Dama raised her misty, tear-filled eyes. "Cousin-in-law called me? She, she doesn't blame me?"
"No, your cousin-in-law is very magnanimous. I, the elder one, made a mistake, and she forgave me. How could she blame you? Come in quickly."
"Okay."
Dama got up and pulled her father, who was stunned by the revelation, along. "Dad, Cousin Uncle is looking for you."
Li Rongguo, who was in a daze, was pulled into the courtyard by his eldest daughter. Upon seeing Li Mother, he felt immense shame. "Third Aunt, I'm sorry."
Li Mother waved her hand. "Let's go inside and talk."
She could guess what her daughter-in-law wanted to say. She couldn't accept Li Rongguo's apology; it was she who should be apologizing.
The courtyard gate slowly closed before her eyes. Zhao Xiaofang suddenly felt a pang of panic, as if the gate were isolating her husband and eldest daughter from her.
She took a step forward, wanting to push the door open, but then she saw the three-centimeter-long needles nestled among the closely packed flowers on the door.
Did it hurt? Did it hurt when her eldest daughter beat on this door?
It must have hurt, but it didn't hurt as much as losing her unborn child. What was wrong with her finding a way to escape that household?
She had miscarried more than once. She knew this time she wouldn't be able to keep it, so it was better to use it for a deal. She had done nothing wrong.
Zhang Fangcao pouted and left.
The commune members also dispersed.
Li Dama's mother also left, blending in with the crowd. From a distance, she watched the commotion. Dama was a spirited child, just like her uncle, her real uncle.
Inside the house, Li Min was sent to cook.
She didn't mind. Her elder brother and sister-in-law would definitely not blame Dama.
Li Mother sat at the entrance of the open west room, watching the outside to ensure her daughter wouldn't overhear, while also paying attention to what was happening inside the west room.
Tian Jing gave Li Zhengguo a meaningful glance.
Li Zhengguo immediately understood that it was more appropriate for him to speak about this matter.
"... If it weren't for the obvious jealousy of your eldest cousin-in-law towards Tiantian, my mother wouldn't have been willing to drive you away. She feels indebted to you."
Li Rongguo and Dama's mouths fell open.
What was their cousin (or cousin uncle) saying? Were they joking? They wouldn't dare to act this way in a play.
"Dama, come here." Tian Jing beckoned to Dama.
Dama got up and hesitantly walked to Tian Jing's side. "Cousin Aunt."
"Dama, your cousin aunt really likes you. From the first moment we met, I liked your straightforwardness, which is why I gave you the brown sugar. I originally intended for you to drink it yourself. You're ten years old now, aren't you? It's time you started taking good care of your body."
"A person must first have the ability to take care of themselves before they can take care of others. Just like Xiao Mai, she's also reached an age where she can take care of herself."
"You don't need to carry any burdens. No one is your responsibility. You just need to take care of yourself. Your mother is an adult now, and once an adult makes a choice, she must be responsible for her own choices."
"Cousin Aunt~ Cousin Aunt~ Wuwuwu."
All the grievances Dama had carried since childhood, and her feigned strength, were broken by her cousin aunt's words, "You just need to take care of yourself." She hugged Tian Jing's arm and wept uncontrollably.
Tian Jing reached out and pulled her into her embrace. "Cry, have a good cry. In the future, when you need to be weak, be weak. Just like your mother, she interprets a woman's weakness perfectly. If we hadn't exposed it together, she would still be a gentle woman, soft as water."
Held in the warm embrace, Dama cried even more pitifully.
Tian Jing, mimicking how Zhengguo comforted her, gently patted Dama's back. "Good girl."
Li Zhengguo: "..."
He really wanted to throw his niece out.
But he couldn't. So, he decided to trouble her father instead. "Li Yaoguo, how do you feel?"
Li Rongguo shook his head. "Without evidence, I don't believe it. The only one who can correctly state my identity is Grandma. Whether it's Mother or Second Aunt, I won't believe either of them."
Li Zhengguo nodded with satisfaction. Although his elder brother was a bit cowardly, he was still rational.
As for evidence, they would have to wait for ten years later when paternity testing became available domestically.
No one knew if Dama's paternal aunt was trying to foist her incompetent eldest son onto his family.
"Alright, we'll talk about it when there's evidence. Dama is a girl, yet she carries too much on her own shoulders. You parents haven't shielded your child from the storms; instead, you've made your child worry about you."
"Your house was deliberately arranged this way by my wife. Even if Aunt Dama keeps it secret, Second Aunt and Second Uncle are unreliable. No one knows when they might get the idea to use this secret."
"So, try your best to arrange your house as well as possible. Haven't I repeatedly emphasized paying back the money when you have it? But Dama has taken on this debt herself again. My mother and my wife feel sorry for Dama, which is why they decided to tell you the truth, Dama."
Li Zhengguo stared at the conspicuous girl in Tiantian's arms. "Dama, you don't need to bear these debts. Whether you are the descendants of the eldest uncle or my father, you are all Li family members."
"If your father has the ability, he'll repay it. If not, just remember it for a lifetime. It has nothing to do with you. You are just a girl; enjoy what you are entitled to."
"Cousin Uncle~" Dama stood up from her cousin aunt's arms, looking at her cousin uncle with tear-filled eyes. "Can you hold me? Like you hold a little child. My dad has never held me, let alone had time to coax me."
Li Zhengguo looked at Tiantian helplessly with his eyes. He belonged to Tiantian. Could he hold another woman?
Tian Jing smiled and pushed Dama. "Go, let your uncle hold you. Your uncle has never held you before, has he?"
Li Zhengguo awkwardly held his niece in a standing embrace.
Dama rested her head on her cousin uncle's shoulder. "This way, I feel at ease. It's like my dad's presence, isn't it?"
"Yes!" Tian Jing replied. "Your cousin uncle has a presence that can put people at ease. He's very safe, as if even if the sky were to fall, you wouldn't have to worry. In the future, you don't need to force yourself to be strong."
"Mmm." Dama raised her arms and hugged her cousin uncle's neck. "I see the little children wrapping around their fathers' necks like this, and it's more stable. But my dad is busy working, busy coaxing my mom, and has no time for me."
"Dama, it's Dad's fault."
"It's not Dad's fault. Dad is too busy."
Li Zhengguo walked over to his eldest cousin and pulled him up. He then pushed his niece, whom he was holding, into his eldest cousin's arms.
"While there's still time to make up for regrets, do it quickly. In two more years, Dama will be older and even less close to you."
With one hug, the father and daughter were more awkward than when Li Zhengguo held his niece.
This made Tian Jing laugh heartily.
Li Mother walked in, tears in her eyes. She took Dama, who was held stiffly like a carrying pole, from Li Rongguo's arms. "Let, let Third Uncle-Grandmother hold you." SuDan Novel Network
Once in Li Mother's embrace, Dama's body softened. She comfortably rested her head on Third Uncle-Grandmother's shoulder.
"Third Uncle-Grandmother, my sister and I both wished you were our grandmother. For now, I'll call you Third Uncle-Grandmother. Once we find proof, I'll call you Grandma."
"Good, good, Dama, be good." Li Mother's tears obscured her vision, and she couldn't see Dama's face clearly. She reached out and stroked the little girl on her shoulder.
"You can call me Grandma now."
"We can't change it back and forth. What if Mother or someone else hears about it and it causes trouble?"
"Mmm, our Dama is such a considerate child. In the future, bring your sister to play. Adult matters have nothing to do with you children. Just say you like your cousin aunt."
"I already like my cousin aunt. She's only eight years older than me, but she's very, very capable."
"Of course. Your cousin uncle can't compare to her. Everything in our household is managed by her. Without her, I'd still be lying weakly on the kang, still living a life where I couldn't even eat wild vegetables for three meals a day."
"Yes, that's why Mother shouldn't know. Her heart is very terrifying."
Li Mother hugged the little girl in her arms tightly. She was truly heart-wrenching. "Stay away from her in the future. If she asks you to do something that you feel is inappropriate, come and ask me first. Don't blindly do it and then feel guilty after being used."
"Mmm, I remember."