In order to quickly understand information about this era, Qianhua secretly slipped into the room where Wen Yong and Wen Zhi slept.
She rummaged through the books on Wen Zhi’s desk, hoping to find something related to history.
But the only things on the desk were elementary primers like The Three Character Classic and The Thousand Character Text.
She couldn’t help thinking to herself: Do children in this era not need to learn about their country’s history? Do they not read any extracurricular books either?
After lunch, following the memories of the original owner of this body, she went to her fiancé Jiang Lin’s house.
She thought that Jiang Lin was good at studying, so the books he read should be more extensive than Wen Zhi’s. Perhaps he might have the kind of books she was looking for.
As for this fiancé in name only, she could only glean bits and pieces about him from the original owner’s memories.
In those memories, Jiang Lin’s family seemed fairly kind to the original owner.
But in Qianhua’s view, most of the time the Jiang family merely offered verbal concern and never took any real action.
Instead, it was the original owner who frequently gave tangible benefits to the Jiang family—it seemed she had always been the one giving more in the relationship.
In the past, when the original owner’s father earned silver from hunting, he would give his daughter some pocket money.
Because she admired Jiang Lin, she saved up all of it.
She would then buy daily necessities for Jiang Lin and his mother.
Sometimes she gave them paper and brushes; sometimes, when Jiang Lin said he lacked money, she even handed him her pocket money directly.
Because of this, Jiang Lin and his mother were always gentle and pleasant toward her.
As for Liang Second Uncle, he had always turned a blind eye to it.
Jiang Lin had lost his father at a young age and lived alone with his mother.
He was well known in the village for being good at studying, and he relied on assistance from members of the Jiang clan to continue his education.
Besides, Jiang Lin was destined to become his son-in-law. As the saying goes, a son-in-law is half a son, so when Qianhua gave them things, both he and Madam Liu tacitly approved.
That continued until her father broke his leg. She no longer had any pocket money, and from then on she stopped sending things to the Jiang household.
“Madam Jiang, are you at home?” Qianhua called out as she knocked on the gate of the Jiang family courtyard.
“Oh my, it’s Qianhua!” Jiang Lin’s mother opened the door with a bright smile. “You haven’t come to visit Auntie for nearly half a year. What good things did you bring us this time?”
“Auntie, I came to borrow books from Brother Jiang Lin. I didn’t bring anything,” Qianhua replied.
She felt that Jiang Lin’s mother was far too familiar—she had actually asked directly for gifts.
“Qianhua, you’re here,” Jiang Lin said.
He had been reading inside the house and came out when he heard the noise.
“Lin’er, Qianhua didn’t come to bring you things this time. She came to borrow books,” Jiang Lin’s mother said.
At this point, her expression had already turned somewhat unpleasant.
She had been eagerly hoping Qianhua would bring more good things for their family.
Instead, after months of not coming, she arrived empty-handed—and even wanted to borrow books from her son.
Looking at how dark and thin she was, could those rumors in the village actually be true?
“Borrow books? What books? Are they for your cousin Wen Zhi?” Jiang Lin asked suspiciously.
“No, not for Wen Zhi. I wanted to ask whether you have books like historical records. I’d like to learn about the history of our Dayuan Kingdom and the surrounding countries.”
“I don’t have books on historical records. And even if I did, lending them to you would be useless—you wouldn’t understand them. You’ve never gone to school; you probably can’t even recognize a single big character,” Jiang Lin said disdainfully.
“I may not be able to read, but I can have someone who can read them aloud to me,” Qianhua replied.
Though she said this out loud, she thought to herself: Who says I never went to school?
I’m a college graduate who studied for over ten years.
And you dare mock me with your elementary-school level?
You really don’t know your own limits.
“You’re just a rural village girl. You should stay home and learn embroidery, washing clothes, cooking, and how to serve others. What’s the point of learning history? That’s not something women like you should study,” Jiang Lin said impatiently.
Qianhua stared at the man before her.
Though his features were fairly delicate, his mouth was small and thin—a clear sign of a cold and heartless person.
If he were placed in modern times, he would definitely be a yin-heavy sissy, not manly at all.
Coupled with his contemptuous tone and expression when he spoke, and his overt disdain for women, Qianhua truly despised this so-called fiancé of the original owner.
Even though he was good at studying, she felt he was not a suitable match at all.
She preferred genuinely masculine men.
When she first arrived in this time and learned that her family had arranged this engagement, she felt extremely resistant.
She disliked arranged marriages, but she hadn’t rushed to cancel the engagement.
She knew that, for her current situation, the engagement also served as a form of protection.
With it, Old Madam Liang would see her as having value and wouldn’t casually marry her off to someone else.
She had planned to wait until she earned money, find a way to split the household, and then look for an opportunity to break off the engagement.
But now, she couldn’t wait any longer.
This kind of man—she truly didn’t want to bear the title of his fiancee for even one more second.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?” Jiang Lin asked. “Your father’s leg has been injured, and he’s been lying in bed for months. I heard he can already get out of bed and walk recently. Does that mean he’ll soon be able to go hunting again and earn silver?”
“Yes, Qianhua,” Jiang Lin’s mother chimed in. “Your father’s leg has been recuperating for so long—he should be almost healed, right?”
“My father…” Qianhua choked up deliberately. “Brother Jiang Lin, my father’s leg… I’m afraid it will never heal. From now on, he can only walk with a crutch. He’ll never be able to hunt and earn silver again.”
“Is what you’re saying true?” Jiang Lin’s mother asked in shock.
“Yes, Aunt Jiang. Please don’t spread this around. My grandfather has been hiding it from the villagers, afraid they’ll laugh at my father for becoming crippled.”
Qianhua spoke vividly and convincingly, fooling the mother and son completely.
“Brother Jiang Lin, you must study hard,” Qianhua said in a soft, affectionate voice as she gazed at him. “Our family will have to rely on you in the future. When you pass the imperial exam someday, you must help take care of my father for the rest of his life.”
Jiang Lin laughed awkwardly. “Heh… Qianhua, don’t make it sound so serious.”
“I mean it. My father has lost his ability to work, and you are my only hope now. I’ll head back first. Brother Jiang Lin, study hard,” Qianhua said, then took her leave after finishing her act.
As soon as she left, Jiang Lin’s mother immediately pulled him inside and shut the courtyard gate. “Lin’er, we must hurry and break off this engagement. Otherwise, once you pass the exam, their whole family will cling to you and make you support them for the rest of your life.”
“Mother, you’re right,” Jiang Lin agreed. “Liang Second Uncle is crippled now, and they still want to hide it. The daughter of Master Liu’s family has taken a liking to me. Let’s go to the Liang household tomorrow and cancel the engagement.”
Outside the courtyard gate, Qianhua listened to the conversation between mother and son and sneered inwardly.
She had expected them to want to break off the engagement, but she hadn’t expected Jiang Lin to already have another option lined up.
Turning back after leaving, she ended up hearing something quite interesting indeed.