Café.
Shen Zhiyi took a seat by the window.
The window glass provided a clear view of the surroundings.
For instance, she immediately spotted the two figures—one old, one young—bundled up like mummies not far away.
Not far off.
Lu Junyue and Grandma Lu sat down, using a menu to shield their faces as camouflage, leaving only their eyes fixed on Shen Zhiyi by the window.
“Grandma, will this method really work?”
“Of course! I’m a master of disguise. Back when I used to tail your grandfather, I always used this trick, and he never recognized me.”
“Speaking of which,” Grandma Lu’s gaze returned to Lu Junyue, her tone playful yet tinged with sarcasm. “Didn’t someone say they wouldn’t stoop to doing something beneath their dignity for a woman? So what are you doing here?”
Lu Junyue: “I’m worried about you.”
Grandma Lu scoffed: “Cut the nonsense! You only panicked when you heard Xiao Zhiyi went out with her ID card, didn’t you?”
As the two bickered, they saw Ye Jiayi approaching Shen Zhiyi.
Their position was risky but close enough that, if they listened carefully, they could overhear Shen Zhiyi and Ye Jiayi’s conversation.
Ye Jiayi sat down, tossing her bag onto the adjacent sofa with her usual haughty attitude.
“Shen Zhiyi, why did you ask me out? Don’t think just because you saved me last night that I’ll let you off the hook.”
“If you don’t leave the capital and stay away from Ji Yanli, I won’t go easy on you!”
Shen Zhiyi gently traced the rim of her coffee cup with her fingertips, deliberately raising her voice slightly.
“Miss Ye, I won’t leave the capital. Because there’s someone very important to me here.”
Ye Jiayi: “You’re not going to claim you have a husband again, are you? I don’t believe it. You don’t even have a diamond ring or wedding band—what husband?”
Overhearing this from the neighboring table, Grandma Lu shot Lu Junyue a dissatisfied, resentful look.
As if to say: You irresponsible brat!
Lu Junyue: “…”
He remained silent, watching as Shen Zhiyi awkwardly rubbed her bare finger.
Somehow, he genuinely felt a twinge of guilt.
After confirming that Lu Junyue had seen her gesture, Shen Zhiyi spoke.
“I really do have a husband. Things like diamond rings and wedding bands are just formalities—we don’t care about that.”
Ye Jiayi took a sip of coffee, unconvinced: “What woman doesn’t care about formalities? I think he simply doesn’t value you!”
Shen Zhiyi lowered her head nervously: “That’s not true, he treats me quite well…”
Ye Jiayi found something odd.
Shen Zhiyi hadn’t acted like this in front of her before. Could it be… Shen Zhiyi is a love-struck fool?!
“If he treated you well, wouldn’t he at least get you a diamond ring? Even if your husband is broke, he should still buy you a thousand-yuan ring, right?”
“Honestly, you won’t be happy married to someone like that. You should divorce him sooner rather than later.”
Ye Jiayi added, “After the divorce, I’ll set you up with a childhood friend of mine. He’s rich, handsome, and knows how to treat people well—isn’t that better than your stingy, poor husband?”
The chilling aura from behind was so intense that Shen Zhiyi felt cold, goosebumps rising on her skin.
But Ye Jiayi seemed completely unaware, continuing her relentless criticism.
Fearing the Ye family might face financial ruin, Shen Zhiyi hurriedly interrupted her.
“Would you like to try the pasta? Their pasta here is quite good.”
“I’m not eating. I’m serious, if you’re worried about not being able to get divorced, I can help you find the best lawyer…”
Before Ye Jiayi could finish her incessant chatter, her phone rang from inside her bag.
It was a call from Father Ye.
“My dad called saying there’s an emergency at home and I need to go back. I’m leaving first.”
Ye Jiayi picked up her bag to leave.
Shen Zhiyi recalled the original plot’s ending for the Ye family.
As a cannon fodder character in the story, Ye Jiayi would stop at nothing to win her childhood friend Ji Yanli, constantly targeting and framing the “original female lead,” ultimately leading to the Ye family’s bankruptcy, her parents’ deaths, and her own imprisonment.
Though she didn’t know whether Ye Jiayi would continue to target and frame her in the future, judging from current interactions, this young lady of the Ye family didn’t seem inherently bad.
“Miss Ye, what do you like about Ji Yanli?”
…
Walking out of the cafe, the Ye family car was already waiting outside.
Ye Jiayi got into the car, her brows tightly furrowed, constantly replaying Shen Zhiyi’s question in her mind.
She and Ji Yanli had grown up together since childhood, childhood sweethearts. She firmly believed she was the most suitable match for Ji Yanli.
But when Shen Zhiyi asked that question earlier, she actually couldn’t answer it.
What did she like about Ji Yanli?
The Ji family held high status and power, but the Ye family wasn’t weak either. Moreover, having lived in wealth since childhood, she didn’t care for things like money and power at all.
Looks? Ji Yanli was indeed handsome, but he didn’t match her aesthetic preferences.
Gentleness? Though they were childhood sweethearts, Ji Yanli had always had a White Moonlight in his heart, and had always been lukewarm toward her.
After thinking it through, Ye Jiayi couldn’t find any reason why she liked Ji Yanli.
“How strange… Clearly there’s nothing about Ji Yanli that I like, yet it feels like I’m supposed to like him.”
Shen Zhiyi went to the restroom.
Leaving enough time for that old man and young man to slip away.
System: [Host baby, if you want a diamond ring, why don’t you just ask Lu Junyue for one directly?]
Shen Zhiyi washed her hands, “What I want isn’t a diamond ring, but a ‘collar’ that the ‘puppy’ actively buys to prove his identity.”
If she asked for a diamond ring, Lu Junyue would buy it for her.
But that would be meaningless.
If he took the initiative to buy it, the meaning would be different.
Walking out of the cafe.
Shen Zhiyi’s wrist was suddenly grabbed.
“Lu Junyue, what are you doing here?” She pretended to be genuinely surprised.
“Get in the car.”
Lu Junyue pulled her into the car and fastened her seatbelt for her.
Shen Zhiyi looked completely confused: “Where are we going?”
Lu Junyue: “To buy a diamond ring.”
…
Beijing Tower gathered various high-end luxury brands.
At this moment, Han Ming had already received orders to reserve the entire building.
When the elevator arrived at the first floor from the B1 parking lot, saleswomen stood lined up on both sides of the elevator doors.
Upon seeing Shen Zhiyi and Lu Junyue, everyone bowed in unison.
“President Lu, Mrs. Lu.”
As Lu Junyue and Shen Zhiyi sat on the VIP room sofa.
Over a dozen saleswomen approached carrying diamond rings.
“Mrs. Lu, the largest, most expensive, and most premium diamond rings in all of Beijing are here. Please take a look.”
Hundreds of diamond rings the size of pigeon eggs were displayed before them, the diamonds refracting exquisitely beautiful light under the illumination.
Each diamond ring was priced at eight figures or more.
Shen Zhiyi looked at the beautiful diamond rings before her, finding it hard to choose.
[Such beautiful diamond rings, why can only one be worn on ten fingers! If only I could wear them all, that would definitely be dazzling!]
The thought entered Lu Junyue’s mind.
The corners of his thin lips lifted slightly.
Noticing his gaze, Shen Zhiyi cleared her throat and put on an obedient act.
“No need, it’s just a diamond ring. Any random one will do.”
Despite her words, her hand had already reached toward the largest diamond ring.
The sales assistant’s eyes lit up: “Mrs. Lu, you have excellent taste! This African Star is our store’s treasure—it weighs exactly 13.14 grams!”
As the sales assistant was about to take down the African Star to put it on Shen Zhiyi’s finger—
“Wait.”
Lu Junyue rose from the sofa, picked up several diamond rings to examine them, and asked Shen Zhiyi:
“What kind of diamond ring do you like?”
“Whatever suits is fine.”
Shen Zhiyi smiled sweetly, but inwardly thought: Obviously, the bigger and more expensive the better!
Hearing her inner thoughts, Lu Junyue silently set down the modest yet elegant ring in his hand.
He specifically selected the largest ones, then slipped them onto each of Shen Zhiyi’s fingers one by one—leaving only the middle finger of her right hand bare.
Shen Zhiyi: “?”
She didn’t understand what he was doing, but she was quite pleased looking at the nine massive diamond rings adorning her fingers.
Finally, Lu Junyue picked up the African Star and slid it onto Shen Zhiyi’s middle finger.
Thus, all ten slender fingers were now adorned with dazzling diamond rings.
“Do you like them?” he asked.
“…I like them.” Shen Zhiyi truly couldn’t lie about her feelings.
Lu Junyue turned to the sales assistant: “Since she likes them, we’ll take them all.”
Shen Zhiyi was delightedly admiring the sparkling rings covering her hands when she heard Lu Junyue speak again beside her ear.
“Now that we’ve chosen the diamond rings, let’s pick out the wedding bands.”