2 A Man's Change of Heart after a Life Void of Love

Zhan Qipei seethed with anger and frustration; he felt like a raging inferno! He gritted his teeth and mustered all his strength to resist desperately.

"I told you not to move," Qiao Jing said calmly as she swung her hand, her knife poised near the man's neck, instantly stifling his rebellion.

Despite the forceful strike, Zhan Qipei's robust physique allowed him to remain conscious. However, weakened, he squinted at the figure bustling around him.

The audacity, the boldness—did this woman have no sense of shame? Very well, he would make her pay... a lifetime's worth of retribution...

As consciousness gradually faded, he slipped into a deep slumber.

As the sun set, the sky was painted with hues of crimson and beauty.

Sitting on a small stool at the doorstep, Qiao Jing peeled corn kernels, intending to make corn porridge with the freshly picked corn.

Before she finished peeling one cob, a red Ferrari arrived, bouncing along the way, and parked in front of her house.

Is it someone from the Zhan family?

Qiao Jing stood up and looked towards the halted car. She had promised her grandfather on his deathbed to marry into the Zhan family and become the wife of the Zhan family's young master.

"Are you Qiao Jing?" Su Manhan, with a touch of disdain, asked Qiao Jing, accompanied by another woman in her early twenties, probably her daughter. There was a resemblance between them, indicating they were mother and daughter.

"Yes," Qiao Jing replied indifferently.

"Just 'yes'? Is this how you talk to your future mother-in-law?" Zhan Nanqing scolded Qiao Jing.

"I don't care. I promised my grandfather to stay there for only 100 days. After that, whether I stay or leave, it's entirely my choice," Qiao Jing said.

She didn't care at all for the Zhan family. If it weren't for her promise to her grandfather, she wouldn't have bothered agreeing to marry into the Zhan family as if she had nothing else to do.

Zhan Nanqing let out a sigh of exasperation. "Hmph! If it weren't for your grandfather's fortunate act of saving my grandfather's life on the battlefield, how could a country bumpkin like you marry into our Zhan family? How could you marry my brother?"

"Why so much talk? You here to take me away today? Are we going or not? If you're not taking me there, I won't go on my own, and it'll be your Zhan family's decision to cancel the marriage, not mine," Qiao Jing replied with a rebellious and assertive tone, showing her impatience.

"You, you—" Zhan Nanqing was on the verge of losing her temper.

While annoyed, Su Manhan recalled the stern instructions her father-in-law gave her before she came here. He insisted she must bring Qiao Jing back to marry her son; otherwise, he threatened to climb to the top of a building and jump off, even if he didn't jump, he would scare them to death.

With this in mind, Su Manhan suppressed her anger.

"Pack your things and leave with me."

"One moment, let me make a call," Qiao Jing dialed a number on her phone.

"Fourth brother, I need to leave for a while. Have someone from the lab come to take care of my corn and observe the experimental results. Once this new corn variety is successfully tested, it will revolutionize our nation's agricultural development."

"Haha," Zhan Nanqing laughed, looking at Su Manhan. "Listen to this, she talks as if she's some great figure, as if she's the renowned Professor Qiao in agriculture."

"Oh! Professor Qiao, both surnamed Qiao, but worlds apart. Speaking of which, my brother received news yesterday that Professor Qiao is likely here in this village. He rushed here early in the morning, but why didn't he answer our calls?" Su Manhan expressed her concern.

Zhan Nanqing surveyed her surroundings. "Look at this place, surrounded by small hills everywhere; the signal probably isn't good."

Upon hearing this, Su Manhan realized that might be the case.

Just as Su Manhan was thinking about it, Qiao Jing walked out with her luggage.

The butler stepped forward, ready to place Qiao Jing's luggage in the car's trunk.

"No need, it's heavy, and you won't be able to carry it," Qiao Jing said.

The butler's face darkened, feeling insulted by Qiao Jing's assumption. Who did she think she was, implying he couldn't lift the luggage with his skinny arms and legs?

"Miss Qiao, as a butler, it is my duty," he retorted, determined not to yield.

Since the butler refused to back down, Qiao Jing set down the luggage, opened the car door, and got in.

The butler couldn't help but snort, thinking, 'Hmph! Who does she think she is? After the 100 days, let's see if she'll still get special treatment from the Zhan family!'

With this thought, the butler reached for the luggage. But the next second, he and the luggage landed in the mud, and he ended up with a mouthful of dirt.

'Damn! What's in this luggage, iron ingots? It's so heavy!'

During the journey, Qiao Jing suddenly remembered something and grabbed her phone to send a message to her fourth brother.

"Fourth Brother, there's an injured guy in my house. Get a few people to take him to the hospital. Make sure he doesn't find out that I saved him."

Qiao Jing didn't want to do a good deed without taking credit; rather, she remembered the man's menacing eyes when she treated his wound.

Avoiding trouble was the wisest choice. She didn't want any unnecessary problems.

Her fourth brother promptly agreed.

The car drove for more than an hour before arriving at the Zhan family's villa, the Purple Garden—the largest private luxury villa in the Imperial City.

"Here's my home. Well? Are you impressed?" Zhan Nanqing boasted to Qiao Jing.

"Oh, it's alright," Qiao Jing replied indifferently. Compared to a certain king's palace she lived in before, it was much smaller.

"Tch! Just continue pretending, won't you?" Zhan Nanqing retorted, assuming that Qiao Jing, a country girl, must be incredibly shocked by her current surroundings.

After getting off the car, Qiao Jing was about to enter the villa.

"Stop! Are you going in dressed like that?" Zhan Nanqing stopped Qiao Jing.

Qiao Jing glanced down at herself. "What's wrong with my clothes?"

"They're dirty and unsightly." With that, Zhan Nanqing threw a tote bag at Qiao Jing. "Change your clothes before entering."

Unperturbed, Qiao Jing ignored Zhan Nanqing and continue dragging her luggage into the villa.

"Alright, she can wear whatever she wants. If she leaves now, it'll be hard to explain to your grandfather," Su Manhan said as she pulled Zhan Nanqing back.

Zhan Nanqing was so angry that her face was ashen. "Mom, we can't just ignore everything, right? We have to set some rules for her. No matter what, she has to be my brother's wife for 100 days. She represents our Zhan family when she goes out. If she embarrasses herself outside in the future, she will naturally blame our Zhan family!"

"You're right. Bring me the house rules I prepared in advance."

"Okay, Mom."

Not long after Qiao Jing entered the room, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

After Su Manhan pushed the door open and entered, she handed the house rules to Qiao Jing. "These are the rules of our Zhan family. You must memorize them all today. If you can't memorize them all, you don't get to sleep."

Qiao Jing reached out to take it and scanned it roughly. There were more than five hundred of them.

"You're crazy." As soon as she finished speaking, Qiao Jing crumpled the paper into a ball and threw it into the trash can.

Her actions made Zhan Nanqing and Su Manhan feel like they had been slapped in the face.

"You're really unruly, like someone with a father but no mother to teach her any better. No wonder your father cast you away in the countryside not long after you were born." Zhan Nanqing pointed at Qiao Jiang's nose and scolded.

"Hey! Didn't you hear me? Do you—"

Before Zhan Nanqing could finish her sentence, Qiao Jing abruptly halted and turned to face her. Her gaze was icy and dangerous, sending shivers down Zhan Nanqing's spine.

"What do you want to do? You want to hit me?" Zhan Nanqing mocked confidently. She was the eldest daughter of the Zhan family. No matter how bold Qiao Jing was, she would not dare to attack her.

But as she thought this, Qiao Jing's hand swung forward decisively, landing a resounding slap on Zhan Nanqing's face.

"Smack!"

The slap echoed throughout the area!