Chronicle of the 70s-Chapter 404 - 379: Divorce

To produce ham, one must first procure pigs, and right now it happens to be August, not the best season for raising piglets. However, the task of acquiring pigs can be set in motion ahead of time.

Therefore, while Da Li was building the factory, he began to visit various rural towns to sign pig farming contracts with the locals.

For quality ham, the breeding duration of the pigs requires careful attention; they can’t be the kind of hundred-day pigs used in the past. Fortunately, there are no lean meat additives or rapid growth feeds these days – all natural. A pig has to be raised for at least ten months to be considered a large pig, so the quality of the meat can be quite reassuring.

Meanwhile, Qin Xi has been in the county for her third year now. Over the past two years, her achievements have been outstanding, and the provincial authorities are considering promoting her to a higher position after another year in the county.

Yet Li Xianglu is faced with a difficult situation right now: Leng Qing and her third brother are still set on getting a divorce.

This made Li Xianglu think of something. Previously, when she proposed letting Leng Qing and Hu Zi take over the ham factory, Su Yan disagreed immediately, claiming that it would be too much for Leng Qing, a woman, to handle.

But in her previous life, which tycoon didn’t have various enterprises? All of them managed quite well, without ever complaining about being unable to cope due to too many businesses.

As for Su Yan herself, not only does she have businesses abroad, but Hong Kong is also a major focus, and she has expanded quite a few operations within the country. Clearly, her excuse was dubious.

Li Xianglu has reason to suspect that Su Yan might be aware of something.

So, when Leng Qing proposed divorcing Li Jianqing, Li Xianglu had a chat with Su Yan first.

Su Yan sighed and said, "Some people might just be destined not to be husband and wife. Look at your third brother and Leng Qing together – they are always so polite to each other." Seeing Li Xianglu’s puzzled look, she continued, "For example, take you and Qin Xi. When you eat, if you have some dish you don’t like or leftovers, you give them to Qin Xi, right? And he just eats them up, doesn’t he?"

Li Xianglu nodded. Isn’t that what couples do? The so-called comfort in mutual affection, she is the wife, isn’t it okay to eat her leftover food?

Su Yan tapped Li Xianglu’s head and said, "Have you noticed? Your third brother and Leng Qing have always eaten separately. If Leng Qing has any leftovers or is given food she doesn’t like, she always sets it aside or feeds it to the chickens."

Seeing Li Xianglu still looking confused, Su Yan sighed and said, "Don’t overlook such trivial matters. The life of a married couple is made up of these little things, and it’s not always the big decisions that need to be made. That’s why I disagreed with letting Leng Qing take over the ham factory."

Just because of that? And from that, you concluded they would divorce?

Holding the teacup in her hand, Su Yan spun it around and, looking at the three children playing in the sandpit, she continued, "It’s been two years, and they still haven’t had children. Haven’t you thought about the reason?"

Right, her third brother still doesn’t have any children.

The next day, Li Jianqing returned from his military post. It was Leng Qing who had called him back. The two had not seen each other for two months, from June to August. Leng Qing felt that continuing this way was pointless; it would be better to cut the Gordian knot and divorce, so they could both live better separately.

This time, Li Xianglu did not get involved. Leng Qing looked very determined, and the third brother also appeared to be not averse to the idea of divorcing.

Thus, the next day, after discussions, they agreed on a divorce.

Because Li Jianqing was a soldier, divorce in a military marriage was a bit troublesome to deal with, as it required submitting reports upwards.

Before Li Jianqing left, it was Qin Xi who drove the car, with Li Xianglu sitting beside him; no one spoke along the way. When they were getting close to the station, Li Jianqing broke the silence: "I did wrong by Leng Qing, she’s a good girl," he said with a bitter smile.

Li Xianglu frowned and asked, "Big Brother, are you still unable to let go of Iro?"

Li Jianqing looked at Li Xianglu for a while, hesitated, then nodded and said, "Seems like it."

Now Li Xianglu was thoroughly dejected. It seemed that this matter wasn’t Leng Qing’s fault; it was always her own Big Brother who had the problem—a man, married, but always having another woman in his heart. How could that be right?

When she returned home, Li Xianglu didn’t mention what Li Jianqing had said. Instead, she had a heartfelt talk with Leng Qing.

Leng Qing was merely disappointed about the divorce. At first, she thought that Li Jianqing still had some feelings for her, that he would try to hold on to the marriage, but he agreed to it so readily. It seemed he really didn’t have her in his heart anymore.

So Leng Qing let it go. What she wanted most at the moment was to do well with the factory and not to dwell on anything else.

Hence, Li Xianglu assured her that no matter her relationship with Li Jianqing, she remained Leng Qing’s friend and business partner; none of the other matters would affect that. After that, Leng Qing moved out.

Li Xianglu actually felt this was for the best. A separation for a while would avoid awkwardness and also give Leng Qing some peace to think things through.

A month after Li Jianqing filed for divorce, the application underwent review and a mediation, finally resulting in the completion of the divorce proceedings.

During the establishment of the factory, Li Jianqing had invested twenty thousand yuan. Leng Qing was aware of how significant that amount was at the time, so she gave Li Jianqing the corresponding shares as compensation.

Initially, Li Jianqing didn’t want to accept it. However, Leng Qing insisted, and as a military man, it wasn’t ideal to own such shares, so he decided to leave them with his sister.

Thus, the marriage between Leng Qing and Li Jianqing formally came to an end at the end of September.

As the weather turned cooler at the end of September, both adults and children started wearing sweaters. Early one weekend, Sister Su steamed cabbage and pork buns and cooked a thick millet and red date porridge. The family was having breakfast together.

Su Yan glanced at the weather outside and said, "Maybe I should take the kids back earlier."

After biting into a bun, Li Xianglu felt reluctant, but as the weather was getting colder and the houses here didn’t have central heating like in the capital—instead relying on iron stoves—it could be quite chilly in winter. Mr. Li’s legs weren’t good, and they’d hurt several times because they left late two years ago; last year, leaving early meant he didn’t fall sick, so Li Xianglu nodded and said, "Then we’ll leave after the National Day."

Mr. Li, knowing that Li Xianglu didn’t want to part with the kids, said with a smile, "Don’t worry, your grandma and I will take good care of the little ones."

Li Xianglu stroked Ba Yi’s hair as he munched on his bun, smiling. Seeing this, Ba’er, who was seated next to him, felt left out and widened his eyes in displeasure.

Seeing this, Li Xianglu had no choice but to also pat her younger son’s head, and the two children continued eating their meal.

After the meal, Mr. Li planned to go to the vegetable garden to dig up cabbages, radishes, and sweet potatoes, all winter vegetables he’d planted during the summer and that were now ready for harvest.

Li Xianglu cleaned up the table then went to make a phone call, calling Xu Wu to arrange for transportation.

When the call connected, Xu Wu himself picked up promptly, and Li Xianglu paused before explaining about sending the kids and the elderly back to the capital. But she heard Xu Wu say, "Sister, I’m afraid both you and your husband need to come back. Something happened at home."