An Hao arrived back in the town by bus, and by then, it was already dark.
As soon as she got off, she was surprised to see An Ping waiting for her outside the station with his ox cart.
Seeing An Ping, An Hao made introductions, then climbed onto the ox cart to head to the village.
When they reached the entrance to the village, An Shuchao was playing chess under the stage with a few fellow villagers, surrounded by a circle of men each with their arms crossed, watching the game intently.
A few women were running around the stage with their children in tow.
An Hao got down from the ox cart, carrying a great many bags, stood by the roadside, and called for her father to come home, immediately drawing the attention of the people around.
"Oh, isn’t that An Hao? How is it that after attending college for a while, she’s become so fashionable? She looks just like a city person," said a woman holding a child.
"All these bags must have cost a fortune!"
"She’s got talent, we originally thought she was only marrying a fellow set to become a battalion commander, but who would’ve imagined that Qin Jian is actually the son of a Commander? She’s made it big now! How could an official not earn a hefty sum? Surely, she’ll never lack money to spend in the future."
"Exactly! No wonder she firmly refused when people came to the An Family to ask for her hand in marriage. It turns out she had her eyes on a gold mine early on! Now she has really climbed up high, soaring onto a branch to become a phoenix!"
"There’s a saying, ’the higher you climb, the harder you fall.’ Let’s not envy her; just wait until one day her man kicks her to the curb, she’ll have a hard time then."
The village gossips naturally spoke loudly, and with a fair amount of intentionality, they raised their voices even higher, purposely so An Hao could hear them.
"An Hao! Listen to how these people in your village just can’t stand to see someone else do well!" Gu Shuangshuang, who was a straightforward person and couldn’t stand injustice, got angry when she heard others speaking ill of An Hao.
"Most of our fellow villagers are kind and friendly; it’s just the few exceptions." An Hao smiled faintly and shouted towards the gossipy women, "Look here, aunties, if you have something to say, say it to my face. Don’t beat around the bush. Are you upset because you think I’ve climbed up high and it hurts you? If it bothers you that much, why don’t you go find your own opportunity? Even if I do fall loudly, it’s because I had the chance to climb high! You want to hear your own loud crashes, don’t you? I’m afraid you won’t hear them because you’ve never had the chance to climb high!"
"That’s right! Our An Hao is getting married soon! Next week, she’s marrying the son of the military district’s Commander! You must be dying of envy!" Gu Shuangshuang chimed in, supporting her.
Their words left the gossiping women furious, causing the men around to erupt in laughter.
They took the opportunity to inquire about An Hao’s upcoming wedding from An Shuchao and to extend their congratulations.
Upon returning home, An Hao briefly explained Gu Shuangshuang’s situation and said she would be staying with them for a while.
An Shuchao had no objections, and after a simple dinner, they went to bed early.
The next morning, An Shuchao went around the village, passing out several wedding invitations, notifying some respectable people that An Hao was getting married. The wedding would take place in the city at the groom’s house.
However, three days later, they would return to the village, and at that time, he invited everyone to come and celebrate with a drink.
The news quickly spread through the village and naturally reached Song Yueqin’s ears.
She originally thought An Hao would not get married until next year, but to her surprise, the wedding was set for this year, and who would have thought that Qin Jian was the son of a Commander? An Hao had really hit it big!
She was consumed with jealousy towards An Hao.
The more jealous she became, the more pain she felt inside!