William went to the ditch to catch eels early in the morning. Amanda found him by the ditch, and the couple hurried home, fearing that Whitaker Scarlett and her mother would suffer.
Upon reaching their doorstep, they saw someone looking around outside their house. Unable to stop William, Amanda pulled him back.
“What’s going on? Did your younger sister’s in-laws finally come?”
“It’s Whitaker Chris. This time, the couple made quite a fuss. Elizabeth has been staying at her parents’ home for quite a few days…”
“Amanda, your younger sister is quite pitiful. Don’t rush to chase them away; give her some support.”
Elizabeth was honest and hardworking and didn’t like to dress up. Her appearance was dark, thin, and unremarkable, posing no threat to the women in the village. It was safe to chat with her without worrying about gossip spreading throughout the village. It’s just that she was unlucky for not giving birth to a son for the Whitaker family. If a wife like Elizabeth couldn’t be tolerated by the Whitaker family, then the lives of women are truly too bitter.
Isn’t it said that what’s far away smells sweet, while what’s close stinks? Elizabeth was such a person in Larkspur Village, yet after being married for 20 years, when Whitaker Scarlett’s incident broke out, no one in Larkspur Village spoke up for Elizabeth. They were all just waiting to watch the show.
Wellwater village was Elizabeth’s hometown. The Miller Family had been rooted here for three generations, shedding their status as outsiders. The villagers all sided with Elizabeth and her daughter.
Amanda thanked everyone for their kindness, finally managing to escape. Returning home, she saw several people sitting in the main room. William occupied the main seat, with Whitaker Scarlett and her daughter sitting to his left. The Whitaker family members were seated on the right, with no signs of a fight.
Amanda breathed a sigh of relief. If a fight were to break out, her husband would definitely lose. She would have to call the villagers for help!
“Alright, what’s the meaning of your visit today? Did you not make things clear before?”
William’s eyes were filled with disgust.
The two Whitaker women dared to come. He knew that Elizabeth was often bullied by her two sisters-in-law while in the Whitaker family. Maria was a biting dog that didn’t bark, and Veronica was the number one vicious dog under the old woman Whitaker. Neither of them were good people.
Whitaker Chris glanced at Elizabeth, who was looking down at the ants. The couple hadn’t seen each other for over ten days. Elizabeth wasn’t as concerned about him as before, and didn’t even speak to him. Whitaker Scarlett was the same; she didn’t even greet him.
Whitaker Chris suppressed his anger:
“I’m here to take her and her daughter back. The fieldwork is finished, and her grandmother’s illness has greatly improved.”
Whitaker Chris meant that the family was no longer angry with Whitaker Scarlett. He came with his two sisters-in-law to provide a way out, so they could go back to living peacefully. Scarlett’s reputation being ruined was quite upsetting, but on the way here, his eldest sister-in-law, Maria, assured him that she would definitely find a husband for Scarlett, allowing her to marry steadily.
William had a headache. Communicating with a blockhead was particularly difficult. Whitaker Chris clearly hadn’t taken his previous words to heart.
“Elizabeth doesn’t want to live with you anymore. You two haven’t even gone through any procedures. Write a document, and everyone puts their fingerprints on it. From now on, we’ll go our separate ways.”
In the rural areas of the 1980s, couples who had lived together for decades without going to the civil affairs bureau to obtain a marriage certificate were commonplace. People didn’t pay much attention to it. Marriage was a lifelong commitment. Even if they fought fiercely, few people would think of divorce. Marriage certificates were useless to them.
If Elizabeth didn’t want to live with Whitaker Chris anymore, she could just pack her things and leave. At least the law couldn’t restrain her.
However, William also feared that the Whitaker family would pester them later and make things unclear. A written document from both sides would be best.
Whitaker Chris felt that his brother-in-law was being relentless and troublesome. He showed displeasure on his face. Maria, seeing the situation was not right, quickly interrupted:
“Scarlett’s uncle, the old saying goes, it’s better to demolish ten temples than to ruin one marriage. The younger sister-in-law has been with Chris for 20 years. How can a couple not have conflicts? If you insist on separating them, you should also believe in Scarlett… she will eventually get married. When her future in-laws inquire, it won’t sound good if Scarlett’s parents are not together. Don’t you think so?”
Elizabeth, who was looking down at the ants, trembled.
