While peeking in to watch the commotion, Ke's mother cooked. When she saw Ke Meiyu arrive, she whispered, "I never would have guessed that the second son's family used to be so honest. But after they stole your marriage and separated from you, they've all become so arrogant. They're bound to cause trouble someday."
"Over eighty yuan, just spent it like it was nothing, like I'd never seen money before. It's too much trouble to keep a single cent in my hands!"
Ke Meiyu chuckled and put her arm around her mother's shoulder, "Mother, you don't need to worry about it. Just enjoy the show."
"I have five sons and one daughter who are still unmarried. Why should I care about their family's business?"
Mother Ke glared at her and couldn't help but whisper earnestly, "Little Fish, I'm not that old-fashioned. I don't insist on marrying my daughter off."
“But you’re already eighteen. Even if you miss out on the Yu family’s marriage, we can still slowly look for others and eventually find someone we’re satisfied with.”
“A girl’s prime years are only a few years long. I don’t want to see you ruin your life for those two things.”
Ke Meiyu was taken aback, then shrugged indifferently and said with a smile, "Mother, marriage is all about fate. Look how good the Yu family was before, and we were doing so well in the early stages, but then, at the last minute, someone else snatched her away!"
"I wasn't disgusted by that scumbag couple to the point of despairing about marriage. I just think there's no rush. When the time is right, I'll be hit by fate even if I'm walking down the street."
"Don't worry, I'm the auspicious flower in my grandmother's eyes. How could just any Tom, Dick, or Harry marry me?"
Madam Ke thought about it and agreed. Although her mother-in-law's "lucky bag" was a bit of an exaggeration, her daughter had always been lucky since she was little. Whenever she mentioned what she wanted to eat, she was guaranteed to get to eat it the next day.
"Alright, then I won't rush you anymore, but you have to say three times every morning that you want to get married, and that you have to marry well and be happy for the rest of your life!"
Ke Meiyu couldn't help but smile and kiss her mother on the cheek, "Mom is the best to me."
Ke's mother blushed deeply at her antics. "You crazy girl, go away, go away, hurry up and take the children out to play."
As she spoke, she shoved a plate into Ke Meiyu's hand. Half of it contained pork cracklings sprinkled with white sugar, and the other half contained three fried eggs!
This would be an extremely luxurious meal for an ordinary family.
However, Ke's mother dismissed them as a side dish and sent them away.
"It smells so good!" The little guy's eyes were practically glued to the plate, but he pursed his lips tightly to control his overflowing saliva, not uttering a single word that he wanted to eat it. He remembered that this was meant for his savior!
Ke Meiyu found a basket, put the plate in it, and then took the little guy's hand and headed towards the cowshed via a side path.
The little guy had clearly never lived in the countryside before; he was curious about everything, even the little flowers and grass by the roadside could elicit a small exclamation from him.
"I love how ignorant you are," Ke Meiyu laughed.
Lu Yuehai hummed, "Sister, don't laugh at me. When my parents come looking for me, I'll take you to our compound. I guarantee you'll be even more worldly than me!"
"Okay, I'm waiting," Ke Meiyu thought to herself. The courtyard was the setting for many novels, so she had to go and see what was going on.
They arrived at the cowshed shortly afterward.
A pretty girl in a white shirt and yellow trousers with two braids was feeding the cows with a basket. When she saw the two girls arrive, she said coldly, "Comrade Ke, this is not a place for you. If people see you, they will start spreading bad rumors."
"What bad things were said?" Ke Meiyu raised an eyebrow and asked, "Comrade Tang, when you were sick, several men went fishing in the river. Did the villagers say anything about that?"
"Why should I be the subject of gossip just because I openly thanked Comrade Qin?"
Tang Aiyu pursed her lips tightly, "Comrade Ke, why are you being so aggressive?"
"Do I really have to say that Comrade Qin doesn't want to see you at all, and that you should be more reserved and stop using the excuse of saving his life to come knocking on my door?"
"I don't like what Comrade Tang said. Who started this aggressive talk?" Ke Meiyu flashed eight white teeth. "Both are unmarried, and in broad daylight, everyone has the right to pursue happiness! Did you open this path for us? Comrade Tang, you're meddling way too much!"
"I, I, Comrade Qin, fell into the water while trying to catch fish for me, otherwise you wouldn't have pinned this on me."
Tang Aiyu felt more and more right as she spoke, "Of course I have to hold the door for him, as a way of repaying the favor I owe him."
Ke Meiyu nodded, stepped forward, and seeing Tang Aiyu unable to resist opening her arms to block the way, she took a step back and then stepped forward again. "Look, you did stop me just now, so the favor is repaid. This is my second time visiting, you can't possibly take it all on me, can you?"
"Otherwise, if you're thinking of repaying a life-saving debt with your body, who will dare to take care of you in the future?"
"You..." Tang Aiyu was both ashamed and angry.
Her grandfather was the director of a military hospital in Kyoto, but he was framed by a villain and sent here.
She had never seen a woman, especially such a young and beautiful girl, as shameless as Ke Meiyu!
Tang Aiyu was, after all, an unmarried young woman. Having her thoughts exposed, she was too ashamed to stay any longer and stamped her feet as she ran back to her house.
"Tsk tsk," Ke Meiyu exclaimed in surprise, "Tuanzi, what did I say? She ran away without arguing at all? Her fighting ability is too weak, isn't it?"
"I'm not called Tuanzi, I'm called Lu Yuehai!" The little guy didn't understand these things and just said angrily.
Ke Meiyu pinched his puffed-out cheeks and poked his mouth, which seemed to hold soy sauce, "How about we call it a steamed bun, since it has pleats? Or a soy sauce bottle stopper? Or a little toad?"
The little guy stomped his feet, shouting, "Lu Yuehai, Lu Yuehai, didn't you understand? It's Lu Yuehai!"
"The perch child?"
"You should still call yourself Tuanzi," the little guy said, head drooping, full of helplessness.
The two were talking at the door as if no one else was around when Qin Yuanjiu suddenly opened the door and looked over expressionlessly.
Tuanzi was a little scared, so she darted behind Ke Meiyu's legs and peeked out.
Good heavens, this savior is even more terrifying than his father's dark-skinned man.
Ke Meiyu looked around and saw that the surrounding area was relatively open, which was very conducive to retreat.
"Comrade Qin, we've come to thank you for saving our lives," she said with a charming smile, her eyes crinkling as she picked up the basket and handed it to us. She then lifted the white cloth covering the basket to reveal oily cracklings still covered in sugar granules, and three beautiful, fragrant fried eggs.
"If you hadn't arrived in time, my sister and I would have been sold to some remote mountain village, tied up at home every day, with no hope of ever getting ahead in life," Ke Meiyu said earnestly, looking terrified.
Qin Yuanjiu didn't react at all, but the little guy, feeling the pain, had tears welling up in his eyes: "Uncle Qin, my name is Lu Yuehai, I'm four years old, thank you for saving me."
As he spoke, he pulled a fine pocket watch from around his neck. "This is for you!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
