Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Meng Li stood frozen in place, the smile still lingering on her lips, caught completely off guard.

She had never imagined Ji Yunshu would react this way. In the original book, Ji Yunshu was so infatuated with He Jianjun—throwing fits, flat-out refusing to divorce, making a total scene in front of the whole compound until everyone looked down on her. Ji Yunshu should have argued with her, should have fought back. She'd even rehearsed her response—how to cry, what to say to sound wronged, running every word through her head.

But Ji Yunshu had simply said "Fine."

Just stood there, all flat and indifferent, like she wasn't giving up a man but tossing aside something she didn't give a damn about.

Was this really the same clingy, dramatic side character from the book who'd chased He Jianjun like a lost puppy?

Meng Li's smile faltered. She stared at Ji Yunshu for a beat, then gritted out: "Are you serious?"

"Serious." Ji Yunshu didn't look up, continuing to fold her clothes, her voice calm. "I'll go see He Jianjun tomorrow and call it off. Marry him if you want—ain't my problem."

Meng Li's chest tightened. She opened her mouth to say something nasty, but her lips quivered and all that came out was: "Don't regret this."

Ji Yunshu didn't look up or say a word.

Meng Li turned and left, grabbing the doorknob and yanking it open. The door slammed against the frame with a dull thud.

She returned to her room—the guest room He Qiuxia had prepared for her—closed the door, and leaned against it, her heart still pounding.

Why the hell was Ji Yunshu reacting like this?

She had expected Ji Yunshu to cry, to make a scene, to accuse her of stealing her man. Then she could've played the victim and said, "I just want back what belongs to me," and let He Qiuxia see how Ji Yunshu was bullying her.

But Ji Yunshu had said nothing, just agreed so easily, as if He Jianjun were some piece of trash to be thrown away.

Meng Li gritted her teeth, nails digging into her palms.

Fine. Act tough now. Just you wait—you'll get yours.

The Meng family was in for a rough time in the original book, and Ji Yunshu was now technically the daughter of a capitalist family. Once the Great Movement began, without the He family's protection, she'd be screwed!

Meng Li took a deep breath, walked over to the bed, and sat down, the anger still boiling inside her.

She thought back to the other day.

Wang Wanru had stuffed a wad of cash into Ji Yunshu's hands the moment they met. Wang Wanru always kept that pouch on her—she didn't know how much was in it, but it was stuffed, at least a few dozen yuan.

Giving that much money to someone right off the bat—the Meng family really was generous. She'd insisted on coming to the capital, as if afraid she might run away, and then had the gall to talk about splitting the family estate three ways? Ridiculous. Everyone knew the eldest Meng son had already taken a big chunk of valuables when he married. What remained in the Meng household was just some worthless porcelain and paintings. When the Great Movement came, those porcelains would all be smashed to pieces anyway—what good were they?

The money Wang Wanru had given Ji Yunshu at once was probably more than she could spend in two weeks back in Su City. Meng Li ground her teeth in frustration. If Ji Yunshu returned to the Meng family, who knows how much more money Wang Wanru would give her? The family estate was all up to Wang Wanru and Meng Guangze anyway—they talked about splitting things evenly, but did they give her much gold or jewelry? The eldest son's wife got all the gold and silver!

Meng Li lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, her eyes stinging with resentment.

No, she couldn't think like that. She was going back to the Ji family. The Ji family had a good class background—Ji Haiguo was a major general, He Qiuxia was a commander's wife—way better than the capitalist Meng family. Once she married He Jianjun, who was gonna be a big shot, she'd be an officer's wife. What was Ji Yunshu? Just the daughter of a capitalist family, gonna get dragged out and criticized in public sooner or later.

She turned over, yanked the covers over her head, and forced herself to stop thinking.

The next morning, when Ji Yunshu got up, He Qiuxia was already bustling around the kitchen.

Ji Yunshu finished washing up, walked into the kitchen, and stood behind He Qiuxia, trying to figure out how to bring it up.

He Qiuxia turned around. "What's up?"

"Mom," Ji Yunshu figured she'd just say it straight, "I want to call off the engagement with He Jianjun."

The ladle slipped from He Qiuxia's hand and fell into the pot, splashing some rice water around. She quickly turned off the stove and whipped around to face Ji Yunshu. "What did you say?"

"I don't plan to marry He Jianjun anymore." Ji Yunshu leaned against the doorframe, her tone pretty calm. "I want to date who I want, not be tied down by some arranged marriage."

He Qiuxia waved her over. "Are you serious?"

"I'm serious," Ji Yunshu said. "He Jianjun's mother doesn't like me—you heard her yesterday. If I marry into that family, I'll only be looked down on every day. What's in it for me?"

He Qiuxia was speechless for a second.

Ji Yunshu continued, "Besides, this engagement was never mine to begin with. Meng Li came to see me last night and said she's the Ji family's biological daughter, and He Jianjun should be marrying her."

He Qiuxia's expression changed instantly. She wiped her hands, walked out of the kitchen, and knocked on Meng Li's door. "Li'er, come out here a sec."

Meng Li emerged quickly, hair already combed, dressed neatly, with a sweet, innocent smile on her face. "Mom, what's wrong?"

He Qiuxia looked at her, her tone still even. "Did you go see Yun Shu last night? What did you say to her?"

Meng Li froze, her smile freezing for a split second. She darted a quick look at Ji Yunshu, and her eyes immediately reddened.

"Mom, I... I did say a few things to sister, but that's not what I meant..." Her voice began to tremble, tears starting to well up. "I just figured, since I'm the Ji family's daughter, He Jianjun should marry the Ji family's daughter—that's only fair, right? I told sister, and she said fine, said she'd give the engagement to me... Mom, I really didn't pressure her. I just thought it would be more appropriate this way..."

As she spoke, tears began to fall, her voice growing softer: "How could sis think that of me... I never meant to take anything from her..."

He Qiuxia watched her cry, her brow furrowing, but she said nothing.

Ji Yunting had appeared at the stairway at some point, having overheard most of the conversation. He walked over, leaned against the doorframe, hands in his pockets.

"I'm all for it, one hundred percent." Ji Yunting drawled lazily. "That mother of He Jianjun's—clearly not someone easy to get along with. Yun Shu would be miserable marrying into that family."

He Qiuxia shot him a glare. "Keep your mouth shut."

"I'm just stating facts," Ji Yunting said, unperturbed. "Mom, think about it—what she said the day before yesterday was testing you. If you'd softened, imagine how she'd treat Yun Shu after the wedding. Am I right or not?"

He Qiuxia's expression darkened further at his words. She was silent for a moment, then turned to Ji Yunshu. "Yun Shu, tell Mom the truth—do you like He Jianjun?"

Ji Yunshu was caught off guard by the question.

"Or, is there someone you like?" He Qiuxia took her hand, her tone softening. "If you could stay in the compound, find someone we know well, Mom would feel at ease. If you really don't want to be with He Jianjun, I won't force you. But I still need to worry about your future."

Ji Yunshu didn't hesitate: "I want to break off the engagement. Sister's right—this engagement was never mine to begin with. I don't like He Jianjun, and I want to find someone I actually love."

"Alright, then I'll take you to call it off this afternoon." He Qiuxia sighed and didn't press further.

That afternoon, He Qiuxia took Ji Yunshu to the He residence.

He Jianjun's mother answered the door, smiling at Ji Yunshu at first. But when He Qiuxia stated her purpose, her face fell instantly.

"Break off the engagement?" The mother's voice shot up an octave. "Sister He, what do you mean by this? What's wrong with our Jianjun that he's not good enough for your Yun Shu?"

He Qiuxia maintained her patience. "Sister Liu, it's not about whether he's good enough. The children's matters should be decided by the children themselves. The country no longer advocates arranged marriages. Yun Shu wants to find love on her own, and we as parents shouldn't stand in her way."

The mother's face flushed red with anger, but with He Qiuxia having said that much, she couldn't very well throw a fit. Finally, she turned her head away and forced out through gritted teeth: "Fine. Call it off then. Our Jianjun won't have trouble finding someone better."

He Qiuxia left with Ji Yunshu.

The mother slammed the door shut and stood behind it, fuming for a long time. The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. Her son was so accomplished—the most promising young man in the compound—and he'd been rejected? Wasn't this a slap in her face?

That evening, she went out. First she stopped by Aunt Li's place next door for a chat, then visited Grandma Wang's across the way, and the next morning, she went to see Sister Zhao at the end of the alley.

The things she said eventually made their way to Ji Yunshu's ears through the grapevine.

"That Ji Yunshu, her biological parents are capitalists from Su City, their class background is bad. Her biological parents don't even dare show their faces in our compound—if they did, they'd be chased out!"

"The real daughter of the Ji family came looking for her, and she still has the nerve to stay on at the Ji house. Talk about thick skin."

"Our Jian Jun broke off the engagement with her—it's not that we looked down on her, it's that she wasn't good enough for our Jian Jun. A capitalist's daughter, thinking she could marry into a proper military family with a spotless background? Dream on."

"She took the real Ji daughter's place for nineteen years, took the real Ji daughter's engagement, and now that the real daughter is back, she's still clinging on. What do you call that? A dog in the manger."

These words spread quickly through the compound.

As Ji Yunshu walked through the compound, the looks she got had changed again. Before, they were curious and appraising; now, they carried a hint of contempt and smug satisfaction.

Someone muttered behind her back, just loud enough for her to hear.

"So that's her? The capitalist's daughter."

"Exactly. She took the real daughter's place for nineteen years. Shameless."

"Heard she got dumped too. Serves her right."

"With a background like hers, who'd ever want to marry her? Just wait and see—she can't hang around the Ji family forever!"

Ji Yunshu knew who was spreading these rumors. With the He family's old lady's petty, vindictive nature, it would have been strange if she'd done nothing at all.

She also knew the people gossiping about her—just a bunch of losers from high school who'd never matched her grades, and who'd wanted to marry her but been rejected, holding a grudge ever since.

"The state now advocates free choice in marriage, and arranged marriages have long been banned. I took the initiative to break off the engagement in line with national policy—what, are you saying the national policy is wrong?" Ji Yunshu was not one to take things lying down. She turned her head, fixed her gaze on the gossiping men and women, and was about to storm over and argue with them.

But before she could reach them, she heard firm footsteps behind her.

"You lot have nothing better to do?" A familiar voice rang out from behind, not loud, but carrying an unmistakable chill. The group looked up, and their faces went pale.

Pei Yufeng stood there in an immaculate white naval uniform, his rank insignia glinting in the sun. He'd apparently just returned from running errands outside. He stood with no expression on his face, his cold and sharp gaze sweeping over each of them in turn.

"The military compound isn't a vegetable market. If you have something to say, say it to their faces—why whisper behind people's backs?" Pei Yufeng called out each of their names one by one. "Li Jiu, Wang Jianshe, Zhang Feng... You're a disgrace to your distinguished military parents! When did the compound become a place for spreading rumors?"

Pei Yufeng had spent years at sea and participated in numerous major battles; his character had been tempered like steel forged in fire, carrying a calm that made people not dare meet his eyes.

The Pei family was the most untouchable in the compound. Everyone knew that the Pei family had sacrificed everything for the country, yet even so, the matriarch and her only son remained low-key, never causing trouble with anyone. So if anyone made Pei Yufeng angry, they were insulting the son of a fallen hero, and the entire compound would shun them.

Seeing Pei Yufeng stand up for Ji Yunshu, the group cowered. The young man who'd been most enthusiastic in his gossip stammered, "Brother Pei, we were just chatting..."

"Just chatting?" Pei Yufeng took two steps forward. He was tall, and his presence alone was intimidating. "The things you said, if they get out, they damage the Ji family's reputation—and the military's reputation. Who gave you the nerve to spread rumors in the compound?"

The group exchanged glances, none of them daring to say a word.

"Apologize." Pei Yufeng held up his hand. "Do I need to teach you how?"

"We're sorry, Sister Yunshu, we spoke without thinking..."

"Yes, yes, we didn't mean it. It was that old hag from the He family spreading it around..."

"We swear it won't happen again..."

"I don't accept it!" Ji Yunshu let out a cold laugh. "Go answer to your parents if you have anything to say—they certainly never taught you to gossip behind people's backs."

Pei Yufeng watched Ji Yunshu lift her chin, with her head held high like a proud swan, and found it hard to look away. But soon, he felt his gaze was too bold, and he averted his eyes slightly.

"Brother Pei, thank you. Let's go." Ji Yunshu turned to him with a radiant smile.

Pei Yufeng felt like he could barely breathe. His voice lowered as he said gently, "Grandma says she misses you. She wants you to come by the house."

Author's note:

Congratulations to our Yun Shu on successfully breaking off the engagement!!! Sorry for being late today. I might have to trim the word count going forward, to climb the rankings qwq