“Shanshan, tell me—did Qiao Wanyue willingly agree to marry Yunzhou?”
Qiao Shanshan didn’t react in time. Smug, she said, “Of course not! That bitch Qiao Wanyue likes Brother Huaiyuan, but he doesn’t like her. The one he likes is me!” She didn’t notice the change in everyone’s expressions and continued, “I mailed Qiao Wanyue’s household registration to Lu Yunzhou and told him that ‘Qiao Wanyue’ is actually my name on the registry, and that my family calls me Shanshan in private.
“Hahaha! In this life, Qiao Wanyue will be a widow! She’ll be sent to prison by you—she’ll spend eighteen years behind bars!” Qiao Shanshan was immersed in her own fantasies, already imagining her life as a wealthy wife.
“Qiao Shanshan, shut up!” Qiao Sheng couldn’t take it anymore. He rushed forward and slapped her hard.
Qiao Shanshan snapped back to her senses.
Realizing what she had just said, she tried to remedy it—but Lu’s mother calmly brushed the dust off her clothes.
She turned to the villagers of the Qiao Brigade, forcing out two tears. “Everyone heard it clearly. For her own selfish desires, Qiao Shanshan not only deceived the Lu family but also slandered her elder sister. Today, it’s not that she refuses my son, Yunzhou.
“It is my son, Lu Yunzhou, who will never marry such a troublemaker. From this moment on, the Lu family cuts all ties with Qiao Shanshan. On behalf of my son, I hereby cancel this engagement.”
She paused.
“A woman without fortune does not enter a blessed household.”
Lu’s mother had made up her mind. She accepted Qiao Wanyue as her daughter-in-law.
But this anger—she had to vent it.
Qiao’s mother, who had just gotten up, suddenly felt the world spin.
It was over.
Everything was over.
With the Lu family publicly declaring that the fault lay with Qiao Shanshan, how would she ever face the village again?
How could she hold her head up in her in-laws’ home?
Her heart sank into an icy abyss.
Lu’s mother glanced at Qiao Wanyue. “My son and the eldest daughter of the Qiao family, Qiao Wanyue, are both victims in this matter—randomly paired without consent. I will write to Yunzhou and explain everything.
“As for the wedding in three days…” She looked at Qiao Wanyue. “Child, are you willing to marry my son?”
Qiao Wanyue didn’t expect to be asked directly.
After a moment of thought, she nodded. “Both Yunzhou and I are victims. I have already severed ties with Yang Huaiyuan yesterday. If you don’t mind, Auntie, I am willing to marry into the Lu family,” she said calmly.
Lu’s mother nodded in satisfaction.
She took out a stack of cash from her pocket and walked over. “The eight hundred yuan bride price previously given to the Qiao family was for Qiao Shanshan. These three hundred are compensation for you.
“No matter what, the Lu family has wronged you. Thank you for not letting our family’s dignity be trampled.
“Don’t worry—once you marry in, I will treat you like my own daughter.”
She pressed the money into Qiao Wanyue’s hands.
Then she turned to Qiao’s father. “In-law, I acknowledge Wanyue as my daughter-in-law. But what the Qiao family did was improper. If you want to settle this matter peacefully, then you must agree to three conditions.”
Qiao’s father cursed her ancestors in his heart.
But with her persistence, he had no choice but to agree.
“Go ahead.”
Lu’s mother said, “First—once she marries into the Lu family, my daughter-in-law will have no further ties with her natal family. Since Qiao Wanyue marries into my family, she will have nothing to do with the Qiao family anymore.”
“In your dreams!” Qiao’s mother shouted.
“Shut up!” Qiao’s father stormed over and slapped her.
She fainted again.
Taking a deep breath, he said, “In-law, isn’t that too much? We’ve raised Wanyue all these years, and with one sentence you want to cut ties…” He glanced at Qiao Wanyue, his gaze threatening her to speak.
Qiao Wanyue hadn’t expected this condition.
In the village, once daughters married out, they were often treated as outsiders, yet their natal families still used the debt of upbringing to control them—leaving many women torn.
To others, Lu’s mother might seem cold-hearted.
But Qiao Wanyue knew—
She was helping her.
This visit wasn’t just to defend the Lu family’s dignity—it was also to help her vent her own grievances.
Qiao Wanyue felt grateful.
She lowered her head and remained silent.
Like a bullied young wife.
Pitiful and heartbreaking to look at.
But only she knew how happy she truly felt.
Lu’s mother sneered. “No need to ask her. Once she marries, she is a member of the Lu family.
“If you don’t agree, I’ll go to the county right now and have the magistrate judge this matter. If that’s not enough, I’ll go to the provincial capital. I refuse to believe there’s no justice.”
Qiao’s father felt his heart freeze.
He never imagined that simply switching daughters in a marriage would cause so much trouble.
If he had known, he would rather have beaten Qiao Shanshan to death than let her register marriage with Yang Huaiyuan.
Qiao Sheng gritted his teeth. “I agree. What’s the second condition?”
Lu’s mother continued, “Second—the eight hundred yuan bride price must all go to Qiao Wanyue. That is money given by the Lu family to its daughter-in-law. And all the allowance Yunzhou sent must also be handed to my true daughter-in-law.”
Qiao’s father replied through clenched teeth, “It’s already been given to her.”
“I want to see it with my own eyes,” Lu’s mother said.
Qiao’s father closed his eyes in exhaustion and pointed to the house. “It’s not that I won’t give it. Look for yourself—our house has been robbed clean. We don’t have any money left.”
He hadn’t even had time to check the house before the Lu family arrived.
He only knew it had been looted—he didn’t yet know how much had been lost.
“Easy enough,” Lu’s mother said. “Daughter-in-law.”
The eldest daughter-in-law of the Lu family took out a piece of paper and handed it over.
When Qiao Sheng saw the contents, his face darkened.
It was an IOU—over one thousand yuan—clearly listing the eight hundred bride price plus Lu Yunzhou’s allowances.
He didn’t even know how much the so-called allowance was. He could only accept whatever amount Lu’s mother stated.
The Lu family had come prepared.
She had anticipated that the Qiao family would refuse to pay.
“Captain Qiao, sign it. Within half a month, gather the money and give it to my daughter-in-law.”
Beside them, Qiao Wanyue struggled to suppress her laughter, her shoulders trembling.
Her future mother-in-law was truly something.
Qiao Sheng was furious.
Serves him right.
Grinding his teeth, he signed.
Lu’s mother put away the IOU and smiled. “I’ll come collect the money in half a month.”
“The third condition,” Qiao’s father said, his patience gone.
Lu’s mother replied, “Third—on the day Qiao Shanshan gets married, she must wear white—”
“In your dreams!”
White clothing was associated with death. In the countryside, it was a major taboo.
Lu’s mother let out a cold laugh. “Daughter-in-law, let’s go.”
Without another word, she turned and left with her family.
“Stop!” Qiao’s father pressed his temples.
“I agree.”
Lu’s mother paused and turned back, smiling brightly.
“In-law, don’t worry—I will take good care of Wanyue.”
She walked over and held Qiao Wanyue’s hands. “Good child, don’t blame me for making decisions on my own. This kind of natal family of yours—just looking at them brings bad luck. From now on, you belong to the Lu family. Don’t think about your old family anymore.”
To outsiders, it seemed like Lu’s mother was asserting dominance over her future daughter-in-law.
But Qiao Wanyue understood—
She was making it clear to everyone that those harsh conditions were her own demands, not Qiao Wanyue’s.
Qiao Wanyue felt deeply grateful.