Courtyard House: My Wife is Xu Huizhen

Page 302

After entering Li Hongying's office, he returned to work at the cannery half an hour later.

In the steel rolling mill workshop, Yi Zhonghai had just finished his tasks for the day and was taking a sip of water from his enamel mug when he saw the women's affairs officer heading straight for him.

"Sister Bao, is there something you need?"

Sister Bao said, "Yes, I need to talk to you about something."

Yi Zhonghai was just being polite, but he didn't expect the women's affairs officer to actually come to him, and he immediately became angry.

The women's affairs officers in the factory were mainly responsible for mediating conflicts between couples. Among them, Sister Bao was mainly responsible for coordinating matters such as divorce.

At this moment, Sister Gao came to find him, probably because his wife was making a scene about getting a divorce, and it had even come to the factory.

"Sister Bao, this matter doesn't need to bother you to come to me, does it?"

“I said, Lao Yi, you’re one of the best in our factory, so why can’t you handle your family conflicts? The neighborhood committee just called our factory and severely criticized your lifestyle.”

"Sister Bao, don't talk nonsense. There's nothing wrong with my lifestyle. Someone must be spreading rumors behind my back."

Yi Zhonghai immediately suspected that He Yuzhu was behind it all.

"You still have the nerve to talk back? How could someone on the street make a phone call based on nothing but rumors without any evidence?"

"My lifestyle is perfectly fine!" Yi Zhonghai retorted, still somewhat unconvinced.

Sister Bao asked, "Yi Zhonghai, do you know two workers named Bai Wending and Bai Wensheng in the machine repair shop attached to our steel rolling mill?"

When Sister Bao raised this question, Yi Zhonghai was somewhat dumbfounded.

When the White Widow came to him, he had no choice but to use his connections to get the two brothers jobs at the machine repair shop.

I often teach them both technical skills, something many workers have witnessed.

At this point, it would be impossible to deny that the two of them had no connection with me.

"Sister, please listen to me. He is my apprentice."

"It's true he's your apprentice, but do you two have some other relationship?"

Yi Zhonghai was terrified. He couldn't make this public a spectacle, or his reputation would be completely ruined.

"Big sister, you can't just say things like that."

Sister Bao rolled her eyes at him and said, "Come with me, let's go to the office and talk about it in detail."

Helpless, Yi Zhonghai followed her to the office. Feeling guilty, he could only pretend not to hear and vehemently deny his guilt when confronted with his older sister's questions.

But Sister Bao came to talk to him on behalf of the organization. Although he denied it, the organization was aware of the situation and had even spoken with Widow Bai and the two brothers beforehand.

Now that the leadership has grasped the true situation, it's pointless for Yi Zhonghai to deny it any further.

Sister Bao said, "Old Yi, you've been a veteran in the factory for a long time, so I won't say anything more. I'm here today on behalf of the organization to talk to you."

"Sister Bao, I..."

"I know you have your difficulties, but today, on behalf of the organization, I want to tell you that the organization is committed to protecting women's rights. Since you have done something wrong to your wife, the organization still supports her decision to divorce you."

"What? Sister Bao, this won't do!"

Yi Zhonghai learned the skills thanks to his father-in-law, and was highly regarded by his father-in-law among his fellow apprentices. Back then, in front of his fellow apprentices, he knelt before his master and swore to take good care of his master's daughter, who was also his wife.

They will never leave each other for life, which is why Yi Zhonghai has not divorced his wife even though she cannot have children.

If I get divorced, I will be breaking my vow. Although the government has been promoting that it is all feudal superstition, some ideas are ingrained in people's bones.

Yi Zhonghai was also afraid of retribution after his divorce.

Even without discussing this matter, he had made a vow and pledge in front of his fellow apprentices back then. You should know that many of them are still working in the steel rolling mill, and some are already leaders.

If he were to divorce his junior sister, the pressure from them would be enough to give Yi Zhonghai a hard time.

"You can't make this decision yourself. You have to listen to the organization and not go against the women's wishes. Since you can't live together anymore, doesn't that mean you need to get a divorce?"

"That's not how it works. I need to take care of her and not let her suffer any injustice."

"It's her suffering to live with you every day without getting a divorce. Our organization's opinion is very clear: Lao Yi, it's time for you to get a divorce."

Yi Zhonghai immediately felt proud. Everything in this world is inseparable from the organization. If the organization makes its stance clear, then he cannot possibly go against it.

However, I still wanted to salvage the situation, so I said, "Sister, please give me a few more days to think about it. Divorce isn't something you can just decide to do so on a whim."

"Okay, but you can't drag this out for too long."

After the conversation ended, Yi Zhonghai walked out of the Women's Federation office somewhat absentmindedly. He returned to the workshop, told the director, and then left.

Just as I stepped out of the steel rolling mill gate, I saw the white widow squatting by the wall not far away.

Yi Zhonghai took a deep breath, suppressing his anger. He had repeatedly told Xiaobai before that no matter what the matter was, he should not come directly to the steel mill to find him.

Unexpectedly, she listened to me and actually came over, then pushed her bicycle and walked forward.

When the white widow heard the voice, she looked up and saw Yi Zhonghai. A happy smile immediately appeared on her face, and she followed behind him.

They walked until they were quite far from the gate, then turned a corner and entered a side path. The white widow quickly ran a few steps to Yi Zhonghai's side, just about to speak.

Yi Zhonghai retorted angrily, "Didn't I tell you that no matter what happens, don't come directly to the steel mill to find me?"

"Yes, yes, something really bad happened today. Director Liu from the machine repair shop talked to the two children and asked if they were your children," the widow said, sounding somewhat aggrieved.

Then he asked, "Brother Yi, do you think I shouldn't discuss such an important matter with you?"

"What's there to discuss? I'm getting a divorce anyway, what's there to discuss?"

Upon hearing the word "divorce," the white widow's face lit up with joy, but then her expression returned to one of worry.

"What happened to Brother Yi?"

"It's all because my wife suddenly went crazy and wanted a divorce," Yi Zhonghai said irritably.

Hearing this, Widow Bai was even happier. She had given birth to two sons for her elder brother, but they both had to take the surname Bai, which made her ashamed to be seen by others.

That woman stole my man back then, and she can't even have a son or daughter. Why does she occupy the position of the eldest son's wife in the Yi family?

Hurry up and give me my seat.

My greatest wish in this life is to marry Yi Zhonghai in a grand and glorious way and become a daughter-in-law of the Yi family. This has been my long-cherished wish for decades.

“Brother Yi, it’s time for you to let go. There are better women waiting to marry you.”

"Alright, stop making things worse for me. I'm already annoyed enough."

"Oh." The white widow was incredibly obedient.

Yi Zhonghai asked, "Besides Factory Director Liu Feng talking to the two of them, is there anything else?"

The white widow asked with some concern, "No, that's all. I just wanted to come and tell you about this. What are we going to do now?"

"What do we do? We'll just have to deal with it. Things are already like this, so let's just wait and see."

After saying that, Yi Zhonghai rode his bicycle home, leaving the widow Bai there grinning foolishly. It seemed that the day she could marry Yi Zhonghai was not far off.

Yi Zhonghai stopped halfway there, sat on a chair and smoked half a pack of cigarettes. After thinking it over and over, he finally made up his mind.

Back in the courtyard house, he said to Aunt Yi, who was picking out shoe soles, "Do you really want a divorce? I promised my master I would take care of you for the rest of my life."

"Yes, I want a divorce."

"Fine, then I'll grant your wish, let's get a divorce."

Chapter 222 Private Meeting

The news of Yi Zhonghai's divorce spread quickly throughout the courtyard. Although everyone already knew that Aunt Jiang was making a fuss about getting a divorce, they were still surprised when the news actually came true.

They're both over 40 years old and have been married for almost 30 years, and they're finally getting a divorce.

After the news spread, He Yuzhu soon received the message, and in the afternoon, Tian Zao found Zhuzi.

"What's wrong, sis?"

"This is all because of the trouble caused by your courtyard house. Today we will preside over the division of the family property."

"Separate?"

He Yuzhu immediately understood and asked, "You mean the divorce between Yi Zhonghai and his wife?"

"Yes, as a member of the neighborhood committee, I have to go and check to make sure there's no more unfairness."

He Yuzhu nodded: "That's right, the main thing about their family is that they have two rooms."

“Then each person will have their own room,” Tian Zao said.

He Yuzhu said, "The rest are just daily necessities and furniture, nothing of value. I don't know if they have any savings."

"The furniture and other belongings should be divided equally, as should the savings. This is the only reasonable way to get a divorce."

He Yuzhu didn't intend for Tian Zao to favor Aunt Jiang during this process, after all, everyone in the courtyard was watching.

As they talked, they arrived at the courtyard house. People who weren't at work gathered around. After a while, Yi Zhonghai returned from get off work.

Tian Zao asked the couple, "Are you sure you want a divorce?"

"I'm getting a divorce. I can't live like this anymore." Aunt Jiang's attitude was very firm.

"Let's get a divorce, I've had enough." Yi Zhonghai's voice was weak and listless. Although he didn't really want to get a divorce, he still agreed to it.

The deaf old lady angrily jabbed the ground with her cane. But she loved both her husband and her children equally, and no matter how many times she tried to persuade them, they wouldn't listen.