Bride Swap Backfire: My Cousin's Rebirth Made Us a Power Couple-Chapter 57 - 42: Engagement (Part 2)

Mrs. Zhao had been about to mention that Zhao Jing’s mother, upon hearing about the Chen family promising one daughter to two families, had become sick with anger. Otherwise, she would have joined them today to ask for Wanqing’s hand in marriage.

But then she abruptly stopped herself. ’Wouldn’t saying that sound like I’m trying to coerce them?’ 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Chen Song and Xu Suying were a principled couple. It wouldn’t be right if they hastily agreed to the marriage out of guilt.

And so, Mrs. Zhao held her tongue, swallowing the words she was about to say.

As soon as Mrs. Zhao finished, Second Aunt-in-law spoke up. "Don’t think we’re being hasty, and please don’t be offended by our proposal. The truth is, this marriage needs to be settled quickly. Otherwise, both our families will face a world of trouble."

And what kind of trouble?

For one, Jing was a real catch. While he was engaged, families in all the surrounding villages may have coveted such a fine son-in-law, but it wouldn’t have been proper for them to try and steal him away.

But as they say, good news travels slow while bad news travels fast. What happened today will likely have spread throughout the entire county by tomorrow morning.

When that happens, countless people will come knocking with marriage proposals. The entire Zhao family will be pestered to death.

Zhao Jing is currently focused on preparing for next year’s Child Examination. How can we possibly bother him with such sordid affairs? It would be a terrible loss if it interfered with his exams.

Furthermore, while Wanqing wasn’t formally betrothed to the Li family, many people know they sent a matchmaker to your home to propose.

The Li family acted without honor, suddenly getting engaged to Wanyue instead. This is certainly a mark of their flawed character and poor conduct. But when outsiders gossip about their shameless behavior, they’ll also wonder if perhaps the girl herself has some defect that forced the Li family to switch brides mid-stream.

The problem is, Wanqing does have a certain "flaw" to her name.

Her first fiancé was Meng Jintang, a Scholar from the county seat. On his way to the Autumn Examinations, he "died" at the hands of river pirates.

Another young gentleman connected to Wanqing was also a man of letters. He was in love with his personal maid but didn’t dare confess his feelings to his parents. So, on the eve of his betrothal to Wanqing, he eloped with the maid.

Although they were quickly caught and brought back, the young man broke his leg after being thrown from a spooked horse during his escape.

The matter was kept quiet, but everyone who needed to know, knew.

As a result, there were many who whispered in private that Chen Wanqing was a jinx to her fiancés.

Whether there’s any truth to this "jinx" or not, the fact that Li Cun is now engaged to Chen Wanyue will only make Wanqing’s situation worse.

Once the story gets out, who knows what kind of audacious people will come knocking. Widowers, elderly merchants, or even officials looking to take Wanqing as a concubine... It’s unbearable to even think about. The very thought of such a fine young woman being tarnished like that was enough to make their fists clench in anger.

Second Aunt-in-law pointed at Chen Song and Xu Suying. "What are you two still hesitating for? The right thing to do is agree to this immediately. I’m not just boasting, but a boy as good as our Jing... a match like this is something you couldn’t find even if you searched with a lantern."

Back then, if the old matriarch hadn’t positioned herself as their savior and coerced my ninth brother and his wife into agreeing to the match, Chen Wanyue could only have dreamed of being with Jing.

But with Wanqing, it’s a completely different story.

Wanqing has a good temperament, a strong moral compass, and she’s very capable. Just imagining Wanqing and Jing standing together is a sight for sore eyes.

Because she lived right next door to the Chen family and saw them often, Second Aunt-in-law knew a great deal about their affairs.

For instance, while everyone said the spice shop in the county seat was opened by Xu Suying, she had pieced together from the family’s stray comments and daily interactions that the shop was clearly Wanqing’s.

At most, Xu Suying was just helping her daughter out. Suying herself was a lazy sort—she only did work she both enjoyed and that made money. If she didn’t enjoy it, she couldn’t be bothered, no matter the profit.

’A young woman who can open her own shop and run it so successfully? How many girls like that can you find in this entire county?’

Second Aunt-in-law then thought of her ninth sister-in-law—Jing’s mother. The woman had never had a mind of her own and was always in poor health. Under her influence, even Xiang’er was as timid as a mouse.

’That household,’ she mused, ’is full of the old, the weak, and the sick. It’s not an exaggeration. If they don’t bring in a daughter-in-law who can take charge, how will they manage in the future?’

"Suying," Second Aunt-in-law said, her anxiety flaring. She leaned forward and asked, "Are you hesitating because you have other concerns? Whatever they are, just tell me. I’ll resolve them for you." She pressed on, "Are you worried my sister-in-law will take out her anger on Wanqing over what your mother-in-law did? You can put that fear to rest. My sister-in-law may not have a strong will, but she knows right from wrong and is a reasonable person. This has nothing to do with Wanqing. I guarantee she would never blame Wanqing for it."