Volume One, Chapter Eleven: He Summoned Her to Their Original Bridal Chamber

The women's restroom on this floor was very close to the storage room—practically just a wall apart.

Jiang Weili called out with some confusion, “Jiang Weiyue, are you in there?”

At that moment, Jiang Weiyue was locked in a passionate kiss with Song Chuanhe, unable to respond.

Seeing no reply, Jiang Weili began muttering to herself, “How strange. Jiang Weiyue clearly said she was going to the restroom—how come no one’s there?”

“Hmm…”

“Who’s there?”

Song Chuanhe had let her go but mischievously pinched her waist. She was already struggling to breathe from the kiss without breaks, and his sudden action startled her so much that she couldn’t help but make a noise, catching Jiang Weili’s attention.

Realizing Jiang Weili was focusing on the storage room, Jiang Weiyue’s only thought was to prevent her chatterbox sister from seeing her and Song Chuanhe, disheveled and flushed, together in one room.

At that moment, the corridor lights outside flickered on, casting a thin beam through the door crack into the storage room.

In the depths of Song Chuanhe’s calm, inscrutable eyes, a faint trace of mischief flickered.

In an instant, Jiang Weiyue understood—this man was doing it on purpose.

She was furious but helpless. For a man, such things mattered little. But for a woman, isolated and vulnerable in this era, a single misstep could ruin her entire life.

“Song Chuanhe.”

“What is it?”

The man feigned ignorance.

“Can you let me out? I don’t want her to see us like this…”

“If you beg me, it will come at a price. Tonight…”

He leaned close to Jiang Weiyue’s ear, whispering softly.

With no other choice, she agreed.

Once she consented, Song Chuanhe honored his word and released her, moving deeper into the storage room.

Feeling the man’s presence receding, Jiang Weiyue breathed a sigh of relief and said to Jiang Weili outside the door, “It’s me, Jiang Weili.”

Composed and unhurried, Jiang Weiyue stepped out.

Jiang Weili looked puzzled. “Jiang Weiyue, weren’t you going to the restroom? Why are you coming out of the storage room?”

“Do I have to report my actions to you?”

“Sis, are you mad at me? I know I shouldn’t have lied, but I did it for the sake of our family. You wouldn’t want brother Chuanhe to take revenge on us and cause us to lose our jobs, right?”

“Jiang Weili, you know exactly what you’re scheming.”

Those words made Jiang Weili’s heart skip a beat. Could Jiang Weiyue have figured out she wanted to be with Song Chuanhe? Had she lumped her and the man from her past life together in some plan?

Jiang Weiyue looked at Jiang Weili, who lowered her head, afraid to meet her gaze, and sneered with a mocking smile before turning away.

Back home, the Jiang family had already returned.

Wang Lan’s eyes reddened as she looked at Jiang Weiyue. “Weiyue, I didn’t know Grandmother’s intentions today were like this. Had I known, I never would have let you go.”

“Alright, Director Song has said he won’t hold it against us. Don’t feel guilty anymore. I’m only thinking of our family’s well-being.”

“Yes, Mom. Sis, don’t hold a grudge against Grandma. After all, Dad, second brother, and I all work under Song Chuanhe. It’s better to clear the air soon.”

“Yeah, big brother’s right. Sis, don’t be angry. Though I’m surprised that brat Chuanhe is still so loyal.”

“You all talk nicely because you weren’t hurt. You can spout these meaningless words shamelessly…”

Jiang Weiyi couldn’t bear it anymore. Only her eldest sister truly cared for her.

Heaven knew how terrified she was when the cruel grandmother said that Song Chuanhe could do as he pleased with her eldest sister.

“You little brat, how dare you talk back! I tell you, if it weren’t for me, Dad, and second brother, you wouldn’t even have a chance to keep going to school.”

“Yeah, this girl is truly ungrateful. No matter how good you are to her, it’s useless.”

“You—you all…”

“Enough! You’re all in your twenties, why argue with this child? Aren’t you afraid people will laugh at you?”

Jiang Weiyue, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke. Everyone turned to look at her.

Even her eldest and second brothers, who had been ready to scold or fight her, fell silent.

Since Jiang Weiyue woke from her high fever, they all sensed a change in her.

Though usually quiet at home, when she spoke now, her words silenced everyone.

The atmosphere turned strangely quiet. Jiang Zhen forced a chuckle.

“Weiyue, don’t be angry. Grandma acted that way just to put on a show for Song Chuanhe. You’re her favorite granddaughter; she wouldn’t really treat you badly.”

“Head of the family, I’m worried that brat Song Chuanhe won’t just let this go. Maybe we should listen to Mom and find a husband for Weiyue soon. With a man protecting her, Song Chuanhe would think twice before doing anything.”

“You’re right, but there’s no one within dozens of miles who could intimidate Song Chuanhe. Finding someone to protect Weiyue won’t be easy.”

“If no one’s nearby, then find someone farther away. Even if Weiyue has to marry far off to avoid Song Chuanhe’s revenge, I’m willing as her mother.”

“Dad, Mom, don’t worry about this. Instead of looking for someone to protect me, trust I can protect myself. It’s a society governed by law. Song Chuanhe won’t dare do anything openly. Don’t worry. Weiyi and I have to get up early to make breakfast tomorrow, so we’ll go now.”

“Weiyue, it’s so late. You and your sister should stay here tonight. Besides, I heard no one at the factory is buying your breakfast lately. Maybe you should stop making it for a while, so it doesn’t go to waste.”

“It won’t go to waste. Come on, Weiyi.”

Jiang Weiyue took Jiang Weiyi’s hand and left. As soon as they did, Jiang Dacheng grumbled, “Dad, Mom, look at that brat Weiyue. You kindly asked her to stay, and she wouldn’t listen.”

Jiang Ercheng chimed in, “Yeah, Dad, Mom, I think we’re just too good to her.”

Originally close to Jiang Weiyue, Jiang Dacheng had fallen for a girl who demanded a dowry of six hundred sixty. Unable to pay, he thought to ask Jiang Weiyue for money from her breakfast earnings but was refused.

Because of this, he never married, and as the family’s living standards improved, he grew heavier. At just 1.7 meters tall, he ballooned to over two hundred pounds.

Like a ball, he was in his thirties and still single. Every time he went on a blind date, he was rejected.

This led him to avoid dating altogether, unwilling to face rejection. His mindset twisted, blaming Jiang Weiyue for not lending him money and thus dooming him to bachelorhood.

He began brainwashing Jiang Ercheng, who blindly followed him.

Together, they opposed Jiang Weiyue but, unable to defeat her, bullied the weaker Jiang Weiyi.

Jiang Zhen was a typical patriarch who favored sons and was blindly filial, easily swayed. The only person with a somewhat normal mindset in the family was Wang Lan.

“Enough, it’s late. Everyone should rest.”

“Hmph, Mom, you’re biased. If you hadn’t protected Jiang Weiyue from giving me money back then, I’d probably have two chubby kids by now.”

“Jiang Dacheng, how dare you say that! Your sister doesn’t even have a formal job and works hard to earn a living. You want to take from her? Are you even a man?”

“You—you’re biased. I’m not talking to you anymore.”

With that, Jiang Dacheng slammed his door, Jiang Ercheng following suit.

Jiang Zhen saw Wang Lan’s displeased face. Though blindly filial, he loved his wife.

“Honey, don’t be angry. It’s late; you should get some rest.”

“Rest? The second family clearly conspired with your mother against us. When Weiyue and Song Chuanhe broke up, weren’t they involved?”

“When Song Chuanhe brought food to our family back then, didn’t they eat it? They were the first to enjoy the benefits.”

“Now that trouble has come, they want Weiyue to bear it alone. I can’t accept this. This time, maybe it’s over, but if it happens again, I won’t stand for it.”

“All right, all right, dear. I understand. I’ll talk to your mother and tell her not to do such things again.”

Wang Lan’s dark mood lightened at Jiang Zhen’s words.

Meanwhile, in the Jiang family’s second household…

After the Jiang family’s main branch, Song Chuanhe, and Qin Mu left, Jiang Weili couldn’t help but complain to the matriarch, “Grandma, look at our eldest sister. Because of past events, her reputation is ruined.”

“No one within a dozen miles wants her. I tried to match her with someone, but she refused.”

“Yes, Grandma. And this time, Song Chuanhe not holding it against us is all thanks to Weili.”

The old matriarch was sharp. Sitting with her hands tucked into her sleeves, she squinted and said, “How is that thanks to her? It was me, this old woman, who shamelessly threw away my dignity, apologized to him, and only then did he let it go. How does that become Jiang Weili’s credit?”

Jiang Weili rolled her eyes inwardly. How could this stubborn old thing still be alive? Over eighty, frail yet cunning. She freeloaded every month, living off them, and demanded the main and second households give her ten yuan monthly for living expenses.

With official wages at the steel factory barely over thirty yuan a month, ten yuan was nearly half a male worker’s monthly pay.

She disliked Jiang Weiyue and favored Jiang Weili, which infuriated the latter.

But for now, Jiang Weili endured. Once Jiang Weiyue married Song Chuanhe and became the factory director’s wife, she would no longer have to endure the old woman’s temper—on the contrary, she’d have to flatter her.

“Grandma, this credit belongs to you. But you don’t know that brother Chuanhe only came to visit us without holding grudges because I helped him when he was at his lowest.”

“Helped him? How come I haven’t heard that?”

“Yeah, how come none of us know?”

Jiang Weili rolled her eyes, disliking everyone equally.

She remembered last life, when abused by a foolish, honest man, her family refused to help her when she sought refuge at her parents’ home. Instead, they scolded her, saying she must have been at fault for the abuse.

Thinking of this made her teeth itch with rage.

“I barely remember it myself, so how would you know? But brother Chuanhe remembers everything and regards me as a benefactor. He even said if not for me, he wouldn’t have come to our house today.”

“And also…”

Here Jiang Weili deliberately left a cliffhanger.

Her tease piqued everyone’s curiosity.

“Also what? Come on, tell us!”

“Yeah, who taught you that? Saying a line and leaving it hanging?”

“Oh, I’m too embarrassed to say.”

She blushed and left, leaving everyone dumbfounded.

Zhang Pei, who knew the situation, said to them, “You really don’t need to press this further. It’s obvious that Chuanhe has feelings for our Weili.”

“Besides, did you see how he looked at her today?”

They hadn’t, but the old matriarch was quick to speak.

“Bingo, absolutely right. At first, I regretted missing out on such a good son-in-law. Who knew that brat Weili would scoop him up?”

Zhang Pei disliked hearing that.

“Mother, how can you say that? What do you mean Weili ‘scooped him up’? It’s just that Jiang Weiyue wasn’t worthy; Weili is the lucky one.”

“Yes, yes, you’re right. Once they’re together, we’ll arrange easy jobs for both of you and switch both families to a nicer staff house. Living here is uncomfortable. The first floor is better—no stairs and a yard to grow vegetables…”

Jiang Weiyue had already taken Jiang Weiyi back to their hometown. It was past nine at night.

Watching Jiang Weiyi fall asleep, she then followed Song Chuanhe’s instructions to go to his home.

Most rural folks slept early; once dark, the roads were empty.

Thankfully, or else a young unmarried girl sneaking into Song Chuanhe’s courtyard would be the talk of the town.

Song Chuanhe’s home was a two-room tiled house, somewhat dilapidated from long disuse.

Yet, for the era and rural setting, it wasn’t bad; some families still lived in thatched huts.

These two rooms were the bridal house Song Chuanhe had built for Jiang Weiyue when they planned to marry.

Each room was large and spacious, with bright, big windows—rare for the time.

Because the original owner loved sunlight, Song Chuanhe had spent extra to install these windows.

Today, he intentionally summoned her to their old bridal house. What he intended, Jiang Weiyue did not know.