So this is what class is.

At this moment, she gained a new level of understanding of class.

It turns out that wealth isn't the only factor in class.

Thoughts and backgrounds are all influenced by class.

Thinking of this, she cried.

She didn't cry during the two-month-long cold war, but after she figured it out, she couldn't help but cry her heart out.

My sister-in-law is swearing again.

She didn't want to get married, but unfortunately her father had lost the right to be in charge of the household, her brother was indecisive and dared not contradict his sister-in-law, and matchmakers were knocking down their door every day.

The father told the matchmaker that he wanted a good boy and not just anyone to bring home.

The women brought in by the matchmakers were all outstanding.

Most of them were officials, ranging from county-level officials to village-level bookkeepers, and they were all good-looking, but unfortunately, she couldn't muster the slightest urge to get married.

These men, if thrown out, would all be desirable husbands that others would be eager to marry into.

But why doesn't she like it?

Some even fell in love with her at first sight after meeting her, and pursued her relentlessly. Even after she clearly rejected them, they would still visit her from time to time to bring her things and take care of her family.

She knew they were all after her face.

What love at first sight? They're all just lustful fools, like her.

The Lunar New Year is just around the corner.

In the freezing cold, everyone in the brigade huddled together in the communal canteen, eating dumplings from a large pot around the stove.

The dumplings were made one by one by the girls who usually did light work. The whole brigade, young and old, men and women, worked all day long, kneading the dough and rolling out the filling.

The pot of dumplings was steaming hot, and Ye Xia was in charge of folding them.

The steam made her porcelain-white face flushed, her nose red, and her eyes moist. She couldn't see the people lining up to get dumplings. In the hazy mist, she could only see empty bowls being held up to her one by one, then a flick of the wrist to add plump white dumplings to the bowls, pour over them with hot, white broth, and offer a touch of warmth in the winter.

She didn't know if she saw Mu Jingsheng go to eat dumplings that day.

Unbeknownst to her, someone had been lingering outside the communal dining hall for a long time, gazing intently through the window at her as she served food to others, her nose glistening with sweat.

Finally, the person quietly left.

After the New Year, Yejiagou was filled with several happy events: people who went on blind dates before the New Year got married afterward, and firecrackers were set off with a loud crackling sound.

Er Ya got married too.

Er Ya was just as afraid of getting married as her, but she couldn't go against her family's wishes and married a cripple from the next village whom she had never met before.

The lame man gave Er Ya's father two piglets, and her father happily had Er Ya taken away.

This must be what my mother meant by arranged marriage.

I hope the man Er Ya meets won't beat his wife. Er Ya usually loves to laugh, and being with her always makes me laugh so hard I almost fall over. But Er Ya is going to marry a cripple I've never met. That day, Er Ya left home in an oxcart. When I went to see her off, I heard Er Ya crying so hard under her red veil.

As soon as my sister-in-law heard the firecrackers, she started cursing again.

The matchmakers started coming even more frequently.

While others might not be able to arrange a marriage in several days, the matchmaker brought two people to her house every day, but seeing that she remained unmoved, the matchmaker became worried and squatted down with her father to ask her what kind of person she really wanted.

She looked up at the sky, unsure of what kind of sky she wanted.

My sister-in-law broke the basin again.

"Marriage is arranged by parents and matchmakers! How can we let her make her own decisions all the time! If she can't make her own decisions, then let her family make them for her. Tomorrow, we'll have the matchmaker bring back another one. We'll marry him off no matter what kind he is. If he doesn't marry, he'll really die in the house!"

She remained silent, and so did her father.

The older brother hunched over like a quail.

The matchmaker ran off in a flash.

My sister-in-law is a notorious shrew in the brigade; when she gets angry, no one dares to mess with her.

She misses her mother.

Mother, I'm afraid she won't be able to find a man who truly cares for her and treats her well in everything she does.

A firecracker exploded in the sky; she didn't know whose house had set it off, and only then did she realize that today was the Lantern Festival, a day that should have been especially joyous.

That evening, the family made dumplings with wild vegetable and egg filling. She was holding a bowl and wanted to get a bowl of dumplings, but her sister-in-law gave her a cold shoulder and didn't give her a friendly look. Only after her father tried to smooth things over did her sister-in-law reluctantly throw a spoonful of dumplings into her bowl.

He even complained to her, "You just eat and don't do anything."

As she held the dumplings, she thought to herself, "The two chickens that laid the eggs were bought with the money I earned from my embroidery. How can I let her just eat and do nothing?"

She ate five dumplings in one spoonful, but she wasn't full.

Her father wanted to give her some, but she was afraid that her father wouldn't have enough to eat, so she refused.

A movie theater came to the village, and everyone in her family went to see the movie. She slipped into the kitchen, lifted the lid of the pot, and sure enough, saw the leftover dumplings from the evening.

The dumplings were still piping hot, so she ate two more and then packed another portion in a lunchbox.

The dumplings were filled with wild vegetables and eggs. The eggs were from two chickens she bought with the money she earned from embroidery, and the wild vegetables were dug up by her and her brother. She also cooked the pot. She did all the work, so there was no reason not to let her eat her fill.

He went out and grabbed a male educated youth who was going to see a movie, asking him to pass on a message to Mu Jingsheng.

After that, she went to the back mountain.

She still really likes Mu Jingsheng.

She really hasn't seen much of the world; once she saw him, she couldn't see anyone else.

Let her try again.

If he doesn't come, or clearly says he doesn't like her, then tomorrow, she will listen to her sister-in-law and get married peacefully.

She would marry anyone, no matter who they were.

It doesn't matter if it's not him or not.

The back hill seems to be a good place to admire the moon.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!