Just as she was happily getting ready to meet her fiancé, she was suddenly told that she had to go to the countryside. Even worse, it was her own fiancé who had signed her up for it.
And just after her father was arrested, SunCarlos's father got promoted to factory director.
At that moment, even if she was foolish and naive, Freya still realized she had been played.
But she was all alone, with no one to rely on. The people her parents had known in the past didn't want anything to do with her. One reason was because of her unlikable personality.
Another reason was that she was someone ruthless enough to betray her own father. Who would dare go near someone like that? They wouldn't even know how they died.
Only two of her older brothers' good friends and some childhood neighbors quietly gave her some money and ration tickets.
Although they looked down on her behavior, they still felt a bit of emotional connection.
After going to the countryside, Freya found out that besides her eldest brother, the rest of her family had all been placed in the same location. But she felt guilty, had only a small amount of hidden money, and was afraid of being dragged down, so she pretended not to know them. She never visited them, not even once.
A few days after she arrived, she couldn't take it anymore. Coincidentally, she heard that a young man from the Xiao family named Brian, who had become a deputy commander at a young age, had returned home for a visit.
She decided to target him. She waited by the river that Brian had to pass on his way home and pretended to fall into the water. As soon as she saw someone approaching in the distance, she started yelling for help. Sure enough, it worked.
Freya cried and claimed that she was from a proper family and had been raised strictly. Now that they had touched skin, if Brian didn't marry her, she would report him to the commune for harassment.
Brian never expected that saving someone would lead to this. But the truth was, he had indeed touched her body while rescuing her.
Out of responsibility, and with no better choice, he agreed to marry her. Freya was eager to escape her current life, so she dragged him to register for marriage that very afternoon.
After getting the marriage certificate, Freya went with Brian to the youth housing to pack up. But just as they arrived at Brian's house, soldiers came and took him away, saying he had an urgent mission.
Freya didn't care. She didn't like Brian anyway—he was just a temporary meal ticket.
She had already asked around. Among the entire Xiao family, Brian was the most successful. She could rely on his allowance and not have to do any hard labor.
Since Brian's allowance was also used by his family, and Freya was the new daughter-in-law, the Xiao family didn't say much about her laziness. At most, they made a few sarcastic remarks.
But Freya didn't care. Sometimes, she was so dense that she didn't even realize they were mocking her.
Unfortunately, the good times didn't last. Half a month later, Brian returned, but he was carried back by his comrades.
It turned out that during a mission, his legs were badly injured while saving a teammate. The doctor said that with current medical conditions, the chances of recovery were very slim. He would have to rest and recover slowly.
Brian didn't want to be a burden to the country, so he applied for retirement and came home to heal.
After briefly explaining the situation, the soldiers left 500 yuan in compensation and a third-class merit medal, then departed.
While everyone was still in shock, Freya quietly took the 500 yuan from the table, ignored the unconscious Brian, and went back to her room.
Sister Fang, from the second household, took her son and husband and returned to their room too. If there was no benefit, she wouldn't bother getting involved.
In the end, only three people were left in the yard: the limping grandmother Niu Cuihua who had polio, the slow-witted grandfather Xiao Aiguo, and their youngest daughter, Xiao Xiaocao.
The eldest son's family was still working in the fields and hadn't returned yet.
After the long journey, Brian was completely exhausted and passed out.
The three remaining family members carefully carried him to the room where Freya was staying.
"Hey! You all get out, get out! Don't put him in my room! I'm not going to take care of anyone. What if he pees in here? That's disgusting!"
Freya looked at the unconscious Brian with disgust.
She thought to herself how unlucky she was—just got married and he was already crippled.
"Freya, you're his wife now. If he needs help in the future, it's your duty to take care of him."
Grandmother Niu Cuihua's voice was as soft as a mosquito. If you didn't listen carefully, you wouldn't hear it.
Maybe because she was very self-conscious, her small body was hunched over. One of her legs was as thin as an arm, making her look timid and weak.
"Why should I take care of him? I'm not going to."
He acted like a hero and ended up disabled, so why should I be responsible?
He wants me to take care of him, help him pee and poop? In his dreams!
That old hag is ugly but thinks she's something special.
Hmph!
"I—I'm not saying you have to take care of him alone. Your dad and I will help too. We won't let you do everything by yourself. But Freya, after all, Brian is your husband. You can't just ignore him."
Madam Hua, though naturally timid and shy, stood her ground for her child.
"He's no husband of mine! I'll go file for divorce tomorrow. A useless man like him doesn't deserve me. I don't want him dragging me down!"
Freya looked sideways with disdain at Brian, who had just opened his eyes.
"Fine. I'll go find someone tomorrow, and we'll go to the commune to get the divorce papers."
Brian looked at the proud and domineering Freya with no expression on his face. He couldn't help but think of the woman who had been begging him to marry her just half a month ago.
With a bitter smile, he agreed to the divorce.
"Hmph, at least you know what's good for you," Freya scoffed with her head held high.
"My son… what will you do if you get divorced like this? Why is your life so hard?"
Madam Hua held Brian's hand and cried loudly. Mr. Guo, standing beside her, wiped his tears too. He didn't even understand why he was crying, but his tears wouldn't stop.
Sister Xiao also stood in the back, quietly sobbing.
Brian gently comforted all three of them.
"Enough, stop crying. You're so annoying. If you want to cry, go outside. I still need to sleep!
Hurry up and take them out."
Freya, irritated by their endless crying, snapped impatiently.
"Mom, let's go outside," Brian said.
That night, he had no choice but to sleep on the floor in his parents' room.
Early the next morning, he had his father carry him on his back to find Heizhu and borrow the ox cart to go to the commune for the divorce.
Freya had already gotten up and was packing her things, planning to return to the educated youth spot after the divorce and slowly look for a new marriage candidate.
But just then, Sister Fang, the wife of Brian's second brother Brother Biping, knocked on the door and came in.
"Sister-in-law, where are you going?"
Sister Fang pretended to be curious, but she had already eavesdropped by the wall yesterday and knew that Brian and Freya were getting a divorce today.
She had been secretly watching the whole time.
"What's it to you?" Since marrying into the family half a month ago, this Sister Fang had talked badly about her constantly.
"That's not a nice thing to say, sister-in-law. If you're going to divorce Brian, then you have to give back the 500 yuan compensation from yesterday. That's the money of the Xiao family. From now on, we'll be the ones taking care of Brian, so that money should stay in the family."