In just one day, Ji Yanshu had experienced too much.
She was exhausted.
After dinner, she wanted to return to her room to rest.
Ji Xiangbei brought her two buckets of hot water. "Wash off the bad luck before sleeping."
As the youngest in the family, Ji Yanshu was deeply cherished. Since childhood, she never had to fetch bath water herself.
In the past, Ji Xiangbei would complain while helping his younger sister with chores.
He said the boys in the family weren't favored, only good for working like oxen.
More pitiful than little cabbages.
Girls had it better, not needing to do anything, just sitting around like young mistresses ordering them about.
This time, he didn't utter a single word of complaint.
He worked briskly, without anyone having to tell him what to do.
Ji Yanshu felt warmth in her heart. With so many people loving her, why should she seek affection from outsiders?
One more wouldn't make a difference, one less wouldn't be missed.
Genuine love was hard to find—she might never encounter a truly sincere man in her lifetime.
But she absolutely would not accept a man with fake affection!
After bathing, she felt completely refreshed.
Ji Yanshu sat by the window, applying snow cream while looking in the mirror.
Her skin was flawless, without a single blemish, not even visible pores.
After applying the snow cream, her skin became radiant and moisturized, her complexion noticeably improved.
Although her family lived in the countryside, with her parents earning work points and barely saving any money by year's end, Ji Yanshu's work was calculated at the highest work point rate.
She could earn ten work points per day.
Converted, that amounted to over ten yuan per month.
Her parents let her keep this money for herself, saving any surplus.
They occasionally supplemented her allowance too.
Her brothers also gave her pocket money, with her eldest brother's contributions never stopping since she was born.
When she was young, her parents managed it for her.
After she came of age, they no longer interfered.
Combining her own earnings with her family's support, she accumulated quite a sum by year's end.
There weren't many places to spend money in the countryside, and household expenses weren't her responsibility.
Ji Yanshu only needed to cover her daily needs, occasionally buying some treats for her family.
Over the years, she had saved a considerable amount.
A full three hundred yuan!
Compared to other girls her age, she was quite wealthy.
While others were still handing over their earnings to the family or receiving pocket money from their parents, she already had her own savings.
Ji Yanshu didn't speak of this to outsiders; she disliked inviting trouble.
Mother Ji passed by her daughter's room and saw her applying snow cream.
She said cheerfully, "When you have time off, go to the county town for some fun. Buy some new clothes while you're at it. Such a pretty face deserves to be dressed up nicely—can't let it go to waste."
Ji Yanshu pouted playfully, "Am I not pretty without dressing up?"
"Pretty! You're pretty no matter what!"
In Mother Ji's eyes, her daughter was the most beautiful, like a fairy from heaven.
She said proudly, "My darling would look beautiful even in a burlap sack."
Ji Yanshu burst out laughing.
"You can praise me like that at home, but don't say it outside, or people will say you're like Wang Po selling melons—praising your own goods."
Mother Ji snorted, "It's not like I'm lying. They have eyes—can't they see for themselves?"
Little Five had lovely features and fair skin. Many people outside complimented her on looking stylish and having great poise.
She didn't resemble a country girl but rather someone who grew up in the city.
Mother Ji had lived in the countryside her whole life, with the county town being the farthest she'd ever been.
She had seen girls from the county town too, and without boasting, she truly hadn't seen any prettier than Little Five.
Even those Educated Youth who came from all corners of the country couldn't compare to Little Five.
Mother Ji thought to herself, their Little Five was so wonderful—some people were just blind to have done something like running away from a wedding.
But perhaps it was for the best. A blessed daughter shouldn't enter an unblessed family. Little Five's true match was yet to come.
The next one would definitely be better than Zhou Heng.
A hundred times better.
A thousand times better!
The more Mother Ji looked at her daughter, the more she felt she had already moved on from Zhou Heng.
That was just as well.
A three-legged toad is hard to find, but two-legged men are everywhere.
Zhou Heng was nothing but trash!
She asked Ji Yanshu, "Why not take tomorrow off to relax? You could also go to the county town to visit your second brother and his wife. We've saved up some eggs at home—you can bring them along, pick some vegetables for them too, to help nourish them."
Eating more vegetables was good for health—that's what her second son, the doctor, always said.
Mother Ji had always believed that eating meat and eggs was what truly benefited the body, while other foods were merely for survival. But her son had managed to change her perspective.
Eating vegetables was beneficial.
The greens, cabbages, radishes grown at home… they were all good stuff.
Living in the city, everything—food, drink, daily necessities—had to be bought with ration coupons.
There were fixed quotas for how much you could eat, making life quite tight. Unlike them, city folks couldn't raise a few chickens or grow their own vegetables.
By making do, they actually ate better than her second son's family.
Ji Yanshu glanced at the calendar. "I'll go in a couple of days when it's my day off. Second brother and his wife work hard—I'll cook them a meal."
"That works too. Have your little brother go with you then. He can carry the things—you're not cut out for heavy labor."
Ji Xiangbei, with his sharp ears, overheard their conversation from his room.
He retorted loudly, "What heavy labor? You all spoil her so much, no wonder she's grown so delicate. If she's not cut out for heavy work, does that mean I am?"
Mother Ji clicked her tongue. "You're a grown man, capable of heavy labor—that's a compliment! Or would you rather hear people say you're weak, more delicate than a young girl?"
Ji Xiangbei snorted, accepting the explanation.
"Fine then, leave all the heavy work to me."
Mother Ji winked at her daughter and whispered, "See how simple-minded he is? No wonder he gets fooled so easily."
Ji Yanshu laughed. "Little brother is actually quite shrewd—he just doesn't play tricks on us."
Mother Ji: "If he dares scheme against his own family, I'll break his dog legs!"
After chatting a while longer, Mother Ji urged Ji Yanshu to go to sleep.
"Don't overthink anything. If the sky falls, your parents and four brothers will hold it up for you. Nobody outside would dare gossip recklessly. Rest easy tonight and go out with peace of mind tomorrow."
Seeing the concern in her mother's eyes, Ji Yanshu said, "A clear conscience fears no accusation. We haven't done anything wrong—we shouldn't be the ones suffering."
"I'm glad you think that way."
Mother Ji understood the logic perfectly well—she was just worried her daughter still had feelings for Zhou Heng.
He had jilted her, and now he was making a scene about marrying someone else.
Each of these things was a heart-wrenching blow. Anyone would find them hard to overcome.
Her daughter appeared calm on the surface, but who knew how much she was hurting inside?
That Zhou Heng deserved to be damned!
May his children be born without assholes!
No—a man like him should die without heirs, never able to have children!
Knowing that saying more might lead to mistakes, Mother Ji insisted Ji Yanshu go to sleep, then picked up a bucket and went out to water their private plot.
It was the busy farming season. Even after dark, people were still working in the fields.
Some were watering crops, others keeping watch over the harvest.
Father Ji went out shortly after.
Only Ji Yanshu and Ji Xiangbei were left at home. The siblings lay on their respective beds, chatting through the wall.
"What are your plans from now on?" Ji Xiangbei asked.
They had reached the point of getting the marriage certificate, yet the engagement was suddenly called off. All subsequent arrangements were thrown into disarray.
Ji Yanshu replied, "Eat when it's time to eat, sleep when it's time to sleep."
Ji Xiangbei's lips twitched. "I never realized before how carefree you are."
"Being carefree is good—it makes you less likely to get hurt."
Ji Xiangbei agreed with that.
He asked more bluntly, "Then, do you want to go on blind dates and meet new people? Zhou Heng is about to marry a new wife. We can't fall behind."
Ji Yanshu was both amused and exasperated. "Why compete with him? You should say: take your time, find someone better than him, live happily ever after, and make him envy and resent you. That's the real revenge."
Not hastily marry yourself off.
That would be irresponsible to your own life, and others would only laugh at you.
"You're right. If you marry too quickly, Zhou Heng might think you're acting out of impulse."
"Who cares what he thinks."
Nowadays, the mere mention of Zhou Heng's name annoyed Ji Yanshu.
This person held no weight in her heart anymore.
"If I meet a man I like, and he excels in every way, I'll marry him tomorrow."
Ji Xiangbei burst into laughter, his mirth clearly audible through the wall.
"Then you'd better sleep quickly. Maybe you'll meet such a comrade in your dreams and marry him tonight."
Teased, Ji Yanshu grinned, her eyes curving into crescents. "Sure! If he's incredibly handsome, tall and imposing, with eyes as beautiful as the starry sea…"
Ji Xiangbei interrupted, "Wait, are you judging a pageant?"
Ji Yanshu retorted, "Since it's a dream, can't I dream a little bigger?"
"Fine, fine, pile all the virtues onto him. With such a brother-in-law, I'd be proud too!"