Chapter 12: The Engagement Token Was Broken

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Xu Qinghuan didn’t argue with her further and directly asked Jiang Chengxu, “What do you say?”

Jiang Chengxu was an idiot—he suddenly realized something was wrong. He dared not meet Xu Qinghuan’s eyes, but in his mind, Xu Manman’s words echoed relentlessly: “You should know what I’m thinking!”

What fault could Xu Manman possibly have?

Her only mistake was that she admired and depended on him too much.

“Qinghuan, she’s your younger sister, just a bit younger than you…”

Xu Qinghuan sneered, “She’s only two months younger, not two years! Everyone can see your intentions clearly! Comrade Jiang, I don’t believe you didn’t know!”

“Of course I knew! How could I not? Tsk tsk, even in this new era, there are still people carrying such filthy, possessive feelings!”

A mocking voice rang out from the crowd. Xu Qinghuan looked over and saw a young man, about eighteen or nineteen, with a crew cut, round face, thick eyebrows, and big eyes. He seemed somewhat familiar, but she couldn’t place him.

“Chen Dewen, shut up! What’s it to you? I’m going to sue you for slander!” Jiang Chengxu was both angry and flustered, his face flushed and his neck red.

“Tsk tsk! You do it, but others can’t speak…” Chen Dewen was about to continue when his friends pulled him away.

With the truth exposed, the onlookers whispered among themselves. The pity and sympathy in their eyes toward Xu Manman vanished, replaced by disdain and contempt. They pointed fingers and whispered; if they had caught the two in the act, they would have dragged them through the streets.

Jiang Chengxu, ashamed and furious, gritted his teeth and snarled, “Xu Qinghuan, are you satisfied now?”

Lin Xialan was so angry she nearly jumped up. “Jiang Chengxu, what the hell do you mean? How dare you scold Qinghuan?”

“We’re family. If there’s a misunderstanding, why not sort it out privately instead of making a scene in public?” Jiang Chengxu retorted angrily. “Manman is your legitimate cousin. You were even raised by Manman’s parents since childhood. Have you ever considered how your slandering her reputation affects her?”

Xu Manman stood beside them, crying with tears streaming down her face. Her fragile shoulders trembled as she sobbed quietly, the overwhelming injustice she felt breaking everyone’s hearts and bringing tears to bystanders’ eyes.

Lin Xialan felt as if she was about to spew a mouthful of blood from anger and wanted to step forward to fight, but Xu Qinghuan held her back firmly.

Xu Manman sobbed, “Brother Chengxu, please don’t blame my sister. She just cares about you too much. Also, my uncle sacrificed his life for the country; my sister is a martyr’s child, and my father is her second uncle. It’s only right that he takes on the responsibility of raising me.”

Xu Qinghuan took a deep breath, said nothing, and tossed the engagement watch at Jiang Chengxu. “I’m serious about breaking off the engagement. Please take my words seriously and return the men’s watch my mother gave to your Jiang family.”

When they got engaged, they signed a marriage contract and exchanged gifts—two watches.

The Jiang family gave her a watch from the Shen brand, and Song Wanlin gave Jiang Chengxu a Plum Blossom men’s watch.

Jiang Chengxu tightened his grip on the women’s watch in his hand and said firmly, “Xu Qinghuan, is this how you handle things? When you’re wrong, you don’t consider taking responsibility. You want to solve it by running away?”

He thought Xu Qinghuan was trying to retreat to advance—by proposing to break off the engagement, she expected him to easily forgive her, coax her back, and let the matter drop.

Didn’t she see how much humiliation Manman suffered today?

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Lin Xialan was nearly driven mad with fury. She had never seen such shameless stubbornness. Just as she was about to rush forward, Xu Qinghuan stopped her. “Let’s go. Don’t bother with him.”

Whether the engagement was broken or not, Jiang Chengxu couldn’t decide alone. Xu Qinghuan didn’t want to waste time on such a person.

After they walked far enough away, Lin Xialan finally regained some composure and asked angrily, “Qinghuan, what will you do if he really refuses to break it off?”

Xu Qinghuan twirled her fingers and said, “Don’t worry. There’s a way.”

Someone wanted to end this engagement even more than she did. Besides, she still held a trump card.

Seeing Xu Qinghuan’s resolute back, Jiang Chengxu felt an uncontrollable surge of panic. Furious, he was about to chase after her when Xu Manman grabbed his arm.

“Brother Chengxu, please go after my sister. I’m afraid if she really breaks off the engagement in anger, you just need to coax her, and she’ll change her mind. After all, she really likes you.”

In that era, no one dared to openly speak of love or feelings.

Jiang Chengxu’s feet were rooted to the ground. He could never encourage Xu Qinghuan’s temper like this. They had a lifetime ahead as a married couple. Was he supposed to always yield, coax, and tolerate her unreasonable outbursts?

“Let’s go get your wounds dressed first.” Jiang Chengxu put the women’s watch in his pocket.

Xu Manman stared at it for a moment. “Brother Chengxu, can I see my sister’s watch? I’ve never even seen what it looks like.”

Her tone carried an indescribable sadness.

Jiang Chengxu’s heart softened. He realized the watch had been on Xu Qinghuan’s wrist for almost a year, yet Xu Manman had never even glanced at it.

“Does your sister usually not let you see it?” he asked.

“It’s valuable, plus it’s an engagement gift. I don’t feel comfortable asking her,” Xu Manman replied thoughtfully.

Jiang Chengxu handed her the watch. “Take a good look. I’ll return it to your sister later.”

He planned to teach Xu Qinghuan right from wrong and help her distinguish what truly matters, but he would never break off the engagement.

“Yeah, I should return it to my sister.”

A faint gleam flashed in Xu Manman’s eyes. She couldn’t wait any longer. If she did, she would soon be sent to the countryside.

Holding the watch, Xu Manman stumbled, losing her footing. Her other hand grabbed Jiang Chengxu tightly, but the watch flew from her hand.

Though made entirely of steel, the watch struck a stone wall three meters away with a harsh crash. When Xu Manman scrambled to pick it up, the watch face was already cracked like a blossoming flower.

“It’s all my fault, all my fault! I’m so bad! Brother Chengxu, I’ll compensate you for the watch. I’ll beg my mother—kneel if I have to. I’ll make sure she gives me money or tickets to pay you back.” Xu Manman held the broken watch pitifully.

Jiang Chengxu’s expression darkened. The watch was damaged, and for now, there was no way to return it to Xu Qinghuan.

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Manman didn’t mean to do it. If they explained things properly, Qinghuan should understand.

It wasn’t a big deal.

“Brother Chengxu, hit me! Hit me hard!” Xu Manman grabbed Jiang Chengxu’s wrist and motioned toward her face.

Jiang Chengxu clenched his fist but held his ground. “Manman, don’t get so upset. You didn’t do it on purpose.”

“But it’s a watch! One hundred and twenty yuan, plus a watch ticket. Brother Chengxu, I’ll definitely beg my mother to pay you back!”

One hundred and twenty yuan was not easy to save. Watch tickets were even harder to come by. In those days, weddings involved the “three turns and one ring,” one turn being the watch.

Without tickets, even with money, you couldn’t buy such things at department stores or supply and marketing cooperatives.

Some families went to great lengths to get tickets on the black market, where a single watch ticket cost nearly as much as the watch itself.

It was absurd.

The Jiang family had struggled just to provide that watch.

If Jiang Chengxu didn’t care, that would be a lie. But seeing Xu Manman so full of guilt with eyes shining with admiration and remorse, he couldn’t bring himself to scold her.

“It’s okay. I’ll see if I can get it fixed.”

“Brother Chengxu, please scold me a little. It might make me feel better.” Xu Manman leaned against him.

“Brother Chengxu, I feel so terrible. How could I be so clumsy? I can’t do anything right—even can’t hold onto the watch properly. This precious thing is more valuable than my life. Even if I died, I shouldn’t have let the watch get damaged.”

“Don’t say foolish things. No matter how precious the watch, no one is more precious than you.” Jiang Chengxu thought of her childhood hardships and guessed she had probably never even seen a watch before. He couldn’t bear to let her blame herself.

“Yeah, only in Brother Chengxu’s eyes am I more valuable than the watch!” She lifted her head from his shoulder with a forced smile.

Seeing that smile, filled with reverence and gratitude toward him, a surge of pride welled up in Jiang Chengxu’s heart. “Your sister won’t blame you when she finds out.”

After all, for so many years, Xu Qinghuan had taken Manman’s place in life and enjoyed the favor of the Xu family.

“Really?” Xu Manman breathed a sigh of relief and smiled brightly.