Jiang Zao didn’t know how to describe her feelings at that moment. Her heart was pounding so hard it almost hurt.
Was her heartbeat so loud that he could hear it?
That would be a little embarrassing.
But it was understandable. She was convinced that anyone bombarded by three such statements from Xie Lisheng would have their heart racing like this.
It was shock mixed with panic, which was why her pulse was thundering. That had to be it.
Time seemed to stretch on forever, but the man before her didn’t press her for a reply or say anything else. He simply gazed quietly into her eyes.
This was the one thing Jiang Zao couldn’t handle.
He was already too handsome.
Having that face staring right at you made it far too easy to cloud your judgment.
She stiffly averted her gaze from his stare, clinging to the last shreds of her reason. “First off…”
Seeing her finally speak, Xie Lisheng shoved his hands into his pockets and raised an eyebrow, waiting for her answer.
“That time, I didn’t kiss you,” she insisted stubbornly, determined to clarify who was at fault. “It really was just a coincidence that our lips bumped.”
Xie Lisheng glanced up at the sky, a hint of exasperation crossing his face, but he said nothing.
“Second…” Jiang Zao slowly lowered her eyes. “You said that thing about having feelings for me…”
“I don’t believe it.”
His gaze shifted slightly as he looked at her. “Hmm?”
“I mean… it just feels really weird. A few days ago, you couldn’t stand the sight of me.” She clutched at her clothes, her voice and posture both timid, yet her conviction was unshakable. “Suddenly proposing marriage out of nowhere—it’s hard not to think it’s some kind of prank.”
“Did what I just say sound like a prank to you?” he countered.
Jiang Zao paused, then shook her head.
Xie Lisheng crossed his arms, tapping his index finger against his bicep as he slowly appraised her. Then he leaned down with a mocking smile. “Jiang Zao, you really do care a lot about the fact that I used to look down on you.”
“You’re super hung up on it.”
Her ears burned hot as she rushed to deny it, but her soft voice came out sounding almost like a whine. “I’m not!”
“And you call what just happened a proposal?” After saying it, he seemed to mull over his own words and inexplicably cleared his throat.
“Wasn’t it? What else were you doing just now? It’s not like you were talking business.” As she spoke, Jiang Zao latched onto a new angle and tried to analyze it. “Bringing up something like this out of the blue—I don’t believe you don’t have a reason.”
It definitely wasn’t some sudden whim where he’d fallen head over heels for her. That was too ridiculous; even a dog wouldn’t buy it.
Once her calm and resolute statement ended, Xie Lisheng fell silent for three seconds, still holding his arms crossed. Then he spoke. “If you want to think of it that way, sure, you could call it talking business.”
“Just like how I’m admitting now that I used to be prejudiced against you—and I still am, to some extent. I’m not lying to you. If you ask, I’ll tell you the straight truth, one through ten.”
Jiang Zao stared at him. “What…?”
“I’ve started seriously going on blind dates recently, and the goal is, of course, marriage. It’s urgent.” Xie Lisheng tilted his head toward the streetlamp casting its orange glow. “Our family situation is complicated. It’s a reconstituted family with a lot of entangled interests, and the atmosphere isn’t as rosy as it might seem from the outside.”
She was a bit surprised but stayed quiet, listening as he continued.
“The lady who came to the Company looking for me the day you were playing with products in the East Building—that was my aunt. She brought my grandpa’s results.” He guided her memory before explaining. “She brought my father’s physical exam report for this year. He’s been diagnosed with mid-stage liver cancer. With good intervention, he could survive three to five years or more.”
“That same day, my Little Aunt finally told me that before my mother divorced him, she’d fought for a property division protocol for me and my sister. It has the highest priority and overrides any subsequent wills—it’s basically my father’s compensation to her and us two kids.”
Jiang Zao seemed to catch on, hazarding a guess. “You mean that protocol…”
“Yes, it comes with conditions.” Xie Lisheng’s brows furrowed as he nodded approvingly at her quick thinking. “Before my father passes, I need to maintain a stable family relationship for a full two years.”
“Only then will the protocol take effect.”
With his father’s life ticking down like a countdown, it meant his marriage couldn’t be delayed even by a single day, or the protocol wouldn’t activate. The “compensation” he and his sister stood to gain would vanish into thin air, ending up in someone else’s pockets.
That was why Xie Lisheng was in such a rush to get married.
“My stepmother doesn’t know about that protocol. Only he and my Little Aunt do.” Xie Lisheng noted her stiff expression and deliberately teased her, as if afraid she wouldn’t be scared enough. “Well, and now you.”
Jiang Zao shivered, as if she’d just been dragged into some massive secret against her will.
After all, Xie Lisheng’s father was definitely the boss of some major corporation, and suddenly learning such a huge secret from a wealthy capitalist family would make anyone feel like it was hard to swallow.
“But…” Even though she felt very panicked, she quickly reacted. “You have Yunsheng now, so you shouldn’t be short on money, right? Do you really…”
Do you really need that inheritance that badly?
Xie Lisheng shrugged it off. “Would you ever complain that there’s too much money in your bank card?”
Jiang Zao: “…” Of course not. Okay, got it.
“But you…” He circled halfway around her, scrutinizing her with surprise. “You seem a bit smarter than I imagined.”
She jerked her head up and glared at him. “What do you mean by that?”
Xie Lisheng chuckled and continued, “You’re right. With Yunsheng, I really don’t care about the few bucks I’d have to fight my family tooth and nail for.”
“I have other motives. Want to hear them?”
Jiang Zao’s mouth twitched. She raised her hand to cover her ears and warned him, “Don’t say it! I don’t want to know!”
“I won’t listen, I won’t listen! Don’t force it on me. I have zero interest in other people’s family drama.”
She had no intention of accepting Xie Lisheng’s marriage proposal in the first place—what good would knowing too much do?
She was the kind of person who didn’t even care about office gossip at the Company!
Xie Lisheng straightened up and gave her a sidelong glance. “Pretty sharp.”
Seeing that he wasn’t going to continue, Jiang Zao lowered her hand and let out a sigh of relief. “I still don’t get why you chose me. There are plenty of girls with better conditions than mine, right?”
“Have you proposed to others and gotten rejected every time?”
Xie Lisheng: “…”
“What makes you think I’d get rejected by others?”
Jiang Zao’s face twisted into an indescribable expression as she thought to herself: Does he have zero self-awareness??
“You’re not some leftover option I settled for after striking out, nor some impulsive choice I made on a whim.” He hadn’t expected to have to explain so much—it was a hassle, but he had no choice, so he broke it down for her. “You’re the most suitable person. No one else even comes close.”
She didn’t understand. “Why am I the most suitable?”
He repeated matter-of-factly, “I told you, I have feelings for you.”
Jiang Zao’s expression didn’t change as she sighed. “…You’re saying that again.”
Xie Lisheng: “…”
He fell silent for three seconds, then lifted his eyelids and added, “Because you’re the simplest. Your background is the simplest, and your worries and needs are the simplest.”
“As long as I solve those troubles in your life, you won’t ask for anything more, right?”
“How can you be so sure?” Jiang Zao hadn’t expected him to see through her so clearly—she wasn’t even that confident in her own character. “Human desires are endless. What if, after we get married, I start getting ideas about your assets? Aren’t you afraid that’ll cause even more trouble?”
“The prenuptial agreement will spell it all out. Besides…” Xie Lisheng reached out and poked her forehead with his index finger, scoffing. “With your level of ambition, even if you wanted something, how much could you possibly take?”
“One alkaline bun is enough to fill you up and leave you grinning like an idiot.”
Jiang Zao: “…”
Don’t underestimate me! Watch me go full lion’s share on you right now!
After talking for so long, his throat felt a little dry. Xie Lisheng thought to himself that he’d never had to use so many words even in business meetings, then turned back to her. “So, what do you say? Marry me?”
She frowned, but couldn’t help laughing. “So all that was you trying to persuade me?”
However.
Jiang Zao paused, thinking over his words. Xie Lisheng had said he’d solve all her troubles—did that mean Lady Pan?
How exactly was he going to deal with Lady Pan? She’d been fighting the woman for years without finding a solution.
What was he planning to do?
She couldn’t figure it out, and a thread of curiosity began to stir despite herself.
“Think it over. You don’t have to give me an answer today.” Xie Lisheng pulled out his phone from his pocket and glanced at it.
Jiang Zao hesitated, her thoughts a jumble as she blurted out, “If I keep waffling and can’t decide, are you just going to wait for me forever?”
He paused mid-swipe on his phone and lifted his eyes to meet hers.
Xie Lisheng didn’t say a word, and Jiang Zao’s heartbeat quickened.
They stared at each other in silence for one second, two seconds, three seconds, four seconds.
She broke first, not wanting to hear the answer. “Uh, wait, forget it. Pretend I didn’t ask.”
What was I thinking, being so naive? He’s serious about getting married—he wouldn’t hold up his real plans for me.
What a stupid question. Sigh.
~~~
Xie Lisheng’s one “sudden whim” successfully kept Jiang Zao up all night, tossing and turning without a wink of sleep.
Moonlight streamed brightly through the window. Jiang Zao lay there with her eyes wide open, her mind a chaotic whirl. Her fingertip brushed over the Band-Aid on her neck, and she could almost still feel the warmth of his finger pressing against her skin.
She couldn’t make sense of Xie Lisheng’s claim that she was “the most suitable.” No matter how she looked at it, she was the least suitable choice.
Their personalities, their outlooks, their backgrounds, their finances… And on top of that, they had a superior-subordinate relationship at the company—not direct, but close enough. Weren’t they afraid of the gossip that would spread?
She had no idea if Yunsheng had rules against office romances. She hoped it did.
Jiang Zao rolled her eyes.
Of course. He was the big boss. If a scandal broke, she’d be the only little shrimp who got crushed.
If she hadn’t borrowed Xie Lisheng’s methods to deal with her deadbeat mother, and just kept living her life as before, she wouldn’t have felt like she was missing some once-in-a-millennium opportunity to climb the social ladder and escape her troubles.
At least she could picture what her life would look like—how good it might get at best, how bad at worst.
But she couldn’t imagine what life would be like after marrying Xie Lisheng and inserting herself into his world, his family.
It was like Pandora’s Box. She had no idea if opening it would unleash disaster or blessing.
And now that box sat right in front of her. Even though she thought she had it all figured out, her fingers and her heart itched with temptation all the same.
Jiang Zao yanked the blanket over her head, blocking out the glaring moonlight from the window. She decided to dodge the choice for tonight.
…It was too absurd.
Back in university, when she was still pining for Wei Yuan, she never could have imagined that the untouchable man standing beside him would one day say those words to her—
“Jiang Zao, marry me.”
Absurd. Ridiculous. Terrifying. Utterly baffling!
~~~
The next morning at eight o’clock.
As expected, Jiang Zao dragged herself to work looking utterly drained.
Sure, avoidance might solve all her worries in theory, but she still hadn’t slept. She’d doze off for a bit only to jolt awake, haunted by dreams of Xie Lisheng leading a horde of Mixue Bingcheng’s Pointy-Nosed Snow Kings in hot pursuit, all begging her to marry him.
In his hand, he clutched the confession gift she’d never managed to give Wei Yuan back then. He smirked at her mockingly. “Marry me? Sure, why not? Come on, Jiang Zao—marry me, and I’ll keep your secret.”
Jiang Zao stepped into the Yunsheng Building, and the blast of air conditioning hit her face.
She squeezed her eyes shut, unwilling to dwell on it anymore.
…What a spine-chilling nightmare.
…It was like she’d been haunted by a ghost.
The elevator lobby wasn’t crowded. Punch-in time was nine, and the real rush didn’t hit until around eight-thirty.
She floated to the back of the line like a soulless specter, waiting for the elevator. Only when her stomach let out a loud growl did she remember she’d forgotten breakfast.
“…” How badly had Xie Lisheng rattled her? She’d even forgotten to eat.
Jiang Zao sighed again and again, starting to berate herself. She never should have had anything more to do with him from the start.
Now things had spiraled this far. How was she supposed to wrap it up?
The elevator doors slid open. Stomach rumbling, head hanging low, she shuffled in after the two employees ahead of her.
The moment her foot crossed the threshold, her downcast gaze landed on a pair of familiar, polished men’s leather shoes standing off to the right in the elevator car.
Her heart lurched.
She looked up and saw Xie Lisheng, impeccably dressed in his suit.
Assistant Li trailed behind him, briefcase in hand—they were clearly headed to some important meeting.
Compared to the other executives, Xie Lisheng spent very little time at the company. He was almost always out and about, either at trade shows or sealing deals. The only reasons he ever came in were for meetings or to drop by the R&D lab.
According to the gossip from Li Li and the other colleagues, he’d once been the technical backbone of the R&D team. But after rising to the top spot, he no longer had the time to dive fully into research. It was just too much to juggle.
And yet, even with his rare appearances and eight elevators to choose from, she still managed to run into him!!!
Jiang Zao snapped her eyes away.
She wanted to die.
Stepping into his gravitational pull made her body go rigid, as if it instinctively sensed some natural predator-prey dynamic.
The elevator began its ascent, and only then did she realize she hadn’t pressed her floor. She fumbled for her employee card and quickly scanned it.
Mornings in the elevator were always a zone of dead silence, but with the big boss present, the air felt even thicker, more frozen than usual.
Everyone seemed to be holding their breath.
Jiang Zao was no exception. After all, this towering figure everyone feared had proposed to her just last night.
“…” What are you all afraid of? I’m the one who should be terrified!!
She stared at the rising floor numbers, feeling for the first time that the elevator had never moved so slowly.
The people in the elevator departed floor by floor until only three or four remained. The atmosphere grew even more stifling.
Jiang Zao didn’t dare glance sideways. She wished she could obtain an invisibility potion right then and there to hide herself away.
Her back stiffened involuntarily. She had the nagging feeling that someone was watching her.
Why hasn’t the elevator arrived yet? Hurry up, come on…
The elevator reached Floor 21, and another person stepped out.
As the doors closed once more, Xie Lisheng subtly shifted his gaze to that slender back.
His eyes lingered slowly on her rigid posture, then drifted upward to settle on her reddening earlobe.
Xie Lisheng’s brow twitched faintly. He pulled out his phone, unlocked it, held it to his ear, and suddenly spoke. “Hey?”
“How did you sleep last night?”
His words instantly perked up the ears of the three or four people left in the elevator.
Jiang Zao’s breath hitched.
Who was he calling?
After proposing to her last night, had he… gone straight to someone else?
Before she could dwell on it, the elevator’s center of attention spoke again.
“Have you given it any thought?”
Her erratic heartbeat shifted once more, and the tension at the corners of her eyes eased slightly.
Xie Lisheng held the phone to his ear, maintaining the pose of someone on a call, but his eyes remained fixed on a certain person.
“Free tonight for dinner? What do you like? My treat.”
Everyone exchanged bewildered glances: Who? Who is it??
Sweat beaded on Jiang Zao’s forehead. She didn’t dare confirm it, yet she felt like he was… like he was…
“If I do a bit more to win you over,” Xie Lisheng’s eye crinkled with amusement, his voice slow and velvety, “could I rank first among all your blind dates?”
Her eyes widened, her breath catching in her throat.
The other employees: ?!!!!!!!!!
The CEO is going on blind dates?? And pursuing someone?!
Just as Jiang Zao was on the verge of confirming the recipient of his “call,” his next words sealed her fluttering heart.
“Guessing you skipped breakfast.”
Seeing the back of her ear grow even redder, Xie Lisheng tapped his fingers on the phone, a note of delight in his tone. “I bought those alkaline buns you love from that place and left them on your desk.”
He added, his voice lilting upward at the end, “Work hard now.”
The other employees: What the—?!?!?!?!
Jiang Zao nearly fainted right there in the elevator.
Are you insane!? What’s wrong with you!!
~~~