country bumpkin

Xiao Zhe looked at her with heartache and pulled her into his arms tightly.

He gently lowered his chin to Zhang Qingjiao's head and said, "Silly girl, your brother Zhe will never leave you again, making you suffer so much."

Zhang Qingjiao was moved to tears; even her own brother hadn't treated her this well. Her mother and brother were only thinking about how to use her to arrange a marriage and carry on the family line.

Throughout her life, only Xiao Zhe had ever been kind to her and genuinely cared for her. Therefore, she was very grateful and cherished the hard-won happiness she had now.

Xiao Zhe gently stroked her hair and said, "From now on, don't call me 'Brother Xiao Zhe,' just call me 'Husband'!"

Zhang Qingjiao blushed and said, "Isn't that inappropriate? We're not married yet. Besides, no one in our village addresses each other like that."

Xiao Zhe kissed her forehead. "That's how they address each other on TV. Besides, many couples in big cities address each other like that nowadays."

When Xiao Zhe was driving for a peanut export workshop, he often traveled to big cities. He had interacted with people from other places, so it's not surprising that he knew about trendy things.

Zhang Qingjiao was still embarrassed and said, "No, I can't bring myself to call you Brother Xiao Zhe in front of outsiders."

Xiao Zhe coaxed, "If you can't say it in front of outsiders, then... when it's just the two of us at home, how about you call me that?"

Zhang Qingjiao lowered her head and nodded slightly. Xiao Zhe teased her, "Try calling out first."

Zhang Qingjiao shyly whispered, "Husband..."

Xiao Zhe laughed out loud, "Silly girl, your brother Zhe is just teasing you!"

Zhang Qingjiao became even more shy, pouting her little mouth like a lively and adorable pufferfish.

Seeing her angry expression, Xiao Zhe felt a tickle in his heart, as if some unknown shackle had been broken.

He just thought, "She's so cute!" and couldn't help but kiss her lips.

Warm, soft, and sweet. Zhang Qingjiao was already lost and drowning in Xiao Zhe's sea of ​​love.

After a long while, the two finally separated. The star-crossed lovers, who hadn't seen each other for so long, could finally be together.

In the following days, Zhang Qingjiao worked diligently, and Xiao Zhe was busy looking for a job. Life went on peacefully like this.

One day, a tall man with yellow skin and a full beard came to the house.

This person has a decent appearance and a lean build, but looks very tired.

The man saw a strong, unfamiliar man in the rented room. He asked, "Excuse me, is this Zhang Qingjiao's house? Who are you?"

Xiao Zhe looked at the rough-skinned man in front of him and asked, "Yes, who are you?"

The two stared at each other, the air thick with tension.

Hearing the commotion, Zhang Qingjiao came out of the kitchen and exclaimed in surprise when she saw the man, "Brother, how did you find your way here?" It turned out that this was Zhang Qingjiao's brother.

Although they lived in the same village, one at the north end and the other at the south end, Xiao Zhe was not often at home, so he had never seen him.

The older brother snorted coldly: "Hmph, if I hadn't inquired around, I wouldn't have known you were hanging out with such shady people."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Zhe became furious: "Who are you calling indecent? Your family treated Qingjiao like that, and you still have the nerve to criticize me?"

Just as the older brother was about to retort, Zhang Qingjiao stepped between the two of them.

"Brother, Brother Xiao Zhe is very good to me, and we are truly in love."

Her brother pulled her close, saying, "What do you know about love? Your parents have found you a good match. The other person is a very good catch. Come back with me right now."

Xiao Zhe held Zhang Qingjiao's hand tightly: "She won't go with you. I'm here today, and no one can force her."

The older brother, enraged and embarrassed, retorted: "What right do you have to interfere in our family affairs?"

Xiao Zhe's eyes were firm: "Because I love her, I will give her happiness."

Zhang Qingjiao also looked at her brother and resolutely shook her head, indicating that she did not want to leave.

Seeing her resolute attitude, her brother said, "If you want to be together, that's fine. Just give us a dowry of 2000 yuan, and we'll agree to your relationship. From now on, our family will never interfere in your affairs again."

Xiao Zhe said angrily, "Jiaojiao will take care of herself, and you don't need to worry about her anymore."

After saying that, he went into the house, took out his shirt that he had left on the bed, took out a wad of cash, counted it, and found it was exactly 2000 yuan.

He threw it on the ground and said, "Here, take it and get out of here. Don't bother us again."

Zhang Qingguo squatted down to pick up the money from the ground, stood up, looked at his sister, and left without saying a word.

Xiao Zhe and Zhang Qingjiao embraced and wept, relieved that their relationship had not been broken up again.

Zhang Qingguo came to find his sister this time intending to have her return home to remarry. The other party had promised a dowry of 2000 yuan, and he planned to use that money to bring Zhu Mengmeng back.

They agreed that once they paid the money, they could bring his wife back. Now, a long time has passed, and I wonder how Mengmeng is doing.

He doesn't care who his sister marries, as long as he receives the bride price, he doesn't care about her happiness. As long as he is happy, that's all that matters.

After he left, Zhang Qingjiao felt utterly heartbroken. She thought her brother had come to find her because her family was worried about her and wanted to take her home, but she never expected it was just for money again.

This time she was completely heartbroken; she was going to abandon her family and have no further contact with them.

After some time, Xiao Zhe found a stable job driving a public bus. The income was quite considerable.

Zhang Qingjiao also quit her previous hard job and looked forward to a better future with Xiao Zhe.

However, the peaceful days did not last long. Zhang Qingjiao found herself becoming weaker and weaker and constantly feeling sleepy.

Xiao Zhe hurriedly took her to the hospital for a checkup, only to find out that she had a rare disease with high treatment costs.

Their savings quickly ran out, and Xiao Zhe had no choice but to work overtime desperately to earn money.

At this time, Zhang Qingjiao's family came to her door after learning the news.

The older brother said hypocritically, "Sis, we're family too. I was wrong before. Now let's go home to get treatment. We can take care of you at home."

But Xiao Zhe knew what they were up to and refused them.

Just when the two were in despair, Xiao Zhe accidentally learned that a medical research project was recruiting patients, and that if they participated, they would not only receive free treatment but also receive subsidies.

After a series of efforts, including submitting applications and proof of poverty, Zhang Qingjiao successfully joined the project and gradually recovered.

Having gone through this ordeal, they cherished each other even more, and Zhang Qingjiao completely let go of her last hope for her family, deciding to live a good life with Xiao Zhe and stay away from those so-called family members who only cared about their own interests.

During these days of illness, Song Ke often came to visit her.

Song Ke knew that Zhang Qingjiao had always loved this man, and she was very happy with him. Even though she was sick, she still smiled every day.

Song Ke decided to give up his unrequited love. He was willing to accept anything as long as she was happy.

After two weeks of treatment, Zhang Qingjiao has fully recovered.

With proper nutrition, appropriate exercise, relaxation, and a good mood, the body will naturally recover to normal.

Zhang Qingjiao's gratitude towards Xiao Zhe came from the bottom of her heart. She longed to give Xiao Zhe a complete family and bear him children.

But then she felt unclean. Xiao Zhe had never touched his wife since their marriage, yet she had been forced into sex by Zhu Zhiqiang. She felt she was not good enough for him.

When Xiao Zhe came home from get off work and saw Zhang Qingjiao, who was now full of energy and healthy again, he cherished her even more and felt even more sorry for her.

Zhang Qingjiao said, "Brother Zhe, I...I want to marry you and start a new family. But..."

Xiao Zhe was delighted, but then asked with a question, "That's great, but what are you worried about?"

Zhang Qingjiao stammered, "Brother Zhe, I... I'm no longer pure. I'm not good enough for you."

Xiao Zhe suddenly realized, and hugged her tenderly, saying, "No, Jiao Jiao, in my heart you will always be that hardworking, kind, pure, and lovely girl. There's no such thing as being worthy or not, only whether you love me or not. Do you... love me?"

Zhang Qingjiao's eyes reddened and tears streamed down her face. "Brother Zhe, I love you, I love you so much."

Xiao Zhe knew her feelings, but he just wanted to hear her say it herself.

The two kissed each other.

Autumn leaves fell outside the window. The two did not have a wedding ceremony, but they formed a loving family.