RIRW – Chapter 184

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In the darkness, she turned over to look at the man lying beside her.

Li Wenchang was no longer young. In fact, ever since he lost his job, he had become a bit dispirited. The scholarly aura he once had had now turned into one of cowardice and uselessness. A man like him, once separated from his parents, had no means to survive on his own—let alone provide her with a good life.

Why had she chosen such a man in the first place?

It was all Chen Zhisen’s fault. If it hadn’t been for her desire to appear openly by Chen Zhisen’s side back then, she wouldn’t have settled for a man like Li Wenchang.

She couldn’t keep making mistakes. She was only in her early forties. That rich lady who had married a foreigner told her that abroad, women her age could get married seven or eight times, all to find the right husband—to live a happy life.

Abroad, divorce was perfectly normal. A woman should live a good life for herself.

That was her belief too. For a woman, marriage was like choosing a new life. Why shouldn’t she pick a good man?

Just like Li Hui—marrying Zuo Dacheng and marrying Chen Zhisen were two completely different lives.

Only a fool like Li Hui would give up Chen Zhisen and choose to live with a useless man like Zuo Dacheng. She couldn’t stay with Li Wenchang anymore—he would ruin her. If she stayed, she would lose all hope in this life. Living in such a cramped house, going days without meat, not even owning a single new outfit—she had lived better when she was married to Su Yidao.

At first, she had considered going back to Su Yidao if Li Wenchang’s parents still refused to accept them. But now that she had a better path, she couldn’t keep doing foolish things.

After a sleepless night, Guo Caiping got up early the next morning.

She dressed herself up a little and went to see Mrs. Sam.

Mrs. Sam’s husband was a German. She had returned this time to look for her relatives. But due to the political movements back then, her family had disappeared, and so she had simply decided to stay in Nanjiang for a while.

Mrs. Sam had made many acquaintances, including the wives of some government officials. Guo Caiping got to know her only by chance—she had encountered Mrs. Sam injured on the street and helped her. That’s how they became acquainted. After learning of her identity, Guo Caiping intentionally flattered her, and they developed a close relationship.

Though Mrs. Sam was already fifty, she looked like she was only in her forties. Her looks were average, but she was meticulously dressed, radiating a temperament entirely different from that of local married women.

When Guo Caiping arrived, Mrs. Sam was enjoying her breakfast—delicate bacon sandwiches and fragrant milk tea served in elegant tableware. Just seeing the scene made Guo Caiping feel this was the kind of life she should have.

Seeing her, Mrs. Sam asked, “Would you like to have breakfast with me?”

Guo Caiping shook her head. “I’ve made up my mind—I want to go abroad.”

Mrs. Sam set down her knife and fork. “You’ve thought it through? You really want a divorce and to go abroad?”

Guo Caiping sighed. “It’s mainly because there’s no love between me and my husband. I only married him out of necessity. I want to pursue a life of happiness and freedom, like women do abroad.”

Mrs. Sam smiled. “You’re truly brave. You’re the most courageous Chinese woman I’ve ever met. Caiping, I’ll help you—but how do you plan to divorce your husband? If your husband causes trouble, the embassy may not approve your application to go to America. You need a valid reason for divorce and emigration.”

Upon hearing that, Guo Caiping quickly began thinking. She drew in a breath and said, “My husband is a thief. He likes stealing things.”

“What? Didn’t you say he was a cultured man who went to university?” Mrs. Sam said in surprise.

Guo Caiping nodded firmly. “That’s true. But he developed this bad habit after leaving the farm and having no money.”

Mrs. Sam was astonished. “I see… But just saying so might not convince the embassy. And are you sure your husband—being in such dire straits—will agree to let you go?”

“He’s a thief. If I want a divorce, the Public Security Bureau will help me,” Guo Caiping said seriously.

Her two years in prison had not been completely wasted. Although life was hard, she had gotten to know some people—for instance, professional thieves.

Using her memory, she found a former prison acquaintance at the address she remembered. After chatting briefly, she returned home.

Li Wenchang was cooking when she came back. He looked concerned. “Why did you go out without eating?”

“What’s there to eat? It’s just millet porridge every day,” Guo Caiping sighed, sitting at the table.

Li Wenchang frowned. “Millet porridge is already decent. There are families worse off who are still eating cornmeal gruel. Last time I visited our daughter at the farm, they were eating coarse grain porridge. It was so rough it hurt going down.”

Hearing this made Guo Caiping even more upset. She desperately wanted to escape this kind of life—not just the poverty, but also the consequences that might follow once Chen Zhisen learned the truth. Although she knew he likely wouldn’t do anything to her—after all, he was a businessman, not someone who would get violent—she still dreaded that day.

With these thoughts in mind, she made up her mind, picked up the bowl, and slowly drank the millet porridge.

After finishing, she said, “Let’s go out for a walk—buy something for Xiaoxue and send it to her. Life must be hard for her over there too.”

Li Wenchang didn’t object. After all, their daughter was indeed suffering. The last time he visited, he hadn’t even been allowed to see her. They said she was still undergoing reform.

In other places, the sent-down youth were already gradually returning to the city, but his daughter was still being reformed. Just thinking about it made his heart ache.

The two of them went out to the department store. They didn’t have much money, but they could still scrape together enough for some daily necessities. On the way, Li Wenchang said, “I think I should look for a job again. I won’t be picky—just need to earn something to support the family. We’re nearly out of money, aren’t we?”

Guo Caiping absentmindedly nodded.

That made Li Wenchang even more worried.

The two squeezed through the crowd, grabbed a piece of ticket-free cotton fabric, and were about to leave when—

Guo Caiping suddenly grabbed Li Wenchang’s arm and shouted, “Wenchang, why are you taking someone else’s stuff?!”

Li Wenchang was stunned. He looked at himself, then at her. “Caiping, what are you talking about? What did I take?”

Guo Caiping pointed heartbreakingly at a woman wearing a Dacron coat. “I just saw you take a watch from her pocket. Wenchang… how could you do something like that? Even if we’re poor, you shouldn’t covet other people’s things. What happened to your morals? Don’t you know that’s a crime?!”

Li Wenchang was dumbfounded when he heard her words, clearly not understanding what was happening. “Caiping, what nonsense are you talking about?”

“My watch is really gone!”

The female comrade had just searched her pockets and found that her watch was indeed missing. She immediately shouted in panic, her eyes sharply turning toward Li Wenchang.

She walked over and pointed at him. “Hand over my watch right now! You’re a grown man with hands and feet—how could you be a thief?”

Li Wenchang was both angry and anxious. He reached into his pocket and started searching. “I didn’t take it! You’ve got the wrong person. How could I possibly take—” Suddenly, he felt something cold and hard in his hand. He paused, then pulled it out—it was a woman’s wristwatch.

“This is my watch! So it was you who took it, and you’re still trying to deny it!”

The woman quickly snatched it from him and carefully inspected it.

The others around them started clamoring. Someone shouted that they should call the police—after all, theft was a serious matter.

Li Wenchang’s mind went blank. He looked at his own hand, then at the watch. Finally, he turned to Guo Caiping. “Caiping, what’s going on? I didn’t take it.”

Guo Caiping sighed painfully. “Wenchang, just admit it. I know our family is poor, but we can’t lose our integrity. I’ve known for a long time you had this problem, but I never thought you’d actually steal something so valuable in front of so many people.”

Li Wenchang felt even more confused. What problem? What was she talking about?

Before he could process anything further, two uniformed public security officers came in from the gate. They had been on duty outside and rushed over as soon as they heard about the reported theft.

“Who reported the theft? Who is the thief?”

A young officer asked.

The woman in a red synthetic shirt immediately pointed at Li Wenchang. “It was him! He even admitted it in front of us!”

Guo Caiping added, “Comrade officer, this is my husband. As shameful as it is, I must testify—it was him who stole. I saw with my own eyes that he took something from that female comrade’s pocket.”

The others chimed in, “That’s right, the item was found in his pocket.”

Li Wenchang was flustered. “No, it wasn’t me! I didn’t steal anything!”

Unfortunately, the police didn’t listen to his explanation. The evidence was overwhelming—eyewitnesses, the stolen item, even his own wife’s testimony. What more was needed?

They walked over and handcuffed Li Wenchang on the spot.

Sweating profusely, Li Wenchang looked at Guo Caiping. “Caiping, I didn’t steal anything. Tell them! Caiping, why are you framing me? Caiping—”

Guo Caiping kept her head down, looking heartbroken as she followed the police to give her statement.

After completing the statement, she returned home in sorrow.

A few days later, Li Wenchang’s sentence was confirmed—he would be detained for three months. When Guo Caiping heard the news at the public security bureau, she almost fainted on the spot. She then painfully proposed a divorce. After all, he had committed a crime, and so many people had witnessed it. She feared that once he was released, he wouldn’t forgive her. Besides, she didn’t want to live with someone like that.

A female officer said, “You’ll need to submit a formal request.”

Guo Caiping immediately went to file for divorce, then went to visit Li Wenchang.

At that moment, Li Wenchang felt like he was still in a daze, as if everything were just a dream. Seeing Guo Caiping arrive, he quickly said, “Caiping, what’s going on? Please tell me!”

“Wenchang, let’s get divorced.” Instead of answering his question, Guo Caiping directly brought up the divorce.

Li Wenchang was stunned.

Guo Caiping sighed as she looked at him. “Wenchang, you’ve changed. We can’t go on like this. You’ve even started stealing. Do you really still have the face to stay with me? How am I supposed to face people? What about Xiaoxue’s future?”

“I didn’t steal anything! I didn’t!” Li Wenchang cried out emotionally.

“Quiet!” one of the officers warned.

Guo Caiping continued, “Wenchang, let’s divorce. Do you really want to drag me down with you? You used to be so cultured and dignified. How did you become this kind of shameless rogue, dragging your whole family into your mess?”

She knew Li Wenchang too well. He was extremely proud. As long as she struck at that pride, he couldn’t bear it.

Sure enough, after hearing her words, Li Wenchang’s face twisted in anguish and pain.

Guo Caiping said, “Wenchang, as long as you agree to divorce, I’ll take good care of Xiaoxue. Even if you have to stay inside for a while, I won’t let her know anything. You don’t want her to find out her father is a thief, right? I’m divorcing you because I have no other choice. I just want to live an upright life.”

Li Wenchang wept. “But I didn’t steal anything, Caiping. Why are you saying I did? Why?!”

He still couldn’t accept what had happened. His own wife had testified against him. But he really hadn’t stolen anything—he didn’t even know how the watch ended up in his pocket.

“Wenchang, stop denying it. I saw the item go into your pocket—so did everyone else. How could we all be wrong? No matter what you say, you can’t escape this. For Xiaoxue and me, let’s get a divorce. Just like we discussed back then.”

In the end, Li Wenchang couldn’t take the humiliation and attacks anymore. Out of concern for their daughter, Li Xue, he agreed to the divorce.

Only after signing the papers did he finally seem to realize something. He looked at Guo Caiping. “Caiping… did you want to divorce me from the beginning? Is that it?”

Holding the divorce papers, Guo Caiping calmly replied, “We’re not right for each other, Wenchang. It’s time I seek a life that suits me.”

Then she turned and left. Behind her, Li Wenchang collapsed, sobbing. “Guo Caiping, you heartless woman! Why did you set me up? Why?!”

Even Mrs. Sam hadn’t expected Guo Caiping to act so quickly. In just a few days, not only was she divorced, but her husband had also been sent to the public security bureau.

While expressing her surprise, she also gave Guo Caiping a thumbs-up. “A woman like you is bound to live a good life abroad. You may not know this, but overseas, even presidents marry widows simply because they admire their character. You have a great personality.”

Guo Caiping pressed her lips together. “When can we leave? I don’t want to see any of those people again. What happened with my husband is too shameful.”

“We’ll leave tomorrow. I’ve got all the documents ready. With me vouching for you, it’ll be easy. Caiping, you’re someone I admire. I hope you’ll live happily once you’re abroad. Don’t worry—I’ll introduce you to my husband’s friends. They’re all very successful businessmen.”

Hearing Mrs. Sam’s words, Guo Caiping finally felt completely at ease. She was going abroad, to seek a new life.

She moved quickly. Without packing much, just taking her documents, she left Nanjing the very next day.

Li Hui didn’t hear the news from the public security bureau until two days later. They had to notify the family for detention procedures. Since Guo Caiping was already divorced and missing, they contacted Li Hui instead.

Li Hui couldn’t believe her older brother had ended up being arrested—and for theft, no less. Now he would be detained for three months.

“This is all because of the recent reforms and opening up. If this had happened back in the old days, the consequences would’ve been much worse,” said a police officer, who maintained a polite tone toward Li Hui, a cadre from the education bureau.

Li Hui was both furious and helpless as she looked at her brother’s devastated face. “Brother, what happened to you?”

Li Wenchang looked at his sister with a miserable face. “Xiaohui… I was blind. I was so blind… sob sob sob…”