Lu Beichen froze for a second before realizing what she had just said.
“So your way of thanking me is by offering yourself?”
Xu Nianchu caught the hint of mockery in his tone. If it wasn’t gratitude, what was it supposed to be? Revenge?
“Young man, your mouth is tougher than your heart.”
She was beautiful and wealthy—well, not in her current identity. Marrying him now would probably only drag him down.
She had spent the entire afternoon thinking it over.
If she took the initiative to claim the engagement her mother had left behind, the Lu family would most likely agree.
The Lu family had served in the military for three generations. Their family was upright and influential.
They would certainly be capable of protecting her.
But the man she married…
His future career would also be ruined because of her. He’d never be promoted again.
That would be terribly unfair.
Of course, if the two of them genuinely fell in love, that would be a different matter.
The engagement had originally been arranged by Old Master Lu.
Back then, during a military campaign, his entire unit had been trapped on the border, surrounded on all sides.
Just when they were on the brink of annihilation, Xu Nianchu’s grandfather had stepped forward.
For the sake of the nation, he had sold off all of his border businesses at bargain prices, exchanging them for a massive supply of materials that were immediately shipped to the front lines.
That was how Old Master Lu had managed to win that battle.
Old Master Lu had personally proposed the engagement.
For the sake of that life-saving debt alone, the Lu family would never refuse.
After parting ways with Lu Beichen, Xu Nianchu followed the address written in the old letters and headed for the Lu residence.
Even if they didn’t intend to honor the marriage agreement, perhaps they could still help her in some other way.
By the time she arrived, it was already five in the afternoon.
Normally, visiting someone’s home at that hour would be considered impolite.
Dinner time was approaching, and with food being so precious these days, anyone with basic manners wouldn’t show up at another family’s house then.
Unfortunately, her situation was rather special.
As a wealthy young lady from modern times, however, she knew proper etiquette.
She was asking someone for help.
Naturally, she couldn’t arrive empty-handed.
But an expensive gift would be inappropriate, while something too cheap wouldn’t look sincere.
So she picked six apples and six pears from her space, stuffed them into two mesh bags, and carried them with her.
Simple, tasteful, and respectful.
When she reached the imposing entrance, however, she discovered she couldn’t get in at all.
This was the military residential compound.
Without an invitation, outsiders weren’t allowed inside.
Feeling rather awkward, she said to the guard,
“My name is Xu Nianchu. I’m here to see Commander Lu Zhengbang. Our families have a childhood marriage arrangement.”
The moment she finished saying that, she wanted to dig a hole with her toes and crawl into it.
Sigh…
She took an apple from her bag and offered it to the young soldier.
“We grew these ourselves. Why don’t you try one?”
She had already tasted one on the way over.
The apples were fragrant, crisp, sweet, and somehow left her feeling refreshed afterward.
The young sentry was momentarily stunned.
After taking one look at her breathtaking beauty, he still went inside to report her arrival.
His gaze lingered on the enormous apple in her hand.
It was the prettiest apple he had ever seen.
“I can’t accept the apple, but I can help pass along your message.”
With that, he jogged inside and knocked on Commander Lu’s door.
The person who answered listened to his explanation.
After thinking for a full minute, she finally said,
“I’m sorry. Please tell that young lady our family has no such engagement.”
The soldier blinked.
The young lady looked so beautiful and well-bred that she hardly seemed like a liar.
He tried once more.
“But… she’s really very pretty.”
Yu Wei looked apologetic.
“I’m sorry. No matter how pretty she is, there is no engagement. Thank you for making the trip.”
The young soldier returned with an embarrassed expression.
“They said… there isn’t any engagement.”
Xu Nianchu was equally surprised.
“Huh? It is the Lu family, right? Was it the head of the household who answered?”
The soldier nodded.
“Of course.”
According to the novel, after something terrible happened to the original Xu Nianchu, the Lu family had actually come to help her.
But by then, the original owner had already lost the will to live and refused to meet them.
After several failed attempts, the Lu family eventually gave up.
Still, they had helped deal with that scumbag Wu Chi.
So why were they denying the childhood engagement now?
Something was definitely wrong.
She decided to wait outside a little longer to see if she could meet Old Master Lu in person.
Based on everything she’d learned, he shouldn’t be this kind of person.
She waited…
And waited…
But Old Master Lu never appeared.
Instead…
Lu Beichen arrived.
Stepping out of a military jeep with his long legs, he looked at her in surprise.
“What are you doing here?”
Xu Nianchu joked,
“Waiting for you.”
The moment she said it, she saw how serious Lu Beichen looked.
Only then did she remember—
This was 1968.
People took such things very seriously.
She immediately corrected herself.
“I came to discuss something with my fiancé, but I couldn’t find him.”
Something about those words made Lu Beichen feel strangely uncomfortable.
He hadn’t expected her to already have a fiancé after flirting with him.
His thoughts drifted back to that night they had shared.
Only he knew how agonizing those days had been afterward.
He asked,
“What fiancé?”
Her toes scraped awkwardly against the ground.
“My childhood fiancé, of course.”
Seriously…
Couldn’t this guy read the room?
Didn’t he realize how embarrassed she was?
A shadow flickered through Lu Beichen’s eyes.
So she already had a childhood engagement.
She was the real little liar.
She already had a fiancé, yet she had asked if she should devote herself to him.
“Oh, right.”
She suddenly remembered something.
“Your surname is Lu too. Do you know Commander Lu Zhengbang? The guard just told me their family doesn’t recognize this engagement.”
The moment his name was mentioned, Old Master Lu stopped in his tracks.
He was fifty-five years old.
With the changing of the seasons, all the injuries he’d sustained on the battlefield in his youth always flared up again.
Every season change meant another trip to the hospital for examinations and medicine.
Now there was actually a young girl looking for him.
Beside him, Madam Lu was also studying the girl.
The young lady’s eyes were bright and sincere.
She even seemed quite familiar with their son.
But…
How could she not know that Lu Zhengbang was Lu Beichen’s father?
Madam Lu spoke first.
“Young lady… are you from the Xu family?”
Xu Nianchu nodded obediently.
“Yes, Auntie. I’m Ye Huixin’s daughter, and Ye Tiancheng’s granddaughter.”
Madam Lu, Meng Qi’an, looked puzzled.
“But… didn’t your family write to us asking Shijia to meet you at a restaurant?”
She exchanged a glance with Lu Zhengbang.
His expression immediately darkened.
“Young lady… come inside with me.”
Though confused, Xu Nianchu followed him in.
If she had guessed correctly…
Then the person who had been meeting her childhood fiancé today wasn’t her at all.
It had been her dear stepsister, Xu Xunle.
No wonder Xu Xunle had been so desperate to get her jade bracelet.
The group entered the Lu family living room.
The moment Yu Wei saw Old Master Lu returning with a young woman, her heart skipped a beat.