Chapter 78
Tong Yufei was stunned, her breath nearly catching. When something foreign invaded her mouth, she finally tried to push him away, but it felt like pushing against a warm wall. She looked in the vanity mirror with a last glimmer of hope. Luckily, he had locked the door earlier. The kisses lingered on her lips, leaving no trace of inappropriateness on her neck. He knew full well it was someone else's wedding, and he wouldn't act rashly, yet he still tried to tempt her. She controlled her ragged breathing, a nameless rage building up within her. This fire fueled a rare passion, enough to make her kiss him back passionately. When his guard relaxed, she freed a hand, gliding like a snake over the metal buckle of his belt, her fingertips tracing the seams of his suit, suddenly closing them when they touched a certain spot. He let out a muffled groan, mixed with the stinging sensation on her lips.
Mo Daoyan bit her lower lip, leaving a deep mark, and immediately pinched the zipper slider on the side of her skirt between his fingers.
"The bride will be back at any moment, do you want to be laughed at?" She let him bite, her eyes glancing at the figure swaying outside the door, her hands still rubbing gently, "You've missed it for a long time, do you feel good?"
He didn't need to say anything, her furrowed brows and heavy breathing were the most straightforward answer. But she didn't continue, but suddenly left him, retreated to the door and faced him, pulled her coat down to her waist, unzipped her skirt, took off half of her sleeves, letting half of her snow-white shoulders and round breasts appear and disappear, so that he could see every inch of her beauty clearly.
When his trousers showed his embarrassment, she quickly finished dressing and shouted to the makeup artist outside, "The light in the makeup mirror doesn't seem to be working."
The makeup artist came in to check the mirror. Mo Daoyan took off his suit and draped it over his arm, covering his face. He smiled at her playfulness and said, "Have you had enough fun? Are you having some fun?" He then shook her hand and said, "If you want, come home with me tonight and you can experience what it means to be truly insatiable."
She answered without any hesitation: "I don't want to."
---
As the melodious "Wedding March" blared from the tape recorder, the wedding of Tong Zhaoyang and Ren Zhanyue proceeded smoothly, accompanied by the booming voice of the emcee. Chen Huaili, the witness, was known for his brief and powerful speeches, offering only a few words of blessing. When it was the turn of the parents, Tong's father was so excited he could barely hold the microphone. His impromptu speech was touching, but his ramblings, from his son's infancy to his grand plans for Xinli, stretched the originally scheduled three minutes to a full ten. He completely ignored the emcee's frequent glances at his watch.
When it was Tong Zhaoyang's mother-in-law's turn to give a speech, she had to cut out most of her carefully prepared speech and hurriedly read it in the remaining minute. It seemed that she failed to fully express her expectations for her daughter's marriage. She complained to her husband in a low voice: "The old man is simply like the reincarnation of Tang Monk. When my daughter marries him in the future, she will inevitably be cursed with the tight headband. It's so annoying!"
The micro-microphone carried these complaints clearly throughout the venue. Tong's father was about to yell at his in-laws when the experienced emcee smiled and took over the conversation: "This couple's life is getting more and more prosperous. The mother loves her daughter, and you love your son. Doesn't this just make up the Chinese character 'good'? You have a son and a daughter now!" A few words smoothed things over, and then loudly announced that the auspicious time had arrived and began the ring exchange session, cleverly defusing the war of words that was about to break out.
When it was the turn of the newlyweds to give their speeches, Ren Zhanyue had obviously inherited her mother's true teachings. She took out a neatly folded piece of paper with her thoughts written on it, and she choked up and burst into tears before she even opened her mouth. Several female guests in the audience were also moved by her and started wiping away their tears. Tong Zhaoyang stood by and only reached out to help Ren Zhanyue to tidy up her veil after she finished reading the speech. He also promised in a pragmatic manner that he would love his wife well.
There was thunderous applause from the audience. The confessions were in sharp contrast. Mo Daoyan in the audience recalled the conversation he had with Tong Zhaoyang an hour ago. On the most important day of the groom's life, the person he talked to the most was not his new wife, but Tong Yufei. To be precise, he was asking him to cherish Tong Yufei more.
He turned the topic back to her: "Why do you have such a stern face? It's like you're being forced into marriage."
Tong Zhaoyang said seriously: "Just treat it as a gamble, but this time, I think I will win."
So he lost the bet last time, but he had no intention of exposing anyone's scars: "May you have a happy marriage."
After the newlyweds and their parents took a group photo, they went to the tables below to toast. Qiao Zhuocheng, who had completed his reception duties, walked through the crowd passing glasses and came to Mo Daoyan. He passed one of the two glasses of champagne in his hand to Mo Daoyan, and the two glasses clinked together with a crisp sound: "Congratulations."
"Where does the joy come from?"
"Congratulations to Tong Zhaoyang."
"You were the one who invited Ren Zhanyue out of retirement, right?"
Qiao Zhuocheng was taken aback by Mo Daoyan's sudden turn of events and nodded frankly, "I knew I couldn't hide it from you."
That day, Qiao Zhuocheng called him from Hong Kong and mentioned the girl he met at the Regent Hotel. Although he hung up without the patience to hear her full name, he had already memorized her surname. Qiao Zhuocheng also said that he would be very interested. The strange girl who could interest him either had his aesthetic taste or had a vested interest in him. Knowing that he was not romantically attracted to Tong Yu, Qiao Zhuocheng would never introduce a girl to him for his entertainment at that time, so it could only be the latter. In addition, as soon as Qiao Zhuocheng returned to Xicheng, Ren Zhanyue resigned and approached Tong Zhaoyang. The timing was too coincidental. He only needed to ask Qiao Zhuoqun a little to know Qiao Zhuocheng's latest investment intention. Qiao Zhuocheng invested in a newly opened cosmetics company on the pedestrian street. The company's owner was Ren Zhanyue, who had quit her job to start her own business.
Mo Daoyan didn't think Qiao Zhuocheng needed to do this for him: "No matter how much money you spend, it's better to invest in Xinli."
"I didn't invest solely for you. I'm optimistic about her business acumen, but with an additional condition: to reconcile her with her ex-boyfriend and, incidentally, to help my friend resolve his worries. It doesn't hurt to be bitten, but the occasional barking of dogs can be disturbing. No offense, but that's just how Tong Zhaoyang is. My brother, Cao Cong, feels deeply."
"Does she really want to marry Tong Zhaoyang, or is it just for the financing?"
"It's not as deep as the manuscript describes, but they are indeed still connected. Otherwise, she wouldn't have pursued me for so many years and finally decided to let me go. She can turn back as she pleases. She's not an actress. It's easy to act for a while, but she can't act for the rest of her life." Qiao Zhuocheng glanced at Mo Daoyan and saw that his expression remained the same. He continued, "If you feel this marriage is inappropriate, I can withdraw the additional terms."
"It's all done."
His gaze passed through the noisy crowd and landed on Tong Yufei in front of him. Chen Ruchao had grabbed the bouquet and, with a professional ailment, was using the flowers to explain to her and Ji Xilin the principles of pollen allergies. Pregnant women, in particular, needed to avoid overly fragrant flowers. Tong Yufei, though in Cao's camp, her heart was with Han. Her face was calm, as if nothing here had anything to do with her. If she knew that Tong Zhaoyang's marriage was an unintentional act of her own, would she still be so calm?
The wedding banquet lasted until three in the afternoon. Tong Zhaoyang was drunk without a doubt. Mo Daoyan and Qiao Zhuocheng each took an arm and carried him back to the dressing room to rest. Ren Zhan Yue took care of him. Every time Tong Zhaoyang vomited, she cleaned up, wiping the corners of his mouth while scolding him distressedly: "Everyone who persuades you to drink, you drink one glass after another, not half a glass? Or go to the bathroom to vomit? The best man is just a decoration, aren't you trying to deflect the blame?" She patted his back gently, "You idiot, how did you survive all these years?"
Tong Zhaoyang suddenly hugged her, burying his face in her shoulder. Sobbing, he recounted the time when they played hide-and-seek together as children, hiding in a water jar. Back then, missing his father and sister, he'd insisted on returning to his old home, only to be whipped red by his mother. He lost all interest in playing. To keep him, she pleaded softly, offering candy as bribes, and even brought up the story of Sima Guang smashing the jar. How foolish! There was no water in the jar; he could have easily jumped out by lifting his leg. Why bring up Sima Guang? Even more foolish was he, who could have left at any moment, but instead squatted at the bottom of the jar and listened to her finish that silly story.
When they said goodbye at the door, she saw a smile on his face and whispered in his ear, "My father said that if a person only holds one thing in their heart, that thing will become a huge rock and crush them to death. So you have to put more things in your heart, and the original pain will be squeezed out."
He always kept these words in mind. Every time he felt like he couldn't hold on any longer, he would desperately try to find something to do. He kept stuffing himself in this way until one day he discovered that her name was engraved on every one of those stones.
"When have we ever played hide-and-seek?" Ren Zhanyue applied a hot towel to his forehead, patted his head and smiled, "Look carefully at who I am."
"Ye..." Tong Zhaoyang shook his head drunkenly, "You are Yue'er."
"Is it just Yue'er?"
"Madam, my wife."
"I know you're disappointed because I'm not her, but Tong Zhaoyang, no matter how good she is, she's someone else's. When we were young, we didn't overcome all difficulties to be with you, and she won't do that now. Loving someone takes time. Has she ever shared even a little with you? How can one live a lifetime based on nostalgia? But I've only liked you from the beginning to the end. You've been my substitute for several years. You never turn on the lights when you sleep with me, and you always call out for her in your dreams. Didn't I endure it all? Later, I cheated you of all your money and found a little man, but it was just out of spite. Then I turned around and was afraid that you wouldn't have a good life, so I secretly sent you money." She put the water glass to his lips and fed him water. "I came to your Xicheng mainly for business, but also for you. Otherwise, I could have set up camp in Guangzhou. Tong Zhaoyang, there's no other woman in the world who treats you like this. You have to love me." She half-knelt and looked into his eyes. "When you sober up, I won't say these things. I don't want your pity. I will proudly wait for you to love me. Tong Zhaoyang, you even managed to get through dropping out of school, so how hard can it be to love me?"
“It’s not that difficult.”
"Then I will turn on the lights in the bridal chamber tonight, and every day from now on."
Outside the dressing room, Mo Daoyan and Qiao Zhuocheng confirmed that there would be no trouble inside, and turned around and left tacitly.
"You guys..." Qiao Zhuocheng started to speak, then swallowed it back, "Go drink."
Mo Daoyan replied softly, "I won't turn off the lights."
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