There was a goddess who shone like the purest moonlight in Matthew's heart. The topic was on everyone's lips in the city, but no one knew exactly who his goddess was. And why people knew about it, no one could say. After all, Matthew wasn't one to share his secrets easily.
Who on earth was his goddess? That was the biggest mystery to those who had a crush on Matthew.
Just like that, over dinner, the Huo family and Li family decided that Matthew and Erica would be married. They didn't care that she didn't want to.
During the whole process, Erica had no right to speak, all because she already had a child out of wedlock.
In two days, the Huos presented their betrothal gifts to the Li family.
The Huo family was generous and sincere. They gave the Li family two checks, six sets of priceless jewelry, five houses in Erica's name—three houses were in Y City and two in A Country.
And just when Erica thought that was too much, they gave her more betrothal gifts.
Three limited edition supercars suitable for ladies, a listed jewelry company, two luxury yachts, two credit cards with unlimited balances issued by a bank under ZL Group…
When she saw the gifts, Erica could almost believe that she and Matthew were in love.
The truth was, these were all gifts from Carlos and Debbie. Matthew didn't give a damn about them.
But she wasn't done being surprised. The two families held a grand engagement ceremony in the Li's hometown the very next day. And the wedding was scheduled to be held on July 7th of the lunar calendar.
Everything was happening so fast.
Like an emotionless robot, Matthew coldly handled all the details.
It felt like a dream to Erica. She wore a pink dress, and had a glass of wine in her hand. After the engagement ceremony, Erica stood beside Matthew and gazed at all the guests. Looking at the relatives and friends coming and going, this was like something out of a fairy tale.
But she couldn't help poking the man's arm and whispering, "Why did you agree to marry me?"
Matthew didn't even look at her. "My father asked me," he answered indifferently.
Erica was speechless. 'You sound so reluctant.'
Later, the news of their engagement had gone viral on the Internet. It was all over the news, and social media as well. "Breaking news: Matthew Huo, successor and vice president of ZL Group, is set to marry the youngest daughter of the Li family!"
Now, everyone in the world knew Erica was going to marry Matthew.
The commenters could scarcely believe what they read. The news shocked everyone.
A user named Knife commented, "Erica Li is going to marry Matthew Huo? WTF? Is that true? It's an April Fool's Day joke, right? Oh, my God!"
Another user named Your Highness commented, "Dafuq? Erica Li? Miss Troublemaker herself? How'd that happen? Tell me that's not true!"
The user Keep Silent said, "Wow! The Li and Huo families, united by marriage. That oughta be fun."
Girl Under Bridge said, "I wonder how many people in Y City will have a problem now that Miss Troublemaker's in town. Mr. Matthew Huo, if this is a shotgun marriage, let us know. We'll come rescue you!"
In the Li family house
Erica became more and more depressed as she read the comments. At last, she turned off the phone and lay in bed, staring at the ceiling in despair.
People all over the world thought she wasn't good enough for Matthew, and they all knew they didn't love each other. They said it was beneath Matthew to be the stepfather of her baby.
At the thought of it, she took out her phone and got Matthew's phone number from Terilynn. Then, she texted the man. "So what do you think about marrying a woman who's had a child out of wedlock?"
She was eager for his response. If he had a problem with it, Erica would definitely persuade him to cancel the wedding.
'What if he doesn't have a problem with it?' she thought. But then she shook her head. 'A proud guy like Matthew wouldn't do that. Why would a guy like that marry me? He's not an idiot.'
An hour later, Matthew texted her back. "You're bound to find a few bad apples in the bunch."
'OK. And? What's that supposed to mean? What do I do now?' Erica was totally confused.
'No way! I have to fight for my future happiness.' At that thought, the girl got out of bed and walked towards Wesley's room.
"Dad, you asleep? Dad!" She pounded on the door.
Wesley opened the door, emotionless. "What's up?"
Erica took a deep breath and protested in a serious voice, "Dad, I'm your daughter, your youngest daughter. You can't do this to me!"
Knowing what she was referring to, Wesley said, "You mean your marriage to Matthew? I like him."
Erica felt frustrated. She protested again, "He's not even in love with me. You know he has a thing for another girl, right?" Everyone in the city knew about it. And Terilynn had mentioned it, too. So the rumors were true.
"So what? Look, it's already arranged! You're marrying him, and that's that." Wesley trusted Matthew. He was a man of integrity. He would never betray Erica after they got married.
But he didn't trust his daughter at all. He wondered whether Erica could be faithful to Matthew. She liked to flirt before she got pregnant. Would she do something stupid to ruin this?
Erica didn't know what to say. Did Matthew cast a spell on Wesley or something?
"Matthew would make a great son-in-law. You're not likely to find a better guy anywhere. Especially after giving birth to some other guy's kid. There's no better choice. Just go back to bed!" Wesley closed the door.
Facing the closed door, Erica was speechless. What else could she say? If she had known that a child would ruin her life, she wouldn't have made that reckless decision in the first place.
She pounded on the door and shouted, "Are you really willing to send me to another city? That's where the Huos live!"
Wesley didn't open the door for her this time. "Yes, I am." His answer half-muffled by the wood between them.
'What the heck? This is so messed up!'
Erica looked at the baby who was sucking his own fingers in the crib. She had been racking her brain for a whole week, but she still couldn't think of a way to break off the engagement.
The pre-wedding photos would be taken very soon. If she couldn't think of a way out, she might end up marrying Matthew.
When she thought of his cold face and arrogant eyes, she wanted to gouge his eyes out!
"Rika, take Feb out and get some fresh air," Blair said to Erica as she walked towards the storage room.
"I don't want to!" She was not in the mood to go outside.
"Hurry up! He doesn't get outside much as it is. It's not good to keep him cooped up like this." Blair had stopped what she was doing so she could argue with her daughter.
Erica sighed. The little guy was cute, so she decided to take him out for a walk. Her mom was right.
Just a few minutes after Erica pushed the stroller out of the house, Blair thought of something and walked out of the storage room. She told the nanny, "Rika didn't take the baby's water bottle with her. Here, take this to her. She's a new mom and might not be as careful as she should be. Make sure she's okay."
"Yes, ma'am!" The nanny left in a hurry with the bottle of water.
