Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Chapter 363 - 192: Daughters Don’t Marry Out (Part 2)

Upon hearing this, Li Changyu quickly buttered up his father. "That just means you and they were thinking the same thing, Dad. ’Great minds think alike,’ right? But as the village chief, you naturally have to consider the entire village. They just act on their ideas, and since they weren’t asking the village for any money, they didn’t mention it to you."

Li Gengtian shot him a look, chiding him with a laugh, "You’re being ridiculous." Then he asked, "Is it just a few of you doing the planting?"

Li Changyu nodded. "We didn’t plant that many. We were thinking of asking Changxing and the others to join us tomorrow. With more hands, we can plant more. The sooner they’re planted, the sooner they’ll grow, isn’t that right?"

Li Gengtian nodded, instructing him to get more of the young men. "If you’re going to do it, do it right. You can act on my behalf."

After saying this, he exchanged a look with Li Mingrui and asked, "Changyu, you’ve been spending a lot of time with Huai Zi and Qingmu lately. What do you think of Huai Zi? Your Second Uncle doesn’t want to marry your cousin Jinxiang to someone far away. He was thinking of matching her with Qingmu, but then Qingmu went and got engaged without a peep. There aren’t many eligible young men left in the village now, and Huai Zi..."

Li Changyu was startled and quickly cut him off. "No, not Huai Zi! That won’t work!"

Li Gengtian asked, puzzled, "Why not? Don’t you two get along well?"

Li Mingrui and Mrs. Fang also stared at him, waiting for a proper explanation.

Li Changyu was stumped. ’How am I supposed to explain this?’

’Huai Zi would never marry Jinxiang, but I can’t tell them the real reason. Still, I can’t just say nothing... three pairs of eyes are staring right at me.’

His mind raced as he hemmed and hawed, then he suddenly changed tack. "You all say that Jinxiang, Meizi, and even Liu’er back in the day, are all fine girls. But Qingmu never went to any of their families to propose marriage. Everyone thought he wanted to wait to get engaged and married, but then suddenly, he’s engaged. What do you suppose that was all about?"

Li Gengtian said, annoyed, "What was it all about? Stop keeping me in suspense and just spit it out."

Li Changyu smiled. "He wasn’t interested in them! The thought never even crossed his mind, so there was no way he was going to their homes to propose."

Li Gengtian nodded and sighed. "I suppose that’s right. Back then, with Liu’er..."

He trailed off. Liu’er was married now; it was better not to bring up the past. As expected, Mrs. Fang also shook her head at him, silently telling him to stop. She was worried their son might hear and accidentally let it slip outside, causing unnecessary trouble.

But Li Changyu hadn’t noticed and continued with his own train of thought. "Back then, Huai Zi’s mother approached Liu’er’s family to propose a match. Even though it didn’t work out, it shows that his family had the idea, and Huai Zi didn’t object. But look at the last couple of years—has his family proposed a match to anyone?"

Li Gengtian and Mrs. Fang thought about it. It was true, the Zhang family hadn’t approached anyone to propose a match in the past two years. Puzzled, he asked, "Isn’t it just that he wants to wait a couple of years to get married?"

Li Changyu shook his head. "Then what about Qingmu? He was also talking about waiting a couple of years, but didn’t he get engaged anyway? The only reason Huai Zi isn’t engaged is because he hasn’t found the right person. As soon as he does, I guarantee he’ll get engaged, just like Qingmu did."

Li Mingrui said, displeased, "Are you saying your cousin Jinxiang isn’t good enough for him?"

Li Changyu said with mild exasperation, "Grandpa! It’s not about him thinking Jinxiang isn’t good enough, it’s... it’s just like with Dad back in the day!" He couldn’t mention that Huai Zi had his heart set on Juhua, so in his haste, he brought up his father’s past.

Li Gengtian was stunned, then shot his son a harsh glare—how dare he make a joke at his own father’s expense. Beside him, Mrs. Fang’s face flushed slightly.

Realizing his slip of the tongue, Li Changyu quickly tried to cover his tracks. "What I mean is, regardless of what his family or Huai Zi himself is thinking, the fact is he hasn’t shown any interest in any of the girls in our village. If we approach them with a proposal, it probably won’t be accepted. We shouldn’t set ourselves up for embarrassment; it wouldn’t be fair to Jinxiang. Just think, Jinxiang is right here under his nose. If he had any feelings for her, wouldn’t he have come to ask for her hand a long time ago?"

Li Gengtian nodded thoughtfully. "I was being foolish. His family earned some money last year, so they’re not as poor as they used to be. If he had any such intentions, he would have come to propose on his own."

Li Changyu nodded again and again, breathing an inward sigh of relief.

’Even though I wish more than anything that Huai Zi would just get engaged to someone else, I know that’s impossible. It’s better not to let Jinxiang suffer a needless rejection.’

Hearing this, Mrs. Fang stopped her needlework and asked with concern, "Then what should we do? Do we really have to marry Jinxiang to someone outside the village?" She was reluctant to see that happen, too.

Li Changyu was baffled. He asked why Jinxiang couldn’t marry someone from outside the village.

After they explained their reasons, he was reminded of something Little Shitou and Gou Dan had said at Juhua’s house on New Year’s Eve. He couldn’t help but burst out laughing. Seeing the three elders glaring at him with unfriendly expressions, he quickly suppressed his laughter.

He thought for a moment before saying to his parents, "The most important thing in finding a match is finding a good family. The other stuff isn’t worth worrying about. Even if Jinxiang marries someone from outside the village, do you really think she’ll have a bad life? Not to mention, once my business gets going, I can definitely help my cousin and her husband set up a small business. Why be so dead-set on staying in the village? If everyone here insisted their daughters not marry outsiders, it would be a disaster. Every family would be marrying someone from the village, and they’d be fighting and arguing every single day for sure."

After thinking it over, Li Gengtian couldn’t help but laugh as well. He slapped his thigh and said, "That’s right. It’s better to look outside; there’ll be more people to choose from. I’ll have a good talk with your uncle later. He’s still waiting to pick someone from right here in the village."

Li Mingrui could only concede. "When you talk to your brother, tell him not to find someone too far away. I don’t have many years left. I need to have my grandchildren close by."

Li Changyu quickly laughed. "Grandpa, what are you talking about? Don’t say such things, especially during the New Year; it’s bad luck. You’re still strong and healthy! Once spring comes, you should get out and walk around more. You’ll live another twenty years, no problem."

Li Mingrui was pleased and chuckled, "If I live that long, I’ll turn into an old relic."

Just as they were speaking, Li Gengdi came to call his father, his older brother, and his sister-in-law over for dinner.

Li Gengtian pulled him aside and quickly explained Li Changyu’s reasoning and his own change of mind.

Li Gengdi said, "I suppose I was being short-sighted, only thinking we had to find someone in the village. Changyu is right. We’ll take our time and search. As long as the man is a good person, it doesn’t matter how near or far he is. Jinxiang is so capable, why would we worry about her having a bad life!"

Li Gengtian smiled. "That’s exactly right!"

And with that, the family went to eat.