An Accidental Military Marriage

Li Hongying stepped into the kitchen just in time to hear Zhou Xiaoqing’s question to Jiang Qing. She quickly spoke up, "Xiao Qing, I think your mom is looking for you."

Hearing this, Zhou Xiaoqing returned to the east room.

Li Hongying walked over to Jiang Qing and whispered comfortingly, "Jia Ming’s family’s situation might not compare to Xiao Lu’s, but your Uncle Jiang said he’ll prepare a dowry and a wedding banquet for you, so you can marry into the Zhang Family with style."

"I don’t need it."

Li Hongying had always been meek, but Jiang Qing’s defiance sparked a bit of temper in her. "Regarding this matter with you and Jia Ming, your Uncle Jiang has been magnanimous and hasn’t held it against you. He’s even willing to prepare a dowry for you. Don’t be so ungrateful!"

Jiang Qing couldn’t contain her anger. "What did I do wrong? He and Jiang Moli are two of a kind. If he really valued Zhang Jia Ming, he would have married Jiang Moli off to him long ago. Would it even be my turn? I’m the one willing to marry Zhang Jia Ming, saving him the trouble of a falling out with the Zhang Family. He should be thanking me!"

Li Hongying felt her daughter was just making excuses, but being inarticulate, she didn’t know how to refute her.

Just then, Zhou Xiaoqing entered the kitchen, and the mother-daughter pair fell silent, each busying themselves with their tasks.

Before long, Jiang Peng’s shout came from outside:

"Dad, Sis, I’m back!"

The moment Jiang Peng entered the courtyard, he grabbed an enamel mug and started chugging water.

Jiang Dahai glared at his son irritably. "So you decided to come back, did you? I thought you’d died outside! Haven’t seen a sign of you all day!"

Jiang Moli looked at him too. "Why are you back so early?"

Jiang Peng slammed the mug down with a CLANG, looking from Jiang Dahai to Jiang Moli, his expression a mixture of wronged and frustrated.

"Do you guys want me back or not?"

Jiang Moli said, "If you left, who would watch the bathroom door?"

Jiang Dahai looked at the siblings, bewildered. "What are you two talking about?"

Jiang Peng plopped onto a stool, catching his breath as he replied to Jiang Moli, "I was just about to tell you. They sent me back. They also told me to give you a message, saying your work attitude is improper and they’re taking the job back. They’re not letting you do it anymore."

Jiang Dahai was completely lost. "What job? Moli, where did you get a job? Why don’t I know about this?"

Jiang Moli wasn’t bothered about losing the job. She really didn’t want to clean bathrooms anyway, but she still had to make a scene where a scene was due.

"That’s a load of bullshit! How is my attitude improper? You go get him and have him say it to my face!"

Jiang Peng was speechless. "That’s just what they said."

"This isn’t over. I’m going to go find him and demand an explanation!"

As she spoke, she impulsively started for the door, but Jiang Dahai grabbed her by the collar.

"That’s enough! Settle down. What exactly happened?"

With all the commotion, Li Hongying and her daughter Jiang Qing came out of the kitchen, and Zhou Weiguang’s family from the east room next door all came out to watch the drama unfold.

Jiang Moli loudly explained to Jiang Dahai how she had asked someone to find her a job watching the public bathrooms, only to be fired on the very first day.

After she finished, her face was full of indignation. "On what grounds does he say my attitude is improper? How was my attitude improper?"

Jiang Peng said, "They said you abandoned your post on your first day."

"I had something to take care of! Didn’t I ask you to watch it for me?"

Feeling guilty, Jiang Peng didn’t dare say another word.

Not long after Jiang Moli and Lu Cheng left, he got sleepy and went to nap by a nearby flowerbed, where he was caught red-handed by a leader from the neighborhood committee.

Learning the whole story, Jiang Dahai stared at the siblings, not knowing whether to be angry or not.

’Should I be angry that my daughter lost her job? But cleaning bathrooms wasn’t a good job anyway.’

His daughter was as beautiful as a flower, and educated too. How could she do such a thing?

...

Wang Lianhua immediately turned around and spread the news of Jiang Moli losing her job.

The two families lived in the same courtyard, and Wang Lianhua had never been able to stand Jiang Moli’s lazy, work-averse nature.

She had originally felt quite guilty for suggesting a lazy good-for-nothing like Jiang Moli to her nephew, feeling she had let her brother down.

Who would have thought that Jiang Moli would actually be picky and look down on her nephew?

When she found out that Jiang Moli’s childhood betrothal had been snatched away by Jiang Qing, she was happier than if it were New Year’s, feeling that Jiang Moli got what she deserved.

But then, Jiang Moli turned around and caught the eye of her former fiancé’s leader!

’It’s simply unjust!’

’A gluttonous, lazy woman like Jiang Moli should never be able to marry in her entire life!’

"It’s hilarious! The job wasn’t even warm in her hands before she lost it."

"What sins did Mr. Jiang commit in his past life to have such a troublemaker for a daughter?"

Meanwhile, Zhou Xiaoqing was also gathering a group of young "sisters" in the family residential area to mock Jiang Moli for losing her job.

"Tell me, if that guy surnamed Lu finds out what she’s really like, will he call off the marriage?"

"She’s already had one engagement broken off. If this one gets called off too, she’ll never get married in her life!"

"Serves her right!"

[Disdain Value +1+1+1...]

As news of her losing the job spread through the machinery factory’s residential area, Jiang Moli reaped endless ridicule, and her Disdain Value shot up.

The Loathed by All System was already numb to it.

’Completing missions is as easy as drinking water for its host.’

...

Although Jiang Qing was already used to Jiang Moli losing jobs.

Ever since Jiang Moli graduated from high school, Jiang Dahai had put in no small effort to find her jobs, but without exception, Jiang Moli had messed every single one up.

Still, she felt a sense of comfort and balance in her heart.

’So what if Jiang Moli is better than me in every way right now? Sooner or later, she’ll self-destruct and end up with nothing.’

...

During dinner, Jiang Qing brought up getting their marriage certificate with Jiang Dahai. "Jia Ming has already submitted the marriage application. Once it’s approved, we’ll get our certificate. We won’t have a big banquet, just a meal with relatives from both sides."

Jiang Dahai knew his stepdaughter’s strong-willed nature. "Since you and Jia Ming have already made up your minds, we’ll do as you wish. Do you have any requests for the dowry?"

Jiang Qing wavered for a moment, then shook her head and refused.

"No need. Jia Ming and I are able-bodied. We’ll earn our own future."

As someone with more life experience, Li Hongying knew all too well that there was no benefit in her daughter being stubborn at a time like this, and she couldn’t help but feel anxious.

Before she could even start to persuade her—

CLAP, CLAP, CLAP.

Jiang Moli’s clapping made the whole family turn to look at her.

"Excellent, excellent! How noble! You all heard her, right? Uncle Weiguang, Aunt Lianhua, you heard her too, didn’t you? Jiang Qing herself said she doesn’t want a dowry. It’s not my dad being harsh to his stepdaughter. You all have to bear witness for my dad."

Having been called out by name, Zhou Weiguang had no choice but to come out of his room holding his rice bowl. "Mr. Jiang, congratulations! Both your daughters have found husbands. A double blessing has come to your door!"

"Your Xiao Qing is pretty and outstanding. She’ll definitely find you a good son-in-law too."

"I’ll take that good omen."

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Zhou Weiguang went back inside his room.

Jiang Dahai didn’t bring up the matter of Jiang Qing’s dowry again.

He had a temper too. ’If she doesn’t want it, fine. I’ll save the money.’

Instead, he asked Jiang Moli when she and Lu Cheng were planning to get their marriage certificate.

"We’re getting it on the 16th."

Hearing "the 16th," Jiang Dahai paused for a second.

’Today *is* the 16th,’ he thought. ’But the marriage proposal was just this morning. They couldn’t have secretly gotten their certificate this afternoon.’

"The 16th of next month?"

"This month."

Jiang Dahai said irritably, "Be serious. Which day is it, exactly?"

In the east room next door, Zhou Weiguang’s family all perked up their ears in unison.

This was especially true for the mother-daughter pair, Wang Lianhua and Zhou Xiaoqing. The fact that Jiang Moli was marrying a military officer was just too much for them to bear.