The Fu Family
Tang Xiangshui saw her daughter come home fuming and frowned. “What happened?”
Fu Mingyue tossed the luggage bag onto the floor and plopped down on the sofa, furious.
“Mom, you have no idea how arrogant that bitch Qiao Xin is. Not only did she refuse to bring the stuff to Second Brother, she called me a dog.”
Tang Xiangshui got angry too. “That’s going too far! Go call your second brother and tell him to teach Qiao Xin a lesson when he gets back.”
Fu Mingyue was about to make the call, then remembered something and sat back down.
“Mom, did you forget? Grandpa just called the army. They said Second Brother is out on a mission and isn’t there.”
Tang Xiangshui pinched the bridge of her nose. She had forgotten. “Did you tell Qiao Xin that?”
Fu Mingyue slowly curved her lips. Her mood had improved considerably.
“Mom, no. Let her go and find out Second Brother isn’t there. Let’s see how she manages all alone.”
Tang Xiangshui’s eyes shifted. She said nothing, but her expression clearly softened.
.
The Train Station
Qiao Xin and her mother had been waiting on the platform for a while now, and Yang Xiuying’s mouth hadn’t stopped. She repeated the same warnings over and over.
Qiao Xin listened patiently.
It was the first time anyone had nagged her like this. It felt novel, and warm.
Yang Xiuying figured she’d said about all there was to say, and finally leaned in to whisper, “Girl, you hid that packet I gave you yesterday, right?”
“What packet?”
“You know, that. If that Fu boy really is blind and doesn’t want you, you do what I taught you yesterday. Don’t forget, alright?”
What she taught her yesterday?
Qiao Xin’s brain stalled for a moment.
Croton seeds?
Croton… seeds!
And then become a widow!
“Heh. Heheh. Isn’t the train coming soon?” Qiao Xin changed the subject.
Yang Xiuying grabbed her arm and checked it. “Two more minutes. Yeah, almost here.”
Their train came from Hangzhou. This wasn’t the starting station, so it would only stop in Xiuzhou for five minutes.
Qiao Xin pulled her arm back. “Mom, why are you looking at my watch? Why not check your own?”
Yang Xiuying rolled her eyes. “A watch is such a precious thing. One in the family is enough. How could we buy two?”
Qiao Xin immediately understood. Her mother hadn’t even been willing to buy a watch for herself, but she’d bought one for her.
Her heart warmed. She started to take off the watch to give it to Yang Xiuying. “Mom, why don’t you take the watch? It’d be more convenient for you, going to and from work every day.”
“No need. You keep it. I don’t need one.”
Yang Xiuying refused no matter what.
As the two went back and forth, the train whistle sounded. The train pulled into the station, the doors opened, and Yang Xiuying, without another word, pushed her onto the train.
The Fu family had been decent enough to buy a sleeper ticket. There weren’t many people here, so boarding wasn’t crowded.
The two quickly found her berth.
Yang Xiuying stowed her luggage, and the sorrow of parting finally welled up. Her eyes reddened instantly.
It seemed like there were a thousand things to say, but in the end she only managed one instruction. “Be careful on the road. Take care of yourself. Call me when you get to Kyoto to let me know you’re safe.”
Seeing this, Qiao Xin suddenly felt a pang of reluctance too.
“I know, Mom!”
She hugged her and said softly, “Take care of yourself at home too. If I can settle in over there, I’ll bring you to live with me.”
“Alright, alright. Mom will wait for you to bring me over to enjoy life.” Yang Xiuying wiped her tears and nodded again and again.
The conductor urged the family members to get off. The train was about to depart. Yang Xiuying had no choice but to leave.
“Remember, don’t make yourself suffer. If anything comes up, call me…”
Yang Xiuying’s eyes were red. She looked back again and again as she got off the train.
The train departed. Through the window, Qiao Xin watched the figure on the platform grow smaller and smaller. Her heart ached sharply, and her vision gradually blurred.
A young woman in the berth across from her saw this and asked with a smile, “First time traveling far from home?”
Qiao Xin wiped her tears awkwardly and blurted out, “Not really!”
The original host had never traveled far, but in her past life she’d gone to university, traveled, and gone on plenty of solo trips.
“What are you going to Kyoto for?”
The young woman must have overheard what Yang Xiuying said earlier, which was how she knew Qiao Xin was going to Kyoto.
Qiao Xin glanced at her. This girl was quite forward.
“My fiancé works there.”
The girl’s interest was immediately piqued. She’d been half-lying on the berth, but now she sat up.
“Did you and your fiancé get together on your own, or was it arranged by your families?”
“Arranged by our families.”
“Have you two met before?”
Qiao Xin frowned slightly. Why did this girl like prying into other people’s private affairs?
“We’ve met,” she said evasively.
“That’s good at least.”
The girl opened up.
“I was supposed to go to Kyoto to meet my fiancé too. It was a child betrothal arranged by the elders in my family, but I don’t plan to go.”
Qiao Xin’s earlier irritation vanished. She didn’t like talking about her own private matters, and she didn’t like prying into others’, but if someone was willing to share, she was happy to listen.
Her eyes sparkled as she looked at the other girl, clearly very interested.
Seeing her interest, the young woman smiled softly and spoke freely.
“I’ve never met the other party. I don’t even know what he looks like. I don’t like blind marriages.”
“What era do we live in now? Arranged marriages by parents are out of date, let alone child betrothals. Besides, I already have a partner.”
When she mentioned her partner, the girl’s face lit up.
“My partner and I were college classmates. We just graduated this year. We agreed we’d get married right after graduation. But my family is rather old-fashioned. They insist I marry the child betrothal match. No matter what I say, they won’t listen.”
“Since I can’t talk sense into them, I stopped trying. I pretended to agree. When the train reaches Haishi, I’ll get off. My partner is waiting for me there.”
Qiao Xin’s eyes widened. This girl had guts. She was planning to elope with her partner.
In this era, no, in any era, elopement wasn’t exactly honorable, and most didn’t end well.
“Is your partner from Haishi?” she couldn’t help asking.
“No. We both went to university in Haishi. After graduation, we were both supposed to be assigned jobs. But my family pulled strings to get my job transferred to Kyoto. My partner was assigned to his hometown, but he stayed in Haishi for me.”
Qiao Xin clicked her tongue. She didn’t know what to say about this girl.
If her family could get her job transferred to Kyoto, that meant her family had some real connections.
And her elders were pushing so hard for her to honor this child betrothal. The man’s family probably had even deeper connections than hers.
Yet she and her so-called college classmate partner had both given up their jobs to stay in Haishi.
No foundation, no backing, starting from scratch on their own. Who knew how much hardship they’d have to endure?