country bumpkin

Chapter 345 Local Matchmakers

They started dating and writing letters after Labor Day last year, and now that they've returned from the Lunar New Year holiday, they've been dating for half a year.

When Jiang Yuqing returned to her hometown for the Chinese New Year, she told her family that she had a boyfriend. She wanted to let her family know first before discussing the engagement.

Unsurprisingly, my family objected, mainly because it was too far from my hometown, and they worried that I would have no one to stand up for me if I was bullied in the future.

Jiang Yuqing was very upset. She told her family her secret for the first time, but was met with opposition and warnings.

Even when she tried to return to work at the shoe factory, her family tried to stop her. She lied to them, saying she would no longer contact Shen Xingchen, and only then did they let her go.

Before returning to the factory, she wrote a letter to Shen Xingchen to tell him about this and reassured him that she would never give up on this relationship.

Back at the factory, Jiang Yuqing spent the entire day longing to confide in Shen Xingchen. But Shen Xingchen never showed up, leaving her feeling somewhat disappointed.

On the night she returned to the factory, Shen Xingchen rushed over, looking anxious.

“Yuqing, I received your letter. I’ve also made up my mind. I can go to your hometown to develop my career. Maybe your family will agree to our relationship then.”

Jiang Yuqing was both surprised and delighted, and her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

"Really? Xingchen, but your job..."

Shen Xingchen held her hand and said firmly, "I can find another job, but I don't want to miss out on you."

Jiang Yuqing was deeply moved; she hadn't expected Shen Xingchen to be willing to make such a huge sacrifice for their future.

The two embraced tightly, and Jiang Yuqing secretly vowed that no matter what difficulties she encountered in the future, she would face them together with Shen Xingchen.

After pouring their hearts out to each other, the two had dinner together before Jiang Yuqing reluctantly parted ways with him and returned to her dormitory.

Later, the two spent their time writing letters and meeting up, and their relationship grew stronger. Of course, the letters later turned into love letters.

So when Jiang Yuqing read the letters later, she would blush and her eyes would sparkle with happiness, feeling quite pleased with herself.

Qi Qiaodi has been busy with work these days and hasn't noticed the changes in her good friend at all.

Now that they had discovered something amiss, when they asked Jiang Yuqing, she actually lied and didn't tell them.

Qi Qiaodi was somewhat disappointed. She hadn't expected her good friend to keep such a big secret from her. Or perhaps Jiang Yuqing no longer considered her a good friend?

After much thought, Qi Qiaodi decided to first tell her best friend about her situation, and then gradually try to get Jiang Yuqing to tell her the truth. One day, Jiang Yuqing would tell her the truth.

A few days later, Qi Qiaodi took a Saturday and quietly told Jiang Yuqing about her situation.

Jiang Yuqing was shocked when she learned that her good friend Qi Qiaodi's family had arranged a blind date for her at the end of the year.

However, because the person had urgent business to attend to, they did not meet, but only left a phone number and mailing address.

My family suggests that we write letters to get to know each other first, and then meet up when we have some free time.

Qi Qiaodi didn't want her life to be arranged by her family in such a muddled way. So she was torn between writing a letter and meeting the stranger.

But to her surprise, the man sent her a letter as soon as she returned to work at the factory.

After reading the letter, Qi Qiaodi did not reply, but kept putting it off, wanting to wait until she had figured out what to do before replying.

Jiang Yuqing held Qi Qiaodi's hand, her face full of worry, and said, "Qiaodi, are you willing? This is a once-in-a-lifetime event."

Qi Qiaodi shook her head with a wry smile: "I'm also very conflicted. My family says that family is very well-off, and if I miss this opportunity, it will be hard to find another one."

Jiang Yuqing frowned and said seriously, "But feelings can't be judged solely by conditions. If you don't like him, how will you live your life in the future?"

Qi Qiaodi sighed, "I know, but my family all advised me against it, and I don't want to disappoint them."

Jiang Yuqing thought for a moment, then her eyes lit up: "Why don't you go meet that man first? Maybe you'll have a different feeling after meeting him. If it's really not suitable, then you can talk to your family about it."

Qi Qiaodi hesitated for a moment, then nodded: "That's the only way. I hope things will turn out well after we meet."

Jiang Yuqing patted her shoulder: "Don't worry, I'll support you no matter what."

Qi Qiaodi looked at her gratefully: "Yuqing, thank you, it's so good to have you." The two smiled at each other, as if they had rediscovered their close relationship from the past.

After three days of taking the medicine, Yunya's body recovered completely.

However, she only took a day off because she had a fever that day, and went to work the next day while still sick.

The next day, I didn't have a fever, but I felt weak all over and worked a little slower, always falling behind the assembly line.

However, her colleagues all knew she was still sick, so no one scolded her or caused her any trouble.

The woman working in the next step of her process was a local woman who had married into the community. She spoke very pleasant Mandarin, with a northern accent.

Yunya had some work piled up, and she slowly finished it during her breaks. She waited downstairs, neither urging Yunya nor scolding her.

Yunya was very grateful to her, but didn't know how to express her thanks, so she could only say sorry and thank you.

Sister Ma is a good person with a kind heart. She feels sorry for these young girls who come out to work, as they are sick and still go to work.

She went through the same thing herself, and she really enjoys chatting with young girls.

Furthermore, she wanted to find wives for her husband's younger brother and her brother-in-law's eldest son, so she set her sights on Zhu Yanan, Tong Jiahui, and Yun Ya.

She thought the three girls were young and naive, easy to fool. But after a few days, she found that Zhu Yanan and Tong Jiahui were much smarter than Yun Ya, so she decided to win Yun Ya over first before persuading Tong Jiahui and Zhu Yanan.

But Yunya wasn't very clever, and she listened to her family a lot. She only mentioned it briefly in front of her, wanting to test Yunya's thoughts.

Yunya said that her family doesn't want her to find a partner in another city, and wants her to go back to her hometown to find someone closer so that it will be easier for her to visit her parents' home.

Sister Ma tried her best to persuade Yunya, praising the many factories in the area, the ease of finding work, the good pension benefits, and the fact that her relative was good-looking, suggesting they meet first. She assured Yunya that she was sure Yunya would like her relative.

But Yunya insisted on not seeing her and even thanked her for her kindness. Aunt Ma wasn't discouraged by this rejection and immediately set her sights on Tong Jiahui.

She would test them one by one, believing that there would eventually be a girl who could be fooled by her silver tongue.

Not only her, but her cousin Bai Rui also had the same idea. During the Lunar New Year, she came to the dormitory to invite Yun Ya and her two sisters, along with her younger sister, to go to Luoquanzhuang to play.

On the day before the Lunar New Year, the factory was closed for the day, and the group planned to spend it in the dormitory.

They also bought a lot of ready-made, delicious vegetables at the market, two dishes each, and ate them together. That way, they could put together a big, good meal.

When Bai Rui came to invite them, they hadn't gone out to buy groceries yet. The group didn't really want to go, still resentful about the money they had to pay when they entered the factory.

But Bai Rui was so enthusiastic that the others didn't want to embarrass her. Since they hadn't brought it up openly or made a scene, they accepted her invitation.

But since it's the Lunar New Year, it's a festive occasion, and we can't go to someone's house for a meal empty-handed! After discussing it for a while, the group decided to stop at the market on their way to buy some fruit and bring those with them.

A motorcycle tricycle was already waiting at the gate. Bai Yan was already sitting on it, waiting for the three girls.

Once everyone was on the vehicle, it started to move. When they passed the market, the three of them got off, bought three kinds of fruit, and then got back on the tricycle.

This time, the journey to Luoquanzhuang was smooth, right in front of Luo Yunxiang's house.

As soon as he got out of the car, a tall and handsome young man came to greet him; it was Luo Yunxiang.

"Welcome to my home for the Lunar New Year's Eve celebration. Please come in," Luo Yunxiang greeted them warmly.

The group entered the house, which was decorated very warmly, with a sumptuous meal already laid out on the living room table.

This time, the meal wasn't served on the kang table, perhaps because everyone wanted to eat at one table, since we also have a reunion dinner on the Little New Year.

Bai Rui and Bai Yan were busy pouring tea for everyone, while Luo Wanjun chatted with everyone on the side.

Yun Ya, Zhu Yanan, and Tong Jiahui were a little reserved, after all, this was their first time celebrating the Lunar New Year at someone else's house.

However, as everyone's enthusiasm for gossip ignited, the atmosphere became relaxed and pleasant.

During the meal, everyone laughed and chatted, passing food to each other, creating a joyful atmosphere.

Luo Yunxiang's sister was also nearby, occasionally chatting with Yunya and the others, her eyes carrying a peculiar meaning.