Jiang Lai learned from the original host and said in a spoiled, bossy tone, “Auntie Liu, pork belly is more nourishing. Stop giving me eggs—save all the meat for Jiang Bao’er and her brother.”
Not only Zhou Chuanfang, but also the scumbag father and the pair of twins beside them all froze.
“I thought you were trying to keep your figure,” Zhou Chuanfang said with an awkward smile.
As she spoke, she quickly picked out several pieces of pure lean meat and placed them in Jiang Lai’s bowl.
In times like these, when everyone barely had any oil in their stomachs, who didn’t know the fattier the meat, the better? It showed that Zhou Chuanfang only pretended to care—her so-called affection was nothing but surface-level. The original host was just too stupid to see through it.
Jiang Lai lowered her head and continued eating. If a scene broke out later and she couldn’t finish her meal, she’d go hungry until dawn. All of the family’s grain was locked away in the master bedroom.
Zhou Chuanfang shot frantic looks at her husband, Jiang Jianjun, but he kept his eyes glued to his bowl, refusing to look up.
Coward! She nearly choked on her anger.
Taking a deep breath, she forced a loving smile back onto her face. “Lailai, I found a great marriage proposal for you. It’s the younger son of Accountant Liu from the meat processing plant—handsome, a cultured high school graduate. If you marry him, you’ll get to eat meat every day, and the bride price is this.”
She held up five fingers.
“A full fifty yuan!”
“Your father and I agreed—the bride price will all be yours. We won’t keep a single cent.”
The fifth child, Jiang Jizong, mumbled through a mouthful of meat, “No wonder you went to the Liu house this afternoon, and now we’re eating meat for dinner. The Lius sure are rich.”
“Stuffing your mouth still can’t shut it!” Zhou Chuanfang’s face turned green from being exposed by her own son.
She quickly glanced at Jiang Lai, who was still eating unhurriedly. Whatever she did looked beautiful—her complexion alone made even eating look like a painting.
Thankfully, she’s just a pretty idiot.
“Mom, I’m full,” Jiang Bao’er set down her chopsticks and stood.
Zhou Chuanfang tensed. “You barely ate anything—are you feeling unwell?”
By chance, Jiang Bao’er met Jiang Lai’s gaze. In those sparkling almond eyes was a mocking sneer. She bit her lip in humiliation and fled.
“What’s gotten into that child?” Zhou Chuanfang muttered.
But persuading Jiang Lai to agree to the marriage was more important.
“The Liu family’s conditions are among the best in the county. Their younger son is just the right age for you. Lailai, what do you think?”
A bright smile bloomed on Jiang Lai’s fair face, tinged with shyness. “It’s a lifelong matter. I’ll need a couple of days to think.”
How could that do? Zhou Chuanfang coaxed earnestly, “Opportunities like this don’t come twice. Plenty of people would kill to marry into the Liu family. If you agree today, they’ll bring the bride price tomorrow.”
So rushed?
Jiang Lai feigned regret. “Then forget it. It must mean we’re not fated.”
Zhou Chuanfang: “…”
“With my looks, becoming the wife of an official is no problem at all.”The implication: the Liu family wasn’t good enough for her.
Zhou Chuanfang nearly choked on her rage. She kicked her husband hard under the table.
“Ow!” Jiang Jianjun yelped, cheeks flushing with pain. Forced to speak, he said, “Lailai, would your stepmother ever harm you? I approve of this marriage with the Lius.”
After all, the price they offered was too enticing.
Summoning the authority of the head of the household, he declared, “In any case, tomorrow afternoon you’re not allowed to go anywhere. Stay home and wait for the Liu family.”
Jiang Lai fixed her eyes on him and suddenly said, “Dad, arranged marriages are illegal. Don’t tell me you’ve already taken their money?”
Silence.
“Impossible!” Zhou Chuanfang’s voice cracked.
Jiang Lai nodded coolly. “That’s what I thought. You wouldn’t knowingly break the law.”
Everyone’s expressions turned sour.
A flash of cruelty flickered in Zhou Chuanfang’s eyes. She had Jiang Lai’s household registration booklet in her hand—lock her up and starve her for a few days, and she’d give in.
The Jiang home was on the third floor. Unless Jiang Lai jumped, she’d be crippled if not dead.
But Jiang Lai suddenly changed her tone, looking up at Jiang Jianjun with filial trust. “Still, Dad, you’ve always loved me. If you say they’re good people, I believe you.”
Jiang Jianjun felt a pang of guilt. She was his own flesh and blood—how could he not love her?
If it weren’t for the street office forcing educated youths to the countryside… he would never have reached this point.
Jiang Lai fluttered her lashes and held out her hand. “How about this? Give me thirty yuan. Tomorrow morning, I’ll go to the department store to buy a new dress.”
Zhou Chuanfang sucked in a cold breath, her smile stiff. “Didn’t you just buy a new dress last month?”
“Isn’t a match-making meeting important? What if the Liu family doesn’t like me?” Jiang Lai narrowed her eyes, pressing, “Aunt Zhou, are you trying to ruin my match? Planning to give this good marriage to Jiang Bao’er instead?”
As if! Zhou Chuanfang thought viciously. I wouldn’t throw my own daughter into the fire pit.
“Thirty it is,” she gritted out. The Liu family had given a sky-high bride price of three hundred. After Jiang Lai took fifty, there’d still be over two hundred left.
No matter how you calculated it, she came out ahead.
Zhou Chuanfang quickly handed over the money and rushed off to meet the matchmaker, afraid anything might go wrong.
Jiang Lai soon finished eating as well. “Dad, I’m going to find Hehua and ask her to go shopping with me tomorrow.”
The Jiang men didn’t suspect a thing—Jiang Lai always loved showing off.
But once outside, she didn’t head toward Hehua’s house. Instead, she went to the next building.
Unfortunately, she arrived just as Director Gao’s family was about to eat—and they seemed to have a guest.
A man sat on a small stool, back straight like a pine tree, long legs folded awkwardly. Under the dim yellow light, his profile was sharply handsome, his features edged with an almost dangerous refinement.
Jiang Lai had already looked away—but she couldn’t help glancing back.
Just then, the man raised his eyes.
Their gazes met.
His pupils were ink-black, and that single glance was cold and distant. It made her heart tremble. It felt like every secret she had was laid bare before him—she clenched her fingers unconsciously.
“Lailai, what brings you here?” Director Gao stepped forward, blocking that intimidating gaze.
Jiang Lai let out a quiet breath and spoke bluntly, “I’m planning to sell my position at the meat plant. I was wondering if Director Gao knows anyone who might want to buy it?”
Even though the law forbade the selling of job placements, these deals never truly stopped. Everyone understood—they would call it a “relative taking over the post,” and it would be handled quietly.
The deadline for voluntary countryside enlistment was the day after tomorrow. Director Gao’s little niece couldn’t wait any longer.
And Director Gao had connections. With the right people pulling strings at the plant, the paperwork would go through smoothly.
Director Gao was stunned. “Sell it?”
She looked Jiang Lai up and down, then pulled her aside, holding her hand. Even in midsummer, the girl’s hand was ice-cold, bones sharp under her skin.
Zhou Chuanfang bragged every day about her stepdaughter living in luxury—yet Jiang Lai looked thinner and frailer than Jiang Bao’er, who was younger by more than a year.
A faint blush colored Jiang Lai’s cheeks as she began her performance: “Aunt Zhou suddenly mentioned at dinner that she found a marriage proposal for me—the younger son of Accountant Liu from the meat plant. She even said they’d bring the bride price tomorrow afternoon.”
“Aunt Zhou means well, but before my mother passed, she already arranged a childhood engagement for me. We should keep our word. Even if life in the borderlands is hard, I’m not afraid. I want to sell my job and go to the army to find him.”