Chapter 2

Five months ago.

The evening rush hour started at 4:30. Lin Langyi was like a salmon swarming in the water, being pushed and shuffled forward. She stepped off the overpass and immediately received a call from her mother, Meng Hui, urging her to hurry up.

"Once you come in, hand the car over to the parking attendant. Don't delay, come right away. Both sets of parents from the Cheng family are here today; they're taking this very seriously."

"Okay, I've already exited the elevated road, we'll be there in ten minutes." Lin Langyi turned on the turn signal, glanced at the rearview mirror, and quickly glided the car into the right turn lane. "I was kept up for an extra half hour of talking earlier, otherwise I would have arrived by now."

"What were you wearing today?" Meng Hui tried hard to recall but couldn't. She emphasized, "Never mind, go to the restroom and tidy yourself up before you go into the private room."

Lin Langyi didn't answer but asked in return, "If you're so particular, what is the young master of the Cheng family wearing?"

The other end of the phone didn't answer.

Lin Langyi understood. Cheng Yanjin probably hadn't arrived yet either; he was likely even more averse to this meal than she was.

She suddenly released the accelerator, but after two seconds she realized what she was doing and accelerated again.

Linqufu is a private sunken club under the Cheng family. The location is remote and quiet. City A is surrounded by water on three sides, and Linqufu is right next to the water. Taking nature as its teacher and referring to the aesthetics of the Song Dynasty, it is elegant, leisurely and profound.

The Cheng family originally started in the pharmaceutical industry, but over generations their business diversified, venturing into more emerging sectors and industries, including jewelry and skincare. Ironically, this overlapped with the Lin family's downstream businesses. Lin Langyi was well aware that her future marriage to Cheng Yanjin was a strategic alliance to solidify the business positions of both families.

She strode into the lobby, carrying a huge, bulging tote bag. Her mind was still on the future cooperation between the Lin and Cheng families when she caught a glimpse of a tall man being led by a waiter around a corner behind a screen, which led to the elevator.

Although she had never seen him before, and although she could only see his profile, Lin Langyi immediately recognized him.

Meng Hui sent him photos of Cheng Yanjin. In every photo, Cheng Yanjin was doing extreme sports: sailing, skydiving, skateboarding. His superior genes and the physique he had built through hard work made him look cunning and full of life, like a wild animal with top-notch hunting skills. However, his face was handsome and clean, young and energetic.

After flipping through all the photos, she looked up and met Meng Hui's questioning gaze, and honestly blurted out:

"He has such big breasts."

Hang Qian, her friend who had squeezed her head to look at the photos, nodded in agreement and whispered an important comment in her ear:

"He has a youthful face and looks very capable."

Lin Langyi shook off the strange thoughts in her head, ran straight to the front desk to store her bag, then abandoned the elevator and ran up the stairs.

Why go to the restroom, why bother with grooming? There's no time to waste. Punctuality is basic etiquette, but if both main characters at this meal unfortunately fail to follow etiquette, she'll be the one to laugh at others' shortcomings.

You absolutely cannot arrive later than Cheng Yanjin.

She was glad she was going to be out all day, so she was wearing flat shoes that were easy to drive and move around in.

As Lin Langyi ran to the third floor and passed the elevator, she happened to hear a "ding" sound.

She turned her head at the sound, and the cold white ceiling light in the elevator poured out as the elevator doors opened, as if casting a layer of radiance over everything.

She made eye contact with the man in the elevator.

Cheng Yanjin, dressed casually, stood in the middle of the elevator with his hands in his pockets. His brows were slightly furrowed, and his eyes showed impatience. He didn't seem to be in a good mood.

He saw Lin Langyi, who had just tied her hair into a ponytail. The girl had very fair skin and was wearing only a simple white T-shirt and slightly flared jeans. She was not wearing any luxury jewelry and was so plain that she was out of place in this luxurious and wealthy club.

When he saw her turn to look at him, the elevator light reflected in her pupils. She seemed a little surprised, her slightly widened eyes as clear as summer spring water.

He didn't recognize the person.

The photos were exchanged at the arrangement of both sets of parents; he didn't even bother to look at them.

Before he could even look away, the girl in front of him suddenly took off running as if a ghost was chasing him.

?

baffling.

*

Lin Langyi and Cheng Yanjin met again five minutes later.

Lin Langyi ran along the winding paths inside Qufu, with artificial hills, flowers and flowing water dazzling the eyes. Cheng Yanjin was already annoyed by the meal and wanted to slow down as much as possible. When the two met again in the private room, Lin Langyi had already greeted all the elders with a polite smile and sweet words.

Five minutes is enough for her to make a good first impression, given her "good girl" attire, soft-spoken manner, shyness, and politeness.

Therefore, all the blame was directed at Cheng Yanjin, who was late for something that wasn't important and had a sour face.

Cheng Yangkang had never liked his son's unruly attitude. He pointed to the empty seat to his left with his elbow and said angrily, "Hurry up, everyone at the table is waiting for you."

His current wife, Feng Congning, chimed in, "Yes, Yan Jin, it's one thing to be playful usually, but how could you be late for an occasion like this, making the girl wait?"

Lin Langyi waited for a full five minutes before politely waving his hand with a standard social smile on his face.

Cheng Yanjin didn't buy it. As he passed Feng Congning, he threw out a sentence: "My mother picked out my future wife, what are you doing here?"

Feng Congning's expression froze, and Cheng Yangkang's stern and angry gaze immediately shot straight at Cheng Yanjin. The family of three could no longer even maintain a basic level of peace.

Lin Langyi pretended not to understand.

She didn't know much about Cheng Yanjin himself, but she was quite familiar with the Cheng family, with whom she had frequent business dealings. Some of the information she had learned was obtained at the last minute.

Cheng Yanjin's biological mother, Qiao Wan, passed away when he was fifteen. Cheng Yangkang married a new woman, Feng Congning, just seven months later.

Rumor has it that the two started dating when Qiao Wan was still lying in the hospital bed with tubes inserted. At that time, Cheng Yanjin, who was still going through his rebellious phase, could not accept it. As the saying goes, with a stepmother comes a stepfather, so their relationship has been frozen ever since.

"Did I say something wrong?" Cheng Yanjin didn't mind disrupting the family dinner, which hadn't even started for ten minutes after everyone had arrived, and sneered, "I should be eating this meal with my mother's photo here, instead of having some people with ulterior motives put on a hypocritical show here."

Everyone thought he was just joking, but who knew that the next second, Cheng Yanjin actually pulled out a two-inch photo of Qiao Wan from the back of his phone case and placed it openly on the table.

The young Qiao Wan in the photo smiles brightly, a stark contrast to the various expressions on the faces of the people at the table today.

Cheng Yangkang was clearly furious, but he managed to keep quiet because there were outsiders present; Feng Congning left the table directly, only awkwardly saying that she was going to order a few more dishes.

The atmosphere became completely awkward.

Lin Langyi studied the photo for a moment, then changed the mood with a smile and asked Cheng Yanjin, "Why did Aunt Qiao set us up?"

Cheng Yanjin didn't want to pay attention to her, but the next second, Lin Langyi waved to the waiter to add a set of tableware and actually arranged a seat for Qiao Wan's photo.

The bowls, chopsticks, and photos were placed directly facing Lin Langyi, as if it were some kind of ominous arrangement.

In business, every household has its own set of rules and customs, whether it's charity, faith, or ritual procedures.

The dining table fell silent again.

Cheng Yanjin stopped leaning back in his chair and slowly sat up straight, staring at her intently for a long while.

The person she was to be married to seemed completely at ease, as if she were the only one relaxed amidst the tense atmosphere.

He stared at her for a long time, then suddenly stood up, dragged the chair with one hand to her side, and sat down right next to her.

With his long arms and legs, he instantly took up most of Lin Langyi's space.

Lin Langyi lowered her eyes and showed no reaction.

Despite Cheng Yangkang's many grievances against the willful and reckless Cheng Yanjin, and his constant criticisms, and his protection of Feng Congning who diligently maintains the family's reputation, this wealthy family always puts its children first. Blood ties are the only answer and principle in high society, and when the two conflict, the only son, Cheng Yanjin, is always the Cheng family's absolute choice.

Moreover, Feng Congning isn't present and has no idea who started this. Even if she does return, the humiliation of giving Qiao Wan a separate set of tableware and having her seated at the table won't be brought up again; she'll only think it was Cheng Yanjin, who's always been at odds with her, who did it.

Lin Langyi had a very clear idea of ​​what to do with tonight's dinner. Given Cheng Yanjin's usual unruly nature, which meant that even the King of Heaven couldn't control him, this marriage was definitely not going to happen. After all, Cheng Yanjin wasn't the type to obediently follow his family's arrangements; on the contrary, he was the type to do whatever he was told.

Meng Hui mentioned that Cheng Yanjin had been arranged to go on several blind dates by his family before, but not only did they not work out, his "hate-the-house-and-crow" personality ruined his business cooperation.

Lin Langyi did not want to marry him, nor did she want to be implicated in a ridiculous matchmaking scheme, which would disrupt the business relationship between the Lin and Cheng families.

This is a critical time for her, and losing Cheng's assets would undoubtedly be a major blow.

She hoped that Cheng Yanjin would part ways amicably, considering that she had been "sensible" enough during today's meal.

The waiter who was setting the tableware then brought over his set of cutlery. Lin Langyi turned her head and met his undisguised gaze, and gave him a gentle smile, like a clean and pure jasmine flower.

What bad intentions could jasmine have?

Cheng Yanjin looked into her eyes and suddenly said succinctly, "Because you kissed me."

?

ah? ? ?

Lin Langyi's excellent facial expression control crumbled.

It took her a while to realize that he was explaining her question.

After Cheng Yanjin finished speaking, he didn't say anything more. He stretched out his arm and adjusted Qiao Wan's photo so that it was facing him, not Lin Langyi.

Meng Hui took the opportunity to explain to Lin Langyi, "It happened a long time ago. Yan Jin was only eight or nine years old then. Wan Wan brought him to our place to play, and Yan Jin accidentally fell into the water. You rescued him and even gave him CPR. Have you forgotten?"

Cheng Yangkang accepted the offer, seemingly forgetting his earlier displeasure, and replied, "That brat insists he was kissed and is crying uncontrollably."

“He was scared by the water,” Meng Hui laughed.

Cheng Yanjin's face was expressionless, as if he already knew about this, while Lin Langyi briefly showed a blank expression.

I have absolutely no recollection of it.

She grew up by the water and has fished out so many aquatic creatures, so it's normal for her to fish out a few people. Besides, what era are we living in? Is artificial respiration the same as human respiration?

“But Yan Jin is a better swimmer now,” Meng Hui said with a smile. “I think he’s good at surfing and sailing.”

"Incorrigible." Cheng Yangkang shook his head and sighed. "If he had even half of Xiaoyi's abilities, I would have been retired long ago."

Meng Hui looked at Lin Langyi with affection: "Zhuzhu has always liked to make her own decisions since she was little."

"Piggy?" Cheng Yanjin frowned. He roughly understood that it was a nickname, but he didn't know which character it was. He asked, "Which 'zhu'?"

Lin Langyi tilted her head and pointed to her earlobe.

He then noticed a delicate pearl stud earring on her small, fair earlobe. It was very small, and his gaze had only ever lingered on her face. Only now had he noticed this inconspicuous earring.

"Why is it the 'pearl' in 'pearl'?"

Cheng Yangkang said with exasperation, “Xiao Yi, your family is in the pearl business! Weren’t there clams in the pond where you fell in? What are you thinking about all day long!”

Cheng Yanjin was speechless.

He knew he had been extremely rude, because he was so oblivious that he knew nothing about the most basic information about the woman's family during the meal.

From the beginning until now, Lin Langyi has actually been the person who makes him feel the most comfortable, and he has no intention of giving her a hard time.

He looked at Lin Langyi with a slight apology, but she had already turned her head away and stopped looking at him, casually steer the conversation toward the two families' business. She didn't say much, but it revealed her familiarity with the Cheng family.

He looked down on her, but she knew him very well.

Cheng Yanjin stared at the back of her head, his lips tightened unnaturally, and he lowered his head without saying a word.

They barely spoke at the dinner table, while the elders talked at length about future cooperation and blueprints, as if Lin Langyi and Cheng Yanjin were just two sacrifices to make things happen. It wasn't until the very end that the elders chuckled and asked them to exchange contact information, saying they should keep in touch more often.

Cheng Yanjin behaved himself this time, perhaps as a way of apologizing. He took the lead in opening his phone and showing the QR code. He secretly breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Lin Langyi did not refuse him because of his slip of the tongue.

She's a good person; you can tell she cares about him. She just mentioned that she often talks about him with her close friends on WeChat... She's so sincere and genuine in her interactions with others; it was his behavior today that was undignified.

Cheng Yanjin glanced at Lin Langyi out of the corner of his eye. The two had successfully added each other on his phone and were both looking down, changing their nicknames.

He could clearly see her typing:

【Cheng Glasses】

Confused? Delete or change the word.

[Cheng Yanjin]

I don't think so.

Cheng Yanjin

After I typed the word, the input method thoughtfully and proactively suggested a preserved plum.

She was still deep in thought, her expression serious.

Cheng Yanjin's awkward guilt vanished instantly.

With a livid face, he silently pressed the delete key repeatedly, erasing all the notes he had just changed in a flash, and then slammed his phone down on the table.

Do you often talk about him with your close friends?

He recalled her fluent answers and radiant smile, and a line of words flashed through his mind:

Clever words and flattering words! Sweet talk and deceit!