Behind the piled-up cornstalks, Mitchell Whitmore had Vivienne Ashford pinned there, his rough hands clamped around her wrist so hard it hurt.

Her little floral dress was all wrinkled, but her legs were still wrapped tight around his waist.

"You really mean to marry that man from the Crane family? The one who can't even father a child?" Mitchell ground out through clenched teeth, anger running thick in his voice.

"I don't want to marry him! You're the one I like..." Vivienne's voice shook, and there was a clear sob in it.

"Then why did you agree?" Mitchell pulled her even tighter against him.

Vivienne sucked in a breath from the pain and hurried to say, "What choice do I have? My mother forced me into it!"

"She nags me every single day, right in my ear, saying how rich the Crane family is, saying if I marry into that house I'll get to move to the city and live the rest of my life in comfort."

"And if I refuse, she says she'll break my legs!"

By the time she got there, the grievance in her voice had faded, replaced by something sharp and cruel.

She leaned close to Mitchell's ear, her breath light, but her words poisonous. "Still, I've already thought of a way out."

Mitchell stopped what he was doing. His callused thumb caught her chin and lifted it. "What way?"

A vicious smile curled at Vivienne's lips.

"I'll have my dear cousin Rosalind Ashford marry in my place."

Mitchell froze for a second, his brows knotting hard. "Rosalind?"

"She just came back after graduating from Jingshi University. Her whole family dotes on her like she's made of gold. You think she'd agree to that?"

"Whether she's willing or not isn't up to her." Vivienne's smile grew darker. "I've already worked it out with my younger brother."

"On the wedding day, we'll find a chance to make her drink some water with a little something mixed into it. Once she passes out, I can slip away."

Mitchell rubbed his chin, still not fully convinced. "What if she wakes up and makes a scene? Wouldn't the whole thing be exposed?"

The scheming in Vivienne's eyes couldn't have been clearer. "By then, the rice will already be cooked. A girl like her, still untouched, with skin that thin, do you think she'd dare let the whole village know and ruin her own name?"

She lifted her arms and hooked them around Mitchell's neck, her voice turning soft and cloying.

"I’ve already had her called back. She won’t be getting away."

"Mitchell, in this life, you’re the only one I’ve set my heart on. Once this is done, the two of us can finally live openly, fair and square."

The two of them clung to each other again. Out in the cornfield, all that could be heard was their ragged breathing and the dry rustle of corn leaves brushing together.

---

The bus station was packed solid, noisy from end to end.

The air was full of gasoline, sweat, and the smell of meat buns. All of it mixed together into the very scent of those years.

"Clang! Clang—"

The green train rumbled into the station, loud enough to make people’s ears ring.

By the platform, the woman selling tea eggs lifted the lid off her pot, and the rich soy-braised smell drifted out with the steam.

Rosalind Ashford came out of the crowd carrying a light pink suitcase.

Her long black hair hung loose over her shoulders, with a few strands blown up by the wind and stuck lightly to her forehead.

She wore an off-white knit sweater, a pale pink blouse with lace trim underneath, light blue jeans, and white canvas shoes. She looked clean and fresh all over, with the sort of educated air that was rare in a small place like this.

Rosalind Ashford had been a transmigrator from the womb. In her last life, she had been a rather famous traditional physician, and she could handle music, chess, calligraphy, and painting too.

In this life, she had been born into the main branch of the Ashford family, the youngest little sister to seven older brothers.

Her parents had her late in life and cherished her like the apple of their eye.

From childhood to now, let alone heavy work, they had never even made her wash a bowl. If she slept in at home, Dorothea Ashford would still smile and praise her, saying, "She sleeps so sweetly."

In this life, she had studied Western medicine at university. With the foundation from two lifetimes, she had ranked first the whole way through.

She had only just graduated a few days ago. Once she had wrapped up everything on her end, she hurried home at once, all to make it back for her cousin Vivienne Ashford’s wedding.

"Raorao! My precious girl!"

Dorothea Ashford spotted her daughter from far away. With looks like that, she stood out in a crowd at a single glance.

Her face broke into a smile right away. She hurried over, reached out to touch her daughter’s hair, and her eyes were full of longing and concern.

"Oh, let Mom have a look at you!"

"You were on that train for over six hours. You must be worn out, huh?"

"How did you get this skinny?"

Walter Ashford came along behind them, reached out, and took his daughter's suitcase in one hand. The moment he weighed it, his brows pulled tight.

"How could she not be tired? It's such a long trip, and this case is heavy too."

He stared at his daughter's face again and again, his eyes full of heartache. "Just look at this face. You've gotten thinner."

The second Dorothea Ashford heard that, her eyes turned red. She held Rosalind Ashford's hand and kept looking her over.

"You really have lost weight!"

"You must not have been eating properly at school. Just wait, I'll stew a chicken for you later and build you back up!"

Rosalind Ashford smiled and caught her mother's hand, her eyes curved bright with laughter.

"Dad, Mom, this is exactly that thing where parents always think their kid's gone skinny. It's really not that serious!"

"I ate well at school, slept fine too, and I've been living pretty comfortably."

That made both Dorothea Ashford and Walter Ashford laugh.

Their daughter had always had a sweet mouth. A few words from her, and people felt warm inside.

Walter Ashford lifted the suitcase and started ahead. "Come on, come on, let's get home!"

"Your cousin's wedding is about to start. We can't miss the right time."

Rosalind Ashford held onto her mother's arm and followed behind. The mother and daughter chatted all the way, their laughter never stopping.

---

The courtyard of the second branch of the Ashford family was lively at the moment.

More than a dozen round tables were set out in neat rows, each covered in red cloth, and every door and window was plastered with bright red "Double Happiness" characters.

A thick layer of red firecracker scraps covered the ground, and the air still carried that faint burned-powder smell. In one corner of the yard, a big iron pot sat over the fire, pork and ribs stewing inside, bubbling and hissing as steam rolled up. The meat smell drifted everywhere, so rich that several children stood around the stove swallowing hard, eyes fixed on the pot.

Vivienne Ashford had a red wedding dress on. Standing in the crowd, she kept lifting onto her toes to look toward the gate, plain impatience all over her face. Her palms were slick with sweat.

Just then, Rosalind Ashford walked into the yard with her parents.

The lively courtyard went oddly quiet for a beat.

Then everybody turned at once and stared at the girl who had just come in.

"Well now, whose daughter is that?"

"Good lord, she's really pretty!"

"Look at that skin, white as a peeled egg. And those eyes, so dark and bright."

"That's Rosalind Ashford from the eldest branch of the He family, isn't it? The one studying at university in Jingshi!"

"Tsk, tsk. A girl who's gone to school really does look different."

Envy, jealousy, surprise—looks came flying at Rosalind from every side. Being watched like that made her a little uncomfortable, but she still smiled at everyone in an open, easy way.

In the middle of the crowd, Vivienne Ashford stared hard at Rosalind's face, the more she looked, the fresher and prettier it seemed. Then she dropped her eyes to her own hands, rough and yellow from years of work. Her nails nearly dug through her palms.

A cold little snort slipped out of her throat.

Why?

Why had Rosalind always had such a blessed life from the time she was little—parents who doted on her, brothers who protected her, a pretty face, good grades, even a university education?

And what about her?

She was being forced to marry a man who couldn't even father a child.

Still... it didn't matter now.

Once today was over, she was going to drag this precious girl everyone held up like a treasure straight down into the mud.

She'd make her taste what it felt like to fall from somewhere high.

This story is set in an alternate time period. No need to fact-check the era. Thanks, darlings *^_^*