Another Day of Pretending for the Wealthy Couple - Chapter 25

Ji Tanyuan sat straddled in his lap, his slender fingers pressing against her tailbone, forcing her to lean into his embrace.

The kiss didn’t end; he grew bolder, leaving no part of her untouched.

Ji Tanyuan had no choice but to endure it until she was gasping for breath. Only then did he release her. Panting heavily, her crimson lips looked even redder, alluring and sensual.

Pressed tightly together, Ji Tanyuan felt uncomfortable being so intimate outdoors. To be precise, she wasn’t used to such closeness anywhere outside the bedroom. The setting felt wrong.

There was no emotional foundation for flirtation between them, nor anything worth flirting about.

Zhong Yan was unusually forceful at that moment, leaving no room for resistance. “What? Am I not allowed to touch you?”

Ji Tanyuan asked, “What’s wrong with you?”

Zhong Yan’s gaze fell on the earrings dangling by her ears, recalling the message sent by the Zhong family’s public opinion monitoring team. He reached out and gently touched one, his voice low and resonant, whispering near her ear, “These are just trinkets worth a few million. How is that considered extravagant?”

Pathetic trash.

Ji Tanyuan let out a soft gasp, staring at Zhong Yan’s icy expression.

She touched her other earring and asked, “Are you talking about this?”

Then she smiled. “They’re beautiful, and the symbolism is nice too. One is 6.6 carats, the other 8.8 carats. I like them.”

Zhong Yan leaned back slightly, his fingers tracing her ear before his palm slowly and gently trailed downward.

Ji Tanyuan wanted to pull away, overwhelmed by his commanding presence.

She tilted her head, avoiding his touch.

His hand hung suspended in the air beside her ear.

After a brief pause, he resumed as if nothing had happened, his fingers moving from her chin downward, his cold knuckles brushing against her warm, soft skin.

An ambiguous tension began to simmer around them. His dark pupils showed no trace of emotion, and Ji Tanyuan, meeting his gaze, found it impossible to decipher.

His seemingly carefree and unrestrained demeanor was merely a superficial facade. What lay beneath was something Ji Tanyuan couldn’t grasp, certainly not the casual ease of cohabitation.

To understand someone’s true nature, one must see how they act when angry. Intuitively, Zhong Yan seemed displeased at that moment.

Ji Tanyuan raised her hand and gripped his wrist, stopping his advance. “Zhong Yan.”

He caressed her cheek and hummed in response. “Let me ask you something. Which is more likely, emotional infidelity or physical infidelity?”

Ji Tanyuan’s face darkened. “I would never cheat.”

Zhong Yan chuckled. “Is that so? It better be.”

“Then what’s going on with Miss Zhang? It’s hard not to overthink when you’re with her.”

Ji Tanyuan had expected this. Was it disdain for her friends or an attempt to discipline her for disobedience?

“What should I do then? Many of your friends are like that too. Why is it only a problem when it’s me?”

Zhong Yan lowered his hand. “At least don’t make it so obvious. The Zhong family isn’t happy about it.”

Ji Tanyuan sneered, sliding off his lap to sit beside him. “Do they dislike me, or do they dislike you?”

Zhong Yan replied, “That’s a possibility.”

His family had never liked him. As a child, they handed him over to specialized educators, devoid of warmth or care, only cold, scientific teaching methods. The only affection he ever received came from the family’s nanny.

Ji Tanyuan fell silent, gazing out the window. It wasn’t until the car had traveled some distance that she finally spoke: “Some people have been saying very offensive things to my friends, either indirectly or straight to their faces. Zhong Yan, this isn’t right. It’s true that my family lacks deep-rooted influence, and the friends around me are a mixed bunch, but they’re being overly critical. Since our families are marrying for mutual benefit, why nitpick about me personally? Are they missing the point?”

Wanting everything, yet never satisfied, greed piled upon greed.

Zhong Yan sat quietly on the other side, his expression indifferent as he, too, looked out the window. He had remained silent ever since Ji Tanyuan first voiced her discontent.

Each sat on their own side, each lost in their own thoughts as they watched the world outside.

The earlier intimate atmosphere had completely vanished, replaced only by a clear, reasoned expression of dissatisfaction.

Zhong Yan repeated his earlier stance: “As I recall, you were aware from the start, this is a real marriage, not merely an alliance. Otherwise, why would I have gone through such lengths to take you on dates before the wedding?”

“Adjusting your lifestyle to conform to the Zhong family rules, need I remind you?” he snapped, the words escaping him fueled by an inexplicable anger.

Ji Tanyuan offered no rebuttal. “Fine.”

A satisfied smile touched Zhong Yan’s lips before he spoke again, his tone casual yet laced with unmistakable warning: “Let me make this clear one last time, stay away from those people, men and women alike. I have no desire to see Mrs. Zhong at some chaotic party. If you want to have your fun, wait until after the divorce.”

He was confident this marriage was firmly under his control. Having observed the eccentric relatives from the Ji family, he was certain Ji Tanyuan wouldn’t easily defy him.

Ji Tanyuan lowered her gaze. It was raining again, the droplets streaking down the windowpane, blurring the neon lights of the Bund into hazy, glowing rings.

A heavy, damp feeling settled in her heart. She now had to juggle responsibilities for both the Ji and Zhong families.

Priorities had to be set: first, stabilize the marriage and placate the senior members of the group to oust certain individuals; only then could she address the issues within her marriage.

But then she recalled her father’s silence at the dinner table. Closing her eyes, she realized that since returning from the wedding, she had become utterly alone.

“I won’t be joining your friends’ gathering. I’m going to my mother’s place.”

Zhong Yan gave a noncommittal “Mm.” offering no attempt to persuade her to stay. He wasn’t in the mood for it either.

Ji Tanyuan stepped out of the car and walked into the villa without a backward glance.

Zhong Yan waited until she was out of sight before instructing the driver to leave.

What was supposed to be a shared evening had, because of two phone calls, reverted their relationship back to square one.

No one could escape the emotional turbulence brought on by family, neither Ji Tanyuan nor Zhong Yan were exceptions.

When Ji Tanyuan entered the house, the only presence was a Persian cat gracefully pacing along the stair rail like a performer. It let out a soft meow upon seeing its young mistress return.

Ji Tanyuan’s mother, Sheng Wan, had fallen in love with Ji Qing during their university years and married him, standing by him as he built his business from scratch, a journey of hardship few could truly comprehend.

After marriage, they welcomed twins, and around that time, Ji Qing’s company entered its golden age, thriving in both real estate and overseas freight forwarding.

The family of four enjoyed over a decade of happiness, which came to an abrupt halt with the unexpected death of Ji Tanyuan’s brother. From then on, her mother developed mental health issues, including depression and bipolar disorder. She and her husband lived separately but never divorced, occasionally staying together.

Ji Tanyuan had her own suspicions about conspiracies, but the police had officially ruled it an accident. Her parents seemed to have accepted this conclusion, never pursuing the matter further and never speaking of their son again.

Back then, her mother had held her tightly, weeping, and told her, “From now on, you are the only child of the Ji family.”

Ji Tanyuan saw the light coming from her mother’s room. She gently knocked, and upon hearing a response from inside, she opened the door to find her mother sitting by the bed, reading a book.

Ji Tanyuan had inherited her mother’s brow bone entirely, deep-set yet not sharp, gentle and captivating.

She walked over. “Mom.”

Sheng Wan set down the book. “You’re back? Did you come alone?”

Ji Tanyuan crouched by Sheng Wan’s feet, sitting on the carpet, and rested her head on her mother’s knees. “I missed you so much.”

Sheng Wan had just taken her medication and had been emotionally stable, but as she looked at her daughter’s head, a mother-daughter bond stirred within her, and she suddenly grew restless. Her voice trembled as she said, “Huanghuang, are you unhappy after getting married? If you’re unhappy, get a divorce.”

Ji Tanyuan reached out and grasped her hand. “No, it’s not that. I just missed you. Where did you get the idea that I’m unhappy in my marriage?”

Sheng Wan then crouched down and hugged her daughter. “Remember, if he sides with his family instead of you, you must divorce him. Don’t hold any expectations for him.”

Ji Tanyuan hummed in agreement and patted her shoulder. “I know, don’t worry.”

“I heard from Auntie that you’re planning to travel? Where are you going?”

Sheng Wan’s attention was diverted, and they began chatting about other things.