An Accidental Military Marriage

Chapter 98: Chapter 98: Jiang Qing Is Missing

"Dad, Mom, I want to go visit my family tomorrow."

When Jin Yulan heard Jiang Qing say she wanted to visit her family, her face fell.

She was just about to scold Jiang Qing, wondering if she was trying to slack off by visiting her family again, when she heard her say, "I used to do odd jobs at the match factory and the neighborhood committee’s workshop. I could make fifty or sixty cents a day."

At this, the entire Zhang Family perked up their ears.

"Jiaquan will need to get married in a few years, and Ermei and Sanmei have school to attend. The family needs money for everything, and Jia Ming’s small monthly allowance isn’t enough to cover it all."

"I want to go back to the city and continue doing odd jobs. I’ll hand over all the money I make each month to the family. That way, you and Dad will have less of a burden."

"Mom, please let my sister-in-law go back to the city!"

Zhang Ermei was the first to voice her support. ’If the family has money, I can continue my studies!’

Zhang Jiaquan was next. "Our sister-in-law is delicate. She can’t earn many work points here in a day anyway. It would be better for her to go back to the city and earn money."

Zhang Sanmei nodded in agreement.

’Every time my sister-in-law comes back from visiting her family, she brings treats.’

’If she goes back to the city and makes money, I’ll definitely get to eat even more treats!’

Zhang Tiesheng also looked toward Jin Yulan.

Although he was the head of the household, Jin Yulan had always been the one to make all the decisions.

Hearing Jiang Qing volunteer to give her earnings to the family, Jin Yulan didn’t let it show on her face, but inwardly she was ecstatic.

’As the saying goes, there are no disobedient daughters-in-law, only mothers-in-law who don’t know how to train them.’

’After all my training these past few days, isn’t she finally behaving?’

...

「The next morning」 Jiang Qing slung a canvas bag over her shoulder and returned to her family’s home.

Li Hongying headed to the neighborhood committee’s workshop to work, at about the same time as usual.

She saw someone standing at the entrance to the workshop but didn’t pay them any mind.

It wasn’t until the person approached her and called out, "Mom," that she realized with a start that it was her daughter.

"Xiao Qing, what happened to you?"

Before she married, Jiang Qing might not have been as stunning or eye-catching as Jiang Moli, but she still had fair skin and delicate features.

But now she was tan and thin, looking for all the world like a girl from a rural village.

Stung by Li Hongying’s pained and shocked gaze, Jiang Qing felt both aggrieved and ashamed.

’She was the one who hadn’t listened to advice, who’d stubbornly insisted on joining the Zhang Family.’

’Now she had come running back in such a sorry state. It felt like she was just getting what she deserved.’

"Mom, I need the household registration book."

"What do you need it for?"

"The village needs it for population registration."

Li Hongying didn’t think much of it and went back to her place to get the household registration book for her.

As soon as Jiang Qing got the book, she turned to leave.

Li Hongying, feeling uneasy, stopped her. "Xiao Qing, if anything is wrong, you have to tell me."

Meeting Li Hongying’s concerned gaze, Jiang Qing couldn’t help but waver.

"Mom, do you have any money?"

"What do you need money for? What about your own? Is it all gone?"

Li Hongying knew her daughter had saved up some money over the years.

"Just stop asking so many questions. If you have it, give it to me. I’ll pay you back in the future."

Li Hongying sighed. "The dowry money your Uncle Jiang gave you... you refused to accept it, but he never took it back. I still have it."

Jiang Qing’s lips trembled, but this time she didn’t have the pride to refuse like she had before.

After taking the money, Jiang Qing tentatively raised the subject of her mother accompanying her. "Mom, if I go to live with my husband at his army post, would you be willing to come with me?"

Li Hongying rejected the idea without a second thought. "What would I do there?"

"If you came with me, I could guarantee you a good life. It would be much better than slaving away for someone else!"

"My life is perfectly fine right now."

’I’m living in a big house, and the food is a big step up from how it used to be.’

’Sometimes when I look in the mirror, I even think I look younger.’

’For a remarried woman from the countryside with a child from a past marriage, she was already more than satisfied with the life she had.’

Jiang Qing, however, was a little angry, feeling her mother was being ungrateful.

"If you like this kind of life so much, then you can just keep on living it! I’m leaving!"

She stormed off without a backward glance.

Li Hongying watched her daughter’s retreating back, completely baffled. She had no idea what had made her so angry.

...

「Two days passed in a flash.」

Jiang Qing hadn’t returned to Plum Valley, and there had been no word from her. Jin Yulan was getting antsy and sent her second son, Zhang Jiaquan, into the city to check on things.

She wanted to know if her daughter-in-law had found work, and if so, how much she was earning per day.

Li Hongying had also been on edge for the past two days.

Her daughter had taken the household registration book two days ago and still hadn’t brought it back. She’d also taken a lot of money and said some very strange things before she left.

This continued until Zhang Jiaquan showed up at her door.

When she learned that her daughter had never returned to her in-laws’ home, Li Hongying was terrified.

...

After getting a call from Jiang Dahai, Jiang Moli changed her shoes, ready to head out.

"Mom, I’m heading over to my family’s place. I won’t be back for lunch."

The familiar scene made An Hui’s eyelid twitch. "What is it now?"

"Jiang Qing is missing."

Both An Hui and Ma Hongmei were shocked.

"How could she just disappear like that?"

"I know, right? I’m going to go get the full story. I’ll fill you in when I get back. Wait for me, ’kay?"

An Hui: "..."

"Be careful. Call us if anything happens."

"Got it."

Jiang Moli rushed back excitedly to the family residence in the military compound.

Li Hongying was a timid and indecisive housewife to begin with. Faced with her daughter’s disappearance, all she could do was cry and cry.

When he learned that Jiang Qing had taken money from Li Hongying before she vanished, Jiang Dahai suggested calling the police.

He suspected his stepdaughter might have been targeted by criminals because she was carrying cash.

"Aunt Ying, stop crying for a moment. Think about which friends Jiang Qing is close to, and we can go ask them door-to-door. Dad, you ride your bike to the neighborhood administrative office and ask if Jiang Qing has been there."

Jiang Dahai was still thinking clearly. Prompted by Jiang Moli, an idea struck him, and he immediately left.

Li Hongying stopped crying and listed out all of Jiang Qing’s close friends, one by one.

Jiang Moli wrote them down on a piece of paper.

When Jin Yulan arrived in the city with her whole family in a flurry, Jiang Moli had Li Hongying take the Zhang Family to go door-to-door and ask around.

As for her, she was content to stay home, eat watermelon, and wait for news.

’She had no desire to go out and suffer in this heat.’

’Besides, she didn’t think anything would actually happen to Jiang Qing. She was the protagonist, after all. She wasn’t going to get killed off that easily.’

Jiang Dahai returned quickly.

The moment he returned, he clasped his hands behind his back and eyed Jiang Moli suspiciously, looking her up and down.

"How did you know she went to the neighborhood administrative office?"

"Just a guess. By the way, Dad, I have to give you a hard time about giving Jiang Qing that sixty-six-yuan betrothal gift. This family’s money will belong to me and Jiang Peng one day. If you’re going to spend our money, don’t you think you should let us know first? I’ll let it slide this time, but don’t let it happen again, ’kay?"

Jiang Dahai: "..."

Before long, Li Hongying returned with the Zhang Family in tow.

She was carrying a note left by Jiang Qing.

The note contained only a single sentence: I’ve gone to visit my husband at his army post.

From the moment she’d heard the news, Jiang Moli had guessed that Jiang Qing had probably gone to find Zhang Jia Ming at his army post.

Jiang Qing appeared diligent and motivated, but deep down, she was proud and arrogant, with a fierce sense of self-respect.

A person like that, accustomed to the good life in the city, would never be content to suffer hardship and poverty in the countryside.

In the original book, however, Jiang Qing had waited until after Zhang Jia Ming was promoted to an officer before she joined him at his post, openly and respectably.

But right now, Zhang Jia Ming hadn’t yet made his mark, yet Jiang Qing had impatiently rushed to join him. It was obvious her life with the Zhang Family was miserable.

What Jiang Moli didn’t know at this moment was that she herself was the catalyst for Jiang Qing resorting to such a desperate plan.

If she hadn’t reminded Jiang Dashan that Jiang Qing had caught him in his affair with Ge Yue’e, Ge Yue’e wouldn’t have launched a preemptive strike. She wouldn’t have slandered Jiang Qing, making it impossible for her to remain in Plum Valley.

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