At that moment, both Wang Limei and Mother Shen inside the room turned to look.
When Wang Limei got a clear view of Shen Zhanlie, her breath hitched for a moment.
No wonder her eldest daughter wanted to marry him.
With Shen Zhanlie’s nearly six-foot-three burly frame, broad shoulders, narrow waist, and long legs—this physique was innate capital.
His build was likely exceptionally strong.
Though poor he might be, if that aspect was harmonious…
How blissful married life would be.
Thinking of her younger daughter, she truly was a blockhead, still not yet awakened.
To let such a fine man slip away.
Mother Shen reacted quicker, “Zhanlie, why are you back?”
Shen Zhanlie replied expressionlessly, “My clothes tore; I came back to mend them.” To earn money, he was building a shed at home. Others couldn’t handle carrying five pigs, but he could carry twenty. In just half a day, his clothes had worn through.
“Then you heard what I was discussing with Aunt Wang?”
Shen Zhanlie grunted in affirmation, pushing the door open with his large, fan-like hands and entering directly. He cut straight to the point, “Aunt Wang, I still wish to be set up with your younger daughter, Jiang Meishu.”
He had actually seen Jiang Meishu before.
Though only that one accidental occasion, ever since then, he hadn’t been able to forget her.
It was just that Jiang Meishu didn’t remember him.
Because Jiang Shifu had too many disciples.
Wang Limei hadn’t expected such a response from Shen Zhanlie.
She thought it over and didn’t give a definitive answer, leaving some room, “My Meilan is more suited for marriage and better matches your family’s situation.”
The Shen family was poor; marrying in a delicate young lady would likely make life harder. But her eldest daughter was different—top-notch, ambitious, and strong, it can be said she could match an able-bodied laborer. A natural at making money.
Shen Zhanlie, with his fierce brows and eyes, shook his head, “This isn’t about suitability or not.”
It was that—he had a crush on Jiang Meishu.
Since last year when he became Jiang Shifu’s disciple, he had been cautiously observing Jiang Meishu’s every move.
Later, when Wang Lamei approached his mother to matchmake him with Jiang Meishu, he had been ecstatic, thinking it was a pie in the sky.
After all, given his family’s circumstances, wanting to marry a daughter of the Jiang family was like a fool’s dream.
Seeing his stubborn demeanor, what couldn’t Wang Lamei discern?
Having been young once herself, she tentatively asked, “Do you like our Meishu?””
A blush spread across Shen Zhanlie’s cheeks, his honey-toned skin flushing with heat. He nodded, his voice deep and resonant, “I’ve seen her a few times before.”
Though they’d never interacted up close, wherever Jiang Meishu was, he would always sneak over for a chance encounter.
Over time, Jiang Meishu might have found him familiar but couldn’t necessarily recall his name.
At this, Wang Lamei’s heart sank, “Then I’ll need to go back and discuss it with the children.”
“We’ll give you the outcome later.”
Shen Zhanlie respectfully acknowledged, “Aunt Wang, thank you for your trouble.” After speaking, he hesitated, then considering Aunt Wang was an elder, he directly took off his shirt, baring his arms for his mother to mend the garment.
Wang Limei was taken aback, thinking to herself, with Shen Zhanlie’s firm, taut muscles like this, she mustn’t let this son-in-law slip away.
Whether it was for the eldest daughter or the youngest daughter.
Whichever daughter married him would have a happy life.
If the intimate life in bed was harmonious.
The young couple’s relationship would naturally be good.
At Dazayuan Jiang Jia, Jiang Meishu and Jiang Meilan were lighting the coal stove to prepare a meal.
As soon as Wang Limei returned, Jiang Meishu and Jiang Meilan immediately dropped what they were doing and rushed to greet her.
“Mom, how did it go?”
Wang Limei shook her head, “It’s no use.”
“Shen Zhanlie insists on meeting Meishu for a matchmaking session.”
As soon as these words were spoken.
Jiang Meilan dropped the wooden bucket in her hand, disbelief written all over her face, “Why?”
She didn’t understand.
Jiang Meishu didn’t understand either. She looked from one person to the other and blurted out thoughtlessly, “Maybe he’s blind?”
Hearing this, Jiang Meilan forgot her anger for a moment, shot her a glare, and turned to go inside.
Upon hearing this outcome, she no longer had the heart to cook.
Seeing her leave, Jiang Meishu immediately grew anxious and called out loudly, “Sis, are you still going to braise the pork intestines?”
She was really craving that dish.
Jiang Meilan, fierce and with her willow-leaf eyebrows raised sharply, retorted, “Braise my ass!”
Jiang Meishu turned to Wang Limei and said, “Mom, Sis said for you to braise her ass.”
What a thing to say.
Wang Limei couldn’t help but give her a light, playful slap and scolded with a laugh, “Shen Zhanlie refused the marriage swap, and your sister is so angry and anxious—aren’t you worried?”
Her youngest daughter seemed completely unfazed.
Jiang Meishu, “I am worried, but no matter how worried I am, can that stop me from eating?”
Ever since coming here, she had been starving every day.
No matter how important something was, nothing was more important than filling her stomach.
Besides, she could just ask the system later to find out.
It wasn’t that complicated.
“You, you… such a slow-paced temperament. Who knows if it’s a good thing or a bad thing.”
Wang Limei sighed, looking at her youngest daughter’s eager expression. “Alright, since your sister isn’t cooking, I’ll do it.”
“But you stay by my side and learn a thing or two.”
Jiang Meishu hummed in agreement and stood by to watch.
Wang Limei casually asked her, “Have you had any contact with Shen Zhanlie?”
Jiang Meishu thought for a moment, then shook her head, her fair face tense. “Mom, don’t talk nonsense.”
“I’m a perfectly respectable person.”
Wang Lamei patted her, “I was just asking.”
“It seems to me that Shen Zhanlie might like you?”
Hearing this, Jiang Meishu’s almond-shaped eyes widened in surprise, “That can’t be.”
“I’ve never had any contact with him.”
At most, they had crossed paths a few times, but Jiang Meishu was slow-witted, somewhat introverted, and didn’t like to talk, let alone greet Shen Zhanlie.
Shen Zhanlie was tall and sturdy, imposing and fierce.
Jiang Meishu was the type to feel nervous just standing next to him.
How could she have had any contact with Shen Zhanlie?
She would run away from him if she could.
“That’s strange?” Wang Lamei was puzzled. “Could it be that he likes you unilaterally?”
She didn’t know.
But she had actually guessed correctly.
Shen Zhanlie did like Jiang Meishu unilaterally.
Jiang Meishu just didn’t know it.
She shook her head, looking troubled. “If he likes me, then I’m done for!”
Such a tall, strapping man liking her.
She didn’t want to give birth to eight children.
Wang Lamei glanced at her youngest daughter and thought to herself, this girl was completely clueless.
She simply busied herself with her tasks, not forgetting to give her youngest daughter a last-minute cooking lesson.
The honeycomb briquettes in the tin stove were burning at their fiercest.
Wang Limei took a yellowed piece of gauze, dipped it in the oil pot, and wiped it around the edge of the wok.
Cooking these days required such meticulousness—with a monthly ration of just two liang of oil, there was no room for exceeding the limit.
If they used too much, they’d have to endure dry, oil-less meals later, making it hard even to relieve themselves.
As the wok’s edge gleamed with a thin layer of oil and the pan heated up, Wang Limei called out to Jiang Meishu, “Is the cabbage chopped?”
Jiang Meishu responded with an “Ai!” and clumsily rolled the knife over the cabbage a few times before asking, “Mom, can’t I just chop the whole cabbage?”
It was a single cabbage weighing less than two jin, yet their family had nine mouths to feed.
One cabbage wasn’t enough to go around, and her mother insisted on dividing it into two portions.
Heavens, this was the only dish, and she wasn’t even allowed to use it all.
Wang Limei scolded her half-jokingly, “If we eat it all now, should we tie our necks shut for the next meal?”
Jiang Meishu muttered under her breath, “We’re never full, always starving.”
She hadn’t had a full stomach since arriving here.
“Nonsense! Can’t you just water down the Cornmeal Gruel and drink a couple more bowls to fill your belly?”
Who wanted to drink watery porridge, especially diluted gruel?
Jiang Meishu fell silent, sullenly handing over the basket of chopped cabbage.
Wang Limei glanced at it and remarked, “Are you chopping cabbage or hacking it? The pieces are all uneven.”
Jiang Meishu retorted, “As long as it’s edible, who cares how it looks?”
Wang Limei sighed, “You need to learn how to cook properly these days at home. Otherwise, when you go to your in-laws, you’ll be completely lost.”
“Your mother-in-law might even blame me for raising a daughter who can’t even cook, and she might send you back.”
Jiang Meishu truly disliked hearing this. As a Sichuan girl and an only child among only children, her mother in her previous life had never spoken to her like this.
It had always been her father who cooked.
The same went for her relatives and neighbors back home.
Her fair face tightened, lips pressed together, as she said, “I’m not getting married just to serve others.”
“If you don’t serve them, why should they feed you?”
The words struck Jiang Meishu, leaving her stunned before she could ponder them further.
Just then, Lin Qiaoling returned from work. She placed her tattered black umbrella behind the door, shaking off the raindrops, and noticed her sister-in-law bustling by the Coal Stove.
Surprised, she remarked, “Meishu’s cooking today?”
She had never seen her do it before.
Wang Limei explained, “She’s just assisting me. I’m making her learn to cook before she gets married, so she doesn’t embarrass me.”
“If her mother-in-law sends her back, we’ll never live it down.”
Jiang Meishu didn’t feel like talking and disliked the conversation. She nodded at Lin Qiaoling and said, “Eldest sister-in-law.”
Then she retreated into the room.
Lin Qiaoling was taken aback. “What’s wrong with her?”
Wang Limei knew her own daughter well. “She’s upset because I criticized her. But the truth isn’t always pleasant, and I’ll say it anyway.”
Inside the small room—more of a three-square-meter space partitioned by a cloth curtain, shared by Jiang Meishu and Jiang Meilan—Jiang Meilan looked up from plucking her eyebrows as Jiang Meishu entered.
“Feeling down?” she asked.
Jiang Meishu hummed in agreement.
“I know.”
Jiang Meilan reassured her, “Mom’s just like that. Don’t take what she says to heart.” She even tried to comfort Jiang Meishu.
Jiang Meishu nodded, “Knowing is one thing, but it doesn’t sit right with me. I wasn’t born just to serve others.”
“Then you should make something of yourself, become a strong, independent woman like the Iron Lady.”
“I can’t,” Jiang Meishu admitted honestly. “If I had that ability, I’d have made it big long ago.”
Unfortunately, she was just a useless little weakling.
The kind who could work herself to death from just a bit of overtime.
Perhaps her only talent in this life was eating, drinking, and having fun.
A classic good-for-nothing.
Seeing her low spirits, Jiang Meilan changed the subject, “Come help me pluck these few eyebrow hairs. I can’t bring myself to do it.”
Pursing her lips, Jiang Meishu opened her clear almond-shaped eyes wide and spread her hands, “I can’t bring myself to do it either.”
In her previous life, she had always used a blade to shape her eyebrows.
“You have to, even if you don’t want to,” Jiang Meilan scolded her lightly. “Hurry up, I want to pluck my eyebrows and put on some makeup to see Shen Zhanlie.”
“I refuse to believe that someone as pretty as me wouldn’t catch his eye?”
It had to be said, Jiang Meilan had some spirit. Even after being rejected by Shen Zhanlie, she didn’t wallow in self-pity for long before rallying with renewed determination.
Standing by the bed, Jiang Meishu pursed her lips, “I really can’t pluck them. I only know how to shape eyebrows with a blade.”
Hearing this, Jiang Meilan became enthusiastic, “Then use a blade!”
She turned and went to the kitchen, bringing back a gleaming kitchen knife for Jiang Meishu.
Jiang Meilan, “…………”
No.
Was this eyebrow shaping or attempted murder?
With such a large kitchen knife, Jiang Meishu couldn’t bring herself to do it.
“How do you expect me to shape them with this?” she gestured, full of bravado. “If I go horizontally, I’ll slice off the eyebrows; if I go vertically, I’ll cut the nose. I ask you, do you still want your face or not?”
Only then did Jiang Meilan give up, “Then let’s use tweezers after all.”
Jiang Meishu asked, “Do you really have to shape these eyebrows?”
“Besides, Aunt hasn’t come back yet. How can you be so sure this marriage swap will work? What if Factory Director Liang isn’t willing?”
Jiang Meilan spat in disdain, “You and your pessimistic talk! We look exactly alike. Why would Factory Director Liang refuse?”
“Factory Director Liang isn’t blind like Shen Zhanlie.”
But before she could finish speaking.
There came a knock at the door.
Jiang Meilan jumped to her feet, “Oh no.”
“Aunt is back so soon. Could it be that you were right?”
Jiang Meishu didn’t respond, simply lifted the floral cloth curtain and followed her out, “We’ll know once we go out and see.”
As soon as she stepped out, she indeed saw Jiang Lamei standing at the doorway, holding a nylon mesh bag filled with red apples. The fragrance from the apples.
Instantly filled the entire room.
It had been so long.
From the moment Jiang Lamei entered, Jiang Meishu’s eyes were glued to those apples, for no other reason than—
She was hungry.
Ever since she transmigrated, she hadn’t had enough to eat even three meals a day, let alone fruit—it was a luxury among luxuries.
Jiang Meilan, on the other hand, was different. Her attention was entirely on Jiang Lamei. As soon as she saw her return, she immediately went up to her and asked, “Aunt, how did it go? Did Factory Director Liang agree?”
At her question, Jiang Lamei, still holding the apples, found a stool and sat down without saying a word.
Jiang Meilan’s heart grew uneasy with anxiety.
Lin Qiaoling, standing nearby, was somewhat baffled. She smiled, trying to lighten the mood, “No wonder they say our Meilan is blessed! At the propaganda department, everyone’s talking about how Meilan is going to marry Factory Director Liang. Even I’m getting treated with more respect because of it.”
It was a case of flattery landing on the wrong ears.
Jiang Meilan’s face immediately fell. “Who said I’m marrying Factory Director Liang?”
“Aunt, stop beating around the bush. Just tell me—did Factory Director Liang agree to the swap?”
The question left Jiang Lamei at a loss for words. Instead of answering directly, she held up a net bag of apples in her hand. “When I left, Factory Director Liang gave these to me.”
“Meilan, Factory Director Liang is really a promising match.”
“What does that have to do with me?” Jiang Meilan didn’t even glance at the apples and asked, enunciating each word, “Did he agree or not?”
The atmosphere instantly turned icy.
Jiang Meishu gulped audibly.
Everyone turned to look at her.
Jiang Meishu’s eyes gleamed with hunger. “Why don’t you all discuss the important matters first? I’ll go wash an apple to eat.”
Jiang Meilan, “…”
Jiang Meilan had truly never met anyone quite like her younger sister.
All she ever thought about was food.
“Eat, eat, eat! What will you do if the marriage swap falls through?”
Jiang Meilan felt a mix of frustration and helplessness, as if her sister was beyond redemption.
Jiang Meishu pursed her lips and muttered, “Even if it doesn’t work out, that won’t stop me from eating apples.”
There were plenty of men out there. If this one didn’t work, she could always find another.
So what if he wasn’t perfect?
It was just about securing a meal ticket—no need to be so picky.
She stretched out her hand. “Aunt, give me an apple. I want to eat!”
Jiang Lamei sighed at her carefree niece. “You two really ought to balance each other out.”
One was overly shrewd.
The other was utterly naive.
Well then.
The previously tense atmosphere was instantly deflected.
Jiang Lamei handed over the net bag, took out an apple, and passed it to her. Jiang Meishu happily accepted it, scurried to the kitchen to wash it, and was about to take a bite when she remembered the others outside.
She sighed resignedly, picked up a kitchen knife, cut the apple into several slices, and prepared to share them—though not before sneaking a piece into her own mouth.
The sweet, fragrant apple was soft and mealy.
Jiang Meishu swore she had never tasted such a delicious apple. She cherished it, holding it in her mouth without biting, and carried the sliced apple out to the others.
Just then, she overheard the conversation outside.
“Factory Director Liang refused the marriage swap.”He still wants to meet Meilan for the blind date.””
At these words, Jiang Meilan immediately exploded. “Why would he refuse?”
Why would both of them refuse to swap?
Hearing this, Wang Limei couldn’t help but sneer. “And why should he agree? Wasn’t it you who initially agreed to meet Factory Director Liang, which is why our family submitted your photo?”
Jiang Lamei stepped in to mediate. “Factory Director Liang isn’t an unreasonable man. He told me that if you’re unwilling, the blind date can be called off. But I didn’t want to lose such a promising match, so I took the liberty of accepting on Meilan’s behalf.”
At that, Jiang Meilan immediately fell silent.
She knew she was biased, but according to the fragments of memory, Liang Qiurun from her past life had indeed been a gentleman.
Even before their marriage, he had made it clear to her: he needed someone to manage his household and raise his children.
At first, she thought it was just an excuse.
Little did she expect that the other party would uphold those words for twenty long years.
Liang Qiurun treated his workplace as home. Even on the rare occasions he returned late at night, he would sleep in the study.
For a full twenty years, he never once stepped foot into her bedroom. Many times, Jiang Meilan couldn’t help but wonder:
Was Liang Qiurun impotent?
Seeing her remain silent,
Jiang Lamei said, “Meilan, if you’re unwilling and want to discard such a good match as Factory Director Liang, at least consider your sister. If you snatch Shen Zhanlie away, what will become of her?”
“With her delicate health, if she can’t find a suitable marriage partner, she’ll be sent down to the countryside. Do you think she’d survive three months there?”
Jiang Meishu, who was eating an apple, thought this was rather blunt.
Jiang Meilan stayed silent.
Wang Limei pondered for a moment, “How about we stick to the original plan? Meilan will meet Factory Director Liang, and Meishu will meet Shen Zhanlie.”
“No!”
The twin sisters protested in unison.
One couldn’t stand Liang Qiurun’s impotence.
The other couldn’t handle Shen Zhanlie’s excessive vigor.
“Fine, fine! You two are rebelling now! I wash my hands of this matter!”
Wang Limei was furious. At first, it was just the older daughter causing trouble, but now the younger one was following suit.
“What’s wrong with Factory Director Liang?”
“What’s wrong with Shen Zhanlie?”
“Why do you both reject them so strongly?”
Jiang Meishu and Jiang Meilan remained silent. In situations like this, the more you say, the more mistakes you make.
“Then what do you propose? The matchmaking day is the day after tomorrow. If this isn’t settled, you’ll both be sent down to the countryside. I’d rather not have to see this anymore.”
Such maternal love.
She looked as if she wished she could stuff them both back into her womb.
As if she never gave birth to them.
The room fell quiet.
“If you ask me, there might be a way,”
Lin Qiaoling, who had been listening all along, suddenly spoke up.
Everyone immediately turned to look at her.
“You have a solution?”
Lin Qiaoling hummed in agreement, “Isn’t Factory Director Liang supposed to meet Meilan? Since Meilan doesn’t want to meet him, but our family can’t bear to lose such a valuable connection like Factory Director Liang… How about this: let Meilan and Meishu switch?”