“What about the rest?”  

“Spent.”  

Jiang Moli’s almond-shaped eyes widened in disbelief. “Spent on what? You blew through 2.5 yuan in one afternoon?!”  

For a senior technician like Jiang Dahai, the monthly salary was 68 yuan, averaging about 2.3 yuan per day.  

That 2.3 yuan had to support a family of five, and they still had to scrimp and save to make ends meet.  

As for ordinary workers, their monthly wages were less than 30 yuan—earning less than 1 yuan a day.  

Jiang Peng had spent two and a half days’ worth of an ordinary worker’s salary in a single afternoon.  

“I treated Shi Yu, Zhang Lei, and the others to some snacks.”  

Jiang Moli grabbed Jiang Peng by the hair, kicking and hitting him. “You’re something else! Your big sister here is starving at home, gnawing on ice pops, and you’re out there playing the big spender, treating others to food and drinks? I’ll beat you to death, you little brat!”  

Jiang Peng dodged her blows, yelping in exaggerated pain.  

Though Jiang Peng looked like a helpless victim, he was actually holding back.  

Standing nearly 1.8 meters tall, he towered over Jiang Moli, who barely cleared 1.6 meters. If he fought back, she wouldn’t stand a chance.  

The siblings’ scuffle quickly drew the attention of passersby.  

Many of them recognized Jiang Moli.  

She wasn’t just infamous in the machinery factory’s residential area—her reputation spanned the entire neighborhood.  

Lazy, shiftless, snobbish, and a bully who tormented her stepsister.  

In short, nothing good was ever said about her.  

Now she was even beating up her own younger brother? Truly wicked and cruel.  

[Disdain value +1+1+1+1…… Credit received: 150,000 yuan.]

Only when the disdain values stopped rolling in did Jiang Moli finally stop, panting heavily.  

On the way back, Jiang Moli walked with her hands in her pockets, exuding the aura of a rebellious tough girl.  

Jiang Peng trailed beside her, his hair a disheveled mess, sulking.  

Noticing a few unruly strands sticking up on Jiang Peng’s head, Jiang Moli reached out to smooth them down. Jiang Peng instinctively flinched, covering his head with both hands.  

Her hand froze mid-air. “What are you scared of? I’m not hitting you. Come here, let me fix your hair.”  

Jiang Peng looked terrified. “Sis, don’t do this. You’re scaring me.”  

“You’re like a wild boar that can’t appreciate fine rice!”  

Jiang Peng: “I’m not eating rice bran—that’s pig feed!”  

Jiang Moli rolled her eyes. “You’re not much better than a pig. You spent 2.5 yuan treating others? Wait—what exactly did you all eat?”  

“Cold noodles and soda, and also…”  

Jiang Peng fished out a small tube from his pocket and handed it to Jiang Moli with a grin. “Here, I bought this for you.”  

Jiang Moli took it and saw it was a lipstick.  

The bullet was a retro vermilion red with a faint floral scent.  

“When your fiancé comes to propose in a couple of days, you can wear this. You’ll look amazing,” Jiang Peng said excitedly.  

Jiang Moli snapped the cap back on the lipstick. She’d be lying if she said she wasn’t touched.  

For all his rough-and-tumble, carefree demeanor, Jiang Peng had a thoughtful and considerate side.  

“How much did this lipstick cost you?”  

“1.8 yuan!”  

Jiang Moli pulled out a 2-yuan bill from the 7.5 yuan she’d confiscated earlier and handed it to him.  

Jiang Peng beamed as he took it. “Thanks, sis!!”  

Jiang Moli gave him a light kick. “Spend it wisely.”  

“Got it.”  

Looking at Jiang Peng’s obedient expression, he reminded her of a big, dopey dog. She couldn’t resist ruffling his hair. “Dummy.”  

The next day, Jiang Moli once again failed to sleep in.  

Early in the morning, officials from the Educated Youth Office showed up at their door.  

The Jiang family had been reported—accused of evading the rural assignment.  

Under current policies, avoiding the countryside was a crime.  

After much pleading, the officials agreed not to pursue the matter further, but they gave Jiang Dahai three days to submit the name of the family member who would be sent down.  

In other words, either Jiang Moli or Jiang Qing would have to go.  

“Who the hell has nothing better to do than report us? What a bunch of bastards!” Jiang Dahai fumed, abandoning all decorum.  

“What are we going to do now?” Li Hongying wrung her hands in distress.  

Watching Jiang Qing’s calm and composed demeanor throughout the ordeal, Jiang Moli couldn’t help but suspect that she was behind this.

Tsk, is sending her to the countryside the only option?

Jiang Moli, resigned to her fate, suggested, “Let’s draw lots. Whoever gets picked goes.”  

“No!” Jiang Dahai objected.  

Afraid that Jiang Moli might draw the short stick, he wanted to leave himself room to show favoritism.  

Li Hongying, indecisive as ever, could do nothing but fret.  

Jiang Qing also opposed the idea—after all, she had a fifty-fifty chance of being the one sent away.  

“We still have three days. There’s no need to rush a decision. As for Moli, the Zhang family will come to propose in a couple of days. Once she’s married, we won’t have to worry about her going to the countryside.”  

So that’s where they were going with this.  

Zhang Jiaming was proposing to Jiang Qing, not her. Once Jiang Qing was married off, it had nothing to do with Jiang Moli.  

If she didn’t get married, her only options were either going to the countryside or being sent to labor reform.  

“And what about you, Xiao Qing? When will your boyfriend come to meet me and Uncle Jiang?”  

“In the next couple of days.”  

Li Hongying sighed. “If you’re sent to the countryside, who knows if he’ll wait for you to return to the city?”  

Jiang Qing shrugged. “We’ll see.”  

“Hey, where’s Xiao Peng?”  

Noticing Jiang Peng wasn’t home, Li Hongying grew puzzled.  

“That brat must’ve run off to fool around again,” Jiang Dahai grumbled. Right now, he was too preoccupied with the rural assignment mess to discipline his son.  

…

Outside the City Military Compound.

“Lu—uh, brother-in-law! Brother-in-law!”  

Seeing Jiang Peng waving at him, Lu Cheng narrowed his eyes slightly and walked over.  

“What are you doing here?”  

Jiang Peng grinned. “Heh, brother-in-law, I came specifically to find you.”  

Lu Cheng remained expressionless. “How did you know I live here?”  

Jiang Peng scratched his head. “I guessed. You’re Jiaming’s superior, and you even have a military car. Big shots like you all live in this compound, right? So I came to try my luck.”  

Lu Cheng smirked. “Not bad. You’ve got some brains.”  

Pleased with the praise, Jiang Peng grinned before remembering his mission. He hastily pulled out a household register.  

“Brother-in-law, it’s an emergency! The Educated Youth Office is trying to send my sister to the countryside. This is my family’s household register. Hurry up and register your marriage with her—once you’re married, she won’t have to go!”  

Lu Cheng flipped open the register to Jiang Moli’s page.  

Just seeing his future wife’s name filled him with indescribable joy.  

….

Lu Dezhao’s Office.

After finishing a meeting, Lu Dezhao returned to his office and saw Lu Cheng sitting stiffly on the sofa. His expression darkened.  

“What are you doing here again?”  

“Has my marriage application been approved?”  

Lu Dezhao nearly choked. “Are you dreaming? Marriage background checks don’t happen that fast. It’ll take at least ten days to half a month. Don’t even think about rushing it. Go home—I’ll notify you when there’s news.”  

“I can’t wait a single day. Someone’s trying to take my wife away.”  

Lu Dezhao was startled. “Did she commit a crime?”  

“She’s perfectly fine—don’t jinx her. It’s the Educated Youth Office. They want to send her to the countryside.”  

Lu Dezhao hadn’t considered that possibility.  

The Lu family had been military men for generations—he and his brothers were all soldiers. He and An Hui had three sons, all of whom he’d tossed into the military as soon as they came of age. None of them had ever faced the specter of rural labor.  

“I don’t care. If Moli gets sent away, I’ll stay chaste and never marry for the rest of my life!”  

Lu Dezhao was so angry his beard practically bristled.  

But for the sake of his son not ending up a bachelor, Lu Dezhao had no choice but to swallow his pride and pull some strings.  

By the afternoon, Jiang Moli’s background check documents were spread across Lu Dezhao’s desk.  

After reviewing them, Lu Dezhao called his son into the office with a stern expression.  

“I object to this marriage!”