Bride Swap Backfire: My Cousin's Rebirth Made Us a Power Couple-Chapter 45 - 38: Breaking Off the Engagement (Part 2)

How could an ordinary young couple live like mortal enemies?

It didn’t make sense.

He couldn’t figure it out, either.

The old matriarch declared righteously, "A matter as grave as marriage cannot be faked."

She then feigned a look of regret. "So you see, it’s not that we don’t want this marriage alliance, it’s that we’re truly afraid. If something were to happen to our own ill-fated girl, it wouldn’t have much of an impact. But Jing is different. This boy is destined to study for the imperial exams, to become a Scholar, then a scholar. If a girl from our family were to hinder Jing’s official career, then our Chen family would become sinners in the eyes of the entire Zhao Village."

As soon as the old matriarch said this, the main hall instantly fell silent.

Looking at the faces of the elders in the room, they had all grown solemn, each and every one wearing a grim expression.

There was a reason for this.

If a Scholar emerged in the village, the Scholar himself would be exempt from the land tax, poll tax, and other duties. Furthermore, this tax exemption could be extended to his family, allowing fifty to eighty acres of the family’s land to be tax-free.

Of course, the Zhao Village had far more than eighty acres of land, so even if Zhao Jing became a Scholar, he couldn’t make all the village land tax-exempt.

But in years past, when Mr. Zhao was still alive, the Zhao Village had established a system. The land of each household was put on a rotation each year, giving everyone a chance at the tax exemption. In this way, everyone could benefit from Mr. Zhao’s status, which was why Zhao Jing’s family held such a high position in the village.

After Mr. Zhao passed away, all the land in the village became subject to tax. Having to hand over several extra measures of grain each year—wasn’t that a heartbreaking loss?

Those few measures of grain could be traded for a bolt of cloth, ten pounds of meat, or exchanged for Silver to be saved. It was enough to make a family’s life much more comfortable.

Therefore, Zhao Jing becoming a Scholar wasn’t just his own business; it was a major event intimately connected to the entire Zhao Village.

The old matriarch knew exactly how to hit people where it hurt. She continued, "Even for the sake of everyone in our village, young and old, this marriage cannot happen."

As she spoke, tears began to fall. "Such a good boy... I’ve dreamt of having this boy as my grandson-in-law."

’I never imagined this engagement could be called off so easily!’

’Before, she had been worried, afraid that rashly breaking the engagement would incur the Zhao Family’s wrath. But now that Zhao Jing himself had proposed it, it saved them a world of trouble.’

’Now, not only would they not need to push Wanqing out to "pay the debt" or offend her eldest son and his wife, but they might not even have to return the betrothal gifts from all those years ago.’

The old matriarch covered her face and wept, but beneath the handkerchief, her face was blooming into a wide smile.

As the old matriarch shed her tears, everyone else in the room began to feel a sympathetic pang of distress.

If they were in the old matriarch’s shoes, they wouldn’t be feeling too good right now either.

Imagine seeing a phoenix egg about to become yours, only for one misstep to cause the chicken to flee and the egg to shatter. Wouldn’t that be a gut-wrenching pain?

But what was a bad thing for the Chen Family was a good thing for the Qu Family.

The two elders of the Qu Family, puffing on their long-stemmed pipes, were already starting to scheme.

’Our young daughter—or maybe a niece—isn’t engaged yet, and she’s about Zhao Jing’s age. I wonder if we can snatch up this opportunity.’

’This is a big deal. I have to remember this. Tonight, I’ll have my wife go and sound out Zhao Jing’s mother. We have to lock down this marriage before anyone else has a chance to react!’

Sighs filled the room. After a long while, Mr. Zhao spoke up. "Since fate has decreed it, let’s consider this marriage agreement null and void."

The old matriarch was overjoyed internally, but her face remained composed. Chen Dachang simply said nothing, as if the matter had nothing to do with him.

Looking at Mr. Chen and his wife, the couple sat with their heads bowed, lifeless, as if losing this marriage was a death sentence.

As for Chen Wanyue, she was someone who could never hide what she was feeling.

A flash of joy suddenly crossed her eyes. It was so abrupt that it made the others frown.

Just as Mr. Zhao was wondering if there was something fishy about this annulment, the old matriarch slowly and deliberately took out a golden hairpin from a hidden pocket.

The golden hairpin was dazzlingly bright, its head carved with a lifelike magnolia flower.

The hairpin itself wasn’t very heavy, but its brilliant luster was captivating.

This single golden hairpin had cost a full fifteen taels of Silver back then.

When Chen Wanyue saw the golden hairpin, she nearly lunged for it.

She had been asking the old matriarch for it for years. And what had the old matriarch always said?

The old matriarch said she was too reckless—that if she chipped or damaged the hairpin, or if someone swiped it, she wouldn’t even have time to cry.

She also said that a flighty child like her would probably lose it and forget all about it in no time.

With all these excuses, the old matriarch had brazenly put the golden hairpin away for safekeeping.