The poor girl from the 1970s was forced to kiss by the damp educated youth.

Chapter 37 If it were you, would you marry someone like me?

Chen Zhi barely slept all night, and only when the rooster crowed at dawn did she feel sleepy and fall into a deep sleep.

He slept until the sun was high in the sky. Several people came to visit; it was Li Jiaxiang with his four sons.

When Chen Zhi got up, the family was cleaning fish. The fish that Chen Zhi had caught the day before yesterday were not finished; there were still a few loaches and two eels left.

My older cousin and his wife were cutting the snail's tail.

There was another piece of pork on the cutting board, weighing about half a pound.

Children chased and played in the yard, while adults sat on the porch chatting, creating a lively and harmonious scene.

But none of this mattered to Chen Zhi. She rinsed her mouth expressionlessly, kept her eyes straight ahead, didn't greet anyone, and ignored the burning gazes falling on her.

After washing her face, Chen Zhi walked straight towards the door.

"stop!"

Grandma Ding Fangfang shouted loudly, her eyes filled with anger.

Chen Zhi paused, turned around, and said with a half-smile, "You didn't have to rush me today. I went out by myself. Why aren't you satisfied?"

Ding Fangfang choked, and for a moment she didn't know how to answer.

"You brat, how dare you talk to your grandma like that!" Grandpa Chen Kai was so angry that he was about to take off his shoes to hit Chen Zhi, but was stopped by his uncle.

The uncle asked with a smile, "Where is Zhizhi going?"

Chen Zhi glanced at the busy people and said, "Go out and find somewhere to hide, otherwise I'm afraid staying at home will ruin your plans again."

The uncle's smile froze, and he said somewhat awkwardly, "We're all family today, you don't need to hide outside."

Chen Zhi scoffed, "Oh, so the whole family doesn't have to worry about being affected by my bad luck?"

Upon hearing this, the Chen family members' faces turned ugly, but Li Jiaxiang's broad, dark face remained expressionless.

"Zhizhi, don't be temperamental. Your brother-in-law is here. Come over and say hello." Chen's mother beckoned to Chen Zhi, her eyes filled with threat.

Chen Zhi had previously regarded Li Jiaxiang as a stranger, but now that she had been forced into this situation, she felt even more disgusted with him. She didn't even call him "brother-in-law" before casually sitting down.

Li Jiaxiang frowned for a moment, then relaxed and laughed, "Haven't seen you for a while, Zhizhi has grown into a young lady."

She was also a stunningly beautiful young woman who was unforgettable.

This morning, when his father-in-law came to his door to ask him to come and look at the youngest daughter of the second son of the Chen family, he subconsciously said, "Isn't that a child?" But his father-in-law said that Chen Zhi would be eighteen after the New Year and was no longer a child.

He paused for a moment, recalling Chen Zhi's appearance in his mind: dark-skinned and thin, dressed in tattered clothes, looking dirty like a little beggar on the street.

His first impression was that he didn't like it.

But he was thirty-one years old and had four sons. Girls from decent families wouldn't consider him, and he wasn't willing to marry divorced women or women with health problems. Chen Zhi was a virgin, and for that reason alone, he was willing to come and meet her.

Now that he has met her, Li Jiaxiang is extremely glad he came today. This girl has really blossomed into a beautiful young woman. Not to mention the surrounding villages, there are no girls as pretty as her in the town.

Li Jiaxiang's gaze was intense, which everyone present could see; the Chen family knew that the marriage was a sure thing.

Chen Zhi secretly observed the expressions on these people's faces, and sneered inwardly, "I won't let you have your way."

Li Jiaxiang had lunch at the Chen family's house with his four children. After lunch, Chen Zhi was called back to her room by her mother.

"What do you think of your brother-in-law?" Mrs. Chen asked as soon as she entered the room.

Chen Zhi asked knowingly, "Mom said it's about looks and character. He's not bad looking, tall and strong, and his character is also not bad. My older cousin is sick, and I'm willing to take her to the county for treatment."

Hearing this, Mrs. Chen was about to breathe a sigh of relief when Chen Zhi continued, "It's just that he has too many sons. I doubt any woman would want to marry him. After all, there are four boys. Think of how much they have to eat every day, and then there's the matter of finding wives for them. It's really tough to think about. If I had to go through that, I'd rather be dead."

Mrs. Chen: "..."

Chen Zhi continued, "The person I want to marry should ideally be someone with no family burdens, preferably a first marriage, not too much older than me, tall, fair-skinned, literate, and educated—"

"Chen Zhi!"

Mother Chen's face darkened. "Before you make demands of others, you should look at yourself first. With your conditions and reputation, no family in the village would want to marry someone like you."

Chen Zhi twitched the corner of her mouth. "You've already asked?"

"I know without you even asking. You beat your elders and your children; your reputation in the village is completely ruined!" Mother Chen sneered. "Now you only have one path in front of you, and that is to marry Li Jiaxiang. You can only marry Li Jiaxiang."

Chen Zhi remained expressionless. "What if I don't marry him?"

Mother Chen: "Then go die. I should have strangled you when your father died. Your uncles raised you, and now it's time to repay their kindness."

It's about repaying a debt of gratitude again.

Chen Zhi: "For a dowry of fifty yuan?"

Mother Chen: "Yes."

Chen Zhi: "Just for a dowry of fifty yuan, you're making me jump into a fire pit? Are you really my mother?"

Chen's mother: "I'd rather it weren't like that."

Chen Zhi laughed; she shouldn't have asked.

It was already evening when Li Jiaxiang left with his four children.

Things went smoothly. Li Jiaxiang agreed to marry Chen Zhi and agreed to give a dowry of fifty yuan, which he would send to the Chen family the next day.

Everyone was satisfied with the result, except for Chen Zhi.

Ding Fangfang: "Jiaxiang's four children are neglected. He implied that the sooner Zhizhi marries into the family, the better. What do you think?"

Grandpa Chen Kai: "Then let's do it according to Jiaxiang's wishes. In a few days, we'll invite close relatives to a meal, two or three tables, and the marriage will be settled."

Ding Fangfang nodded, "I think so. Jiaxiang said he has everything he needs, so there's no need to prepare furniture or anything like that. He'll pay for the money and fabric to make Zhizhi a new outfit."

The uncle thought for a moment, "There's still some wood left from building the house last year. I'll make two stools. We can't have nothing at all; it wouldn't look good if people knew."

.......

Chen Zhi, the person involved, couldn't get a word in edgewise; she felt a surge of anger welling up inside her, as if it were about to explode.

She slammed the door and left, instinctively heading towards the educated youth settlement.

The sun had already set, and the sky was a beautiful orange-yellow. Under the banyan tree, Li Zhou'an was watching some children play with spinning tops when he saw Chen Zhi passing by. He called out to her, "Are you going to the educated youth settlement?"

Chen Zhi nodded; she was going to find Xi Lang.

"Xi Lang isn't home; he just went out," Li Zhou'an said with concern, noticing Chen Zhi's disheveled appearance. "You seem to have something on your mind?"

Chen Zhi didn't answer. She stared at Li Zhou'an for a long time until Li Zhou'an looked away uncomfortably.

Is there something on my face?

"No." She was just curious whether educated youths from the city like Li Zhou'an, who were good-looking and came from good families, looked down on girls from the countryside like them.

He probably doesn't find them attractive, otherwise, with so many girls liking Li Zhou'an, he wouldn't still be single.

Li Zhou'an doesn't like the girls in the village, so what about Xi Lang?

"You're acting strange today," Li Zhou'an said with certainty.

"Li Zhou'an, do you like the girls in the village?" Chen Zhi asked, voicing her doubts.

Lost in her own thoughts, Chen Zhi didn't notice several people approaching from a distance.

Li Zhou'an was taken aback by her question and remained silent.

"Wouldn't the educated youth from the city look down on the girls in the village?" she asked again.

"No." This time, Li Zhou'an answered decisively.

Upon hearing this answer, Chen Zhi seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and continued to press, "So, educated youth from the city also like girls from the countryside, right?"

Li Zhou'an didn't know why Chen Zhi asked this, but he still nodded, "Yes, there are several male educated youths in our village who married girls from the village."

Chen Zhi was aware of this, and these male educated youths had even moved into the woman's home and integrated into her family.

If Xi Lang marries her, she can rebuild a house with him. She has 220 yuan, which is enough to build a house.

Of course, this is on the premise that Xi Lang is willing to marry her.

"Someone like me, with such a bad reputation, if it were you, would you be willing to marry someone like me?" Chen Zhi's heart jumped into her throat.

Chen Zhi looked at Li Zhou'an with expectant eyes.

Li Zhou'an's face slowly turned red.

"Chen Zhi, have you no shame?!"

An exasperated voice interrupted them.

Chen Xiuzhen rushed forward to slap Chen Zhi, but was caught by the quick-thinking Li Zhou'an. She glared at Li Zhou'an and pointed at Chen Zhi with one finger, "I warned you that Li Zhou'an is mine. How dare you try to steal him away when I'm not here? I'll beat you to death."

Chen Zhi looked bewildered. How could she have stolen Chen Xiuzhen's boyfriend?

Just as Chen Zhi was about to explain, she saw Xi Lang a few meters away. Xi Lang's face was expressionless, and his dark eyes were cold, looking at her as if she were a stranger.

Chen Zhi felt as if her heart had been pricked by a needle; it hurt terribly.

The next second, Xi Lang turned around and strode away.

"Chen Zhi, I'm talking to you!" Chen Xiuzhen said, displeased that Chen Zhi was distracted.

"I didn't steal your boyfriend, you've misunderstood," Chen Zhi said calmly.

"Everyone heard it, and you still dare to argue!" Chen Xiuzhen was about to pounce on someone again, but Li Zhou'an pulled her back a few steps.

More and more people gathered around, pointing and whispering about Chen Zhi.

"Chen Zhi, you shameless person. You're having an ambiguous relationship with Xi Lang on one hand, and on the other hand, you're thinking of marrying Li Zhou'an. Who do you think you are? Bah! Someone like you, even if you stripped naked and offered yourself up, no one would want you—"

"shut up!"

Li Zhou'an interrupted Chen Xiuzhen and then said to Chen Zhi, "You go first."

Chen Zhi nodded and turned to chase after Xi Lang.

When Chen Zhi caught up with Xi Lang at his hut, she found the door closed and Xi Lang nowhere to be seen.

Chen Zhi's heart sank; Xi Lang must have misunderstood her.

She needs to explain things clearly to Xi Lang.

Chen Zhi knocked on the door until her hands went numb, but there was no response from inside.

"Xi Lang, are you inside?"

"Xi Lang, could you please open the door?"

That's not what I meant.

"Come out here, come out and let me explain, okay?"

Chen Zhi pleaded with red eyes, but the room remained quiet.