Chapter 2

Qin Yishen frowned deeply as he looked at the Jiang family standing before him. He felt disgusted by them from the bottom of his heart, but when his gaze fell on Jiang Man, that disgust lessened considerably. “A marriage swap?” Qin Yishen’s voice was cold and indifferent. He was among the first batch of pilots in Beidu, and he now spent most of his time training new recruits. There was an intimidating authority in his voice that made people instinctively afraid to disobey him. Lin Yanqing and the others broke out in a cold sweat, while Jiang He was frightened yet secretly tempted. Lin Yanqing was not bad-looking and had a refined, scholarly appearance. But Qin Yishen was far more handsome. His well-defined features were upright and striking, radiating an air of stern righteousness. His thick, jet-black hair framed sharply angled brows that swept toward his temples, while his eyes carried a calmness as steady as a mountain. But Jiang He immediately shook her head. What good was being handsome? In the end, he would still become crippled after injuring his leg while saving a fellow soldier, forcing him to leave the military and return home to collect scrap for a living. She would never live the miserable life she had experienced in her previous life. In this life, she was going to take everything away from Jiang Man. She was going to become the wife of a billionaire! She would only be satisfied when Jiang Man had to look up at her! “Yes, we want to swap marriages.” Liu Chunlian was frightened too, but for the sake of her beloved daughter's marriage—and for the chance to rely on her daughter and move to the city in the future—she still had to step forward. “Well, you and our Xiao He have only met a couple of times, and you don't have any feelings for each other... Xiao He and Lin Yanqing are deeply in love. Why don't you just do them a favor and let them be together?” Qin Yishen almost laughed when he heard that. Why should he do them a favor? “Our Xiao Man is a wonderful girl too. She's the prettiest girl for miles around, and she's a great cook who knows how to manage a household and live frugally. If you marry her, your two children will surely be well taken care of and grow up healthy and chubby!” Jiang Man looked sarcastically at Liu Chunlian, who was practically desperate to sell her off. She actually had the nerve to confidently guarantee that Jiang Man could take good care of Qin Yishen's children. She really would stop at nothing. “Brother Qin, don't listen to my stepmother's nonsense. I wasn't born with any talent for being a stepmother, and I certainly wouldn't dare guarantee that I could take good care of your two children.” “You—” Liu Chunlian and Jiang Jianguo were so furious that their teeth practically itched. They had never imagined that the usually timid and submissive Jiang Man would dare embarrass them in front of everyone. “How can you talk like that? If word gets around, what will happen to your reputation? Who would dare marry you in the future?” A smile gradually deepened in Qin Yishen's eyes. The woman he wanted to marry was precisely the kind who was strong and capable. Her looks, figure, and reputation were irrelevant. As long as she could protect those two children, that was enough. He was stationed in Beidu and could only return home once a year during the Spring Festival. His two children were taken care of by his older brother and sister-in-law. “Want me to keep my mouth shut? Fine. Give me money. As long as you meet every one of the conditions I just mentioned, I'll agree to the marriage swap. Otherwise, if you're going to make my life difficult, don't expect to have an easy time yourselves.” Jiang He tugged at Liu Chunlian's sleeve and whispered, “Mom, Yanqing is definitely going to achieve great things in the future. The college entrance examination has been restored now. With his abilities, becoming a college student will be a piece of cake, won't it? Once that happens, he'll earn twenty or thirty times what this is worth in the future. You might as well give it to her.” “Twenty or thirty times?” Liu Chunlian's eyes immediately lit up. “Fine, give it to her! I'll go get the money and ration coupons right now!” Only after receiving the money and coupons did Jiang Man finally smile and look at Qin Yishen. “Don't worry. I'll take good care of your two children. Are you willing to marry me?” The girl standing before him was a head shorter than him. As she looked up, he could clearly see her flawless, delicate features. A smile rested on her lips, while her beautiful, peach-blossom eyes sparkled with tiny points of light. She had actually said that she could take good care of his two children. Many women had confessed their feelings to him before, but all of them said things like, “I'll take good care of you,” or “I'll treat them just like my own children.” Yet no one had ever said to him, “I'll take good care of your two children,” the way Jiang Man had. Qin Yishen felt as though something had slammed hard against his chest. “I’m willing.” Jiang Man's cheeks suddenly flushed red. This man had such a pleasant voice, and he was handsome to boot. And then there was his towering height of nearly 1.9 meters and his broad, muscular build that looked like it could fit two of her inside it. Seeing sparks fly between the two so quickly, Lin Yanqing and Jiang He's expressions turned ugly. Jiang He was relatively calm. After all, her heart was set on becoming the wife of a billionaire. Just thinking that in another year or two she would be able to trample Jiang Man and Qin Yishen under her feet filled her with excitement. But Lin Yanqing knew nothing about that. All he felt was displeasure. He stormed forward and grabbed Jiang Man. “You don't think this is over, do you? How are you going to settle the score for hitting me and Xiao He?” Jiang Man stared at Lin Yanqing in disbelief. “Shameless, aren't you? You cheat on your own fiancée with her younger sister, and you don't even care that you're bringing shame to your Lin ancestors. So what if I hit you? The fact that I didn't grab a pair of scissors and cut off your precious two ounces of flesh was already an act of mercy. Got it?” “A young woman like you should have some shame!” Lin Yanqing's face turned red with anger, but he didn't dare raise his voice. He was afraid that if he provoked Jiang Man, she would start shouting. If she made a scene loud enough for everyone outside the courtyard to hear, how could he possibly save face and continue staying here? “And you're saying a grown man bullying a woman is something to be proud of?” Qin Yishen stepped in front of Jiang Man, shielding her behind him. His expression was icy as he looked at Lin Yanqing, who was more than half a head shorter than him. “I’m warning you. Jiang Man is my woman. If you dare touch even a single strand of her hair, you'll be paying a visit to the hospital.” After saying that, Qin Yishen turned around to face Jiang Man and began taking off his clothes. Jiang Man: “????” Holy crap! Is he really this bold? Taking his clothes off right away? Isn't this a little too much? Jiang Man was just about to stop him when she saw Qin Yishen take a small, bulging rectangular package from an inner pocket of his clothes. “This is your bride price. Tomorrow, I'll take you into the city to buy some new clothes. The furniture has already been made and can be delivered to the house tomorrow. I'll come marry you the day after tomorrow.” His tone could hardly be called gentle, but both his actions and his eyes were genuinely tender. Jiang Man opened the bulging package and was instantly stunned. There had to be at least five hundred yuan in cash! There were also several dozen pounds' worth of meat ration coupons, along with two bicycle purchase vouchers! And the cloth coupons were enough to make her five or six new outfits! “This... this is so much...” “It isn't much. After we get married the day after tomorrow, I'll give you the bankbook too.” Liu Chunlian and Jiang Jianguo stared at the money in Jiang Man's hands, their eyes practically bulging out of their sockets. “Impossible. This can't be...” Jiang He stared at the stack of money and grain coupons, jealousy nearly drowning her. “This isn't how it happened in my previous life...” In her previous life, when Qin Yishen married her, he had only given her one hundred yuan as a dowry, along with a newly made wardrobe. That was all. But now, he had not only given Jiang Man so much money on the spot, he had even promised to hand over his bankbook to her after they got married the day after tomorrow! Why? Why did all the good things always fall to Jiang Man? Lin Yanqing, who had been watching from the side, also darkened with anger. He took everything Qin Yishen had done as a declaration of war. He immediately turned to Jiang He and said, “Xiao He, we'll go back to the city tomorrow and register our marriage. I'll take you to meet my parents. Once I'm back in the city, I'll also get you a permanent position at the textile factory.”