Chapter 4 A Phone Call from Beijing
Evening arrived quickly, and the jeep drove back to the Su family's house, the only sound in the car being the roar of the engine.
Su Wantang looked out the window at the rapidly receding sycamore trees, her fingers unconsciously stroking the still-warm red marriage certificate.
In my mind, a grand strategy is slowly unfolding.
"I will stay in Shanghai for a week."
A deep male voice broke the silence beside him.
Su Wantang turned her head, while Lu Jingyan stared straight ahead, his jawline taut like a fully drawn bow.
"I'm dealing with some personal matters," he added without further explanation.
Private matters?
The book provides very little information about him, only stating that he has powerful connections and ruthless methods. His appearance at the Peace Hotel and his sleeping with her in bed is itself the biggest point of suspicion.
There's probably a scheme behind this.
Very well, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.
She nodded, didn't ask any further questions, and simply said, "I understand."
The car quickly stopped in front of the Su family's three-story villa.
Upon entering, a cold and oppressive atmosphere immediately hits you.
In the living room, the crystal chandelier was brightly lit, but it couldn't dispel the somber atmosphere.
Her beloved father, Su Zhenhong, sat on the main sofa, his face ashen, cracking two walnuts in his hands.
His stepmother, Liu Liyun, sat next to him, her eyes red-rimmed, constantly wiping the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, looking as if she had been deeply worried about him.
Her stepsister Su Yuting and her ex-fiancé Lin Zihang sat on either side of her. One had her head down and her shoulders shrugged slightly, feigning pitifulness; the other stared intently at her with a venomous hatred in his eyes.
Good heavens, they've really set up a full-blown joint trial.
"So you still know how to come back!" Su Zhenhong slammed his hand on the armrest and roared with all his might, "Do you even have any respect for me as your father? You've completely disgraced the Su family!"
Liu Liyun immediately chimed in, her voice so soft it could melt water: "Master, please don't be angry. Wan Tang is still young and doesn't understand. She must have been deceived. Let's talk it out, let's talk it out."
Su Yuting chimed in, her voice trembling with tears, "Sister, you should apologize to Dad. Who is that man? Did he bewitch you? How could you abandon Zihang for a guy you just met?"
He kept calling her a "wild man," and he said it so smoothly.
Lin Zihang stared intently at Su Wantang, his eyes filled with humiliation and anger that seemed almost tangible: "Su Wantang! You must give me an explanation!"
Su Wantang found it all laughable as she listened to their back-and-forth banter.
She didn't even bother to lift her eyelids and walked straight to the expensive pear wood coffee table.
Amidst everyone's astonished gazes, she slammed the two red marriage certificates in her hand onto the table with a "bang".
The movements were swift and decisive, and the sounds were clear and resonant.
Those two glaring red spots, like two flames, burned the eyes of everyone present.
"Explain?"
Su Wantang finally raised her eyes, her gaze coldly sweeping over the several fascinating faces, a mocking smile curving her red lips.
"First, from today onwards, I, Su Wantang, am married. This is my legal husband, Lu Jingyan."
She turned to the side, raised her hand, and pointed to the man behind her who was as steady as a mountain.
“Second,” she turned her gaze to Su Zhenhong, “Father, I demand that you immediately, right now, announce to the whole of Shanghai that my engagement with the Lin family is dissolved. After all, I don’t want my husband to wear a green hat of dubious origin.”
"Third," she said, glancing at Lin Zihang and Su Yuting with a sinister smile, "I wish you two, a scumbag and a bitch, a long and happy life together."
The living room was deathly silent.
Su Zhenhong's mouth was agape in an "O" shape. He was so angry that he was trembling all over. He pointed at Su Wantang and stammered for a long time, but couldn't utter a single word.
The faces of Liu Liyun and Su Yuting were beyond ugly; they looked like they had seen a ghost.
get married?
You got your marriage certificate in just half a day?
Lin Zihang was struck dumb, completely stunned, muttering to himself, "Impossible...this is impossible..."
"This is outrageous! This is absolutely outrageous!" Su Zhenhong finally recovered and slammed his hand heavily on the table, making the teacups jump around.
"Who issued this marriage certificate without my consent? I don't recognize it! The Su family will never acknowledge this marriage!"
“Mr. Su,” Lu Jingyan finally spoke, stepping forward to shield Su Wantang behind him, his tall figure exuding an overwhelming sense of pressure, “My marriage does not need anyone’s approval.”
His voice wasn't loud, but it carried a chilling, almost menacing quality.
Just as Su Zhenhong was about to faint from anger—
Ring ring ring—
A sharp, urgent telephone ring, like a knife, pierced through all the noise.
The rare black rotary dial telephone in the living room became the focus of the entire room at that moment.
In Shanghai in the 1980s, not every household could afford to install a telephone; it was a symbol of status.
The maid, Zhang Ma, jogged over and picked up the microphone.
"Hello, this is the Su Mansion..."
The next second, Zhang Ma's face turned deathly pale, and her hand holding the microphone began to tremble uncontrollably.
She turned her head sharply to look at Lu Jingyan, who had been standing silently beside Su Wantang, her voice trembling as she stammered, "Mr...Mr. Lu...it was...it was a call from the Lu family's old residence in Beijing..."
Beijing, the old Lu family residence.
The six words, like six thunderclaps, exploded loudly in the Su family hall.
The rage on Su Zhenhong's face froze instantly, turning into extreme astonishment and suspicion. Liu Liyun stopped her fake crying, and Su Yuting forgot to shed tears.
Lin Zihang stood frozen in place, his face filled with disbelief.
All eyes were focused on Lu Jingyan.
They were all waiting to see the show. So what if he's from Beijing? If his family calls, he's definitely coming to confront them! Let's see how he gets out of this mess!
Lu Jingyan remained expressionless, strode over, and took the still slightly trembling microphone from Zhang Ma's hand.
"Hey," he said, uttering only one word.
On the other end of the phone, a voice of an elderly woman, strong yet dignified, came through the microphone. Her powerful voice exuded an aura of authority that could be felt even through the receiver.
"Lu Jingyan! You've really grown some guts! You ran off to Shanghai without a word and what outrageous things you've done! Don't you even respect me as your grandmother? Don't you respect the rules of the Lu family?!"
The old lady's voice was loud; those nearby in the living room could faintly hear her stern questioning.
Su Yuting couldn't help but curl a gloating smile at the corners of her mouth.
Hope was rekindled in Lin Zihang's eyes.
Su Zhenhong held his breath, his ears perked up, and the calculating look on his face grew stronger.
However, faced with thunderous rage, Lu Jingyan's tone was as calm as if he were saying that the weather was nice today.
"Grandma, I'm getting married."
There was no explanation, no defense, just a statement of fact.
There was an instant silence on the other end of the phone.
His previously energetic roar abruptly ceased, as if someone had grabbed his neck.
Before the other party could react, Lu Jingyan continued to speak in that calm and even flat tone, delivering even more damaging words.
"According to the rules, my wife should be included in the family genealogy."
“I’ll take her back in a week.”
These two sentences are not a discussion, nor a request, but a notification.
An unquestionable notification belonging to the absolute ruler.
In the Su family's living room, you could hear a pin drop.
The calculating look on Su Zhenhong's face turned into horror.
Su Yuting's smile, which hadn't fully blossomed, froze at the corner of her mouth.
The flame of hope in Lin Zihang's eyes was extinguished with a "poof" by a bucket of ice water, leaving only ashes.
They clearly saw that this man named Lu Jingyan, when facing his seemingly powerful grandmother, not only showed no fear, but instead directly suppressed her with an even more forceful attitude!
There was a full half-minute of silence on the other end of the phone.
So long that everyone thought the call had ended.
Finally, a cold, powerless three-word sentence came through the microphone.
"……knew."
哢哒.
The phone was abruptly disconnected.
Lu Jingyan casually put the microphone back in its original position.
He turned around, and the entire Su family hall remained completely silent.
Su Zhenhong, who had just been jumping around and shouting that he wanted to hit and scold, now stood frozen in place as if he had been struck by acupuncture, with a fine layer of cold sweat on his forehead.
Lu Jingyan's gaze passed over these clowns and landed on Su Wantang, his deep eyes seeming to hold a galaxy of stars.
"Come back to Beijing with me in a week."
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