An Accidental Military Marriage

"Director Zheng, you must be aware of my eldest cousin’s situation. He wants to join your factory as a lathe operator. Go ahead and arrange it."

Jiang Moli spoke with the authority of a leader, leaving Zheng Qiangdong momentarily unsure of how to react.

He assumed Jiang Moli must have some powerful connections.

He said politely, "Miss, could you please show me the letter of introduction?"

"A letter of introduction? I don’t have one."

’How dare she ask me to arrange a job without a letter of introduction?’

"Miss, I can’t make any arrangements without a letter of introduction. Why don’t you go back, get your paperwork sorted, and then return?"

Jiang Moli retorted, "If I had a letter of introduction, why would I need you? You’re the director of the personnel department. Hiring someone is just a matter of you saying yes or no. Just arrange it for my cousin, and be done with it!"

Zheng Qiangdong was left speechless.

’He was just a lowly personnel director, not the factory manager.’

’Besides, even if he did have that kind of power, he’d give the positions to his own relatives first. Who are you, an outsider, to get a turn?’

His tone grew impatient. "Look here, miss. Just who do you think you are?"

’So arrogant.’

Jiang Moli jutted out a slender leg, looking impossibly cocky. "It’s none of your business who I am. If you’re a man, give me a straight answer. Can you arrange it or not?"

Zheng Qiangdong’s patience finally ran out. "Hey, you’re just here to cause trouble, aren’t you?"

Jiang Moli sneered, looking down on him. "This crappy little factory of yours? If my cousin hadn’t taken a liking to it, you couldn’t have paid me to come here. It’s a hot day. Wouldn’t I be more comfortable lying at home in front of a fan?"

Zheng Qiangdong exploded. "If you think our factory is so crappy and small, then don’t bother coming! Who the hell do you think you are?!"

"And what breed might you be, to be so vicious?"

"Get out, or I won’t be so nice!"

"Get out we will~"

’Disdain Points +1.’

Hearing the notification that the Disdain Points had been registered, Jiang Moli turned and left without a second thought.

The Ruan Family was dumbfounded. To say this was different from what they had imagined would be an understatement; it was a world apart.

By the time they snapped out of it, Jiang Moli was already far in the distance.

Ruan Fuguo hurriedly chased after her. "Moli, what was that? Didn’t you say everything was already arranged?"

Jiang Moli spread her hands. "I did. That was my arrangement. Uncle, you saw it yourself. He refused to listen to me. There’s nothing I can do."

Liu Feng caught up as well, asking anxiously, "Didn’t you have your father-in-law put in a word for us?"

Jiang Moli put on a baffled expression. "What does this have to do with my father-in-law? You’re *my* relatives, not his."

"You’re his daughter-in-law! Isn’t your business his business?"

"That’s not how it works. He is he, and I am I. I promised to arrange a job for you, and well, I tried to arrange it."

"But that’s not what we call an arrangement! Nothing got arranged!"

"Disappointment is a part of life. Not every seed grows into a mighty tree, and not every flower bears fruit. I did my part. The outcome was beyond my control."

The sun was a fireball, hot enough to make you feel like smoke was rising from your head.

Jiang Moli had Jiang Peng open a small, floral parasol to shield her.

Jiang Peng was sturdy and imposing, while she was small and delicate, like a pampered flower.

At a glance, they had the distinct look of a bodyguard and his young mistress.

"Uncle, Auntie, don’t be discouraged. If this one didn’t work out, maybe the next one will. The town government building is right up ahead. Come on, Uncle, let’s go see the town head and have him appoint you as village chief."

Ruan Fuguo hastily stopped her. "Moli, do you even know the town head?"

"Nope."

"He doesn’t know you! Why would he listen to you?"

"Whether he listens or not is his problem. I still have to try and arrange it for you. I’m a person of principle; I always follow through on my promises."

With that, she started heading toward the town government building.

Ruan Fuguo stood frozen. ’I get it now,’ he thought. ’She’s not helping us find work, she’s leading us to our doom!’

’You can’t just barge into the town government building!’

...

On the country path, Ruan Fuguo and his large family trudged forward, heads bowed, one after another like a locomotive.

They were all dejected and downcast, like frost-bitten eggplants, a stark contrast to their cheerful spirits when they’d set out.

"Fuguo’s back!"

Someone shouted, and the farmers in the fields straightened up one by one to stare at the family.

"Fuguo, your Xue Wen has really made something of himself this time, landing an iron rice bowl."

"Will he be getting a wife in a couple of months? That would be a double blessing!"

A few villagers offered flattering words, trying to get on Ruan Fuguo’s good side.

Ruan Fuguo exchanged a look with his wife.

Liu Feng turned and whispered sternly to the three siblings, "Keep your mouths shut. Don’t go blabbing about things you shouldn’t!"

Ruan Fuguo forced a smile and played along. "We’ll see, we’ll see. If he does find a wife, I’ll be sure to invite you all to the wedding banquet."

Ruan Xuewen and his siblings weren’t idiots; they knew their parents didn’t want them to reveal that the job had fallen through. Each one of them clammed up tight.

In truth, they were too embarrassed to say anything anyway.

They had spent the last few days bragging to their friends. Now that the job was a bust, their friends would laugh themselves sick at their expense.

...

"That damn girl Moli! She’s burning newspaper at a gravesite—who does she think she’s fooling, the ghosts? How could I have fallen for her evil tricks and actually believed she could get Xue Wen a job? All those years of feeding her the best fruits... what a waste! I’d have been better off feeding the pigs!"

Liu Feng had been cursing the whole way home. As soon as she shut the door behind her, she couldn’t stop herself from letting loose again.

She was just so furious!

"We can’t just let this slide! Let’s go find her husband and make him give us an explanation!"

Ruan Fuguo’s face was so grim he looked like he could kill someone. "Let’s not be hasty. We’ll see what happens with the second and third families tomorrow."

Before parting ways, Jiang Moli had told Ruan Jiajin to wait for her at the town’s grain and oil station the next morning.

Although it was highly probable the second brother’s family would meet the same fate, a tiny sliver of hope remained in his heart.

Or perhaps, he was just unwilling to let the dream of his family’s rise to prosperity be shattered so easily.

He wanted to wait and see.

Even if he was just chasing an empty dream, it felt better than accepting the utter futility of it all.

...

"I’m back!"

Seeing Jiang Moli return from outside looking flushed from the heat, An Hui couldn’t help but ask, "Where were you?"

"I went to arrange a job for my eldest cousin."

An Hui was shocked.

When Jiang Moli left, she’d only said she was running an errand with her family, not *this* kind of errand.

"Xiao Jiang, didn’t you say the whole ’job arrangement’ thing was just a ruse to trick your uncles? Did you actually go through with it?"

’I hope she didn’t cause another scene out there.’

"Where’s my cousin’s wife?"

"She went back to her old home. She won’t be back until tomorrow."

"Oh."

An Hui was in no mood for small talk. "Just tell me what happened. What job did you arrange for your uncles?"

Jiang Moli flopped onto the sofa and pouted. "A certain someone is parched. She wants some sweet, sweet watermelon."

An Hui glared at her. "How about some dog crap? You want that?"

Jiang Moli squirmed like a maggot. "Mom~"

She squirmed again. "Mom~"

And squirmed once more. "Mom~"

"Stop! Stop yelling!"

’It’s like she’s trying to summon a ghost,’ she thought.

An Hui got up, grabbed her keys, and put on her shoes to go out.

Jiang Moli craned her neck to watch her. "Mom, where are you going? Are you abandoning me?"

"I’m going to buy a watermelon for Her Highness!"

"But don’t we have watermelon at home?"

The only response she got was the sound of the door slamming shut.