May The Peace Be With You In The Golden Age - Chapter 45

Chapter 45: A Fake Gentleman, a True Villain

“She wants to dissolve the betrothal, and I’m not allowed to say anything about it?” Li Cuihua asked in a huff.

“Auntie, it’s not just a want; I’m here today to dissolve the betrothal.” Sheng Ning had been smiling since she stepped into the house, and that elegant smile of hers had never left her face, not even when Li Cuihui pointed her finger at her and yelled.

Mayor Liu started to feel uncertain when he saw Sheng Ning’s demeanor. He had initially planned to intimidate and bully Sheng Ning into submission the way he had with Shen Luhua. But seeing how calm and collected Sheng Ning was, he knew doing so would be pointless.

“Ningning, dissolving a betrothal is a grave matter. Did you think about what this would do to An’an? The moment this betrothal is broken, it’ll be difficult for her to ever get married again.” Mayor Liu was sly, and he deliberately tried to sow discord among the sisters. “It’s your own business if nobody wants to marry you, but you can’t drag your sister down with you!”

Sheng Ning felt contempt for him. His gentlemanly behavior was just a façade. He was actually a villain.

“An’an, is this what you want? If you’re unable to marry and come looking for us, we’re not going to take you back,” Mayor Liu said gently to Sheng An, an amiable expression on his face.

Fearing An’an would be cowered by the mayor, Sheng Ning secretly gave her a hard pinch and whispered, “If you want to live for more than a few years, this betrothal has to be dissolved.”

She couldn’t allow An’an to back out at this crucial moment. Even if her words were harsh and made An’an hate her, she wouldn’t regret it.

Sheng An was trembling from head to toe, and her words were stuck in her throat. She didn’t want to marry the second fool and be shackled to him for the rest of her life. More than that, she hated Li Cuihua’s cruelty and Mayor Liu’s hypocrisy.

But… but what would happen to her family if she really dissolved the betrothal? Their family’s reputation was bad enough as it was. If she dissolved the betrothal now, they would drown in everyone’s criticisms!

“An’an, think about yourself. You have a long life ahead of you! There will definitely be a way out of this.” Sheng Ning felt like she was hanging by a thread. Everything had happened too suddenly. She was supposed to mentally prepare An’an before this happened. If not for Liu Cuihua’s sudden commotion, she wouldn’t have been in such a hurry to come here.

Mayor Liu continued coaxing her. “An’an, your father’s health isn’t good, and his leg is handicapped. Your marriage into our family was supposed to give you a good life.”

“I… I want to dissolve the betrothal.” Sheng An mustered up her courage and raised her head. “I must dissolve the betrothal.” The more Mayor Liu tried to convince her to stay, the more worried she became about the marriage.

Mayor Li could no longer maintain the warm expression on his face, and his features hardened. “If you arbitrarily dissolve the betrothal this way, you’ll have to compensate us for our losses.”

“What losses did you suffer? We didn’t take a single cent from your family! My mother even gave your family a hundred eggs!” That alone had cost them three months’ worth of living expenses, all to grease the mayor’s palm. Sheng Ning remembered that clearly.

Sheng Ning watched as Mayor Liu’s face turned purple, and she had to suppress the urge to laugh.

“What the h*ll are you talking about? When did I ever accept anything from your family?” the mayor said with a straight face. “I have always helped your family without expecting anything in return,” he said arrogantly. “I never expected you to be so ungrateful and unappreciative.”

Being ungrateful and unappreciative was an accusation her family couldn’t afford to bear. “Uncle Liu, you speak too unkindly of us.” Sheng Ning silently motioned to Sheng An not to say a word. She got up and walked up to face the mayor. With a deep bow and a sincere attitude, she said, “Uncle Liu, I am extremely grateful for the help you’ve given my family. The dissolution of the betrothal is indeed the fault of my family. I am willing to compensate you for your losses.”

“That’s right. I see that you’re still sensible, Ningning.” Mayor Liu’s expression improved tremendously as he indulged in his own wishful thinking. Since this betrothal was about to be dissolved, he wasn’t going to allow himself to be put at a disadvantage. His son was mentally handicapped, and it was hard for him to find him a wife. However, given his position as the mayor, he knew that finding a wife for him was simply a matter of time.