“I think it’s fine. Lu Shen knows how to cherish people.” Jiang Tianhua contentedly puffed on his dry tobacco pipe, tapping the pipe bowl against the table leg.

It was just that Xiao Rao had been so pampered since childhood. Could she endure hard days?

In the future, when their life becomes difficult, as her father, he would have to help them more.

…

Lu Shen from Qingshan Village carried away the village flower of Lushui Village.

Along the way, people in the village were all gossiping.

“Can’t she walk on her own? Why does she need a man to carry her? She’s way too delicate.”

“This Jiang Rao, ordinary men won’t be able to handle her. She may be beautiful, but she’s both spoiled and willful. She’s not someone who knows how to live a proper life.”

“Who says it isn’t so? The engagement was just settled, yet coming back to the village, she had to be carried by a man in his arms. Isn’t this treating her man like an old ox?”

“A delicate beauty paired with a poor boy, these two surely won’t last long.”

“Just wait and see, Jiang Rao won’t last many days of hard life before she divorces. By then, no matter how beautiful she looks, as a divorced woman, she won’t be able to find a good match anymore.”

The one saying this was a woman at the village entrance who was sewing shoe soles. She curled her lips as she spoke.

“Sounds like sour grapes to me. Aren’t you saying this only because you wanted your son to marry her, but she didn’t fancy your son?” said one of the women knitting a sweater, smiling slightly.

“Don’t say that. Even if she wanted to marry my son, I wouldn’t want her.” The woman sewing shoe soles threaded her needle and pursed her lips, “What use is it for a woman to look good? If she can’t manage a household, whoever marries her will suffer misfortune. A wife like Jiang Rao, wouldn’t she make the house restless if anything displeased her? The daughter-in-law I found for my son now is much better. Though she’s darker and not as pretty as Jiang Rao, when it comes to working the fields, she’s excellent! She can earn eight work points a day!”

“Hey, have you heard? That Lu Shen not only comes from a poor family, but he also has a younger brother. These past years, all the work points and money he earned were given by his parents to his younger brother. I heard his parents are very biased. If Jiang Rao marries into their family, she surely won’t have an easy life.”

“When it comes to marrying well, it’s still the Jiang family’s eldest daughter, Jiang Yu, who did best. Her fiancé has an iron rice bowl job. I heard that drivers in the town earn over two hundred yuan a month! And she married the town mayor’s driver; if he picks up some extra benefits on the side, his monthly income would be at least over three hundred yuan!”

“That’s right, in these times, who can afford a car? Only families of great wealth can have one. Her fiancé’s monthly wage almost equals an entire year’s income of a regular town worker. And, his family lives in town too, well-off and prosperous. If I were Jiang Yu, I’d also fight for this marriage by any means. No matter what methods were used to marry into that family, securing a good husband’s family means a lifetime of eating well and living comfortably without worries. From now on, Jiang Yu and Jiang Rao, these two sisters’ lives will be worlds apart — one in heaven, one on earth.”

“Exactly, there’s not a single girl in the whole village who doesn’t envy Jiang Yu. Just earlier, before Jiang Rao jumped into the river, I saw Jiang Yu riding a tractor with her fiancé heading back to town! Our whole village doesn’t even have a single tractor; the whole village came out to watch!”

“Yes, I heard that tractor can carry people and crops. If only our family could buy one, working in the fields would be much easier.”

“A tractor must cost a fortune; I wouldn’t dare even think about it.”

…

Lu Shen carried Jiang Rao back to the village, holding her in a princess carry.

On the way, fine beads of sweat broke out on Lu Shen’s forehead. The sweat rolled down, slipping into his collar, soaking his shirt again after it had dried under the sun, leaving a large damp patch on his back.

“You’re sweating so much.” Jiang Rao frowned slightly. Her tone carried a bit of distaste, but her soft, delicate voice sounded like little hooks scratching at one’s heart.