Chapter 13 Teasing the Unromantic Wooden Head
After the call connected, there was some noise on Shen Huai'an's end, but Bai Zhenzhen, who was already annoyed, didn't notice it and asked again, "What time are you going to work overtime again today?"
She asked the question with such confidence, as if she had been waiting at home for Shen Huai'an to get off work.
However, all that could be heard from the phone held to her ear was a faint sound of wind and slight noise. After a long while without hearing Shen Huai'an's reply, Bai Zhenzhen belatedly felt a little guilty.
He probably already went home after get off work.
Bai Zhenzhen tugged at her skirt with her hand on her lap, just about to make up an excuse that she had something to do and was staying at the Cuihu Bay Villa when Chen Huai'an finally spoke up.
"Still busy, probably going to be very late." Shen Huai'an's voice was as indifferent as ever, and Bai Zhenzhen didn't detect anything wrong.
"Work, work, is work all you care about?" Bai Zhenzhen breathed a sigh of relief but was also a little angry. She had been living in the family compound for three days, and the total time she had spent with Shen Huai'an was less than half a day. "I don't care about anything else, you have to spend tomorrow, the weekend, with me."
As if afraid he would be busy with work again, Bai Zhenzhen quickly added, "I've been waiting for you to get off work these past few days. Tell me how long you've left me hanging. You have to make it up to me."
Only Shen Huai'an dared to make her wait; anyone else would have been abandoned by Bai Zhenzhen long ago. It's only because the young lady needs his help that she's so patient.
In the back alley of the dance hall, Shen Huai'an stood under a streetlamp. His cold and stern features seemed to be draped in a soft light under the dim yellow light, but upon closer inspection, one would find that his eyes were extremely cold and calm, without a trace of emotion.
Bai Zhenzhen's coquettish complaints and accusations came through the phone from time to time. If I hadn't seen her in the nightclub just now, it would have sounded like an ordinary wife complaining about her husband coming home late and wanting him to stay with her.
A hint of mockery flashed in Shen Huai'an's eyes. After a long while, he raised his hand and gently pressed his brow to suppress the sudden surge of agitation in his heart.
He really didn't understand. Was this some new trick that Miss Bai had come up with, indulging in pleasure while putting on some loving couple act in front of him?
"Did you hear what I just said? Hello? Shen Huai'an? Where are you?" Bai Zhenzhen said a lot, but there was no response from the other end. Her temper flared up again. "Shen Huai'an, did you hear me? I want you to come with me tomorrow!"
Shen Huai'an lowered his hand, his eyes regaining their calm. Just as he was about to say something, Li Minghua waved to him from not far away.
"I'll be home tomorrow, it's my day off." No matter what tricks the young lady had up her sleeve, Shen Huai'an didn't have time to play along, so it was better to just lay it all out at once.
After saying that, Shen Huai'an hung up the call, casually put his phone into his pocket, and walked towards Li Minghua.
“This grandson is really strong. Hey, luckily I’ve trained, otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to hold him down,” Li Minghua said, then looked up and asked, “Huai’an, when will the police arrive?”
Li Minghua was a retired soldier who transferred to the procuratorate. Over the years, his skills had not diminished. Just now, he followed the middle-aged man to the back alley of the nightclub and watched as the man tricked the drunk youth's companion away and led the drunk youth into a deeper corner of the alley. Just as the man was about to make his move on the ignorant youth, Li Minghua shouted and jumped out, pinning the man down and subduing him.
Ten minutes later, Shen Huai'an arrived to provide support. The two of them conducted a brief interrogation. At first, the middle-aged man denied anything, but when Li Minghua mentioned his distant cousin, Shen Huai'an keenly noticed the change in the middle-aged man's expression and immediately took out his phone to call the police.
Seeing that things were going badly, the middle-aged man started yelling and struggling desperately. After confirming that Li Minghua could subdue the suspect, Shen Huai'an took two steps away and continued to report the case. Li Minghua took the opportunity of subduing him to give him a good beating to vent his anger for his cousin.
Shortly after Shen Huai'an called the police to report the incident and explain the situation and give them his address, Bai Zhenzhen called him.
Shen Huai'an never actually used his wife's standards to demand anything of Bai Zhenzhen. He didn't mind that the marriage existed in name only, and he would abide by their original agreement not to initiate a divorce. He just hoped that they could leave each other alone.
He really didn't intend to waste his energy trying to figure out how to deal with the young lady's childish pranks; it would be good enough if they could just go back to how they were before.
That night, Shen Huai'an and Li Minghua accompanied the police to conduct interrogations and file cases, and they didn't return to their family compound until late at night.
The house was quiet at this time; Bai Zhenzhen, who had returned home earlier, had already washed up and gone to bed.
Shen Huai'an changed his shoes, turned on the living room light, sat on the sofa, and calmly scanned the changes in the room's furnishings. The high-end furniture and appliances placed everywhere made this slightly simple house look magnificent, but he felt completely unfamiliar with it.
After sitting for a short while, Shen Huai'an got up to get a change of clothes and prepared to wash up and go to bed. When he opened the bathroom door, he saw a bright red color in the laundry basket.
A faint scent of roses seemed to linger in the bathroom, the smell of Bai Zhenzhen's favorite perfume shower gel. However, Shen Huai'an couldn't help but think of the scene of a young man kneeling down to present flowers to a woman in a red dress.
With a splash, water cascaded down the showerhead. Shen Huai'an closed his eyes and let the cold water wash over his body, diluting the last faint scent of roses.
With a click, a man covered in cold, damp air emerged from the bathroom. He took a step but then suddenly stopped, his calm eyes looking at the person sitting on the sofa.
Bai Zhenzhen was awakened by the noise outside. She guessed that Shen Huai'an had returned. She resisted her sleepiness, threw off the covers and got out of bed. As soon as she left the bedroom, she saw him go into the bathroom to wash up. She yawned and sat on the sofa to wait for him to come out.
"You're finally back," Bai Zhenzhen's voice was soft and delicate because she was sleepy, and she couldn't help but cover her mouth and yawn as she spoke. "Don't forget what you promised me on the phone. You have to come with me to see my dad tomorrow. You absolutely can't stand me up, you hear me?"
Her lazy voice was not threatening at all, but rather cute enough to make you want to pat her head.
After a pause, Shen Huai'an continued walking forward and sat down on the other sofa. Looking at the person leaning against the armrest not far away, he suddenly asked, "Do you want to continue this marriage?"
“Of course,” Bai Zhenzhen answered without thinking. Only after she finished speaking did she realize what he had asked, and her delicate brows furrowed immediately. She retorted, “Why are you asking this? Don’t you want to?”
Since Shen Qing hasn't encountered any mishap as she dreamed, Shen Huai'an has no reason to want a divorce from her.
Does that mean things in dreams aren't accurate, or is it that Shen Huai'an actually wanted to divorce her a long time ago, and the things about Shen Qing in his dream just gave him a chance to bring them up openly?
Startled by her own guess, Bai Zhenzhen sat up abruptly. The ribbon of her casually worn bathrobe loosened slightly with her movement, but she didn't notice. She looked directly at Shen Huai'an, her eyes fixed on him, waiting for an explanation.
Shen Huai'an had promised his father-in-law, Bai Chuxiong, that he would not initiate a divorce unless Bai Zhenzhen did something that crossed his bottom line, but so far nothing has happened, so he said, "No, that's not what I meant."
"Hmph, I bet you wouldn't dare," Bai Zhenzhen said confidently as long as Bai Chuxiong was still around. She didn't think Shen Huai'an would dare to betray her; she must have been overthinking things.
She breathed a sigh of relief, her gaze falling on Shen Huai'an again. The man had just taken a shower, and his hair, which was usually meticulously combed, was now wet and hanging down in front of his forehead. The fine black hair partially covered his eyebrows and eyes, as well as his always cold gaze. The lower half of his face that was exposed was still fair and handsome, and he looked much gentler.
Bai Zhenzhen rested her arm on the sofa armrest, unconsciously leaning her upper body a little closer to him, and said with a slight parting of her red lips, "Shen Huai'an, I want to make our relationship a real marriage. Let's be a loving couple from now on, okay?"
Although her tone was soft, it carried a seriousness that Shen Huai'an could hear. He couldn't help but look up at her, his eyes filled with inquiry and a hint of barely perceptible restlessness.
In the dead of night, the two, who were already legally married, said she wanted to solidify their marital relationship.
“I’m telling the truth,” Bai Zhenzhen added, as if that wasn’t enough, “but why are you so insensitive, choosing to sleep on the sofa instead of a bed?”
Shen Huai'an's Adam's apple bobbed slightly, his tongue pressed against the roof of his mouth, and he almost blurted out an inappropriate remark.
After Bai Zhenzhen finished speaking, she realized that her words might have made her seem too proactive, and she shifted her body uncomfortably.
The already loosely tied robe straps couldn't withstand her movements, and the neckline slipped gently down her delicate skin.
A large expanse of snow-white skin suddenly fell into Shen Huai'an's eyes. He gasped for breath and immediately turned his head away, but he still couldn't catch the half-rounded curve of skin in time to see it.
A note from the author:
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