Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
“It’s finally solved.” Grandma took a sip of red wine and exhaled in satisfaction. “It’s also the wedding of Chengzhi and Little Song the day after tomorrow. Great things are happening one after another—just in time to rid the house of bad luck. Chengyue got divorced, and the burden in my heart is finally relieved. I can now attend the wedding without any worry.”
After divorcing Jian Yi, Qi Chengyue did not expect to be more relaxed than ever—even her appetite improved.
The Qi family members were relieved to see her like this—the atmosphere at the dinner table was relaxed.
“Chengzhi, have you decided where to go for your honeymoon?” Xia Wenna asked.
“We’ve discussed it, and decided that we’re not going anywhere for now. After getting some things done, only then will we go on our honeymoon,” Qi Chengzhi said as he filled a bowl with soup for Song Yu.
Xia Wenna thought Qi Chengzhi was referring to the matters relating to the Guan family so she did not say anything.
…
…
After leaving the Qi family’s mansion at night, Qi Chengzhi did not drive home immediately—he parked his car in front of Dynasty.
Song Yu got out of the car in suspicion and walked up Dynasty’s steps with her hand in his. Song Yu asked, “What are we doing here?”
Qi Chengzhi was silent as he entered Dynasty’s entrance with Song Yu.
The manager walked over to them—it was as if he had already spoken to Qi Chengzhi beforehand. He led Qi Chengzhi and Song Yu into a huge banquet hall behind Dynasty’s main building—it was the largest in the whole of Dynasty.
The banquet hall filled the entire building, and its exterior looked like a palace in the Han Dynasty. Although it was a one-story hall, it was magnificent beyond belief.
After walking up the stairs and entering the building, Song Yu did not dare to use her normal voice to speak under the unbelievably high ceiling—the echo was heavy.
The manager led them to the entrance of the banquet hall and said, “Feel free to use the hall, I will be at the entrance if you need me.”
After the manager left, Qi Chengzhi pushed the doors open with both his hands—a long, white carpet appeared before Song Yu’s eyes. It stretched from the door all the way to the front, naturally separating the hall into two sides.
There were tables and chairs covered with white cloths on both sides of the carpet. No cutleries were set up on the tables—they looked ordinary for now.
Each side of the tables had long tables that served as dessert corners for guests. The exquisitely decorated desserts had yet to be displayed.
“There will be too many people at the wedding after tomorrow. I’ve always wanted a wedding with just you and me. You’re going back to your family home tomorrow night and I did not want to ruin the surprises on the wedding day,” Qi Chengzhi said.
The hall would have been decorated by tomorrow night. If she saw it tomorrow night, there would not be any surprises left for the wedding day.
“Tonight’s wedding is just you and me?” Song Yu looked up at him and his handsome face—his pupils darkened. She blushed slightly as she said, “Does this mean I’m marrying you twice? Wait, it’s three times including the one in France.”
“We haven’t gotten our marriage certificate for the one in France.” Qi Chengzhi smiled slightly, his voice raspy.
He did not walk ahead and waited for Song Yu to follow. Instead, he held Song Yu’s hand and walked to the front together.
Song Yu could not help but look up at Qi Chengzhi. At this moment, his usual, expressionless face became soft, and he seemed focused. As she walked alongside him, it felt like they were going to walk together for the rest of their lives—she felt calm and content.
Qi Chengzhi felt her gaze and looked down at her as well. His gaze was warm and decisive—his eyes were locked on her face and they did not go anywhere.
Song Yu squeezed his hand and thought how great it would be if she held his hand since she was young—and never letting it go.
As she looked at the man who was walking by her side, she thought about how this charming man wanted to spend the rest of his life with her—the happiness and satisfaction she felt could not be put into words.
Qi Chengzhi held her hand and walked up to the altar—it was as if they will spend the rest of their lives loving and supporting each other through the good and bad, through sickness and health.
…
…
On Friday, Qi Chengzhi wrapped up work and picked Song Yu up from Viewpark Residence to return to the Song family’s house.
As they drove into the garden, they found the wells in front of the entrance being covered by pink papers, and the pillars of the streetlights were pasted with cutouts of the “Xi” character—which meant double happiness. As they reached the ground floor, an area was found closed off and a sign was put up in front of it—it was a reserved parking area for the wedding cars tomorrow. The sign also apologized to neighbors for the inconvenience caused.
As the transport team for tomorrow’s wedding was too large, many spots had to be taken up. For this, Song Donglin and Yu Qianying closed off the area on that day and waited outside. If there were neighbors who drove over, they politely explained the situation to them and gave them small gifts. They were not pricey, but it was a token of appreciation—it would ease the burden on people’s hearts and hopefully not be calculative over the situation.
The duo got out of the car and saw cutouts of the “Xi” character pasted on the walls of the apartment unit and its main entrance.
Just as they stepped into the unit, they bumped into the old Xu couple from the sixth floor who were taking a walk after dinner.
“Oh? Song Yu you’re back, congratulations on the wedding tomorrow,” Aunty Xu said while giggling. She looked at Qi Chengzhi up and down—he was good looking, they did look great together; people would envy them.
As Song Donglin was the only son of the Song family, he was the official representative of the company before the Song family went bankrupt. While his cousins’ quality of life decreased after the incident—their losses were not nearly as bad as Song Donglin.
Those cousins of Song Donglin did not forget the good he had done for them. They became part of the upper class because of Song Donglin. That was why even though the Song family went bankrupt, and the cousins lived like middle-class persons, they always helped out Song Donglin and his family through their worst.
Song Donglin and Yu Qianying remembered their efforts too—whatever that was given to them by Madam Qi and Xia Wenna in the past, they could not finish them anyway; they gave them out to the cousins regularly. They also invited them to the wedding tomorrow.
To a family with a reputation like the Qi family, they did not care about the money. Families of the same status would splurge on the gifts, but for ordinary folks—they just needed to attend the wedding and wish the couple well. Song Donglin’s cousins would not feel pressured for the event at all.
As for Yu Qianying, she could not invite anyone from her family—the bride’s family together with Song Donglin’s cousins could only fill one table, that was why they invited neighbors that they were friendly with as well. The Xu couple was also on the list.
Song Yu only invited a few people she was close within the company such as Ruan Danchen and Manager Wang together with a few other colleagues. Other than that, even though she knew Director Zhao was extra nice to her because of Qi Chengzhi, she still invited him and his wife.
“Uncle Xu, Aunty Xu, my mom has told you about it hasn’t she? You can just go tomorrow, you don’t have to give gifts,” Song Yu said as she was afraid the neighbors would feel pressured. If they had wanted to give gifts anywaysl, it would not help with the pressure. People who lived here were just ordinary folk, like the Xu couple, they were already retired. Although their unit was great and they had huge retirement benefits, but to attend a Qi family wedding was a lot of pressure.
“Sigh, your mom said it. But we couldn’t just show up empty-handed, wouldn’t that be inappropriate? That would look bad!” Aunty Xu said.
“Nothing is inappropriate about it, other than making myself happy at the wedding, I want my friends and family to be happy for us too—it’s a matter of getting everyone’s well wishes. If a joyous event turns into causing people stress and burden, how could that be okay? You’re coming without anything. If you feel bad, then just wish us from the bottom of your heart. Otherwise, we would feel pressured taking gifts from you,” Song Yu said with a serious face.
Aunty Xu felt relieved and laughed. “Okay.”
Song Yu and Qi Chengzhi went home after some small talk.
Yu Qianying had been cleaning up the house for the last few days. The house was decorated in a particularly festive way—even the bedsheets in Song Yu’s room were changed to a festive red.
Song Donglin brought out the bottle of Tianzilan white spirit that was given by Qi Chengzhi a while back. Song Yu also drank a little red wine.
As the couple had already gotten their marriage certificate, there was nothing much left to be advised about—Qi Chengzhi had already been the son-in-law of the Song family for some time so Yu Qianying did not have much to say.
The family had a great talk over dinner and finished the fruits for dessert. It was 9 o’clock in the blink of an eye and Qi Chengzhi did not seem like he was planning to leave.
Yu Qianying did not feel comfortable with asking him to leave. She went back to the kitchen and cut up some fruits, and Song Donglin came over to help. Yu Qianying leaned over to Song Donglin and whispered, “Why do you think he hasn’t left? He needs to come here and pick up the bride in the morning, you don’t think he’s planning to stay over do you, that’s against the tradition!”
“What could we do, you want to chase him out?” Song Donglin also whispered, “Moreover his suit and everything is still in his house, together with the wedding transport team—he can’t stay here for sure. They are married anyway and have already been living together, it’s normal that they’re reluctant to split up for a night.”
Yu Qianying thought about her son-in-law’s decent appearance—it looked as if he was not up to anything malicious. She could not be the one to say it.
Whenever she talked to him, he would look at her with his clear and innocent eyes—it gave her a lot of pressure. She had suspected that he had mental issues.
…
…
Song Yu looked at the clock on the wall and looked back at him. His coat laid on the armrest of the sofa, his collar was open, and his tie was shoved into his shirt pocket. His sleeves were rolled up to his arms, his muscles made the sleeves look like they were about to burst. His forearm was rested on his thigh, and his black body hair was exposed. They were not too much but not too little—Song Yu felt it was perfect. It made him look extra manly.
The pants under his arm were tightly hugging his thighs because of his position. The lines of his thigh muscles could be seen.
Qi Chengzhi was silently peeling pistachios. Ever since he quit smoking, he ate snacks to substitute the need to smoke.
As a result, Qi Chengzhi ate all the snacks in the house—Song Yu barely had any.
As Qi Chengzhi was peeling for himself, he peeled a couple and fed Song Yu once in a while.
“It’s getting late, what time are you planning to leave?” Song Yu swallowed the pistachio he fed her with and asked.
“…” Qi Chengzhi looked at the clock on the wall in silence then back at Song Yu. His gaze seemed a little slanted, and she did not know if it was an illusion but his gaze seemed a little condemning—Song Yu could not help but feel guilty, as if chasing him out was a horrible thing to do.
“You’re chasing me out this quick?” She was right—he asked blatantly.
Song Yu submissively wrapped her hand around his arm and explained, “There will be a jam outside at this hour, it will be about ten-thirty by the time you get home. You’re picking me up early in the morning tomorrow and it’s going to be a long day. Why not go back earlier and rest?”
Qi Chengzhi looked at her and did not want to leave, but he knew he had to. He got up with an expressionless face, and grabbed his coat from the armrest. However, his arm was grabbed by her as he was about to leave.
“I’ll see you out,” Song Yu said gently.
Truth be told, being with Qi Chengzhi had already become habitual. It might feel uncomfortable to see someone next to you when she woke up in the morning, but Qi Chengzhi already became part of her life without her knowing it.
To not be with him tonight was hard for her. She wanted to go home with him at the moment.
Her eyes began swelling up watching him leave by himself.
Qi Chengzhi did not say anything and let her hold him by his arm in silence. They walked past the kitchen as they were getting to the door, and greeted Yu Qianying and Song Donglin.
Yu Qianying let out a sigh of relief and said, “Leaving so soon? I just finished cutting up the fruits.”
Qi Chengzhi saw the fruit platter Yu Qianying was pointing at and asked honestly, “Should I stay for a little longer?”
“…” Yu Qianying was speechless.
Song Yu pulled him away and walked out as she whispered, “What are you saying! Go home and rest well, tomorrow is going to be tiring. Don’t force yourself to stay here.”
Song Yu finished speaking to him before turning around and said, “Mom, I’ll walk him out.”
Yu Qianying could be heard saying, “Chengzhi, drive carefully!”
The duo walked out the door and Song Yu wanted to send Qi Chengzhi downstairs. Qi Chengzhi stopped her and said, “You don’t have to go down, I will be worried and I will have to send you back here again.”
“Okay,” Song Yu said gently and reminded him, “Drive slowly and carefully on the road. Call me when you’re home.”
She lowered her head. Despite what she said, her hands were unconsciously wrapped around his waist—she did not want him to leave.
Qi Chengzhi’s arms circled her waist as well—he tightened his arms, lowered his head to use touch her nose with his and said in a raspy voice, “Do you want me to stay tonight?”
To Song Yu, his voice sounded like a cup of hot, thick cocoa—it was smooth, warm, and sweet to the core.
“Quick, go home,” Song Yu said softly as she forced herself to let go of him.
He did not let go—he still hugged her by her waist and said softly, “I’m serious, I can go back at three or four o’clock.”
“The wedding is tomorrow, won’t we meet again then? It’s just a few hours from now. If you keep stalling, it’s going to be ten,” Song Yu said.
Qi Chengzhi looked at her silently, his gaze was so sharp it made Song Yu blush. Her heart race, and she shivered in his embrace.
Qi Chengzhi lowered his head and got closer to her. Song Yu could feel his hot breath, and she could not help but mess up her own breathing. She also felt contractions in her abdomen.
She inhaled as she quivered, and she could smell his breath. His lips gradually came down onto hers—it felt like he was starved. It was not as deep and heavy as it usually was.
This time, his kiss was gentle but clingy—his hot lips were seducing her gently by rubbing across her lips. All of a sudden, she felt a wet and smooth taste on her lips—it tasted like him. It was his tongue drawing on her lips and stroking them back and forth. It was seductive beyond words, and it felt especially sexy.
Song Yu’s chest tightened and her hands clenched onto his shirt.
After some time, Song Yu had pretty much melted into his embrace. Qi Chengzhi stood while hugging her for a while before finally letting her go.
“You really don’t want me to stay?” he asked with determination.
Song Yu blushed and said, “Be careful on the road.”
She could almost hear Qi Chengzhi sigh, and her lips were pecked twice before he went downstairs. As he turned the corner and was about to go down to the fifth floor, he lifted his head and said to Song Yu, “I’ll leave after watching you go into the house.”
Song Yu knocked on the door and waited until Yu Qianying opened it for her. Song Yu stepped into the house, turned around, and saw Qi Chengzhi waving at her before walking downstairs.
She entered the house and went straight to the balcony to stare outside the window. After some time, she saw Qi Chengzhi walk out. Maybe he knew she was watching him again, because he looked up for a bit before walking ahead.
She watched him enter his car, and only returned to the living room when the Range Rover disappeared into the night.
Yu Qianying shook her head and laughed, “Look at how clingy you both are, isn’t it just one night?”
Song Yu blushed and said “Mom” before Yu Qianying said, “The fruits are already cut up. Come eat and sleep early. You’ll only look good tomorrow with enough rest.”
…
…
Qi Chengzhi was nearing Viewpark Residence. Viewpark Residence was not near the fancy city center—there were barely any cars on the road.
On the quiet roads, there were only a few cars and the streetlights.
Qi Chengzhi kept driving and he could see the entrance of Viewpark Residence. He heard an engine being revved all of a sudden. As it was blocked by the car windows, the volume was not loud; but Qi Chengzhi could feel something was wrong.
He turned around and saw a car speeding out of the T-junction on his side. The car was driving at high speed and it did not look like it was stopping anytime soon. The driver stepped on the gas and was speeding towards him.
Qi Chengzhi sensed danger. It was impossible to swerve into another direction at the moment because the pedestrian walkway next to him. If he braked, that car would definitely ram into him. His gaze was decisive as he slammed his foot on the gas.
As he sped ahead with all his might, that black car also sped towards him—the bonet was tailing his car boot.
That car approached him aggressively. “Bang!” a loud crash was heard—Qi Chengzhi felt his car shook and the back of his car was thrown off. He still could not avoid it in the end, but he was close. He nearly made it.
But now the back of his car had been crashed into.
As he had been stepping on the gas to the fullest, he lost control over the car in that moment. The back of his car nearly swung 360 degrees, and the tires screeched on the ground. That prolonged screeching sound was sharp enough to send chills down people’s spines.
Qi Chengzhi tried his best to turn the steering wheel but still could not take control of the car. The tires continued to screech on the ground at high speed—it created dark and wide tire prints on the road.
As the back of the car swung at high speed, Qi Chengzhi’s head slammed against the car window, hitting the side of his head aggressively before he was slammed onto the other side.
Qi Chengzhi clenched his teeth together. He held his breath unconsciously and did not dare to give up on the brakes—he was still trying his best to take control of the steering wheel; even if it could be controlled just a little.
As the tires swung towards the back, they hit the concrete on the sidewalk—the car shook aggressively as Qi Chengzhi’s back was slammed against the car seat.
At the same time, the front of the car swung out and smashed up the sidewalk before ramming into a tree.
Qi Chengzhi did not dare to move much. His head was hurting horribly—he turned around to see the other car was spinning as well after being thrown off from the impact.
However, that car was in a better condition than his—it stabilized before he could do the same for his. After a quick turn, the car was speeding towards him again.
Qi Chengzhi squeezed his eyes together as his nerves became tense. He reversed as fast as he could, and switched the gear back to ‘drive’. The entire car went up onto the pedestrian walkway and sped along it.
As the other car was about to ram into him again, he was ready—he estimated the right time and quickly turned the steering wheel to get the car back onto the road while ramming into the other car’s boot. That car was swung back out again.
He sped to Viewpark Residence while the other car was still trying to stabilize itself.
At this moment, he was incredibly nervous, and his brain was pounding from the heavy crash from before. His vision was blurred.
Qi Chengzhi took a glance at his rearview mirror—the black car was tailing him.
He took a quick turn. After a sharp “Screech!” noise from stepping on the brakes, his car stopped right in front of Viewpark Residence’s entrance—just a few centimeters from the barrier.
Qi Chengzhi looked into the rearview mirror again—the black car sped out, it did not turn in with him.
He finally relaxed and let out a sigh of relief.
The guards rushed towards him in cold sweat—seeing how the front of the Range Rover was smashed, one’s heart would shiver.
Qi Chengzhi rolled down the window—he lied on the car seat in exhaustion and his head was leaned backward.
“Mister Qi! Are you okay?” the guards screamed.
They heard the crash nearby and went to check it out. They also saw the thrilling scene just now – they wanted to jot down that car’s number plate but could not find any on it.
“Should we call 120 and make a police report?” the guards asked.
“No need,” Qi Chengzhi said softly and frowned. He added, “Please move me into the passenger’s seat, whoever among you can drive, drive me home.”
“Are you sure we should not make a police report?” the guards asked again.
“We’ll talk about it after you send me back,” Qi Chengzhi replied.
Two of the guards carried him out of the car and into the passenger’s seat. They found a colleague who could drive and drove Qi Chengzhi back.
Aunt Yang opened the door and saw Qi Chengzhi being carried by the guards. Her face turned white and asked, “Sir, what’s going on?”
“Mister Qi was met with an accident near the garden entrance,” the guards explained. They carried Qi Chengzhi to the sofa after being told to by Aunt Yang.
“Was it serious?” Aunt Yang exclaimed.
One of the guards nodded and said, “The front and back of the car have been destroyed.”
“God, why not I give a call to Master Lin and get him to send you to the hospital!” Aunt Yang began to freak out. It was late and they had to get the bride in the morning—how could something like this happen at this time?
Qi Chengzhi remained silent. He thanked the two guards before they left.
Aunt Yang did not care if Qi Chengzhi would object it—seeing how pale Qi Chengzhi was from such a serious accident, who knew if there were internal injuries? She called Qi Chenglin right away.
Even if Qi Chengzhi did not say it, Aunt Yang did not notify Song Yu—she did not want Song Yu to worry.
Qi Chenglin hung up and rushed out of the door—he reached Viewpark Residence soon after.
On his way there, Qi Chenglin called Chu Zhaoyang, who immediately woke the doctor who was sleeping and rushed to the hospital.
Qi Chenglin entered the door and found Qi Chengzhi frowning as he leaned against the sofa. He did not know if he could be moved.
“Brother, how are you feeling?” Qi Chenglin said.
Qi Chengzhi pressed on his temples — the wound on the corner of his forehead was already sterilized by Aunt Yang and wrapped with plasters.
“I’m still holding up,” he replied.
“Let’s go, let’s go get a checkup at the hospital,” Qi Chenglin said.
Qi Chenglin did not say no—this accident was nothing like the last, and he could feel that this was worse.
He was carried into the car by Qi Chenglin. On the way there, Qi Chenglin frowned and asked, “Was this accident intentional?”
“Yeah, there was no number plate on the car,” Qi Chengzhi said in a tired voice.
“Jian Yi?” Qi Chenglin guessed.
“I’m not so sure,” Qi Chengzhi replied, but he had the same doubts.
“This must be investigated,” Qi Chenglin’s expression darkened.
Qi Chengzhi whipped out his phone and remembered that he had to give Song Yu a call. Under usual circumstances, he should already be home by now. If he did not call anytime soon, he was afraid she would be worried.
…
…
Song Yu laid on her bed—she turned and turned as she could not fall asleep.
She felt nervous and excited, maybe it was because of the wedding tomorrow, but it was more than that. Qi Chengzhi was not by her side.
She was used to being cuddled to sleep by him at night. As she could not smell his scent or have his warmth around her, she could not sleep.
Moreover, she was still waiting for Qi Chengzhi’s call.
Looking at the time, even if there was a bad jam, he should be home by now.
As she thought about it, Qi Chengzhi called—it was as if there was telepathy.
Song Yu picked up the call right away and heard Qi Chengzhi’s gentle voice say, “I’m home.”
Qi Chenglin looked over at Qi Chengzhi as he drove—he did not dare to make a sound.
