I only have a year to live. Marry me, bear me a son, and your family will never have money problems again,” said the wealthy landowner. 😢

The poor milkmaid agreed out of desperation. But on their wedding night, something terrible happened, leaving her horrified. 😱😲

The poor girl was only twenty years old. Her hands smelled of milk and hay, and her boots were barely dry from the mud. She lived in an old wooden house with her ailing mother. Her father was in prison due to debts he couldn’t pay.

There were various rumors in the village, but the fact remained: there was no breadwinner, no money, and sometimes they truly had nothing to eat.

The mother grew weaker with each passing month. Medicines were expensive. The girl rose before dawn and worked on the farm until dark, but it was barely enough to buy bread. Sometimes she sat by the window and simply looked out at the road, unsure of what to do next.

And it was at that moment that a rich man appeared in their lives. He was about forty. He had an expensive suit, an expensive car, and the heavy gaze of a man accustomed to being accepted.

He came to their house and said calmly, almost indifferently:

I’ll help your father get out early. I’ll pay off his debts. Your family will never want for anything again. Just marry me and bear me a son. I’ll die in a year anyway.”

He spoke as if he were discussing buying land.

The girl was silent. She looked at his face, at his confidence, and suddenly felt sorry for him. Forty years old. Rich. And still alone. He repeated that the doctors had given him a year at most.

The girl agreed. Not because of the money—that’s what she told herself. He’ll die in a year anyway. And her father will get out, and her mother will get treatment. What did she have to lose?

The wedding was quick and quiet.