In Xu Chengyi’s world of poverty, a phone was the ultimate form of entertainment.
Lying down to play, sitting to play, squatting to play—no matter how you played it, it was fun.
Having gone three days and three nights without touching her phone, she played it compulsively, spending an entire day on it until her eyes hurt.
In the evening, Song Wenzhou, who had been gone all day, returned and called her downstairs for dinner. Only then did she reluctantly plug her phone in to charge.
“Where did you go today?” she asked.
Song Wenzhou said, “To see a doctor.”
Xu Chengyi frowned. “Then why didn’t you call me? I was stuck at home playing on my phone, bored to death.”
Song Wenzhou said, “Even if you came with me, you’d still be playing on your phone.”
Xu Chengyi pursed her lips. “Then forget it.”
The mountain villa was far from the city. Unless the Old Master summoned them or there was some business to attend to, the descendants of the Song family rarely came back.
So dinner was just the four of them.
Ling Zhu sat beside Elder Song, attending to him, cooing sweetly and calling him “Daddy.”
Xu Chengyi’s mouth twitched at the address, and she sighed inwardly: Rich people really do play wild games.
But the servants standing nearby and Song Wenzhou were already used to it.
Song Yuanya looked up and happened to glance at Xu Chengyi, then suddenly paused with his chopsticks in mid-air.
Xu Chengyi, confused, asked, “Grandfather, did you want to say something to me?”
Song Yuanya hesitated before asking, “You… which month were you born in?”
“June twelfth.”
Song Yuanya’s brows knitted together, and he was silent for a long while.
“Born in the Year of the Horse?”
“Mm.”
“What time?”
“My grandmother said it was exactly midnight on the twelfth.”
Xu Chengyi spoke too quickly, and only after the words left her mouth did she realize he was calculating her birth chart.
Song Yuanya was indeed calculating her birth chart. As a businessman, he had delved deep into such matters—having heard so much over the years, he knew a thing or two himself.
But Song Yuanya found it somewhat hard to calculate.
He hadn’t intervened in this marriage arrangement. He never intervened in the marriages of the younger generation, as long as his son and daughter-in-law made the decision.
However, before the engagement was finalized, Old Master Xu had called him, saying the couple’s birth charts were a match made in heaven, so he had given his tacit approval.
“Daddy, eat up. You’ll need to take your medicine soon,” Ling Zhu interrupted his thoughts.
He gently shook his head, collected himself, and continued eating.
Xu Chengyi quietly glanced at him, thinking to herself that she was just an unremarkable substitute bride. A man of his billions wouldn’t bother doing anything to her.
After finishing dinner, Song Yuanya went upstairs with Ling Zhu.
Xu Chengyi hadn’t eaten lunch, so at dinner she single-handedly polished off an entire fish and a roast chicken.
Aunt Wu, looking at the mountain of bones piled in front of her and the spotless plates, remarked, “Second Young Madam, you should control your portions. No girl eats the way you do.”
Xu Chengyi found this old woman the most annoying. She pouted, furrowed her brows, and turned to Song Wenzhou with a coquettish plea:
“Hubby, you have to stand up for me. They want me to have kids, but they won’t let me eat more. Mother-in-law hasn’t said a single word, yet here’s this irrelevant servant trying to act like my mother-in-law. There’s no justice…”
Song Wenzhou’s eyes curved up involuntarily. “Go ahead and eat.”
Xu Chengyi shot Aunt Wu a sly smile, then turned and hugged Song Wenzhou’s arm. “Hubby’s the best~”
Aunt Wu’s face flushed red, then turned pale—utterly humiliated.
She turned around and saw Elder Song staring right at her.
At that moment, Aunt Wu’s face went white. “Elder Song…”
The two who had been sitting and eating both turned around to see Elder Song’s cold, stern face.
“Our Song family can still afford a few extra meals.”
Aunt Wu quickly replied, “Of course, of course.”
Elder Song walked over with his cane, picked up the phone on the table, and said to Xu Chengyi, “If you want to eat anything, just tell the kitchen.”
Xu Chengyi beamed. “Thank you, Grandfather.”
Elder Song walked away with his cane.
Xu Chengyi set down her chopsticks with a smile in her eyes. “Hubby, I’m full.”
Song Wenzhou stood up. “Let’s go.”
Xu Chengyi stretched as she walked. “So boring. Let’s go back and study how to roll around in bed. I finally managed to get my hands on a few videos through some connections.”
Because she didn’t like him, didn’t love him, and didn’t care—saying things like this was as easy as eating or drinking.
After speaking, she turned her head to gauge Song Wenzhou’s reaction.
No reaction.
Perfect.
She added, “Oh, right, I didn’t buy condoms. We can’t get pregnant after only a few tries. I wonder if food delivery can even reach this godforsaken place…”
This mountain villa was built halfway up the mountain. The mountain’s shape resembled a half-moon, and it sat on the surface of a lake, which was why it was called Half-Moon Villa.
The scenic area at the foot of the mountain closed at five o’clock. Up here, it was cold and desolate, with no shops nearby.
Suddenly, a lazy voice came through. “No, it can’t.”
The two turned around and saw Song Zhiyu strolling over casually, still wearing the same suit from the morning, loose and rumpled as ever, with an ambiguous lipstick mark at his collar.
Xu Chengyi looked embarrassed, unsure how much of what she’d said he had overheard.
She forced a smile. “Little Uncle.”
Song Zhiyu narrowed his long, narrow eyes slightly, pulled a small box from the inside of his suit jacket, and tossed it into Xu Chengyi’s arms. “A gift for you two,” he said, then glanced sideways at Song Wenzhou. “We should be about the same size.”
Xu Chengyi: “…”
She silently asked herself: Is this right?
Song Zhiyu didn’t give them a chance to refuse. He turned and headed upstairs.
Xu Chengyi looked at the box in her hands, then at Song Wenzhou, and said, “Little uncle, you’re pretty generous, huh.”
Song Wenzhou said, “I think… let’s go for a walk outside.”
Xu Chengyi asked, “And after the walk, are we coming back to roll in the sheets?”
Song Wenzhou didn’t respond, just lifted his foot and walked out.
Xu Chengyi caught up with his pace, hugging his arm. “Then let’s go find some excitement outside.”
Song Wenzhou stopped in his tracks, furrowing his brow. “Why are you always thinking about that?”
Xu Chengyi countered, “It’s late at night, we’ve eaten and drunk our fill—what else is there to think about?”
Song Wenzhou didn’t answer, striding out with long steps.
Xu Chengyi jogged to keep up, coaxing, “Honey, wait for me.”
The mountain estate was silent all around, the sound of insects drifting in constantly. The dim yellow streetlights stretched the couple’s shadows long.
The early spring night still carried a chill. Xu Chengyi wore a knitted long dress with a thin cardigan, and as the lake breeze blew toward her, she swayed like a fragile willow in the wind, tumbling into Song Wenzhou’s arms.
“Honey, I’m cold.”