Xiang Wan was being disingenuous.
"Stop being so narcissistic. Who's thinking that?"
"I just thought, if you didn't come, I could work overtime. I don't want to delay earning money."
"Oh~ Boss Xiang is so passionate about work. It seems you'll be rich soon. Don't forget me when you have money."
Lu Mingzhe pecked her on the lips and pulled back.
"I'll see. I'll try to come."
"Who wants you to try? It's best if you never come again!"
Xiang Wan lay back down.
Lu Mingzhe laughed.
"Want to ditch me? Not so easy. You promised me yesterday you wouldn't break up anymore."
"Alright, I'm leaving. You sleep a bit longer."
The streets were quiet in the early morning.
He rushed home at breakneck speed, was urged by his mother to change clothes, put on a little light makeup, and with Lu Qingxu and three cousins, they livelily headed to the Peninsula International Hotel.
Chen Jiaojiao's family had traveled from afar, bringing no one except a few relatives from the Chen family.
Naturally, there were no bridesmaids.
But for the sake of appearances, the wedding company still prepared a few for her.
Everyone played the door-blocking game for a while, making a fuss, and then let them in.
Chen Jiaojiao, wearing a pure white wedding dress and exquisite makeup, sat on the bright red bed with a blank expression.
The groomsmen and bridesmaids played games as a group. Lu Mingzhe walked over and handed her the bouquet.
The wedding company's emcee handed Lu Mingzhe a groom's vow to read to Chen Jiaojiao.
It included promises like: all income after marriage to be handed over to the wife, all housework to be done by him, to come home on time, and to take care of the children.
Lu Mingzhe took it and glanced at it, finding it ridiculous.
He didn't read it.
He handed the item to Chen Jiaojiao.
"Do you want to hear it?"
Chen Jiaojiao looked up along his hand.
There was indeed nothing good to read. She didn't want to hear it at all.
"No need. Let's go quickly. If there's traffic, don't waste all your time here."
Everyone burst into laughter.
They had never seen a bride so eager to get married.
The group livelily went downstairs.
The accompanying photographer was supposed to ride in the same car as the bride and groom to capture details of their wedding journey. Chen Jiaojiao refused him.
"No need. I don't like people pointing cameras at me. Film them instead."
The two people who should have been the happiest in the world sat in the car, neither touching the other.
Both wore expressionless faces.
In fact, with things having escalated to this point, they should have stopped everything. There was no point in continuing.
After driving for a while, they encountered a red light. Lu Mingzhe gently nudged Chen Jiaojiao's foot with his toe.
"If you want to get off now, I won't stop you."
Given his attitude yesterday, Lu Mingzhe thought she would be very happy to hear him say this.
Unexpectedly, Chen Jiaojiao shot him a sideways glance.
"You can't handle it anymore?"
"..."
Fine, very fine.
She could handle it.
Then let them continue playing.
The wedding was held very successfully.
Because Chen Jiaojiao was beautiful and came from a good family, Lu Mingzhe earned his parents a lot of face and drank a considerable amount of alcohol.
They returned to the marital home from the hotel around three in the afternoon.
The best man lingered, insisting on staying to tease the newlyweds.
Chen Jiaojiao showed no shyness and came out directly to chase them away.
"Don't you see your brother is already quite drunk? Let him rest quickly, don't tire him out."
"Our families are urging us to have children quickly. If you delay this good thing, can you take responsibility?"
Well, with the sister-in-law saying so, everyone could only disperse like startled birds.
Lu Mingzhe lay on the living room sofa. Unbothered, under the influence of alcohol, he quickly fell asleep.
Chen Jiaojiao was alone in the room.
Looking at the festive attire, and then at herself in the mirror, all dolled up, she finally couldn't help but burst into tears.
It was over. Everything was over.
It was too late for anything; she and Hu Jiasheng were completely finished.
Her mother's parting words to her father before they separated were quite accurate.
No man in the world was any good. She would never fall for anyone again.
Xiang Wan was out of sorts all day.
Although Lu Mingzhe told her he had only entered into a meaningless marriage, he was still a straight man.
The woman beside him was so beautiful, and they had entered into marriage in broad daylight, witnessed by numerous friends and family.
Given his hot-blooded nature, she didn't believe he wasn't moved.
Although worrying about a scumbag was pathetic and despicable, some things were simply beyond her control.
She even wanted to sneak to the wedding venue to see his wife...
Lu Mingzhe slept until seven in the evening before waking up.
The city lights were already on outside. Seen from this height, half of the city's night view was visible, and it was beautiful.
But the house felt cold and empty.
No lights were on, no one was there, not a sound. It didn't feel like a newlywed home at all.
He sat up, rubbed his forehead, then stood by the window for a while, and then went to the bedroom.
The dim light from outside cast into the room, allowing him to see the scene within.
Chen Jiaojiao hadn't changed her clothes, removed her hair ornaments, or covered herself with a blanket.
Perhaps she was too tired, she had simply fallen asleep on the bed.
He watched her for a few seconds at the doorway.
Then he decisively turned and left the house.
Half an hour later, he arrived at Xiang Wan's doorstep.
But he didn't expect anyone to be home.
He rang the doorbell several times, but there was no response, nor any lights.
Xiang Wan must not have gotten off work yet.
He wasn't in a hurry. He pulled off the corsage he was wearing and threw it into the trash can by the elevator.
Leaning against the door, he took out his phone and started playing a game.
Xiang Wan didn't want to go home so early.
Her brother had something to do today and told her he would stay overnight at a classmate's house.
Fearing she would be alone at home and overthink things, she decided it was better to stay at the company and work overtime.
She didn't leave the company until ten o'clock and arrived home at eleven.
Unexpectedly, a tall figure stood at her doorstep.
Lu Mingzhe had already arrived at her door to wait for her.
She couldn't describe how she felt at that moment of seeing him.
There was surprise, a hint of sadness, resentment, and longing.
She suppressed the urge to run towards him and walked over slowly.
She poked Lu Mingzhe on his back.
"On your wedding night, you actually ran over to my place?"
Lu Mingzhe was playing a game. Hearing her voice, he looked back and met her gaze, then put away his phone.
"I've been waiting for you for a long time. If you didn't come back soon, my phone would have died. Hurry up and open the door."
Been waiting for a long time.
This sentence, which sounded like an explanation but wasn't, made her feel truly comforted.
Xiang Wan quickly opened the door.
As she entered, Lu Mingzhe reached out to embrace her from behind.
Xiang Wan dropped her bag on the floor, turned around, and burrowed into his arms.
Then, without even taking off her high heels, she stood on her tiptoes and leaned in proactively.
Only she knew the twists and turns her heart had gone through that day.
At this moment, it was finally released.
She was deeply moved.
Lu Mingzhe could clearly sense that she, who was usually never proactive in this regard, was not only proactive today but also so emotional.
Soon, he was utterly captivated.
The atmosphere in the house became heated between them.
Just as Lu Mingzhe couldn't hold back and wanted to take things further, he suddenly remembered.
"Will this disturb your brother?"