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Back to the 80s: A Marriage of Love
The room indeed no longer held the presence of Qian Minmin, but the warmth she left behind lingered. Zhao Jin smiled awkwardly at Qi Zheng and explained, "Well, my Second Sister-in-law is used to teasing me, so please don't mind."
"I don't mind." Qi Zheng truly didn't care. Noticing the lingering discomfort on Zhao Jin's face, he decided to change the subject. "You still haven't finished your request."
"Oh right, I haven't..." Zhao Jin instinctively picked up on Qi Zheng's words, but when it came down to it, she suddenly stopped, her face growing even more embarrassed. "How about you take the lead this time? I've been the one making requests all along; it doesn't feel right."
"I won't." Qi Zheng maintained his stance, looking seriously at Zhao Jin without any hint of coercion. His promise was firm. "You make the request."
He had no requests of his own and didn't need any. On the contrary, he enjoyed hearing Zhao Jin make requests. Moreover, through Zhao Jin's "requests," Qi Zheng sensed a deeper truth about her that he had not known before.
Qi Zheng was willing to hear Zhao Jin continue making requests; he wouldn't mind how many there were. As long as Zhao Jin was willing, he would listen carefully and certainly fulfill them.
"Then..." Knowing Qi Zheng's taciturn nature, Zhao Jin understood that if she didn't speak up, they might end up sitting in silence for a long time.
So after Qi Zheng clearly indicated that he wanted to hand over the conversational power to her, Zhao Jin didn't hesitate or shy away. She earnestly continued with her request: "I haven't worked in the fields at home and I'm not very skilled at farming tasks. If I don't perform well after marrying into your family..."
Zhao Jin wasn't trying to make excuses to avoid farm work or preemptively warn Qi Zheng not to let her work in the fields. She simply wanted to discuss these matters with him in advance. She intended to learn seriously about these things later on but wasn't sure she could pick them up quickly, so she hoped Qi Zheng would give her some time to adjust.
"You won't have to work in the fields." Without needing Zhao Jin to finish her sentence, Qi Zheng decisively provided his answer.
He wanted to marry Zhao Jin because he genuinely liked her, not because he wanted her to suffer alongside him.
If marrying him meant that Zhao Jin would have to endure hardship and toil, Qi Zheng would rather not marry her and let her pursue a better happiness elsewhere.
"No, it's not that I don't want to go out. You don't have to hit me like that!" Zhao Jin could tell that Qi Zheng was serious. But this outcome was truly not what she wanted.
She hurriedly waved her hand, trying to explain her true feelings to Qi Zheng with tears in her eyes: "I'm just afraid that I'm too clumsy and won't do this or that well, making you and your family look down on me. I don't want to be lazy, and I'm not planning to marry into your family to boss everyone around, really."
"Mm." There was no need for Zhao Jin to explain; Qi Zheng wouldn't have any unnecessary misunderstandings. Even if Zhao Jin explained, it wouldn't change Qi Zheng's decision.
Having known Qi Zheng for a lifetime, how could Zhao Jin not understand the deeper meaning behind that "mm"?
She blinked, then blinked again, letting out a long sigh as she suddenly gave up the thought of arguing with Qi Zheng.
Forget it. Anyway, once she married into the Qi Family, she would use her actions to show her determination. As for now, everything was just talk and couldn't truly demonstrate her seriousness and effort.
Qi Zheng waited for a while, thinking Zhao Jin would say something more. However, in the end, Zhao Jin still didn't say anything further.
Now it was Qi Zheng's turn to feel conflicted.
He absolutely did not want to fall into a silence with Zhao Jin. Just like before, it was nice when they were both listening to each other.
Unfortunately, it was clear that Zhao Jin wasn't planning to engage in deeper conversation anymore.
Not that she didn't want to; it was just that the "requests" Zhao Jin could think of were about all there was. As for anything else, she couldn't recall at the moment and didn't intend to think too much about it.
It wasn't a passive mindset of taking things one step at a time; Zhao Jin had simply made a new decision to slowly work through the concerns and issues she cared about with Qi Zheng in their everyday life.
Because it was Qi Zheng, Zhao Jin always had enough confidence to face things positively and had plenty of enthusiasm to tackle those potential challenges.
With Qi Zheng around, she wasn't afraid at all!
Qi Zheng originally wanted to listen to Zhao Jin a bit more, but unexpectedly, Zhao Jin had already stopped. At the same time, there was a commotion coming from the yard outside.
"What’s going on? Boss, are you really planning to act like an ungrateful wolf? On such an important day, you didn’t even send someone to invite us over to take a look?" Grandma Zhao had been waiting at home for most of the morning, and as it was nearing noon without anyone from Zhao Jin's family coming to invite her and Grandfather Zhao over for a meal, she couldn't sit still any longer. She brought along Zhao Fourth Uncle's family and went to Grandfather Zhao uninvited.
When Zhao Jin and Qi Zheng walked out one after the other, they saw Grandfather Zhao, Grandma Zhao, and Zhao Fourth Uncle's family blocking the yard, looking like they were ready to cause trouble.
To be honest, Zhao Jin didn't feel much familial affection towards Grandfather Zhao, Grandma Zhao, and Zhao Fourth Uncle's family. All her sincerity towards these people had long been worn away in her previous life. Therefore, seeing them show up at this moment, she truly couldn't welcome them.
"Dad, Mom, why did you come over?" Zhao Guoqiang indeed had no intention of inviting Grandfather Zhao's family over for a meal.
The reason was simple: they were already on bad terms with each other. He had grown cold towards Grandfather Zhao and the others and held no expectations anymore.
Moreover, there were complicated entanglements involving the marriage between the Zhao Family and the Qi Family, including Zhao Ying'er, which made it unnecessary to mix together again to avoid making everyone uncomfortable.
However, it was clear that Grandfather Zhao and Grandma Zhao did not think this way. Not only did they not think so, but they also came over with a sense of righteousness to accuse Zhao Guoqiang of being unfilial. In some sense, they could indeed be called "extreme."
Of course, the reason Grandfather Zhao and Grandma Zhao came over was ultimately due to the bride price sent by the Qi Family.
Aside from that, just those pieces of furniture alone would be enough to make a statement if they took a couple back home.
After all, since Zhao Jin was going to be married off as a daughter, those pieces of furniture surely wouldn't follow her back to the Qi Family as part of her dowry. If that were the case, it would truly be a complete joke.
Since it was confirmed that these pieces of furniture belonged to the Zhao Family, Grandfather Zhao and Grandma Zhao naturally believed that they had a share in it as well.
As soon as Chen Cui opened her mouth, they couldn't sit still and rushed over excitedly.
Facing Zhao Guoqiang's blatant unwelcomeness, Chen Cui was the first to jump out: "What do you mean, big brother? We're all family here. Our parents came over to your house for a meal, and that's a big crime? Besides, today is the first time the New Son-in-law is visiting; shouldn't we at least let Grandpa and Grandma take a look? Since ancient times, hasn't every son-in-law followed this rule when visiting? Even if big brother doesn't think much of our family, does that mean he doesn't recognize our Parents?"
Chen Cui was somewhat self-aware, knowing that Zhao Guoqiang didn't regard her family highly. However, her attempt to stir up trouble between Zhao Guoqiang and Grandfather Zhao and Grandma Zhao, after the unpleasantness from before, couldn't shake Zhao Guoqiang's resolve.
Zhao Guoqiang still had his unchanged plan; he wouldn't neglect the well-being of Grandfather Zhao and Grandma Zhao. The grain he needed to deliver each year and the support payments he had to provide would not be lessened.
But for anything more... sorry, he wasn't a fool. He had a whole family to support and couldn't always cater to Grandfather Zhao's blatant favoritism.
As Uncle, Zhao Guoqiang found it inappropriate to bicker with his sister-in-law Chen Cui. However, Xu Mei, as Sister-in-law, had no need to hold back.
"Oh, Fourth Sister-in-law is here to cause trouble again? What’s this? Planning to arrange another marriage for our Jin? First it was the Wu Family, then the Qi Family, and now you're eyeing a third one? Sister-in-law appreciates your concern for Fourth Sister-in-law, but it's really unnecessary. Look, our Jin's marriage has already been settled; the New Son-in-law has come over. Fourth Sister-in-law should leave early and not harbor any other thoughts!" Xu Mei was not a harsh person. Whether as a wife, mother-in-law, or elder sister-in-law, she had always been gentle and tolerant; she had never been confrontational like this moment.
However, for Zhao Jin's sake, Xu Mei was strong as a mother and for the first time stood up against Chen Cui.
Faced with Xu Mei's powerful demeanor, Chen Cui couldn't help but soften.
A few awkward expressions flashed across her face as she lowered her voice uncomfortably: "Well, Sister-in-law, you misunderstood. I just came along with Parents to see the New Son-in-law and help Jin out; there's no other intention. After all, today is Jin's big day; even I wouldn't come here to make trouble!"
Unfortunately, Chen Cui's words had no credibility whatsoever. Given her past behavior and character, there was really nothing she wouldn't do.
Just by standing in Zhao Jin's family's courtyard right now, if Chen Cui didn't have bad intentions, no one who knew her would believe it!
Xu Mei also didn't trust Chen Cui's character. After being sisters-in-law for so many years, Xu Mei knew exactly what kind of person Chen Cui was.
In the past, I didn't argue with Chen Cui because I wanted to maintain peace among relatives. But now, for Zhao Jin, Xu Mei is determined not to back down: "Fourth Sister-in-law, we are not the first sisters-in-law. We all know what kind of person you are and what kind of temper I have, so let's not play games."
Upon hearing Xu Mei's tone, Chen Cui knew things were going to go badly. Just as she was about to defend herself, Xu Mei waved her hand, completely cutting off any chance for her to speak, and started to drive them away: "Alright, Fourth Sister-in-law's family should go do what they need to do. Today, Sister-in-law's family has guests, so we won't be keeping Fourth Sister-in-law's family for dinner."
Clearly, Chen Cui had made herself very clear before. Qi Zheng, as the new son-in-law, was visiting for the first time. They, as Zhao Jin's relatives and elders, were fully qualified to come over and help Zhao Jin. But Xu Mei didn't leave them even a shred of courtesy and drove them away instead; it was truly infuriating.
"I'm not leaving!" The first person to retort against Xu Mei was Zhao Ying'er.
She was filled with pent-up anger! Her aunt was trying to kick her out! Why was she being kicked out? Was it because they were afraid she would ruin Zhao Jin's marriage?
The Qi family's marriage was originally hers. The bride price that Qi Zheng sent over was also meant for her. It was Zhao Jin who shamelessly snatched it away from her. Zhao Jin had no shame!
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