Quartet

In the kitchen, Tang Heng was making steak stewed with potatoes. Du Yunyan picked up a piece of meat and gave it to Lin Luo to taste the salt.

She looked at the bright yellow potatoes in the pot and said with a smile, "My potato seeds are doing well."

Du Yunyan asked, "Where's your car? I didn't see it when I went downstairs to buy groceries this morning."

"Oh, it broke yesterday and I sent it in for repair."

"So how did you get home last night? Didn't they say it's hard to get a taxi around the institute, and the subway station is far away?"

"A colleague gave me a ride." Lin Luo walked away while biting the meat and sat blankly on the chair.

In fact, she didn't know why she had signed the agreement with Fu Xingchuan without thinking. But it was definitely not out of love, but just to compete with him.

Perhaps because ten years was too long, she developed an obsession like the poster of the secret crush post, determined to pick the moon up with her own hands and take a look at it.

The meal was almost over, and Lin Xiao put down her chopsticks. "Mom, Uncle Tang, I have something to tell you."

"What's the matter?" Du Yunyan drank the soup.

"I'm getting married."

"Cough cough cough." Du Yunyan choked, "What did you say?"

Tang Heng dropped his chopsticks and said, "She said she wanted to get married."

"Yeah." Lin Luo nodded.

"With whom?" Du Yunyan asked, "The one from the last blind date, Xu Fanqing?"

"No, it's Fu Xingchuan, Zhu Sui'an's brother."

"Fu Xingchuan... this name sounds familiar. Oh, I remember, that bastard grandson of Uncle Zhu." Du Yunyan's face changed immediately, and she was reasonably suspicious. "Lin Dayong asked you to marry..."

"What bastard grandson? What marriage? It's just... falling in love and getting married!"

"When did you start talking?"

"It was the day Sui'an got married last time."

"It's only been a week, and you're going to marry him." Du Yunyan scrutinized her and took out her cell phone to dial. "This must be Lin Dayong's idea. You want to sacrifice your marriage for his business, right?"

"It's really not an arranged marriage." Lin Luo said gently, "Quick marriages are very common these days. Besides, we've known each other for a long time. Don't you also want me to get married soon?"

Du Yunyan held her hands in the air. "I hope you can find someone who is truly good to you and marry him. As for Fu Xingchuan, I heard from your Aunt Li that he has a lot of scandals. He also had bad behavior in the past. In high school, he had a premature love affair with Tong Yun. Have you forgotten this? In short, such a person is not a suitable marriage partner."

"But I like him." Lin Luo blurted out, "He's very good, and now he also... likes me."

It is really hard to say that you like someone. Lin Luo didn’t know why she said it so easily. Maybe it was because she had become braver now, or maybe she knew that all of this was fake.

Du Yunyan pursed her lips and said nothing more.

Tang Heng handed over a card. Du Yunyan glanced at him and asked, "Do you agree just like that?"

Lin Luo's eyes lit up a little, and Tang Heng said lightly, "No, this is for you to replace your car."

"My car is still drivable. It's been repaired and is as good as new!" In fact, Lin Luo had not yet driven the car back from the repair shop.

"Then use it to get married! It's all saved for you anyway."

After Tang Heng recovered from his illness, he worked as a security guard in the neighborhood next door. His salary was not high, but the work was leisurely, and he had saved some money over the years. Lin Luo originally thought that he was planning to save the money to take Du Yunyan on a trip.

"For such an important matter, can you please think about it carefully and support her unconditionally?" Du Yunyan complained and elbowed Tang Heng.

"What did your dad say?" she asked.

"He supports us very readily." Lin Qiao touched his nose. In fact, when he spoke with Lin Dayong on the phone yesterday, he became very emotional as soon as he mentioned getting married. He wanted to fly back to Nan'an immediately to teach a lesson to the man who abducted his precious daughter.

But Teacher Yin caught a bad cold, so he had to stay by her side, and Lin Luo escaped the disaster temporarily.

"Oh, this guy has changed his gender." Du Yunyan didn't believe it, but didn't ask any further questions. She put the card in her palm and said, "I don't have any objection. As long as you like him, that's fine. If he doesn't treat you well or you're unhappy after marrying him, you can just divorce him."

Lin Luo didn't expect her to be so open-minded and gave her a thumbs up, saying, "Ms. Du is truly a woman of the new era."

"When are you planning to hold the wedding? I heard from your Aunt Li that the process is very complicated. Things like booking the venue and sending out invitations all need to be prepared in advance. Ruan Ye's was just too hasty and it was done in a hurry." Du Yunyan thought seriously and began to mutter.

Lin Qi interrupted her, "We're not having a wedding."

"Why does he think it's too troublesome to not have a wedding?" Du Yunyan frowned.

"I find it troublesome." It was just a fake marriage, so she only needed to get a marriage certificate. She didn't want to deal with all these things, and she didn't want to have to smile in front of those rich kids.

The praise was in vain. Du Yunyan couldn't keep up with the news. She advised her to hold the wedding and kept nagging her for a long time, but Lin Luo just listened with one ear and out the other.

After receiving a text message, Lin Luo used it as an excuse to escape from home. She drove to the airport to pick up a small sheepdog.

This was the sister of the sheepdog that cleverly bit the poacher's trouser leg that day. She sent a lot of clothes and books to Dawa, so he sent the puppy as a return gift.

It is very small, black and white, and feels very good to touch, like a little dumpling, soft and sticky, and full of energy, with its tail wagging all the time.

She didn't go home, but went to Sheep, Tiger and Pig.

Fu Xingchuan was already there when Lin Luo arrived.

Xu Yangyang noticed it first, "Xiaoxiao, where did this puppy come from? It's so cute! Give it a hug."

Lin Luo let go of her hand. The puppy barked twice, looking chubby. Lin Luo kept her eyes on it. "This is the sheepdog that Dawa gave me."

"You are my student in Tibet"

"Um."

Fu Xingchuan, wearing a black suit and a blue shirt, looked out of place amidst the bright red festive decorations of sheep, tigers, and pigs. He put his hands in his pockets, glanced around the store, and finally his eyes fell on her.

It wasn't dinner time, so no one was in the restaurant. As soon as Zhu Changyu entered, he was drawn to the sheepdog and asked Xu Yangyang, "Where did you get this dog? Have you finally decided to raise one?"

Xu Yangyang had always wanted to have a dog, but it never happened. Initially, her mother disagreed, and later, she moved out to live independently. Her career was on the rise, and she was busy with work at her studio, too busy to keep one.

"This is a gift from Dawa to Lao Lao," Xu Yangyang said softly, holding the collie's paw. "It's so cute! I want one too."

Lin Qi: "Then you become its master!"

Xu Yangyang: "Why?"

Lin Qi: "We can't afford it at home."

Xu Yangyang: "Why isn't Uncle Tang very accommodating to you? Is Aunt Du afraid of dogs?"

"Neither." Lin Luo didn't want to explain the reason. "Isn't your birthday coming up soon? Consider this your birthday present."

"Xiaoxiao, you are the best. I love this gift so much." She rubbed the sheepdog's head.

Zhu Changyu saw Fu Xingchuan was silent. This was probably his first time in the store. He walked over and said with a smile, "Brother, you've made it big! It's a pity we didn't expand overseas, otherwise you would have had such a great time in England."

"It's a pity that Uncle Li has no successor." Fu Xingchuan looked at him and said.

They continued to talk as before, as if time had not changed anything.

"Mr. Fu, what you said is true. My mother always taught me not to put all my eggs in one basket." Zhu Changyu touched his shoulder. "By the way, aren't you busy today? How did you find time to come to my little place?"

When Lin Luo heard what he said, she took her hand off the sheepdog's head and remembered the purpose of her visit today.

She glanced at Fu Xingchuan.

"I have something to say." He walked slowly to a seat and sat down, and Lin Luo followed and sat next to him.

Zhu Changyu and Xu Yangyang sat opposite each other, both busy playing with the puppy.

Lin Qi said, "We are getting married."

The two heads suddenly raised up, and their eyes moved between them, which scared Xu Yangyang and made her utter "What?" in English.

They looked at each other and said in unison, "They...are getting married!"

"Yeah." Fu Xingchuan responded.

They were too busy to care about the dog. Xu Yangyang held Lin Luo's hand and said, "No, how come it's so magical? So you like this? Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

Lin Luo didn't say anything, just smiled faintly. In fact, she didn't want to lie to them.

"Fate is truly amazing." Zhu Changyu was very surprised. "But it's also good that they are well-matched and in love with each other."

Xu Yangyang looked at Zhu Changyu and said jokingly: "The seven of us have become two couples, so why don't we just make do with each other?"

"No, I can't handle two dogs." Zhu Changyu said with a grin.

Lin Luo felt that his eyes were a little empty. Was he thinking of Tong Yun like her?

If Tong Yun knew that she was going to marry Fu Xingchuan, how would he react? Lin Luo couldn't imagine it, but she knew very well that Tong Yun must sincerely hope that she could be happy.

If Tong Yun knew that she was in a fake marriage with Fu Xingchuan, she would definitely scold her.

The sheepdog barked proudly on the table. Xu Yangyang glared at Zhu Changyu. "It was just a joke. Who cares about you? I have a dog daughter, and that's enough for me."

"Xiaoxiao, please give it a name!" Xu Yangyang patted her hands, and Lin Xiao came back to her senses.

The shepherd dog licked Fu Xingchuan's hand with its tongue, as if it liked him very much. Lin Luo reached out and took it away, "Call it Xuehua."

"Snowflake, that sounds nice. Little snowflake, I am your mother." Xu Yangyang fed the dog with sausage.

"Then I am your brother." Zhu Changyu nodded the puppy's head.

"What brother? We are of different generations. You can also be it..." Xu Yangyang swallowed the words that came to his lips.

Zhu Changyu asked: "What is it?"

"Forget it, I'd rather be its sister to look younger." Xu Yangyang said with a smile.

Lin Luo stared at Xu Yangyang and sighed softly. She said to herself in her heart, don’t invest your feelings in this contract marriage anymore, don’t make yourself so tired.

Fu Xingchuan looked at his watch. It was almost five o'clock. They said goodbye to Xu Yangyang and Zhu Changyu and drove to the Civil Affairs Bureau.

Back in the car, Lin Luo held the two marriage certificates in her hands and exclaimed, "It turns out getting married is so simple."

Fu Xingchuan fastened his seat belt and turned to look at her. "You succeeded easily."

Then she said, "It means divorce is very simple."

"If you unilaterally break the contract, you have to pay liquidated damages. It's written in black and white in the contract."

"If I really want to leave, the penalty won't hold me back at all. I can afford it even if it means I'm bankrupt."

"Divorce is quite troublesome nowadays."

A text message arrived, and Lin Luo showed it to Fu Xingchuan. [The National Anti-Fraud Center reminds you: lenient entry, strict exit. This is either a pyramid scheme or a scam.]

Lin Luo casually placed the marriage certificate in the groove and closed her eyes.

She really didn't want to put in too much effort. If she had fun, she'd enjoy it. If she didn't want to have fun anymore, she'd dump him. This was the secret to being a successful woman that Xu Yangyang had taught her.

Lin Luo didn't know when she fell asleep. Fu Xingchuan drove steadily and she didn't notice when he stopped. She just fell asleep in the car.

When she woke up, it was completely dark. She looked out the window and saw her car parked in front of a detached villa. As expected, this should be Fu Xingchuan's current home.

"Why didn't you call me?" she asked, and turned her head to see Fu Xingchuan sending messages to someone, probably dealing with work.

She didn't urge him, her eyelids drooping, not yet fully awake. Fu Xingchuan turned off the screen and whispered, "We're here, get off."

"What are we doing here?" she asked drowsily. "I'm hungry."

"I'll cook for you," he said, and then got out of the car.

Lin Luo wanted to check the time, but her cell phone ran out of battery and turned off automatically. She followed Fu Xingchuan into the house.

"What time is it?"

“Is there a charger?”

She noticed that the kitchen was clean and showed no signs of having been used.

"It's eight o'clock, the charger is here. Would you like to take a look first?" Fu Xingchuan asked.

Lin Luo charged her phone, endured the hunger, and nodded.

All the lights were on. She looked around and found that the decoration of the house was very similar to the style of the old villa. There was a wooden bookshelf in the living room, which was full of books. Lin Luo walked over.

She has read most of the books on the shelves, including "Grasses and Trees in the World" which Fu Xingchuan liked, famous Chinese and foreign classics that she read in her spare time at the Nanjing University Library when she was in college, and niche books that she read while backpacking alone during her graduate and doctoral studies.

There was a book sticking out from the third row of the bookshelf. It was "Quartet". Lin Luo pushed it in casually.

"It's been renovated like an old house. There's nothing much to see."

Lin Luo stopped walking. She didn't want to look anymore because the memories of her youth kept coming back to her. She saw her grandma lying on a chair reading a book, and she saw Ruan Ye and grandpa playing chess.

The steam from the tea wafted out and heavy rain fell outside the window.

Zhu Sui'an opened the door to the study and hugged Tong Yun. Lin Qiao closed the door to the piano room. Zhu Changyu played the drums. She watched Fu Xingchuan holding a guitar and singing "Love Is Not a Choice" for her.

Picking up the phone, Lin Luo wanted to reply to Du Yunyan to tell her that she would not be going home for dinner tonight.

Fu Xingchuan couldn't wait to unfasten his watch and take off his suit jacket.

Lin Luo lowered her head and caught his action from the corner of her eye, thinking that he was finally going to cook for her. But the next second, Fu Xingchuan suddenly picked her up. Lin Luo didn't react and her feet were a foot away from the ground. She lost her grip on the phone and dropped it, hitting the ground with a loud clatter.

"What are you doing? Put me down." As she said this, she was afraid of falling, so she hooked her hands around Fu Xingchuan's neck and clamped his body tightly between her legs.

Fu Xingchuan chuckled, carried her upstairs, raised the corners of his lips, and breathed into her ear, "Didn't you say you were hungry?"

Lin Luo was ticklish and quickly pushed him away, her hands landing on his chest muscles. "The kitchen is downstairs."

"I know." Fu Xingchuan opened the bedroom door with one hand and put Lin Qiao on the bed. Her black skirt spread out on the bed sheet like a butterfly.

He supported himself on the bed with one hand, keeping a fist's distance from her, and with the other hand he untied the bow on her chest, as if he were opening a gift.

Lin Luo's heartbeat soared. She swallowed hard and stopped his moving hands. "I told you I'm hungry!"

"I understand."

"Understand what?"

"Aren't you giving me a sexual hint?" Fu Xingchuan's voice was low, and his lips opened and closed seductively.

"What are you talking about?" Lin Qi began, "I'm really hungry."

"Really?" Fu Xingchuan stood up and stepped back. Lin Qiao also sat up on the mattress, but Fu Xingchuan had no intention of giving up. As soon as she looked into his eyes, he kissed her on the lips.

"Then let's have an appetizer first..."