RYEY – Chapter 245 Cheng Qiao Wants a Divorce

Cheng Qiao nodded repeatedly and immediately handed over the task of tending the fire to Jiang Meili. Li Le obediently ran over and squatted to the side, reminding them when to add firewood or when it was time to put the fire out.

Jiang Meili grew more and more delighted as she worked, though the weather was hot, and sweat dripped steadily from her body. By the time a pot of porridge was ready, her clothes were already half-soaked.

When the porridge cooled to a safe temperature, Cheng Qiao scooped a bowl and handed it over. The slightly warm brown sugar glutinous rice porridge was soothing and comforting, warming her stomach in the most pleasant way.

“Thank you, Cheng Qiao. Being your sister-in-law in this life must be a blessing I earned in a past life. It’s a pity we’re leaving tomorrow, but I’ve learned this method now.”

Cheng Qiao nodded and pointed to a large pot of hot water nearby, indicating that it could be used for bathing. Jiang Meili’s face suddenly turned bright red—after all, tonight was her wedding night.

Li Bing’s wedding night was extremely quiet, not at all comparable to when Li Huan got married. Mother Li was a little worried; as the saying goes, the more people celebrate a wedding night, the more prosperous the couple’s life will be.

Jiang Hua and Yuan Qin also looked displeased. They were already married, so it wasn’t appropriate for them to make a fuss on the wedding night, and Xu Hui and Li Le were still children—any fuss they made would be pointless.

“Old Jiang, I didn’t know Li Bing’s reputation in the village was so poor. Had I known, we might as well have married him in the military district; those soldiers would definitely have caused a commotion.”

Jiang Hua shook his head. Who would let their son marry without returning home? It would have been an obvious opportunity for people to find faults. Even if the wedding was quiet, it was better than letting others hold the family’s shortcomings against them.

Mother Li spent the entire night without sleeping, cooking, steaming, and baking, using up nearly half of the rice, flour, grains, and oil just to prepare a large basket of food.

Because of the heat, most of the food was baked so it could be stored for a while. But items like boiled eggs and brown sugar porridge had to be eaten on the same day.

When Jiang Meili got up, everyone was waiting for her in the living room. Seeing Cheng Qiao and the others’ knowing expressions, she blushed and wished she could hide back in her room.

Last night, Li Bing had been very considerate; after each process, he quietly went to sleep. Seeing the red marks she had left on the sheets and Li Bing’s barely contained smile, Jiang Meili happily fell asleep.

“Meili, all of this was prepared by your mother. Take it with you on the road, but be sure to eat the items on top today, or they’ll spoil.”

Jiang Meili was genuinely shocked to see a whole basket of food. “Mother, you didn’t sleep at all last night just to make this for us, did you?”

Mother Li laughed. Li Bing hadn’t been home for years, and even now, it would only be for ten or fifteen days. How could a mother not properly make up for her son?

Uncle Niu had also come. He loved having his cart rented by the Li family—not only could he get breakfast, but also large meat buns and some smoked wine. These were his favorite things, more than money itself.

“Uncle Niu, here, have a bun. Made from double-mixed flour—it’s fragrant and sweet.”

Uncle Niu quickly rubbed his hands together, picked up a bun, and popped it into his mouth, holding in the other hand a bowl of plain rice porridge that Cheng Qiao had served him. It was perfect for his appetite.

Yuan Qin secretly rolled her eyes. He was just a cowherd; a single coin could solve everything. There was no need to let him eat and drink with them.

Jiang Hua, however, was unusually enthusiastic toward Uncle Niu. Knowing the old cow was aging and didn’t have many years left, he felt a twinge of sadness.

He had indeed raised cows as a child. Cows were incredibly gentle and even considerate toward their owners. It was genuinely saddening to see one die of old age.

“old ox, why not try to get a young calf? In two years, when the old cow passes, the calf will have grown, giving you some consolation.”

Uncle Niu shook his head. Once this old cow was gone, he planned to be a carpenter. Cheng Qiao had said that carpentry would be highly sought after, especially in the city—marriages and furniture always required carpenters.

Jiang Hua paused, recalling the complete set of furniture in Meili’s new room. Could it have been made by this very cowherd? He tentatively asked, and Uncle Niu proudly nodded.

Not only the furniture in Li Bing’s room, but all of Li family’s furniture had been made by him, although some of the designs were provided by Cheng Qiao.

Yuan Qin was also stunned. She hadn’t expected the person she looked down on to be an artisan. From then on, her eyes toward Uncle Niu changed—from disdain to respect.

Uncle Niu cheerfully drove Li Bing and the others to the county town. Along the way, many children ran behind the cart. Jiang Meili remembered the bag of fruit candies Cheng Qiao had given her before leaving and quickly took them out.

She grabbed a handful of candies and tossed them toward the children running behind. As the sweets fell to the ground, the children cheered and hurriedly bent down to pick them up.

The sensible children even shouted congratulations on their wedding and wished them early children. Jiang Meili was moved by their enthusiasm and felt a little reluctant to leave Xiangyang Village.

Li Bing watched Jiang Meili, basking in sunlight and laughing happily, and his heart gradually relaxed. Everything from the past two days was gone, like smoke dissipating.

This time, Mother Li didn’t go to see them off. She just stood at the doorway, watching until the cart disappeared into the distance. Then she smiled at Li Le, thinking, “Both elder brothers are married now. In two years, it will be Le Le’s turn.”

Li Le blushed. Girls of that age were already mature; most married around seventeen or eighteen. Cheng Qiao smiled and whispered something into Mother Li’s ear, causing her eyes to widen.

“When will that child come? Take me to meet him.”

“In about half a month. He comes at the end of every month.”

“Good, good, good. Such a family is definitely good.”

Mother Li was delighted. Most importantly, Cheng Qiao told her that Qin Guoqing had never had a biological mother since birth, and his father had not remarried. Moreover, he was a regiment commander.

Having no biological mother meant Le Le wouldn’t need to worry about her mother-in-law’s attitude in the future. Even if Commander Qin remarried, the stepmother would never be the same as her biological mother-in-law.

Li Le frowned. She felt that her mother and elder sister-in-law were talking about her. Though she could have asked directly, she already sensed something and felt too embarrassed to ask.

A few minutes later, Xu Hui ran out, looking embarrassed, and whispered a few words into Li Le’s ear. Her face instantly turned red.

As expected, she was only thirteen or fourteen. Her mother and elder sister-in-law had already picked a suitable man for her, and his father was even a regiment commander.

This meant that in the future, she would become a military wife—a highly respected role. She resolved to study hard and become a soldier herself, so that like her elder sister-in-law’s mother, she could both serve in the military and be a military wife.

Mother Li and Cheng Qiao were still unaware of Li Le’s thoughts and had already planned her dowry. Since her father was a regiment commander, their dowry could not be substandard.

Cheng Qiao took out a gold bracelet and handed it to Mother Li. Her heart trembled. What did Cheng Qiao mean by this? Was she planning to divorce Li Huan? How could that be possible?