“Dad, Mom, I insist on marrying Song Wei!”
At these words, the man on the living room sofa scolded, “Nonsense! Didn’t we just agree that you would marry Gu Jingcheng and your sister would marry Song Wei? Why have you changed your mind again!”
Her father had a headache. This younger daughter of his was so fickle.
“We’re not married yet, so why can’t I change my mind? I don’t care, I want to marry Brother Song Wei.”
All three of them looked toward the girl sitting on the other side of the sofa.
Meng Yao met their gazes in a daze. Her eyes moved from her young father and mother, finally landing on the eighteen-year-old Meng Yu.
When her gaze swept over the Jade Pendant around Meng Yu’s neck, a glint flashed in her eyes.
She had been reborn!
Reborn on the very night she and Meng Yu were choosing their husbands.
In her past life, because her grandfather was a martyr, their family was considered a martyr’s family. Relying on this status, Meng Zhihong had carefully selected two sons-in-law for his daughters.
The elder son-in-law was a squad leader serving in the capital, named Song Wei—Meng Yao’s husband in her previous life.
The younger son-in-law was the eldest young master of a capitalist family. Although his family background was so-so, he ran a factory and was in business, so marrying him meant a life free from worries about food and drink. His name was Gu Jingcheng, and he was Meng Yu’s husband in her past life.
“Yao, what do you think about what your sister said?” her mother asked, looking at her elder daughter.
Before Meng Yao could speak, Meng Yu chimed in from the side, “Sister, you always say you feel sorry for me getting lost when I was little, and now that I’m found, you want to dote on me. You wouldn’t refuse me even this, would you?”
Meng Yao looked at this sister she had cherished for a lifetime, her heart turning to ice.
In her past life, she had married Song Wei and followed him to the army base, where living conditions were harsh.
Her relationship with Song Wei was not good, and the scheming and infighting in the military compound had left her exhausted.
But she sent money to Meng Yu every month, because Meng Yu always wrote letters to her saying that the rich young master looked down on her for being a country bumpkin, despising her for having no money and no education.
Meng Yao’s heart ached for her, and she sent all the money she scrimped and saved. She even frequently argued with Song Wei over this matter.
But later, when Song Wei was framed at the military base and urgently needed a large sum of money, the first thing she did was ask her sister and family for help.
Not only did Meng Yu refuse to help, but when she heard that their parents were going to give Meng Yao money, she rushed home overnight to throw a huge tantrum, taking a portion of the money for herself. This forced Meng Yao to borrow from everyone she could, even kneeling and begging in the military compound before she finally raised the funds.
She had lost all her dignity and her heart was broken.
The list of such incidents was endless. Meng Yao had long since lost any expectations for this ungrateful sister.
But she never expected that, upon her Rebirth, this sister who was so eager to enjoy a life of comfort would not choose Gu Jingcheng, but instead make the opposite decision from her past life.
Meng Yao narrowed her eyes at her.
Could it be that she was also reborn?
Feeling uncomfortable under Meng Yao’s stare, Meng Yu deliberately put on a cloying, coquettish tone. “Sister, I know I shouldn’t go back on my word. I’ll definitely make it up to you in the future. Just let me have my way this time, okay?”
“You can make it up to me right now,” Meng Yao said softly, her eyes locked on the Jade Pendant around Meng Yu’s neck.
Meng Yu was stunned. “Sister, what do you mean by that?”
Meng Yao didn’t waste words, pointing to the Jade Pendant around her neck. “Compensate me with your necklace, and I’ll agree to the Marriage Exchange.”
As soon as Meng Yao spoke, her parents and Meng Yu were all taken aback, their gazes simultaneously falling on the Jade Pendant around Meng Yu’s neck.
This Jade Pendant was a heirloom from their grandfather, and there was only one. When Meng Yu was found, the whole family felt she had suffered a great deal. After careful consideration, their grandfather had passed the Jade Pendant to Meng Yu.
Meng Yu touched the Jade Pendant hanging around her neck, which was warm from her body heat. A struggle appeared in her eyes. When her grandfather gave her the pendant, he told her to wear it well, saying she would discover its wonderful use in the future.
But she had worn it from the age of seven until now and had not discovered any wonderful use at all!
“I was supposed to marry Gu Jingcheng in the first place. When you said you wanted to switch, I switched. But now that everything is about to be settled, you’re changing your mind again. Meng Yu, I’m getting a little angry. If you’re not willing to give me the Jade Pendant, I won’t agree to the Marriage Exchange,” Meng Yao said, her tone clearly dissatisfied and her attitude firm.
Meng Yu thought of how Meng Yao had returned for a family visit in their past life, decked out in gold and silver. She immediately took the Jade Pendant off her neck.
Hmph, this time it was her turn to be the Official’s Wife. Wouldn’t a big gold bracelet be worth more than this shabby Jade Pendant?
“Sister, it was my fault for being willful. Take this Jade Pendant as my apology. Please agree to the Marriage Exchange!” Meng Yu handed the pendant to her.
Meng Yao took it, a sense of relief finally settling in her heart.
Her grandfather had once told her that there seemed to be something magical inside this Jade Pendant, something only a descendant of the Meng family could open.
However, based on her memories of her past life, Meng Yu had never opened it. Otherwise, given her personality, she would have been unable to resist showing it off to her long ago.
Meng Yu looked at the Jade Pendant, and for some reason, her heart suddenly felt empty, as if something important had slipped through her fingers.
In her previous life, she had chosen Gu Jingcheng.
The Gu family hadn’t mistreated her, but Gu Jingcheng had never touched her after their marriage. He looked down on her for being poor and rustic, not to mention he had a childhood sweetheart on the side.
She had thought that it didn’t matter if there was no love, as long as there was money. But the good times didn’t last.
The Gu family was later suppressed. Not only did their factory go bankrupt, but they also lost a lot of money. All their family’s possessions were sold off, and Meng Yu went from being a young mistress to a daughter-in-law scorned by everyone.
Meng Yao, on the other hand, had a life that got better and better. Song Wei earned merits and promotions in the army. When he came back to visit, Meng Yao’s clothes and accessories made it clear she was not short of money. Meng Yu’s eyes had turned red with jealousy.
Reborn this time, the good life, the good man, and the good status would all be hers!
Meng Zhihong confirmed one last time, “Are you sure you won’t change your minds?”
Both sisters nodded solemnly.
Having achieved her goal, Meng Yu happily went back to her room to sleep.
Meanwhile, her father lit a kerosene lamp and sat in the courtyard writing a letter to the matchmaker.
Zhao Meilan felt she had let both her daughters down.
Not long after giving birth to Meng Yao, she became pregnant with Meng Yu. But when Meng Yu was three, she got lost during a trip back to their hometown.
Zhao Meilan cried until she nearly went blind. She searched for three whole years, spending all the family’s money, and finally found Meng Yu when she was seven.
But because of this, she had no time to care for Meng Yao, who became more mature than other children at a young age.
Meng Yao looked at Zhao Meilan, who was in her forties but already had a head full of white hair, and sighed inwardly.
In her past life, Zhao Meilan was still thinking about her two daughters before she died. When Meng Yao rushed back from the capital, Zhao Meilan was on her last breath, muttering her and her sister’s names.
But Meng Yu never showed up. She didn’t even attend Zhao Meilan’s funeral.
Meng Yao really wanted to tell her mother that Meng Yu was not worthy of their kindness.
But there was no rush. No one would believe her if she suddenly said it now. She had to let her parents see Meng Yu’s true colors bit by bit.
Before going to sleep that night, Meng Yao went over the future events in her mind one more time, finally taking out the Jade Pendant from her pocket to examine it.
She squinted at it for a while, then turned to grab the embroidery needle from the bedside, wanting to see if there was a switch inside the Jade Pendant.
But she missed her aim, and the embroidery needle pricked her finger.
A drop of blood fell onto the Jade Pendant, which instantly emitted a blinding white light.
Terrified, Meng Yao hid under the covers and closed her eyes. A vast, open space suddenly appeared in her mind.
The temperature was pleasant, the air was fresh, like a hidden paradise.
She opened her eyes, and the image vanished. She grabbed the pillow beside her, closed her eyes again, and used her will to return to the previous place. The pillow was brought with her!
With such a large space, how many things could she store!
She walked around, looking everywhere, and discovered a flowing spring behind the open space, with a layer of mist drifting above it.
She carefully cupped a handful to drink and immediately felt refreshed and clear-headed. Her body, which had been drowsy and ready for sleep just moments ago, was now full of energy.
What was even more surprising was that her hands, which had just been soaked in the stream water, became as smooth and tender as if they had been polished. She eagerly used the spring water to wipe down her body, and her skin all over became like a peeled egg!
If simple stream water had such a powerful effect, what more could that vast expanse of fertile land do?
Overjoyed, Meng Yao did not linger. She used her will to return to her room and spent the entire night thinking about how to use this unexpected gift.
But along with it came a question. With something so good, it was impossible that Meng Yu wouldn’t have used it in her past life.
Could it be that she was never able to open it?
Meng Yao pondered for a moment and decided to test this theory later.