Refusing Divorce After a Contract Marriage - Chapter 19

Chapter 19: Love Song Duet

On the second day of the New Year, they went to the Jiang house to pay their respects. Perhaps because of what happened previously, Jiang Xiaofan and the young Jiang “troublemaker” were much more restrained.

Jiang Wenyan specifically called Jiang Chumian into the study for a chat. It was unclear what they discussed, but when she emerged, Jiang Chumian’s expression looked quite good.

Shen Qingye didn’t ask her directly, but Jiang Chumian volunteered the information.

The two didn’t stay long at the Jiang house; they left right after lunch. Since it was still early, Xiao Jinyu suddenly announced she was coming over to pay her New Year respects.

After consulting Shen Qingye, Jiang Chumian let her come. Meng Zhu also joined the fun, saying she wanted to come as well. On the way back, the two stopped by the supermarket to buy some groceries. Aside from the large hypermarkets, many smaller shops were closed, and the selection of produce wasn’t great.

“What should we buy? What does Meng Zhu like to eat?” Jiang Chumian picked through the vegetables, somewhat at a loss.

“Anything is fine; she’s not picky,” Shen Qingye said softly.

“Alright then. How about a stewed pork rib soup?”

“Sure.”

Consulting each other, with Shen Qingye pushing the cart and Jiang Chumian picking out items ahead, they looked like a couple who had lived together for many years.

“Should we buy drinks? Or just alcohol?” Jiang Chumian hesitated in the beverage aisle.

“Let’s buy some and let them drink what they want.” Shen Qingye took a few bottles she liked and winked at Jiang Chumian: “Pick what you want to drink first.”

“Okay.” Jiang Chumian laughed, picked a few items for herself, and then grabbed a bottle of Coke: “Xiao Jinyu likes this.”

“Mhm, good.”

Ultimately, they carried two large bags of groceries and arrived home around three o’clock.

No one had arrived yet, so Jiang Chumian went to prep the ingredients. Just as she finished, at four o’clock, the two parties arrived one after another.

When Xiao Jinyu arrived, Meng Zhu was already there, sitting on the sofa eating snacks and cracking melon seeds. Seeing Xiao Jinyu, Meng Zhu greeted her with a smile, and Xiao Jinyu lunged forward to give her a hug. “How did you get here so early?”

“I’m not like you, staying up all night, not sleeping until dawn, and not getting up until noon.” Meng Zhu pinched her cheek.

Xiao Jinyu gave her a look: “I don’t believe it. You’re just like me; you’ve probably just been unable to sleep in these past few days.”

Meng Zhu chuckled: “You know too much, my friend.”

As they spoke, Shen Qingye and Jiang Chumian emerged from the kitchen.

“Goddess! Happy New Year!” Xiao Jinyu was extremely excited the moment she saw Shen Qingye.

Seeing Xiao Jinyu about to lunge at Shen Qingye, Jiang Chumian quickly pulled her back slightly; Shen Qingye didn’t like being too physically close to people.

Xiao Jinyu turned to look at Jiang Chumian: “Mianmian, I’m not stealing your wife; I’m just a little fan.”

Ever since seeing the reports about Shen Qingye online, Xiao Jinyu had become a die-hard fan. Smart, beautiful, and the CEO of the Shen Group at such a young age who wouldn’t like her?

Jiang Chumian sighed: “Stop messing around.” What’s all this talk about stealing a wife? Pure nonsense.

Xiao Jinyu blinked innocently: “Mianmian! You’re so mean, you won’t even let me look at my Goddess.”

Jiang Chumian’s expression became even more helpless. It wasn’t that she was “forbidding” it, but rather that Shen Qingye didn’t like it, and Xiao Jinyu was the type who, when excited, completely forgot to consider other people’s preferences. Although her family wasn’t excessively wealthy, she had been raised in luxury and was habitually self-centered.

Shen Qingye couldn’t help but laugh and told Xiao Jinyu to sit on the sofa first. Once she was seated, Shen Qingye looked at Jiang Chumian with a hint of teasing in her eyes. She indeed didn’t like Xiao Jinyu being so enthusiastic, but seeing Jiang Chumian protect her made even Xiao Jinyu seem a bit more agreeable.

Jiang Chumian met her gaze and instinctively looked away.

Meng Zhu naturally saw this little drama. After Xiao Jinyu sat down beside her, Meng Zhu placed a hand on her head: “You’re quite bold.”

“Hehe,” Xiao Jinyu leaned in and whispered to Meng Zhu, “I used to follow celebrities, but every single one of them had a scandal and ‘collapsed,’ so I gave up on the entertainment industry in a rage. My Goddess definitely won’t collapse.”

Jiang Chumian: “…”

She didn’t dare tell Shen Qingye about Xiao Jinyu’s “jinx” regarding celebrities, though she felt Shen Qingye was unlikely to have any scandalous “collapses.” Her private life seemed normal, and she certainly wouldn’t break any laws.

Jiang Chumian shifted the topic, asking Xiao Jinyu why she suddenly ran over today.

“My mom is too much! She actually wanted to set me up on a blind date, so I left in a fit of anger.” Xiao Jinyu puffed out her cheeks. “It’s all your fault for marrying so early; my mom thinks I’m getting old too. I’m only 23! How is that old?”

Jiang Chumian, having become an accidental target, shrugged: “I’m not taking the blame for this.”

“23 is indeed a bit early for marriage pressure,” Meng Zhu chimed in.

“Right! It’s way too early! I’m still young, I haven’t played enough, and I don’t want a partner yet. Having a partner is so restrictive.” Xiao Jinyu was still huffing.

Meng Zhu smiled and looked at her slyly: “If your mom is pushing too hard, why not consider… putting on an act? I have to deal with marriage pressure from my family too, anyway.”

Hearing the suggestion, Xiao Jinyu thought for a moment but shook her head. “No, I can’t compromise that easily. If I give in and bring you to meet my mom, she’ll probably start pushing for a wedding immediately. I can’t indulge her.”

Meng Zhu pinched her face: “Stubborn enough.”

“That’s right, I shall never bow to the dark forces.”

Jiang Chumian went to start cooking, and Shen Qingye set out the wine, Coke, and snacks.

Meng Zhu looked at Shen Qingye with interest: “In the past when I came here, it was cold, empty, and deserted—at most a glass of wine or a cup of coffee. Tsk, having a wife really adds a lot of life to a place.”

Xiao Jinyu blinked: “Of course! Our Mianmian really knows how to manage a home.”

Jiang Chumian happened to hear this and chuckled. Manage a home? It was simply a necessity born of circumstances; when she was on exchange abroad, if she didn’t cook, there wasn’t much to eat. While edible, the food there was truly not to her taste.

Shen Qingye let them play while she went to the kitchen to help. Although she wasn’t much help, she felt it wasn’t right to leave Jiang Chumian alone in the kitchen; she wasn’t their personal chef.

The meal for five wasn’t overly elaborate: braised fish, sweet and sour pork ribs, cola chicken wings, stewed corn and pork rib soup, stir-fried beef, and braised eggplant. It was much more relaxed and comfortable than at the elders’ house. They laughed, talked, and drank a bit of wine.

After dinner, Meng Zhu suggested games like “Who is the Spy” and “Draw and Guess” simple, childish games that Xiao Jinyu and she enjoyed the most.

By midnight, they started singing. Meng Zhu and Xiao Jinyu were completely “wailing like ghosts and howling like wolves.” Jiang Chumian sat beside Shen Qingye, quiet and still; the two couldn’t even get a word in. Meng Zhu and Xiao Jinyu held the only two microphones in the house, their heads huddled together.

Fortunately, neither Jiang Chumian nor Shen Qingye wanted to sing. Jiang Chumian felt she wasn’t in the same age group as Xiao Jinyu, and Shen Qingye felt the same about herself and Meng Zhu. Compared to those two “childish ghosts,” they both felt old.

However, even though they didn’t sing, they drank quite a bit while chatting. Shen Qingye turned her head to see Jiang Chumian sitting on the carpet, leaning against the sofa with her hands around her knees. Having drunk too much, her cheeks were flushed red, and her eyes were misty. She rested her head on her knees, looking as quiet and delicate as an exquisite doll.

“Huh? ‘King of Love Songs’? I’m single, I’m not singing!” Xiao Jinyu pouted and handed the microphone to Jiang Chumian: “Mianmian, you sing!”

Meng Zhu put an arm around Xiao Jinyu’s shoulder: “Good job, sister.” She then stuffed the other microphone into Shen Qingye’s hand.

“You two sing!” Meng Zhu waved her hand, as if ready to conduct.

“Sing!” Xiao Jinyu chimed in as well.

Shen Qingye looked at the microphone in her hand, somewhat helpless, and turned to look at Jiang Chumian.

“Let’s sing,” she heard the girl’s low voice.

She could only open her mouth and follow the lyrics. Jiang Chumian, sitting on the floor, looked at the lyrics and joined in. After drinking, her voice was lower than usual, but just as beautiful, and her sense of rhythm was excellent.

They sang line by line. Shen Qingye’s voice was a bit cooler. Occasionally, while Shen Qingye was singing, Jiang Chumian would turn her head to look at her. To the other two, it looked like a gaze full of deep affection.

Xiao Jinyu pouted: “So much ‘dog food’ (PDA). I’ve just realized that being single isn’t that fun after all.”

Meng Zhu chuckled and placed a hand on Xiao Jinyu’s head: “Be good, you’re still young. Besides, you have to look at things dialectically, right? Relationships are risky.”

“Mianmian is younger than me.” Xiao Jinyu remembered she was six months older than Jiang Chumian.

Jiang Chumian couldn’t hear their whispering; she only occasionally made eye contact with Shen Qingye and felt exceptionally nervous, as if her heart was about to leap out. She was a bit annoyed with herself, unable to understand why she was so nervous.

After finishing the song, she quickly returned the microphone to Xiao Jinyu, grabbed a glass from the table, and hurriedly gulped down a drink. Shen Qingye watched her, unable to tell if her face was red from the alcohol or something else. She just thought the girl looked excessively cute.

When Xiao Jinyu was happy, she easily drank too much. By the time the gathering ended, she was as limp as a pile of mud. Meng Zhu was also tipsy, though not as extreme as Xiao Jinyu.

Xiao Jinyu simply refused to get up from the carpet: “I’m not going back, I won’t!”

Jiang Chumian, feeling helpless, looked at Shen Qingye: “Should we let them stay for the night? I’ll tell Auntie Zhang.”

“Sure,” Shen Qingye had no objection.

However, the bigger headache was that Xiao Jinyu not only refused to go home but also refused to go to a bedroom. Meng Zhu had obediently gone upstairs on her own, but Xiao Jinyu remained on the floor clutching a pillow, muttering: “I’m sleeping right here!”

Ultimately, Jiang Chumian couldn’t win. She brought a blanket, cleared the trash from the room, and let her sleep on the floor. Jiang Chumian herself had drunk quite a bit. When she stood up after covering Xiao Jinyu with the blanket, her body swayed. Shen Qingye instinctively reached out to support her.

Shen Qingye also lost her balance for a moment, and the two fell onto the sofa together, with Jiang Chumian sitting in Shen Qingye’s lap. Realizing the situation, Jiang Chumian immediately turned to get up, but when her arm rested on the sofa and she saw Shen Qingye’s face, she froze.

Shen Qingye’s hand was on her waist, and they were staring at each other. With just a slight bit of strength, Shen Qingye could pull her back into her embrace. Their hot breaths intertwined, and their eyes were no longer as calm as usual.

“There’s a living person here; go upstairs, you two,” Xiao Jinyu said groggily from under the blanket, showing only her small eyes. “Don’t feed the ‘single dog’ dog food.”

Jiang Chumian snapped awake instantly. She stood up in a panic and said to Shen Qingye, “I’m going up first. Get some sleep.”

“Mhm.”

Shen Qingye rubbed her temples, a trace of confusion in her eyes.

The next morning, when Xiao Jinyu woke up, the two hosts were already awake. Breakfast was ready, but Meng Zhu had already left, apparently having things to do.

Xiao Jinyu assessed her situation and indignantly accused Jiang Chumian of abandoning her in the living room.

Jiang Chumian set a plate of breakfast on the table: “I couldn’t drag a drunkard, and you insisted on sleeping on the floor; you can’t blame me.”

Breakfast was pasta. Shen Qingye took a bite and nodded seriously: “Indeed, I can testify to that.”

“Goddess, your words can’t be trusted either! You two were definitely busy doing something else last night and couldn’t be bothered with me!”

Thinking of the previous night, both felt a bit self-conscious; it had indeed been close.

“If you don’t wash up soon, there won’t be any breakfast left for you.”

“Mean!”

After washing up and eating, Xiao Jinyu was called home by her mother’s phone call. Once her mother apologized, Xiao Jinyu stopped being angry and headed back.

Work resumed on the sixth day. The first major event of the year was the Shen Group’s annual gala. Last year, because they were too busy with business, they hadn’t had time to prepare, so they decided to hold it after the New Year.

The gala was on the eighth. Shen Qingye specifically ordered matching formal wear for the two of them, as they were to give a speech together on stage.

Naturally, no one had the courage to mess with Shen Qingye, and certainly no one dared to ask her to sing. The two only went on stage during the opening and the lucky draw.

Shen Qingye led Jiang Chumian onto the stage by the hand. Both were as beautiful as celebrities. The programs at the Shen Group’s annual gala were always innovative and avoided vulgarity. Consequently, their visuals trended on social media once again. Naturally, people began to discuss their relationship.

Some said they were a couple in name only, some said Jiang Chumian was using Shen Qingye to climb the social ladder, and some became “CP fans.” There was talk of everything.

Neither Jiang Chumian nor Shen Qingye cared.

On the way home after the event, Jiang Chumian suddenly remembered what Jiang Wenyan had said to her on the second day of the New Year.

“Jiang Wenyan offered me five percent of the shares in the Jiang Group.”

“Oh? What do you think?”

“I didn’t take them,” Jiang Chumian said in a low voice.

Shen Qingye turned her head to look at her: “Why?”

“It’s simply because he wants me to behave once I have the shares.”

The corners of Shen Qingye’s mouth curled up slightly: “Go ahead and do whatever you want to do. I have no interest in saving the Jiang family.”

Jiang Chumian gave a soft “Mhm.”

She really wanted to ask Shen Qingye why she was so good to her, but in the end, she didn’t say it.

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