In the two days before going to the county, Wu Jun began sorting through everything that had happened since his rebirth. From the Li family breaking off the engagement to their spreading rumors, from Aunt Dazhu’s dismissiveness to her relentless slander—it seemed that in his previous life he had been too muddleheaded to notice so many things that were off. After all, his family were just ordinary commoners, yet it felt as if an invisible hand had been constantly throwing obstacles in their way. Say what you will, but without any leads, the only thing Wu Jun could think of was to strengthen his own position, just in case.
At the county town’s state-run restaurant, as soon as Wu Jun walked in, he saw Brother Cai bragging with another waiter. The meal rush was over, so the two were idle. Seeing Wu Jun, Brother Cai greeted him warmly: “Little brother, haven’t seen you in a few days. There’s no food left at this hour, just some steamed buns from the morning. Want a couple?”
Wu Jun smiled and replied, “Brother Cai, I already ate before coming, so don’t go to any trouble. I’m here to see Brother Gong.”
“Xiao Gong is probably helping out in the back kitchen right now. Just go through that door and you’ll find him.” Brother Cai pointed to a wooden door next to the counter and smiled.
Thanking Brother Cai, Wu Jun pushed open the wooden door and entered the restaurant’s back kitchen. The handsome man, dressed in a respectable Sun Yat-sen suit and wearing a white cotton apron, was crouched on the ground picking over vegetables. The scene was truly incongruous. “Brother, what are you doing picking vegetables here? Don’t tell me you work here?” Wu Jun found it hard to imagine this guy gripping a wok and spatula in the kitchen instead of sitting in an office with a pen. Given his family background, they would never allow him to do such work.
“You can see what I’m doing. Go sit over there for a while—I’m almost done with these. The hot water is in the thermos, bowls are in the kitchen. Help yourself if you want a drink.” Li Gong pointed to a seating area off to the side of the kitchen that looked like a rest area for the restaurant staff.
After finishing his work and tidying up, Li Gong sat down next to Wu Jun and smiled. “Why did you come so late today? I wanted to save you some braised fish, but the restaurant has been serving lake fish for the past couple of days.”
“Brother, don’t stand on ceremony. Chances are that fish came from our village’s lake—the production brigade just handed over several cartloads of fish not long ago. But let’s set that aside for now. Did you find out anything about the matter you were looking into?”
“I asked around and found out that Li Xue is now working as a clerk in the county textile factory’s factory committee. I heard she got in through the factory committee secretary’s connections. That secretary and Hong Yuanchao, the deputy director of the Revolutionary Committee—who is also Li Xue’s future father-in-law—are sworn brothers. However, I also learned that Li Xue’s fiancé, Hong Mingliang, actually had another girlfriend. Something happened in between, but I need to find out the details before I tell you more. Anyway, the bottom line is that Li Xue will be getting engaged to Hong Mingliang soon. Looking at it that way, your broken engagement isn’t so surprising.”
“Brother, I don’t have any feelings for Li Xue anymore. But there’s no way I’m letting their family destroy our reputation like this. I need to find a way to expose her true face.” Wu Jun thought about all the things he had done for Li Xue in his previous life—muddled and foolish as they were—and his face flushed red with anger.
“I have a plan. This afternoon, I’ll arrange for someone to bring Li Xue and Hong Mingliang here to this restaurant for a meeting. Then you can confront Li Xue directly, while I have Hong Mingliang listen from the back kitchen. You need to stay calm. The more Li Xue reveals herself, the better it will be for us.”
“Will Hong Mingliang listen to you?”
“Don’t worry, I have that much influence. I’ll bring him. You just follow the plan.” Li Gong set down his cup, smiling confidently.
“Then it’s settled. Also, brother, how did your family end up putting you here as a chef?” Now that there was a solution to his problem, Wu Jun voiced the question that had puzzled him since he walked in.
“Haha, do you really think my cooking skills are up to par? My uncle just got transferred here as a chef. Since he had to step out for something around noon, I’m just helping him prepare some of the vegetables needed for the afternoon.” Li Gong saw that Wu Jun was still as easy to read as when they were kids, so he laughed and put an arm around Wu Jun’s shoulder. “As for me, I’ll report to the county government after the New Year. I’ll probably be working as a secretary for the county party secretary.”
“Congratulations, brother! Then we’ll be able to see each other often.”
“Yeah. But when I come to see you, don’t say you don’t have time.” Li Gong said meaningfully. Then he left to make arrangements for the afternoon meeting.
Bored, Wu Jun returned to the restaurant’s main hall and started chatting with Brother Cai and the others.
As he watched Li Xue walk slowly in through the entrance, Wu Jun felt a complex mix of emotions. Li Xue was just as he remembered her—skin fair and translucent, hair black and silky, large eyes gently fixed on Wu Jun. Judging solely by her appearance, she was as flawless as pure white snow, but that black heart of hers was constantly scheming, who knew what. The two waiters had already been sent away by Li Gong, leaving the empty hall with just the two of them. As Li Xue drew closer, Wu Jun suddenly shuddered as her voice echoed in his mind:
“Wu Jun really is handsome. If it weren’t for the plot requiring me to break up with him, I’d hate to let go of this young hunk. But once I’ve secured wealth and status, Wu Jun naturally won’t be able to escape my clutches. The real problem is Hong Mingliang—he’s too hard to swallow. I really don’t know why the plot wants me to get engaged to him.”
Wu Jun’s eyes widened. For a moment, he couldn’t process what he had just heard. Based on the novels he had mindlessly read in his previous life, Li Xue was likely what people called the “female lead,” and he himself was probably the “cannon fodder”—the stepping stone for the female lead’s rise. But the fact that he could now hear the female lead’s thoughts—surely that meant Heaven disapproved of someone like Li Xue who trampled on others so wantonly, and that was why he could hear her inner voice?
Li Xue saw Wu Jun’s wide eyes and assumed he was simply overwhelmed with emotion at seeing her. Seeing no one else around, she threw herself into Wu Jun’s arms and said in a tearful voice, “Brother Junzi, I’ve missed you so much.”
Startled by her embrace, Wu Jun quickly pulled her away. “Xue’er, wasn’t it your family’s idea to break off the engagement? Now that we’re no longer engaged, what’s this talk of missing me? The reason I asked you to come is because your mother has been spreading rumors all over our village that I tricked your family into marriage. Surely you know better than anyone whether I tricked anyone? I told you everything about my family’s situation clearly.”
“Brother Junzi, I didn’t want to break off the engagement. My mother forced me. She wants me to get engaged to the son of the Revolutionary Committee’s deputy director so that my eldest brother can get a formal job. You know me—my feelings for you are sincere. I just don’t dare disobey my mother. As for her spreading rumors… she loves me too much. She’s probably afraid of my reputation being damaged.” Hearing that this was the reason, Li Xue couldn’t help cursing her mother inwardly for being such a fool. Her mother had insisted that the broken engagement couldn’t leave a bad taste in people’s mouths, so she had cooked up this whole scheme. In Li Xue’s opinion, it was better to secure all the advantages first. With all that free time spent spreading rumors, she’d rather find more ways to rake in money.
Hearing this, Wu Jun wanted to curse out loud. But remembering the plan Li Gong had told him, he could only try to keep Li Xue steady for now. “Then what do you want me to do now? You know how those gossiping women in the village are. My grandparents are about to get sick from the stress.”
“Brother Junzi, I’m sorry, but what’s done is done. She’s my mother—I can’t rebuke her. Since everyone has already heard the ‘tricked marriage’ story, how about this, Brother Junzi? For my sake, just stay quiet and let it slide. Even though I’ll be engaged to Hong Mingliang, my heart still loves you. And I know your heart loves me too—you wouldn’t want me to suffer any harm.” As Li Xue spoke these nauseating words with feigned deep emotion, she tried to get closer to Wu Jun again, confident in her own beauty. According to the plot, Wu Jun would be unable to resist her.
Hearing this hypocritical, sickening speech, Wu Jun’s stomach churned. If this were his previous self, hearing Li Xue say she loved him would have sent him over the moon with joy, and he would have agreed to anything. But now, he saw her only as selfish and self-serving, using love as a banner to defile love itself—disgusting. What had blinded him so completely in his past life that he had become so obsessed with her?
“What about me? Have you considered me at all? If I accept this ‘tricked marriage’ label, who would ever dare marry me in the future? Would my family ever be able to hold our heads up again? My grandparents are so old. You say you’re so kind-hearted—can you really bear to see them pointed at and gossiped about?”
“Brother Junzi, Grandfather and Grandmother are so kind and have always doted on me. I’m sure they would rather get hurt themselves than see me suffer any harm. I can’t bear to refuse their good intentions. And you love me so much—you would never let me be hurt. Even if no one else marries you in the future, you’ll still have me. I will always love you, and I’ll always keep you by my side.” Li Xue was certain that Wu Jun’s love for her would make him agree.
“So even after you marry Hong Mingliang, you’ll still love me?”
“Yes. You are the only one I’ve ever loved, from beginning to end. I don’t like Hong Mingliang at all. That fat pig is ugly and old. I’m only marrying him for my family’s sake.”
“Enough!” A furious roar came from the back kitchen. A man weighing over 200 jin, fat and burly, kicked open the back kitchen door and stormed over, seething with rage. Wu Jun looked at this rare sight—a fat man in the 1970s—as he grabbed Li Xue by the collar and shouted, “You cheap slut! Who was it that said she liked me so much she’d die if she couldn’t marry me? And now you’re saying this to some pretty boy? Do you think I’m dead?” He raised his hand to slap her face.
Li Gong, following behind, grabbed Hong Mingliang’s raised wrist and said calmly, “Hong Mingliang, if you want to teach her a lesson, take it home. This is, after all, a public place.”
Hong Mingliang turned his head and glared fiercely at Wu Jun, then said to Li Gong, “I’ll give you this face today. As for you, pretty boy—don’t let me see the two of you together again.” Then he dragged Li Xue away.
From the moment Hong Mingliang burst out, Li Xue had been stunned. She couldn’t believe that Wu Jun, who had always been so infatuated with her, would set her up like this. According to the plot, Wu Jun was supposed to silently accept the “tricked marriage” label, stay in the countryside, and earn money to support her. And she, in turn, was supposed to use Hong Mingliang as a stepping stone to meet more rich and powerful men.