“Child, you have no idea how many people your father begged or how much effort he put into arranging this marriage.”
“You have to understand: everything we parents do is for your own good.”
“Our Feifei is such a good girl. Listen to your mother. Go get a divorce, then go apologize properly to your father. We’ll see if there’s anything we can do to make things right.”
“If I get divorced, will the Ji family still be willing to marry me?”
Xia Feifei looked at Mother Xia and put the most practical question to her directly. “Mom, we’re talking about the Ji family, one of the top ten wealthiest families in K Country. Do you really think a family like that would be willing to marry someone who’s been divorced?”
“W-well… maybe… maybe your father can still find a way to fix this.”
Mother Xia stammered for a long while, her voice barely above a whisper. It was obvious she wasn’t confident.
“No chance!”
As she spoke, Xia Feifei took advantage of Mother Xia’s distraction and briskly pulled her collar free from her grasp.
“Tell Dad his plan has fallen through. I’m not getting a divorce, even if he disowns me.”
The moment she finished speaking, the car shot off like a rocket, leaving Mother Xia no chance to say another word.
The car stopped at Jingli Residential Community. Still fuming, Xia Feifei took the elevator straight to the new apartment she had bought not long ago and let herself in.
Because of her mood, she didn’t turn on the lights. As usual, she flopped onto the sofa, pulled the thin blanket beside her over herself, and prepared to make do for the night.
Xia Feifei had just closed her eyes to rest when, the next second, the clear sound of running water—“shhhhh”—reached her ears.
She sprang up, all sleepiness instantly gone. Listening closely, she could hear the water even more clearly.
After hesitating for three seconds, afraid of alerting whoever was inside, she went barefoot, picked up the broom by the door, and crept toward the sound until she reached the bathroom.
What was this?
As Xia Feifei listened to the water and watched the light inside, she fell into thought. The next second, the bathroom door suddenly opened.
“Ahhh!”
Fear overwhelmed her reason, and she swung the broom wildly at the person in front of her without the slightest restraint.
“W-wait—”
A powerful force stopped the broom mid-swing. Overcome by terror, Xia Feifei’s mind went blank, and she froze on the spot.
Before she could even make out the other person’s face, the low male voice by her ear brought her back from the dead.
“Ms. Xia, what are you doing? We’ve only just gotten our marriage certificates, and you’re already trying to murder your own husband?”
Ms. Xia?
Marriage certificates?
Taking in those two crucial pieces of information, Xia Feifei turned and finally saw the handsome face in front of her.
Ji Yanli stood there with a large bath towel wrapped around him. His wet black hair still dripped with water now and then, making for quite the picture of a handsome man fresh from the bath.
“Um… I’m… sorry…”
Coming back to herself, Xia Feifei hurriedly apologized, embarrassed. When the corner of her eye caught sight of the broom caught between them, she quickly let go.
“Mr. Ji, I’m so sorry. We just got married, and I’m not used to it yet. I forgot I gave you a key this afternoon. Are you hurt?”
Hearing how apologetic she sounded, Ji Yanli—who hadn’t thought much of the few blows—felt like teasing her.
He lowered the broom with one hand and deliberately let out a pained, restrained hiss.
“A-are you badly hurt?”
Full of remorse, Xia Feifei hurried over. As she tugged one corner of his bath towel aside to check, her gaze dipped and caught a glimpse of his abs. Her face flushed with embarrassment.
“I-I’ll get the first-aid kit. Right, the first-aid kit.”
She hurriedly pulled the towel back into place, Xia Feifei muttered to herself, then spun around and ran off.
Her attempt to act calm was immediately betrayed by how fast she scurried away.
………………
In the living room, Xia Feifei set down the first-aid kit and called Ji Yanli over. She then sat stiffly on the sofa across from him.
Their relationship was awkward, the atmosphere was awkward, and, most importantly, seeing him wrapped in nothing but a bath towel made her feel even more awkward.
“Thank you for your kindness, Ms. Xia. I’m really fine. You don’t need to worry about me.”
Ji Yanli politely nudged away the first-aid kit she had set down. Xia Feifei frowned in displeasure. She knew exactly how hard she had hit him, even if no one else did.
Sure, there was a difference in strength between men and women, but she had put all her strength into those blows. They couldn’t possibly have been as harmless as he made them sound.
So Xia Feifei ignored Ji Yanli’s refusal. She had been embarrassed before, but now she didn’t have time to worry about that. She stood up and opened the first-aid kit.
“Where did I hit you? You’re not bleeding, are you? Mr. Ji, could you show me the bruises first? I’ll see if there’s anything suitable in the kit.”
After taking a quick look at the medicines in the first-aid kit, Xia Feifei turned toward Ji Yanli, who hadn’t moved at all.
“Mr. Ji?”
She waved a small hand in front of his eyes, and Xia Feifei lifted her chin slightly, urging him to hurry up.
“It really isn’t necessary…”
Ji Yanli had begun to refuse instinctively, but as Xia Feifei remained firm, his words gradually trailed off and turned into a concession.
“All right, then.”
A moment earlier he had agreed; the very next, he pulled the towel off his upper body.
The swift movement exposed the abs that had only been partly visible before. This time, Xia Feifei could see them clearly.
The unexpected sight of his bare chest left Xia Feifei, who had never even had a boyfriend, momentarily stunned. Her face turned red with embarrassment, and she quickly looked away.
“Um… well… Mr. Ji…”
Xia Feifei thought for a long time about asking him to cover up. Given their relationship, it wasn’t appropriate for them to be standing there so exposed to each other.
But she stammered for ages and still couldn’t figure out how to say it.
“Ms. Xia, I’ll leave it to you, then.”
Unlike Xia Feifei, who was so flustered, Ji Yanli had spent seven or eight years among a bunch of men and had only just returned to the country. He wasn’t thinking that much about it.
He had always been decisive. Since she kept insisting, why should he be coy about it?
“N-no trouble.”
Now that things had come to this, Xia Feifei could only speak as she composed herself, then turn her flushed face back toward Ji Yanli.
His tanned skin, broad chest, and defined abs…
Wait, was this something she could look at for free?
Xia Feifei’s reason told her she was looking in entirely the wrong place, but her eyes didn’t seem inclined to listen.
“Ms. Xia. Ms. Xia. Ms. Xia.”
“Ah…”
Ji Yanli’s emphatic call snapped Xia Feifei out of her lustful daze. She hurriedly shifted her gaze to the arm he was indicating.
Against his tan skin, several bluish-purple bruises stood out sharply. Feeling deeply apologetic, Xia Feifei quickly turned back to the first-aid kit and picked up a few ointments to check what they were used to treat.