Another Day of Pretending for the Wealthy Couple - Chapter 3

Evening, Manhe Club

The room fell into an eerie silence after the club manager announced, “Your wife is here.”

The only one among them who had a wife was Zhong Yan.

The girl who had remained silent finally spoke.

Shu Yun bit her lip and looked at Zhong Yan. “Are you leaving now? I invited you specifically.”

Hearing this, Zhong Yan suddenly turned to his friend Gu Beiming with a knowing smirk. Gu Beiming guiltily rubbed his nose, after all, he had lied to Zhong Yan, claiming he organized the gathering just to get him to come.

“Don’t look at him. I asked him to do it. You’ve been avoiding me ever since you got married.”

Zhong Yan stood up. “I haven’t been avoiding you. I’ve been busy.”

“You’ve been spending time with Ji Tanyuan,” Shu Yun said, her voice trembling.

Zhong Yan found it somewhat amusing. “She’s my wife. Who else should I be with?”

Shu Yun’s face turned pale. “You admit she’s your wife?”

Zhong Yan glanced at her. “An arranged marriage wife is still a wife.”

After all, the betrothal gifts had already been given.

“Will you two get divorced?”

Zhong Yan raised an eyebrow, amused but not offended. Teasingly, he replied, “Shu Yun, that’s not very auspicious. I just got married, and you’re already asking about divorce?”

“Besides, I’m not leaving. I’m going to pick her up and introduce her to all of you.”

With that, he left to fetch her.

After Zhong Yan left, Gu Beiming looked at Shu Yun, whose eyes were red, and patted her shoulder. It had always been a case of unrequited feelings, her affection for him was one-sided. “Give up.” he said.

Shu Yun wiped her tears. “Give up? It’s just an arranged marriage. I can wait.”

Zhong Yan had never shown much interest in romance, which was why she had never confessed her feelings and had silently waited by his side. If Ji Tanyuan hadn’t stepped in, she was sure she would have had her chance.

Others chimed in, “Yeah, it’s just an arranged marriage. This is the 21st century. With no emotional foundation and different upbringings, even if they can’t divorce due to interests, they’ll likely lead separate lives. That’s not uncommon in our circle.”

Gu Beiming shot a glare at the person stirring up trouble. “Tsk, enjoying the drama, are you? Those two aren’t the type to mess around. Have you ever seen an arranged marriage like theirs?”

A political and business alliance, one wrong move, and everything could fall apart. It was bold and dangerous.

Moreover, with Zhong Yan’s father recently promoted and transferred, even if Zhong Yan wanted to fool around, he wouldn’t do it openly. They had to maintain the appearance of a loving couple.

Someone else joined in, comforting Shu Yun. After all, Shu Yun had grown up with them, while this “outsider” heiress came from a family that had only recently become wealthy, someone they looked down upon.

“Putting aside the north-south differences, just their lifestyles and values are worlds apart. A wealthy socialite from Shanghai, typical of the ‘elite culture’, she has to be extravagant when she goes out, with all the pomp, fashion, and social scenes like afternoon teas. She’s flashy and knows how to have fun.”

“Now look at Zhong Yan’s background, he’s the type who despises superficiality and empty show.”

“Shut your mouth,” Gu Beiming snapped coldly.

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he looked at Shu Yun. “Don’t say anything inappropriate later. The fact that Zhong Yan agreed to an arranged marriage shows how important it is to his family. Don’t mess up their plans.”

An arranged marriage isn’t just about two people. The Zhong family’s alliance with the wealthy Ji family from Shanghai disrupted the strong southern business monopoly and messed up their own marriage strategies. What’s at stake here is a massive power struggle among interest groups.

Shu Yun looked up at him. “Do you know something?”

Gu Beiming shook his head. “No.”

He was merely reminding Miss Shu out of their friendship, hoping she wouldn’t end up being used as someone else’s pawn.

…

Ji Tanyuan had changed into a qinglv cheongsam with a shawl, her hair tied up with a jade hairpin. A few strands had fallen loose, framing her temples in the breeze. Her figure was graceful, exuding a gentle and refined aura.

This was only the second time in their two months of marriage that they had appeared together at a friend’s dinner gathering.

The first had been their wedding two months prior, attended by notable figures from political and business circles.

That same day, the Ji family’s financing had achieved complete success. The credibility crisis caused by a major incident was resolved, the capital chain gradually restored, and capital from the capital city, led by Zhong Yan, began advancing southward through the Ji family. The political and business landscape in southern financial hubs started to shift.

Everything was falling into place, which meant their marriage couldn’t afford any issues now, any problem could risk collapse.

Both were holding their tempers in check, like two smooth surfaces pressed together, unlike mortise and tenon joints that might not fit properly or, once joined, be hard to separate.

As they entered the private room,

someone at the table suddenly remarked, “I didn’t invite her.”

The comment was directed at Zhong Yan, so “her” naturally referred to Ji Tanyuan.

The atmosphere grew tense. Gu Beiming shot the woman a warning glance, hostility wasn’t appropriate with the person in question present.

Gu Beiming smoothed things over, smiling at Ji Tanyuan. “Tanyuan, you might not know her yet. This is Shu Yun, just back from abroad. She grew up with A-Yan, we’re all friends here.”

Ji Tanyuan was well aware of Shu Yun. Before the marriage, she had investigated Zhong Yan. While details about him were scarce, his social circle was easier to uncover.

Rumors spoke of a “childhood sweetheart”, Shu Yun, the youngest daughter of the Shu family.

Judging by the hostility from one of the parties involved, the rumors held truth.

Zhong Yan placed his hand on Ji Tanyuan’s waist, guiding her to a seat, and said nonchalantly, “Had I known you were invited, we wouldn’t have come. We’ll just stay for a bit.”

The private room was about fifty square meters, decorated in a modern style, with a table that could seat around twenty. Currently, only about ten people were present, a casual dinner among ordinary friends.

Shu Yun felt stung by Zhong Yan’s retort. She had always known his temperament and usually brushed off such remarks, but this time, she suddenly felt hurt.

Ji Tanyuan ignored the underlying exclusion in Shu Yun’s words. Her attention was first captured by someone seated across the table.

Cheng Gengxu, founder of Gengxu Capital; Rong Xi, CFO of Furong Group; Zhao Qingye, Asia-Pacific CEO of Ming’s Pharmaceuticals; and one or two others she didn’t recognize, who, judging by their demeanor, were likely in politics. This wasn’t the crowd of frivolous heirs her investigation had suggested. So, this was Zhong Yan’s real social circle, and here he still occupied the seat of honor. Zhong Yan truly was the “crown prince.”

Zhong Yan leaned in and whispered in her ear, “Not quite what you dug up, is it?”