Chapter 49

After hearing Wang Qifang’s explanation, Wu Xiaoxiao couldn’t help but ask, “So you met him, and there were no issues with this Zhang Kun? And his family is actively looking for a daughter-in-law, promising a job in the city, and even had someone introduce you to them?”

Wang Qifang nodded. “Yes.”

Wu Xiaoxiao frowned. “I feel like something’s off. We’re unfamiliar with the people and the place here, and all of this is just what others are saying. Deciding so quickly seems too rash.”

“Well, it’s not a final decision yet. His family said they’ll visit formally and propose with an official betrothal gift.”

Lowering her voice, Wang Qifang added, “They’re offering a 300-yuan bride price.”

Three hundred yuan was an enormous sum at this time. Many families didn’t even give bride prices anymore. If they did, it was usually just a few dozen yuan to help the newlyweds start their household. If a bride price exceeded 100 yuan, it would be the talk of the entire village for half a year. A 300-yuan offer was extravagant even by city standards.

To Wu Xiaoxiao, this whole situation felt suspicious. It was like a shiny gold nugget suddenly landing in the lap of a girl from a remote village—something about it didn’t make sense.

She asked, “Did they say why they chose you?”

Wang Qifang shook her head. “His mother just said that she liked me as soon as she saw me. She thinks I’m hardworking and dependable. She also said her son is lazy and probably won’t do any housework in the future. She’s worried that if he marries a city girl, their life together won’t go well. So, she wants someone who can take care of him.”

That was a clever way of putting it. Most of Wang Qifang’s initial concerns had already been eased. Now, she wasn’t feeling uneasy because she doubted the marriage itself—she was just afraid her family wouldn’t approve.

Wu Xiaoxiao still felt something was off. It wasn’t just about gender equality or the idea that a wife shouldn’t have to cater to a lazy husband.

To be frank, at this time, at least seven out of ten households operated this way. The men earned money outside, and when they came home, they rarely did housework. Whether in the countryside or the city, a man washing his own clothes or sweeping the doorway would be enough to make his mother-in-law scold her daughter-in-law for being “lazy.” In their eyes, those chores weren’t meant for men.

That’s why it seemed odd that a family would go out of their way to arrange a marriage just because their son was “lazy.”

To Wu Xiaoxiao, this marriage was high-risk with unclear benefits.

But Wang Qifang didn’t see it that way. She was looking for support.

“No matter who I marry, life will still be about working hard to get by. Living in the city would be easier,” Wang Qifang murmured.

“But don’t you think you know too little about him? You’ve only met his mother and spoken with her. Have you even had a conversation with Zhang Kun himself?” Wu Xiaoxiao asked.

Wang Qifang shook her head. “Auntie said he’s always been unwilling to get married, which has made his parents really anxious. She also said he’s never been in a relationship before. I only saw him briefly today when his mother took me to meet him. But she said that we’ll officially be introduced this weekend.”

Seeing Wang Qifang’s expression, Wu Xiaoxiao suspected it wasn’t just the idea of moving to the city that appealed to her—perhaps seeing Zhang Kun in person today had made her heart waver.

Wu Xiaoxiao wanted to say more to dissuade her, but she didn’t know where to start. All she knew was that something about this whole situation just didn’t feel right.

“At the very least, don’t rush to decide. No matter what, you should discuss it with your family first. Marriage is a lifelong commitment.”

“Mm-hmm, I know,” Wang Qifang responded softly. Then, somewhat shyly, she asked, “Xiaoxiao, could I borrow some of your face cream? I’ve been running around a lot these past few days, and my skin feels a bit sunburned.”

Wang Qifang had been coming back late recently and had missed the discussions between Wu Xiaoxiao and Zhao Xiaoyan. She had no idea that the face cream she wanted to borrow had already been marked up to a sky-high price of 55 yuan per bottle by Zhao Xiaoyan, who had even cleaned out Wu Xiaoxiao’s stock, leaving behind a 120-yuan deposit.

Without saying much, Wu Xiaoxiao handed her the partially used bottle. “Go ahead. Just don’t use too much at once—if your skin gets overstimulated by excessive nutrients, it might not react well.”

“Got it.” Wang Qifang happily scooped out a little and spread it on her face, then sighed, “It smells so good.”

She made a mental note that when she got married, she would buy a bottle from Wu Xiaoxiao—properly paying for it. Since Zhao Xiaoyan had paid five yuan for that mosquito repellent before, she figured she should at least pay eight.

Wu Xiaoxiao didn’t interfere in Wang Qifang’s personal affairs. They had all been extremely busy lately. After a period of assembly and fine-tuning, the first prototype of the two newly introduced agricultural machines had finally been installed and was ready for testing.

“Very good. I think the gearbox needs a bit more adjustment, but everything else looks fine,” Wu Xiaoxiao said as she opened the door, jumped down from the high driver’s seat, and put on her gloves to inspect the side maintenance panel.

—-

Today, she was testing the new Mahler-27 excavator, the most important imported model this time.

A group of technicians gathered around the excavator, recording data.

Chen Si handed her a cup of water, and Wu Xiaoxiao took a few big gulps. The sun was scorching, and their testing ground was in a large open space behind the factory, with no shade at all. Sitting in the cab earlier had felt like being inside a steamer.

But despite the heat, everyone’s enthusiasm remained high.

As Wu Xiaoxiao adjusted the gearbox, several other technicians gathered around her instinctively—some handing her tools, others marking notes on blueprints.

Even Lu Zhengzhong stood nearby, watching closely. “Not bad, not bad. After one more iteration, we should have all the installation and tuning data in place.”

Hearing this, everyone’s spirits lifted even more. Every step of the process had been a tough hurdle to overcome, from sourcing parts to deciphering installation manuals and fine-tuning the machinery. They had figured out everything bit by bit on their own.

But the sense of achievement made it all worth it. So what if the foreigners had set up roadblocks for them? They were overcoming each one, step by step.

In this process, Professor Lu and Wu Xiaoxiao had been the brightest stars.

Professor Lu’s excellence was expected—he had extensive experience, a deep theoretical foundation, and an outstanding command of foreign languages. He could translate complex technical manuals into clear, precise instructions.

But Wu Xiaoxiao’s talent was something else entirely.

The technicians couldn’t figure out how she, someone with no prior experience with agricultural machinery, was improving at such a rapid pace. Every day, she showed remarkable progress.

Her photographic memory was one thing—she only needed to glance at a blueprint once, and it seemed to be etched into her brain. People couldn’t help but marvel at how her mind worked. On top of that, she had incredible hands-on skills.