My Arranged Marriage Partner Is Always Pretending to Be Straight [Transmigrated into a Book] - Chapter 9

The character Lian Tongwei was never mentioned in the novel Blood and Tears Marriage. However, Qiao Mengdi had known of her famous name long ago; having studied art and design in university, she followed fashion news closely.

That same Lian Tongwei—who monopolized wedding dress designs for the elite and appeared constantly in fashion magazines—was actually Yao Chiyue’s friend.

For a moment, Qiao Mengdi found it difficult to distinguish between reality and the novel.

Fortunately, Sandun gave a forceful tug forward, snapping her out of her daze.

This novel is too terrifying, Qiao Mengdi thought as she was dragged along by the dog. Could Yao Chiyue be a “transmigrator” too?

No, no… if that were the case, it would be far too frightening. She didn’t dare let her thoughts go any further.

When she arrived back at the house, the old residence was silent. Qiao Mengdi didn’t know if the old lady had returned from her date yet.

Only half the day had passed, but as she collapsed onto the sofa, she felt as though her energy for the entire day had been squeezed dry.

After their walk, Sandun also seemed drained. Seeing Qiao Mengdi lie down, the dog slumped at the foot of the sofa, chin pressed against the floor, body completely still.

Qiao Mengdi lay there for a while before deciding it would be better to sleep in bed. Between changing rooms, the night before and the fact that her previous life had been erased—with her own family no longer recognizing her—the violent shift in her existence had left her feeling both desperate and exhausted.

Beyond that, to stay alive, she had to marry someone who didn’t like women, and getting a divorce meant death…

All these things combined had tormented her, resulting in a restless night filled with nightmares. Now, she just wanted to catch up on sleep.

When she entered the bedroom, Sandun tried to follow, but she quickly blocked the way with her foot and shooed the dog away.

Sandun let out a few whimpers, as if saying, “Grandma would never treat me like this, hmph!”

As she lay down on the soft bed, Qiao Mengdi could feel the exhaustion slowly draining from her body. She picked up her phone and checked WeChat; as expected, the friend request had been accepted.

Yao Chiyue’s nickname was just her real name—truly the style of a female CEO. Qiao Mengdi looked at the notification, remembering how Yao Chiyue had wiped her nosebleed not long ago. Remembering the white handkerchief she had brought back, she scrambled up and pulled it from a compartment in her bag. Sure enough, a large patch of her small satchel had been soaked through.

She went to the bathroom and poured a little laundry detergent onto the handkerchief.

The blood washed away easily, leaving the fabric pure white and spotless.

She had originally placed it on a clothes hanger to hang on the rod, but then she worried that because the handkerchief was so light, it might blow away or fall. She found a small clip, rinsed it with water, took the handkerchief down, and secured it firmly. Only then did she feel at ease.

If Yao Chiyue doesn’t want it, I’ll just keep it for myself, she thought.

When Qiao Mengdi woke up, it was dark outside.

She stretched, let out a yawn, and cursorily smoothed her hair, feeling like her physical battery was mostly recharged.

However, her spirits were still a bit low, especially since she remembered she might have to go home tonight.

She slowly slid out of bed and walked downstairs. The old lady was currently setting the dinner table.

“Do you need help?” Qiao Mengdi stood by the table, looking a bit lost.

“Bring the soup over.” The old lady seemed to be in a good mood.

As they began to eat, Qiao Mengdi asked, “How was Grandma’s date today?”

“It was just okay.”

“What does ‘just okay’ mean?”

“You can’t even manage your own affairs, why are you worrying about mine?”

“I had a date today too,” Qiao Mengdi said defiantly.

“And? Can you accept marrying a woman now?”

“If you won’t tell me about yours, I won’t tell you about mine.”

“I was just killing time. You are different.”

Unwittingly, Qiao Mengdi felt like she had been hit by another arrow. She retorted, “What’s the difference? I’m also just killing time.”

“Your life is still long. If you don’t like her, the days will be very hard to endure.”

“Maybe I’ll find a way to make her like me?” After saying this, Qiao Mengdi took a mouthful of rice.

“I was talking about you liking her.”

Qiao Mengdi felt that the original “Qiao Mengdi” had reasons for not liking her grandmother. The old woman had a knack for seeing through to the essence of things and piercing the heart with the simplest truths.

“Sister Yao is a very good person,” Qiao Mengdi lowered her head to sip her soup.

“There is no necessary connection between ‘liking’ someone and them being ‘good’.”

“Just because I don’t like her now doesn’t mean I won’t like her later. People’s hearts change.” Qiao Mengdi simply didn’t want to be defeated by the old lady so easily.

“I don’t like your father. I didn’t like him before, and I don’t like him now.”

The old lady’s combat effectiveness and will were both incredibly strong.

“I don’t like him either,” Qiao Mengdi chimed in.

Both grandmother and granddaughter ate slowly.

“Exactly,” the old lady said, appearing more comfortable now that Qiao Mengdi was on her side.

“Did you not like him when he was little? He is Grandma’s only son, he came from your womb.”

“You brat, you’ve touched a nerve.”

“Grandma, tell me about when my dad was a kid.” Calling Qiao Chengrong “Dad” still felt a bit uncomfortable for Qiao Mengdi.

“Him? It seems like after I gave birth to him, he just grew up on his own. He didn’t need me at all; he did everything well. And as you can see, he’s about to be promoted again.”

“Oh.” Qiao Mengdi lost her appetite. “In the future, when I have time, I’ll come to see Grandma often.”

“Do not make promises lightly.”

“Do you not like me coming to see you?”

The old lady looked a bit displeased. “Before, you wouldn’t even call me Grandma. This time you come here and its ‘Grandma’ this and ‘Grandma’ that. Are you even yourself anymore? Can I even believe your words?”

So that’s how it is, Qiao Mengdi thought, stunned. Did the original host really dislike her grandmother that much?

Now that she had lost her real family, she was subconsciously trying to win over everyone she could be close to in this new life.

“You can. Grandma can believe me.”

“I don’t have the money to ransom you,” the old lady said crossly. “My money has been squeezed dry by your father.”

“He’s so unfilial!”

“However, I already gave him a beating for you.”

“Didn’t you admit you two haven’t seen each other in a long time?”

“It’s better not to meet.”

Qiao Mengdi didn’t know if the old lady was just speaking out of anger. No matter how much resentment there was, could there really be a mother who truly didn’t want to see her son?

“Thank you, Grandma, for venting your anger for me.”

“Thank you for what? You were still sold off.”

“Actually, it’s not entirely like that. The marriage alliance and Yao Chiyue supporting my father are two different things. My father must be useful to the Yao family; they aren’t stupid. How could business people spend money for nothing?” Qiao Mengdi was certain of this. “So, they probably won’t treat me too badly. And my father likely wants to use me to make the relationship between the two families more stable.”

At this moment, she suddenly understood why the old lady had ignored Yao Chiyue at the door last night. She must have still been angry at Qiao Chengrong’s actions and took it out on Yao Chiyue by association.

“You’re quite clear-headed. Why don’t you run away? You’re so young, where wouldn’t be good to go? There are so many great places in the world. Who can guarantee your father will always be useful?”

“If I run away, I won’t have a family anymore.”

“With a family like this, wouldn’t it be better to have none? When you meet the right person, you like later and start a family, you’ll have a new family.”

“Grandma, let’s talk about something else.” Qiao Mengdi really wanted to say that if she ran away, she might not survive three chapters, but how could the old lady believe such a thing?

“Eat quickly.”

“I’m full.”

“Young person, you eat less than an old woman like me. Does that make sense?”

Qiao Mengdi was forced to eat a bit more. “Seriously though, is Grandma in a relationship? Your clothes are so fashionable, you have the air of an artist!”

“Those old men are jealous and petty all day long. It’s annoying to death.”

“Wow, I didn’t realize my grandma had a harem!”

“What harem?”

“It’s just—” Qiao Mengdi smiled mischievously, “it’s like being an Empress, with many grandpas who like you.”

“Shh!” The old lady hurried to quiet her, glancing toward the portrait of the General on the living room wall.

“What are you afraid of?”

“The ‘Main Consort’ is watching.”

Qiao Mengdi suddenly felt that the old lady had a cute side.

After dinner, Qiao Mengdi cleaned the kitchen.

“I didn’t know you could do housework. Honestly, you do it better than me,” the old lady remarked when she came to inspect the results.

The original host probably never touched a chore in her life.

“It’s simple enough.”

“I hate doing housework. Lanmei has gone home for a few days,” the old lady said.

So she does have a domestic helper, Qiao Mengdi thought.

Just after nine o’clock, Qiao Mengyang arrived. He was fair-skinned and very tall, with a long, sullen face. He looked “cool” in a rebellious way, but there were fresh bruises on his jaw and cheekbones. It looked like he had just been in a serious fight.

This kind of “bad boy” type was likely very popular at school; sixteen or seventeen-year-old kids loved his style.

Qiao Mengyang entered, called out to his grandmother, and then immediately said to Qiao Mengdi impatiently: “Let’s go. Dad is waiting for us outside.”

“Why isn’t he coming in?” Qiao Mengdi was puzzled. Had this mother and son really reached the point where they couldn’t even see each other?

“Ask Grandma.”

“He’s afraid I’ll break his legs!” The old lady said with a look of fury. She stared at Qiao Mengyang’s face for a moment, but seemed accustomed to his fighting and didn’t ask about it.

Qiao Mengdi froze. Ah! So when the old lady said she ‘gave him a beating’ during dinner, she wasn’t joking?

She went to her room to grab her bag, not forgetting to take the white handkerchief, and then said goodbye to the old lady. “Grandma, we’re leaving now.”

“Grandma, what about… that?” Qiao Mengyang scratched his head.

“I’m in a bad mood, so nothing this time!”

“Oh.” Qiao Mengyang snatched Qiao Mengdi’s travel bag and turned to dash out.

Qiao Mengdi looked at the old lady and followed him.

Thinking about Qiao Chengrong losing his temper, her heart began to thump with anxiety.