marriage certificate
Mu Han wore a polite, distant smile as he followed Lu Zhizhi at a leisurely pace. The corridor was covered in thick carpet, which absorbed the sound of their footsteps. The entire journey was silent, with only the faint sound of each other's breathing, like a tautly stretched string, stretched in the air.
A moment later, Lu Zhizhi's office door was in sight. His special assistant nodded slightly at Mu Han, a look of professional scrutiny in his eyes, then slowly turned and left. Mu Han's fingertips paused on the cold doorknob, his knuckles turning white. After a moment's hesitation, he gently pushed open the heavy door.
The office was so quiet that one could hear the rustling of pens across paper. Lu Zhizhi was buried in documents, his profile as cold and hard as a sculpture, completely devoid of the sharpness or indifference he had shown during their previous meetings, as if nothing around him caught his eye.
Mu Han walked softly to his desk, the sound of his leather shoes hitting the floor finally startled him. Lu Zhizhi then slowly raised his head, his dark eyes fixed on his face, without any emotion, like a pool of bottomless cold water.
Mu Han could clearly see the red bloodshot under his eyes, the dark circles under his eyes that could not be concealed, and his jawline was taut. It was obvious that he had not had a good rest for several days. Even his hair, which was usually meticulously kept, looked a little messy.
"Sit down." Lu Zhizhi's voice was neither cold nor warm, like a piece of ice-hardened jade, striking at people's hearts.
Mu Han followed his instructions and sat down in the chair across from him, his back straight. He was silent for a long time, his fingertips unconsciously curled, until Lu Zhizhi spoke again, his tone calm and almost indifferent: "What's the matter? Tell me."
Mu Han took a deep breath, suppressed the complicated emotions surging in his heart, and said in a calm yet polite tone: "I agree to your conditions, as long as you can help me."
Lu Zhizhi's hand holding the pen paused for half a second, and the ink droplet spread out a small black dot on the document. He quickly regained his usual composure and looked up at Mu Han: "Okay."
"But I have two conditions." There was no expression on Mu Han's face, only a hint of imperceptible stubbornness in his eyes.
Lu Zhizhi raised his eyebrows, his eyes fell on his face, and he said indifferently: "Tell me about it."
"Three years," Mu Han met his gaze and spoke calmly and politely, "After three years, we will separate peacefully. Also, there will be no wedding. When the time comes, we will draw up a contract and both of us will sign it."
After listening to this, Lu Zhizhi suddenly chuckled softly. The laugh was soft, yet it carried an indescribable chill that made one's scalp tingle. He was clearly laughing, but his face didn't show a trace of a smile, and his eyes were as cold as a frozen lake in winter—this Lu Zhizhi was unlike anything Mu Han had ever seen.
"Why should I agree to you?" Lu Zhizhi's voice was filled with undisguised sarcasm, like a needle that pierced Mu Han unexpectedly.
Mu Han's heart skipped a beat at the coldness in his words, and her fingertips trembled slightly, but she quickly forced herself to calm down. Seeing his resolute attitude, Mu Han seemed to have given up, and her voice was filled with a desperate determination: "As long as you agree, I will agree to anything you want."
Lu Zhizhi didn't speak immediately, but just looked at him quietly, his dark eyes churning with emotions that Mu Han couldn't understand. After a long while, he slowly spoke, emphasizing each word: "Then you have to listen to me in everything."
"I promise you, and you promise me." Mu Han's voice was steady, with an unquestionable firmness.
Lu Zhizhi looked away and returned to the documents on the table. He said slowly, "I'll have someone draft the contract tomorrow morning. It's alright, go back."
When he said this, he never looked at Mu Han again. Mu Han pursed his lips, and finally stood up and gently closed the office door.
It was nearly dusk when he returned home. Mu Han hadn't told anyone about this, not even his mother, who was constantly worried about his father's condition. He wanted to wait until his father's condition stabilized. For now, he simply wanted to shoulder this heavy decision on his own. He first went to the company to handle some urgent matters, then hurried to the hospital to see his father. It wasn't until evening that he finally returned, exhausted, to his empty home.
Thinking that tonight would be another sleepless night, Mu Han lay on the cold bed, replaying the conversation with Lu Zhizhi during the day in his mind. As he thought about it, he fell into a deep sleep.
The dream was a mess. He was first in his studio, but before he could take in the surroundings, his eyes instantly turned into a sea of fire. The raging flames licked the walls, and the thick smoke choked him. He saw the fire like a monster with a bloody mouth, rushing towards him. Mu Han subconsciously closed his eyes, but felt someone running towards him. He suddenly opened his eyes and saw Lu Zhizhi's figure running towards him through the flames. Mu Han stretched out his hand joyfully, wanting to grab the only hope, but Lu Zhizhi passed by him without looking away and ran straight behind him - there, Bai Zihan was curled up in the corner, his face full of fear.
Lu Zhizhi picked up Bai Zihan without hesitation, turned around and rushed out of the sea of fire.
Mu Han stood there in a daze, watching their backs disappear in the flames. Suddenly, there was a loud bang above his head, and a burning beam came straight towards him.
“Hmm!”
Mu Han suddenly woke from his dream, his heart pounding in his chest, his forehead covered in sweat. He gasped for breath, staring at the pitch-black room before him. It took him a long time to calm down. Outside the window, the night was deep, and there was not even a trace of light on the horizon.
A little while later, Mu Han stood up and walked to the living room, where he sat down on the sofa and stared out the window at the dark night. In the darkness, his eyes were empty, and only the occasional trembling of his fingertips betrayed the shock brought by the dream.
…
The next morning, a little after nine, Mu Han showed up at Lu Zhizhi's office. Lu Zhizhi was already sitting across from him, waiting for him. Two printed contracts lay on the coffee table before him. Mu Han picked up one and carefully read it, word for word, until he confirmed the "three-year term" clause was clearly written. Then he solemnly signed his name in the lower right corner.
After Mu Han put down the pen, Lu Zhizhi picked up the pen and signed his name on another contract.
"I'll help you after we get our marriage certificate." Lu Zhizhi put away the contract and spoke first, "You decide the time."
"See you tomorrow afternoon at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau." Mu Han almost blurted out, as if he had already rehearsed it countless times in his mind.
Lu Zhizhi nodded without objection.
Mu Han stood up and said goodbye without saying another word.
The appointed day soon arrived. When Mu Han arrived at the Civil Affairs Bureau, Lu Zhizhi was already waiting there. He was dressed in a well-tailored black suit, and his posture was straight and upright, attracting the attention of passersby. Mu Han calmed himself down and walked slowly to his side. The two of them walked into the Civil Affairs Bureau one after the other.
As soon as they entered, a staff member led them to the photo booth. The photographer motioned for them to sit down. Lu Zhizhi sat down leisurely, but Mu Han's movements were a little stiff.
"Come closer, smile, be more natural, and feel happy." The photographer held up the camera and guided them patiently.
The corners of Lu Zhizhi's mouth curled up slightly. Although it wasn't brilliant, a subtle sense of joy could be seen in that subtle arc. Mu Han pulled the corners of his mouth, revealing a somewhat stiff smile, but there was no smile in his eyes.
Taking photos, signing, stamping... everything went very quickly.
As they walked out of the Civil Affairs Bureau, Mu Han looked down at the red marriage certificate in his hand, his fingertips trembling slightly, and he was a little overwhelmed. The red was too glaring, just like the color of the fire in his dream.
Lu Zhizhi also looked down at the marriage certificate in his hand, and a smile could not be suppressed on his lips. He looked up at Mu Han and saw that he was staring at the marriage certificate in a daze. His tone was still lukewarm: "Go back and pack up today, and move in tomorrow."
Mu Han didn't say anything, but just walked past Lu Zhizhi silently and drove away in his car.
When Lu Zhizhi returned to the company, his assistant keenly noticed that the atmosphere around him seemed to have softened considerably. His usually cold and stern face now held a faint, indescribable hint of "happiness." The assistant shook his head helplessly and walked forward to report on his work.
"Have you finished everything I asked you to do?" Lu Zhizhi asked, without much emotion in his tone.
"Okay, Mr. Lu." The assistant answered cautiously.
Elsewhere, Mu Han returned home, still clutching the marriage certificate tightly in his hand. He walked to the center of the empty living room and suddenly laughed softly, his laughter tinged with self-mockery and bitterness.
"It's ridiculous. It's really ridiculous."
In his previous life, he had been with Lu Zhizhi for five years, exhausting all his passion and sincerity, but still failed to gain such a thin red book. But in this life, with just a transaction, he easily got it.
Mu Han walked to the refrigerator, took out several bottles of wine, and drank one after another in the cold air. The alcohol quickly numbed his nerves, and he leaned back on the sofa and fell into a deep sleep without knowing when, without a dream all night.
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