CHAPTER 52: THE CANNON FODDER SISTER OF THE HEROINE (PART 4)

Jiang Sheng frowned.

"Why are you asking this?"

"Dad, send me to school, please."

"What are you thinking?!"

Jiang Lai straightened up and said earnestly.

"I said I want to study. He Xing is a nice person, honest, reliable, and filial. I like him, but I don’t want to get married yet. I want to go to school, Dad, please give me another chance to finish my studies."

Jiang Sheng asked in confusion.

"How did you suddenly think about studying again? Didn’t you refuse to study back then and insisted on coming back? You’re always changing your mind!"

"I was immature back then. Now is the time when the country most needs talent, and I want to study hard to serve the country!"

Jiang Sheng: "..."

The matchmaker: "..."

Oh no, oh no, it looks like this girl has been hit hard mentally.

That night, Jiang Lai’s door was pushed open, and her elder sister, the heroine of the book, Jiang Qu, walked in.

This was the first time Jiang Lai saw her. Sure enough, she looked just like the book described, with two thick braids, fair skin, and delicate features. After being reborn, she became gentle and calm and even helped the family through a year of disaster. She is currently the most adored child in the family, now 16 years old, and in her second year of high school.

"So, how did it go today?"

Jiang Lai nodded.

"He Xing is quite good, good-looking, sturdy, and also filial and principled."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Qu’s smile slightly faded. She sat down and looked at Jiang Lai with some worry in her eyes.

"But I heard He Xing’s family is really poor and has a paralyzed grandmother. Appearances are just a facade, and personalities can change instantly. You shouldn’t be fooled by these surface things, right?"

Jiang Lai smiled.

"So, sister, are you looking down on He Xing’s family situation, thinking his grandmother is a burden?"

Jiang Qu hesitated for a moment but nodded.

After all, that’s the truth. Which sensible girl would choose to marry someone like that? Marrying a man is about having enough to eat and wear. What’s the point of marrying when you can’t even get enough to eat?

Of course, she understood in her heart that He Xing wasn’t that kind of person. He is brave and smart, having seized business opportunities early. He has already saved up some money for future development. No matter how poor his family conditions are, they cannot stop him from becoming a leader among men in the future. So, enduring some hardships with him now is worth it.

Besides, He Xing wouldn’t let his woman suffer even a bit.

Thinking of the pearl hairpin he gave her not long ago, Jiang Qu couldn’t help but smile slightly.

"Of course, everyone in the village knows the situation of He Xing’s family. Marrying him, you’ll suffer."

Jiang Lai laughed as she looked at her, also laughing, naive and ignorant.

"Ah, sister, you’re still the best. But I still think He Xing is a nice person and quite handsome."

"Little sister, a face is just a facade and can change over time. The most important thing is capability. You should marry the most capable man, you know?"

"So, you wouldn’t choose someone like He Xing either, right?"

Jiang Qu’s expression changed. She sensed something was off about Jiang Lai, but given the special circumstances, she could only be disingenuous.

"I would also choose to marry a capable man. The most important thing for a woman in life is to marry a good man and then quietly support and help him from behind, you know?"

Jiang Lai nodded thoughtfully, then asked curiously.

"Why must we marry a good man? Can’t women work hard themselves to become good women? That is, we don’t rely on men and live a good life on our own abilities, right?"

Jiang Qu couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

"You want to rely on yourself to have a good life?"

"Yes! I also want to rely on myself to let my man live a good life!"

"Little sister, there’s a difference between an ideal and wishful thinking. I advise you to find a good man grounded in reality. Times have changed; living a good life isn’t enough. We should aim to live the best life."

"The best life? What is that like?"

"Living in the biggest house, driving a car, flying on planes, hiring maids..."

Jiang Lai looked shocked.

"Oh my, there’s such a good life to live?"

Jiang Qu smiled meaningfully, with a subtle arrogance in her eyes, looking casually at Jiang Lai.

"Of course, so when choosing a man, make sure to keep your eyes wide open and think it through clearly."

With that, Jiang Qu got up and left.

Jiang Lai sat on the bed, raised an eyebrow, and watched the shadow flash past her bedside.

"Could He Xing hear clearly?"

"Don’t worry, He Xing has worked in reconnaissance in the army, and he could hear everything you and Jiang Qu talked about."

Jiang Lai nodded and sighed deeply.

"Rely on a man?"

Ha.

"So now you’re planning to go after He Xing?"

"What do you mean by go after?"

"Alright, seduce then."

Jiang Lai couldn’t be bothered to argue.

"No."

"Then why are you being so nice to him?"

"I’m gentle with all good-looking men, isn’t that nice?"

"Pfft!"

Jiang Lai had her own plans, and Little Buding didn’t intend to ask more.

"Alright then, I’ll update you on He Xing’s Heartbeat Value in real-time. For now, the Heartbeat Value is 7, not bad, he has a good first impression."

"Shut up, I want to sleep now."

It’s only seven o’clock.

"You’re sleeping so early?"

"I’m getting up to study tomorrow."

"You’re really diligent."

Sure enough, early the next morning Jiang Lai got up, took out the textbooks that were gathering dust in the box, and first picked up the Chinese book, flipping through it while sitting by the window.

In these times, getting into college wasn’t easy, as there were very few study materials, and educational standards were lacking. Whether one could go to school depended entirely on the student’s diligence, and even getting into a vocational school would be a blessing.

After all, graduating from a vocational school and getting a state-assigned job meant being an upper-class person who earns commodity grains.

With Jiang Lai’s current abilities, it seems difficult to even get into a vocational school, since she hadn’t touched textbooks in a very long time. Her English was okay, but she had to work hard on Chinese and math.

Having gotten up at 5:30 a.m. to feed the chickens, Liu Shuping heard the sound of Jiang Lai reading aloud. Curious, she followed the sound to Jiang Lai’s window and heard her reciting texts.

She was both amazed and puzzled, and when she pushed the door open, she saw her usually lazy daughter now diligently bent over the desk, reading seriously by a sliver of dim morning light.

Liu Shuping was shocked and hurriedly stepped forward to ask.

"Sanya, what are you doing?"

"Mom? I’m memorizing texts, why?"

"Why on earth are you memorizing texts? What’s going on?"

Jiang Lai used to dislike studying the most, which is why she dropped out after finishing middle school and stayed home. How come it was like the sun rose from the west today, as she got up before dawn to study and learn!

This couldn’t help but worry Liu Shuping.

Yesterday, the matchmaker had warned her that Sanya might be possessed or something, but she didn’t believe it.

Now she believed it, this girl was indeed acting strangely.