Hearing that it was a woman, Meng Ruo also walked to the door.
She quickly explained, “Big Sister, I am so sorry. The bed collapsed.”
The woman looked around the room, taking in the decorations, and immediately realized that this was a bridal chamber for a newlywed couple. She knew someone in this building was getting married today, but she hadn’t realized the young couple would be living right above her.
She and her husband had just turned off the lights and were preparing to sleep. Not long after the lights went out, the sound of a creaking, shaking bed drifted down from upstairs. It had been so intense, so passionate—like dry tinder meeting a blazing fire.
The sound had even made her husband a bit restless, and he wanted to get intimate with her. But just as the old couple had stripped off their clothes, a massive “bang” echoed from upstairs, as if the bed had crashed down.
That sudden roar had instantly scared away all of her husband’s desire. He had rolled over irritably and started putting his pants back on. She was also fuming from the sudden interruption, so she dressed herself and came upstairs to pound on the door.
Squinting at You Che, the woman shot Meng Ruo a meaningful look. “The bed collapsed? Your man did it?”
“Huh?” Meng Ruo was a bit dazed.
Technically, she was the one who did it.
“You two are the couple who just got married today, right?” The woman smiled playfully.
“Yes,” Meng Ruo answered honestly.
“Don’t make too much noise, little couple, you hear? The soundproofing in this building is terrible. If you speak a little louder, everyone can hear you clearly,” the woman cautioned, offering another suggestive smile. “Your man is a bit too impatient. What time is it? The neighbors haven’t even gone to sleep yet.”
“Big Sister, I think you’ve misunderstood.” Meng Ruo was about to explain that the bed collapsed because of her.
But the woman was clearly thinking in that direction. If Meng Ruo said she was the one who caused it, wouldn’t her reputation be…
So, she chose to shut her mouth.
On the wedding night, a young couple’s passion shaking the bed until it collapsed—she didn’t believe for a second that this woman wouldn’t go around spreading such a scandalous and eye-catching topic. If that was the case, she might as well go with the flow and pin the blame on You Che.
“Fine, fine,” the woman said, looking as though she didn’t want to hear any more of Meng Ruo’s explanations. “I won’t disturb your wedding night further.”
Meng Ruo: “…”
After being preoccupied by the collapsed bed for over an hour, the two finally lay down on the bed and turned off the lights to sleep. Once the lights were out and their visual senses were deprived, their hearing became exceptionally sharp.
It was currently the peak of the dog days of summer, and the large ceiling fan overhead was whirring away. Strangely enough, even though there was no air conditioning in this era, it wasn’t so hot that they couldn’t sleep.
While her mind wandered, Meng Ruo became acutely aware of a single fact: the two of them were sleeping in the same bed. As this thought took root, the feeling of unease within her began to magnify.
Gradually, her thoughts drifted. In her other world, she had heard her elders talk about how they got married back in their day. Most of them met through blind dates—they’d meet once, and if they liked each other, they’d pick a day for the engagement. By the time the wedding night arrived, it was likely only the second time they had ever seen each other. Then, within six months, they’d be expecting a child.
Back then, Meng Ruo had listened to their stories with a face full of disbelief, declaring that if she were forced to marry someone she had only met once, she’d rather become a nun on the spot.
At this moment, Meng Ruo’s internal thoughts were: “…”
Counting it up, she and You Che had only met a total of three times. She wasn’t much better off than her elders.
According to the logic of a normal person in this era, they were supposed to… do that… tonight. However, Meng Ruo wasn’t entirely a person of this era, so it was truly difficult for her to accept doing that with a stranger.
Besides, wasn’t You Che “incapable”? Meng Ruo stared into the darkness, pondering.
Amidst her random thoughts, she subconsciously rolled over, facing toward You Che. At this moment, You Che’s back was toward her; he showed absolutely no intention of doing anything.
Well, he really is incapable, Meng Ruo confirmed her theory in her heart. On the wedding night, with a beautiful wife beside him, a normal man would surely make a move. Yet he was like a wooden block.
With that thought, Meng Ruo quickly drifted into dreamland.
At this time, You Che—who was being considerate and felt that it would be hard for Meng Ruo to accept performing the “Rites of Zhou” with him while they were still unfamiliar—remained completely unaware of his wife’s private thoughts.
On the night of Meng Ruo’s wedding, Li Mei began eyeing her room. During dinner, she found an opportunity to bring it up to Meng Jun.
“Old Meng, look, Xiao Ruo has married out. Shouldn’t we clear out her room?” Li Mei asked tentatively.
Hearing Li Mei’s words, Zheng Wan, who was eating, looked up at Meng Jun. She thought to herself: Do I finally not have to sleep in the living room?
Meng Jun nodded. “It should be cleared out.”
Li Mei was delighted that Meng Jun had agreed so readily.
“Yes, you see, it’s inconvenient for Zheng Wan to always sleep in the living room. I’ll clear the room out in a bit so she can stay there,” Li Mei said.
Meng Jun frowned. “Why would she stay in Xiao Ruo’s room? That room is being cleared out for Jiyue.”
“But Jiyue is still so young,” Li Mei said, her expression becoming somewhat awkward.
“If you hadn’t mentioned this, I would have forgotten. Why does your niece have to keep staying at our house? Can’t she go out and rent a place?” Meng Jun tapped the table and asked with a frown.
“She doesn’t have any money on her, so I let her stay with us for a while,” Li Mei explained with difficulty.
“No, that won’t do,” Meng Jun said in a tone that allowed for no negotiation.
Zheng Wan lowered her head in disappointment, but she was also puzzled. In her previous life, she had clearly taken Meng Ruo’s room after she was kicked out of the house. Why had so many things changed in this life? First, she had been stuck sleeping in the living room instead of squeezing into a room with Meng Ruo as originally intended; then Meng Ruo had married out smoothly, and to the very You Che she had been dreaming of.
After finishing the meal, Li Mei took the dishes to the kitchen, and Zheng Wan quickly followed her in.
“What am I supposed to do then?” Zheng Wan asked.
Li Mei was also very frustrated. After thinking it over, she blamed all the recent misfortune on Zheng Wan’s early arrival.
“How should I know what to do?” Li Mei shouted at her impatiently.
Zheng Wan was also annoyed by her shouting. She rolled her eyes and stood to the side, fuming.
Li Mei thought of a plan while washing the dishes. Finally, she said, “How about this? You should go back to the countryside first.”
“You don’t want to be a kitchen hand at the restaurant anyway,” Li Mei said. “Go back to the old home first. Once I find a good job for you here, I’ll write to you and have you come back.”
Zheng Wan stared at Li Mei in shock for a few seconds. She realized it now: Li Mei simply didn’t want to spend money to rent a room for her. The moment it involved spending money on her, Li Mei became unwilling. Yet she was so generous to her precious son. Daughters are daughters, and sons are sons, right?
“I’m not going back,” Zheng Wan said unhappily. “I ran away from home without telling my dad. If I go back now, he’ll beat me to death.”
Back then, hadn’t Li Mei insisted on divorcing Zheng Guanghui precisely because he beat his wife? Furthermore, she had to stay in the provincial capital. She had already found You Che; she wouldn’t give up so easily. Even if You Che was married, she could find a way to destroy their marriage.
“But it’s not a solution for you to stay here. How much can you even earn working at the restaurant? Renting a place outside isn’t cheap.”
Li Mei truly didn’t want to spend money on rent for Zheng Wan. Even if it was just ten or so yuan a month for a small room, it would add up to a significant expense over time. Moreover, she had just been heavily “fleeced” by Meng Ruo several times, and her funds were tight.
Zheng Wan seemed tired of playing along. Suddenly, she threatened, “Mom, if you insist on this, then don’t blame me.”
Li Mei froze and asked, “What do you mean by that?”
“You just don’t want to spend money to rent a place for me, do you? If you don’t rent me a room, I’ll go outside right now and tell Meng Jun that I am your biological daughter.”
Hearing this, Li Mei stood frozen on the spot, looking both shocked and chilled to the bone. She could have thought of a million things, but she never imagined she would be backstabbed by her own biological daughter. She had feared that the secret of “Zheng Wan being her daughter” would be used by Wu Hongyun or Meng Ruo, but she never expected it to be used by Zheng Wan herself.
After the initial chill, Li Mei smiled bitterly. “You truly are my good daughter. Get out! Get back to your father right now, you ungrateful wretch!” Li Mei cursed with red eyes.
Li Mei assumed Zheng Wan was just speaking out of anger. She didn’t expect the girl to actually mean it. As soon as Li Mei told her to get out, the girl pushed the door open and said loudly to Meng Jun, “Second Uncle, actually I…”
Just as Meng Jun, sitting on the sofa, turned his head, Li Mei rushed out of the kitchen and grabbed Zheng Wan.
“What were you going to tell me?” Meng Jun asked, having already turned around.
“Nothing, nothing,” Li Mei glared at her and explained to Meng Jun with a smile. “I was telling her to wash the dishes, and the girl still tried to run out.”
Meng Jun turned back indifferently and continued listening to the radio broadcast.
Li Mei dragged Zheng Wan back into the kitchen and said, “I must have committed a lot of sins in my past life to give birth to a debt-collector like you. You want a rented room? Fine, I’ll rent one for you!” Li Mei said fiercely.
Zheng Wan had also hardened her heart. If Li Mei dared to ignore her, she would drag her down with her. In any case, if her life was bad, no one else would have a good one either.
As soon as the wedding leave ended, Meng Ruo returned to work at the food factory. Since her new home was further from the factory than before, she arrived a few minutes later than usual.
When she reached her unit, she found Accountant Song from next door in their office, chatting. They were part of the logistics group, and she was a clerk.
The original host had grown up in a relatively affluent environment; before her biological mother passed away, she was essentially the little princess of the Meng family. It was because of this environment that the original host lacked a sense of crisis. Although her grades were good, her college major was administrative management, and after graduation, she chose a light, low-skill clerk job. Even with a hypocritical stepmother in the Meng house, the original host’s plan was simply to stay put for a few years until she eventually married out.
“Meng Ruo, I heard you got married?” Song Yan asked with a smile when she saw her enter.
Meng Ruo didn’t really want to talk to her and gave a casual hum in response. She didn’t feel like she had ever offended Song Yan, yet every time Song Yan spoke to her, it felt like her words had thorns.
Song Yan had only been at the food factory for a couple of years, but because she was an accountant, she considered herself superior to a clerk like Meng Ruo.
“So what if she’s a college student? College students still do low-level work. She’s not even as good as an associate degree holder like me,” Song Yan often mocked Meng Ruo behind her back.
Meng Ruo hadn’t provoked Song Yan since arriving at the factory, so why was Song Yan so targeted toward her? It was because the moment Meng Ruo arrived, the title of “Factory Flower” had shifted from Song Yan to Meng Ruo. When Song Yan was the Factory Flower, it was a case of being the best among mediocre options, but Meng Ruo was different—she was universally acknowledged as the most beautiful.
Meng Ruo had fair skin, a graceful figure, and a face like a delicate flower. Crucially, she was a college student. In every aspect, Song Yan couldn’t compare to her, so she was naturally resentful.
“Why did you marry Yang Qing from the electronics factory?” Song Yan said with a look of shock, her expression extremely exaggerated.
Meng Ruo raised her eyes coldly to look at her but said nothing.
Song Yan covered her mouth in another exaggerated gesture and said, “You don’t know anything, do you?”
As she spoke, Song Yan walked enthusiastically over to Meng Ruo’s side and began to recount her history with Yang Qing—who was actually You Che.
When Song Yan first made that exaggerated statement, Meng Ruo felt a small spark of anticipation in her heart, hoping Song Yan would reveal some gossip she didn’t already know. But by the time Song Yan finished, it was just the same old story about You Che’s aunt calling him an ungrateful wretch.
Meng Ruo hadn’t fully figured out if You Che was lazy or had a bad personality, but the “ungrateful wretch” label was definitely unfounded. Just by seeing how Yang Heping treated You Che, one could tell that Yang Heping was a man of deep affection and loyalty. Throughout history, such people only formed deep bonds with others like themselves; she had never seen a loyal man pour his heart out for an ungrateful wretch.
As for the “history” between her and You Che that Song Yan mentioned, it was nothing more than a matchmaker once trying to set them up, but Song Yan had immediately rejected him after hearing the rumors. That was all.
Song Yan’s purpose in telling Meng Ruo this was likely to say: “Look, I wouldn’t even consider this man, yet you treat him like a treasure.” Song Yan prided herself on being good-looking, the former Factory Flower, being educated, and having a stable job. Thus, she was very picky with blind dates, looking down on those without money and those without a college degree.
Faced with Song Yan, Meng Ruo didn’t even bother to feign politeness. She simply gave an expressionless “Oh.”
Song Yan was likely very offended by this lukewarm response and laughed in anger. How could Meng Ruo react this way? Shouldn’t she be shocked, regretful, worried, or resentful? Even if she were just listening to someone else’s gossip, there should be some reaction. Why was she as calm as if they were discussing whether the weather was good or bad?
How could this be? She must be faking it.
“Don’t be ungrateful. I’m telling you this out of kindness,” Song Yan said unwillingly.
Meng Ruo remained expressionless. “Oh. Well, thank you.”
Song Yan grew even angrier, but she didn’t know how to strike back. Finally, she stood there gritting her teeth and glaring, then turned and stomped back to her office in a huff. She had run to Meng Ruo’s office early in the morning to upset her, not to get upset herself. Song Yan sat at her workstation, grabbed a piece of paper, and began to crumple it viciously.
When work ended in the afternoon, Meng Ruo saw a crowd gathered at the factory gate. Curious, she stepped forward. Before she could squeeze through the crowd, she heard the workers nearby talking.
“What’s the excitement about?”
“The Director is hiring a bread technician.”
“Our factory already has several bread technicians. Why are they hiring more?”
“This time is different. I heard the higher-ups gave us a task to make a type of bread our factory has never made before, so the Director is hiring a new technician.”
“Never made before? Does that mean none of our factory’s technicians know how to do it?”
The technicians standing nearby watching the scene had their faces turn dark.
“Exactly. Otherwise, why would the Director post this recruitment notice?”
…
Bread technician? Meng Ruo’s interest was instantly piqued.