“Not a few. What I mean is, the Yin and Zhou families don’t need to collaborate.”
No collaboration? Then how will they get married?
Yin Lan’s view on marriage in this lifetime was simple: as long as the other party treated her sincerely, she would not hold back on what she should give—she would only give more.
Yin Lan: “Do you… not want to marry me?”
“I do, but it has nothing to do with the Zhou family. After marriage, everything I have will belong to Miss Yin Lan.”
Yin Lan: ??? How could there be such a good deal in the world? Could this be a pig-butchering scam targeting her? Was Zhou Guchuan also putting on an act?
It shouldn’t be. In her previous life, she had already died. Even if he wanted to put on an act, the audience was gone—who would he be performing for? Although she had turned into a ghost back then and indeed watched everything unfold.
“I don’t quite understand what you mean, Mr. Zhou.”
Was he really marrying her without wanting anything in return?
Zhou Guchuan didn’t explain further. Instead, he opened another document—a prenuptial agreement.
Clause 1 of the Prenuptial Agreement: During the marriage, Party A has the right to fully and independently decide on equity changes. Party B promises not to interfere with Party A’s business decisions unless authorized in writing by Party A.
This clause was Yin Lan’s precautionary measure against Zhou Guchuan, based on Xie Zhiqiu’s excessive interference in the Yin family’s business in her previous life.
Clause 2: After marriage, Party A shall actively assist Party B in developing their career using their own business resources. If Party B lacks interest in business operations and chooses to return to family life, Party A agrees to pay a monthly living allowance of three million yuan to Party B’s designated account.
Clause 2 also had an additional condition: starting from the birth of any child by both parties, the aforementioned living allowance shall automatically increase to six million yuan per month.
This clause was Yin Lan’s way of testing whether Zhou Guchuan had the potential to be a live-in son-in-law, while also hoping he would stay home and take good care of their children.
Clause 3: If Party B agrees to become a live-in son-in-law, both parties shall have one child together. If both parties adopt the traditional marriage model, they shall have two children together, with the first child taking Party B’s surname and the second child taking Party A’s surname.
When Zhou Guchuan read this clause, his brow furrowed slightly. Two children? Lanlan would also be busy with her career—wouldn’t that be too exhausting for her? Maybe it would be better if he became the live-in son-in-law.
Yin Lan knew Zhou Guchuan was reading Clause 3. In her eyes, his reaction meant he was hesitant.
Well, it made sense. What man nowadays would be willing to become a live-in son-in-law?
Clause 4: If either party commits adultery during the marriage, the at-fault party shall unconditionally cooperate in completing the divorce registration process and shall not delay for any reason.
Divorce immediately in case of adultery—this was Yin Lan’s bottom line.
“Mr. Zhou, do you have anything to add after reading this?”
Zhou Guchuan thought for a moment. “Add one more clause: If anything unexpected happens to me in the future, all my assets shall be inherited by Miss Yin Lan.”
“Isn’t that a bit too early to say, Mr. Zhou?” Who includes a will in a prenuptial agreement?
Setting aside the matter of inheriting assets, the statement itself sounded strange.
“I told you, everything I have belongs to Miss Yin Lan. You don’t need to doubt me.”
Throughout the entire meal, Zhou Guchuan’s attitude gave Yin Lan the feeling that she had picked up a husband for free. It seemed as though he wanted nothing and simply wished to marry her.
But in Yin Lan’s memory, this was only their second meeting. Claiming to marry for love or affection seemed far too unbelievable.
In the end, the two only signed the prenuptial agreement. As for the contract for collaboration between the Yin and Zhou families, Zhou Guchuan didn’t even glance at it.
As for the document regarding Yin Lan’s self-assessment, Zhou Guchuan said he would take it home to study.
After leaving the restaurant, Yin Lan was ready to return to the company. She had initially intended to drop Zhou Guchuan off first, but he mentioned he had driven himself.
“Well then, Mr. Zhou, we’ll meet again next time.”
Yin Lan was waving goodbye when, upon turning around, she unexpectedly ran into an unwelcome guest.
Xie Zhiqiu had found out that Yin Lan had arranged to meet someone for lunch here. He had assumed it was a business meeting, but upon recognizing Zhou Guchuan’s face behind Yin Lan, he immediately lost his composure.
So, it was this guy who had arranged to meet Yin Lan. What gave him the right? Did he really think he could soar to great heights by clinging to her?
Running into a dog like this, Yin Lan had no intention of engaging with him. She wanted to ignore him and walk past, but she didn’t expect Xie Zhiqiu to grab her arm.
“Yin Lan, I’ve been waiting here for you for a long time.”
The moment he grabbed her hand, Yin Lan felt extremely uncomfortable all over. She forcefully shook off Xie Zhiqiu’s grip.
“What does you waiting here have to do with me? Are we that close? If you want to discuss cooperation, please make an appointment in advance and follow the proper procedures.”
Xie Zhiqiu noticed Zhou Guchuan immediately, and Zhou Guchuan noticed him as well.
Seeing him harassing Yin Lan, Zhou Guchuan immediately stepped forward, took Yin Lan’s hand, and shielded her behind him.
His presence alone was intimidating, and he spoke coldly, “Young Master Xie, please show some self-respect.”
Xie Zhiqiu sneered, “Self-respect? Yin Lan likes me. If you hadn’t suddenly appeared, how could such an opportunity ever fall to you?”
“She only chose your post yesterday. You two aren’t engaged, nor are you married. It’s perfectly natural for me to pursue her.”
“As for you, I advise you not to overstep your bounds and forget your nouveau riche status. My Xie family could crush your Zhou family effortlessly…”
Slap! Before Xie Zhiqiu could finish his sentence, Yin Lan cut him off with a slap.
She had put all her strength into that slap, and her palm tingled slightly as she lowered her hand.
She should have hit him long ago. The evil Xie Zhiqiu had committed in her past life made him deserving of being slapped to death. Since her rebirth, Yin Lan had merely been holding back.
Suppressing her anger, Yin Lan spoke word by word, “First, I don’t like you. Don’t flatter yourself. Do you really think you’re as universally liked as money?”
“Second, Zhou Guchuan and I are about to get engaged. Your pursuit of me, in my eyes, is nothing but harassment—a waste of time and utterly useless!”
“Third, if you dare lay a finger on the Zhou family, I, Yin Lan, will stand against you to the end. Zhou Guchuan is my person, and I will protect him no matter what!”
Yin Lan’s words left Xie Zhiqiu speechless. If the Xie family were to truly confront the Yin family now, they wouldn’t come out unscathed.
There were several collaborations where the Xie family still had to beg the Yin family for favors.
Seeing Yin Lan’s anger, Xie Zhiqiu immediately changed his tune.
“Yin Lan, don’t be angry. I was just joking earlier. My feelings for you are genuine. I’m not sure if this guy approaching you has sincere intentions. I’m just worried you might be deceived by someone with ill intentions.”
Yin Lan sneered inwardly. Who was the real deceiver here?
“Guchuan, let’s go.”
Only after walking quite a distance did Yin Lan realize her hand was still being held by Zhou Guchuan.
Strange—when Xie Zhiqiu had touched her earlier, she had bristled like a cat, but the moment Zhou Guchuan took her hand, her fur was instantly smoothed.
“Just now… I must have made a fool of myself. Do you think I’m too fierce?”
It was only now that Yin Lan belatedly realized how fierce she had been earlier. She wondered if she had scared Zhou Guchuan.
“Not at all. Thank you, Miss Yin Lan, for protecting me earlier.”
Hearing him say that, Yin Lan felt reassured.
“We’re going to get married in the future, so it’s only right that I protect you. By the way, is your car nearby? Did we just walk past it?”
“No, my car is in the alley across the street.” Zhou Guchuan pointed in that direction.
Yin Lan followed his gesture and saw a very ordinary black sedan parked in the alley across the road. Compared to the luxury cars around it, it was completely inconspicuous.
Seeing this, Yin Lan felt even more heartache for Zhou Guchuan. Was he really that poor in the Zhou family? He didn’t even have the money to buy a luxury car.
Thinking of this, Yin Lan rummaged through her bag and pulled out a black card.
“Here, buy whatever you want with it.”