Chapter 4

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Jingyi Wen carried the flowers inside and had just reached the courtyard when she saw Heng Bai standing by the car, clearly having just returned not long ago. Upon seeing her, he respectfully greeted, “Miss.”

Jingyi Wen had received flowers before, but this time felt different.

They were from her fiancé.

The fact that he was willing to send flowers to please a girl showed he intended to cultivate their marriage properly, even if there wasn’t much affection yet.

Since she could remember, Jingyi Wen had never wanted to trouble herself with headaches or worries. She simply wished to follow her parents’ arrangements and marry someone of equal social standing, transforming from a wealthy heiress into a noblewoman. She only hoped her husband would respect and honor her, and she was ready to fulfill her duties as a wife without interfering too much.

They would have children together, and their lives would peacefully coexist.

Now it seemed that wish could come true.

Feeling in good spirits, Jingyi casually handed the flowers to Heng Bai and asked while walking, “Are my parents home?”

Heng Bai held the flowers in one arm and followed behind her. “Sir and Madam went out to attend a charity gala. They won’t be back until late.”

Back in the living room, Jingyi sat on the sofa and motioned for Heng Bai to place the flowers on the coffee table.

Seeing how much she liked the bouquet, Heng Bai thought for a moment and said, “I’ll find a vase for you, Miss. You can put the flowers in your bedroom as decoration.”

“Thank you,” Jingyi smiled and poured herself a glass of water.

Besides her parents, no one knew her as well as Heng Bai, her bodyguard who had escorted her to and from school since high school.

Many things about her that family and friends did not know, Heng Bai was aware of.

Taking small sips of water, Heng Bai hesitated briefly before calmly relaying the information he had gathered over the past few days. “Miss, although Baoning Shen is Mr. Xie’s cousin, their relationship is rather distant. From what I’ve investigated, Mr. Xie only returned to the Xie family two years ago, so they didn’t have much interaction. However, she has connections with Mr. Xie’s…”

Heng Bai paused.

As for why Jinnan Xie only formally returned to the Xie family two years ago, all he could find out was that Jinnan was engaged in other work, and the nature of his employer was kept secret, leaving the outside world in the dark.

Jingyi put down her glass, signaling him to continue.

Heng Bai hesitated, then said, “Mr. Xie had a fiancée three years ago who was close to Baoning Shen.”

Jingyi nearly failed to react. “What?”

Heng Bai quickly explained, “But that’s all in the past. The Xie family took the initiative to dissolve the engagement, and Mr. Xie has cut off all contact with his former fiancée.”

“The Xie family initiated it?”

“Mr. Xie himself proposed it.”

The reason remained unknown.

Jingyi frowned.

So Baoning Shen didn’t want her to marry into the family because she liked Mr. Xie’s former fiancée?

“Who was the fiancée?”

“Jingjiang…”

“Never mind,” Jingyi interrupted.

Heng Bai’s words trailed off.

Jingyi smiled gently. “It doesn’t matter who it was. It’s all in the past. Digging it up serves no purpose and would only lower my dignity.”

Heng Bai remained silent.

Jingyi stood, gathered the flowers in her arms, and inhaled their fragrance softly. Her mood was clearly unaffected as she smiled and said, “Please find me a beautiful vase. I’m heading to my room.”

Heng Bai nodded, “Very well.”

…

Nancheng was rich in history and culture, with many buildings preserving their original appearance, exuding a strong vintage charm. This area was therefore called the Historical Heritage City.

At night, neon lights flickered, making it hard to distinguish between past and present.

Under the heavy dusk, Jinnan Xie slowly parked his car at the hotel entrance.

The valet immediately approached, taking the keys handed over by Xie.

Entering the hotel lobby, Jinnan glanced around. The hotel manager greeted him warmly with a smile and quickly gestured, “Mr. Xie, Young Master Lu is waiting for you in the private room. Please, follow me.”

Jinnan acknowledged with a hum and headed toward the elevator.

The private room was on the top floor. After the elevator doors opened, there was only one suite on that floor — comparable to a presidential suite, complete with a master bedroom, secondary rooms, and various entertainment facilities.

The hotel manager opened the door but hadn’t stepped inside when a loud, angry female voice rang out—

“Lu Ming’an! What do you mean by this?”

The manager shuddered slightly, as if he himself were being scolded.

Jinnan frowned.

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Inside, a fierce quarrel was underway, accompanied by the sound of shattering glass. Neither of the two inside noticed someone entering; they were oblivious even when the door opened and closed until Jinnan’s cold voice cut through the noise: “Baoning Shen.”

Upon hearing the voice, Baoning’s heart jolted sharply. Her arrogant demeanor instantly deflated, and she bit her lips, not daring to turn around and face him.

Lu Ming’an, relieved that Jinnan had finally arrived, scanned the broken glass on the floor and shook his head helplessly.

Jinnan stood silently, saying nothing, but his presence alone burdened Baoning with immense pressure.

Closing her eyes in frustration, Baoning’s gaze grew increasingly irritated; she had no choice but to turn and face Jinnan.

“Brother,” Baoning changed her tone, forcing a smile, “what are you doing in Nancheng? Weren’t you supposed to return to the country tomorrow?”

She then shot a glare at Lu Ming’an, suspecting him of falsifying military information and leaking secrets.

Lu Ming’an merely smiled, poured himself a glass of wine, and acted indifferent.

Jinnan’s face betrayed no emotion, but his voice was cold: “You went to see Jingyi Wen.”

He spoke as a statement.

“I did, I did…” Baoning didn’t dare deny it because the fact that Jinnan could say this meant it was confirmed.

Jinnan had no interest in hearing her excuses. “Who told you to come? Zhiyu Lin?”

Baoning’s eyes widened, immediately denying, “No! Brother, don’t misunderstand Sister Zhiyu. She never asked me to do anything, nor would she.”

Jinnan scoffed, “So you acted on your own accord.”

Baoning was at a loss for words and bit her lip, lowering her gaze.

For some reason, though she had the least contact with this cousin, she was inexplicably the most afraid of him — her heart trembled at his mere glance.

His look alone kept her from moving recklessly.

Jinnan’s voice was relatively gentle but carried weight: “Don’t let it happen again.”

Baoning’s eyes were full of resentment.

She didn’t understand why she had to marry into the Wen family. With their background, wasn’t Sister Zhiyu just as good?

No matter how good Jingyi Wen was, Zhiyu was no less so.

Why was the engagement dissolved?

The thought left Baoning increasingly indignant, boldly questioning, “Brother, does Sister Zhiyu not deserve to be Mrs. Xie?”

Why had it to be Jingyi Wen?

Jinnan frowned tightly. “What did you say?”

Baoning’s courage waned but she still looked him in the eyes defiantly. “Sister Zhiyu is clearly more suited for you!”

Jinnan almost laughed in disbelief.

What a tremendous blessing the Xie family was. Just because someone was suitable for him, did that mean he had to be suitable for them?

“Do you think Lin Zhiyu would be grateful for what you’re doing?” Jinnan’s gaze turned mocking and his tone cold. “If she knew what you did in Nancheng, she’d only hate herself for ever knowing such a fool.”

Baoning clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, “No, she wouldn’t.”

With her simple-mindedness, Jinnan believed no matter how much he explained, she wouldn’t understand. He had no desire to waste words on her anymore. “I’ve bought you a plane ticket. You leave for Jingjiang tomorrow.”

Bitter and sulky, Baoning said nothing.

“Did you hear me?”

“I…”

She wanted to refuse, but upon meeting Jinnan’s resolute gaze, she wilted and reluctantly answered, “Got it.”

If not for Lu Ming’an’s interference disrupting her plans, maybe she could have forced Jingyi to back down, and wouldn’t be waiting for her cousin’s return.

Baoning grabbed her bag and, before leaving, glared at Lu Ming’an with lingering resentment. “Brother, I’m going back to the hotel now.”

“Wait.”

She had barely taken two steps when she was forced to turn around, her tone resentful, “What else?”

Jinnan’s gaze was heavy: “From now on, Jingyi Wen is your sister-in-law. Show her respect in public and in private.”

Baoning, already full of grievance, grew angrier when hearing him defend Jingyi Wen. But having been bold once in front of Jinnan, she dared not act out again. She swallowed her anger.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, and she turned and left.

Only after the girl’s figure disappeared did Lu Ming’an, sitting on the sofa watching the scene, finally laugh out loud. “Jinnan, I’m telling you, that girl must not know it was Zhiyu Lin who broke the engagement back then, right?”

It was strange. Baoning claimed to be Zhiyu Lin’s best friend, yet didn’t even know this?

And she came alone to Nancheng, trying to trouble Jingyi Wen and make her regret the engagement.

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If the Wen family also regretted the engagement, the Xie family of Jingjiang would be a joke. Just thinking about it was unbelievable.

Jinnan sat on the nearby sofa, rubbing his brow. The fatigue from intense work and constant travel weighed on him. His voice was weary, barely caring, “I don’t know.”

Lu Ming’an toyed with his wine glass, the red wine swirling and shimmering under the light. “Or maybe Zhiyu Lin regrets it.”

Baoning was Zhiyu Lin’s most loyal fan and easily influenced by her words. That was why she took the initiative to help her fight for a chance, leading to Baoning’s trip to Nancheng to cause trouble for Jingyi Wen.

This guess was quite plausible, Lu Ming’an thought.

But none of that mattered anymore. Jinnan had no hesitation in breaking the engagement back then, and three years later, he would never go back on that decision.

Lu Ming’an asked, “What’s your schedule tomorrow? Since you’re in Nancheng, want to play golf with Old Gao in the afternoon?”

Jinnan rejected without hesitation, “No time.”

Lu Ming’an had more to say but was stunned by the firm refusal. “Busy with what? Going back to Jingjiang tomorrow?”

“Accompanying my fiancée.”

“...What?”

Lu Ming’an seemed to have heard some earth-shattering news. “Since when have you been so committed?”

If Jinnan had been so sensible earlier, his last engagement wouldn’t have fallen apart in less than six months.

Though no one revealed the reasons for the broken engagement, he could guess seven or eight parts of it.

Jinnan’s lack of romantic sensibility was unbearable for any delicate heiress.

Had Jinnan truly reformed in these three years?

Lu Ming’an found that unlikely and probed, “Did the family give you a strict order?”

Jinnan: “When I have time.”

Lu Ming’an, knowing when to push and when not to, didn’t press and said with tact, “Then you go accompany your sister-in-law. I’ll go see Old Gao.”

It seemed the Xie patriarch had definitely given him a strict order to spend time with his fiancée.

Otherwise, given Jinnan’s temperament, he wouldn’t have the leisure to enjoy love and romance.

Only Old Master Xie could control him.

Jinnan lit a cigarette and was about to light it when his phone vibrated in his pocket.

A message from Jingyi Wen:

“Mr. Xie, you must be very tired today. I happen to have something tomorrow as well. Why don’t you rest properly?”

Let him rest?

Whether Jingyi truly had something or not tomorrow was irrelevant; she had already put it politely, so Jinnan couldn’t argue.

But thinking of the old master at the family estate, Jinnan frowned in headache.

After hesitating, he typed a reply:

“Playing golf with friends tomorrow. Are you free in the afternoon? I’ll pick you up.”

Jingyi Wen: “I don’t know golf. Mr. Xie, you go play. I’ll be fine.”

Don’t know?

Jinnan didn’t insist further: “Okay.”

Putting away his phone, Jinnan expertly lit his cigarette. White smoke slowly curled from his slender fingers as he spoke softly, “Let’s go find Old Gao together tomorrow.”

Lu Ming’an: “...”

A fickle man.

Lu Ming’an suggested, “Want to invite your sister-in-law along?”

“She’s not interested in golf.”

Lu Ming’an teased, “You’re just leaving like that? Won’t your sister-in-law be mad?”

“She has things to do.”

Lu Ming’an almost burst out laughing. He hadn’t expected that Jinnan, who never had time to date girls before, would one day meet a girl who didn’t have time to be with him.

And that girl was his fiancée.