Chapter 6 Refusing the Vow
Gu Cheng stopped me and waited for me to nod.
In my previous life, he had forced me to swear like this before faking his death.
I thought he was worried I would treat his siblings harshly after marriage, so I did it.
It was that one oath that wasted most of my life.
Gu Cheng saw I did not speak. A look of hurt crossed his face. "Never mind. They are burdens. It's normal if you don't want to."
I said, "You swear first. If you treat me badly, your parents won't rest in peace underground either."
Gu Cheng's face stiffened. He seemed not to have expected me to counter with words.
In the past, when Gu Cheng acted like this, full of self-pity, I would soften and comply.
I had to admit, he knew exactly how to manipulate the old me.
I also knew that whether I swore or not, Gu Cheng would carry out his fake death plan.
He had already borrowed a huge loan. According to Brother Ma's rules, even if repaid immediately, high interest had to be paid.
With his factory wages, Gu Cheng had no way to pay it off.
Besides, he was already being watched by Zhu Xiuqin's ex-husband.
There was no turning back.
While Gu Cheng was stunned, I walked out the door.
On the way, I ran into villagers.
Everyone greeted me and asked where I was going since I was about to get married.
I rubbed my eyes and put on a sorrowful face.
"I just want to go out for a walk alone."
"Is it because of Zhu Xiuqin? Sigh, Gu Cheng really doesn't know any better."
My tears fell instantly.
"Zhu Xiuqin wears my clothes and steals food from my house. But my mom is gone, and no one helps me."
The neighbors comforted me together while cursing the three Gu siblings as ungrateful wolves who helped outsiders bully the daughter of their benefactor.
I looked dejected and walked straight out of the village.
It was about to rain heavily. As expected, there was no one by the big river. I jumped onto the waiting boat and headed to the train station.
An hour later, I boarded the train south with my face covered.
The scenery outside the window kept changing, and I dozed off.
At noon, Gu Cheng reluctantly left the house.
He repeatedly instructed Gu Fang and Gu Yuan, "Be polite to Song Xiaoya. Take good care of yourselves. I will write to you."
The siblings' eyes reddened instantly. "Brother, you take care too. We'll be fine. Since that woman wants to be our sister-in-law, she should give everything for us."
Gu Cheng seemed to have no worries. I could tell he believed I was kind and generous and would not mistreat his younger siblings.
In my previous life, he had indeed bet correctly. I would rather eat bran and swallow vegetables than let his siblings go hungry. I raised them.
Gu Cheng borrowed a small boat and rowed toward the big river.
What surprised him was that on a stormy day, the big riverbank should have been empty, but now it was crowded with villagers.
With so many people watching, how could he carry out his fake death plan?
Would he have to postpone? But Zhu Xiuqin had already bought the train tickets and was waiting for him in town.
Someone recognized him and shouted anxiously, "Your fiancée seems to have fallen into the river. Come and see!"
Gu Cheng thought it was impossible. I had clearly gone to town to order furniture. How could I have fallen into the big river?
But my shoes were scattered on the shore, and my hat was floating in the middle of the river.
All this clearly indicated that something had happened to me.
In my previous life, Gu Cheng had faked his death in the same way.
He said he was going to catch a few fish for the main dish at the wedding feast that night.
I thought he had lost his life for our wedding and felt even more guilty.
This big river led to the Yangtze River with turbulent currents. Even if someone drowned, without advanced equipment, it was hard to find the body.
So in my previous life, I never suspected that Gu Cheng had faked his death. After all, his siblings were still here. If he were alive, he would definitely come back.