Guifang was aggressive and unreasonable at times, she still treated Yu Wei fairly well. Sure, she favored the youngest son a bit, but overall, the family lived in harmony.

That harmony ended when Yu Wei was sent to the countryside. Before leaving, as she packed her bags, she spat harsh words at Yuan Guifang and the family, declaring she would sever ties with them forever—that she never wanted to be Yuan Guifang’s daughter again and would cut off all contact.

Yuan Guifang was so furious she nearly beat her with a feather duster, but in the end, she tearfully sent her daughter onto the train to the countryside.

From then on, for the three years she spent in the countryside, there was no word from Yu Wei. Her family never saw her again, and just as she had said, she severed ties completely. They never received a single letter from her.

Yu Wei had vanished from Lucheng, as if she no longer existed.

After arriving in the countryside, the city-bred educated youth Yu Wei, unable to endure hardship, threw tantrums and stirred up the entire small mountain village where Huo Mingwang lived.

Not only did she refuse to work on time, but she also constantly quarreled with the village leaders, accusing the villagers of “mistreating” her. On top of that, she stirred up all sorts of trouble.

In short, she was restless and unruly. Together with a group of like-minded educated youths, she turned the whole village upside down—becoming someone everyone despised and wanted to beat.

The turning point came six months after she arrived. She went to play by the river with a few friends and accidentally fell in.

When she was pulled out, she was barely alive. As terrible as it sounds, the villagers all secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking, If this educated youth dies, the village will finally have peace…

But unfortunately for them, Yu Wei didn’t die. She hadn’t even reached the barefoot doctor when she woke up.

The villagers silently regretted this. They thought she would return to her old ways—running wild with her troublemaking friends—but to their shock, it was as if she had been possessed. She became extraordinarily obedient!

Not only did she stop making trouble, but she also distanced herself from the rowdy educated youths and quietly learned to work and live like the villagers.

Gradually, she left behind her “reckless” lifestyle and began integrating into village life.

Though people whispered that she must have been possessed, they were secretly delighted—the village could finally live in peace!

Later, no one knew exactly how, but Yu Wei and Huo Mingwang ended up together.

This caused a huge stir in the small village, and within days the news spread to neighboring villages, the commune, and even the town.

Who was Huo Mingwang?

He was the most capable man in Fenggang Village—the person most admired by the single women in the area.

Not only was he handsome, but also considerate and caring.

He lost his parents early—when he was eleven—and raised his younger sister alone in Fenggang Village, earning everyone’s respect for his resilience and independence.

The villagers admired him deeply and sought his help for every task. Not only was he hardworking and capable, but also clever, even leading the village to earn extra income in the past.

By the time he was twenty-one, everyone wondered what kind of wife he would marry. Matchmakers swarmed to introduce him to good families, but he turned them all down.

When people finally heard he was marrying, it shocked the entire village—because his bride was the once-troublesome educated youth who had changed after falling into the river!

The village erupted in gossip. Publicly and privately, everyone tried to dissuade Huo Mingwang, saying he lacked proper parental guidance and didn’t know better.

“Those city-educated youths are no good! Even if Yu Wei has changed, who knows when she’ll go back to her old ways? Don’t be fooled by her looks and rush into marriage!”

But Huo Mingwang refused to listen. Before anyone could react, he grabbed the household registration book and took that little girl to town to get a marriage certificate!

Oh boy, that caused an even bigger uproar. The gossip spread like wildfire. But the couple paid no attention and continued living their lives.

Their married life was enviable.

Not only were they both stunning, but Yu Wei’s cooking skills were unmatched in the entire village!

They married in 1978, just as China’s reform and opening-up began. Huo Mingwang had saved a good amount of money through his own efforts. On their wedding day, he invited close friends and relatives for a feast—and the chef was none other than Yu Wei herself.

After tasting her cooking, everyone’s opinion of her changed. Seeing the newlyweds’ happy faces, even those with lingering doubts stopped saying much.

After all, it was their life. As long as Huo Mingwang and Yu Wei were happy, the simple villagers had no reason to sow discord.

Married life turned out completely different from what people expected. Many thought Yu Wei would revert to being the pampered city girl she once was.

But she didn’t. She and Huo Mingwang ran their household meticulously and lived a thriving life that made others green with envy.

Yu Wei had a good temperament. After marrying, she treated Huo Mingwang’s younger sister, Mingxia, with exceptional care.

Mingxia had suffered greatly as a child after losing her parents, leaving her mentally scarred and somewhat withdrawn. She hardly interacted with anyone except her brother.

At first, when Yu Wei moved in, Mingxia hated her. She would even scream upon seeing her.

But later—no one knew why—perhaps it was Yu Wei’s sincerity or the fact that her care for Mingxia was no less than Huo Mingwang’s…

Gradually, Mingxia opened her heart to her, and the relationship between the two improved a lot. You could even often see a smile in Mingxia’s eyes.

She obviously liked this sister-in-law and even had a kind of dependence on her like she did on her older brother. She truly regarded Yu Wei as her own family.

Days like this were enough to make everyone envious. Yu Wei was such a perfect wife—she kept the household neat and organized and was so considerate that her husband worked even harder when he went out.

Huo Mingwang also doted on his little sister while pampering Yu Wei to the point that all the women in the village envied her. As long as he was home, there was no way he would leave all the housework to his young wife.

He would help her with chores, and every time he went to the city or town, he would bring back things his wife liked.

Sometimes it was sweet pastries, sometimes beautiful clothes and shoes, sometimes storybooks she loved to read, and sometimes jewelry like earrings.

He did everything he could to give Yu Wei everything she wanted. Whatever other women had, she would have; whatever they didn’t have, she would still have!

He worked even harder, and every time he saw Yu Wei smile, he felt that everything he had done for her was worth it!

He spoiled her to the skies—so much so that when villagers saw the couple going for a walk, they would tease them. Whether married or unmarried, the women couldn’t help making sour comments whenever they saw them, all saying that Huo Mingwang spoiled his wife too much.

But Huo Mingwang didn’t care; he continued to indulge his delicate little wife and cherish his sister. Their life could be said to be the model for the entire village.

Gradually, people stopped speculating about educated youths abandoning their husbands to return to the city alone. They settled down to live their own lives, and apart from feeling envious of Huo Mingwang and his wife, they no longer gossiped about their affairs.

Life in Fenggang Village was indeed a bit hard and tiring, but it was fulfilling and happy.

But later, things changed. On her way to deliver food to Huo Mingwang, Yu Wei fell off the edge of a field. When she woke up, her personality changed—she became the old Yu Wei again!

By then, it was already the winter of 1979. Yu Wei was determined not to live with Huo Mingwang anymore. She quarreled every day about returning to the city and refused to sleep with him at night.

She drove him to the west room and slept alone in the main room.

She no longer cooked or did laundry, no longer acted like a virtuous wife and loving mother. Instead, she stayed home quarreling all day and was no longer kind to Mingxia. Poor Mingxia, who had finally opened her heart, withdrew into herself again.

At this point, Huo Mingwang vaguely sensed that something was wrong with Yu Wei. He didn’t say anything, but he absolutely refused to let her go and chose to ignore her nonsense about returning to the city.

He kept observing—watching Yu Wei’s every move, her words and actions—but he found that this Yu Wei was completely different from the one he had married!

Whether it was her living habits or the way she spoke… everything seemed different.

Yet at the same time, he knew very clearly that this woman was indeed the one he had married.

As for why her personality had changed so drastically, Huo Mingwang secretly thought that maybe this woman had been possessed by something unclean…

Later, he temporarily sent Mingxia to his aunt’s care and told her not to interact with Yu Wei anymore. He then traveled far, intending to find someone who could help figure out what was wrong with Yu Wei.

What he actually wanted was to find a so-called “mystic” to drive away the “unclean” thing from his wife’s body. Although such an idea was absurd in the new era, he had no other choice.

Looking at a once harmonious and enviable home turning into this, he felt restless and helpless, so he pinned his hopes on these superstitious remedies.

But when he returned with someone, he learned from the villagers that—

Yu Wei had caused a huge scene trying to kill herself. The uproar spread to the commune and even reached the top leaders…

In the end, as she wished, she was sent back to the city.

The blow to Huo Mingwang when he learned his wife had abandoned him was immense. His heart left with that ruthless woman, and the family that was once the envy of all instantly became a laughingstock.

The gossip started again—everyone talking behind his back:

“I knew it! City people are no good!”

“Exactly! Especially those female educated youths from the city—they’re all seductresses. They lure our men away and then dump them. Hmph! Shameless!”

“No worries. If Yu Wei doesn’t want Brother Huo, I do!”

…

A once happy and complete family was shattered by Yu Wei’s sudden departure—never to be restored.

Huo Mingwang didn’t go to work for a week; he had to stay home to care for his sister, whose condition had worsened.

Although Mingxia was withdrawn, she understood what she needed to. She knew that the sister-in-law she had accepted had left—left her, left her brother, left their little mountain village.

She knew the rumors outside, knew that she and her brother had become laughingstocks.

She even wanted to kill herself, to see if she could, like Yu Wei, get what she wanted by dying.

Yu Wei’s goal was to return to the city. Hers was to escape from herself—to stop being a burden to her brother, to stop living in this painful world.

Perhaps death would be her release.

…

On the day he rushed Mingxia to the hospital, Huo Mingwang nearly killed someone. He ran like a madman, clutching his sister after pulling her out of the water, sprinting all the way to the town, and then rushing her through countless transfers until finally, she was taken into the emergency room at the county hospital.

He waited outside all night, until the water on his clothes dried, only for his back to be drenched in sweat again in the freezing winter cold.

“His sister…” Yu Wei’s lips trembled, her face pale from the chill. “Is his sister… okay now…”

“Thanks to you!” Ge Zheng gritted his teeth. “Mingxia no longer speaks to anyone except Huo Mingwang!”

Although she was rescued, her condition wasn’t optimistic. She was constantly on the verge of breaking down and had to be watched every second, or else…

Yu Wei’s chest heaved violently, her eyes reddening. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know… I didn’t know about the two of them… What happened later…?”

Huo Mingwang could swim, but after injuring his leg while working at fifteen, he had never gone into the water again. Later, to save Mingxia, the old injury flared up—worse than before.

His aunt ran everywhere borrowing money for treatment, begging countless people, and finally managed to scrape together the huge sum of 100 yuan.

But that 100 yuan… was gone after buying medicine a few times.

Hearing this, Yu Wei’s tears burst forth. She covered her mouth, sobbing and trembling. “And then? What happened to his leg later? I didn’t know—I didn’t know about his leg…”

He had seemed perfectly healthy. How could this be… How did he get injured? Did it heal? Why didn’t I notice anything?

Later, because Huo Mingwang’s leg had soaked in water too long, cold invaded the bone. The small county hospital couldn’t diagnose it, so his aunt sent him to the provincial hospital. They diagnosed it, but the astronomical medical expenses were beyond what the family could afford…

Not only was it “astronomical,” but the medication couldn’t be stopped. If he stopped, he had to endure severe pain. Even someone as tough as Huo Mingwang would writhe in agony on the hospital bed.

And when Yu Wei left, she took half of Huo Mingwang’s savings…

Yu Wei was now sobbing uncontrollably as she listened to Ge Zheng’s words.

She didn’t know why Ge Zheng’s anger seemed to fade as he spoke.

Maybe because she was crying too sorrowfully, or maybe because too much time had passed—enough for him to forget the fury he once felt, the urge to find Yu Wei and grind her to dust.

Besides, he had smashed Yu Wei’s store this morning. If venting was what he wanted, he had done it.

He looked coldly at this cruel-hearted woman crying on the sofa, her body trembling, tears seeping through her fingers.

He could clearly feel her grief—she was genuinely heartbroken for Huo Mingwang and Mingxia.

But Ge Zheng really didn’t understand. Why? Why was Yu Wei acting so sad and guilty now? Just because she lost her memory, forgot everything, and now felt remorse?

But even if you lose your memory, a person’s nature doesn’t change.

If she could do something like that before, Ge Zheng believed she could do it again.

He thought, once is always followed by twice. He could never trust this woman again. So when he found out that Huo Mingwang still had feelings for her, Ge Zheng almost wanted to kill someone!

He couldn’t let this woman hurt Mingxia again, nor let her ruin the hard-won life Old Huo had.

“So… seven years ago, I was married to Huo Mingwang…”

Although he hated to admit it, Ge Zheng couldn’t deny the truth. He coldly replied, “Mm.”

Looking at Yu Wei’s lost and soul-crushed expression, Ge Zheng found it ridiculous and flew into a rage. “Yu Wei! Tell me—what the hell were you thinking back then? Why ruin a perfectly good life? What the hell was it about the city that had you so obsessed? Why did you leave him and then still give birth to Old Huo’s child!?”

Yu Wei’s head jerked up at his words. “What did you say… a child…?”