Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space novel Chapter 269

Chapter 269: Chapter 202: Peace Charm

Zhou Xiaozheng accompanied his elderly mother, talking about his experiences outside over the years, the interesting people and things he had encountered, noticing his mother’s bad mood and unsure how to comfort her.

Some events, once they’ve happened, cannot be erased. The unfairness he experienced in his early years did not leave him resentful, but decades later, everything his only daughter went through left him unable to let go. If he were really gone, if his Jiao Jiao didn’t have her own plans, who would grant justice? Who would understand the grievances of their father and daughter? Unable to take revenge, he could only ignore it. Even if the old lady truly wanted to reconcile, he wouldn’t agree.

Through the years, all he gained from his efforts was coldness. His heart was too narrow, unable to accommodate too many people or too many things. Thinking of the three brothers from the in-laws’ family and then about his own elder brother and sister, it wasn’t that he didn’t feel hurt. Since childhood, he knew that only his mother truly loved him, yet she treasured his brother and sister equally. Whenever there were disagreements among the three siblings, she always asked him to give in.

Haha, he was a full cycle younger than his older siblings. After gaining sense, he understood he could only rely on himself; otherwise, his life would just be laboring like a beast of burden for the Old Zhou Family, yet ultimately he couldn’t escape.

He ran away from home before he was 16 and didn’t intend to settle back in the old home. Returning to his hometown made some happy, some nostalgic. But stepping on that land, the only thought it stirred was the hardships of youth—going hungry, lacking adequate clothing, and no chance for schooling—forcing him to learn secretly on his own. His father’s cold eyes, his siblings’ scheming. If his daughter wasn’t in Zhang Family Village, he truly wouldn’t have the resolve to return to this place filled with shadows in his heart.

His Jiao Jiao asked him if he was truly their child? Recalling the old clan leader patting his head back then with a sigh, those vague words made him suspicious, and he did investigate, but so what if he wasn’t their biological child?

Despite his life being long, he never intended to shirk the duty of upbringing as long as his elderly mother was around, he would dutifully fulfill his role as a son. Therefore, he often reminded himself not to expect too much. Zhou Xiaozheng existed in this world, relying on himself to live well, and would have his own flesh and blood.

To remain unrestrained by others, he married Lin Lishan, and indeed, he was right. Besides spending money, these so-called family members harbored hidden intents. Had the Lin Family not stood firm, had he been gone, the mother and son wouldn’t even know where their bones lay. The reason he went to great lengths to send the wooden box to his mother’s hands, claiming it was for Jiao Jiao, was to prevent any leaks of her affairs, giving them pause over the mysterious assets appearing and discovering there were others besides the Lin Family watching from afar. Relatives guarding against each other and doubting one another was not only the sorrow of the Old Zhou Family but also his misfortune.

Zhou Xiaozheng noticed his mother’s mind wandered while she spoke, but he didn’t intervene. He simply watched the haggard old lady before him. Since the passing of his grandparents, her life had been difficult, with life imposing a series of challenges, carving traces on her face, the endless toil, and the withering of her bones.

Now in her seventies, facing her twilight years, she appeared more weathered than others, her eyes occasionally revealing sorrow. Remembering the gentle elegance of his mother in his childhood, Zhou Xiaozheng reflected on how truly time was a butcher’s knife, changing everything in life.

If his deceased grandparents could see this, how heartbroken they might be? Would they regret teaching her to abide by the Three Obediences and Four Virtues, to follow her husband after marriage, to regard her husband as heaven? The old lady abandoned a well-off job, following her husband back to the hometown, and it’s unknown if she has any regrets.

"Mother, shall we go to the kitchen? Xiao Wu is coming back soon. Let’s have our meal first, then we’ll talk," Zhou Xiaozheng suggested, breaking the awkward silence between mother and son as the aroma wafted from the kitchen.

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