“Are you underage?”
Ye Xiaochen looked over at her carefully. “How old are you this year? I don’t want to commit a crime.”
“I’m already eighteen. I’m eating the food of a nineteen year old.”
No, no, she should have said she was twenty. At twenty, she could legally register her marriage.
Lin Xiaoman felt that she was far too honest. Why did she seem to have absolutely no talent for lying?
“Heh, you look quite young.”
Young?
What part of her was young?
“I’m only three months younger than my cousin.” Lin Xiaoman hurriedly explained, “There are plenty of girls in our village who get married at eighteen.”
“You really want to marry me?”
“Yes.”
It was a little embarrassing, but so what?
Since she had already volunteered herself, why should she care about saving face?
She might as well be straightforward. Either do it or forget it.
“I can wash clothes, cook, do housework, and I’m patient when it comes to taking care of the elderly.”
“I’m marrying a wife, not hiring a maid.”
“I can be a good wife and support my husband. I’ll take care of what I should, and I’ll never interfere in things that aren’t my business.”
“Heh, what’s your name?”
“Lin Xiaoman. Lin is the character made up of two trees, and I was born on the day of Xiaoman, so I was named Lin Xiaoman.”
“You’re quite interesting.” Ye Xiaochen raised his wrist and glanced at his watch. “I still have an appointment to discuss some business. Where do you live? Or I can take you home first, then go to my appointment.”
“You agreed?”
Lin Xiaoman looked at him with excitement in her heart.
“I’m your cousin’s blind date. Do you really think this is a good idea?”
Ye Xiaochen looked at her with a faintly amused expression.
Lin Xiaoman thought to herself, Surely I can’t tell him that my cousin told me to go for it because she didn’t want him, can I?
“I think these things depend on fate. You see, I almost crashed into your car earlier, and then we happened to get along pretty well…”
“So you’ve decided to find yourself a long term meal ticket?”
“More or less.”
Fine, she was laying all her cards on the table.
“I think you look pretty good, and you’re quite rich too. I… I just like rich people. I want to marry a rich man.”
Forget it. There was no point pretending. She was simply that straightforward.
“Hahahaha, you really don’t hide anything at all.”
Ye Xiaochen burst out laughing.
“Come on, get in. I’ll take you home.”
Fine, let’s go!
Lin Xiaoman opened the rear door of the car.
“Sit in the front passenger seat.” Ye Xiaochen smiled. “I’m not your chauffeur.”
The front passenger seat?
In her previous life, she had heard that in wealthy families, the front passenger seat was reserved for the wife.
This man… He would have many women in the future, and every one of them would have a chance to sit in his front passenger seat.
Whatever. For now, she would secure her position first and worry about the rest later.
Lin Xiaoman calmly opened the door and sat down.
With her face flushed, she glanced at the man who was concentrating on driving.
Honestly, how could her cousin turn down someone who was this handsome and this rich?
What kind of man did her cousin like anyway?
“This silly girl actually left with him just like that. What if he sells her off?
What am I supposed to do then?”
Li Xianrong watched her cousin get into Ye Xiaochen’s car and stomped her feet anxiously.
She quickly mounted her bicycle and chased after the car.
Unfortunately, how could a bicycle powered by two legs compete with a car powered by four wheels?
Li Xianrong could only eat a mouthful of dust as she watched the car disappear into the distance.
“That idiot. I finally understand why she lived such a miserable life in her previous life!”
She was exhausted. Li Xianrong finally stopped chasing.
“This time, she knows perfectly well that Ye Xiaochen is a shameless womanizer, yet she still wants to go through with it. Honestly… fools never learn their lesson, and every mistake is a different one! Don’t blame me later!”
At the entrance of Qinghe Village, the car stopped.
“My house is that little courtyard beside the bridge.” Lin Xiaoman said softly, “Would you like to come in and sit for a while?”
“No, I’m in a hurry.”
“Oh, all right. Thank you for taking me home.”
From beginning to end, he never said whether he intended to marry her.
A forced marriage would never be sweet. She had already done her best, and if it didn’t work out, then so be it.
It seemed that in this life, she was still destined to be poor.
No.
She might be poor in this life, but she absolutely would not marry a poor man!
And she certainly would never marry that hateful man from her previous life!
“I’ll be going, then.” Ye Xiaochen looked at the girl in front of him and smiled. “Goodbye.”
“Mm, goodbye.”
Only after the car had driven away did Lin Xiaoman come back to her senses. She slapped her forehead.
“I’m such an idiot! Why didn’t I ask when we could see each other again?”
“Xiaoman, what are you doing? You came back in a car. Who brought you home?”
Three questions in a row left Lin Xiaoman completely dazed.
Heaven really had a sense of humor. Of all people, why did her aunt have to see Ye Xiaochen bringing her home?
How was she supposed to answer?
“By the way, didn’t you go with your cousin on her blind date? Why did you come back so early? Where’s your cousin? Wait, did your cousin go to the cinema with Ye Xiaochen, so you came back first?” Huang Hongxia said with a beaming smile. “My cousin said that young man is a construction contractor. His family is small and simple, and he’s very wealthy with a bright future ahead of him. If Rongrong marries him, I’ll have nothing left to worry about…”
Judging by her expression, her aunt was clearly very satisfied with Ye Xiaochen as a potential son in law.
Lin Xiaoman thought, This is bad, this is really bad. If she finds out that I stole my cousin’s blind date halfway through, will she strangle me?
“Xiaoman, you came back at just the right time.” Li Yunshu saw Huang Hongxia and said, “Sister in law, let me tell you, Auntie Zhong found a match for Xiaoman. He’s a young man from the San Ceng Yan area, and he’s a bright, capable looking fellow…”
Lin Xiaoman was startled when she heard her mother.
The nightmare from her previous life was coming back.
“Mom, I’m still young. I don’t want to date anyone.” Lin Xiaoman slapped her forehead again. “Oh no, I forgot my cousin is still in town. Mom, Auntie, I’m going to find my cousin.”
If she didn’t run now, when would she?
Lin Xiaoman took off running.
“Hey, child, that young man has a skill…”
“Don’t say anything more about her.” Huang Hongxia said, “I think Xiaoman already has someone.”
“She has someone?”
“Of course. Didn’t you see just now? A car brought her all the way to the village entrance. I asked her who it was, and her face immediately turned red all the way to her ears.”
“No way. She was brought home in a car? Where would our Xiaoman meet someone like that?” Li Yunshu shook her head. “Didn’t you say Rongrong’s partner has a car? Maybe it was Rongrong’s partner’s car that brought Xiaoman home.”
“That… is possible too.”
Huang Hongxia nodded. “As long as Rongrong and Ye Xiaochen work out, I’ll have nothing to worry about. A daughter will eventually marry and leave home. If you try too hard to keep her, she’ll only become resentful. Yunshu, let me tell you, when a girl gets married, she must marry a rich man. A poor couple will struggle with everything. Only after you get married do you realize how hard life really is.”
“That’s true, but not everyone has Rongrong’s good fortune of having an uncle who can introduce her to a wealthy match.” Li Yunshu looked a little embarrassed. “Where could our Xiaoman find a wealthy family? We don’t ask for much. As long as the man has a skill, is honest and hardworking, and can earn enough to support the family, that’s enough.”
Halfway down the road, Li Xianrong saw her cousin running toward her.
“Xiaoman, why are you running? Did a dog chase you?”