Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

  It was rare for them to have a reunion, but he had to go out. Shao Qihai was very helpless, but he had no choice.

  Fortunately, the children remembered him. Now, there was also a fridge, so various flavors of the prepared dumplings were stored in the fridge for him.

  “This is Daddy’s. This is for Uncle.”

  Other than Shao Qihai, they also remembered to save some for Shao Qiyang.

  When Li Zhaodi heard the children mention Shao Qiyang, she whispered to Mu Jingzhe, “Jingzhe, are Shao Qiyang and Mu Xue about to get married?”

  Before Mu Jingzhe could answer, she heard Li Zhaodi say, “It’s been another year. After the New Year, they’ll be 27 years old. 28 years old according to the Chinese calendar. It would be absurd if they didn’t get married soon.”

  In that day and age, everyone got married early, especially the people in the countryside. Some people got married when they were 18 or 19 years old. If they couldn’t get their marriage certificate yet, they would hold a banquet first. When they were of age, they would make up for it and even register the children in their household then.

  There were many people who married at 21 or 22. It was considered abnormal if one didn’t get married by 23 or 24. Other than those who really couldn’t afford to get married, there were very few 27-year-olds like Mu Xue and Shao Qiyang, who remained unmarried.

  Mu Jingzhe felt a headache coming when she heard her mention age. Indeed, a second later, Li Zhaodi nagged her again about being 24 years old.

  This year had been really busy. It felt like only a short while had passed, yet another year had already passed. Although she had gained a lot, she still felt that time had passed too quickly.

  The way Li Zhaodi nagged her about already being 24 years old, it seemed as if 24 was a terrifying number. She only felt a little better when Mu Xue’s age was mentioned. “I bet your grandmother is furious. I feel happy whenever I think about how angry she must be.”

  Her biased mother-in-law had tormented her and Jingzhe too much. Now, Li Zhaodi was happy to see Old Lady Mu angry.

  Mu Jingzhe fell silent. Old Lady Mu really should be angry this year.

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  Shao Qiyang had turned from the supporting character into the male lead and he didn’t celebrate the New Year with them that year. Instead, he went to Great Eastern Village.

  Mu Jingzhe wasn’t sure how Shao Qiyang and Mu Xue had gotten together, but Shao Qiyang had told her after making a decision.

  If he married Mu Xue, Mu Jingzhe and Mu Xue, who were cousins, would become sisters-in-law. Logically speaking, this wouldn’t be good. Fortunately, they didn’t live together, so it wouldn’t affect Mu Jingzhe much.

  “Mom, don’t be so harsh with your words in the future. Don’t take it too far or spite her so much that she’ll die from anger. You’re living well now, and she must feel uncomfortable just looking at you. If you continue to anger her and cause her trouble, everyone will criticize you,” Mu Jingzhe advised Li Zhaodi.

  “Okay. Then tell me, are Shao Qiyang and Mu Xue together?” Li Zhaodi asked.

  Mu Jingzhe was speechless. “Mom, you’re really… Don’t let the kids hear you.”

  “Alright then, let me put it this way… Are the two of them about to become an item?”

  “Why do you care?” Mu Jingzhe didn’t answer directly. She felt that she should wait until Shao Qiyang succeeded before talking about it. She guessed that it was probably time Shao Qiyang took action.

  Mu Jingzhe’s guess was right. Shao Qiyang had taken action and successfully angered Old Lady Mu. “You went big and you ended up settling for Shao Qiyang? No, I don’t agree!”

  Shao Qiyang and Mu Xue exchanged a glance. There was no surprise in their eyes.

  “Grandma, don’t disagree right away. Do you want to keep hearing those awful rumors? Can you bear to see people gossip about me?”

  Old Lady Mu froze when she heard Mu Xue’s words.

  Since Mu Xue and Shao Qiyang had staretd interacting, a period of time had passed. During this period, both Shao Qiyang and Mu Xue had experienced a lot of trouble. They were only unmarried, but in the eyes of others, this was like a crime.

  Mu Xue was a very prideful person, but in the end, the men she had never taken seriously in the past actually hypocritically said that they could marry her now. They were acting like they were being charitable. After she got to know more people in the county city, they insisted on introducing men to her. However, the men they introduced to her were all mediocre—they either had kids from their first marriage or were unpresentable. They even kept saying that she was old and that such men were considered eligible.

  They were smart enough to scheme to get her car and house. Those men wanted their entire family to live in her house, and they even wanted Mu Xue to serve their family.

  Mu Xue had heard enough. Shao Qiyang’s situation was better than hers, but there were also some ignorant people who came up to him and asked him to get treatment, as if that would satisfy them.

  After seeing how they each lived, she suddenly said, “Why don’t we just get together? That way, people won’t keep gossiping about us.”

  Mu Xue knew that Shao Qiyang had liked Mu Jingzhe before. When Shao Qiyang had found out that Shao Qihai had returned, Mu Xue had actually regretted it. However, Shao Qiyang had now transformed. Anyway, Mu Xue was still the girl Shao Qiyang had liked before.

  Not wanting to be tortured for another year, the two of them directly went back to Old Lady Mu and the rest to announce this before the New Year so they could get married right after the New Year.

  Old Lady Mu was more anxious than anyone about Mu Xue’s marriage. She scolded everyone who mocked her, saying that Mu Xue would definitely find someone who wasn’t inferior to Tang Moling and that she had been born to be rich.

  She kept forcing Mu Xue to find a rich man, but in the end, Mu Xue brought back Shao Qiyang.

  Shao Qiyang was considered a very promising man in the village now. There were many women who desired to marry him but didn’t have the chance to. Still, Shao Qiyang couldn’t compare to Tang Moling. This went against Old Lady Mu’s original intentions.

  She only wanted Mu Xue to find someone who wasn’t inferior to Ji Buwang and ruthlessly prove the villagers wrong. Shao Qiyang didn’t meet those requirements.

  Old Lady Mu wouldn’t agree no matter what, but Mu Xue’s parents gave their consent right away. They really couldn’t stand to see Mu Xue remain unmarried.

  “Qiyang is quite good. Since Xiao Xue’s engagement was broken off, she’s been getting older and older. I no longer dare ask for anything else. Isn’t it good that Qiyang wants to marry her?”

  “What’s so good about it? She was even engaged to Qihai in the past. This is absurd. No way!”

  “That was so many years ago. Who remembers that? Mom, just agree. Forget about the ‘born for riches’ thing. If this continues, Xiao Xue will remain alone for the rest of her life!”

  It was rare for Mu Xue’s parents to be so stubborn and stick to their decision. Old Lady Mu was furious, but she couldn’t persuade Mu Xue or her family. As a result, she was so angry that she fell ill.

  “Grandma, don’t be angry during the New Year. I know you’re doing this for my own good, but I really have to get married. I no longer want to hear those nasty words, nor do I want to be belittled by everyone. Compared to those people, Shao Qiyang is quite good. He’s much better than them.”

  The more Old Lady Mu listened, the more she felt that something was amiss. She stood up and asked, “Xiao Xue, do you like Shao Qiyang now?”

  “I… Yes, I quite like him, but we can’t let him know for the time being.” Mu Xue wheedled with Old Lady Mu. “Grandma, just trust me. We’ll definitely have a good life. Shao Qiyang is actually not bad.”

  Mu Xue didn’t know exactly when she had fallen for Shao Qiyang. Sometimes, she felt that Shao Qiyang was really infuriating, especially the way he spoke. It made her want to hit him.

  But unknowingly, he had gradually occupied a place in her heart. At least, Shao Qiyang was real in front of her, just like she was real in front of him. She didn’t have to pretend too much and she could relax. This kind of life was actually pretty good.

  It beat being with the men matchmakers introduced to her, men who were plotting to get their hands on her house.