Bowing to Arranged Marriage [Rebirth] - Chapter 15

Zheng Xiyun had never been deeply in love with her boyfriend to begin with; she simply felt he was a good match who understood her well. Now that she knew about his secret meetings with Zheng Yoaquin, whatever little affection she had left for him vanished entirely.

She stepped forward, watching as Kang Minghong flashed her his familiar smile, yet her heart remained utterly unmoved. “How did you know I was on this flight?” she asked.

Seeing Kang Minghong with fresh eyes, Zheng Xiyun caught a fleeting trace of panic in his gaze. So subtle she might have dismissed it as a figment of her imagination had Zhang Yi not already tipped her off.

“I asked a friend,” Kang Minghong replied, trying to brush it off as he reached for her backpack. “Let me take that. You’ve only been gone a few days, but you look exhausted. You should rest well when you get home.”

“Which friend?” Zheng Xiyun pressed, no longer giving him the benefit of the doubt as she once would have. Her tone was sharp, almost accusatory.

The doting smile on Kang Minghong’s face faltered, replaced by confusion and concern. “Xiyun, what’s wrong with you?”

Zheng Xiyun shook her head at him.

Kang Minghong continued, “Whatever it is, you have to tell me. If you’ve misunderstood something, that’s fine, but don’t bottle it up and hurt yourself!”

“I want to be alone. Stop talking,” she said coldly, striding past him without hesitation.

Mu Qing, who had been watching the entire scene, smirked, her earlier frustration completely forgotten. This boyfriend doesn’t seem like much competition! Still, she wasn’t keen on being labeled a homewrecker. Should she wait for them to break up naturally, or give them a little push?

Pulling out her phone, Mu Qing sent a quick message to her brother before hurrying after Zheng Xiyun.

Zheng Xiyun hailed a taxi, opened the door, and slid inside. Just as she was about to shut it, a sudden tug nearly yanked her back out. Glaring at the unexpected intruder now sitting beside her, she snapped, “If you’re broke, I can give you money. Stop following me.”

“We’re going the same way,” Mu Qing replied shamelessly.

The anger simmering inside Zheng Xiyun threatened to boil over, but the driver’s timely question about their destination saved Mu Qing from an outburst.

Zheng Xiyun tersely gave her address and ignored Mu Qing for the rest of the ride.

A notification chimed. Mu Qing checked her phone and couldn’t help but grin. Quickly schooling her expression, she turned to Zheng Xiyun with feigned solemnity and held out her phone. “I knew something was off about your boyfriend the moment I saw him today. Look! He’s been cheating on you.”

Despite her resolve to ignore Mu Qing, Zheng Xiyun stiffened and snatched the phone, scrutinizing the screen.

It was a screenshot from a surveillance camera, slightly distorted but unmistakable. Zheng Yoaquin and Kang Minghong, arms wrapped around each other, stepping into a hotel room.

Mu Qing leaned in closer, her tone dripping with mock concern. “See? They definitely weren’t in there just to discuss scripts.”

Zheng Xiyun shot her a frosty glare, her already foul mood worsening. “Don’t joke about this. I hate hearing that kind of nonsense.”

“Fine!” Mu Qing agreed readily, then scrolled up the chat history without hesitation, as if she had nothing to hide. “There’s more. My brother just got this. He was going to send it to you directly, but when I asked about your boyfriend, he showed me first.”

As they spoke, Mu Qing had already scrolled the chat history back to the beginning of the conversation. Zheng Xiyun clearly saw the message Mu Qing had sent to Mu Jin: “Bro! Emergency! Ayun actually has a boyfriend! How did you guys arrange this blind date marriage? She’s not single right now!”

Soon after, Mu Jin sent countless surveillance screenshots and hotel booking records.

Zheng Xiyun felt utterly powerless. If Mu Qing had pressured her like the Zheng family, she might have fought tooth and nail with her in Kangding, ending up estranged for life.

Zheng Xiyun feared no authority and refused to compromise for money. She thought no one could sway her in the slightest, yet she never expected the protagonist who had yet to appear would break all conventions. Never mentioning pursuit but shamelessly clinging to her relentlessly. Whenever Zheng Xiyun rejected her, Mu Qing could come up with a million excuses for “coincidental” encounters or shared routes. Zheng Xiyun couldn’t bring herself to hit or scold her.

And now, she had even started investigating her boyfriend—no, ex-boyfriend.

Zheng Xiyun swiped through the records on her phone. The hotel bookings started two months into her relationship with Kang Minghong, occurring three to ten times a month without fail.

She wasn’t exactly sad or angry. Right now, another question weighed heavier on her mind: “You investigated Kang Minghong today. Will you do the same to me someday?”

She knew the Mu family’s capabilities. If they really wanted to investigate someone like her, an ordinary citizen it would only be a matter of time.

“Of course not! Absolutely not!” Mu Qing swore earnestly. “I promise to treat you with equality, respect, and harmony. I’d never do something like that.”

Zheng Xiyun looked at her with a mocking glint in her eyes. “Then why were you in the same travel group as me?”

Mu Qing’s expression froze. Her hands clenched and unclenched before she finally admitted, “I’m sorry. I apologize. But I don’t regret it at all. Want to hit me to make yourself feel better?”

See? That was exactly it. How could she deal with someone so shamelessly stubborn, impervious to both soft and hard tactics?

Handing the phone back to Mu Qing, Zheng Xiyun leaned her head against the window, watching the fleeting cityscape outside as she calmed down. Since Kang Minghong had betrayed her and fooled around with Zheng Yoaquin, she wouldn’t go easy on either of them.

The taxi stopped in front of Zheng Xiyun’s apartment. She opened the door and stepped out, slamming it shut on Mu Qing’s farewell.

Slinging her backpack over her shoulder, she strode toward the building. After showering at home, she poured herself a glass of red wine, wrapped herself in a bathrobe, and called Zhang Yi from the couch.

“I was just about to call you!” Zhang Yi said. “Darling, I received an email from Mu Jin, evidence of Kang Minghong’s infidelity.”

“I’ve already seen it,” Zheng Xiyun swirled her wineglass and sighed dramatically. “For someone so smart, he actually fell for Zheng Yoaquin. Zhang Yi, tell me is that really so addictive? He cheated on me just two months into our relationship.”

“How would I know? I’m not a man,” Zhang Yi retorted. “But I’ve seen plenty of men ruined by women, unable to crawl back up.”

At that moment, Zheng Xiyun felt immensely grateful that Kang Minghong had always maintained what he called “respect” for her never forcing her when she wasn’t willing. Otherwise, sharing a man with her half-sister would have disgusted her to death.

“The project he’s holding onto isn’t bad,” Zheng Xiyun shifted the topic, beginning to calculate the projects currently in Kang Minghong’s hands. Since this person was so duplicitous and hypocritical, she’d leave him no way out either.

Zhang Yi laughed, “Isn’t that perfect? You won’t need to look for other projects next year just focus on finishing this one properly.”

Zheng Xiyun took a sip of red wine, savoring the rich flavor spreading across her tongue. Her mood gradually improved, and she started chatting with Zhang Yi about other topics. “How’s the promotion going for that face mask?”

Zhang Yi replied, “The online testimonial posts are already in motion. Their company suggested celebrity endorsements, and I agreed. Getting a popular star to endorse it would yield the fastest results.”

In her past life, this face mask had gone viral precisely because of an endorsement from a popular male celebrity. The star had a massive and highly loyal fanbase, making the campaign incredibly effective. It quickly became a bestseller in major beauty stores. If she remembered correctly, the mask company had only signed a one-year contract with that celebrity back then. Once his popularity peaked and the contract expired, they switched to a slightly less famous endorser. By then, the mask’s reputation was already established, so the change didn’t make much difference.

Zheng Xiyun thought for a moment. She didn’t plan to interfere too much, but she still wanted to remind her friend. After all, in her past life, they hadn’t been the ones investing.

So she said to Zhang Yi, “They’ll send you a proposal, right?”

Zhang Yi nodded, “Of course.”

Zheng Xiyun hummed in acknowledgment. “I just wanted to remind you not to overwork yourself. If their proposal is decent, there’s no need to be too harsh on them.”

Zhang Yi chuckled, “Got it. But Miss Zheng, since you have so many requests, shouldn’t you step up and handle the negotiations yourself? Stop always playing the behind-the-scenes CEO!”

Zheng Xiyun didn’t refuse. After all, both of them stood to profit, and leaving everything to Zhang Yi did make her feel a bit guilty.

What truly shocked everyone, however, was Mu Qing. The first thing she did after returning home was announce to her parents, who were sitting in the living room watching TV, “I’m planning to marry Zheng Xiyun.”

The elderly couple wasn’t the least bit surprised. Mu Jin had already informed them.

But what troubled Mu Qing was that after returning to Beijing, she hadn’t seen Zheng Xiyun again. Every “coincidental” encounter she engineered was either dodged by Zheng Xiyun or thwarted by her overwhelming busyness. She simply had no time to spare for her.

When in trouble, turn to big brother!

The moment Mu Jin came home, Mu Qing pestered him for a solution. Mu Jin looked at her with an I-knew-it expression, his tone laced with affectionate warmth as he said, “The product she recently invested in hired a celebrity from Mu Corporation for endorsement. I heard Zheng Xiyun will be coming to the company to sign the contract.”

No one understood a sister like her brother. Mu Qing reached out to Mu Jin, her eyes gleaming with mischief. “Since you’ve already looked into it, do you have a way to help me? Just to be clear, I’m not becoming a celebrity!”

Mu Jin retorted, “As if I’d let you!”

Mu Qing grinned again. “Then what’s your brilliant plan?”

Mu Jin replied, “No special plan. When the time comes, you’ll be the one negotiating the contract with Zheng Xiyun. As for what happens after the contract and after that you should know what to do, right?”

Mu Qing tilted her head up confidently. “Got it!”