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

In the evening, after dinner and washing the dishes, Qiaoqiao put on a coat and said to her mother, "Mom, I'm going to Zheng Fenglin's house to play for a while."

Qiaoqiao's mother, who was embroidering pillowcases on the kang (a heated brick bed), said, "There's some candy from the Zhou family in the side room. Grab a handful and let Fenglin have a taste."

"Um."

Qiaoqiao went to the side room and took about ten candies, which were peach candies. The candy wrappers were crystal clear and very pretty.

After thinking for a moment, I put the candy down, took two, and went out.

Zhao Jintao couldn't eat ten of them, and there wasn't any candy like that in the village. If his mother found out, he didn't know how she would ridicule him.

By the reservoir, Zhao Jintao sat on a rock, staring blankly at the clear water shimmering and dancing like youth under the moonlight.

"Brother Jintao, have some candy." Qiaoqiao walked to Zhao Jintao's side, peeled a piece of candy, and handed it to Zhao Jintao.

"You're here." Zhao Jintao stood up quickly, looking nervously at the candy in Qiaoqiao's hand.

"Have some, these are my wedding candies." Qiaoqiao smiled sweetly.

Wedding candy, wedding candy! Zhao Jintao took it, stuffed it into his mouth, and found it sweet and sour.

The two sat down, and Qiaoqiao said cheerfully, "I'm getting married on the eighth day of the month, so come and eat at the banquet!"

"Are you really willing to marry me?" Zhao Jintao stammered.

"Yes, I'm willing. He's a hero who lost his legs for the country. I admire and respect him, and I'm willing to marry him."

Qiaoqiao smiled, her round face, dark skin, and innocent smile filled with the fragrance of the earth.

Zhao Jintao gave a wry smile: "I thought you were forced into it."

"My family loves me very much, why would they pressure me?"

"Well... I wish you happiness!" Zhao Jintao had never promised Qiaoqiao anything. Since it was her own choice, he had nothing more to say except to offer his blessings.

"Brother Jintao, if it were you, would you marry him?" Qiaoqiao asked abruptly.

After a moment of silence, Zhao Jintao said, "Maybe."

Qiaoqiao laughed: "Fenglin also said he would. After graduating from high school, my brother wanted to become a primary school teacher in the village, but he couldn't because of family problems. But the Zhou family didn't say a word and just gave us the employment certificate from the city's machinery factory."

In autumn and winter, my grandma suffers from excruciating pain all over her body, like ants crawling on her, and my dad can only buy her a few painkillers. And my grandpa, ostensibly to make up the numbers, but they beat him whenever they want. Brother Jintao, I don't care about the gossip in the village; I just want my family to be able to stand tall.

"If the Zhou family can allow my grandfather and father to live with their heads held high, then I am willing to marry into their family."

As the words fell, tears also fell.

"I should let Yang Zheng be the team leader. He came up with many of the ideas for digging ditches and building roads. But how can we change this world? Qiaoqiao, Zhou Yingxiong is an educated man; he will treat you well."

Zhao Jintao forcefully suppressed his feelings for Qiaoqiao. Speaking them out would only bring him more trouble.

Qiaoqiao's marriage to the hero was a decision made by her family, and her good friend Yang Zheng finally had a chance to shine. But he was just a lowly squad leader; what kind of security could he possibly offer Qiaoqiao?

Zhao Jintao didn't care about his mother's opinion. However, Qiaoqiao was too good, too good. Even with him, she was starving three times a day.

"My brother said that the world won't stay like this forever; we can't let people go hungry. We're still young, let's wait, we'll see the day when we have enough to eat and wear. Brother Jintao, my brother and I are leaving now. If anything happens to my family, please take care of us."

"Of course, Yang Zheng and I are friends, so your family is my family."

"Thank you, please come to the wedding banquet on the eighth day of the lunar new year."

What should have been a joyous occasion was now filled with mixed emotions for both of them.

When she got home, her grandmother and mother were still embroidering pillows. Qiaoqiao greeted them and went back to her room.

The Yang family has a total of four mud-brick houses and two side rooms.

The main room was used for meals and storing miscellaneous items. The east-facing main room had a kang (heated brick bed) where the parents and grandmother slept.

The west main room was where my grandfather and brother slept.

Qiaoqiao sleeps in the back room; of the whole family, only she has her own separate house.

The side rooms consist of the kitchen and the dry toilet.

Night fell, the moonlight was bright, and Qiaoqiao lay in bed, letting her tears fall.

She did not want to marry Zhou Wenhui.

Commander Zhou and Aunt Luo were very warm towards her, but Qiaoqiao felt an invisible pressure from them, and her inferiority complex left her at a loss.

Zhou Wenhui is a college student, handsome and dignified. Although he has lost both legs, how could someone from such a privileged upbringing like a dark-skinned girl from the countryside?

Qiaoqiao understood everything. The reason she acted indifferent was because she didn't want her family to worry.

When Qiaoqiao was a child, her grandfather was a respected private tutor in the village. He told her that if the fate of the country was to be changed, someone would have to make a sacrifice.

If everyone only cares about their own interests and is afraid of death, then the country will only become a slave state.

Marrying Zhou Wenhui was the only chance to change the fate of her family. Her brother went to the city, and her children and grandchildren were all city dwellers.

As for herself, Qiaoqiao shared the same thought as her mother: having a child would make her life complete.

She wouldn't care if she didn't have children; for the sake of her family, she was willing to be the one to make the sacrifice.

If, if Qiaoqiao had the choice, she would want to marry Zhao Jintao.

Zhao Jintao also graduated from high school. After returning to the village, he became the team leader of Dashui Village in less than two years.

The most work points a woman in the village gets is seven. Girls like Qiaoqiao usually get five work points, but Zhao Jintao gave her seven.

When the team distributed meat during the Chinese New Year, Zhao Jintao would divide it according to the number of people, and Qiaoqiao's family would always get a share.

When the team dried up their fishpond, Zhao Jintao would always call on his older brother to bring home the small, miscellaneous fish in the middle of the night to improve their diet.

Zhao Jintao respected scholars and quietly looked after the Yang family, but he also had a weakness: his mother was a shrew in the surrounding villages.

Jin Tao's mother had already made it clear that her son was the team leader and a key person to be cultivated, and she would never allow him to find a woman with an unclear family background.

Qiaoqiao understands Jintao's mother; if Zhao Jintao stays with her, his future will be ruined.

Zhao Jintao understood this, so he never revealed his true feelings.

In difficult times, everyone weighs their own interests.

Qiaoqiao turned over, wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, and said to herself, "The eighth day of the lunar new year, there are still three days left. In three days, I will start a new life."

The love and hate of Dashui Village should all be erased.

Three days later, her brother would take her to the Zhou family's house, and then she would report to the city's machinery factory.

My brother will probably find a beautiful and gentle city girl as his wife, right?

Perhaps, in a few years, Qiaoqiao will have a nephew or niece, and they will surely be as beautiful as porcelain dolls.

Commander Zhou said he would bring Grandma some medicine from the army for treating rheumatism, so that her bones wouldn't hurt in the winters to come.

The five hundred yuan her parents gave her could not be taken with her; it was placed under her mother's pillow.

With money, Grandpa and Dad could occasionally eat pork belly. Thinking about it, Qiaoqiao smiled happily.