Such a Rude and Noisy Woman

Fannie had just gotten a phone call from Joanna, who had told her that Hiram had given his consent to the engagement. If Rachel was willing to marry him, he was fine with it.

Fannie was thrilled to hear this news. Didn't that mean that Hiram would marry Rachel as long as she wanted to marry him too? That was a great news!

Rachel was still lying half-asleep on the bed when she heard her mother come into the room and start chattering about something. She vaguely heard phrases like, "finally get married" and "thank god..."

Wait!

What? What was her mother talking about? Who was getting married?

Rachel shook herself out of her daze and propped herself up on the bed. Now wide awake, she tried to listen more clearly to what her mother was saying. Fannie looked so excited that she could hardly sit still on the bed. Smoothing her chaotic hair, Rachel asked, "Mom, what are you talking about?"

"You silly girl! Wake up! Hurry up! Get up, get dressed, and put on some make up. We need to go to see your future husband, your fiance. Hurry up!" Fannie was tingling all over. She felt like she was the one meeting her fiance.

Looking at Fannie's exciting face, Rachel's stomach sank. What fiance? There was definitely something wrong, her mother looked too excited. Trying to hide her sense of dread, she gripped her blanket tightly and asked, "Mom, did you get me another blind date? I've told you that I'm not going to see anyone this year. Don't you understand that? Something bad will happen to him, it always does. I'm tired of it. Let's stop for a while."

"No. It's different this time! Nothing will go wrong. Trust me. Your great-grandfather made a pact with the Rong family about your engagement a long time ago. It will work!" Fannie said with certainty.

"The Rong family?"

Uh-oh. Rachel had met a man the day before who was from the Rong family, and she'd told him sternly that she wanted nothing to do with them. With this new revelation from her mother, it seemed like she'd leapt out of the frying pan into the fire.

"Yes! You won't believe it. I'd no idea that Joanna has a son until she told me yesterday! She never mentioned it before, and besides, it's been a long time since we lost touch with each other. If I had known that she has a son who is a few years older than you, I would never have asked you to go on blind dates, " Fannie gushed excitedly.

Rachel's face turned white at these words.

Fannie pushed the blanket aside and sat down on the bed next to Rachel. "Joanna has come to XH Village yesterday with her son, " she continued. "After we talked, she told her son about the pact your great-grandfathers made. And guess what?"

"Stop! Mom, wait!"

her mother from telling her anything more. She stared hard at Fannie and said, "Mom, aren't you worried

Rong and Joanna Fang are a golden couple. Gavin's an accomplished man and Joanna's a beautiful woman. Their son would definitely inherit

their house at noon. You can meet

onto the bed and stared up at the

like this so quickly. Tell me the truth, did you

meeting Rachel's eyes, Fannie cleared her throat and muttered, "Aren't you afraid that you'll never find someone to marry you? You should get married

really wanted to make this work. Joanna's son probably had many female suitors, since the Rong family was extremely wealthy. She just wanted her daughter to get married and break the curse. Joanna herself had said that

her get ready. She even ordered Rachel to put on a facial mask before applying

was casual clothes, which Fannie wasn't satisfied with. On a whim, Fannie took out the Cheongsam that she'd worn when she was younger and asked Rachel to try

she wasn't willing to try it

helped Rachel get into the Cheongsam. Rachel couldn't believe that her mother was so determined about her wearing it

pine trees stood on either side of the house. They looked like soldiers standing there

light yellow silk felt smooth to the touch. Small embroidered lace roses lined the lower hem and the neckline. It

But...

like me. You look like you're

beautiful. And you have a remarkable face. I'm sure that

especially with

rose lips. The Cheongsam added to her charm, making her look like she was

you breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day. I'll wash all the dishes and all the clothes for you. Can we

in her eyes, trying to convince

lips. She held Rachel's hand tightly and

mother no matter what. Even though it upset her, she had to let her

was breathtaking, with old trees, crisp green grass, and old-fashioned but delicate tables and chairs. A single

Decades ago, they had had to sell all their valuable items just to make a living. But the Rong family had been rich for many years

the house were well-preserved. There were a few necessary modern facilities, but apart from those, the garden