Country Love: Xie Dajiao, 37, is pregnant!

Lin Chen nodded quickly:

"Yes, I still haven't finished smoking the ones you gave me last time."

"Don't worry about smoking, don't be stingy. You have to smoke good cigarettes. I get coughed when I smoke other kinds. Musheng, get a few more cartons for your brother."

"Okay!" Wang Musheng readily agreed, afraid that if he was too slow, Lin Chen wouldn't introduce him to any potential partners.

Wang Dana gave Lin Chen a few more instructions, then took Wang Musheng into the car, and the Mercedes roared away from the village entrance.

As the luxury car drove away completely, everyone was still reeling from the shock.

Wang Xia stood there, her face turning pale and then red, her heart pounding with panic. She was secretly terrified. She had just publicly scolded and reprimanded Lin Chen. If Wang Dana held a grudge and it affected the town's big investment, Old Qi would definitely give her a severe scolding, and her family's livelihood would be affected!

"Chang Gui, who exactly is this young man?"

"Oh, he's Lin Chen, the one who deposited a million in town..."

Before Wang Changgui could finish speaking, Wang Xia's legs went weak. She had heard of Lin Chen before; he was someone Lao Qi wanted to win over.

She didn't dare to delay for a moment, and immediately walked quickly to Lin Chen, her attitude completely changing. She smiled apologetically, her tone extremely polite.

"Brother, I'm so sorry about earlier! I was blind and spoke too rashly and impulsively. Please don't take it to heart and don't hold it against me. I was just being tactless."

Lin Chen didn't take this trivial matter to heart at all, waved his hand, and replied with a smile:

"Don't call me brother, it's too formal. Just call me Lin Chen. It's alright, Auntie. Uncle Qi and I are good friends. It's nothing, no need to be so polite. It's all a misunderstanding."

"Yes, it's a misunderstanding. Okay, okay, come to town whenever you have time, and Auntie will cook for you."

"Sure, no problem."

Wang Changgui stood to the side, grinning foolishly, having long since forgotten the awkwardness and embarrassment of the blind date.

Compared to Lin Chen's background, Wang Yun's small physique was utterly insignificant and insignificant. At this moment, he was filled with nothing but shock and envy.

After the two finished their polite exchanges, Wang Xia had no more interest in worrying about the blind date. Wang Dana's aura had made her feel uneasy, and her mind was full of investment matters in the town. She had no time to think about Wang Changgui and Wang Yun's blind date.

She raised her hand and gently tugged at Wang Yun's arm, signaling that she was ready to leave. Before leaving, she turned to look at Wang Changgui, her tone much gentler than before:

"Changgui, let's leave it at that for today. Don't make things difficult for me. My sister is more than willing to let me marry her. She's a down-to-earth person and doesn't ask for anything else. She just wants to find a reliable partner. Go back and think it over carefully. Call me anytime you've made up your mind."

Upon hearing this, Wang Changgui breathed a long sigh of relief and quickly slid down the steps, rubbing his hands together and forcing a polite smile on his face.

"Oh, of course, thank you for your trouble! You know my family situation. Xiangxiu is not married yet, and she has a lot on her mind. As her father, if I were to find someone else halfway through life, I would have to discuss it with her properly and listen to her opinion. Don't you think that makes sense? I can't just think of myself and make my child and your sister feel wronged."

He spoke eloquently and impeccably, appearing to be a righteous man who always thought of the child's best interests, but in his heart, he was calculating his own schemes.

He was determined to stall. He didn't dare to refuse directly, fearing it would offend Mayor Qi and delay his job transfer. He was also really intimidated by Wang Yun's sturdy build; he was too impulsive and unwilling to do so. He wanted to drag it out as long as possible, ideally until the matter was dropped and he could extricate himself perfectly.

Wang Xia didn't think much of it, nodded in agreement, and led Wang Yun to get into the Santana. The car roared and drove along the village road towards the town, disappearing from sight in no time.

The two had only been gone for two minutes when a figure hurriedly ran towards them from a distance; it was Xie Guangkun.

Xie Guangkun tidied himself up neatly, and after jogging all the way, he was panting heavily. He craned his neck to look towards the grocery store from afar.

He was working in his yard when he heard the villagers say that a Santana had driven into the village. He immediately understood that Qi Santai must have come in person to talk to him about Yongqiang's job transfer and reassignment. He immediately put down his work and rushed over.

They rushed over as fast as they could, but the car was long gone; they came up empty-handed.

He clung to the counter of the grocery store, peering anxiously at Xie Dajiao, asking with a look of eagerness:

"Big Foot! Tell me quickly, was that Mayor Qi's car just now? I recognized it from afar as the town's Santana, why didn't it stop and just drove off? Did it come specifically to see me? Did Yongqiang find a job?"

Seeing his self-deluded appearance, Xie Dajiao couldn't help but purse her lips and then recounted the entire blind date in detail, from Wang Xia bringing Wang Yun to propose marriage, to Mayor Qi arranging the marriage of Chang Gui, and then to the lively scene of the luxury car arriving at the door just now, without missing a single detail.

Xie Guangkun stood there listening, stunned for a long time, his mouth agape, unable to close it. It took him a while to finally understand what he meant, and he kept smacking his lips, his face full of envy and jealousy.

"Oh my god, so they're introducing Changgui to someone? And it's Mayor Qi's sister-in-law? What did I tell you? She's the village head after all; she's got a sharp mind. She seems quiet all the time, but she's ruthless! She's really willing to go all out!"

He shook his head and clicked his tongue in admiration, his eyes practically overflowing with envy:

"Chang Gui's career is really taking off now. With a connection to Mayor Qi, getting transferred to a job in town will be a piece of cake, a guaranteed meteoric rise!"

Xie Guangkun walked home beaming, his mind filled with his own smug calculations of how his family had benefited. As soon as he entered the yard, he started yelling at Yongqiang's mother, who was busy working in the yard:

"This is fantastic news! Our family is going to benefit greatly!"

Yongqiang's mother was busy tidying up the yard when she heard him making a fuss. She looked up and asked in confusion:

"What good news? You're so old and still making such a fuss, you're so unsteady..."

"This is too good to be true! This is fantastic news!"

Xie Guangkun paced back and forth in the courtyard with his hands behind his back, unable to suppress his smile, he was extremely excited.

"Wang Changgui is getting engaged to Qi Santai's sister-in-law, Wang Yun! You wouldn't believe it, his wife just came over in person. Changgui's really on top now. He'll have powerful backers in town from now on. Yongqiang and Xiangxiu are dating, so Changgui is practically our in-law. Once this relationship is secured, what's there to worry about for Yongqiang's future career? He'll be able to benefit from it all without even lifting a finger!"

The couple were chatting when they heard the sound of a bicycle coming from the courtyard gate. Xie Yongqiang pushed the bicycle back, looking dejected. He was listless, his head drooping, and his face full of depression. It was clear that he was unhappy.

When Xie Guangkun saw his son, his eyes immediately lit up. He rushed over, patted Yongqiang on the shoulder, and said excitedly:

"Son, a tremendous stroke of good luck has befallen the Xie family! Your father-in-law is about to marry into a wealthy family! Sister-in-law of Mayor Qi, you'd better treat Xiangxiu well from now on. Don't be naive. Maintain this marriage. Your future promotions, transfers, and job prospects will all depend on your father-in-law's connections!"

Xie Yongqiang, annoyed by his father's words, replied listlessly:

"What are you trying to do? There's no way I can get any help from you. Xiangxiu and I had a huge fight, and now we're not talking to each other. We might break up soon."

"Huh? What did you say?!"

Upon hearing this, Xie Guangkun's eyes widened instantly, his face changed drastically, his previous joy vanished, and his anger flared up. He kicked Yongqiang in the backside, cursing him with exasperation:

"Are you out of your mind? How can you be so dense? We're at such a crucial point, and you still dare to argue with Xiangxiu! Do you know that Changgui is about to take off? Getting involved with the mayor's relative is something many people would kill for, and you're pushing it away! I don't care, you go apologize to me right now!"

Xie Yongqiang, feeling deeply aggrieved after being kicked, finally snapped:

"It wasn't entirely my fault, so why is it all my fault? I'm not apologizing!"

"You dare not go?!"

Xie Guangkun got angry, looked around, turned around, grabbed the broom behind the door, and raised his hand to hit someone:

"Let me tell you, Xie Yongqiang, you have to go today, whether you like it or not! If this marriage falls through because of you, you can forget about ever amounting to anything in your life! Don't count on me for your future job or career. Go apologize to your father-in-law right now, and while you're at it, give him a gift to congratulate him on his good marriage and try to smooth things over!"

Seeing this, Yongqiang's mother quickly stepped forward and pulled Xie Guangkun back, stopping her furious husband while gently persuading Yongqiang:

"Son, listen to me. Don't hold a grudge against your father. He's doing this for your own good. Young couples shouldn't hold grudges overnight. It's not shameful to apologize. Go to Xiangxiu's house and coax her. Don't let things get really bad."

He quickly took out some money from his pocket, went back inside to find some red paper, wrapped it up, and stuffed it into Xie Yongqiang's hand, gesturing with his eyes for him to leave quickly.

Under pressure from both his parents, Xie Yongqiang could only clutch the money resentfully and slowly push the cart out, his face long and drawn, feeling wronged and angry, and extremely unwilling.

Xie Yongqiang dawdled until he reached Wang Changgui's door, pushed it open, and went inside. The courtyard was quiet; Changgui wasn't home. Only Wang Xiangxiu sat on the kang (a heated brick bed), her chin resting on her hand, seemingly lost in thought. Suddenly, her face flushed, and she sighed softly.

"How come Lin Chen's future wife eats so well..."

Hearing footsteps, Xiangxiu looked up and saw Xie Yongqiang. She immediately turned her head away, not even bothering to lift her eyelids, and completely ignored him.

Xie Yongqiang leaned his bicycle against the wall, clutched the money, went into the house, and threw the money dryly on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), his tone curt and perfunctory:

"This is a gift my dad asked me to send to my uncle, and also... about the argument we had before. I was wrong, okay?"

This doesn't sound like an apology at all; it sounds more like someone forced to do something, cold and insincere, which makes you even angrier.

Xiangxiu caught a glimpse of the money on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) out of the corner of her eye, and her anger flared up again. She turned and glared at him.

"Is this how you give gifts? Do you think I care about your little bit of money? Xie Yongqiang, can't you be a little sincere? Your apology is so perfunctory, who are you trying to fool with that face!"

"How did I brush you off? I've already admitted my mistake, what more do you want?"