Inside the Military District—
Gu Mingsong called over his younger brother Gu Mingyang and their cousin Huo Zheng, who had just been dismissed.
The three walked toward the gate, each with his own thoughts.
Gu Mingyang was the youngest, a sunny, cheerful guy. “Bro, what do you think those three girls look like? Grandpa really is something, arranging engagements just like that.”
Gu Mingsong didn’t reply. He only glanced sideways at their cousin, who was trailing two steps behind.
Huo Zheng had just returned from training troops.
More precisely, he’d just spent a week crawling through the mountains with his soldiers.
At one meter eighty-seven, he stood a full head taller than both of his cousins.
His skin was remarkably even, so dark that in the twilight you could barely make out his features.
There were still traces of camouflage paint on his face. His military coat was unbuttoned, the uniform underneath wrinkled, the collar casually open two buttons, and his whole body radiated a rough, keep-away aura.
That smell—
How should I put it.
If Gu Mingsong gave off a faint scent of soap, then Huo Zheng gave off the authentic, undiluted “manly body odor,” strong enough to repel mosquitoes.
Gu Mingsong shot him a disgusted look. “Couldn’t you go back and take a shower, change your clothes first?”
“No time.”
Huo Zheng answered lazily, dragging his steps slower than a snail. “We’re going to meet them sooner or later anyway. An ugly bride has to meet her in-laws eventually—”
“You’re the ugly bride?”
“I meant them.”
Huo Zheng scoffed. “Who knows what they look like? If they’re a bunch of crooked melons and cracked dates, washing up won’t make a difference.”
Gu Mingsong took a deep breath, holding back the urge to punch his cousin. “Wipe that cold look off your face. Don’t scare the poor girls.”
“If they run, good. I don’t want to marry some delicate little ancestor and have to wait on her hand and foot.” Huo Zheng’s tone was irritable, full of resistance.
He didn’t want to get married at all. His training schedule was packed. When would he have time for marriage?
But his grandfather had insisted on arranging an engagement.
The old man’s tone on the phone had been as harsh as issuing a combat order. Anyone who disobeyed would never set foot in the house again.
The Qiao parents had been investigated and sent down. Their three daughters could only seek refuge with them, or they’d also be sent to the countryside for re-education.
If young girls went to the countryside and something happened, their lives would be ruined. So—
The old man sacrificed his happiness?
Fuck!
Huo Zheng’s expression turned colder, fiercer.
Gu Mingsong didn’t know what to say.
Hopefully he wouldn’t scare them to tears.
Outside the military district gate.
Qiao Yurou saw three figures walking out from inside and her eyes lit up. Her voice carried carefully calibrated delight and just the right amount of shyness. “Little Sister, the brothers are here.”
Qiao Yujie, who was crouching in the corner to shelter from the wind, looked up listlessly.
In the twilight, three figures approached from the distance.
The one walking in front stood tall, his steps steady, with a gentle, refined scholarly air about his brows and eyes.
His uniform fit him perfectly, broad shoulders and narrow waist. Every step was unhurried, as if he’d stepped out of an old pictorial.
Qiao Yujie’s eyes lit up.
Tall, long-legged, gentle, steady, and reserved. This was practically a custom-made “young military district version of District Chief Xu” for her!
Maybe this marriage isn’t so impossible after all… Great-Great-Grandfather! You really do love me!!!
However—
The smile that had just begun to curve her lips froze solid in the north wind at Qiao Yurou’s next words.
“Brother Gu!”
Qiao Yurou stepped forward lightly, her voice sweet as honey. “My name is Yurou. I’m here… to fulfill our marriage contract with you.”
With that, she pulled a neatly folded red paper from her coat and presented it with both hands, dignified as if presenting a letter of credence.
Brother Gu?
That gentle, refined man—wasn’t hers?
Marriage contract…??
The original owner seemed to have not even glanced at it, just tossed it into her luggage?
Qiao Yujie frowned slightly. She was trying to remember which one her fiancé was.
Time had been short. Her parents had mentioned it when they gave her the contract, but the original owner had been focused on getting back to Guangdong and hadn’t listened carefully.
Now her mind was even more of a mess.
If not Brother Gu, then…
Qiao Yujie’s gaze passed over Gu Mingsong and landed on the second man behind him.
Hmm, youthful and handsome, sunny and cheerful, the typical “puppy” type. Not bad either…
Before she could think another second, Qiao Yuxin quickly stepped forward and pulled out a similar red paper, handing it over.
Her movements were crisp, without a hint of shyness. “Brother Mingyang, I’m…”
Qiao Yujie felt a buzz in her head, another string snapping.
The second one was gone too.
Then hers…
Stiffly, bit by bit, she turned her gaze through the gaps between the four bodies toward the man trailing several steps behind.
One look and she nearly fainted.
Huo Zheng was leaning lazily against the pillar beside the reception room, his left calf crossed in front of his right.
He looked like a pine tree too lazy to stand at attention, every joint in his body screaming “unmanageable.”
One hand on his hip, elbow propped against the pillar, his whole body slanted at a careless angle.
His other hand was raised to his mouth, a cigarette nearly burned down to the filter held between index and middle finger, the red tip flickering in the north wind.
He took a final drag, cheeks hollowing slightly, then turned his head and slowly exhaled.
The white smoke was torn to shreds by the wind, sweeping past the side of his face, blurring half his features.
When the smoke cleared, he unhurriedly turned his head and looked over.
Qiao Yujie just crouched there dumbly, leaning back against the cold corner of the wall, motionless, staring up at the gray sky with empty eyes.
Fireworks were going off in her heart.
No.
A funeral march was playing.
Great-Great-Grandfather… do you have some fatal misunderstanding of the words “good match”?
Or did my fifty thousand yuan and nine kowtows offend you?
This skin as black as charcoal was her most hated type!
He looked like he could kill a tiger with one punch, his face plastered with “don’t mess with me,” a fierce thug…
Was actually her matched fiancé?
Hers???
With this build, this vibe, she could never achieve human harmony with him in this lifetime!
No, no, no!!!
Absolutely not!!!
Was this a marriage or a feud???
Her mental complaints about the Qiao parents were flooding the screen like bullet comments.
So biological really is worse than adopted. If you don’t raise them by your side, you don’t know how to cherish them.
Did they know the fiancé they’d found for their own biological daughter was this… this model?
His entire body screamed “stay away from me.” Standing there, he was a living “strangers keep out” warning sign.
Who would deliver their fresh, tender little cabbage precisely to the mouth of a wild boar like this?
Qiao Yujie stayed woodenly in that crouch, staring at the sky, looking utterly done with life.
After thinking it over, she took a deep breath, then another deep breath, and spoke weakly but earnestly, her voice trembling with the north wind. “Um… could you send a car… an ox cart is fine too, to take me to the station?”
She might as well go back to Guangdong alone! The original owner’s hometown was in Guangdong, and her roots were there too.
She couldn’t go back to the city.
Then she’d go back to her hometown and farm!!!
This marriage, whoever wants it can have it. She was done playing along!
Her voice wasn’t loud, but in the howling wind, it was piercingly clear.