At the Qin household.
All the members of the Qin family were home. Qin’s mother, Yao Guihua, returned from outside carrying a bundle of firewood on her back.
When she saw the whole family sitting in the courtyard waiting for her to come back and cook, irritation surged in her chest.
“What are you all standing around for? Don’t you know how to lend a hand?” Yao Guihua shouted loudly at her husband, Qin Jiabao, who was smoking off to the side.
She had long been used to being bossed around by her mother-in-law, so all the household chores had always fallen on her.
More than twenty years had passed in the blink of an eye, and taking on all the housework had become second nature to her.
Even now that her son and daughter were grown, she couldn’t bear to let them do chores, so everything at home was still handled by her alone.
Now, she only hoped that her only son would get married soon. Once that girl from the Su family married in, she could finally take a break.
Thinking of this, Yao Guihua glanced at Qin Chengyi, who was chatting with Qin Jiabao, and asked:
“Chengyi, you’ve been back for almost half a month now. When are you going to settle your marriage with that girl from the Su family?
You’ve been engaged for two years already. Your father and I are still waiting to hold a grandson!”
Truth be told, whether or not they had a grandson could wait—the main thing was that after more than twenty years of housework, it was time to have someone take over.
Yao Guihua thought about this with anticipation.
After hearing his mother’s words, Qin Chengyi suddenly felt irritated.
He used to like Su Luowan, because he thought she was the prettiest girl in the entire village.
Marrying her would have brought him a lot of pride.
But ever since he joined the army, he had come to understand something—marrying a woman with a strong background could save him many years of struggle.
Originally, before coming home on leave, he had planned not to break off the engagement with Su Luowan until he found a more suitable match.
After all, even though her family background wasn’t great, her looks were more than acceptable.
But just a few days after returning, he kept running into Xu Xiuqin from the educated youth point.
After they became somewhat familiar, Xu Xiuqin casually revealed that her uncle worked in the municipal government.
On top of that, Xu Xiuqin was delicate and refined, and her gentle affection toward him made him feel very pleased.
Gradually, he began to think about marrying her.
She was also from the city, and both her parents had stable jobs.
According to her, her parents and older brother sent her money, ration coupons, and food every month.
He felt that even if she couldn’t return to the city in the future, with her family’s support and her urban upbringing, she was still far superior to Su Luowan, a countryside girl.
Moreover, if he ever retired from the army, Xu Xiuqin’s uncle might even be able to help him secure a stable job.
Thinking this, Qin Chengyi looked at Yao Guihua and said:
“Mom, I want to break off the engagement with Su Luowan!”
“W-what?” Yao Guihua, who had been imagining handing off the housework, froze for a moment, unable to react.
Once she recovered, she quickly asked:
“Chengyi, why? Did you find someone you like in the army?”
The more she thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. Although it was a pity she couldn’t pass the chores to Su Luowan, her son had said he’d been promoted to squad leader this time.
He would surely have a bright future ahead.
If he really married a girl from the army, their Qin family would gain a lot of face.
Qin Chengyi frowned and replied impatiently:
“Mom, don’t make wild guesses. Who would I meet in the army? I just think I’m not suitable with Su Luowan anymore!”
Yao Guihua became even more puzzled:
“Chengyi, why not? Sure, her family background isn’t great, but that girl from the Su family is hardworking!”
If her son couldn’t marry a girl from the army, then marrying Su Luowan was still a good option.
At the very least, Su Luowan was capable—she could take over the housework and earn work points too.
But Qin Chengyi turned his face away and stubbornly said:
“Mom, don’t worry about it. I already have someone I like. Tomorrow, I’ll go to Su Luowan’s house and break off the engagement!”
“You child!”
Seeing her son’s stubborn expression, Yao Guihua felt both angry and anxious.
He was the one who had insisted on getting engaged in the first place, and now he was the one insisting on breaking it off.
Now that he had grown up, why wouldn’t he listen at all?
At that moment, Qin Jiabao, who had been watching the argument, pulled the pipe from his mouth and knocked it heavily against the ground with a loud bang, sparks scattering.
With a dark expression, he said impatiently:
“If Chengyi wants to break off the engagement, then let him. That girl from the Su family isn’t a good choice anyway.”
In his view, his son was already making a name for himself in the army and would surely achieve something great.
As for that girl from the Su family, she had grown up in this remote mountain village—how much insight could she possibly have? She might even drag his son down in the future.
Seeing that her husband thought the same, Yao Guihua was about to persuade them further—
when suddenly their daughter came rushing into the courtyard in a flurry.
“Dad, Mom, something’s wrong!”
Already in a bad mood, Yao Guihua snapped:
“Xiaoxiu, what are you yelling for? Has the sky fallen?”
Ignoring her mother’s scolding, Qin Xiaoxiu panted and said:
“Mom, I saw Su Luowan, her mother, and her younger brother heading toward our house!”
Yao Guihua frowned:
“What are they coming here for at this time? Could it be to discuss the wedding?”
Hearing this, Qin Chengyi’s eyes flashed with disdain:
“Good. Since they’re here, we can just break off the engagement!”
As he spoke, faint noise could be heard coming from outside.
The Qin family looked through the gate and saw Lin Yuzhen and her two children walking toward them, with several villagers trailing behind, eager to watch the commotion.
Lin Yuzhen’s face was dark as thunder, and Su Luonian looked equally furious.
Seeing this, the Qin family felt a trace of doubt—this didn’t look like people coming to discuss a wedding.
Qin Xiaoxiu swallowed nervously and said:
“I just heard… it seems the Su family came to… break off the engagement!”
After saying that, she turned to Qin Chengyi and continued:
“Brother, what you said earlier—was it true? You really want to break off the engagement with Su Luowan?
That’s great! You should’ve done it long ago!”
Among all the girls in the village, Qin Xiaoxiu had always been most jealous of Su Luowan.
Su Luowan had been beautiful since childhood, naturally becoming the standard everyone else was compared to.
And Qin Xiaoxiu was no exception.
But soon, Su Luowan wouldn’t be anymore. What good family would want a woman whose engagement had been broken?
Thinking this, a trace of schadenfreude flashed in her eyes.
At this moment, Qin Chengyi’s expression turned slightly ugly after hearing her words.
There was a difference between him initiating the breakup and the Su family coming to his house to do it!
The engagement could be broken—but it had to be him who did it!