After Marrying My Arch-Rival - Chapter 2

Forced to Wear Her Scent

The middle-aged woman sitting on the sofa shared eyebrows and eyes that closely resembled Xu Mengzhou’s. However, the sharp edge of her arched brows was softened by a near-maternal smile resting on her lips. White, lustrous pearl earrings swayed gently with every movement of her head, hanging from her ears like two small, glowing moons.

“Ruan Li, come sit next to me,” Xu Nianzhi said warmly, waving her over. “You’ve been working so hard lately, haven’t you? I heard Shunxiang’s people were playing dirty again.”

Ruan Li responded with a soft nod, immediately pulling her arm back and walking over like a model student. She sat down demurely, legs pressed together, her long black hair cascading down her shoulders. Quiet and composed like a white magnolia, she said in a gentle voice, “Thank you for your concern, Mom. The chairman of Shunxiang already has a bad reputation, so I prepared a backup plan in advance. I wasn’t worried about her playing tricks during the bid.”

“If you ever need anything, just say the word. Don’t push yourself too hard, alright?” Xu Nianzhi patted Ruan Li’s hand lovingly, then paused, gripping it tighter. “Look how cold your hands are! It’s getting chilly these days…you need to drink your tonic soup. Don’t go catching another cold.”

“Oh, absolutely. Otherwise, someone’s going to be worried to death.”

The warm, touching scene was suddenly ruined by a sarcastic, mocking voice. The speaker had her arms crossed tightly over her chest, watching them with a dramatic gasp. “Mrs. Xu, your biological daughter is still standing right here. Was my concern completely bypassed?”

Xu Nianzhi shot her a sideways glance and pointed toward the kitchen. “There’s watermelon in the kitchen and ice in the fridge.”

“Oh, so you’re sick of me again? Is there even a shred of affection left between us?”

“None at all. Lower your voice…you’re making my ears ache.”

“Unbelievable.” Xu Mengzhou dragged her feet into the kitchen with a long face, though she did lower her voice, muttering under her breath, “Some real mother you are… trying to brush me off with watermelon.”

Xu Nianzhi rubbed her ears and curled her lip in disgust. “How on earth did you fall for this knucklehead?”

The mother-daughter dynamic was unmistakable…the two of them were cut from the exact same cloth.

Ruan Li couldn’t help but laugh softly, her clear eyes sparkling under the warm reflection of the crystal chandelier. It was moments like these that reminded people she was only in her early twenties.

“Zhouzhou has a very good heart,” Ruan Li said, her pale pink lips curving into a sweet, peach-like smile. That single, short sentence practically dripped with sweetness.

As if they were truly a loving couple.

The tight line of Xu Nianzhi’s lips softened, and she let out a sigh. “I’ll offer a prayer of thanks to the gods if she goes a single day without causing trouble.”

After a long bout of whirring noises from the kitchen, Xu Mengzhou emerged holding a massive cup of watermelon slushie, balancing it as if she were carrying a giant banana split.

She scooped up a big mouthful, slurping noisily. “What bad things are you saying about me now?”

Xu Nianzhi didn’t bother engaging with her nonsense and went straight to business. “We’re going back to Pingcheng next week to pay respects to the ancestors. Do not start another fight with your Third Aunt. Do you hear me?”

“It’s only three days. Be behave, for once.”

Holding her slushie, Xu Mengzhou immediately cried foul. “She started it! What kind of respectable elder tells a younger relative that staying unmarried is just an excuse to run off with someone? There were so many things wrong with that statement, I didn’t even know where to start cursing her out! And then that idiot Xu Mengling chimed in to help her…I’d be out of my mind not to blow up at them!”

Ruan Li stepped in, playing the part of the perfect, dutiful wife to a tee. She explained gently, “Third Aunt’s words were indeed quite harsh this time. You can’t entirely blame Zhouzhou for losing her temper.”

Xu Nianzhi rubbed her temples in frustration. “I can never win an argument against the two of you. Bottom line: no fighting, and don’t make a scene.”

“No guarantees on that.” Xu Mengzhou’s eyes rolled playfully…anyone could tell she was already plotting something bad.

Just as Xu Nianzhi’s eyes narrowed and her temper was about to flare, Ruan Li quickly interjected, “I’ll keep an eye on her, Mom. Don’t worry.”

She gently tugged on Xu Nianzhi’s hand, tilting her head up with a soft, pleading expression.

“If it weren’t for you managing her, she would’ve angered me into an early grave by now.”

The brewing storm was promptly put out. Xu Nianzhi really couldn’t bear to look at her troublemaker child any longer, so she stood up and instructed the kitchen to hurry with dinner so they could eat and get it over with.

As soon as her mother left, Xu Mengzhou’s expression instantly turned cold. The warmth in her eyes vanished, replaced by a mocking sneer. “I don’t need you to give me an out.”

“Do you have to talk back to Mom like that?” Ruan Li asked nonchalantly.

“What, did you grow up getting praised by my mom so much that you forgot your place? Good little girl… why don’t you go find your own real—”

The sharp sarcasm flew out like a knife. Her mouth moved faster than her brain could catch up, and though she cut herself off halfway, the words had already landed their blow.

By the time Xu Mengzhou realized what she had said, it was too late to take it back.

She opened her mouth, feeling awkward and guilty, unable to look Ruan Li in the eye. Her hand nervously fidgeted with the zipper on her jacket, pulling it back and forth until it grew warm from the nervous sweat in her palm.

“…I’m going upstairs to change.”

Her footsteps rushed away, only to return a moment later. The runner came back with her head hung low, forcing out two muffled words: “…I’m sorry.”

Before the final sound even faded, she turned and fled upstairs, moving like a sudden, erratic gust of wind.

In the elevator, Xu Mengzhou clicked her tongue in frustration.

It hadn’t even been her fault to begin with…it was Ruan Li who meddled where she wasn’t wanted! Yet the moment Xu Mengzhou accidentally poked at a raw nerve, she became the one entirely at fault.

Frantically messing up her hair until it looked like a bird’s nest, Xu Mengzhou slunk back into her room, losing her appetite entirely for dinner.

Ruan Li and Xu Nianzhi, on the other hand, chatted animatedly throughout the meal. Ruan Li sat there serene and smiling, like a spring willow swaying under the moonlight…slow, unhurried, and completely unbothered no matter how hard the wind blew.

After dinner, they returned to the bedroom, and Ruan Li headed straight to the bathroom to wash up.

Xu Mengzhou sat on the small sofa. The muffled sound of running water drifted over like a dreamlike hallucination, but the bittersweet scent of traditional Chinese medicine in the air was crystal clear.

It was the smell of that “tonic soup.”

Ruan Li had been born prematurely and was naturally frail, nearly failing to survive her birth. For as long as Xu Mengzhou could remember, Ruan Li had lived on a constant regimen of shots and medications. As she grew older and her condition stabilized, she switched to these so-called tonic soups.

In reality, they were just bitter brews made from various medicinal herbs. Out of curiosity, Xu Mengzhou had tried a sip once…it was simultaneously bitter and sweet, so nauseating she had wanted to cut her own tongue out and replace it with a new one.

She really had no idea how Ruan Li managed to choke it down day after day, year after year, without missing a single day.

Just as her mind drifted, the bathroom door clicked open.

A wave of warm, humid steam rushed out, carrying the crisp, sweet scent of watermelon body wash, instantly filling the entire bedroom.

Ruan Li emerged wearing long-sleeved pajamas and pants, her hair completely dry as she walked slowly toward the bed.

Likely flushed from the hot water, her usually pale skin finally carried a touch of rosy warmth. But with her usual polite smile gone, her features looked cold and distant, like a exquisitely carved piece of jade.

Suddenly, Ruan Li raised her eyelids and seemed to glance over. Xu Mengzhou quickly looked down, tapping frantically on her phone screen to look like she was deeply engrossed in a major business negotiation.

Wait, why was she feeling guilty?

Was Ruan Li completely faultless here?

Grit her teeth, Xu Mengzhou ultimately refrained from voicing her complaints.

The steam from the bathroom had mostly dispersed, but a lingering dampness remained in the air, making her nose itch.

They didn’t often stay at this house; this bedroom used to be Xu Mengzhou’s old room growing up.

A fully grown woman standing at 178 cm, yet she uses watermelon-scented body wash like a middle schooler.

Xu Mengzhou didn’t care what anyone else thought, though. After taking a refreshing shower, her legally wedded partner was already lying in bed with her eyes closed, looking as if she were fast asleep.

She grabbed her phone to check the time: 9:22 PM.

No wonder.

Ruan Li was the kind of strict creature who was in bed no later than 9:30 PM, making people wonder if she operated on a completely separate biological clock that isolated her from every other modern city dweller.

Even soft-soled slippers made a faint sound on the hardwood floor. Xu Mengzhou took one step, kicked off her slippers, and walked barefoot across the room.

She certainly didn’t have the habit of sleeping early.

After messaging her assistant director about tomorrow’s shooting schedule, she reread the script and discussed adding a few more action scenes with the lead actor. By the time she finished work, she felt her hair…it was completely dry.

The clock hands now pointed toward midnight.

A tiny nightlight was left on by the bed, throwing a dim, misty glow over the small mound under the covers.

Ruan Li slept very peacefully, curled up on her side with her hands folded together beneath her chin, as if in prayer…or perhaps a plea.

Her thick, dense eyelashes cast soft shadows across the bridge of her nose, her pale lips were lightly pressed together, and her breathing was so faint it was barely audible.

There was a strange fragility to her when she slept.

Xu Mengzhou shook her head vigorously to banish the ridiculous thought.

In reality, despite her weak health, no one who actually knew Ruan Li would ever describe her as fragile.

She was always smiling, composed, and seemingly possessed an impossibly gentle temper…like a rare and elegant tree, standing tall and unaffected by cold snow or harsh frost.

Her looks weren’t sharp or aggressive, yet whenever she stood in a crowd, she was always the first person everyone noticed.

Her elegance and nobility were refined straight to the bone.

…And her actual personality was the complete opposite of her appearance: absolutely terrible.

Ruan Li’s late mother had been close friends with Mrs. Xu, so the two of them had known each other since childhood. However, Xu Mengzhou had been an energetic, rebellious child, and she had never gotten along with Ruan Li, who was two years younger.

After Ruan Li’s mother passed away, Ruan Li came to live with the Xu family for a period of time. Mrs. Xu had repeatedly instructed Xu Mengzhou to look after her, which was how they really grew familiar with each other.

Except Xu Mengzhou wished she had never gotten to know her at all.

Whenever Xu Mengzhou went out to play with her friends, she always had to drag this little tail along. To make matters worse, Ruan Li’s poor health meant she couldn’t join in on skateboarding or bungee jumping. Instead, she would report Xu Mengzhou’s whereabouts to Mrs. Xu every night, acting as a home-curfew supervisor.

She was nothing more than an annoying snitch!

Even though Ruan Li was originally two grades below her, she skipped grades to join Xu Mengzhou’s class. From that day on, Xu Mengzhou never ranked first in school again, and all of her mother’s praise went straight into Ruan Li’s ears.

Even when Xu Mengzhou stayed up late secretly studying, she still couldn’t beat her.

Not to mention, this girl had publicly declared that watermelon was the worst fruit in the world!

A person with zero taste! Does she even know how to eat?!

Just thinking about it made Xu Mengzhou grit her teeth in frustration. It felt like the two of them were born under opposing stars…whenever she crossed paths with Ruan Li, nothing ever went smoothly.

Still…

Xu Mengzhou slipped under the covers, carefully propping herself up. She leaned closer to Ruan Li and gently sniffed near her shoulder.

A faint but lingering sweet scent of watermelon drifted into her nose.

Xu Mengzhou’s lips curled up into a triumphant grin.

No matter how much you hate it, you still ended up drenched in my favorite scent.

What happened earlier today had been her fault, though. Rivals or not, attacking someone’s family was a low blow she refused to make.

Guess I’ll yield to her twice more to make up for it.

Satisfied, Xu Mengzhou fell asleep happily. But before she could wake up naturally the next morning, she was jarred awake by the blaring ring of her phone.

It wasn’t even 8:30 AM yet.

Yawning, she answered the call. Her assistant Xiao Yang’s panicked voice came blasting through the speaker: “Boss, we have an emergency! The female lead fell off the wire during a stunt shoot…she’s already been rushed to the hospital!”

“What?!”

Xu Mengzhou’s drowsy eyes snapped wide open, her sleepiness vanishing in an instant. “I’m heading over right now! Keep an eye on the reporters and control the scene!”

“Is there trouble at the set?”

Ruan Li was sitting on the sofa, fully dressed, her expression clear and calm. It was impossible to tell how long she had been awake.

“The female lead fell off the wire,” Xu Mengzhou said, flying into the closet like a hurricane and grabbing the first outfit she could reach.

“Take my car. The driver is already downstairs,” Ruan Li said, her tone growing serious.

“Okay!” Xu Mengzhou didn’t bother with polite refusals. Skipping the elevator entirely, she sprinted down the stairs.

Entertainment reporters had noses sharper than flies. Before the car even exited the neighborhood, Xu Mengzhou was already seeing the news trend online.

They still didn’t know the female lead’s condition. If something truly terrible happened…

Xu Mengzhou bit her lip, repeatedly urging the driver, “Drive faster, quick, quick!”

Morning rush-hour traffic was at its peak. No matter how much the driver wanted to speed up, they were helplessly stuck waiting through one red light after another.

Cold sweat beaded on Xu Mengzhou’s forehead as the blaring orchestra of car horns outside only added to her growing anxiety.

Suddenly, a sharp, ear-splitting horn pierced through the air, followed by the screeching sound of tires skidding across the asphalt, barely drowning out a terrified scream.

Xu Mengzhou looked up blankly just in time to see a minivan barreling directly toward them.

Then, everything went black.

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