Chapter 11

Zhou Mingyue gritted her teeth and quickly defended herself: “No, I don’t like Huo Jincheng, and I didn’t instruct Chunyu to do that. Chunyu must have been scared and started spouting nonsense.” As she spoke, she began to sob again, appearing even more aggrieved and heartbroken than before.

Qi Huifang’s eyes widened in anger. “Don’t even think about framing my Mingyue or tarnishing her reputation! That Huo Jincheng is just a penniless nobody. How could my Mingyue possibly like him? What’s so great about him? He’s not even worthy to shine my daughter’s shoes!”

That statement was so excessive that it made everyone around furrow their brows.

Even if Zhou Mingyue was excellent, she was still just a village girl. She wasn’t some golden phoenix. Everyone here was from the countryside—what made her think she was better than everyone else? And besides, Huo Jincheng was a high school graduate who had once ranked first in the entire county in the college entrance exams. Zhou Mingyue, on the other hand, hadn’t even graduated from middle school.

If anyone was unworthy, it was Zhou Mingyue who was unworthy of Huo Jincheng!

Yao Guizhi’s face turned grim as she shot an angry glare at Qi Huifang. “Ha! You think my Jincheng is unworthy of Zhou Mingyue? Well, let me tell you, it’s Zhou Mingyue who’s unworthy of my son! Qi Huifang, I’ll say it plainly: as long as I’m alive, Zhou Mingyue will never set foot in the Huo family’s home! There’s no way we’re taking her as a daughter-in-law!”

Zhou Mingyue’s face turned slightly pale at those words, but Qi Huifang immediately retorted, “Oh, you think you can make bold statements? So can I! I’ll say this now too: even if every man on earth were dead, my Mingyue would never marry into the Huo family! If she did, then I’ll die a horrible death!”

That was harsh!

Lan Yun’er smiled faintly, glancing at Qi Huifang before turning her gaze to Zhou Mingyue. “Mingyue-jie, you think the same way, right? Since you don’t like my Jincheng, even if every man on earth were dead, you wouldn’t marry him. If you ever do, that would mean you were lying today. And Qi-auntie would meet the same unfortunate fate.”

Zhou Mingyue clenched her fists tightly, her face turning even paler.

“Mingyue-jie, why aren’t you saying anything? Why does your face look so awful?” Lan Yun’er asked innocently, staring curiously at Zhou Mingyue’s expression.

Everyone turned to look at Zhou Mingyue, whose face indeed looked terrible—like she’d just lost her parents. Her reaction and silence spoke volumes. It suggested she did have feelings for Huo Jincheng and wanted to marry him. That was why Lan Yun’er’s words upset her so much.

Chen-dasao shook her head, looking at Zhou Mingyue. “And you still say you didn’t instruct Chunyu? You like Huo Jincheng, and you wanted to break him and Lan Yun’er apart. That’s why you made Chunyu do such a thing.”

“Those Zhou sisters are no good at all. Both of them are as bad as each other. I’d like to see who dares to marry them. Bringing them home would only cause endless trouble.”

“Exactly! My son certainly won’t marry a woman like that. Marrying someone like her would only bring disaster to the family.”

Hearing the mocking remarks from those around her, Zhou Mingyue took a deep breath and tried to argue, “You’re all misunderstanding me. I didn’t…”

“Mingyue-jie, we all understand your thoughts. I know you might not want to admit it now, but none of us here are fools. So even if you lie, we won’t believe you. Mingyue-jie, I didn’t expect you to have feelings for Jincheng. I also didn’t expect that our previous camaraderie was just a ploy to separate me and Jincheng.”

Lan Yun’er interrupted Zhou Mingyue, her tone sorrowful, further fueling the disdain others felt toward Zhou Mingyue.

Did Zhou Mingyue really think everyone was stupid? At this point, no one would believe her explanations.

Huo Jincheng cast a cold gaze at Zhou Mingyue before gently stroking Lan Yun’er’s hair. He looked deeply into her eyes and declared, “I, Huo Jincheng, swear that I will marry you and only you in this lifetime. I want to grow old with you.”

This sudden declaration of love left Lan Yun’er momentarily stunned, but she quickly smiled and responded, “Hmm, I only want to spend my life with you too.”

Seeing Huo Jincheng and Lan Yun’er so deeply in love, and how devotedly Huo Jincheng gazed at Lan Yun’er, Zhou Mingyue bit her lip, jealousy burning fiercely within her. If not for a sliver of rationality, she might have rushed up to tear that wretched Lan Yun’er apart.

Yao Guizhi shot Zhou Mingyue and her sister Zhou Mingli a glare before turning to the entire Huo family. “From now on, I want all of you to stay far away from those two sisters. If anyone dares to associate with them, they’ll be going against me!”

Lan Yun’er and Huo Jincheng quickly nodded. “Got it.”

Cao Yunxia reluctantly nodded as well.

Several villagers, including Chen-dasao, also expressed their determination to cut ties with the Zhou family, labeling them as malicious and deceitful.

Zhou Mingyue’s jealousy flared even more intensely. She couldn’t understand how things had come to this. Today was supposed to end with Lan Yun’er’s reputation in tatters. How had it turned into her own disgrace?

Still, she wouldn’t let this go easily.

She knew she had been transported into a book, and her identity was that of the female protagonist. Huo Jincheng was the male lead—they were a match made in heaven, destined to be together. Soon, she would also gain a magical space, and with its help, her life in this world would be smooth sailing. Plus, the author had given her the “Koi Luck” trait, ensuring that good fortune would keep coming her way.

There was no need to fear. She just had to be patient and wait for all those advantages to come her way.

Back at the Huo family home, Huo Jincheng and Lan Yun’er entered. Cao Yunxia heard noises coming from her room and realized her husband had returned with their eldest son from her maternal home. Her eyes flickered, and she hurried toward the room, ready to complain to her husband.

But before entering, she turned to Zhong Cuitao and said, “It’s almost six. Go make dinner quickly! The kids and I are hungry!”

Without waiting for a reply, she carried Huo Tianhe and entered the room.

Zhong Cuitao, seemingly used to being ordered around, responded, “Okay,” and took her three-year-old daughter to the kitchen.

Lan Yun’er’s gaze darkened slightly as she noticed Zhong Cuitao’s frail frame and her daughter’s malnourished appearance. However, she said nothing for now and followed Yao Guizhi into the main room.

Yao Guizhi held her hand and said, “Xiaoyun, your dad and I are getting old. We just want to see you and Jincheng living in harmony. In the future, make sure to live well with Jincheng, okay?”

Lan Yun’er knew that, despite her occasional fierceness, her mother-in-law was actually a kind-hearted woman. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have tolerated her antics so many times without kicking her out.

Lan Yun’er nodded and replied, “Don’t worry, Mom. Jincheng and I will live well together from now on and won’t cause any more trouble.”

Yao Guizhi was relieved. “That’s good, that’s good.”

Lan Yun’er glanced at her father-in-law, who seemed to be suffering from a serious illness. Previously, the family had planned to sell piglets to pay for his treatment, but the poisoned pigs had ruined that plan. Now, his treatment would have to be postponed.

Frowning slightly, Lan Yun’er realized that even though the original host had caused the trouble, she now bore the responsibility of cleaning it up. It was the least she could do to atone for the original host’s mistakes and earn some karmic merit.

As she thought about these matters, Huo Jincheng watched her intently, his eyes softening into a gentle smile.

Half an hour later, Zhong Cuitao finished cooking dinner.

The meal was simple: sweet potato porridge with sorghum bread. The bread looked coarse, and the porridge was mostly water, with only a few grains of rice and small chunks of sweet potato.

Looking at the meager meal on the table, Lan Yun’er grimaced slightly. As someone who had enjoyed modern luxuries, eating this was a challenge. Clearly, she needed to find a way to earn money to improve their lives.

Sitting beside Huo Jincheng, she resigned herself to eating the rough food. Refusing to eat would make her seem spoiled and could cause misunderstandings with her in-laws.

After she sat down, Huo Jincheng served her a bowl of porridge and handed her a piece of bread. Just as she was about to take a bite, Huo Tianhe, seated nearby, suddenly yelled, “I don’t want this! I want malted milk! I want malted milk!”

Huo Tianhe threw a tantrum, shoving the bowl and utensils in front of him away.

Yao Guizhi’s expression darkened as she scolded him, “Malted milk? Eat your food properly!”

Although Huo Tianhe was a little afraid of Yao Guizhi, he continued throwing a fit. “No! I want malted milk! Only malted milk!”

Sitting next to Huo Tianhe, Cao Yunxia suddenly glared at Lan Yun’er and snapped, “Why would you give such good stuff to Aunt He? Aunt He is just an outsider! Giving her such nice things is wasteful! My Tianhe is your nephew. Shouldn’t you prioritize your family?”

Lan Yun’er frowned, her grip tightening on the chopsticks. Before she could respond, Huo Jincheng’s elder brother, Huo Junda, also scolded her, “I think you’re just being foolish! Can’t you tell who’s close to you? Good things should stay within the family. Now that Tianhe doesn’t have malted milk, what are you going to do about it?”