The Adopted Cannon Fodder Made a Comeback

When Zhou Erpao finished speaking, everyone in the room turned to look at him. He was still smiling, looking at Li Zhi with a hint of anticipation.

’Gu’er really couldn’t understand it. How could he be so shameless? This was the first time he’d ever met Li Zhi and the others, so how could he possibly be trying to set up a match between him and Zhou Mei?’

’If Zhou Mei were the kind of stunning beauty who turned heads, it might be somewhat understandable. But Zhou Mei was just an ordinary-looking girl. What made Zhou Erpao think someone from the city would be interested in her? Li Zhi had driven here in a car, which meant his family was very well-off. He could have his pick of any wife he wanted from the city. Where did Zhou Erpao and Zhou Mei get such nerve? Weren’t they afraid of being shot down and humiliated?’

In truth, Gu’er didn’t understand. It was precisely because Li Zhi and his friends had arrived in a car that Zhou Erpao and Zhou Mei were so eager. They were hoping to leap up the social ladder in a single bound.

The reason Zhou Mei had originally pursued Sun Jiaming was not just because her uncle wanted to eradicate the Sun Family’s influence and make the Zhou family the sole authority in the village. It was also because Sun Jiaming’s older brother, sister-in-law, and parents all lived in the city. Sun Jiaming was bound to move there eventually, and that’s why Zhou Mei had been so desperate to marry him. She wanted a city life, she wanted to escape the village, she wanted to be a cut above everyone else.

After things fell through with Sun Jiaming, plenty of people tried to play matchmaker for her. After all, Zhou Mei wasn’t ugly, her family was reasonably well-off by village standards, and she had an uncle who was the village chief. There was no shortage of families willing to have her.

But while potential suitors weren’t picky about her, she was extremely picky about them. She rejected anyone from a poor family, anyone who wasn’t handsome, and anyone with too many brothers. After being so selective, she finally found a satisfactory match. But then the man found a dishwasher in the city and broke things off with her, which made Zhou Mei absolutely furious.

The Zhou family hadn’t initially thought of targeting him. But then Li Zhi drove into the village today, and it became the talk of the town. Everyone was envious of Sun Jiaming and Gu’er, envious of the good life wealthy city people had. Zhou Mei saw the car too and went home to tell her parents. After putting their heads together, they somehow concluded that if Gu’er and Sun Jiaming could make it in the city and even have friends with cars, then maybe city folk didn’t look down on villagers. Perhaps they even had a thing for village girls.

Zhou Erpao and his family were instantly fired up. If Zhou Mei could marry into a good city family, why would they need to envy the Sun Family? They would be the ones showing off then. They could finally hold their heads high in the village. So, after a quick discussion, they grabbed a small gift and came over. They had to give it a shot, whether it succeeded or not. Besides, they had always believed their daughter was far superior to Gu’er, and their family was much better off than Zhou Mazi’s. This gave them a sliver of confidence. Even if it failed, they had nothing to lose. At the very least, they’d get acquainted with someone from the city, which might lead to finding a city-dwelling son-in-law down the line.

’Gu’er had no idea this was what Zhou Erpao’s family was thinking. She honestly couldn’t believe anyone could be so thick-skinned. She would never be able to do something like this. With Zhou Mei standing right there, Zhou Erpao was parading his own daughter around like an object for inspection. And Zhou Mei didn’t even feel humiliated—her eyes were filled with eager hope. Had it never occurred to them how they would save face if they were rejected?’

Gu’er sighed to herself. ’People really are all different.’

"You make her sound so wonderful, Uncle. In that case, I really must meet her. Your daughter, you say? When can you arrange a meeting for us, Uncle? If she’s truly as amazing as you claim, I’ll definitely have to talk to my parents about it when I get back."

Li Zhi acted as if he had no idea Zhou Erpao was referring to Zhou Mei.

"Hehe, Nephew, this is my daughter right here, Meizi. Take a look. See how fair-skinned she is? And she’s a wonderful person. We’ve had so many suitors asking for her hand; everyone wants to marry my Meizi. Have a good look."

Zhou Erpao pointed at Zhou Mei. Then he turned to her and said, "Meizi, get a little closer to Brother Li. Let Brother Li get a good look at you."

"Nephew, look at my daughter. Her height, her figure, her fair complexion... She’s honest and hardworking, too. If you marry her, you won’t have a single worry at home. You wouldn’t have to lift a finger. And if any trouble comes up, we can help. Let me tell you, don’t underestimate our village. My older brother is the village chief. If you ever have a problem, the whole village will be there to solve it for you. Oh, that’s right! Why don’t you come over to our house later? I’ll invite my big brother and the Zhou family elders. We’ll all have a good drink with you."

Zhou Erpao was all warm smiles and enthusiastic words, but Li Zhi just kept sizing Zhou Mei up and down.

"Hey, Uncle. Are you sure she’s the one you’ve been talking about?"

Li Zhi pointed at Zhou Mei.

"Yes, she is. This is my Meizi."

Zhou Erpao nodded his head repeatedly.

"I have to ask, Uncle, are you trying to pull a fast one on me? You built her up so much, but... this? You dare parade this kind of merchandise in front of us? Do you think we’ve never seen a woman before? I was expecting some kind of goddess based on your description. In that case, I might have been foolish enough to agree just for her looks. But this? Forget about making her my wife, my mom wouldn’t even let her in the door to sweep the floors. They say some women have the hearts of snakes and scorpions—vicious and cruel, but at least they’re supposed to be beautiful! For an ugly hag like this to have a heart that black... It’s a good thing Gu’er and Jia Ming are so soft-hearted. If it were up to me... Hmph."

Li Zhi snorted with dissatisfaction. ’Zhou Mei had hurt Gu’er before; she was a woman with a vicious heart. He wouldn’t take a woman like that even if she were a goddess. This father-daughter pair had practically delivered themselves to his doorstep for a proper dressing-down. If he didn’t insult them, how could he live with himself, let alone face Gu’er?’

Gu’er, Sun Jiaming, and Dingzi all knew Li Zhi’s personality. They knew he would never agree, so they weren’t the least bit surprised by his words.

But Zhou Mei’s face was no longer just flushed; it had turned dark with humiliation. He had called her an ugly, malicious hag to her face, referring to her as "merchandise." She was an unmarried young woman; how could she possibly take such an insult? Her eyes started to turn red.

Zhou Erpao’s face turned ashen with rage.

"You... How can you say that? If you’re not interested in my daughter, you could have just said so directly! You..." 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

But before Zhou Erpao could finish, Li Zhi cut him off. "Uncle, I *was* being direct. How much more direct do you want me to be? Was that not direct enough? Fine, I’ll say it again. Her name is Zhou Mei, right? She’s hideously ugly, and her heart is black. A person like that deserves to die a spinster. How did you have the nerve to even bring this up with me, Uncle? I at least showed you the courtesy of calling you ’Uncle,’ and you try to saddle me with a menace like her? Are you trying to ruin my life? I always heard villagers were supposed to be down-to-earth, but now I see they’re nothing special. And parading your daughter around for inspection... This isn’t a butcher’s stall where you agree on a price per pound and hack off a piece. She’s a human being! I just can’t stomach this level of shamelessness. And a family like this has an official in it? Who the hell voted for him? Were they blind?"