CH 4

Seeing this joke of a marriage come true, Xie Wei jumped out again, “How can this work? It’s too childish!”

“Childish? Didn’t you insist on asking me to enter the door of Luo’s house?” Shi Yunnan straightened up, his eyes gleaming with mockery.

“Originally, I disagreed, but Aunt Xie persuaded me with so much enthusiasm. Now that I consented and agreed, you are rushing to stop me instead? Why? Now this ‘blessing’, aunt Xie is going to take it for her own son?”

After the confirmation at the dining table just now, Shi Yunnan was disgusted with the people in this family to the extreme, and at this moment he spoke with no mercy.

The secret in Xie Wei’s heart was bluntly pierced, and she was slammed in place with embarrassment.

“Yunnan, my mother didn’t mean that, don’t get me wrong.” Xie Keyue stepped forward to defend his mother, and turned his attention to the elders in the family to raise the key point, “It’s just that this Luo family is not the other Luo family1. It does not conform to etiquette, right?”

According to seniority, that young master of the Luo family still had to call Luo Lingsheng ‘little uncle’.

Old man Shi, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke up, “Mr. Luo, our Shi family has already agreed with second master Luo  about the marriage of the two children. You suddenly… it will be difficult for us if words spread out.”

Luo Lingsheng temporarily intervened, which was against the custom.

Most importantly, if Shi Yunnan married the Luo Family young master, the Shi family would still dare to seek some commercial benefits. But if the object changed to Luo Lingsheng, unless the latter was willing, who dared to bite the bullet and ask him for benefits?

“Your two families neither sent out invitations nor held an engagement banquet. If you don’t pass the word around, where can it spread to?”

Luo Lingsheng raised his eyes, and there was absolute suppression in his words, “Even if it was spread out, who dares to gossip about my Luo family private affairs?”

Shi Yunnan stared at Luo Lingsheng with interest, feeling more and more that this man was to his liking, “Grandpa, Mr. Luo and I are now considered to be consensual. It’s a happy event, not disgraceful.”

The tone of his last word was very wavy, as if he was teasing them.

Old man Shi was furious, “You…”

“I can naturally take care of the second house side, so I won’t bother old master Shi.” Luo Lingsheng put on his gold frame glasses and stopped this endless obstruction.

His fingertips tapped on the wheelchair handle, “Qin Jian.”

“Patriarch, I understand.” The nearest well-mannered assistant responded and quickly gave way to both sides again.

Luo Lingsheng turned the wheelchair around, and purposely looked at Shi Yunnan, “Second young master Shi, are you coming?”

“Of course”

Shi Yunnan honestly replied and followed the other party out of the house without looking back.

Old man Shi looked at the two people’s drifting backs, and for the first time, he had an unsettling feeling–

For a long time, Shi Yunnan’s relationship with this family was not deep. Even if he had a relationship with Luo Lingsheng, a well-known big shot in the imperial capital, it didn’t necessarily mean that the whole Shi family would follow him to ascend the sky.

On the contrary, he was afraid that the ambitious Shi Yunnan would become a variable for the Shi family in the future.

“Old master Shi.” Assistant Qin Jian handed over a thick red book and nodded, “Since it’s clearly a marriage proposal, please accept a small token of my family patriarch.”

Old man Shi didn’t expect that Luo Lingsheng would prepare these, and he motioned Shi Sheng to accept it.

“Please tell Mr. Luo, we’re very thankful.”

“There is no need to rush to thank us.” Qin Jian raised his hand to stop him, smiling superficially and politely.

“What the patriarch wants to say is– Can this betrothal gift be used and how should it be used? Should something be said, and how to say it? Old master Shi should be well aware in his heart.”

Qin Jian paused for two second to put pressure on them, then continued, “Otherwise, the Patriarch’s betrothal gift can be given out, but it can also be taken back in a different way, from the Shi family’s company.”

Old man Shi stiffened, “I understand, please tell Mr. Luo to rest assured.”

Qin Jian nodded politely and turned to leave.

Xie Wei waited for him to walk away before patting her chest, “It’s just a young assistant next to Luo Lingsheng, how can he put on such a momentum to frighten people? Does he think our Shi family is easy to bully?”

“You’re the only one with a mouth? Have you said enough!”

Old man Shi stared at her fiercely, and the anger accumulated in his heart finally broke out in front of his family.

“Look at the lousy idea you came up with. Shi and Luo married in exchange for some commercial benefits? Now you’ve done it! You provoked the last person in the Luo family that should not be provoked! Don’t you understand what the assistant means?”

From this moment on, Luo Lingsheng would send people to watch the Shi family’s every move.

This betrothal gift was simply a hot potato! It was a bomb that would be ignited from time to time!

If the Shi family dared to make trouble through this marriage, this big Buddha could trample them with one foot!

This time, he totally shot himself in the foot.

The more old man Shi thought about it, the more frustrated he became, yet he was unwilling to admit his fault in this matter, “Xie Wei, don’t think I don’t know what you stupid woman has in mind!”

That young master Luo was a womanizer and a drunken dandy; if Shi Yunnan married him, he would have nothing to do with the so-called ‘blessing’.

“You’re too petty to be on stage. If it weren’t for the fact that you’ve brought up a good son, how could you have gotten your turn to sit in this madam’s position?”

The curse was loud and sonorous, even the servant hiding in the room heard it clearly.

Xie Wei’s entire face turned blue and white. She couldn’t wait to find a hole in the ground to drill in.

It wasn’t until old man Shi and her husband left one after another that she couldn’t bear to complain, “I, pei, that Wen Min is a famous young lady, but it’s a pity that she has been dead for nearly 20 years with no ashes left!”

Xie Keyue frowned, “Mom! Don’t say anything.”

“I’m just too angry!” Xie Wei leaned closer, and asked uneasily, “Son, this Shi Yunnan suddenly climbed a high branch, what shall we do?”

Xie Ke’s eyes changed for a moment, and it took a while before he replied stiffly, “What are you worried about? It’s better to rely on yourself than on others.”

“Grandpa just scolded you because he was angry, but he didn’t drive you out of the house. At worst, even if you leave Shi’s house now, are you afraid that I won’t be able to support you?”

Xie Wei felt a little proud after listening, “That’s right!”

In her life, she had given birth to a baby son who grew up to be a genius.

Xie Keyue’s insight was very sharp. When he was in college, he secretly made money in many different ways. He hid this fact from old man Shi, but in actually, his secret assets should not be underestimated!

How could that stinky boy Shi Yunnan, who only knew how to eat, drink, and make merry all day long, compare to her son?

……

The car drove out of Shi’s house area.

Shi Yunnan smiled briskly, and then said to Luo Lingsheng on the side, “I want to thank Mr. Luo for your cooperation just now, otherwise I would have had to struggle with the old man for a while.”

His gaze floated out of the car window, and then said to Qin Jian who was driving, “Brother assistant, you can pull over anywhere to drop me off.”

Qin Jian glanced at Luo Lingsheng through the rearview mirror, “Should I stop?”

“Don’t stop, drive home.”

“Yes, Patriarch.”

Shi Yunnan heard the conversation between the two, his smile froze, “Mr. Luo?”

Luo Lingsheng met his bewildered gaze, and said, “Second young master Shi may have misunderstood something. The marriage proposal was real.”

Shi Yunnan didn’t react for two seconds. He was surprised, but also a little confused, “If I remember correctly, isn’t this the first time we met?”

“Although love at first sight exists in this world, but love at first sight to flash marriage on the same day? Mr. Luo doesn’t seem like this kind of emotional person.”

Shi Yunnan leaned back in his seat and stared at Luo Lingsheng with a hint of jest, “However, if we really get married within an hour, who will lose and who will earn between the two of us?”

To be honest, Luo Lingsheng had such a handsome face that could be eaten by all men and women, so it would not be a loss if he really became a flash marriage partner.

However, although Shi Yunnan’s words were boundless, he was quite clear in his heart.

There was no such thing as a pie falling from the sky, let alone a golden pie with a high-value like Luo Lingsheng.

One mistake and the pie would become a trap.

Facing Shi Yunnan’s gaze, Luo Lingsheng chose to get straight to the point.

“I need a partner who is suitable for public disclosure. Since second young master Shi has knocked on the door by himself, and is a first-class actor with real skills, why not consider cooperating with me?”

“Mr. Luo means that we make a contract marriage?”

“En, I’ll pay you for the job. During the contract marriage, I will not do anything to you, and you won’t be short of food and clothing.”

“Really?” Shi Yunnan chuckled lightly, neither disagreeing nor agreeing.

“But now this car is driving to Luo’s house without stopping. Those who don’t know will think that Mr. Luo is ‘seizing people by force’.”

“You can refuse.” Luo Lingsheng replied, his gaze sweeping slightly, “But where does the second young master Shi intend to go when he left the Shi family empty-handed?

Shi Yunnan was reminded by him, and then he came back to his senses afterwards——

Oops.

He was pissed off earlier, his documents and luggage were still kept at Shi’s house. It was easy to be restricted everywhere if he went without ID. But he only got out of the Shi family with great difficulty, and did not want to go back to find unhappiness.

Luo Ling Sheng guessed what he was thinking, “I’ll have someone pick up the luggage at Shi’s house for you, but before that, why don’t second young master Shi come back to Luo’s house with me?”

“I can give you the time to consider, whether it is to leave or cooperate, it is up to you to decide.”

These words were so impeccable that one couldn’t find false at all.

No wonder even old man Shi had to give concession. In addition to power and status, Luo Lingsheng’s mind was also very powerful.

Seeing this, Shi Yunnan calmly accepted, “Okay, how long will it take to get to Luo’s house?”

“About half an hour.” Qin Jian in the front row replied, “Second young master Shi has only returned to China yesterday right? If the jet lag is still there, you can sleep for a while.”

Shi Yunnan responded in a low voice.

He did not sleep well last night, but not because of jet lag, it was because of the vivid dream of the original book——

A supporting role in the book who ended up with a tragic fate?

Shi Yunnan felt that this defied science and was somewhat outrageous, but right now the first round of verification had been confirmed, so he must be on guard.

He opened the encrypted memo on his phone and took notes as he thought back. He quickly listed a series of important timeline, characters, and plot points.

Shi Yunnan had his own pride, he couldn’t fawn over Xie Keyue to ‘change his fate’. Of course, he didn’t intend to be as rash as ‘he’ was in the original and targeted Xie Keyue, he had to wait and see.

A good memory was not as good as a bad pen.

Since he chose to take it as the truth, it was safer to master more details of the dream.

But as it was written, Shi Yunnan discovered a node that he had neglected before– the Luo Lingsheng sitting next to him was actually one of the characters in the later period of the original book.

As the head of the Luo family, the other party had great power and influence. The group under his hands spanned across countless industrial chains.

Such a big shot naturally attracted Xie Keyue’s attention, the ‘protagonist of the original book’. The latter tried again and again to get acquainted, but all ended in failure.

If you don’t become an ally, you will become an enemy, and once you become an enemy, you are bound to be defeated by Xie Keyue’s protagonist’s halo.

In the original book, Luo Lingsheng’s ending was not much better.

He was framed by Xie Keyue and went to prison. His already handicapped legs were completely crippled in prison, unable to survive or die.

Shi Yunnan took a sharp breath, and his eyes fell on Luo Lingsheng’s legs unconsciously.

What should have been the pride of heaven, fell into the mud at once.

What unscrupulous author could write such a plot? Really ruthless.

Shi Yunnan’s gaze was too frank and lingering. Luo Lingsheng’s expression sank the second he noticed it, “Second young master Shi, have you seen enough?”

Qin Jian, the assistant driving in the front row, noticed this situation, and glanced nervously at the bodyguard in the passenger seat——

Luo Lingsheng’s leg was a scar in his heart. Others should not look at it, and avoid mentioning it. In the past, someone stepped on this landmine, and the result was a terrible end.

From the beginning until now, how many times had second young master Shi pluck the tiger’s head?

Almost instantly, Shi Yunnan realized that Luo Lingsheng had misunderstood.

If it was changed to someone else, they would have already explained in panic, but Shi Yunnan did the opposite, “Mr. Luo, are you born with this? Or is it an injury that happened later? Can it be cured?”

Perhaps because of his personality, Shi Yunnan’s speech was always accompanied by a light smile, just like the wind in the late spring and early summer.

It not only brought about cool dryness, but also warmed people’s hearts.

Luo Lingsheng’s voice contained a touch of complexity as he asked, “Second young master Shi, What does it have to do with you?”

“Why doesn’t it matter to me? If we negotiate a flash marriage, then I need to know about Mr. Luo’s physical condition. Otherwise, it’s easy to be exposed when people ask in the future.”

“No one dares to ask about this.” Luo Lingsheng’s tone eased a bit, but he avoided the question.

Alright.

I won’t ask if you don’t want to say it.

Shi Yunnan didn’t pursue the answer. He looked at Luo Ling Sheng’s figure and appearance that grew completely on his heart, and tsk-ed twice in a fervent manner.

“No wonder the West always says that God is jealous of men who are too outstanding.”

“Mr. Luo’s sitting momentum overwhelmed others. If you stand up again, no one under the sky can compare to you.”

While spouting rainbow farts2, he kept a teasing mind, “But it’s okay if it can’t be cured, I’m just worried about Mr. Luo’s real partner in the future…”

Shi Yunnan smiled and came closer, dropping the last half of the sentence, “I heard that eating orange3 will be a little strenuous.”

“……”

The sudden wave of words stirred up a change of atmosphere in the whole car.

Qin Jian, who was eavesdropping in the front row, couldn’t hold back, and a throttle flew out.

Luo Lingsheng completely ignored the assistant’s fast speed. He took a deep breath, and his eyes darkened, “Second young master Shi, you…”

“I’m used to being outspoken, so I’ll have to ask Mr. Luo to be more tolerant in the future.” Shi Yunnan intercepted him, not hiding his flirtatious delight in getting his way.

Luo Lingsheng captured the key words, “In the future?”

The eyes of the two met again, each buried in thoughts.

“Well, didn’t Mr. Luo wants me to pretend to be a ‘marriage partner’?”

The smile on Shi Yunnan’s face remained the same, only the bottom of his eyes hid a trace of calmness after judgment, “I agree.”

The author has something to say:

#Little fox Nan: I heard that eating navel orange will be a little strenuous.

#Patriarch: You will experience it yourself in the future.

He means Luo Lingsheng’s main branch family is different from the side branch family.

Empty praise

脐橙[qí chénɡ]: Navel orange; 骑乘[qí chénɡ]: Riding (horse). Since orange and riding are homonyms, it became a slang word. Y’all know what riding in this context means.  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)