CHAPTER 942: CHAPTER 943: CRAB TRAPPED IN A CAGE

Qi Fenglian contracted that kind of shameful disease and needs treatment. She can’t work at the fast food restaurant for the time being, and with such an incident, she isn’t in the mood to work either.

So Cheng Su suggested she take a temporary leave and return to work once she’s fully recovered. Qi Fenglian also knows her own health situation and had nothing to say.

Qi Taiguo was worried that his sister would overthink and do something foolish, so he asked Cheng Su to spend more time talking to her, to guide and console her.

"I know I’m troubling you, but big sister doesn’t really have close friends here. She used to be on good terms with you. You’re good with words, so please spend more time talking with her." Qi Taiguo said.

Cheng Su nodded in agreement, but she also had her studies, so she could only visit Qi Fenglian when she was free from classes or after school.

Qi Fenglian was already troubled, and after the incident with Zhang Jisheng, her heart was even heavier and harder to resolve. Coupled with her illness, she quickly became thin and withered. In just a few days, she seemed to have aged ten years, like an old woman.

Cheng Su felt heartache when she saw her, yet there was nothing she could do.

Qi Fenglian pursed her lips, her gaze somewhat empty, and said, "I thought that this year, finally coming out from my in-laws’ house to work would mean leaving them behind. With the hard work of us as a couple, our days, even if not extravagant, would be much better than before."

Knowing she needed to release her pent-up emotions, Cheng Su remained silent, listening quietly to her words.

"All I wanted was a somewhat comfortable life. I didn’t expect Zhang Jisheng to be very capable, nor was I afraid to endure hardships with him. After all, haven’t many couples made it through that way? This year, I saw hope. His wages, even though given to his family, I was saving up mine. I was reluctant to spend on clothes or food, and why? Wasn’t it just to save up for a stable household, to bring the kids out for a better life as soon as possible?"

"Pinched every penny to stretch each cent, thinking that once we saved enough, we’d start some business of our own, and life would improve. But it turns out, it was all just a daydream of mine, my own unrealistic hopes. Here I am, working myself to death, while Zhang Jisheng takes the money and indulges with those little sluts. Haha, look at this, this is what my efforts have earned me, how laughable." As Qi Fenglian spoke, tears fell down her face, but she stubbornly wiped them away.

"Big sister, why are you crying? Zhang Jisheng isn’t worth it." Cheng Su handed her a tissue.

"Yeah, he’s not worth it. I’m crying because of how foolish I am, how blind I was to marry a man like him. Why is my life so bitter? I truly regret it, regret it so much!" Qi Fenglian said in a wretched voice, "I’m just like a crab, all I wanted was to crawl out of that cage, but Zhang Jisheng wouldn’t allow it. Just as I was about to make it, to break free, he used his claws to grip my back leg and pulled me right back down. I can’t escape this cage."

Hearing the defeat in her words, Cheng Su felt a pang in her heart and said, "Big sister, what’s done is done. Getting hung up on it won’t change anything. You still have two children. You need to think carefully about how to live in the future. Just for the sake of your kids, you can’t wallow in self-pity forever."

Qi Fenglian looked up, her face gaunt, and after a long pause, she said, "Do I even have a choice?"

"Of course, you do, it’s just a matter of how you view it." Cheng Su said, "You’re only in your early thirties. There’s still a long road ahead. Are you going to live the next decades filled with resentment? If Zhang Jisheng doesn’t want to leave this cage, don’t you think you can find your own way out? In this world, no one is indispensable."

Qi Fenglian bit her lip, bowed her head lost in thought.