The earthen wall surrounding the Zhou family’s courtyard was not very high. A man of average height only needed to stand on his tiptoes to peek over the wall.
The man moved his lips, silently forming her name.
He had come looking for her at her home.
Lin Yi had already expected this, so she was not surprised at all.
Wasn’t the reason she had made such a huge scene with the Zhou family because she wanted to marry someone else? Now that person had come looking for her.
“You’re looking for me?”
Lin Yi walked out of the Zhou family’s courtyard openly and stood face-to-face with the man.
The man was startled by her action.
He had thought Lin Yi would sneak out quietly, afraid of being discovered.
He never expected that Lin Yi’s attitude today would be completely different. When she saw him, she looked as if she were seeing an ordinary passerby.
Yuan Jinfeng was a little flustered, and even more anxious.
“Did you tell the Zhou family about us?”
The two of them had already discussed it. Lin Yi would make everything clear with the Zhou family, then leave their home and live with him.
Lin Yi looked at the man in front of her and nodded.
She really had told them.
Not only had she told them, but she had even caused a huge commotion at the Zhou family’s house.
Seeing this man today, Lin Yi finally understood why the original owner had been so blinded by love.
The man was tall and handsome. His hair was neatly combed, with not a single strand out of place.
Although he was wearing an ordinary gray coarse cloth outfit, he carried a rare scholarly air. At a glance, it was obvious that he was an educated person.
Good looks, education, fair skin, and being from the city—any one of those qualities was enough to completely captivate the village girls.
Based on Lin Yi’s many years of workplace experience, she would also give Yuan Jinfeng’s appearance a high score. At least his looks matched her taste. Even she thought he was quite good-looking, let alone the original owner.
The man looked at her eagerly, and the desire in his eyes was impossible to ignore.
“Did you tell them or not? If you already told the Zhou family, then move your bedding over here. I’ll submit the marriage report, and we’ll get married.”
But the black words above his head said:
【If you marry me, your money will become mine. Then I won’t have to work anymore, right?】
【Hurry up and agree to marry me.】
He pressed his lips together and reached out, wanting to grab her hand.
Lin Yi: “……”
So it was all because he wanted to avoid working?
That actually made sense.
Looking at Yuan Jinfeng’s appearance—his clean clothes and neat appearance—it was obvious that he was not someone suited for labor.
Since he did not want to work, naturally he wanted to find someone who could support him.
Wasn’t this what people called living off someone else?
The original owner’s husband had just died after their marriage. She had a high school education, beautiful looks, and could receive a large amount of compensation money.
Every single one of those things matched exactly what Yuan Jinfeng wanted.
“Lin Yi, didn’t you already promise me? Have you changed your mind?”
【Hurry up and agree! I can’t stand working in the production team anymore. I can’t even endure one more day!】
Lin Yi: “……”
If she could not see the black words above his head, she might really have been moved by his sincere and affectionate appearance.
But was she blind?
After failing to get a response from Lin Yi, the man nodded. He looked extremely hurt, as if Lin Yi had betrayed him.
Lin Yi deliberately wanted to toy with him.
He had harmed the original owner so badly. How could she let him get away so easily?
“Marriage is not a small matter. We can’t be so hasty. We should think about it some more.”
She did not completely reject him, but she also did not agree right away.
She wanted him to feel as though hope was within reach but impossible to grasp, leaving him trapped between anticipation and disappointment.
Yuan Jinfeng could not hide the disappointment and confusion on his face.
Lin Yi had already promised him before. Why was she suddenly saying they needed to think about it again?
Could it be that the Zhou family had said something?
Lin Yi was easily influenced, so she must have changed her mind because they frightened her.
“Did the Zhou family say something to you? They’re the ones responsible for this arranged marriage. They’re the sinners who are blocking our love! Don’t believe them!”
He had the excitement and indignation of someone giving a speech on a stage.
【Damn the Zhou family. They know Lin Yi is weak-willed and foolish. They must have scared her.】
He had always believed that he was handsome and that he was a young intellectual.
Although he had been forcibly sent down to the countryside, he still considered himself superior to others.
He had a natural sense of superiority and believed Lin Yi would never be willing to give him up.
Seeing that she had made her point, Lin Yi no longer wanted to waste time arguing with him.
“I see how much pain you’re in, and I truly can’t bear it. You don’t have to wait for me anymore. Let’s end things between us.”
Yuan Jinfeng’s eyes almost popped out.
“Lin Yi, what did you say? Don’t regret this…”
【Can’t I find another woman? If you didn’t have compensation money, do you think I would want you?】
Lin Yi waved her hand at him and said with a slightly sad expression:
“I really am not worthy of you. Then I wish you happiness.”
Yuan Jinfeng’s heart trembled.
He stared at Lin Yi in shock……
……
“Second Sister-in-law, who was that person you were talking to just now?”
Through the window, Yingzi had seen Lin Yi walk out of the courtyard. She had also seen a figure flash outside.
She wanted to see who that person was, but she was afraid that Second Sister-in-law would get angry.
“Educated Youth Yuan.”
Lin Yi had no reason to hide it.
Yingzi: “……”
She had guessed it might be the educated youth surnamed Yuan, but she never expected Second Sister-in-law would tell her so directly.
Yingzi’s heart tightened. She had no idea what Lin Yi was thinking.
However, Lin Yi did not say anything else, nor did she show any intention of leaving the Zhou family.
Yingzi felt somewhat relieved.
After dinner, Yingzi pulled Lin Yi outside for a walk to help her digest her food.
It was early summer, and the sun set early.
After dinner, the villagers would bring their shoe soles, knitting work, and other handicrafts to a crowded place, chatting while working.
Yingzi pulled Lin Yi outside.
“Aunt Wu, Aunt Sun, have you all eaten?”
“Yingzi, why did you bring your second sister-in-law out? What a rare sight.”
Aunt Wu liked teasing people. The moment she saw Lin Yi, she immediately became more talkative.
Little Guan Village had more than two hundred people.
Whenever something unusual happened in any family, people like Aunt Wu and Aunt Sun, the village’s information gatherers, would know about it.
Including the matter of Lin Yi wanting to remarry.
If Lin Yi had not come out, these people would have been discussing her behind her back.
But now that Lin Yi was here, they felt somewhat embarrassed, afraid they might say the wrong thing.
Yingzi said:
“You people just love gossiping about others behind their backs. I brought my second sister-in-law out. Is that bothering you?”
Her words immediately left Aunt Wu and Aunt Sun speechless.
“Yingzi, your mouth is too sharp. What kind of family will you marry into in the future?”
“That’s right. We’ll have to find you a powerful mother-in-law to control you.”
Everyone burst into laughter.
“You all……”
Yingzi’s cheeks immediately turned bright red.
After all, she was only a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl. Naturally, she would feel embarrassed when marriage was mentioned.
But Yingzi did not let them off easily. She ran over and started playing around with them.
Lin Yi watched from the side and did not interrupt.
After everyone teased and joked around for a while, the atmosphere became lively, and they no longer treated Lin Yi as an outsider.
People in the village were basically like this.
As long as the atmosphere became lively, they would speak more casually and would not be overly guarded around each other.
Previously, the original Lin Yi had ignored these people and never spoken to them.
It was obvious that she looked down on them, so whenever the villagers saw her, they would also avoid her. At most, they would just nod and greet her.
Now that the village women were able to get a close look at Lin Yi, each and every one of them could not help but take a deep breath.
They were all amazed by Lin Yi’s appearance and figure, while also intimidated by her high school education. One after another, they praised her in admiration.
They thought to themselves: No wonder Lin Yi never paid attention to them before. Someone like Lin Yi was practically a fairy. How could a fairy possibly talk to ordinary people like them?
Thinking this way, they felt much more at ease.
Unfortunately, the fairy had now lost her husband and become a widow.
This unintentionally brought her closer to them, so they spoke to Lin Yi with sympathy and pity.
“Lin Yi, come sit, sit! Do you want some sunflower seeds?”
Someone quickly brought over a small stool for Lin Yi to sit on.
Someone else even offered up their own sunflower seeds for Lin Yi to eat.
Lin Yi: “……”
These people were really interesting.
One moment they were like this, the next moment they were like that. In just a short while, they had already started trying to get closer to her.
Should she eat them or not?
If she refused, it would show that she did not want to blend in with this group of people.
So Lin Yi grabbed some sunflower seeds and started eating along with them.
Seeing this, everyone immediately treated her as one of their own.
Even eating their sunflower seeds meant she was one of them.
Aunt Wu and Aunt Sun both revealed their big yellow teeth as they smiled.