Chapter 1: Rumors Spread After Falling into the Water, Cousin Wants to Break Off the Engagement 

“Someone fell into the water! Hurry and save them!”

“It’s a girl from the Shen family! Quick, save her!”

“That outfit looks like Shen Chunmiao’s…”

Splash!

The moment he heard the name Shen Chunmiao, a figure in a military-green uniform rushed out and jumped straight into the river.

Fortunately, the river wasn’t too turbulent. Huo Beichuan didn’t have to struggle much before pulling the person out of the water.

“Huh…? Why… why is it Jintao?”

“Oh no, the one who saved her was Beichuan…”

“This is bad! He pulled her out from underwater, held her, and touched her—how can they explain this clearly? But Beichuan is supposed to be Chunmiao’s fiancé…”

Shen Jintao felt dizzy and groggy. After hearing these murmured discussions, she completely lost consciousness.

—

“I’m not marrying him anymore! He already held Shen Jintao—I don’t want this man!”

Shen Chunmiao threw a tantrum at home, smashing and kicking things around. “I knew Shen Jintao wasn’t a good person! She probably had her eye on Huo Beichuan for a long time, just waiting for an opportunity like this. Otherwise, how could she just so happen to fall into the river?”

Xu Xuemei clutched her chest, feeling a sharp pain. “Chunmiao, how can you say that? How would Jintao even know that Huo Beichuan was coming back today? If she did it on purpose, why wouldn’t she jump into the pond instead of the river? One wrong move and she could’ve died! And here you are, as her older sister, mocking her instead of showing concern. Don’t be too heartless!”

“What? Sister-in-law, are you saying your precious darling can’t even be criticized now? Who knows what kind of schemes she’s plotting? Stealing her cousin’s fiancé—she’s not afraid of getting struck by lightning!”

Shen Chunmiao’s mother, Xie Lanzhi, refused to back down.

“Enough arguing! The situation has already happened, so we’ll wait until Huo Beichuan arrives before making any decisions. This matter must be properly addressed.”

Old Master Shen’s deep voice carried a sharp edge of anger.

The room instantly fell silent, but no one noticed the flash of triumph in Shen Chunmiao’s eyes—her plan had succeeded.

Sure enough, Huo Beichuan arrived, carrying gifts. When he saw Shen Chunmiao, he looked slightly awkward. “I’m sorry.”

Shen Chunmiao didn’t respond, her dissatisfaction clear on her face.

“What happened today was an accident.” After greeting the elders of the Shen family, Huo Beichuan explained, “The situation was urgent. No matter who it was, I would have saved them. And all I did was pull her ashore. I hope you can understand.”

“Just pulled her ashore? We all have eyes, you know! When Shen Jintao was rescued, she was clinging to you the whole time. Huo Beichuan, do you dare say you two are innocent?” Shen Chunmiao shrieked.

Huo Beichuan frowned tightly. As a soldier of the people, he never saw gender in situations like this—but others clearly wouldn’t see it that way.

“I don’t care! No matter what, I’m not marrying you!” Shen Chunmiao screamed.

Xie Lanzhi quickly pulled her daughter aside upon hearing this.

She had always been optimistic about this son-in-law. Although his family background was average, he was already a battalion commander, earning a substantial monthly allowance. A match this good was hard to come by, even with a lantern in hand.

“What kind of nonsense is that? Beichuan was just—”

“Mom! I already said I’m not marrying him!” Shen Chunmiao shrieked. “If you keep forcing me, I might as well just die!”

Her stance was firm.

Huo Beichuan nodded. “Since you don’t want this either, let’s break off the engagement. I’ll compensate you for it.”

Then, he turned to Xu Xuemei and Shen Jianmin. “Uncle, Aunt, I will take responsibility for Shen Jintao. If you agree, I would like to marry her.”

“This…” Xu Xuemei frowned. “That will depend on whether Jintao is willing or not.”

Everyone in the family knew that Shen Jintao liked Lu Qingshan. Asking her to marry Huo Beichuan was unlikely to go well, and Xu Xuemei was already feeling a headache coming on.

Shen Chunmiao had, of course, thought of this too. “Aunt, you’re not still hoping that Shen Jintao can marry Brother Qingshan, are you? Brother Qingshan would never like a worthless, and tainted woman who’s been touched by another man!”

Slap!

Xu Xuemei swung her hand hard across Shen Chunmiao’s face, shaking with rage. “You wretched girl! If you keep spouting such nonsense, I swear I’ll tear your mouth apart!”

Xie Lanzhi immediately lunged forward upon seeing her daughter get hit, and the scene instantly descended into chaos.

Meanwhile, Shen Jintao struggled to sit up, her head still throbbing painfully, her entire body aching as if she’d been run over by a carriage.

She looked at everything in front of her and finally realized—she had been reborn.

In her past life, she had married the educated youth she had always loved, Lu Qingshan, just as she had wished.

But after marriage, Lu Qingshan remained distant, never once touching her.

Later, she shifted her focus to making money. Riding the wave of the Reform and Opening-up, she started a small restaurant and eventually expanded it into a national chain.

People on the outside said she had only become a wealthy wife because of Lu Qingshan. They also said that even though she couldn’t have children, Lu Qingshan had always treated her the same as before.

But only she knew the bitterness in her heart.

Lu Qingshan had married her only because her grandfather was the village chief—he wanted to use the marriage to secure a spot to return to the city.

Her mind was in chaos at this moment, not sure of what day or year it was, until she suddenly heard someone shouting outside—

“Grandpa! Come quickly, Grandpa has fainted!”

She could no longer afford to think about anything else. Forcing herself to get out of bed despite her weakness, she staggered toward the door and opened it.

Inside the main hall, the room was packed with people.

Old Master Shen had already been helped into a chair. He was awake, but he looked weak. His trembling fingers pointed at everyone in the hall, his voice full of anger.

“If you want to make trouble, then take it outside! Taozi is still sick—what are you all trying to do by making such a scene?”

His gaze finally landed on the second household of the Shen family, making his meaning clear without needing further words.

“Grandpa…” Shen Jintao called out in a hoarse voice.

Hearing her, everyone turned to look.

Xu Xuemei rushed forward and supported her. “Why did you get up? Don’t you know you still have a fever?”

Shen Jintao shook her head and fixed her gaze on Shen Chunmiao.

Shen Chunmiao instinctively avoided her eyes, guilt flickering across her face. For some reason, facing Shen Jintao’s stare made her feel an inexplicable fear deep in her heart.

“I fell into the water because Shen Chunmiao pushed me.”

Shen Jintao’s voice was hoarse but steady.

Her words landed like a thunderclap in the room.