I was married off to a disabled hero in lieu of marriage; my in-laws doted on me and I aspired to gr

On the way back to school, Xiaoqi rode her bike with Qiaoqiao on the back.

Xiaoqi always rode the bike, because she always felt that Qiaoqiao was too weak to carry someone.

"Yang Qiao, wasn't Yao Xing fired? He hasn't come home yet?" Xiao Qi asked cautiously.

"Yes, he was afraid of embarrassing his family if he went back, so I secretly found him a temporary job. But he lived up to his potential and is now the manager of the disinfection plant."

Qiaoqiao didn't avoid the topic; since she brought Xiaoqi along, it meant she trusted her.

"Zhou, who is the vice governor?"

"My father-in-law, Xiaoqi, please don't tell anyone, okay?"

Xiao Qi swallowed hard and said, "Okay, you, your family has such a high-ranking official."

"It's all about serving the people, regardless of rank."

It sounds like official jargon, but it's actually Qiaoqiao's honest opinion.

My father-in-law, as the vice governor, works harder than anyone else in the family.

The burden of ensuring the basic needs of the people throughout the province and their path to prosperity rested entirely on my father-in-law's shoulders. He not only received no high-ranking official position or generous salary, but he also owed a great deal of money.

"As the daughter-in-law of the vice governor, you are still willing to help me, Yang Qiao, thank you," Xiao Qi said, moved.

"Xiaoqi, I also come from the countryside, and my father-in-law isn't as high and mighty as you think. When he comes to my house, he even digs potatoes."

"Is the vice governor really this approachable?"

"We're no different from farmers. My father-in-law was the one who set up the agricultural demonstration project in Tonggang County. After it succeeded, it was promoted throughout the province. Isn't your family about to be allocated land to individual households? You can raise chickens, ducks, and pigs from now on. Xiaoqi, your family will get better and better."

When talking about her father-in-law's achievements, Qiaoqiao couldn't help but feel a little proud.

"With such good leaders in our province, the people have hope."

Xiaoqi suddenly choked up. In her mind, officials were far away from her, but she never expected that they were right beside her.

Even more unexpectedly, the seemingly unreachable provincial governor actually went to the fields.

"Xiaoqi, I've already discussed your family's situation with your father-in-law. Once the Huailin City Commercial Market is established, we can offer you a storefront at the lowest possible price, and you can then sell your kimchi to the entire city."

"Yang Qiao, is it illegal for you to sell kimchi privately?"

"No way, Yao Xing's disinfection factory is contracted by him. My father-in-law said that if we want to develop the economy, we have to open it up. In the future, a large number of individual businesses will emerge. You have skills and labor, so let your third brother go into business." Qiaoqiao encouraged.

"If individuals could run businesses, that would be wonderful; my family would definitely be able to eat meat again."

Xiaoqi was overjoyed and pedaled the bicycle faster and faster.

Next was Liu Songming's wedding.

As October arrived and the weather cooled down, Qiaoqiao's family prepared new clothes.

Qiaoqiao wore a long-sleeved pink shirt dress, with her two braids pinned up. Combined with her round face, she looked very elegant.

Who would believe that the little girl who wore cloth shoes and didn't even dare to wear a shirt three years ago has become so confident and composed?

At Qiaoqiao's repeated urging, Luo Meiyun wore a cloth dress with a belt and a plaid skirt.

She is poised and elegant, and looks ten years younger than her actual age.

Luo Meiyun is intellectual and generous, and this dress suits her very well.

Zhou Xiaowei wore a small shirt with a black bow in the middle.

A pair of black trousers, paired with leather shoes, and with his hair combed until shiny, he looked every bit the little gentleman.

Zhou Wenhui and Zhou Zhonghai were also dressed in formal attire: white shirts, black trousers, and leather shoes.

Zhou Xiaowei wanted to bring his little yellow dog to the wedding banquet, but Qiaoqiao sternly stopped him, saying, "Who brings a dog to a wedding banquet?"

Zhou Xiaowei burst into tears, saying that Xiao Huang was his friend, and if he ate meat, Xiao Huang should also eat meat.

Finally, Zhou Wenhui talked to Zhou Xiaowei and asked him to leave Xiaohuang at home and bring back a bag of bones so that Xiaohuang could eat for a week.

Zhou Xiaowei had no choice but to compromise, and Hu Xiaomei was heartbroken, as her position had been taken over by Xiao Huang.

Liu Songming sent a car to pick up Zhou Zhonghai's family early in the morning. Today, the old leader was the officiant, and besides the bride, he was the second most important guest.

The family arrived at the military family compound. Red lanterns were hung at the entrance, and large red "double happiness" characters were pasted everywhere inside the compound, creating a joyous atmosphere.

Fang Guiying stopped the car and waited at the gate of the courtyard. She happily opened the car door and said, "Governor Zhou, thank you for your hard work. Songming has gone to pick up the bride. Please come in."

Zhou Zhonghai laughed heartily, "Sister-in-law, you go ahead and do your thing. We'll treat you like we're at home; we can take care of ourselves."

"Alright then? You're a distinguished guest, please come inside. There's fruit inside."

As the group entered the courtyard, the armed forces leaders, bowing and scraping, all surrounded them.

Zhou Wenhui and Xiao Wei followed Zhou Zhonghai, while Qiaoqiao and Luo Meiyun went to visit the new house.

Liu Songming and Zhong Yao's new house is also Zhou Wenhui and Qiaoqiao's new house.

The large red blanket given by the Zhou family was spread on the bed, and it looked especially beautiful.

"Mom, it's so soft and comfortable. Wenhui has such good taste; he gave me a great blanket."

Qiaoqiao touched it, her eyes full of envy.

"Next time Dean Song asks me to perform surgery for another hospital, I'll ask for a blanket voucher to get one for you and Wenhui," Luo Meiyun said with a smile.

"Mom, you accepted bribes too?" Qiaoqiao laughed.

"That was earned through my own labor, it doesn't count as bribery. Your father even asked the governor for a ticket for a pressure cooker, that doesn't count as bribery either."

"Then I'll wait for Mom to bring me a blanket."

"I promise I'll get you a bed."

The mother and daughter were secretly laughing, as if they were discussing a heinous crime.

"Qiaoqiao, you were alone in your new home on your first day of marriage with Wenhui. You must have been very sad, right?" Luo Meiyun said, her voice tinged with sadness as she recalled the past.

"Mom, can I say that I slept exceptionally well the first night?"

At that time, Qiaoqiao had no feelings for Zhou Wenhui. She married him with the mindset of sacrificing herself, so how could she be sad? She couldn't wait to sleep alone every day.

"You slept really well? Your father and I were sad for a long time, feeling guilty towards you," Luo Meiyun asked in surprise.

"I was exhausted after a long day, and I fell asleep as soon as I got into bed. I didn't even have time to think about my parents."

"As expected, human joys and sorrows cannot be shared." Luo Meiyun laughed as well.

"Qiaoqiao, when I first went back to the army, you said you would write a diary, but I still haven't seen your diary." Luo Meiyun seemed to remember something.

"Haha, Mom, I wrote it, but I can't show it to you." Qiaoqiao laughed heartily.

Why?

"Everyone's criticizing Zhou Wenhui, saying he's so cold and aloof despite having such good parents, as if the whole world owes him something. They're calling him a blockhead, saying he ate two big bowls of my cooking and didn't even say thank you."

She also called him pretentious, saying he needed to shower three times a day and it was exhausting. She also accused Cheng Zhaoying of coming to their door to cause trouble, saying they were married but hadn't properly dealt with their premarital relationship. She said a lot of things, and I'm afraid my mother will think I'm a heartless woman if she reads it.

"You, so many things have happened at home, and you didn't even tell us."

"The second time you returned to the army and went to the battlefield, at that moment, I had no complaints about Zhou Wenhui, only awe. I was only concerned with my own feelings and didn't know what Wenhui had gone through. If it were me, I might not have had the courage to survive."

His comrades, his friends, all perished beside him. He barely survived, but lost both his legs. Such a proud man, married to a plain, unsophisticated country woman—who wouldn't be content in that situation?

Qiaoqiao's smile vanished, replaced by heartache for Zhou Wenhui.

"It turns out that you are the most suitable person for Wenhui. Qiaoqiao, your marriage with Wenhui was arranged, but actually, your father put in a lot of effort. Your family has a bad class background and has experienced a lot of unfair things, but your family is still able to face life optimistically, which is very rare."

Your grandfather was a traditional private tutor who valued the education of his descendants. You may be poor, but your character is not. Some families, because of poverty, are filled with conflict and discord; your family, however, is united, loving, and supportive of one another.

"Mom, I feel like you're exaggerating. Is my family really that well-off?"

"Of course it would be great. We love Wenhui deeply, so naturally we'll investigate. To outsiders, it might seem like we're just finding some random country girl to take care of Wenhui for the rest of his life because he's disabled. But actually, we're seriously looking for a daughter-in-law. Even if you don't get along with Zhou Wenhui, we'll still consider you our daughter."

"Mom, meeting you is a blessing that Qiaoqiao has accumulated over many lifetimes." Qiaoqiao was so moved that she was about to cry.

"It is a blessing that our Zhou family has accumulated over many lifetimes to marry you."

"Mom, I'm so happy, even happier than the bride today."

Qiaoqiao hugged Luo Meiyun, tears welling up in her eyes.