Chapter 7: Marrying with Eyes Closed

Jiang Qian’s primary focus for tutoring was her eldest nephew, Jiang Weiguo.

Thanks to his aunt’s special help, Jiang Weiguo had been ranking first in his class for quite some time.

He was also the class monitor!

It could be said that, aside from the two younger children, the remaining three all studied under Jiang Qian’s guidance every night.

Jiang Weimin and Jiang Weidang, the two younger ones, didn’t need tutoring, but they liked to sneak into their aunt’s room.

Jiang Qian, being generous, smiled and promised them that when they woke up tomorrow morning, she would give each of them a milk candy. But she also put her finger to her lips and signaled for them to keep it a secret.

The five little ones—three boys and two girls—nodded eagerly, each agreeing with a quiet “mm.”

The milk candy was a secret between them and their aunt. No one was allowed to tell anyone, and anyone who did would be labeled a traitor and a betrayer!

A traitor and a betrayer—those were the lowest, most despised labels.

Even when the children played games, none of them wanted to be the traitor or the betrayer. They all kept their secrets.

But the adults weren’t unaware; they just chose to pretend they didn’t know.

In her little room, Jiang Qian tutored her nephews and nieces while also taking the lead in playing with them.

Meanwhile, in the main house, her father, Captain Jiang, was called into the room by her mother for a private conversation.

“What do you think of the Han family?” Zhou Guiyun didn’t waste time and got straight to the point.

Jiang Yue’s words had indeed made her think, and she couldn’t help but entertain the idea.

“What are you trying to do?” Jiang father was momentarily stunned and asked.

Zhou Guiyun lowered her voice, “What do you think? Should we ask again? Since Jiang Yue is unwilling, I think it would be great for Jiang Qian to meet with them!”

Back then, when the Han family and the second branch had arranged the marriage, it was her little sister-in-law from the Han family village who had played matchmaker!

Her little sister-in-law had married into the Han family, so they were all relatives!

She had previously asked Jiang’s little aunt in private. Jiang’s little aunt, who was practically raised by her, had a straightforward personality. As the eldest daughter-in-law, Zhou Guiyun knew her well. The young man from the Han family had been highly praised by her.

Jiang’s little aunt simply said, “If he weren’t a good match, I wouldn’t introduce him to my niece!”

“There’s no harm in meeting them.” Jiang father didn’t object.

“Alright, I’ll go talk to Jiang Qian!” Once she had the agreement from the head of the family, Zhou Guiyun didn’t hesitate and immediately went to her daughter’s room.

“Go play outside for a bit while I talk to your little aunt.” Zhou Guiyun instructed.

Reluctantly, the little ones put down their picture books and left Jiang Qian’s room.

After the grandchildren had left, Zhou Guiyun smiled and said, “Qianqian, are you still taking the day off tomorrow as usual?”

“Yes.” Jiang Qian smiled and gestured for her mother to sit down.

Zhou Guiyun sat down and asked, “Do you want to go to the city tomorrow? I heard from your fourth brother that the movie is pretty good.”

“No, I’d rather stay home and sleep in. It’s a rare break, and I’d prefer to relax at home,” Jiang Qian replied. She wasn’t interested in going to the county town, since she had already been there countless times over the past two years, and had watched movies as well. There was nothing particularly interesting, so it seemed better to just lounge around at home.

However, she understood that her mother meant well. “Don’t worry about me, Mom. I’m fine.”

Seeing that Jiang Qian wasn’t bothered at all, Zhou Guiyun finally relaxed.

The fourth child and the youngest daughter were twins, but while they were in the womb, all the nutrition was taken by the fourth child. When the daughter was born, she was so small she was barely bigger than a rat.

Both she and her husband were worried that they wouldn’t be able to keep her alive. They didn’t just nurture her carefully, the whole family pampered her and made sure she never felt any hardship.

To think that another family’s son could make their daughter suffer such a great injustice!

This was something that truly infuriated Zhou Guiyun.

However, it’s a good thing to see the truth early!

Zhou Guiyun said, “Since Jiang Yue has given up on the marriage with the Han family from Han Family Village, your father and I were thinking, should we ask your little aunt to make a trip there to see what their attitude is? Your little aunt married into the Han family from Han Family Village. I’ve heard her say before that the Han family is in good standing, and one of their daughters is married to someone in the city, living in the county committee compound!”

Jiang Qian immediately understood her mother’s intention and smiled, “Why didn’t my little aunt introduce me before?”

Zhou Guiyun replied with a smile, “This can’t be blamed on your little aunt. Jiang Yue is two years older than you. When the match was made for her, you were still in high school.”

Jiang Qian didn’t pay much attention to it; she was just casually asking. After thinking for a moment, she asked, “What’s the man’s name?”

“Han Shiguo.” Although she hadn’t met him, Zhou Guiyun knew the name.

Jiang Qian then asked, “Has my little aunt ever mentioned what Han Shiguo looks like?”

Seeing that her daughter was interested, Zhou Guiyun smiled and said, “Your little aunt mentioned to me that he is very tall and handsome, with a heroic presence, a rare appearance for a general. There’s no doubt about it. The only thing is, he’s been too busy, which is why he hasn’t come back to marry, but recently, he’s planning to return. Would you like to meet him? Don’t think that just because Jiang Yue broke off the engagement, you’re settling for leftovers—she and he haven’t even met face to face!”

Zhou Guiyun was a straightforward person. The situation was clear enough: her niece had gotten involved with the young man from the Wang family and even got pregnant.

Whether it was Han Shiguo or her daughter, both were victims in this situation!

Moreover, Zhou Guiyun had heard from her sister-in-law that Han Shiguo was already a deputy battalion commander in the military, and that was some time ago!

Such a good match, and Jiang Yue, being blind to it, had turned him down. Why couldn’t her daughter at least meet him?

Jiang Qian, however, didn’t quite see it that way. She knew that this engagement had been arranged by her little aunt. After meeting Jiang Yue, the Han family had been satisfied and had set the engagement.

The Han family had intended for their son to return and marry as soon as he had the chance.

Times were like that—sometimes people could get married after just one meeting, and sometimes they didn’t even need to meet at all!

Jiang Qian could tell her mother was thinking along the lines of “why let the good fortune go to someone else.” After thinking it over for a moment, she said, “But Second Uncle and the others have already gone to return the engagement. Won’t the Han family think it’s embarrassing if we go back and ask again? What if they refuse? That would be awkward.”

“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing!” Zhou Guiyun was determined not to let such a thing happen.

Jiang Qian hesitated for a moment before speaking, “But I’m only twenty years old… Why not wait another two years?”

“Two years ago, I was already thinking of talking to you about it, but you said to wait. I love you, and I wanted to keep you around for a bit longer. But now, I can’t afford to wait anymore.” Zhou Guiyun gently patted her daughter’s head, her eyes filled with affection.

If it were possible, Zhou Guiyun would have kept her daughter by her side forever. But the reality was different—an unmarried woman couldn’t stay single forever. After marriage, a woman would have her own family: her husband, her children.

A daughter would eventually grow up and leave. Keeping her for a couple more years was her selfish desire.

In her past life, Jiang Qian had grown up in an orphanage and truly cherished this kind of love and care. She smiled faintly and said, “Alright, Mom, I’ll leave it up to you.”

Even though she was only twenty, in this era, early marriages were the norm. Many girls were married by the age of seventeen or eighteen, and at twenty, it wasn’t considered young anymore.

“Alright, I’ll go talk to your aunt tomorrow!” Zhou Guiyun smiled and added, “You should get some rest soon.”

After seeing her mother leave, Jiang Qian’s mind wandered back to the soldier she had seen on her way home earlier that day.

If the soldier from Han Family Village looked even half as good as the one she had seen today, she would marry him with her eyes closed!

After all, she was going to get married eventually, so she might as well find someone tall, handsome, and to her liking.