Hua Nation, a coffee shop.
“Black pants, white shirt, and a rose on the table.”
Xia Feifei pushed open the door. Listening to the agent’s description through her earpiece, she spotted her rental husband at a nearby table at once.
Good looks were a bonus. He seemed pretty good!
“I’ve found him, so I’ll hang up now. If he’s suitable, I’ll transfer the balance as soon as we’ve got our marriage certificate.”
With that, Xia Feifei ended the call and walked over to the man.
“Hello!”
At her greeting, he turned to look at her.
Whoa… H-he’s that handsome?
His black hair was parted slightly to one side, roughly three-to-seven. Combined with his refined features and the elegant air he exuded, the effect was striking.
Xia Feifei couldn’t help marveling to herself. This company’s standard package was really something.
For the sake of keeping things realistic, she’d deliberately booked only the second-highest tier, an A-grade.
Judging by this quality, she could hardly imagine how good the S-grade option, priced at five hundred thousand, must be.
Since this was a straightforward, clearly priced arrangement, Xia Feifei saw no reason to be shy.
After admiring his looks, she sat down and got right to the point. “Okay, I’m very satisfied with you. Is there anything you want to ask? If not, we can go get our marriage certificate right away.”
Time was short and the task urgent. Xia Feifei, who was trying to escape her family’s arranged marriage, had no room to be picky.
Now she’d taken a chance and hit the jackpot. Why hesitate instead of going straight to get the certificate?
“Get the certificate?”
The man was clearly taken aback. Then he smiled faintly. “Miss, we’ve only just met, and we don’t even know each other’s names. Isn’t it a little rash to be rushing off to get married?”
“You don’t know who I am?”
“Didn’t your company show you my profile?”
Xia Feifei asked, puzzled. Then, without dwelling on it, she said, “Never mind. I’ll tell you the basics about myself first.”
“My name is Xia Feifei. I’m twenty-three, and I’m a freelancer. I do some writing and draw design sketches, that sort of thing.”
“I don’t agree with my parents’ arranged marriage for me, so I’m renting you for a year to help me deal with them.”
“Of course, just as I agreed with your boss at the start, I can cover your food and lodging. Unless something unusual comes up, you can keep working as usual. We won’t interfere with each other, and we’ll each get what we need.”
“Right, that’s about it. Is there anything else you want to ask?”
The girl’s sincere questions seemed to catch the man off guard. Then he smiled faintly and quickly shook his head.
“No. You’re Ms. Xia, right? Since you find me acceptable and are willing to marry me, I’ll tell you a little about myself, too.”
“Ji Yanli. Twenty-eight. A local of K City. No house, no car, but I have a steady income. I’m in good health and have no bad habits. Is there anything else you’d like to know?”
“No, no, no…”
Hearing his polite question, Xia Feifei quickly waved her hands, then pulled her household register out of her bag.
“If there are no more questions, Mr. Ji, do you have time to go get a marriage certificate with me now? Don’t worry. As soon as we have it, I’ll settle the balance right away. I won’t delay or renege.”
It was just a transaction to help her deal with her parents. For a looks-obsessed person like Xia Feifei, the other conditions didn’t even enter into consideration.
After all, this arrangement would only last a year. They weren’t planning to live together as a real married couple. His looks had already exceeded her expectations—what right did she have to ask for anything else?
Faced with Xia Feifei’s eager question, Ji Yanli smiled politely, then fell silent for a moment.
The girl across from him had a faint smile on her lips. Her features were striking, but her eagerness to get the marriage certificate stood out even more.
Ji Yanli had been waiting for a female “worry-reliever” sent by Worry Relief Hall to help him deal with the marriage alliance his grandmother had arranged for him.
After all, in his view, rich young ladies were not only spoiled but also prone to making a fuss.
Not wanting to marry a complete stranger for no reason, he’d planned to find a suitable woman through Worry Relief Hall, which was run by his good friend, and use her as a shield.
But now, this girl named Xia Feifei seemed much more interesting than the women sent by Worry Relief Hall, who were paid to help clients out of trouble.
“Mr. Ji, is there something you’re unsure about?”
When he didn’t answer for a while, the impatient Xia Feifei couldn’t hold back and spoke first.
“It’s all right. If you have any concerns or questions, just tell me. I’ll see if I can do anything about them.”
“I don’t have any questions or concerns. It’s just…”
Ji Yanli paused, then smiled faintly and changed course. “All right, Ms. Xia. This was unexpected, and I didn’t bring my household register. If you don’t mind, let’s meet outside the Civil Affairs Bureau in half an hour.”
…
Half an hour later!
Outside the Civil Affairs Bureau, everything was ready. But just before the two of them went inside, Ji Yanli stopped Xia Feifei and asked, “Ms. Xia, have you really thought this through? It’s not too late to change your mind.”
“Change my mind?”
Xia Feifei was clearly taken aback by the question. Then, with a faint smile, she teased, “Mr. Ji, what do you mean? Your company isn’t going to raise the price at the last minute, is it? We’re already at the final step. You can’t back out now.”
Realizing she’d misunderstood, Ji Yanli hurriedly clarified that it wasn’t what he meant.
Then the two went into the Civil Affairs Bureau and began filling out forms, taking photos, signing, and stamping…
When they came out, Xia Feifei had the little red booklet she’d dreamed of holding in her hands.
She couldn’t stop smiling. Turning to Ji Yanli beside her, she said, “Well, Mr. Ji, we’ve got the certificate now, so you can go take care of whatever you need to. Don’t worry, I’ll transfer the balance to your company in a bit. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be off.”
Xia Feifei had just turned to leave when she remembered the terms she’d agreed on with the rental company. Hurriedly, she took out the card and keys she’d prepared and held them out to him.
“Mr. Ji, these are the keys to the house I’ve arranged for you and the card for the living allowance I agreed on with your company. It’s two thousand a month. Here you go.”
A house? Keys?
Ji Yanli frowned slightly at the two items in front of him. He was still wondering how he could politely refuse when Xia Feifei had already pressed them into his hands.
“Okay, that’s settled, then. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going.”
Xia Feifei turned and left. Watching her stride away so briskly, Ji Yanli couldn’t help feeling as if he’d been used and discarded as soon as he’d served his purpose.
Summoned when wanted, dismissed when not?
The whole whirlwind-marriage experience really had been far too casual.
“Miss Xia, please wait.”
Seeing her about to disappear from sight, Ji Yanli hurried after her.
Under her puzzled gaze, he had no choice but to ask, “Miss Xia, aren’t you going to give me your contact information? After all, we’re legally married now.”