Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Zhao Qing giggled and pounced on Juhua, hugging her legs and refusing to let go. Her soft little body bumped against Juhua, making her heart soften as well. The little girl was wearing a lightly worn set of small purple clothes that she had just changed into this morning, and they were still relatively clean for now. Her chubby, baby-faced cheeks were a bit tanned from the sun—how could they not be when she was darting about everywhere in this weather?—and the two little braids on top of her head were crooked and messy.

Juhua couldn’t help but sigh at the sight. ’When Aunt Zhao gets busy, she doesn’t have time to look after her. Her hair is a complete mess. It would have been better to not have combed it at all.’

Like all young women, Juhua had no resistance to adorable children. She wasn’t busy at the moment, and seeing Zhao Qing in this state, her heart softened and her hands itched to help. So, she went inside and brought out two small stools. She also grabbed her poplar wood comb, had Zhao Qing sit in front of her, held the girl steady between her legs, and began to re-braid her hair.

Little Shitou also brought over a stool and sat to one side, watching. Juhua asked in puzzlement, "Little Shitou, don’t you have school today?"

Little Shitou quickly replied, "It’s a holiday. Everyone is busy planting rice seedlings, so the master said we could have a few days off. Brother Yangzi didn’t go either, right? Didn’t you hear him say anything, Sister Juhua?"

Juhua shook her head. "I haven’t seen him since we ate. I imagine he’s reading. You should go read too after you’ve played for a bit. You have to study hard. Even though you don’t have to take the examinations next year, you’ll have to eventually."

Little Shitou nodded. "I’ll go read with Brother Yangzi in a bit."

Zhao Qing tilted her head up and asked Juhua, "Sister Juhua, why aren’t you wearing any flowers today? Are you not a bride anymore?" Yesterday, she had seen Juhua dressed all in red and wearing flowers. When she asked her mother, her mother told her that brides always have to dress up and look pretty.

Juhua smiled and gently turned the little girl’s head straight again, replying, "I’m still a bride today. But it’s too much trouble, so I didn’t pick any flowers to wear."

Zhao Qing quickly asked, "Will you still be a bride tomorrow?"

Juhua said, "I’ll still be a bride tomorrow. I’ll be a bride for this whole month. After that, I won’t be anymore."

Zhao Qing nodded, thought for a moment, and said, "Then pick a flower and put it on me, Sister—I don’t think it’s a bother. I want to be a bride too."

Juhua stifled a laugh and asked teasingly, "Then who does Qing’er want to be a bride for? You only become a bride when you marry someone, you know!"

Zhao Qing was a bit baffled by this. She hesitated for a moment before saying, "I’ll be my brother’s bride." As she spoke, she turned to smile at Little Shitou.

Juhua chuckled. "That won’t work. You can’t marry your own family. You have to marry someone else. See, I married your Brother Huai Zi. Sister Yunlan also came from far away to marry into our family and become Brother Qingmu’s bride. And your mom also came from your grandma’s house to marry your dad and become his bride."

Little Shitou also lectured his sister, "I’m your brother, how could I marry you? It would be fine if Gou Dan married you. But that kid is too much of a good-for-nothing. I’d never marry you off to him."

Juhua was truly left speechless by this brother-sister pair, and she found it hilarious. So she deliberately teased her, "Qing’er, how about you be Li Jingwen’s bride?" Li Jingwen was Meizi’s son; Li Gengtian had helped choose the name.

Zhao Qing immediately shouted, "No way! Li Jingwen still wets the bed! That’s so embarrassing!" Just as she was speaking, she happened to glimpse Zhang Yang coming out of the house. A flash of inspiration struck her, and she called out happily, "I’ll be Brother Yangzi’s bride. It’s decided!"

Juhua was stunned for a moment. Then, seeing Zhang Yang’s dumbfounded and blushing face, she couldn’t help but burst out laughing. Her hand shook, and the braid she had just finished came loose again.

Little Shitou recalled the time he’d told Juhua he wanted to marry her, and how she’d mentioned the problem with their age difference. So he said to his sister, "That won’t work either. Brother Yangzi is so much older than you. By the time you grow up, he’ll be an old man. You’re still little, so there’s no hurry. We can take our time finding someone."

Zhao Qing looked at Zhang Yang doubtfully. ’When I grow up, will Brother Yangzi really be as old as Grandpa Li?’ she wondered. ’That definitely won’t work.’

Zhang Yang was caught between laughter and tears by the two of them, and he felt awkward. He said to Little Shitou in annoyance, "Your sister is little, but do you think you’re little too? Even if you are, you’ve at least studied in school for a few years. How can you still be spouting such nonsense? If the master heard you, he’d scold you again."

Little Shitou opened his mouth to retort, but after a glance at Juhua, he swallowed his words. He mumbled something that no one could make out.

Seeing both of them in front of her, Juhua was suddenly reminded of something. She said to them, "You two know what’s about to happen, don’t you? Have you thought about what you’re going to do from now on?"

Neither Zhang Yang nor Little Shitou said a word, but the indignant expressions on their faces betrayed their inner turmoil.