Chapter 18 – Dug a Hole for His Own Brother

Lu Chen!!

Lu Cheng was completely stunned!

How did the rumor get this outrageous?

They didn’t just mess up the details—they switched the groom entirely!

In an instant, all eyes turned to Lu Chen. His face was as calm as still water, showing almost no expression. But if one looked closely, they’d notice that his lips were pressed into a thin, tight line, and his knuckles had turned white from gripping his chopsticks too hard.

Lu Cheng knew his brother well. That expression?

It was the precursor to an explosion of anger.

And he didn’t dare say a word now—for fear that the moment he opened his mouth, his big brother would fly into a rage and twist his head clean off!

It wouldn’t be the first time either.

Lu Chen had fought on the front lines, earned multiple battle honors, and had quickly risen to become one of the youngest regimental commanders in the army. He wasn’t someone you provoked lightly.

Xu Nuo, meanwhile, was utterly speechless. She didn’t even know how to react anymore.

What the heck is going on here?

How did this wild rumor even start in just two days?

Then it hit her—back at the hospital, when they bumped into Lei Ming, Lu Cheng had casually blurted out that she was his older brother’s fiancée.

So this mess started from that nonsense?

Xu Nuo rubbed her forehead.

This… this was bad. It had gotten complicated.

Cheng Wanying looked helplessly toward Lu Chen, hoping for some kind of reaction—but he gave none. From that, she could only assume he was genuinely angry.

So, she turned to look pleadingly at Lu Huaizheng instead.

Lu Huaizheng got up, walked over to the sofa, and sat down calmly. He signaled Aunt Lin, “Please make everyone some tea.”

Once seated, he smiled at the group of officer’s wives and asked gently, “Ladies, may I ask… how many people have heard about this so-called engagement in the compound?”

“How many?” Zhang Cuihua burst out laughing. “Brother Lu, do you really think a story like this can stay hidden? Didn’t I say just now? Everyone in the entire compound knows!”

She went on, half-laughing, half-yelling, “Why, just this morning when I went to the co-op to get some soy sauce, even Auntie Zhang who sweeps the grounds knew about it!”

Auntie Zhang was nearly deaf—she couldn’t hear a thing under normal circumstances.

If even she knew, that said all you needed to know about the scale of this gossip.

Lu Huaizheng sucked in a sharp breath.

When Xu Shan had first shown up pretending to be Xu Nuo, the family had already attracted some attention. They’d quickly made up a story, saying she was a distant relative coming to visit.

But now?

Xu Nuo hadn’t even been here that long, and the news had already spread like wildfire?

Not only had it spread—but the groom had been swapped along the way!

Lu Huaizheng muttered, “How the hell did this rumor even start?”

“Who?” Zhang Cuihua cracked up again, laughing so loud it felt like the roof might come off. “It was my son Lei Ming, of course! You all know what a blabbermouth that boy is—his mouth’s looser than an old lady’s waistband!”

She laughed so hard she almost couldn’t breathe. “If there’s anyone you shouldn’t tell a secret to, it’s him!”

“Then… who did Lei Ming hear it from?” Cheng Wanying pressed.

Zhang Cuihua grinned. “Why, from your son, Lu Cheng, of course!”

Lu Huaizheng raised a finger and pointed it straight at Lu Cheng. “You… you…!”

He looked like he was going to explode. He really wanted to kick this brat across the room.

You didn’t want the marriage, so you threw your own brother under the bus? What kind of garbage are you?!

“Alright, alright—no point keeping it a secret now. Everyone already knows about the engagement!” Liu Aimin waved a hand with a laugh. “Honestly, we were beginning to think your family might not even want to go through with it. Especially with Lu Chen! Over the years, how many girls have we tried to introduce him to? From great families, with great looks, good temperaments… We’ve practically lined them up! And he never looked at a single one. But this one? This one he’s accepted!”

“Yeah! The Lu family really knows how to honor their promises!”

“Exactly!” Several of the wives gave thumbs up in admiration.

“But hey,” someone asked with a chuckle, “Lu Chen’s nine years older than the bride-to-be, right? How did you guys settle on such a childhood engagement back then?”

Lu Cheng lowered his head in guilt.

“Alright, alright,” Lu Huaizheng stepped in smoothly. “Thank you all, ladies, for your kind wishes. But we haven’t finalized anything yet. Once we do, we’ll be sure to let you know.”

He could feel that the more this matter was talked about, the messier it became. It was time to have a serious conversation with his eldest son.

“Come on now, we came all this way just to see the bride. Which one is she? Let us meet her before we go!”

All eyes turned toward the dining table, scanning every face. Xu Nuo, with no other choice, stood up and offered a polite greeting. “Hello, aunties. I’m the bride you’ve heard about.”

A wave of compliments followed—“so pretty,” “such a good match”—until the women were satisfied and finally made their exit.

As the door closed behind them, Zhang Man clicked her tongue and muttered, “Seriously. We were in the middle of dinner. They just barged in, chatted for ages, and left again. Gossiping right to our faces.”

Cheng Wanying overheard and offered a light explanation. “Don’t say that. They’re just concerned about your older brother’s marriage.”

After all, Lu Chen was already twenty-seven and still refused to marry. Anyone would ask about that.

What’s more, he was the most outstanding among the compound’s children. Plenty of families had their eyes on him.

Some came today out of genuine care. Others? Just curiosity. That’s human nature.

“Let’s eat,” Lu Huaizheng said, glancing at his eldest son. For now, dinner came first. It would give him and Lu Chen time to think.

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After Dinner

Lu Huaizheng brought both Lu Chen and Lu Cheng into the study. The moment the door closed, he laid into Lu Cheng with a full-blown scolding, complete with a couple of well-placed kicks for good measure.

“This whole thing has turned into a public spectacle! The entire compound knows now! If this marriage doesn’t happen, what will people say? What will they think? You pushed your fiancée onto your brother—did you ever ask him what he thought? Did you ask Xu Nuo what she thought?”

Lu Cheng scratched the back of his head awkwardly. “But Xu Nuo was right there when I said it. Dad, I did clear things up afterward! I don’t even know how that blabbermouth Lei Ming managed to—”

Lu Huaizheng snapped, “You’re the blabbermouth!”

The study was in chaos. Furious, Lu Huaizheng smashed not one, but two teacups. If Lu Chen hadn’t held him back, the ashtray might have flown straight at Lu Cheng’s head.

From outside the room, Cheng Wanying had been eavesdropping so long her back ached. She finally couldn’t take it anymore and pushed the door open. “Old Lu, what’s done is done. Getting angry won’t solve anything. The priority now is—how do we fix this?”

Lu Huaizheng frowned deeply, falling into silence. His gaze landed on Lu Chen.

“Big bro… what should we do?” Lu Cheng asked nervously, clearly begging for help. “Why don’t… you just agree to it? Honestly, Xu Nuo and you kinda match! And don’t worry—she’s not just some clueless village girl! She plays the violin!”

He hurried to explain all the wonderful things he’d learned about Xu Nuo.

“If she’s so great, why don’t you want her?” Lu Huaizheng delivered the kill shot.

Lu Cheng stammered, “I… I’m in love with someone else?”

“You’re in love with my foot!” Lu Huaizheng grabbed the feather duster again and nearly swung it.

“Dad!” Lu Chen, who had been silent all this time, finally spoke. “Since things have already gotten to this point, and the marriage has to happen, then I’ll do it.”

Everyone in the room froze.

Cheng Wanying recovered first. “Chenchen, this isn’t fair to you. Your brother caused this whole mess, and now you’re stuck cleaning it up.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Lu Chen said calmly. He looked straight at his mother. “Mom, this marriage was supposed to be Lu Cheng’s. Now it’s mine. As someone directly involved, I think it’s only right we ask Xu Nuo for her opinion. If she agrees, then we’ll move forward. But if she doesn’t, then even if people call the Lu family ungrateful, say we have no backbone—this marriage won’t happen.”