She subtly glanced at Ji Xia, who was wearing a thin polka-dot polyester shirt paired with dark blue trousers.
Despite being a country girl, she had fair skin, bright features, and long, glossy black hair tied in a high ponytail. Her clothes and demeanor were no different from those of city girls.
Compared to the group of female educated youth working in the fields, she looked more like a city girl.
But so what? Lin Haodong was still beckoned over with just a flick of her finger.
If Lin Haodong dares not to marry her, she will sue him for indecent behavior and see where he can go to university.
A smug smile appeared on Liu Pianran's lips. She whispered a few words to a female educated youth beside her, then swayed her hips as she walked over, opened the courtyard gate, and giggled softly.
"Miss Ji, you have so much free time to see me today? Is there something you need?"
Ji Xia scrutinized Liu Pianran from head to toe.
Liu Pianran was undoubtedly a beauty. Her beauty possessed a natural allure, and her wildcat-like eyes were captivating. It was said that when she first went to the countryside, she stirred the hearts of countless men with pity for her.
Lin Haodong once told her that she was a born femme fatale, and that such a woman was only suitable to be a concubine in ancient times, not the mistress of the main house.
Later, she realized that concubines were meant to be pampered, while the principal wife was just a housekeeper, specifically responsible for taking care of her mother-in-law.
Thinking of the past, Ji Xia's eyes turned cold, and a sinister smile appeared on her pretty face:
“My father told me that Liu Zhiqing and Comrade Lin Haodong are getting married. My siblings and I are here today to return the betrothal gifts that the Lin family gave us last year.”
Liu Pianran was surprised to hear this: "The Lin family's betrothal gifts? You're returning the betrothal gifts?"
The group of educated youth behind him were even more stunned upon hearing this. What was going on?
Lin Haodong had just been admitted to university, and his fiancée sent the betrothal gifts to Liu Zhiqing.
What good news is on the horizon? What exactly happened?
Ji Xia waved the bag in her hand: "Yes, the Lin family gave some betrothal gifts when we got engaged last year. Now that you are marrying Lin Haodong, these betrothal gifts should be returned to you."
"Of course, the dowry list is still there. We've already eaten some of the food, and we'll refund you at a discount. If you're worried about the list, you can confront Lin Haodong to see if it's correct."
Liu Pianran was completely taken aback by Ji Xia's words.
She had just asked a fellow educated youth she was on good terms with to find Lin Haodong because she was worried that Ji Xia would cause trouble.
Ji Xia actually returned the betrothal gifts generously?
With a mix of confusion and joy, Liu Pianran welcomed Ji Xia and Ji Zhijun into the courtyard.
Several educated youths hurriedly cleared away the empty plates on the table, which had been completely cleaned up, and Ji Xia opened her black leather notebook.
"Take a look at the list. This was sent last year for our engagement. If you have any doubts, you can copy it down and compare it with Lin Haodong's."
"It's okay, I believe you."
Liu Pianran was initially wary, but Ji Xia neither cursed nor bothered her, which made her feel somewhat ashamed and doubt her own petty mind.
The black notebook was opened, revealing a page recording the betrothal gifts, and Ji Xia also opened the bag she had brought.
"The gift money was 38.8 yuan. We'll settle the rest later. We've already finished the cigarettes, alcohol, tea, candy, and meat, so we'll return the money to you."
"Okay, okay."
Liu Pianran glanced at it. She knew that Lin Haodong's family was not well-off, so she didn't suspect anything when she saw the items on it.
"The Titoni watch is still here. I already had a watch, so I never wore the Titoni watch. You can check it if you don't believe me."
"It's alright, it's alright."
Even if she had worn it before, Liu Pianran wouldn't mind. To her, Ji Xia's silence and return of the betrothal gifts was already a great joy.
"The four feet of cotton cloth were originally intended to make a dress, but because the wedding date was uncertain, it was never made. Now it's yours."
The other items, including cigarettes, alcohol, tea, and candy, plus a monetary gift of 38.8 yuan, totaled approximately 52.6 yuan.
Ji Xia pushed the numbers in front of Liu Pianran and asked calmly, "Do you think there are any errors in these numbers?"
"No, I've checked it, the number is correct."
Liu Pianran was quite satisfied. The four-foot cloth was of slightly poor quality, but it was still usable. The plum blossom watch was still new and worth over a hundred yuan, plus another fifty-odd yuan.
Most importantly, she has a husband who is a prospective college student, and after marrying him, she will have the opportunity to return to the city with him.
Liu Pianran became more and more satisfied as she thought about it. Her gaze towards Ji Xia was gentle but contained a hint of smugness. This girl from the Ji family was a bit stupid, but she would be a good friend.
She nodded generously: "As for the money, just round it up to fifty. Don't worry too much about a few dollars."
Although two yuan and sixty cents was a lot of money, she felt it was good to be generous this once and leave a good impression.
Upon hearing this, Ji Xia smiled and said, "You're quite generous. I'll do as you say and round down the last few digits."
"Now that the bride price has been returned, let's settle the outstanding debt."
"Debts owed?"
Liu Pianran's smile faltered for a moment: "I never borrowed money from you, so what debt do you owe me?"
“You don’t owe anything, but your fiancé Lin Haodong does. This is the amount I’ve recorded; you can calculate the debt yourself.”
"etc--"
Liu Pianran stared in disbelief at her ledger. It contained both small and large sums of money, with notes next to it, such as Lin Haodong borrowing money to buy medicine, Aunt Lin's medical expenses, Aunt Lin's nutritional supplements, and restaurant meal expenses.
She frowned slightly, looking puzzled, and asked, "Since it was Lin Haodong who borrowed the money, you should ask him, not me."
Ji Xia pushed the notebook away, her smile vanished, and she asked seriously, "Liu Zhiqing, you should know that Lin Haodong was originally engaged to me."
"I lent him the money because his mother was in poor health and he was engaged to me, so when he urgently needed money, I lent it to him generously."
"Now that I've broken off the engagement, he's going to marry you right away. Do you want me to come back to him with the account book every day to collect the money? Do you want me to pester him?"
Liu Pianran's expression stiffened slightly; she certainly didn't want Lin Haodong to have any more contact with Ji Xia.
Looking at the ledger and then at Ji Xia's expressionless face, Liu Pianran suddenly realized that this was a deliberate attempt to make her look bad.
No wonder, she was wondering how a woman could be so generous, knowing about the trouble she had with Lin Haodong, and still so generously returning the betrothal gifts.
After calculating for a moment, she frowned slightly and asked, "How much money do we still owe?"
"The total amount borrowed was 147 yuan. The money spent by the mother and son was 62.4 yuan. The various receipts were converted into 37.5 yuan. Yesterday, my father gave the militia some good cigarettes to help you two get out of trouble. They cost 3.5 yuan. The total is 250.4 yuan. Let's round it up to 250. Subtract the 50 yuan you just gave me, and then give me back 200."
Liu Pianran and the other educated youths were stunned. A man rushed into the courtyard, glanced at the bill, and instinctively snapped, "Ji Xia, have you no shame? You want me to pay back the two cents we spent on noodles together?"
Before Ji Xia could answer Lin Haodong's question, a contemptuous laugh came from behind him: "Lin Haodong, have you no shame? You expect a girl to pay for a bowl of noodles?"
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