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Back to the 80s: A Marriage of Convenience
墨書 Inktalez
Back to the Eighties: A Cherished Marriage
"Jin, Aunt Si thinks your cousin from Sister-in-law's family is really good. He’s handsome, a high school student, well-educated, and his family is well-off. If you marry him, you will definitely live a good life..." In the quiet afternoon, the sharp voice of Chen Cui, belonging to Zhao Family's Aunt Si, echoed in a corner of the yard, quite grating to the ears.
"Aunt Si, I don't want to marry." Zhao Jin calmly interrupted Chen Cui's incessant chatter and shook her head, firmly rejecting Chen Cui's proposal.
"Oh dear child, how can you be so ungrateful? Do you really think you're a flower that everyone wants to marry? Wu Feng's conditions are far better than yours; this is an opportunity you shouldn't overlook. If the engagement falls through, I wonder who you'll cry to!" Chen Cui had thought this marriage proposal was excellent, but she didn't expect Zhao Jin to turn her down so abruptly, which immediately displeased her.
"Aunt Si, I really don't want to marry. Why don't you ask Ying'er? She's just a year younger than me and it's about time for her to get engaged too." The Zhao Ying'er mentioned by Zhao Jin is Chen Cui's biological daughter and Zhao Jin's cousin. If this marriage proposal was as good as Chen Cui claimed, she should be eager to marry her own daughter off to Wu Feng.
After hearing Zhao Jin's words, Chen Cui's expression clearly stiffened. Then, with a hint of resentment, she shot a glare at Zhao Jin: "Do you think Aunt Si hasn't considered this? Isn't it true that Wu Feng has taken a liking to you? He even hinted at the bride price; although it doesn't include all three major items, there are still two substantial ones. A bicycle and a sewing machine—Wu Family has already prepared them. There aren't many families nowadays that can compare. Just give me a straightforward answer: will you marry or not?"
If it weren't for the conversation reaching this point, Chen Cui wouldn't have been so explicit. Especially regarding Zhao Ying'er, Chen Cui felt some resentment in her heart.
That Wu Feng truly had poor judgment; their Ying'er was not inferior to Zhao Jin in any way! Yet Wu Feng was fixated on Zhao Jin, leaving her no room to mediate.
Originally, unable to intercept and arrange for Zhao Ying'er to marry Wu Feng made Chen Cui quite frustrated. Now with Zhao Jin pushing back and insisting she wouldn't marry Wu Feng, it instantly angered Chen Cui.
"Then I won't marry either." Despite Chen Cui's enticing conditions, Zhao Jin still refused, making Chen Cui feel like cursing.
Of course, given Chen Cui's temperament, she wasn't one to endure such defiance. Seeing that Zhao Jin was resolutely ignoring her advice, she couldn't help but frown: "Zhao Jin, do you have something wrong with your head? Don't you know that Wu Feng..."
"Aunt Si, I'm going to marry Qi Zheng." Zhao Jin's unexpected declaration left Chen Cui speechless and stripped her of any further ability to scold.
Qi Zheng was the fiancé arranged by Zhao Family's grandfather when Qi Family's grandfather was still alive. Now that Qi Family's grandfather had passed away, no one from Zhao Family wanted to uphold the original marriage promise.
Oh, it's not that no one wanted to fulfill the promise. Here was Zhao Jin planning to take on the responsibility and consequences owed to Qi Family.
"Well... that's not..." Chen Cui’s face turned red in an instant; after struggling for half a moment and gritting her teeth, she pouted and said, "Qi Family has fallen into such dire straits? What girl would want to suffer by marrying into that family? You shouldn't marry either. Jin, Aunt Si still thinks Wu Feng is better for you. Really, Aunt Si won't let you down."
"I won't marry, then will Ying'er marry?" Seeing that Chen Cui's face had clearly changed but she still refused to relent, Zhao Jin softly replied.
It should be noted that the living conditions of the Zhao Family back then were far worse than they are now. When Zhao Family's Fourth Uncle was to marry, the bride's family, which is now Zhao Fourth Aunt Chen Cui's maternal family, demanded a whole new set of furniture!
At that time, the Zhao Family was nearly too poor to afford a meal; where would they find the money to buy furniture?
In order for his son to successfully marry, Grandfather Zhao shamelessly went to ask for help from Qi Family's grandfather.
At that time, Great-Grandfather Qi was a well-known carpenter, and his superb woodworking skills had truly earned the Qi Family a comfortable life.
Great-Grandfather Qi was open-minded and genuinely kind. Upon hearing about the Zhao Family's difficulties, he immediately waved his hand generously and offered to gift the Zhao Family a complete set of new furniture for free, ensuring that Zhao Family's Fourth Uncle could happily marry.
Grandfather Zhao was immensely grateful but felt embarrassed to accept such a favor from Great-Grandfather Qi without giving something in return. He promptly proposed an arranged marriage for his granddaughter to elevate her status.
Indeed, it was an elevation. Compared to the Qi Family and Zhao Family at that time, if Zhao Family's granddaughter could marry into the Qi Family, it would mean a life of comfort.
Moreover, Great-Grandfather Qi initially did not take Grandfather Zhao's words seriously. It was only after Grandfather Zhao insisted on spreading the news everywhere, fearing that the villagers wouldn't know, that it became widely known and he forced the matter to be settled.
With Great-Grandfather Qi's open-minded character, he did not blame Grandfather Zhao for his actions and never looked down on the Zhao Family's poverty. However, once things were settled, he cheerfully acknowledged this marriage arranged unilaterally by Grandfather Zhao.
From then on, the Qi and Zhao families became in-laws. Over the years, the Zhao Family benefited greatly from their relationship with the Qi Family.
However, all this harmonious interaction came to an abrupt halt with Great-Grandfather Qi's unexpected death due to illness and the Qi Family's struggles. The relationship between the two families gradually became distant and eventually cold.
In fact, everyone with clear eyes understood that this was the Zhao Family being ungrateful and wanting to distance themselves from the Qi Family as soon as they saw them in poverty.
Thus, many villagers privately spread rumors about the Zhao Family. Of course, the first ones to be talked about were still Fourth Uncle Zhao's family.
In the minds of the Qijia Family, the Zhao Family, and other villagers, it was undoubtedly the granddaughter of the Zhao Family who should marry into the Qi Family, specifically Zhao Ying'er, the daughter of Zhao Fourth Uncle.
After all, the marriage that Zhao Fourth Uncle arranged was a debt of gratitude he incurred when he married his wife.
However, it was clear that Chen Cui would never agree to marry Zhao Ying'er off to the Qi Family.
"Whose idea is this? No way! My Ying'er is not marrying into the Qi Family!" As if stepping on a painful spot, Chen Cui jumped three feet high and immediately forgot about Zhao Jin agreeing to marry Wu Feng. She turned and hurried away.
She would never acknowledge the marriage with the Qi Family. If the Zhao Family insisted on sending a granddaughter to repay a debt to the Qi Family, it would definitely be Zhao Jin. Anyway, her daughter would not marry—she would rather die than allow it!
Watching Chen Cui's figure disappear from view, Zhao Jin tugged at her lips, wanting to offer a mocking sneer but feeling that her past self, who had been easily swayed by Chen Cui, was more ridiculous than anyone else.
In her previous life, she had been completely enchanted by a few flattering words from Chen Cui and convinced herself that Wu Feng was a good match and that the Wu Family was a good place to go. What was the result?
Wu Feng's brutal beatings and the cold cruelty of the Wu Family's parents ruined her entire life. Even worse, she lost her daughter who had just been born a month earlier, permanently losing her qualification to be a mother.
In this life, she would not repeat her mistakes and would no longer be deceived by Chen Cui's few words. As for that den of wolves known as the Wu Family, whoever wanted to go could go; she would rather die than set foot there again.
"Daughter, are you really not going to agree to the marriage with the Wu Family?" Just as Zhao Jin was lost in her thoughts about the past, her mother Xu Mei walked out from the main room.
Xu Mei had also heard Chen Cui's words and remembered them well. The conditions offered by Chen Cui were indeed quite good. As a mother, Xu Mei wanted her daughter to marry without suffering any grievances and naturally began to consider agreeing.
As for the Qi Family... it wasn't that Xu Mei was selfish or unreasonable. It was simply that this marriage had originally been arranged for Zhao Ying'er; there was no reason to force her family’s Jin to marry over there.
"Mom, I still think marrying Qi Zheng is better." As Xu Mei was her biological mother, Zhao Jin's attitude was far from perfunctory as it had been with Chen Cui; she solemnly expressed her stance.
In her previous life, because Zhao Ying'er had acted like a turtle hiding its head, she had eagerly married into the Wu Family. Consequently, there were no suitable daughters left in the Zhao Family to marry into the Qi Family, which led to much gossip among everyone in the village.
Even after many years, whenever the misfortunes of the Zhao Family are mentioned again, the neighbors all sneer and curse that the Zhao Family deserves it, with not a single person feeling sympathy or compassion, let alone offering a helping hand.
Living in the same village, yet unknowingly offending most of the villagers, it is incredibly difficult for the Zhao Family to continue living comfortably.
Reflecting on their past actions, Zhao Jin still feels an overwhelming sense of shame.
Thinking back to how she found herself in dire straits but received kindness from Qi Zheng, Zhao Jin's heart burns with mixed emotions.
It doesn't matter; this time, Zhao Ying'er will not marry; she will be the one to marry. Compared to Wu Feng, she will only marry Qi Zheng!
Knowing that she was just speaking casually, Xu Mei would definitely not agree. Zhao Jin then smiled at Xu Mei, her tone playful and a bit coquettish: "Wu Feng's conditions are too good; if I marry him, I might end up being bullied. But Qi Zheng is different. We all know the conditions of the Qi Family; as long as I marry him and live well with Qi Zheng, won't they treat me like a goddess?"
"You girl, what are you talking about? Marrying means becoming part of someone else's family. It's fine to want to live well, but how can you expect them to treat you like a goddess? Do you think you're still a daughter at your maternal family? Everyone there loves and indulges you?" As expected, Zhao Jin's words had an effect. Xu Mei was both amused and exasperated by Zhao Jin's remarks and affectionately patted her head while scolding her.
"Isn't it because I'm spoiled at home? Am I supposed to expect to be bullied by my in-law family after marriage?" Zhao Jin pouted, looking pitifully wronged. Then she shook her fist defiantly and said, "Anyway, I think Qi Zheng is honest and easy to bully. Once I marry him, if he doesn't treat me like a treasure and spoil me, I won't let him off easily. Let's see what he dares to do!"
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