In both of Shen Jiao’s lives, she had never been blessed with parents or loving relatives. She had never considered searching for her biological parents, nor did she want to.
“I’m not going to look for them. If they could abandon me when I was only a month old, then clearly they never cared about having me as a daughter. Why should I throw myself at people who don’t want me?”
What she did not say was that she had no desire to burden herself by searching for her biological parents. The relatives she had encountered in both lifetimes had been difficult beyond words. It would be fine if her biological parents were decent people, but what if they turned out to be a pair of utter disasters?
Wouldn’t she simply be inviting trouble into her own life?
Seeing that she genuinely had no intention of finding them, Gu Xinguo did not bring up the subject again.
The atmosphere immediately fell silent.
Although they were about to register their marriage, the truth was that they still barely knew one another.
“Brother Gu, you used to be a soldier. Could you tell me about your time in the army? If they recruited female soldiers around here, I would have wanted to enlist too.”
Shen Jiao was the first to break the silence. If she wanted to understand someone quickly, she could not sit there like a mute gourd and refuse to speak.
Gu Xinguo had not expected Shen Jiao to be the type of woman who preferred military uniforms to pretty dresses. However, when he thought about her personality, the corners of his lips curved upwards.
She really would have suited the army.
“The place where I served was in our province, in a small county at the northernmost edge…”
As Gu Xinguo spoke, Shen Jiao could almost see the scene before her.
A passionate young man had entered the army, never fearing hardship or exhaustion and always charging to the front. Yet just when he was about to be promoted to an officer, he had been forced to leave the army because of his health.
Her heart ached for him.
“You must have been devastated when you were discharged.”
“Of course I was upset, but my body was no longer suited to military service. No matter how miserable I felt, I couldn’t become a burden on the country.”
“Brother Gu…”
That single soft call of “Brother Gu” instantly melted Gu Xinguo’s heart.
The sympathy in the young woman’s eyes brushed across the tip of his heart like a feather. The resulting tremor made his heartbeat accelerate, something he had never experienced before.
Even his voice became noticeably gentler when he spoke again.
“Actually, once I returned home, I soon got over the worst of it. Grandma is getting old, and her health isn’t good. My older sister is already married, and I’m Grandma’s only grandson. Leaving the army wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. At the very least, I can stay home and take care of her.”
The crude bus jolted along the uneven road. Shen Jiao, who was sitting near the back, was nearly shaken until she vomited.
Her body might have been suffering, but her heart was sweet.
After talking along the way, the distance between the two soon-to-be newlyweds had narrowed considerably.
Shenjia Village looked exactly the same as before.
Commune members were working everywhere along the fields and ridges. Children ran around wildly, while young girls carried baskets and dug for wild vegetables. From time to time, one or two people could be spotted hiding in secluded corners, slacking off instead of working.
Everything was full of vitality, just like Shen Jiao’s current mood.
“Oh my, Jiaojiao is back! Who is this male comrade? He doesn’t look like that lazy husband of yours.”
Shen Jiao had thought that, considering the time of day, they would not run into anyone from the village.
Who would have thought they would meet someone the moment they entered?
This woman was famous throughout the village for her long tongue. The villagers had even given her the nickname “Old Chatterbox.” Her daughter had inherited her love of gossip and had married within the same village, so everyone called her “Little Chatterbox.”
Her family was so poor that even mice would not bother visiting, yet she still constantly shirked work. Whenever she had spare time, she wandered around the village gossiping about one household after another. There was nothing she could not talk about.
When Shen Jiao had brought Qin Zhifeng back to get divorced, Old Chatterbox had failed to hear the news first-hand. As a result, she had lacked fresh material when gossiping with the other villagers, leaving her deeply annoyed.
She had not expected that skipping work today would allow her to run into Shen Jiao again.
Better yet, Shen Jiao had brought back another unfamiliar man.
Old Chatterbox instantly became as excited as if she had been injected with chicken blood. Her eyes practically sparkled as she stared at Shen Jiao.
“Auntie, this is my boyfriend.”
“Your boyfriend? Oh my, Jiaojiao! Of all the girls in your generation, you really are the most capable. You only just got divorced, and you’ve already found yourself another man.”
As she spoke, she gave Shen Jiao an enthusiastic thumbs-up.
“Where is your boyfriend from? What kind of work does he do? He looks much sturdier than that pretty-faced Qin Zhifeng. You’re going to enjoy a fortunate life from now on.”
After saying this, she waggled her eyebrows suggestively. The ambiguous expression on her face could not have been clearer.
Shen Jiao wanted to cover her forehead and sigh.
Who said people in the seventies and eighties were conservative?
Those people should come and listen to how boldly an auntie from the seventies could drive the conversation straight into the gutter.
“Well, Auntie, I need to speak to the brigade captain about something, so I won’t keep chatting with you. We can talk another time.”
“Don’t leave! It’s not easy for the two of us to run into each other. We should have a proper chat. Let me guess—you’re going to ask the brigade captain for a letter of introduction so you can register your marriage, aren’t you? Your brother and sister-in-law aren’t even in the village, so what’s the rush?”
It was currently working hours. Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang were not in the village?
Were they no longer interested in earning work points?
Shen Jiao’s eyes shifted thoughtfully.
After she divorced Qin Zhifeng, the couple had made a considerable fortune—fourteen hundred yuan.
Although that amount would not even equal an ordinary person’s monthly salary in later generations, in an era when most people earned only twenty or thirty yuan a month, it was an enormous sum.
When poor people suddenly became rich, it was not always a good thing.
“Auntie, don’t lie to me. If my brother and sister-in-law aren’t in the village, where could they be?”
Shen Jiao had originally intended to tell her that she had already severed ties with Shen Chunshan’s family, so her marriage had nothing to do with them.
However, when the words reached her lips, they turned into a question instead.
She rather wanted to hear what Shen Chunshan’s family had been acting like after suddenly becoming wealthy.
Perhaps she could even create a little trouble for them along the way.
Qin Zhifeng might have been one of the executioners responsible for the original Shen Jiao’s death, but could Shen Chunshan and his wife truly claim to be innocent?
She had considered taking revenge against Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang before. However, every time the thought arose, her heart would hurt as though it were being sliced apart.
That was when she understood.
Although the original Shen Jiao had been bitterly disappointed in Shen Chunshan’s family, she still could not bear for anything to happen to the Shen parents’ only son.
Shen Jiao had therefore gone along with the original owner’s feelings and let Shen Chunshan’s family off.
If the victim herself did not want to pursue the matter, what right did Shen Jiao, an outsider, have to keep clinging to it?
Still, whenever she remembered the four hundred yuan Du Lingxiang had taken from her, she felt uncomfortable.
When she had first arrived in this era, she had been completely alone and penniless. Had it not been for Gu Xinguo, that four hundred yuan would have been her lifeline.
How could she not feel hatred and anger after it had been snatched away?
She might not be able to beat or kill the couple, but she could certainly make their lives a little less comfortable.
“Your brother and sister-in-law have been going into town every day for the past couple of days. Every time they return, they bring back piles of things. I heard this morning that they were going to the department store to buy a radio today.”
Old Chatterbox’s tone was sour, her eyes filled with envy, jealousy, and resentment.
She did not know how Shen Chunshan’s family had suddenly become rich enough to shop as though everything were free.
Shen Jiao sighed.
“Why can’t my brother and sister-in-law think about the future? No matter how much of the two thousand yuan Qin Zhifeng gave them they have left, they’ll eventually spend it all. Why don’t they save some for their children?”
“Qin Zhifeng gave your brother and sister-in-law more than two thousand yuan?”
Old Chatterbox’s eyes suddenly widened, filled with shock.
In the countryside, even a strong labourer who earned the maximum number of work points throughout the year would only make two or three hundred yuan after working himself half to death.
Sometimes, the village could not even afford to pay that much.
More than two thousand yuan!
What kind of sum was that?
A strong labourer would need to save every penny he earned for ten years without eating or drinking to accumulate that much.
Good heavens!
Shen Chunshan’s family had struck it rich!
Shen Jiao seemed to realise that she had accidentally said too much. She quickly grabbed Gu Xinguo and hurried away.
The speed of her steps made it look as though she were fleeing in panic.
Old Chatterbox was still stunned by the news of the two thousand yuan, so she failed to grab Shen Jiao in time.
After walking some distance, Shen Jiao finally stopped.
She lowered her head, her shoulders trembling with suppressed laughter.
Once the news that Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang had money spread throughout the village, their lives would certainly become lively.
Even if no one else caused trouble for them, Du Lingxiang’s maternal family alone would be enough to give the couple a headache.
Du Lingxiang had many brothers, and all of them had many children. Their lives were extremely tight.
Once they learned that Du Lingxiang had money, would they be able to sit still?
“Jiaojiao, don’t be sad. From now on, I’ll cherish you like my own younger sister.”
Gu Xinguo assumed Shen Jiao’s shoulders were trembling because she was upset about her brother and sister-in-law.
However, the moment he finished speaking, the young woman raised her head and revealed a radiant smile.
There was not the slightest trace of sadness on her face.
“But Brother Gu, I don’t want to be your younger sister. If I’m going to be anything, I want to be your darling wife!”
After flirting with him, Shen Jiao turned and continued walking.
Gu Xinguo remained standing in place, silently savouring the words “darling wife.”
His heart pounded like a drum, each heavy thump making his eyes shine brighter and brighter.
Finally, he strode after Shen Jiao with his long legs.
“Jiaojiao, I’ll treat you well.”
Shen Jiao had been waiting for him to catch up and whisper a few sweet words to her. Who would have expected him to produce only that one dry sentence?
He truly was an unromantic block of wood.
Yet she happened to like precisely this kind of steady, dependable man.
She was not entirely inexperienced in matters of love. She had dated two men before.
The first relationship had ended because they rarely saw each other, and their feelings gradually faded.
The second man had been an extreme mummy’s boy, and their relationship had ultimately gone nowhere.
Although Shen Jiao had invested genuine feelings into both relationships, neither had ever given her the same sense of peace, security, and quiet happiness she felt now.
Perhaps she had travelled through time precisely so she could meet the love meant for her.
Shen Jiao thought happily to herself.
“Jiaojiao, marriage is a major decision. Have you thought this through carefully?”
When they arrived at the village brigade office, the brigade captain was pleased to hear that Shen Jiao intended to remarry.
However, he could not resist asking a few questions.
She had been divorced for less than two days and was already planning to remarry. It was simply too hasty.
“Uncle, don’t worry. Comrade Gu saved my life when we were in the capital, so there is absolutely no problem with his character. I’ve also met his family. They are all kind and easy to get along with. I won’t suffer by marrying him.”
Since she had already said so much, what else could the brigade captain do?
He could only issue her the letter of introduction.
Before she left, however, he still asked, “Jiaojiao, shouldn’t you at least inform your brother about your marriage? You are still family, after all. Besides, it won’t look good if you have no relatives from your maternal family present at your wedding.”
“Uncle, why don’t you attend as a member of my maternal family? Since my brother, sister-in-law, and I have already severed ties, it would be better not to associate with them anymore. Otherwise, my sister-in-law is certain to cause trouble.”
Although the brigade captain knew that Shen Jiao was not entirely to blame, he still felt uncomfortable.
The Shen family had raised her until adulthood, yet she had cut them off just like that.
He could not help feeling that she was somewhat ungrateful.
His enthusiasm immediately faded, and he did not agree to attend Shen Jiao’s wedding.
Shen Jiao did not insist.
She had merely mentioned it in passing anyway.
Not long after Shen Jiao and Gu Xinguo left, Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang returned from the county town carrying numerous bags and parcels.
The moment they entered the village, they heard that Shen Jiao had returned with her new boyfriend. Apparently, she had come back to obtain a letter of introduction so they could register their marriage.
Shen Jiao really was capable. She had only just divorced, yet she had already found another man.
Moreover, her new boyfriend apparently earned his living behind a steering wheel and had plenty of money.
Du Lingxiang heard none of the other details.
The only words that entered her ears were, “He has plenty of money.”
She slapped her forehead and hurriedly dragged her entire family home to put away their bags and parcels.
Then, without stopping to rest, she rushed to the brigade office to question the brigade captain.
She needed to find out the address of Shen Jiao’s new boyfriend.
Shen Jiao was still a daughter raised by the Shen family. Now that she was getting married, surely her maternal family deserved to collect some bride price.
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