On her head sat an exquisite little black Western-style hat...
Her entire being was so refined, she looked like a young lady who had returned from studying abroad.
Zhou Yueshen's hand, holding a lunchbox, paused mid-air.
Si Nian hadn't expected to witness such a clichéd scene—another woman bringing him food. For a moment, her expression turned slightly odd.
So, Zhou Yueshen is quite popular in this village, huh?
Seems like I picked the worst possible time to show up.
Si Nian's face remained calm, knowing full well that if she didn’t feel awkward, the awkwardness would shift to others. She reached out and knocked on the iron gate, politely asking, "May I come in?"
The crowd stared blankly at this stunning young woman who had appeared out of nowhere.
No one could figure out where she had come from.
At her words, they exchanged glances. "Miss, who are you looking for?" someone finally asked.
Before Si Nian could answer, Zhou Yueshen had already walked past the stunned Liu Guifang and pulled open the iron gate.
His voice was deep. "What brings you here?"
The onlookers gaped in shock.
This beauty was here for their Boss Zhou!
Holy crap, since when did Zhou Yueshen know someone like her? And how had they never heard about it?
Plus, judging by the lunchbox in her hand, was she also here to bring him food?
Two women fighting to deliver him meals—this kind of treatment was something only he could get in the entire village.
The single men around gritted their teeth in envy.
Si Nian raised an eyebrow and cast a meaningful glance at Liu Guihua, who stood behind Zhou Yueshen in her floral-patterned padded jacket. Her voice was soft but pointed. "Am I not allowed to come?"
If she hadn’t shown up, she wouldn’t have known that her future husband had so many admirers buzzing around him.
Si Nian lifted her gaze to the tall, imposing man before her. The sunlight was blinding, and at nearly six-foot-three, he was so tall that she had to crane her neck just to look at him. The glare forced her to squint, making it hard to see his features clearly.
"That’s not what I meant," the man replied coolly, his tone devoid of emotion.
He just hadn’t expected her to come.
But what was strange was—if Aunt Liu’s daughter had already brought him food, why had Si Nian bothered to make the trip?
Did she not know that Aunt Liu would deliver his meal?
Or had Aunt Liu not gone to the Zhou Family, leaving Si Nian unaware?
His dark eyes narrowed slightly as he stepped aside. "Come in."
Si Nian gave a slight nod and walked into the livestock farm, lunchbox in hand.
Farms inevitably carried certain odors, but she didn’t seem to mind.
The workers were all sitting on small stools scattered around, eating casually.
But her presence made them suddenly self-conscious. Someone quickly fetched a stool. "Miss, please sit."
Si Nian thanked them but remained standing.
Ignoring the curious stares around her, she focused on Zhou Yueshen.
Zhou Yueshen suddenly found the lunchbox in his hand uncomfortably heavy.
After a brief hesitation, he walked over and returned it to Liu Guifang, whose face had turned sour.
"Thanks for the trouble, but you should take this back for yourself."
Liu Guifang snapped out of her daze, finally recovering from the shock of Si Nian’s sudden appearance.
"Boss Zhou, who is this young lady...?" someone couldn’t help but ask.
Zhou Yueshen glanced at Si Nian, who stood there with a faint smile, then lowered his gaze in thought for a couple of seconds before answering.
"She’s the Lin Family’s daughter, here to fulfill the marriage arrangement with me."
"The Lin Family? Didn’t they already call off the engagement?"
At the mention of the Lin Family, the crowd’s expressions darkened instantly.
Zhou Yueshen was the pride of their village, their benefactor, their sworn brother.
Raising three children alone was hard enough, and the dowry he had offered for a wife was several times higher than what others could afford.
When the Lin Family had initially agreed to the marriage, everyone had been excitedly preparing for the wedding.
But then, after taking the dowry, they suddenly backed out, turning Zhou Yueshen into a laughingstock!
Seeing their brother treated like this, the men were furious and held nothing but contempt for Lin Sisi.
And now, she had the nerve to show up?
In an instant, hostile glares came from all directions.
Si Nian smiled gently and clarified, "You’ve misunderstood. I’m not Lin Sisi."
The crowd froze, and she continued, "Here’s what happened—Lin Sisi and I were accidentally switched at birth. I’m the Lin Family’s biological daughter, and Lin Sisi has been reclaimed by her real parents. That’s why I’m the one fulfilling this marriage arrangement now."
"Oh! I did hear from the next village that Lin Sisi turned out to be some rich family’s daughter, which was why she refused to marry. I thought it was just an excuse, but it was true!"
"So, you’re from the city?"
"Good heavens, you’re the one who got swapped?"
The crowd murmured in astonishment.
No wonder she carried herself with such grace—she didn’t seem like someone raised in the countryside.
Turns out she really was from the city. What shocked them even more was that after living in luxury for so many years, she was actually willing to leave it all behind and come to the village to honor this marriage.
Si Nian nodded. "You could say that."
At first glance, with her fair, delicate complexion, she didn’t seem like someone who could endure a hard life.
But not only had she come to fulfill the marriage, she’d even taken the initiative to bring Zhou Yueshen food.
Maybe she wasn’t as difficult as they’d assumed.
Still, someone couldn’t resist asking, "This whole mess has been going on for a month. Why did you only come now?"
The others immediately frowned. "Yeah, Lin Sisi backed out a month ago and was taken away soon after. If you were going to come, why wait till now?"
They suspected she hadn’t wanted to come at all—but with the real daughter back home, she’d probably been kicked out and had no choice but to show up.
Si Nian’s brows furrowed slightly. "It’s... complicated. I only found out about this recently. I stayed in the city because I also had a childhood betrothal there. My family had to settle that engagement with Lin Sisi before I could leave."
"Besides, I only knew about Lin Sisi’s engagement at first. Later, when my parents couldn’t return the dowry and Lin Sisi refused to marry, they had no choice but to send me, their real daughter, to fulfill the arrangement. Since my biological parents were the ones who took the money, I couldn’t just ignore the situation."
Hearing this, the crowd’s hearts ached for her.
So, she was a victim too.
Living a good life in the city, only to suddenly learn she wasn’t her parents’ real child. Then, Lin Sisi refused to marry, her parents couldn’t return the money, and she had to break off her own engagement with a wealthy city family to come to the countryside.
The other women present felt she’d suffered far too much.
This girl was willing to sacrifice herself!
Unlike that Lin Sisi, who, upon learning she was from a rich family, immediately abandoned her adoptive parents, returned to the city, and even stole Si Nian’s fiancé, leaving this poor girl to clean up the mess.
What a scheming, heartless woman!
