Every morning, her mother-in-law cooked soup, placed a bowl in front of her, and said,
âOnly when you finish your work will you eat.â
The pregnant woman went out to the garden and spent a long time digging in the soil. At night, she dreamed of the seaânot because she had ever been there, but because her husband had gone there. He sent her photos from the beach.
He captioned them briefly: âResting, just like you said.â
Now the wife was digging potatoes. She called him, but he didnât answer.
But what happened in the garden that day sh0cked the neighbors.
One day, in the garden, she felt dizzy. She sank to her knees in the mud, breathing heavily. Her mother-in-law came out into the yard, looked down at her, and said dryly,
âYouâre pregnant, not sick.â Thereâs no time to sit; the potatoes wonât dig themselves.
The woman tried to get up, but her strength failed her. And then it all happened.
A neighbor passing by saw the pregnant woman fall face-first into the ground. She screamed and called for help. The neighbors came running, picked her up, and carried her to the car. At the hospital, the doctors gave the terrifying news: a little more, and the child would have been too late to save.
From then on, the villagers avoided the mother-in-lawâs house. The neighbors couldnât forgive her for bringing the pregnant woman to this predicament. And the husband, returning from the sea, found his wife in the hospital room, her eyes no longer filled with love.
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