"By the way, Xiao Yue, how long will you stay this time?" Zou Xia asked curiously. "Maybe, a few days." Tang Yue answered uncertainly, asking, "What’s up?" "Nothing, just asking. I haven’t seen you for a long time, so I wanted to come and see you." Zou Xia said with a smile as they chatted about everything under the sun, especially about Jing City. Listening to Tang Yue’s description, Zou Xia also felt a longing. "Zou Xia, you can come visit me in Jing City in the future." Tang Yue wrote down an address and phone number for her, saying, "You’ll have food and a place to stay." "Okay." Zou Xia took the address, carefully hiding Tang Yue’s information, hesitating to speak. Tang Yue said, "Zou Xia, if you have something to say, just say it. We’re classmates after all." "I, I wanted to ask if you really got married?" Not long ago, when Zou Xia heard her parents mention Tang Yue’s marriage, she didn’t believe it. But all the Tang Family had gone to Jing City, and many people from the factory talked about it in detail, leaving her no room for doubt. Today, hearing from her parents that Tang Yue had come back, Zou Xia couldn’t wait to visit. Firstly, she wanted to see Tang Yue, and secondly, she also wanted to find out if Tang Yue really got married. "Mhm." Tang Yue nodded firmly, her lips curving into a happy smile, saying, "This time I came back with my husband, but we just got our marriage certificate and hosted a few simple banquet tables in Jing City." "Really married?" Zou Xia looked at Tang Yue in disbelief, feeling it was unlikely, but Tang Yue had admitted it herself. Tang Yue had no intention of hiding it, it wasn’t something shameful; she married openly. "But, you are in university, how can you get married?" Zou Xia asked incredulously. Tang Yue smiled lightly, saying, "That’s what you’re worried about? Actually, the university doesn’t have explicit rules forbidding marriage, as long as getting married doesn’t interfere with attending university, it won’t affect anything." "Zou Xia, do your parents also want you to get married?" Tang Yue curiously asked, noticing Zou Xia’s worried look, she felt a bit puzzled. Zou Xia sighed, "I have a younger sister and two younger brothers who are still in school. It’s only been a year since I started university, but my parents are already thinking of marrying me to someone from my grandmother’s village. They said that after getting married, they would continue to support my university education." "But, I don’t want to get married." Zou Xia became noticeably more silent as she said this; she had met the man once. He had a decent appearance but seemed somewhat simple-minded. "Do you and this man love each other?" Tang Yue asked. Zou Xia shook her head, "How could that be possible? I’ve only seen him once, he..." "He’s a bit simple-minded, not completely foolish, but with an immature mentality," Zou Xia didn’t know how else to put it. "What are you going to do?" Tang Yue asked in return. Zou Xia had excellent academic performance and after university graduation, she would be assigned a job as a teacher, where she could meet someone better. Zou Xia’s brows were deeply furrowed as she said, "I don’t know what to do. My parents said that since you got married, I could also get married first. The man agreed not to have children for these two years until after I graduate from university." "After graduating from university, you’ll be assigned a job. Are you willing to give up that job placement?" Tang Yue asked.""" Zou Xia’s eyes no longer showed the happiness that was there before. Now, she appeared more bewildered and helpless. "Zou Xia, your parents want you to get married because of money, right?" Tang Yue asked. This update ıs available on 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵•𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑒•𝙣𝙚𝙩 Zou Xia nodded and said, "Yes." "But, attending teacher’s college doesn’t require tuition fees, right?" Tang Yue thought hard, as her own education at Shangjinghua hadn’t costed money; instead, she even received a scholarship. "The other party is willing to give a betrothal gift of five thousand yuan. With that amount, both my younger brothers and sister can go to school," Zou Xia said in silence. If it were just her studying, her family could definitely afford it. However, her parents didn’t have just her as a child; there were also two younger brothers and a sister, and the three of them also had excellent grades and would undoubtedly need to attend university in the future. Although university didn’t cost money, high school did. Their parents were getting older, especially their mother, who wasn’t in good health this year. It left only their father to earn money, and there were seven people in the family including their grandparents... "Zou Xia, once you become a teacher, you will meet better people," Tang Yue couldn’t bear to see someone marry off themselves for just five thousand yuan. She and Zou Xia were not particularly close, but they were not just mere acquaintances either. Back when her parents were at home, they often helped her carry things and now, Tang Yue couldn’t just stand by and watch Zou Xia marry someone for money. If it was out of true love, getting married naturally wouldn’t be a problem, but this was clearly just a transaction. Tang Yue fell silent for a while, then said, "Zou Xia, I can lend you the five thousand yuan." Zou Xia looked at Tang Yue in shock, her expression so astonished it seemed she could stuff an egg in her mouth. "Zou Xia, you can pay me back after you graduate from university," Tang Yue reiterated. Zou Xia was so moved that she was at a loss for words, her face showed difficulty, anxiety, and a bit of excitement. Five thousand yuan was no small amount, in those times, ten thousand yuan households were considered very wealthy. The boy’s family did have money, having only that one son, because the son was not very clever, they wanted to find a college graduate for him, saying that this way, the children born would be smart. Therefore, they were very generous, offering not only the betrothal gift but also an additional five thousand yuan as betrothal money. "Tang Yue, this, this doesn’t seem right," Zou Xia resisted her heart’s excitement and refused. The Tang family was in a decent financial situation, but Zou Xia felt that lending five thousand yuan to her unconditionally felt somewhat... improper. "Zou Xia, I might be attending university, but I am earning money too," Tang Yue briefly mentioned her clothing design work, she said: "Zou Xia, take this money with peace of mind, you can pay me back later. However, this is only a temporary solution. I remember Uncle Zou and Aunt Zou’s noodles being really delicious, you could try opening a breakfast shop in the county town." "How can that work? There are many breakfast shops in the county, if we start another, there wouldn’t be any business left," Zou Xia repeatedly shook her head. Tang Yue smiled and said, "Zou Xia, that’s where you don’t understand. Nowadays, there are lots of people in the county, and it’s not a problem having many breakfast shops. As long as the noodles you make are delicious and the breakfast is tasty and clean, people will still come to your stall. Aunt Zou isn’t well and can’t do heavy work, but the breakfast shop tasks are manageable, and you can even hire someone to help."