Refusing to marry a widower, I went on a crazy spree of sending my children to the army.

Little train, choo choo choo~~~

After finishing her meal, Qiao Manman cleaned up the trash and went back to her room next door to sleep.

Having not slept well for several days, she fell asleep instantly. Unbeknownst to her, news of Boss Qiao's affair had already spread throughout the county.

But what people knew more about was that he and the female workers from the factory were caught naked in a room and then paraded through the streets.

As for the misappropriation of factory property, certain details have not yet been investigated and have not been disclosed to the public.

Upon hearing the news from outside, Yan Chengke, the office director of the machinery factory, cautiously went to report to the factory manager.

"Director Miao, what do you think of Comrade Qiao's job...?"

As is customary, this will implicate others. Besides, she hasn't even started working yet.

But Commander Miao remembered: "Didn't you say that Comrade Xiao Qiao's father injured his leg and couldn't move for a while?"

Tell her to settle down at home and that she can return to the factory to report for duty whenever she's finished with her work!

Yan Chengke was relieved and planned to visit Qingshan Brigade again whenever he had some free time.

Tell Qiao Manman not to worry, the factory gates are always open for her.

***

Qiao Manman slept soundly, completely oblivious to her work at the machinery factory.

In the late afternoon, the system stumbled upon some juicy gossip and hurriedly woke Qiao Manman up.

"Host, host, Chen Shicong went to Old Qiao's house to break off the engagement!"

Qiao Manman jumped up with a start: "Who, Chen Shicong? Qiao Zhenzhen's boyfriend?"

"Yes, host, Chen Shicong has come to the Qiao family with all his relatives to annul the engagement!"

"Isn't he a soldier? Why did he suddenly come back?"

The system thought for a moment: "It seems he got promoted and came back to pick up Qiao Zhenzhen to accompany him to the military base, but then..."

Qiao Manman rubbed her throbbing forehead: "Something's not right. I remember in the novel, Chen Shicong was promoted after three months. We can't speed up the process just because of this little butterfly!"

The system remained silent; if it had a physical form, one could easily tell it was guilty.

Qiao Manman didn't hesitate. She changed into clean clothes and went out: "Mom, Mom, do you want to go to Old Qiao's house to see the excitement?"

He Nian asked in confusion, "What's all the commotion about?"

"I don't know, I just had a dream that there was a lot of noise at Old Qiao's house!"

He Nian was both amused and exasperated: "You can't actually believe things from dreams! You go ahead, I'll stay home and take care of your dad!"

Qiao Manman glanced at Qiao Runming sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed) and sighed, "Dad, when I get you a wheelchair, you can go out for a stroll every now and then."

Qiao Runming was not moved at all: "No, no, no, I'll go out for a walk by myself once my leg is better."

Qiao Manman suppressed a laugh and left, deciding to find an opportunity to ask Dr. Qin.

Why do the team members love watching the drama so much? She was only a little late, yet she was blocked at the very edge.

It was noisy inside, and she couldn't hear clearly, so Qiao Manman had to ask the system to amplify the audio signal for her.

"Aunt Qiao, it's not that we're heartless, it's just that your daughter isn't presentable enough!"

Our Chen family never really looked up to her; she belonged to the Meng family...

Forget it, there's no point in bringing this up. This marriage has to be called off.

Not to mention that your Zhenzhen is lazy, greedy, and unemployed, her father... oh dear, he got caught naked in bed with someone, he'll probably be sent to a labor camp.

My son, Shi Cong, has just been promoted to deputy battalion commander. We can't have a father-in-law who knowingly breaks the law!

That statement was absolutely devastating.

No matter how much Old Lady Qiao didn't want to lose this capable in-law, she couldn't block their path to success.

Otherwise, wouldn't that turn into enmity?

Chen Shicong's mother, fearing that her words might have a negative impact on her son, quickly tried to smooth things over: "Auntie, please don't blame me for speaking harshly, but military marriages require political vetting, and Zhenzhen's background isn't clean, so she simply won't pass."

We took half of the engagement gift; the other half is compensation for Zhenzhen. We hope she finds a good man in the future!

Qiao Zhenzhen looked at Chen Shicong with tears in her eyes: "Brother Shicong, are you really willing to abandon me?"

A flash of disgust crossed Chen Shicong's eyes, but his tone was gentle: "Zhenzhen, I'm sorry, I had no choice."

Qiao Zhenzhen pouted and tears welled up in her eyes: "If you really like me, there's something I can do. I heard that after being discharged from the military..."

Before she could finish speaking, Aunt Chen interrupted her: "Qiao Zhenzhen, I'm speaking to you gently and kindly, yet you want to ruin my son's future. How can you be so vicious?"

Turning around, she said, "Aunt Qiao, since that's how it is, I don't need to save face for your family anymore. Let's call off the engagement, and cancel the entire engagement ceremony!"

Grandma Qiao's face was very unpleasant. She glared at Qiao Zhenzhen and stood still.

"What's wrong, Aunt Qiao? Are you upset? Shall we call the police?"

Upon hearing the word "police," Qiao Zhenzhen instinctively shrank back.

Grandma Qiao was furious after being rebuked, but she said with a fierce but weak voice, "Report it then! The matter hasn't been investigated yet. Maybe someone is jealous of my eldest son and is setting a trap to smear him!"

Aunt Chen scoffed, "Jealous? You probably have no idea how much trouble your Zhenbang has gotten into! He might even be executed!"

Grandma Qiao swayed: "What? What did you say? My eldest son just slept with a female employee, how did that lead to him being executed!"

"Hooliganism shouldn't warrant the death penalty, especially since Qiao Zhenbang committed a crime far more serious than hooliganism!"

Although the Chen family was not prominent in the county town, Chen Shicong was at least a military officer with a promising future and was also handsome.

He used to have a fiancée who was a good match for him, and everyone could only sigh at the young man's situation.

But things are different now. When Boss Qiao got into trouble, someone immediately informed Aunt Chen.

His words were all about finding Chen Shicong a new partner, and that the terms were negotiable.

No dowry, just a free radio and a bicycle...

Therefore, the Chen family was resolute and came to break off the engagement without delay.

Aunt Chen's words caused an uproar among the onlookers.

The Qiao family members were all pale-faced, fearing they would be implicated.

Grandma Qiao asked Qiao Zhenzhen with a serious expression, "What exactly did your father do wrong?"

Qiao Zhenzhen shook her head: "Grandma, I don't know!"

"It's no use!" Old Mrs. Qiao gritted her teeth and asked again, "Where's the money? How much money do you have on you? Take it all out!"

Qiao Zhenzhen was desperate and helpless: "Grandma, I have no money on me. I was arrested and taken to the police station as soon as I got up yesterday. I just got out of there today, and then my dad got into trouble."

Grandma, I don't want to break off my engagement with Shi Cong, please help me!

Grandma Qiao closed her eyes and called her second son's wife to go back to the house and get thirty yuan.

The second son's wife, Qiu Yu, glared at him and said, "Mother, why should we?! It wasn't our second branch that paid for the engagement ceremony. If anyone should be refunded, it should be Zhenzhen!"

"If she could quit, would I need to beg you? Don't think that just because the second son has a job, he doesn't know who's in charge of the Qiao family!"

Believe it or not, I'll go to the commune and complain that my second son is unfilial!

Seeing the old lady's fierce gaze, Qiu Yu felt somewhat aggrieved.

"Mother, the second son has had a tough time in the commune all these years. Do you really want to treat him like this?"

"Go! Get it!" Old Mrs. Qiao took a deep breath and slammed her cane on the ground with a loud thud. Her fierce demeanor silenced the scene.