Chapter 524 - 508: Dong Liang

Dong Daguo died, Dong Liang dropped out of school, and both his grandmother and mother fell ill, overwhelmed by the shock.

Fortunately, Dong Liang’s mother, Wang Qiu, was relatively strong. After being sick for over a month, seeing their family’s savings depleted and relatives and friends criticizing them for being a disgrace, she got back on her feet. She and her son, Dong Liang, shouldered the family’s burden together.

Unfortunately, Dong Liang’s grandmother couldn’t withstand it. After being ill for more than half a year, she passed away.

Dong Liang originally had an uncle, but he had already passed away, and his aunt wasn’t willing to help. He also had an aunt who had married and moved far away, so there was no one to support them. Since he wasn’t in school and had no job, he couldn’t find good work and could only take on manual labor. But having never done such work before, he couldn’t earn much. Wang Qiu washed dishes for others, and together, the two of them worked to pay off their debts.

Although life was hard, Dong Liang was a boy with great resolve. He refused to believe his father could do such a thing. So, besides working to support the family, he also went around trying to find out what had really happened.

He went to the Public Security Bureau so many times that they would shoo him away on sight.

Dong Liang wasn’t a cunning person; he was rather simple. But he had a stubborn streak. He was convinced his father wouldn’t do something like that, so he was determined to get to the bottom of it, refusing to turn back even if he hit a brick wall.

Because Dong Liang was investigating Yu Jinfeng, she even had people beat him up. This only made him more certain that she was the one who had framed his father, but he had no proof.

The Dong Family was saddled with the reputation of having a convicted hooligan, and people would often point and whisper whenever they went out.

Dong Liang had a girl he had been close with since childhood. Their families lived near each other and had joked that they would have their children marry once they were grown.

The year Dong Liang started high school, the girl’s family even came to their door. They said Dong Liang was a promising young man and that regardless of whether he could get into university, they would arrange the marriage as soon as the two were of age. The girl herself said she would wait for Dong Liang forever.

But just three years ago, the girl got married, and the groom was not Dong Liang. When Dong Daguo was imprisoned, her family not only refused to help but also cut all ties with the Dong Family. The girl even told Dong Liang, "You’re the son of a hooligan, so you must be a hooligan too. Don’t ever look for me again and don’t hold me back." The girl’s family also spread many vicious rumors about the Dong Family.

Wang Qiu was furious. Back then, they were the ones eager to associate with them, and now that her family was in trouble, they were kicking them while they were down.

Dong Liang consoled his mother, telling her not to be angry. He said that a crisis like this reveals a family’s true character. If he had married a wife like that, there would have been no end to the trouble in the future. Seeing their true colors now was actually a good thing.

Wang Qiu was heartbroken. Her son was sensible and filial; he could have gone to university and had a bright future. But now, he was dragged down by the scandal, unable to even find a proper job, and had to endure people’s scorn. When she tried to find a wife for him, people would just shake their heads and scoff the moment they heard it was for the Dong Family, as if they were a plague. But they truly hadn’t done a single bad thing.

Fortunately, a year ago, Dong Liang finally succeeded in getting his father’s case overturned.

It turned out that Yu Jinfeng was having an affair with a director at their factory, and Dong Daguo had accidentally walked in on them once. Fearing Dong Daguo would talk, Yu Jinfeng and the director came up with a plan. They had someone lure Dong Daguo to a certain place, where Yu Jinfeng was also present. They also had people waiting outside. Yu Jinfeng then tore her own clothes, messed up her hair, and screamed for help. She ran out, letting the people outside see her, and claimed that Dong Daguo had assaulted her.

Dong Daguo never imagined Yu Jinfeng would do such a thing. But a crime like hooliganism was nearly impossible to explain one’s way out of. Yu Jinfeng was a master of acting, talking, and causing a scene, and she had "witnesses." As a result, many people believed her. When the Public Security Bureau convicted him, everyone became even more convinced, and that was how the Dong Family got its reputation.

But later, Yu Jinfeng and the director had a falling out. He failed to deliver on a promise he had made to her, so she demanded he compensate her with money. The director refused, so Yu Jinfeng started a huge fight with him, shouting that he was the one who taught her to frame Dong Daguo, which led to his death. She threatened to expose the whole affair if he didn’t do what she wanted.

Someone overheard what Yu Jinfeng said. This person felt that Dong Daguo had been terribly wronged and mentioned it while drinking with friends. The people who heard it then passed it on to others.

Once Dong Liang heard these rumors, he had a direction to follow and eventually pieced together the truth. He then went to the Public Security Bureau, but they refused to help him. Finally, he got desperate and told them that their shoddy investigation was what had led to his father’s wrongful death. He declared that if the Bureau still wouldn’t act, he would go to the district leaders, and if that didn’t work, the municipal leaders. Someone, he insisted, would have to take charge of the matter.

Seeing he was serious and knowing his one-track mind, the Bureau feared he might actually find someone with influence. So they finally opened a case. The investigation revealed that the story was true—Dong Daguo had indeed been framed.

The director and Yu Jinfeng were imprisoned, and Dong Daguo’s name was cleared. Although his innocence was restored, Dong Daguo was gone, and so was Dong Liang’s grandmother. Nothing could compensate for all the suffering the family had endured.

Afterward, the factory offered to let Dong Liang take over his father’s position. After all, the factory bore some responsibility for what happened to Dong Daguo, and they had never helped the mother and son after his death.

Dong Liang didn’t want to go. He disliked the factory. But Wang Qiu felt her son should accept the offer. If he went to the textile factory, he would be a factory worker. And if her son was a factory worker, it would be easier to find him a wife.

Besides, her son joining the factory would prove that the factory was at fault, not her husband. The factory owed them, so her son deserved to go.

Dong Liang felt he could make a living on his own no matter what he did. But he couldn’t win an argument with his mother, nor could he bear to see her sad. Furthermore, her health wasn’t great, and he didn’t want her to worry about him anymore. So he agreed and went to work at the textile factory.

He went to Xinghua’s shop to have a sweater knitted because he had just gotten paid and wanted to buy a gift for his mother. After all, the family had struggled financially for years, and his mother didn’t even own a single decent piece of clothing. He couldn’t afford anything too expensive, as he also had to cover their living expenses with his salary, having told his mother to stop working.

Dong Liang was indeed single at the moment. Before, because of Dong Daguo’s hooligan conviction, no one was willing to marry into their family and everyone kept their distance. Although his father’s name had been cleared, and Dong Liang himself was handsome and a good person, finding a partner was still not easy. The Dong Family was poor, and no one wanted in-laws like that.

A few people tried to act as matchmakers for Dong Liang, but the girls they proposed all had some sort of flaw. One of them was even blind in one eye. Wang Qiu refused. Her son was perfectly fine; he deserved a wife who was whole, didn’t he? But when she refused, the matchmaker retorted, "With your family’s circumstances, what kind of good wife do you expect to find? You have nothing to your name and still have that reputation. Who would be willing to marry into your family?"

After words like that got out, even fewer people were willing to play matchmaker for Dong Liang. That’s why, at twenty-four, he was still single.

"W-Will this be okay?"

Lin Shuying was hesitant after hearing the story. She didn’t mind whether the other party was well-off or not, as long as the young man had good character. But upon hearing about the Dong Family’s past, she felt it was all a bit too messy.

***

Thank you to Yan Gu for the monthly ticket, and thank you all for your support.