Chapter 8 Avatar 2.0 Surprise!

The cacophony of wind rose and fell around me, an atmosphere of tension filled the air, and the shrill sound of high heels hitting the ground was exceptionally sharp.

Yin Yi stepped forward, her eyes scanning him up and down with undisguised hostility.

"Friend, what do you want with my sister so late at night?"

Yin Xiao slowed her breathing and tugged at Yin Yi's sleeve.

After not seeing her for several years, her sister's aggression has only increased.

“Sister…” She lowered her head, resting her chin on her sister’s shoulder, her tone softening unconsciously, “Sister, he came to deliver something…”

Yi Zhiyan stepped forward and suddenly spoke, maintaining her usual polite manners as she introduced herself, "Sister, I am Yi Zhiyan."

"Yi Zhiyan?" Yin Yi murmured, then, as if remembering something, whispered to Yin Xiao, "The man Mom mentioned on the phone last week... your fiancé?"

Yin Xiao nodded, then shook her head, realizing something was amiss, "He's my husband now."

"Huh?" Yin Yi tilted her head to look at her, asking three questions in quick succession without even taking a breath, "Married? When did you get married? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wanted to say, you don't answer my calls, and you don't reply to my messages," Yin Xiao said resentfully.

"Oh." Yin Yi scrolled through her phone. "I've been so busy at the end of the year that I probably forgot. That damned Yizhi, I'll acquire him one day..."

"Cough cough cough..." Yin Xiao hurriedly interrupted, glancing cautiously in Yi Zhiyan's direction, and changed the subject incoherently, "Okay, acquisition... no, sis, why did you suddenly come back? Oh, I mean, how long are you staying this time? Can you stay a few more days?"

"Yes, you can stay as long as you want." Yin Yi pinched her chin and smiled, raising her eyebrows.

"real?!"

“Really, I’m not leaving this time.” She explained earnestly, “I’ve been transferred back to China, and I’ll report to Anlin headquarters after the New Year.”

Yin Xiao was stunned for a moment, a storm raging in her mind, but she glanced at Yi Zhiyan without changing her expression.

He happened to look over, and after a knowing glance, the two fell silent.

—

Just after midnight, fireworks lit up the streets outside the window, illuminating the huge crowds on the main street.

Yin Yi drew the bedroom curtains, squatted by the bed to pack her suitcase, and bluntly told Yin Xiao without looking up.

"Tell me, what happened between you and Yi Zhiyan?"

Yin Xiao leaned against the door, taking a small bite of the remaining sweet potato, and casually replied, "That's all there is to it. We just got our marriage certificate before the New Year."

Don't pretend with me.

Yin Yi stood up, carrying a large bag of clothes, and slowly scanned the surroundings with her gaze.

"What are you pretending for? You really got the marriage certificate! I'll show it to you." Yin Xiao argued, tilting her head back, and turned to leave.

"return."

Yin Yi threw the clothes on the bed, walked over, and gently pinched her cheek.

"Don't I know you? You look like you're insecure."

Yin Xiao licked her lips and stood still.

Yin Yi let go of his hand. "Alright, just tell me the truth. How did you end up getting married?"

"We dated normally, and after a while we felt we were a good match. My parents agreed, so we got married." Yin Xiao tied up the plastic bag she had finished eating and poked the bulging opening with her finger.

"They talked for a while... how long?" Yin Yi opened the wardrobe to hang clothes and accurately caught the flaw in her words.

"About...one or two months, I guess?" Yin Xiao said, her voice getting softer and softer.

"Oh... it was a whirlwind marriage, huh?"

Yin Yi closed the cabinet door, put her hands on her hips, and looked at her, "How long are you planning to stay in this mess?"

"Sis! I just got married, why are you cursing me?"

Yin Yi didn't speak, but narrowed her eyes, her peach blossom eyes seemingly seeing through her silently.

Yin Xiao conceded, looking dejected.

"One year."

"I knew it. If you really liked someone, you wouldn't get married so quickly. That's not like you." Yin Yi looked as if she had expected this. "Have you settled on all the terms?"

"Hmm." Yin Xiao's fingernails scratched across the bag, her hand trembling and accidentally cutting herself. "And he has already fulfilled my conditions..."

"Yin Xiao".

Yin Yi called her name sharply, her eyes piercing, "Do you understand what marriage means?"

Yin Xiao didn't understand what she meant and couldn't respond for a moment.

Yin Yi sighed, closed the empty suitcase, pushed it to the corner, walked up to her, put her wrist on her shoulder, wrapped her arms around her neck, and looked into her eyes.

"To put it bluntly, marriage is not only a deep emotional bond, but also means that two people share interests and risks. More important than liking each other is trust."

Yin Xiao's eyelashes fluttered. "I know."

"You know him?" Yin Yi laughed helplessly. "Do you even know him? Yet you believe him?"

"I know the basics. My mom and his aunt have known each other since they were little, and I've heard a lot about him from her," Yin Xiao honestly confessed.

"Did you know he was the eldest son of the Yizhi brand?" Yin Yi glanced at her. "He also has a younger brother who just came of age. It's all so complicated here. You wouldn't believe it if you didn't work at Yizhi!"

"I...you recognized him?" Yin Xiao asked in surprise.

“How could I not know the son that the big boss values ​​most?”

"Your most valued son?" Yin Xiao lowered her eyes and repeated softly.

Putting aside the adoption aspect, the father didn't even show up once for his son's wedding, which he valued most? He only gave two seemingly thoughtful but actually perfunctory gifts, with completely different explanations. What's the truth...?

What are you thinking about?

Yin Xiao snapped out of her daze, met Yin Yi's annoyed gaze, and began to comfort her.

"It's okay, sis. He's told me all of this. We clearly stated in our prenuptial agreement that our marriage is just for mutual benefit, and we won't interfere in each other's family affairs or future developments."

"I don't care why you married him." Yin Yi took a deep breath and waved her hand. "You've been sensible since you were little, and you can tell right from wrong. You must have your reasons for doing it, but!"

Yin Yi hugged her shoulders tightly and lowered her voice.

"The reason he got married at this critical juncture is definitely not simple... It's been rumored in the company for more than two months. I heard that President Hu has been frequently contacting several partners and revealed his plan for a business marriage. As long as the marriage is arranged, the big boss of the company will definitely be Yi Zhiyan. His younger brother can't compete with him at all."

Yin Xiao's mind went blank. "What do you mean? Does he not want a marriage alliance or doesn't want to inherit the company?"

"How would I know..." Yin Yi brushed aside her sister's disheveled long hair and said earnestly, "Even though it's just a rumor, you should still be careful."

Yin Xiao lowered her head, absentmindedly crumpling the torn plastic bag.

“The kind of person he is, outstanding in every way, and whose thoughts are hard to read on the surface, is the most difficult to deal with.” Yin Yi tapped her nose and advised her, “It’s okay to talk about pure interests, but talking about feelings in the context of interests is a big taboo.”

"After all, you don't know if he's sincere or not when he's being affectionate." She spoke meaningfully, as if reminding or warning him.

"A year later, we'll make a clean break."

—

Before the New Year was even over, Yin Yi rented a room in advance, packed three suitcases and two nylon travel bags, and hurriedly flew to Anlin. Before leaving, Yin Xiao secretly slipped the gold locket into her coat pocket, calculated the time, and waited until she landed before sending her a message.

As expected, her sister was furious, blaming her for contacting that scumbag Jiang Fei. In the end, she didn't forget to remind her not to follow in her sister's footsteps and to be careful of scumbags.

Yin Xiao still lives with her parents. Yi Zhiyan was completely lying to her that night; when she messaged him the next day, he was already on a plane to Beijing.

She asked him why he came back, whether he was sending money to the airline.

He replied that he didn't know.

After listening to her sister's words, Yin Xiao originally wanted to ask what the rumors were about, but after thinking about it carefully, she realized that the two of them were just putting on an act and that as long as the goal was achieved, there was no need to delve into things outside of the agreement.

The clearer things are, the more they permeate each other's lives, making it harder to extricate oneself later.

The day before returning to school, Yi Zhiyan timed his trip back to Qianzhou to pack his luggage. He changed his suit into a black windbreaker and left with her in the car.

In winter, darkness falls early. It was almost dusk when we set off. The neon lights outside the window were flashing, the scenery was out of focus, and the shadows of the trees along the road swayed behind the chair.

The interior of the car is cramped, and any sound can be easily detected.

Yin Xiao didn't dare sit too far from Yi Zhiyan. She would glance at the driver arranged by her aunt in the front row from time to time, and then deliberately turn her head to share some snacks with the person next to her who was looking at the computer.

She raised her arm and spread her fingers so that the wedding ring could be seen clearly in the light.

The phone on my lap kept vibrating; the dorm group chat was buzzing with activity. First, they checked in on each other's arrival times, then they vented about their graduation theses. Even Chen Weiqi, who had moved out last semester for her internship, started popping up, inviting them to a get-together after the semester started.

Yin Xiao swiped a few times, typed on the keyboard, and replied, "I'll be there tonight."

[Weiqi: Xiaoxiao, can you change your profile picture? Your punishment from last semester is due.]

[Dai Lan: The new semester's games have begun, hahaha!]

Yin Xiao paused for a moment, gave a simple reply, and immediately switched to Yi Zhiyan's chat window.

[SOS, I want to change my profile picture!]

[Carter: Why?]

[Game penalty time is over.]

[Carter: Do we have to switch when the time is up? Or we don't have to.]

[But I love changing my profile picture! I used to change it ten times a week without repeating the same one! It would look weird if I suddenly stopped.]

[How about I use another photo of you? It would have the same deceptive effect.]

[Carter: Let's change our group photo.]

[Where can I find the group photo?]

[Carter: On-the-spot filming.]

Yin Xiao glanced at Yi Zhiyan, who remained calm, showing no sign of any sudden impulse.

[Okay, how do we film it?]

Yi Zhiyan closed the laptop and placed it beside him. He turned to the side, his calf pressing against her knee, and his weight gradually pressed down on her.

Yin Xiao couldn't figure out what he wanted to do, so she subconsciously leaned back to avoid their intertwined breaths.

He suddenly raised his hand and firmly supported her neck. His warm fingertips pressed against her skin, gliding slowly and gently, as if he were stroking the stray hairs at the back of her neck, the warmth from the touch lingering for a long time.

Yin Xiao braced herself on the seat with both hands, swallowing with difficulty. Her fingers were numb, and a string in her mind was about to snap.

"Isn't it...isn't it for taking pictures?" Yin Xiao asked in a muffled voice.

Yi Zhiyan turned his head to the side, looking diagonally downwards, and raised his chin.

"Shoot it like this."

Yin Xiao stiffly tilted her head, finally seeing the shadows cast by the interplay of light. The lights outside the window flickered, and the two shadows were etched on the back of the seat in front of them, their bodies slightly misaligned, embracing each other with a tender and lingering affection.

Yin Xiao was taken aback. "Indeed...it's pretty good."

She twirled her wrist, reaching behind her to retrieve the phone she had just dropped in fright, her mind focused on only one thought: to seize the opportunity to take a picture.

The car stopped without warning, and the door was suddenly pulled open.

"Surprise!" A warm male voice suddenly burst into the car.

Just as Yin Xiao grabbed her phone, she turned her head and, before she could react, her gaze met Fang Yiwen's face, which contorted instantly.

A striking head of blue hair flashed and stopped at the doorway; the steady tone of her voice suddenly rose.

"Junior! It's you!"