Chapter 13: The Best Friend Snitches
Cheng Yuan’s action was so bold, it startled Lin Ruoxi!
Lin Ruoxi wanted to remind Cheng Yuan that their marriage was fake. He shouldn’t get too deep into character, or he’d only be heartbroken when they eventually divorced.
But as Cheng Yuan spun her around in his arms, Lin Ruoxi felt a sense of security and warmth she had never known.
This security and warmth made Lin Ruoxi reluctant to let go.
In the end, Lin Ruoxi didn’t say a word. She silently hugged Cheng Yuan, gently resting her beautiful face on his shoulder.
’Since he’s so happy, I’ll let it slide this one time.’
’Just this once.’
After a good while, Cheng Yuan finally set Lin Ruoxi down.
Lin Ruoxi stared into Cheng Yuan’s eyes. She knew she had to steel her heart, or they would both only sink deeper.
"Cheng Yuan, our marriage is fake. We can cooperate and act intimately when we have to, but in private, I think we should keep an appropriate distance."
Cheng Yuan knew he had gotten a little carried away and scared Lin Ruoxi, so he quickly explained, "I just got a little excited. I promise it won’t happen again."
Lin Ruoxi nodded slightly, took out her phone, and called her best friend.
"Manwen, it’s Ruoxi."
"Ruoxi? Did you change your number? I’ve been calling you for days, but your phone was always off! Where are you now? Are you okay?"
Faced with Shen Manwen’s barrage of questions, a gentle smile touched the corners of Lin Ruoxi’s lips.
"Manwen, you’ve asked so many questions, how am I supposed to answer? I’m fine. I’m in Luocheng."
"Where in Luocheng? Don’t move, I’m coming to find you right now!"
"In front of City Hall."
"City Hall? What were you doing at City Hall?"
"Just got a marriage certificate."
"Ruoxi, stop messing around. Be serious!"
"I’m not messing around. You’ll see when you get here."
...
A dozen or so minutes later, a silver Maserati pulled up in front of Cheng Yuan and Lin Ruoxi.
A girl in an LV uniform got out of the car. She had long, slender, phoenix-like eyes and slightly thick, sword-like eyebrows, giving her a strikingly fierce look.
Fierce and beautiful.
This girl was Lin Ruoxi’s best friend—Shen Manwen.
The Shen Family, to which Shen Manwen belonged, was also a major family from the Provincial City. Her father had been transferred to Luocheng last year to serve as its City Lord, and the whole family had since relocated.
"Ruoxi!"
"Manwen!"
The two women shared a deep hug, holding on for a good while before letting go.
Feigning composure, Lin Ruoxi made the introductions. "Let me introduce you. This is my husband, Cheng Yuan. Cheng Yuan, this is my best friend, Shen Manwen."
Cheng Yuan greeted her politely, "Hello, Miss Shen."
Shen Manwen didn’t respond, instead sizing Cheng Yuan up with a scrutinizing gaze.
’He’s covered in cheap clothes, and his hair isn’t even properly groomed.’
’His posture and bearing show no signs of strict training.’
’Ruoxi would never fall for a commoner like him.’
"Mr. Cheng, let’s not mince words. You’re the shield Ruoxi found, aren’t you?"
Cheng Yuan’s guard went up. ’This woman is no simpleton; she actually saw through it.’
Cheng Yuan didn’t answer, just looked at Lin Ruoxi with a faint smile.
"Manwen, you guessed wrong. Cheng Yuan isn’t a shield. We’ve already gotten our marriage certificate."
As she spoke, Lin Ruoxi handed the marriage certificate to Shen Manwen.
Shen Manwen took the certificate with a suspicious look on her face, but then she was completely floored!
’This really is a marriage certificate!’
’And it was just issued.’
’The ink from the seal isn’t even dry yet!’
"Ruoxi, are you for real? You haven’t been tricked, have you? How did you two even meet?"
"It’s a long story. I’ll tell you all about it later. Do you have a spare place? We need to borrow it for a few days."
Shen Manwen pulled Lin Ruoxi aside and lowered her voice. "Ruoxi, what kind of crazy joke is this? He doesn’t even have a house, so why would you marry him? Are you being threatened? Have you lost your freedom?"
"Manwen, you’re overthinking it. Cheng Yuan hasn’t even graduated from college yet, so it’s normal for him not to have a house. We’ll work hard together and buy one soon enough. Just tell me if you’ll lend us a place or not."
"Lend? Of course, I’ll lend it! I’d give it to you! But Ruoxi, you don’t have to debase yourself like this just to escape an arranged marriage. With your looks and status, what kind of high-quality man couldn’t you find? Why be with a commoner who has nothing?"
Lin Ruoxi’s tone was grave. "Manwen, I am not debasing myself. Don’t look down on Cheng Yuan. He’s a very powerful Martial Dao expert with a very bright future."
Shen Manwen sighed. "Ruoxi, you’re too naive. An ordinary Martial Dao expert, at best, ends up as a henchman or a guard for the rich and powerful. Only by becoming a Grandmaster can one be considered part of the elite. Even if his Martial Dao talent is high, it would take him at least thirty years to become a Grandmaster!"
Of course, Lin Ruoxi knew all this. She also knew that her future with Cheng Yuan was bleak.
But she couldn’t tell Shen Manwen that her marriage with Cheng Yuan was just a sham.
Lin Ruoxi retorted stubbornly, "It’s still better than marrying Gu Chen! What if Cheng Yuan is one of those legendary geniuses?"
"You think Martial Dao geniuses are a dime a dozen? You might not even find one in all of Luocheng! Forget it, I’m done arguing. I’ll take you to see the house first. I happen to have a small villa that’s currently empty."
"We don’t need a villa. A normal little house is fine."
"No way. I can’t let you suffer like that!"
Shen Manwen domineeringly rejected Lin Ruoxi’s suggestion. ’I’ll use the small villa to make Cheng Yuan see the gap between them. Hopefully, he’ll be smart enough to know his place and back off!’
Unaware of Shen Manwen’s little scheme, Lin Ruoxi nodded slightly. "Alright then."
Since what was done was done, Shen Manwen couldn’t keep ignoring Cheng Yuan. She said coldly, "Mr. Cheng, get in the car!"
With that, Shen Manwen got into the car.
Cheng Yuan had never been in a luxury car like a Maserati before, but he wasn’t intimidated in the slightest. He gracefully opened the door for Lin Ruoxi to get in.
Then he opened the door on the other side and calmly sat down in the back seat.
About ten minutes later, the Maserati drove into the Emperor No. 9 Villa District.
BEEP BEEP. The gate to the No. 13 Small Villa opened, and the car drove into the garage.
Cheng Yuan got out of the car and looked around, his eyes lighting up in spite of himself.
It was a European-style, light-luxury small villa, about three hundred square meters, with an additional hundred-square-meter small garden.
At market price, it had to be worth at least six million.
For the old Cheng Yuan, this was an absolutely unattainable price. Even for the current Cheng Yuan, he couldn’t produce that much money at the moment.
Seeing Cheng Yuan gawking at the small villa like a country bumpkin, Shen Manwen confirmed her initial judgment. ’He really is a country bumpkin!’
Shen Manwen quietly composed a text message.
"Auntie, Ruoxi is with me. To resist the arranged marriage, she had a flash marriage with some country bumpkin. You need to get over here and see this!"
「Provincial City, Huanyu Group.」
Lin Ruoxi’s mother, Hua Yao, received the message and trembled with rage!
BANG! Hua Yao slammed open the door to her husband Lin Xinghe’s office.
"Lin Xinghe, your daughter married a country bumpkin! You’re coming with me to Luocheng right now! We’re dragging your daughter back!"