Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Chapter 491: Chapter 257: Why Do You Like Me?

Liu Xiaomei thought about how Juhua rarely visited, then glanced at her Third Brother. She bravely nodded and said, ”I’ll go get her. I’ll tell her that my brother caught a lot of small fish and invite her over to roast them—she’s done it before and said she really likes it.” The Liu family had also been selling fish recently.

Fatty Liu quickly said, ”Yes! That’ll work. I’ll head out for a visit then. And you,” he said to his wife, ”take Second Brother’s wife to Eldest’s place for a bit. It’ll keep the house from being too crowded and awkward. Besides, we have to be careful what we say around Second Brother’s wife—we only found out about that gossipy habit of Xiaonian’s wife two years after she married in. Who knows if she’s the same? Even if she isn’t, it would be bad if she let this slip outside.”

Mei’s mother hurriedly nodded and agreed.

Liu Sanshun watched his family sort everything out in the blink of an eye, feeling like he was in a dream. ’Of course. Having my sister bring Juhua here so I can get a straight answer is the simplest way. Why was I so stupid, going back and forth with Mom and Dad for so long?’ But when he saw how much his parents still cared for him, a bittersweet smile touched his lips.

* * *

Juhua had been wondering why Liu Xiaomei hadn’t visited in days. Then, just as she was thinking it, Liu Xiaomei appeared, inviting her to her home to do needlework and roast some fish.

This was because Liu Sanshun had heard Laixi’s suggestion from Zheng Changhe, who had just returned from selling fish. He thought it was a great idea and had started catching fresh, large fish to sell each day, netting plenty of smaller assorted fish in the process.

Surprisingly, Juhua agreed.

Liu Xiaomei was happy, but she didn’t want to trick Juhua by hiding the real reason for the invitation. She decided to tell her the truth.

With mixed feelings, she asked, ”Juhua, you’re about to be engaged to Huai Zi. Do you like him?”

Juhua was surprised. ’Mei isn’t one to pry, so why is she asking this now?’ she thought. She smiled, nodded, and said, ”I do!”

Hearing that, Liu Xiaomei’s heart ached for her Third Brother. She probed gently, ”What if another man liked you too—and, well, he’s a good man—could you perhaps postpone your engagement, think it over carefully, and then choose one?”

Juhua was filled with doubt. Suddenly, an image of Liu Sanshun’s face flashed through her mind. ’The ’good man’ Mei mentioned couldn’t possibly be anyone but her own brother.’

She chuckled and gave her a look. ”There are plenty of good men in our village, but I can only marry one. Huai Zi is different. And I know him well.”

Liu Xiaomei’s spirits fell. She furrowed her brow slightly and said to Juhua, ”Juhua, I’ll be honest with you. My Third Brother likes you too. He just never expected you to get engaged to Huai Zi so quickly. He was planning to save up some more money before asking your father for your hand. Now that you’re about to be engaged to Huai Zi, he still can’t let it go. He just wants to ask you to your face for a straight answer: do you have to marry Huai Zi? My Third Brother is incredibly stubborn when he sets his mind on something. I’m begging you, please go talk to him. Even if you can’t say yes, please help me talk some sense into him. Don’t worry, I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you. Everyone else in my family has left, so it’s just my Third Brother and me at home.”

Juhua was stunned. ’Liu Sanshun likes me?’

This was the last thing she expected. ’Aren’t I supposed to be ugly?’ she thought, full of doubt. ’How could anyone other than Zhang Huai like me?’

But when she heard Liu Xiaomei ask her to go talk some sense into her brother, she hesitated. ’Can I really trust the Liu family?’ she wondered.

Looking at Liu Xiaomei’s hopeful eyes and thinking of Liu Sanshun’s cheerful, round face, she finally nodded. ”Alright, I’ll try. But Mei, I’m about to be engaged. It’s really not appropriate for me to go see your brother alone. Can I have my brother come with me? He’s not a talkative person. Otherwise, if my parents found out I ran over to your house just to meet with your brother, they’d scold me for being improper.” She decided it was best to bring Qingmu along. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust the Liu family, but sometimes unexpected coincidences and accidents happen, and then you wouldn’t be able to explain your way out of it no matter what you said.

Liu Xiaomei nodded. ”That’s a good idea! It would put my mind at ease, too. The last thing I want is to put you in a difficult position, or I wouldn’t have told you the truth in the first place.”

Juhua looked at her, touched, and smiled. ”Of course I trust you. But you know how it is—when you’re unlucky, even drinking water can get stuck in your teeth. If we happened to run into someone like Xiaonian’s wife, neither of our families could explain it away, and we’d be in trouble for no reason. Bringing my brother is just a precaution, so we can talk with peace of mind. Right?”

Mei nodded happily. ”Right! My dad said something similar. He even sent my second sister-in-law away.”

So, Juhua explained the whole situation to Qingmu in detail, asking him to accompany her to the Liu family’s house.

Qingmu was thoroughly annoyed when he heard the story. ’This Liu Sanshun really is stubborn,’ he thought. ’She’s about to get engaged. What’s there to not understand? Juhua shouldn’t have to deal with this. Is she supposed to go explain herself to every man she doesn’t marry? What would people say?’