Chapter 95 Declaring Sovereignty
Qu He looked at the woman, and the woman looked at her too.
She had long, wavy blonde hair, deep-set eyes, and a distinctly European ancestry; her eyes were the same amber color as Zhuang Bieyan's.
Qu He considers herself to be quite tall, at 167 cm, but compared to her, she is still half a head shorter.
She wore a black dress with a slit that reached her thigh, and the gemstone on her neck was the same style as the one in her earrings, clearly very valuable.
After her gaze shifted downwards and fell upon that impressive curve, Qu He unconsciously looked away, glanced down at her own chest, and silently straightened her back.
Zhuang Bieyan introduced her to her in a casual tone, "Yvonne, Yi Nianshu, Yi Chonghua's granddaughter."
Qu He raised an eyebrow.
Zhuang Bieyan just told her that the owner of this little villa is surnamed Yi.
Yvonne walked slowly forward in her high heels, her gaze unabashedly falling on Qu He, scrutinizing her from head to toe.
As she looked at it, she suddenly smiled meaningfully.
Qu He didn't understand the meaning behind her smile.
Just as she was wondering, Yvonne looked at Zhuang Bieyan and asked, "Arthur, aren't you going to introduce this lovely lady?"
Zhuang Bieyan put his arm around Qu He's waist and pulled her closer to him, with a hint of possessiveness: "My wife, Qu He."
“Wow, wife,” Yvonne winked exaggeratedly and greeted Qu He with a smile.
Just as Qu He was about to respond, she suddenly leaned in and moved closer. Qu He felt a sudden white light before her eyes, and before she knew it, her chest was almost touching her face.
"Qu He, you look beautiful."
"Um... thank you, oh, thanks."
Qu He was taken aback by her sudden intimacy and didn't understand what she was doing.
She instinctively shrank back, "You too."
Yvonne was amused by her reaction, poked her dimple, and said in broken Chinese, "Is Arthur good to you? If he's bad to you, feel free to cheat on me with him."
Qu He: "...."
That's too blunt.
“Yvonne!”
Zhuang Bieyan's face darkened. He pulled Qu He behind him, standing between the two of them, and warned, "Qu He is your sister-in-law."
Yvonne looked nonchalant, casually tousled her hair, and gave Qu He a flirty wink, "Who cares?"
She leaned over and looked at Qu He, saying, "Honey, did you know that Arthur and I were childhood fiancées?"
As it turns out, word order does not affect comprehension.
Qu He understood.
Was Zhuang Bieyan and Yvonne engaged?
But based on what he just said, they still seem to be siblings.
Is the relationship between these wealthy families really that complicated?
Zhuang Bieyan's expression darkened upon hearing her words.
Just then, someone came over to remind them that the auction was about to begin.
Zhuang Bieyan immediately pulled Qu He back to the VIP room they had just been in.
Yvonne waved goodbye to her from behind. Qu He was about to wave back when Zhuang Bieyan grabbed her and pulled her into the private room.
The door closed, and he used his hand to pin Qu He behind the door, saying, "Stay away from her from now on."
Qu He glanced at him, deliberately trying to provoke him: "What? You panicked when I, Mrs. Zhuang, and your fiancée appeared at the same time?"
She had actually realized long ago that Yvonne didn't have feelings for Zhuang Bieyan, but somehow she blurted out those words without even realizing how sarcastic they sounded.
Zhuang Bieyan sighed helplessly, adopting a humble posture and patiently coaxing, "I have nothing to do with her. Ahe, I don't believe you didn't notice that she has feelings for you."
Qu He snorted and tilted her head: "So what? Who wouldn't like such a pretty girl? Not only do I like her, I want to hug her and kiss her..."
"no."
He was interrupted before he could finish speaking.
Zhuang Bieyan wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him, saying, "You're mine!"
"Really?" Qu He deliberately dragged out her words.
“But I think you two, Arthur and Yvonne, sound like a perfect match.”
Zhuang Bieyan lowered his head, his gaze burning: "But I think Iris is the perfect match for me."
He paused for a moment, then said slowly, "Such a person is like a rainbow; you only know they exist when you meet them."
Upon hearing his words, Qu He's face flushed instantly.
Iris is her English name, which means rainbow.
She instinctively tried to avoid his gaze, but Zhuang Bieyan cupped her face, leaving her nowhere to escape.
Looking through the small amber mirror, Qu He saw her own helpless expression and the unyielding desire in his eyes.
Qu Heqiang suppressed her emotions, pretended not to care, pushed him away a little, and walked straight to the French windows.
The first item up for auction in the downstairs auction hall is a pink gemstone, of average quality.
Qu He glanced at him and then looked away, her tone cool: "Don't mention it, Mr. Arthur. I didn't know anything and just followed you here without knowing what you were up to."
Zhuang Bieyan stepped forward, took her hand, and led her to sit on the sofa. He sincerely apologized, "It was my fault. I didn't mean to hide it from you."
He briefly explained in a few minutes why he had brought Qu He here that evening.
"Yi Chonghua is my maternal grandfather."
Hearing this, Qu He wasn't too shocked. She had already guessed it from his earlier statement that "she is your sister-in-law" and after seeing Yvonne's amber eyes.
Zhuang Bieyan continued, "My grandmother fell in love with him when she was young, but before the wedding, he married a woman arranged by his family. Later, my grandmother married my nominal grandfather while pregnant with my mother."
“Yi Chonghua kept claiming how helpless and regretful he was at the time, but I couldn’t see it. He even fantasized about getting me engaged to Yvonne so that I could return to the Yi family.”
Qu He was surprised: "But you and Yvonne are related by blood."
Zhuang Bieyan chuckled sarcastically: "Yes, that's why I said he's crazy."
"So, what brings you here today?"
"Come and get my mother's painting back."
Zhuang Bieyan looked towards the entrance of the lobby on the first floor.
"The floor painting by the entrance is my mother's last work. It can appear anywhere, but it cannot appear here."
He looked at Qu He and said, “Yi Chonghua promised me that if I came today, I could take this painting. Qu He, the reason I brought you here is to let him know that I am married, that I have a wife I have chosen, and that I will no longer have any connection with the Yi family.”
Qu He: "Then you could have just told me about this."
Zhuang Bieyan: "Talking about these old stories will only make you feel worse. I just wanted to bring you here to have fun, and I don't want these things to affect your mood."
He held Qu He in his arms, his face full of tenderness.
His Ah-He doesn't need to know these things; he just needs to be happy and cheerful forever. He can bear all the storms and darkness on his own.
Qu He snuggled against him, then suddenly looked up, pinched his chin and shook it, "Zhuang Bieyan, don't hide things from me anymore. You always told me to tell you everything, so do the same for you. We can share the burden together."
Zhuang Bieyan's heart melted completely, and he kissed her forehead. "Okay."
His eyes darted around, and a sly smile curved his lips.
"But speaking of which, there's something I didn't tell you the truth today."
Qu He took a bite of dessert, and without looking up, asked, "What is it?"
Zhuang Bieyan said sincerely, "I brought you here today not only to make Yi Chonghua give up, but more importantly, to let everyone know that you are my wife."
Upon hearing his words, Qu He's hand trembled, and cream smeared onto her nose.
Zhuang Bieyan took out a tissue and wiped it off for her.
"My marriage wasn't a secret in our circle, but it gave some people with ill intentions an excuse. They always find a way to spread rumors, as if they want to see me cheat on someone. The rumors just keep coming."
"What rumor?"
Zhuang Bieyan sighed, a hint of grievance in his voice: "Ahe, they've been spreading rumors behind our backs that our marital relationship is strained. They say I've never brought you into public, that the marriage was just a charade I orchestrated, and that we'll inevitably..."
Qu He subconsciously followed up on his question, "Will you get a divorce?"
But as soon as he finished speaking, Zhuang Bieyan grabbed his hand and nudged the wooden table next to him three times.
He frowned. "Ahe, don't say that again. I can't stand it."
"You still have these superstitious moments?"
"It's better to believe it exists."
Qu He looked at his aggrieved expression, and it seemed she could almost see the drooping dog ears on his head. Where did he learn those tattling words from?
"Well, you brought me here today, so no one will say that again."
"Not enough!"
Qu He looked at him in confusion, "What else do you want? Do you expect me to call you every time you go out to discuss cooperation? And then go to your company every now and then to see if there are any glamorous mistresses trying to climb into your bed, and show off our affection to assert my dominance?"
She was just joking casually, but she saw Zhuang Bieyan's eyes gradually light up.
"...Uh, you're not serious, are you?" Qu He panicked.
Zhuang Bieyan considered her words carefully and replied solemnly, "I think it's okay. Those people dare to be so presumptuous precisely because they are certain that you are not by my side."
Qu He: "..."
Thank you for the invitation, but I will decline.
Is it too late to take back what you just said?
However, Zhuang Bieyan clearly did not give her a chance to back out.
The bathroom light stayed on until late into the night.
The water was splashing loudly, showing no sign of stopping.
The jasmine scent of the shower gel mingled with the steam, creating a hazy and ambiguous atmosphere that made one's head feel heavy.
Qu He bit Zhuang Bieyan's shoulder. "I want to sleep."
Zhuang Bieyan tightened his arms around her waist, nuzzling her neck as he lowered his voice: "Okay, so does Ahe agree or not?"
Qu He remained silent; she wanted to resist.
But there was no chance to say that refusal.
Finally, under his half-coaxing and half-deception, Qu He was forced to agree to go to his company the next day to "assert her sovereignty".
Hearing her answer, Zhuang Bieyan smiled triumphantly.
The ambiguous atmosphere in the air intensified once again.
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