AMRWFA -Chapter 163 All They Ever Talk About Is Women Getting Married

If it weren’t for needing to go through the proper channels, Ruan Yaoyao would have stormed straight into the Lin family’s house to stand up for Lin Zhihe.

Such a good girl—what right did they have?

A daughter like that… even if she wanted to “snatch” her away, she probably couldn’t.

“Ah-choo—”

Xu Nannan sneezed.

Who’s thinking about me?

Don’t tell me it’s Sister-in-law again?

Stop thinking about it, stop. I just won’t date, okay? It’s not like I have to be in a relationship. I’m not lacking in love anyway.

With Ruan Yaoyao acting as a “guiding light,” even things the private investigator couldn’t uncover before became crystal clear with just a bit of her direction.

After obtaining the pile of information, Ruan Yaoyao personally took Lin Zhihe along to see it for herself—to witness what her younger sisters had actually gone through.

That day, Lin Zhihe—already having a bad feeling—was called over by Ruan Yaoyao, who told her she would be taken to meet someone.

“Who?”

“A child bride.”

Lin Zhihe’s heart tightened. “In this day and age, child brides still exist?!”

No way… are my sisters really living that miserably? Didn’t Aunt Xu say they just dropped out of school and went to work? Then how did it become…

The car quietly stopped outside a small factory on the edge between urban and rural areas. Calling it small wasn’t wrong—it had over a dozen workers. But calling it a factory was a stretch; it was really just a few shabby prefab sheds that leaked when it rained.

And yet, this was where Luo Xiaohua made her living.

Yes—this girl named Luo Xiaohua was only in her twenties, but she looked like a woman in her thirties or forties, with two children in tow, one older and one younger.

Their clothes were filthy, and she herself looked worn and disheveled, squeezed into a shared dormitory with others.

When Ruan Yaoyao and the others arrived, the older child was leading the younger one, playing by the wall outside the workshop.

“That’s Luo Xiaohua’s son and daughter. When she gave birth to the younger one, she nearly died from complications. Luckily it was a boy—otherwise her in-laws would have definitely forced her to keep having children…”

Ruan Yaoyao compared the photos as she spoke, pointing things out to Lin Zhihe while explaining the detailed background of Luo Xiaohua’s family.

“Luo Xiaohua is an orphan. She was abandoned as a child and picked up by the Luo family. They hadn’t planned to raise her, but they happened to have a seven-year-old son with intellectual disabilities, so they adopted her. When she grew up, she was married off to that son…”

“Married,” in name only. She hadn’t even reached the legal age. A couple of tables were set up in the village for a simple feast, and that was enough to declare them husband and wife.

Lin Zhihe didn’t ask why she hadn’t run away.

A teenage girl—what would she know? On top of that, the Luo parents had suppressed her since childhood, teaching her to be submissive and instilling the idea that she must “repay their kindness” by taking care of her “foolish older brother.”

Between studying, heavy housework, and caring for a mentally disabled man seven years older than her, Luo Xiaohua’s academic performance was predictable.

So she dropped out in middle school.

Only after she had children—when the Luo couple felt everything was “secure”—did they allow her to work outside. Even then, she wasn’t allowed to go far. This job had been arranged through the Luo parents’ connections.

Lin Zhihe: “…”

This counts as a job?

“What kind of work could she even do?” Ruan Yaoyao said heavily. “She only has a middle school education and didn’t study properly. Other than washing dishes or being a server, what else could she do? And do you think her in-laws would let her work somewhere crowded, where people might try to steal their daughter-in-law?”

【Any place with dishwashing or serving means a restaurant.】

【And restaurants need foot traffic.】

【If there’s foot traffic, she meets more people.】

【And if someone sets their sights on her, can they stop it?】

【So they’d rather let her work somewhere exhausting and degrading—ruin her appearance and spirit—so no one would want her. That way she’ll obediently stay with their son.】

【Sometimes, people’s hearts are just that terrifying.】

【A perfectly fine person—after just a few years of childbirth, miscarriages, and hard labor—ends up looking decades older.】

【Sigh… I wonder how Lin Zhihe feels, knowing this is her biological sister.】

How did she feel?

Like needles stabbing into her heart.

Looking out the car window at the woman and her children, Lin Zhihe felt suffocated.

This was her sister. Her biological sister.

They were only a year apart in age, yet it felt like one had lived an entire lifetime more than the other.

Ruan Yaoyao didn’t expose their relationship. Instead, she approached the factory under the guise of a charity organization, distributing welfare benefits for women and children.

Only then did Lin Zhihe finally meet her sister—and exchange a few words with her.

Luo Xiaohua was extremely reserved, clearly feeling that Lin Zhihe, with her polished appearance from the big city, was someone she could never compare to.

“How old is your eldest?”

“Seven.”

“So big already? She should be in second grade, right?”

Luo Xiaohua blushed. “We didn’t send her to school.”

Lin Zhihe was shocked. “Why not?”

“She’s a girl, there’s no rush. When her younger brother starts school, she can go then.”

“But there’s an age gap. How can they study together?”

“It’s better that way. She can take care of her brother.”

Lin Zhihe couldn’t believe these words were coming from someone who had once gone to school.

Is this really my sister?

It wasn’t about saving money. It was simply because their precious son needed someone to take care of him, so they deliberately delayed the daughter’s education so she could serve him.

Lin Zhihe opened her mouth, wanting to persuade her—but Luo Xiaohua was stubborn, completely impossible to reason with.

From Luo Xiaohua’s perspective, she only planned to let her daughter attend school for a few years anyway. After all, she would get married eventually—learning to wash dishes and do chores was enough.

Just like herself. Studying for a few years had been useless. It would’ve been better not to waste that money and just work at home.

She had already planned it out—she would find her daughter a man from a better family so she wouldn’t have to suffer like she did.

“Have you ever thought about getting a divorce?”

Luo Xiaohua looked up in shock. “How could that be okay? If a woman gets divorced, it’s so shameful… You’re already this old—you’re not still unmarried, are you?”

She even turned around and tried to persuade Lin Zhihe—saying that women must get married at a certain age. Not getting married simply isn’t acceptable. A woman only has a few prime childbearing years; if she misses them, it’ll be difficult later.

And besides, as women get older, men will dislike them—they won’t be able to get married.

Every sentence revolved around childbirth or failing to marry. Lin Zhihe felt like she was suffocating. If Aunt Xu hadn’t told her the truth, she would never have guessed that Luo Xiaohua shared the same mother as her.

Yet, Luo Xiaohua’s way of thinking was very similar to their mother’s—always saying, You’re not young anymore, it’s time to get married. Have you found someone yet? You need to take this seriously.

If not, we can help you look.

Yes—help her look.

Back then, Lin Zhihe thought her parents were being considerate, asking for her opinion. But after hearing Aunt Xu’s inner thoughts, she realized the truth—

It wasn’t concern.

It was that they were afraid, with their own ability, they might not be able to “sell” her for a good price.

If she found someone herself, maybe she could do better—bring in a higher bride price.