“Miss Jiang, marriage is a serious matter. Do not joke about it.”
Lu Da lowered his gaze slightly, hiding the dimness in his eyes. He was well aware of how the villagers viewed him; no one would ever be willing to marry him.
“I already said it just now. I don’t want to be matched by the government. If you don’t dare to marry me, I’ll go find someone else.”
Jiang A Yao truly had no time to explain to him. There were so many men; without this one, it wouldn’t stop her from finding another.
Her road ahead was still long; she would absolutely not throw herself into the river.
Seeing that she was really about to leave, Lu Da’s eyes suddenly tightened. He subconsciously raised a hand and grabbed her arm.
Jiang A Yao looked up at him, a hint of confusion in her eyes.
Lu Da looked up at her, his expression solemn as he said, word by word, “If you are serious, I will marry you!”
Upon hearing this, the tightness in Jiang A Yao’s chest instantly eased. Not giving Lu Da a chance to back out, she grabbed his arm in return and started walking back.
“Where are we going?”
“My home.”
…
When Jiang A Yao dragged Lu Da back to the Jiang residence, a circle of people was already seated in the courtyard.
As she entered, everyone’s gaze turned to her.
Jiang A Yao recognized them from memory. There was her second aunt’s family and her third aunt’s family, who had already split from the main household, as well as her grandfather and grandmother. Even her paternal aunt, who was married into the same village, had returned.
Several of her younger cousins stood to the side. Everyone who could come had come. The scene strongly resembled a tribunal.
One look at their expressions and Jiang A Yao knew what they wanted to say, so she simply didn’t give them the chance to speak.
“Grandfather, Grandmother, Father, Mother, Uncles, Aunts, my marriage has been settled. I won’t trouble you to worry about me.”
“What do you mean, settled?” Lin Qinghua shot to her feet, a look of shock on her face.
Could she have salvaged the marriage with the Zhang family?
But before Lin Qinghua could get happy, Jiang A Yao’s next words made her face turn pale.
“I am marrying Lu Da!”
As her voice fell, the entire courtyard instantly fell silent. You could hear a pin drop.
Lin Qinghua swayed, nearly falling over. After steadying herself, she roared, “Jiang A Yao, have you gone mad? You’re giving up being a Scholar’s Wife to marry a poor Hunter?”
Jiang A Yao’s face was devoid of expression as she reminded her once more, “Zhang Chun has already broken off the engagement. What Scholar’s Wife? It has nothing to do with me.”
Lin Qinghua’s face flushed red with anger. Her second sister-in-law immediately stood up to chime in, “A Yao, you must have been muddled by anger, haven’t you? Although you’re a bit old, you don’t have to find yourself a man like this. We’ll all help you think of a solution; we’ll definitely find someone.”
As soon as she finished, the third sister-in-law also stood up. “That’s right! The Lu family only has three dilapidated tiled-roof houses, and there’s also a… If you marry him, what will you eat and drink?”
The third sister-in-law paused, subconsciously glancing at the tall and sturdy Lu Da beside her. When he was serious, he had a fierce look on his face. In the end, she didn’t dare to say the words “sickly person.”
Then, she changed the subject. “My sister-in-law’s family has a younger brother who isn’t much older than you. Why don’t I pay them a visit? I guarantee this marriage will work out, and they’ll even give a betrothal gift.”
“The person Third Aunt is talking about, is it that scoundrel who beat his wife to death along with their unborn child while he was drunk?”
Jiang A Yao stared coldly at her third aunt, her gaze turning the woman’s smiling face pale inch by inch.
The third aunt said irritably, “A Yao, I’m doing this for your own good. Don’t be so ungrateful.”
“Thank you for your trouble, Third Aunt, but I have already made my decision. I will marry Lu Da.”
Jiang A Yao’s words were resolute, each one striking Lu Da’s heart like a heavy blow.
He hadn’t expected Jiang A Yao to bring him to the Jiang residence to announce their marriage, and with such seriousness at that.
Lin Qinghua was too angry to speak, and the cowardly Jiang Dagen didn’t dare to make a sound.
At this moment, Jiang Laotou, who had been silent all along, spoke in a cold voice, “A Yao, have you thought this through? The Lu family has no parents to help and no land. He also has a seriously ill sister at home who takes medicine more expensive than gold. If you marry him, you will surely face endless hardship in the future.”
Jiang A Yao looked at her grandfather, her will unchanged. “A hard life isn’t scary. What’s scary is a black heart, just like Zhang Chun. The moment he achieved some success, he broke off the engagement, completely disregarding whether others lived or died. What use is a man like that?”
Jiang Laotai snorted, paying no mind to her words. She even mocked, “You make it sound easy. Finding a man who’s dirt-poor, are you planning to take things from your maiden home to subsidize his family?”
“How could your parents have given birth to such an ungrateful, white-eyed wolf!”
Hearing this, Jiang A Yao’s expression changed. Just as she was about to speak, Lu Da, who was beside her, took a step forward and said in a deep voice, “Elders of the Jiang family, please rest assured. Since A Yao is marrying me, I will certainly not let her be wronged. The betrothal gift will be no less than what others give, and I will naturally not put her in a difficult position with her maiden family.”
Lin Qinghua gave a cold smile. “What’s the use of your pretty words? I’m telling you, if you want to marry Jiang A Yao, you must pay five thousand big coins. Otherwise, get the hell out of my Lu family’s home.”
Five thousand big coins!
The second and third aunts gasped. Making a living had been difficult these past few years. A betrothal gift of one thousand big coins was already considered a lot for a village wedding. Their eldest sister-in-law had just multiplied that several times over.
Everyone turned to look at Lu Da, waiting to see if he would agree.
They had thought Lu Da would be scared off, but to their surprise, his expression remained unchanged as he said in a deep voice, “A promise is a promise!”
Jiang A Yao valued him and had gone against everyone’s opinion for him. Naturally, he shouldn’t hesitate over the betrothal gift.
Besides, he could afford five thousand big coins.
He actually agreed.
Lin Qinghua’s eyes widened abruptly, a flash of delight surging within them.
But just at that moment, Jiang A Yao’s voice suddenly rang out, “I forbid it!”