An Accidental Military Marriage

Li Hongying’s sobs came to an abrupt halt. "Xiao Qing, you... what did you just say?"

She thought she must have misheard.

Jiang Qing spoke, her face set with determination, each word clear and deliberate: "I want a divorce."

Li Hongying was so shocked she nearly jumped out of her skin. "Are you running a fever? What crazy talk is this! A divorce? How could you possibly get a divorce! You’re already showing! Who’s going to want you if you’re divorced?"

Jiang Qing’s desire for a divorce wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision; it was something she had thought through long and hard.

She had married Zhang Jia Ming not just to escape being sent to the countryside and change the tragic fate of her previous life, but more importantly, because she saw his bright future.

But for all her careful planning, she had never expected Jiang Moli to marry Lu Cheng!

With Jiang Moli standing in the way, Zhang Jia Ming would have a difficult time getting ahead in this life.

She had also caused Zhang Tiesheng to lose an eye, and Jin Yulan would never let her off the hook for it.

Staying in this marriage would bring her nothing but harm.

Even if she had some feelings for Zhang Jia Ming, they weren’t worth sacrificing her entire life over.

’I have to get a divorce and escape this Zhang family quagmire!’

But getting a divorce wouldn’t be easy. First, she had to get Li Hongying on her side.

"Mom, you’ve seen the kind of life I’m living with the Zhang family. They treat me worse than a dog. I’m only twenty-one, my whole life is ahead of me. Mom, if you won’t even help me, then there’s no point in me going on."

When Jiang Dahai got home from work, he saw the cold pots and stove and assumed Li Hongying hadn’t returned yet.

But when he opened the door, he found Li Hongying was home after all.

She was sitting alone on the sofa, lost in thought, and didn’t even react when he came in.

"Hongying, what’s wrong? Are you sick?"

Li Hongying only snapped out of it when Jiang Dahai placed a hand on her forehead.

"Dahai, you’re back from work? Xiao Qing... she said she wants to divorce Jia Ming..."

She couldn’t finish before tears began to fall.

Jiang Dahai was also stunned. "Calm down. What’s going on? Tell me everything, slowly..."

Jiang Moli had to admit, she was impressed with Jiang Qing.

In this day and age, you could count on one hand the number of women who would dare to fight back against their in-laws’ abuse by demanding a divorce.

Let alone one who was pregnant, like Jiang Qing.

Even forty years in the future, it wouldn’t be common to find women who dared to get a divorce while pregnant.

Li Hongying was a sobbing mess. "Moli, what do we do? Xiao Qing is dead set on a divorce, and I can’t talk her out of it..."

"Getting married or divorced is her choice. I won’t interfere. But I have to ask, where does she plan on living after the divorce? She and Zhang Jia Ming have shared debts, too. How is she going to handle those?"

Li Hongying had no answers.

Her daughter had only said she wanted a divorce, nothing more.

「The Zhang Residence.」

Jin Yulan stormed into Jiang Qing’s room, her face dark as she slammed a bowl of food onto the table.

"I work my ass off in the fields all day, and then I have to come home and wait on a jinx like you. If it weren’t for my grandson, you wouldn’t get a damn thing to eat!"

Jiang Qing picked up the bowl, but her hand went slack, and it fell to the floor with a CLATTER.

Jin Yulan stared at the rice scattered across the floor, her heart aching at the waste.

White rice was such a luxury; she herself was reluctant to eat it.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed? You can’t even hold a bowl steady..."

"I want to divorce Jia Ming."

Jin Yulan’s tirade came to a sudden halt. "What did you say? Say that again!"

Jiang Qing’s voice was cold. "I’m divorcing Jia Ming. I’m done being the Zhang family’s daughter-in-law!"

"Bullshit! You think the Zhang family is a whorehouse you can just waltz in and out of? Even if Jia Ming agrees, I sure as hell won’t! His father lost an eye because of you. You’ll spend the rest of your life repaying that debt, even if it means dying in this house!"

Jiang Qing sneered. "From now on, I won’t eat a single bite of food until you let me leave."

Jin Yulan was so furious she felt like she would explode.

Ever since Zhang Tiesheng lost his eye, a repressive atmosphere had permeated the house.

But today, the mood in the Zhang home was far more grim and suffocating than usual.

Jin Yulan’s nostrils flared as she huffed and puffed with rage.

Zhang Tiesheng’s brows were knitted tightly, and the loss of his eye, which already marred his features, now made him look even more grotesque.

Zhang Jiaquan, Zhang Ermei, and Zhang Sanmei didn’t dare to say a word.

Their sister-in-law wanting a divorce... it was simply unheard of.

After a long silence, Zhang Tiesheng spoke to Jin Yulan. "Let Jia Ming’s wife go. She’s not an animal. Of course she’s going to be angry if you keep her locked up like this every day."

Jin Yulan retorted angrily, "And what if she runs away again after I let her go?"

"She’s pregnant. How far can she run?"

At the mention of that, Jin Yulan grew even angrier. "Didn’t you hear her? She said she’s going to starve my grandson to death! That heartless, venomous bitch!"

"Even a tiger won’t eat its own cub. She’s just saying that because she’s angry."

’In truth, Jin Yulan thought so too. She’s just using my grandson to get leverage over me. She doesn’t really want a divorce.’

’Jiang Qing is head-over-heels for my son. She was so eager to be my daughter-in-law she came here without a bride price or a wedding banquet. How could she possibly be willing to leave?’

’Besides, my son is a squad leader now. In another year or two, he could be promoted to platoon leader. His future is bright.’

’But Jiang Qing? If she gets a divorce, she’ll be used goods.’

’She’ll never find a man better than my son for the rest of her life!’

「Night fell, and all was quiet.」

Jiang Qing lay on her side, gazing blankly through the window lattice at the half-moon in the sky.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps outside and quickly shut her eyes, pretending to be asleep.

A moment later, the door was pushed open with a CREAK.

"Xiao Qing, are you asleep?"

Hearing Zhang Tiesheng’s voice, Jiang Qing deliberately remained silent.

"I’m coming in to unlock this for you."

With that, Zhang Tiesheng stepped into the room. He placed the kerosene lamp on the table, then took out a key and began to unlock the dog chain on Jiang Qing’s ankle.

In the dim light, and with only one good eye, he fumbled with the lock for a long time before finally getting it open.

"Xiao Qing, I don’t blame you for what happened. I know you didn’t do it on purpose. From now on, you don’t have to work in the fields. Just stay home and focus on the pregnancy. Give birth to the baby and live a good life with Jia Ming."

"I left some dinner for you in the pot. Get up and eat if you’re hungry. I’ll leave the kerosene lamp for you."

After Zhang Tiesheng left, Jiang Qing slowly sat up in bed.

Staring at the small, bean-sized flame of the lamp on the table, her expression was cold. Her resolve to divorce had not wavered in the slightest.

The next day, Li Hongying came to the Zhang residence again.

"Xiao Qing, they’re not locking you up anymore, and Jia Ming’s father has forgiven you. So just drop this talk about divorce, okay?"

Jiang Qing let out a cold laugh. "This is just a trick to stall for time. Once I have this baby and can’t run away, that’s when they’ll really have me under their thumb. That’s when they’ll start torturing me!"

Li Hongying couldn’t understand. "Don’t always assume the worst of people. Jia Ming’s father and your Uncle Jiang have been friends for decades. If the Zhang family were really that malicious, your Uncle Jiang would never have considered having Moli marry into their family."

"Mom, my mind is made up! I have to get this divorce!"

Li Hongying was so angry she wanted to slap her. "Why can’t you listen to reason? If you really get a divorce, where will you live? What will you eat? What about the baby in your belly? And what about the debt from treating Jia Ming’s father’s eye? Are you just going to walk away from all that?"