Chapter 42: Three Pitfalls in One Sentence

Chapter 42: Three Pitfalls in One Sentence

"I think in the original plot, the Lin family made a wrong move. Instead of arranging Lin Weihong's marriage to Jiang Chengxiao, it would have been better to arrange a good job for her!"

"Exactly! A family like the Jiangs is too much for a timid, introverted country girl like her to handle. Though she appeared to live a carefree life after marrying into the family, she never had a peaceful day. Her resentment led Jiang Chengxiao to stop supporting her family, and the old couple ended up living a miserable life."

"Actually, given the relationship between Jiang Chengxiao and Lin Guangshan, if their actions hadn't eroded that bond, he could have easily helped them out, and they wouldn't have ended up like this."

"The problem is, they couldn't have imagined it. In their understanding, marrying their daughter into a good family was the best way out."

Song Xilan deeply agreed.

So this time, she wasn't here for herself, but to help Lin Weihong and her family, to prevent them from making a wrong move that would lead to a series of mistakes.

Song Xilan asked her uncle about the Lin family's condition, and Tan Jianhua said, "How could it be good? They only have Guangshan as a son, and he went to the army. The elderly couple isn't in good health and can't do heavy work. They only have one daughter, who is also sickly. While other women can earn at least seven labor points a day, she’s lucky to earn five. When Guangshan was still around, he would send some stipend back every month, and their lives were somewhat better. But now... sigh!"

Song Xilan looked at Jiang Chengxiao: "Did you hear that? Their life is so difficult. How can you still eat their food without guilt?"

Tan Jianhua: "Since Xiao Jiang came with you, he’s our guest. He must come home to eat."

Jiang Chengxiao quickly said, "Uncle, I can eat anything. There's no need to prepare special dishes for me. Just serve whatever you normally eat."

Song Xilan: "That won't do. I rarely come back, and I want to eat the chicken my grandma raised just for me. It's been raised for almost a year, growing up on the mountain, catching insects and eating grass seeds. It roamed the mountain every day, so the meat is very firm and sweet. It's delicious. You’re lucky to get a taste thanks to me."

Tan Jianhua parked the tractor at the Lin family's door: "Uncle Lin, come and see who's here!"

A frail, hunched old man slowly emerged: "Jianhua, who's here?"

"Is this... Guangshan's grandfather?" Jiang Chengxiao asked hesitantly.

Tan Jianhua: "Guangshan's father!"

Lin Guangshan’s father’s appearance was quite unexpected for Jiang Chengxiao. He was roughly the same age as Lin Guangshan, so their parents' ages shouldn't be too different.

But the man before him lacked the vigor and strength of his grandfather.

Not to mention his father. Jiang's father is only in his forties, in the prime of his life. Anyone who sees him would describe him as mature and wise, with no trace of old age.

So when he first saw Lin Guangshan's father, he almost couldn't believe his eyes.

Tan Jianhua shouted in the old man's ear: "Uncle, this is Guangshan's comrade, Xiao Jiang. He came to visit you. Where's Auntie? Ask her to come back. Xiao Jiang brought a lot of things for you!"

The old man shouted, and a small, hunched old woman emerged from the vegetable field next to the yard, her hair already gray.

Jiang Chengxiao’s heart ached with sadness, and he quickly walked up to them: "Uncle, Auntie, I'm sorry I'm late."

When Lin Guangshan was mentioned, Lin's father remained silent, while Lin's mother kept wiping her tears. A young woman stepped out of the house: "Dad, Mom, Comrade Jiang came all this way. Hurry and invite him in for some water."

Tan Jianhua considered his task done after bringing them over and didn't stay long. He jumped onto the tractor's driver's seat, ready to leave: "Lan Lan, are you coming back with me first?"

Song Xilan: "No, you go ahead. I'll go back with Comrade Jiang later." She needed to stay and watch him to make sure he didn't get persuaded to stay and drink.

Lin Weihong's gaze directly fell on her, boldly looking her up and down, but she ignored her and turned to greet Jiang Chengxiao: "Comrade Jiang, come on in. The journey from the county to our village is rough. You must be tired! Have lunch at home. Mom, go see what good dishes we have at home and prepare them quickly."

Song Xilan's alarm bells rang loudly in her heart. There was something wrong with that gaze!

She had known Lin Weihong for so many years, and this was definitely not a look she could have, nor were these words she could say.

The Lin Weihong she knew would never look directly at people. Every time she spoke to her, she would always shyly lower her head, occasionally glancing up quickly before looking away again.

Before speaking, she would always fidget with the hem of her clothes for a long time, and when she finally opened her mouth, she would stammer, which was particularly frustrating to listen to. It was impossible for her to speak so smoothly and confidently.

If it were in the past, she might not have thought too much about it, simply assuming that it was just because they hadn’t seen each other for a long time and the other person had grown up.

But now it’s different. Her mind is now filled with a barrage of thoughts, and she has even encountered a time-traveler.

Is Lin Weihong also a time-traveler? Otherwise, how could her personality have changed so completely?

"Weihong, did Lan Ni come back this year to pick Haihong fruit? She loves it so much. If she didn’t come back, I’ll pick some tomorrow on my way back to the county town and bring it to her."

Lin Weihong glanced at her: "That’s very thoughtful of you."

Song Xilan’s inner voice crossed her arms and thought, 'Gotcha!'

Lin Weihong’s response seemed flawless, but was actually completely off.

First, she and Ding Lan Ni are not good sisters; they’re rivals who clash whenever they meet.

Second, Ding Lan Ni is allergic to Haihong fruit; she breaks out in rashes as soon as she eats it, so she never eats it.

Third, Ding Lan Ni is not in the county town at all; she married into the neighboring county.

Song Xilan smiled triumphantly. She was brilliant, setting three traps with just one sentence, and the other person fell into all of them.

This Lin Weihong must have been replaced from the inside out, no doubt about it.

She wasn’t sure if this new Lin Weihong still planned to marry Jiang Chengxiao. No matter what, she couldn’t let her win.

Seeing Song Xilan’s expression, Lin Weihong also guessed that she’d probably slipped up, but it didn’t matter. She felt that she would be leaving soon anyway, so what if people suspected her? Could they possibly know that she was a time-traveler?

She smiled and said, "A few days ago, I accidentally fell into the water and almost lost my life. After being rescued, I had a high fever, and after it subsided, my mind got a bit foggy, and I forgot a lot of things."

This was her go-to excuse during this period to cover up her drastic personality change, a one-size-fits-all excuse.