"Of course there is news, and great news at that!" Upon this topic, the matchmaker’s face split open in delight, "Don’t you know the richest family in our town? Remember their son just got divorced this year? Now, he has become attracted to your Dongxue! They hope to have Dongxue wedded before the new school year begins, promising to bear the cost of Dongxue’s education in future, just as it was when your sister got married. Look at how well your sister’s life has turned out!"
"What a disgrace!" Upon hearing the news, He Zhongguo dropped his bowl, "How are they alike?! One is a divorcee! The other is a fine young man! Where is the similarity? Is my daughter, He Zhongguo’s daughter, blind or handicapped that she has to marry a man who has been divorced? Can their son be compared to my brother-in-law?"
Upon hearing this, He Dongxue turned pale.
"Now hold on, He. You can’t just dismiss this outright. What’s wrong with their son having been divorced before? They are rich, let’s not forget that. With He Dongxue marrying him, she will receive no small sum of dowry, and they’ll take care of her education fees too. How is that not beneficial for your family, He? With He Dongxue married to him, not only will the financial load in your house be lightened, but the zur-ceremony gifts you’ll receive will be more than enough to cover your daughter-in-law’s expenses for a long while, won’t they? Or we can negotiate a price... they could even fund your daughter-in-law’s education fees. I’ll do my best to discuss and negotiate this with them~"
"Leave, get out!" He Dongxue, infuriated, stood up abruptly, "Even if it means not pursuing my education, I would not marry a man who has been divorced!"
Saying this, He Dongxue resolutely pushed the matchmaker towards the exit until she couldn’t push anymore. Only then did she angrily storm back to her room.
"Dad, I’ll go check on Dongxue." He Zhilan hurriedly got up and followed her in, just as He Dongxue collapsed onto her bed, sobbing with anger."
"Dongxue, don’t get upset. In a big forest, all kinds of birds exist. That family is simply attracted to your status as a college student. Your father, your brother, and I will never agree to this. So, getting upset over this matter is simply allowing it to get the best of you, you understand?"
On the other hand, He Zhongguo, watching his youngest daughter upset, couldn’t help his temper either. With a determined face, he turned the matchmaker out of the He family house immediately, before anxiously attending to his daughter.
"Dongxue, there’s no need to cry. Your father won’t agree to this. My girl is good in every way; I don’t need to sell my daughter for money. When your uncle and I agreed to let your aunt marry your uncle-in-law, it’s because we saw that he was a good man, he cherished your aunt, and genuinely loved her. That’s why we agreed. The zur-ceremony money that the Liang family gave us, we returned it as your aunt’s dowry. Even though our family is poor, we would never stoop to selling our daughters."
"Dad, I’m not angry with you. It has nothing to do with you. I just feel uneasy. I’ll be better after crying a bit." He Dongxue wiped her tears and started sobbing.
With the consolation of He Zhilan and their father, He Dongxue finally managed to force a smile. He Zhilan sighed inwardly, aren’t all these people just taking advantage of the He family’s financial situation?
A divorced man daring to covet a girl like He Dongxue? Such demands are essentially trampling over a person’s dignity with money. It’s as infuriating as it is despicable.
They thought that’d be the end of it. However, they didn’t expect that the incident, somehow leaked by someone, resulted in everyone discussing the He family’s response.
Some said the He family doesn’t know how to be grateful and was playing hard to get with their scholarly pride, that they deserved to live in poverty, unable to even afford to fill their pots with food.