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When it came to her niece Jiang Yue, Zhou Guiyun usually didn’t bother getting into arguments with her. She always figured that she was just a young girl, bound to have some selfish thoughts from time to time.
But now, Zhou Guiyun had no patience left and sneered, “How is it impossible? What kind of shameless thing can’t you do? You were already engaged to the Han family, and yet you still got involved with Wang Hesong!”
“Auntie, why do you have to put it so harshly? What do you mean by ‘got involved’? Wang Hesong and I are in a proper relationship!” Jiang Yue frowned.
“You have the nerve to do it, but you’re afraid of me calling it out?” Zhou Guiyun scolded. “I know full well how satisfied Old Lady Wang was with my Jiang Qian. If it weren’t for the autumn harvest keeping us busy lately, the match would’ve been settled long ago. And during that time, Old Lady Wang made quite a few trips over, bringing eggs, steamed buns, cookies, and milk candies for Jiang Qian. She was so pleased! How could she possibly agree to let Wang Hesong break off the marriage? It’s absolutely impossible unless… you’ve already got Wang Hesong’s child in your belly!”
With just one sentence, Jiang Yue’s face changed instantly—she hadn’t expected Zhou Guiyun to be so sharp!
Sun Shi and Second Uncle Jiang’s faces also turned pale. It was clear that the couple already knew the truth. Naturally, Jiang Yue had told them everything. They had originally been against canceling the excellent engagement with the Han family. But Jiang Yue had used her pregnancy with Wang Hesong’s child as leverage, forcing them to agree to call off the marriage.
Even though Zhou Guiyun had lowered her voice, Jiang Qian’s father, who was standing by the door, had still vaguely heard the conversation. His eyes, sharp as knives, were now fixed on his younger brother.
Second Uncle Jiang dropped his head, not daring to meet his older brother’s gaze.
At this moment, Zhou Guiyun also realized the truth. She had only been trying to bluff earlier. After all, the Han family was a top-tier match—how could the daughter not understand the value of such a marriage? And even if she didn’t, surely her parents did.
“Could there be more to this than meets the eye?” Zhou Guiyun thought, as she was only trying to test the waters. Who would have thought that her bluff would reveal such explosive news?
“Already pregnant before even getting married, and you still have the nerve to claim you’re in a ‘proper relationship’? In the old days, you’d be thrown straight into a pig cage for this!” Zhou Guiyun said harshly.
Sun Shi immediately dropped to her knees in front of Zhou Guiyun. “Elder sister-in-law, I know we’ve wronged Jiang Qian, but Yue doesn’t understand anything. She was tricked by Wang Hesong! We were furious when we found out, but what could we do? On the bright side, maybe this isn’t all bad for Jiang Qian. At least now you know—it’s Old Lady Wang who favors Jiang Qian, not Wang Hesong. If he truly liked Jiang Qian, he wouldn’t have gone behind her back to be with Yue!”
In front of Jiang Qian’s father and Zhou Guiyun, both Second Uncle Jiang and Sun Shi lowered their heads.
After all, Jiang Yue’s grandparents had passed away early, and both Second Uncle Jiang and their younger sister, Jiang Xiao Gu, were raised by their eldest brother and sister-in-law.
Even when Second Uncle Jiang married Sun Shi, it was Zhou Guiyun, as the elder sister-in-law, who arranged for the matchmaker to handle the marriage.
During the family division, they were also given a generous share of assets. In the matter of caring for her younger brother- and sister-in-law, the entire village praised Zhou Guiyun as being as nurturing as a mother.
That was one thing, and another was a few years back during the famine, when Second Uncle Jiang’s family almost couldn’t survive.
It was Jiang Qian’s father and Zhou Guiyun, as the elder brother and sister-in-law, who secretly instructed their eldest son to send over a few kilograms of old grain. Only then did the family make it through.
It could be said that their entire family’s lives were saved by the elder brother and sister-in-law.
On top of all that, Jiang Yue’s current job at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative was also a result of their help.
That position was purchased a year ago. The previous worker’s son had accumulated a huge amount of gambling debt, forcing them to sell the job.
Second Uncle Jiang and Sun Shi didn’t have that much money on their own. About 80% of the money used to buy the job was borrowed from the elder brother and sister-in-law.
Jiang Qian’s father and Zhou Guiyun were very supportive of Second Uncle’s family securing that job, even emptying their own savings to help.
When you add it all up, how much kindness and support had the elder brother’s family shown to the second family?
Even though Sun Shi might have had her own opinions, she had no choice but to bow her head in humility when facing her sister-in-law, Zhou Guiyun.
However, Jiang Yue didn’t think much of this. She felt especially dissatisfied. After all, she was someone who had been reborn into this world from a book—destined to be the protagonist of her story!
Jiang Yue, though inwardly frustrated, knew she had no choice but to keep silent at this moment, as her family’s secret was exposed.
Zhou Guiyun, uninterested in Jiang Yue’s internal conflicts, focused on Sun Shi and sternly said, “You’re right. It’s only because of Jiang Yue that we realized Wang Hesong isn’t someone worth trusting. My daughter, Jiang Qian, has no need for a man like that! But for the sake of the Jiang family’s reputation, you both better keep your mouths shut. If anyone finds out that the Jiang family’s two daughters were fighting over the same man, it will bring shame to the whole family. And if that happens, I can’t promise that Jiang Yue’s disgraceful behavior will stay hidden, especially since my daughter, Jiang Qian, is the real victim here!”
Sun Shi and Second Uncle Jiang quickly agreed, “Don’t worry, Sister-in-law, we will keep everything a secret!”
They fully understood the gravity of the situation.
Zhou Guiyun shot Jiang Yue a cold glance and said, “Since you’ve already done something so disgraceful, you might as well settle with that Wang boy!”
Jiang Yue, her eyes welling up with tears, pleaded, “Auntie, I really didn’t know, but I realize my mistake now. Please don’t hold this against me. I admit that I didn’t have the good fortune to marry into the Han family, and we’ve already broken off the engagement with them. But since things have come to this, why not introduce Jiang Qian to Han Shiguo? After all, it’s better to keep things within the family.”
Inwardly, she sneered. Originally, I was going to let your daughter off the hook, but since you dared to hit me and threaten me, I’ll make sure your daughter becomes a widow! Jiang Yue was not one to let grudges go easily and was always vengeful by nature.
“Stop spewing nonsense!” Sun Shi quickly scolded her daughter.
Jiang Yue, however, continued eagerly, “I’m speaking from the heart, Auntie. Han Shiguo is a military officer—such a prestigious profession! I just waited too long, and my patience ran out, which is why my thoughts wandered. But when my parents went to break off the engagement today, they heard that Han Shiguo is really coming back this time. It wouldn’t hurt for Jiang Qian to meet him; she wouldn’t be at a loss.”
“Enough! Keep your mouth shut!” Second Uncle Jiang also reprimanded her, his voice stern.
“Father, didn’t you say yourself that the Han family’s conditions are so good? Instead of benefiting someone else, why not let Jiang Qian take the chance? After all, she’s my cousin!” Jiang Yue put on a face of sincerity, as if she genuinely wanted to make up for her actions, and looked at Zhou Guiyun. “Auntie, I’ve never even met Han Shiguo, so there’s no harm in letting Jiang Qian go meet him.”
In her mind, Jiang Yue scoffed. Han Shiguo, that doomed man, might not have a long life ahead, but based on the book’s description, his external conditions were top-tier. His capabilities were formidable, even comparable to the male lead.
Based on her understanding of her uncle and aunt, Jiang Yue was confident they would be more than satisfied if they met Han Shiguo. If Jiang Qian ended up marrying him, Jiang Yue would laugh herself to sleep every night.
However, Zhou Guiyun shot her a cold glance and sneered, “Jiang Qian’s matters are none of your concern. You’d better focus on sorting out your own mess!” With that, she turned and left with Jiang Qian’s father, leaving Jiang Yue standing there.