Chapter 357: When Will You Register Your Marriage?
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

"But after all these years, you never brought up a word about our engagement. You let me stay in the Shen household with this awkward position. Everyone looks at me disdainfully." Liu Ronghua paused. She was not talking out of rage — in the Shen household, even Aunt Li, who had worked there for years, looked down at her scornfully.

Aunt Li did not bother to hide her disgust. Although she never said it out loud, Liu Ronghua could tell from her manner that she harbored contempt toward Liu Ronghua because she gained all this by sacrificing her daughter.

"Now, you want to raise another condition? You won"t marry me unless I convince Danchen to return? Jialiang, am I really so unworthy of becoming your wife?" Liu Ronghua whimpered.

"Ronghua, don"t say it like that." Shen Jialiang sighed. His tone sounded abnormally patient. "That year, although Danchen agreed to our terms, in the end, we did not get what we asked for. The child was born, but Qi Chenglin took him away. Zhijing did not end up marrying Qi Chenglin. On the contrary, she had been single all these years. Even so, I sill brought you here. If I really wanted to follow our agreement, I could have left you in that apartment because the end goal was not met. I also have feelings toward you. In all these years, although you are not officially my wife, I still saw as my wife, and treated you as such."

"Ronghua, tell me this — in all the years you"ve been in my house, have I ever cheated on you? Has there ever been any other woman coming here and threatening to take your position? Even without the certificate, you are still the woman of the house. Isn"t that how the ladies you socialize with see you too? Otherwise, why would they befriend you? I"ve never brought it up because I know my children have not completely accepted you. I don"t want to ruin the household"s peace. After all, we"re all doing just fine this way. I don"t want to destroy that."

Shen Jialiang sighed again. "Nonetheless, this is a chance for you. It took me a lot of convincing to get Zhijing to agree to this. As long as you manage to get Danchen to return here, recovering the relations.h.i.+p between the Shan family and the Qi family, I will marry you."

Liu Ronghua sniffled. The waterworks stopped but her eyes were glistening with tears when she turned to Shen Jialiang.

"Ronghui, the truth is, I really do want to marry you. I know that you"ve suffered all these years. I"ve seen how nice you are to Zhenghong and Zhijing. Finally, these children don"t oppose this anymore — it"s finally our chance. This way, Danchen can also finally have a home." Shen Jialiang stared at Liu Ronghua earnestly.

"I know you must feel guilty toward Danchen, so this is also your chance to make it up to her wholeheartedly. Bring her here; let her stay here. From that day on, she"ll become the precious daughter of the Shen family. Her status here will be equal to Zhijing. I can"t guarantee that I can treat her as well as I treat Zhijing — after all, she is my flesh and blood — but I promise that I will never wrong her."

Shen Jialiang observed Liu Ronghua"s reaction carefully. He noticed that she had been moved a little.

Thus, he resumed, "This way, not only can you reunite with your daughter, but we"ll be able to give Danchen a real family too. According to Zhijing, Danchen and Qi Chenglin are close to the stage where they start discussing their marriage. With a reliable adult discussing with the Qi family, the odds of it succeeding would be much higher. We can back Danchen up. During the wedding, Danchen can marry with the status of the Shen family"s daughter — no one would judge her that way. No matter what, this is still beneficial for Danchen. As long as you explain everything to her clearly, I"m sure she"ll understand."

"It"s true that there was much friction between us before. We were both weary or each other and treated each other with suspicion. However, this is something of advantage to her — for her future, she should let go of the past and move on. She shouldn"t let her past affect her future. Danchen is a smart girl — I know she"ll understand."

Shen Jialiang paused for a while. He saw that Liu Ronghua was completely moved. In an even more tender voice, he asked, "Ronghua, what do you say?"

"I"ll go talk to her." Liu Ronghua finally nodded in agreement.

On Sat.u.r.day, Liu Ronghua woke up exceptionally early — even Shen Jialiang was astonished.

Therefore, she explained, "I have heard Danchen mention that on Sat.u.r.day mornings, she has to do overtime at her company. She doesn"t usually have much break time so I want to visit her at her office earlier."

Liu Ronghua sighed and admitted, "She doesn"t want to see me now. If I call her, I"m worried that she"ll find an excuse to evade me. Even if she"s not at the office today, I can inquire from her colleagues her address."

Shen Jialiang was extremely pleased with Liu Ronghua"s devotion. He nodded delightedly. "She will understand your struggles."

Liu Ronghua sighed deeply. She acted as if she was a loving mother who had her heart broken by her daughter. "I hope so."

Liu Ronghua arrived at Chengs.h.i.+. As expected, there was someone available at the reception area. Many employees were there to do overtime.

The receptionist watched at Liu Ronghua strutted grandly toward her. Noticing her well-maintained appearance, the receptionist a.s.sumed that she must be a woman with exceptionally high status.

Ever since Ruan Danchen"s resignation and Qi Chenglin blacklisting Chengs.h.i.+, it became extremely rare to see clients from the upper cla.s.s.

Now, it was pretty much impossible for Chengs.h.i.+ to take on any large projects such as designing and renovating whole housing areas, hotels, and public recreational facilities. Chengs.h.i.+ had no chance to take part in any of those.

In the beginning, Director Zhao still wanted to try his luck, thinking that Qi Chenglin would not do much against Chengs.h.i.+ — he thought that the second Young Master of the Qi family would not stoop down to the level of a small company like them.

However, every time he went for an auction, the moment he mentioned he was from Chengs.h.i.+, he would not even be allowed to enter, much less to make bids.

When he tried to contact clients in private, whenever they heard the word "Chengs.h.i.+", they would disregard even the most common courtesy and hang up immediately.

After going through this several times, Director Zhao finally gave up. Now, he could only rely on small projects like refurbis.h.i.+ng old houses and renovating or making small changes to second-hand houses. There was not even much to discuss for small projects like those.

Nonetheless, Director Zhao could not do anything about it. At least it was better than closing down entirely. After all, many a little makes a mickle. It was better than nothing at all.

Basically, everyone is the higher social circle had boycotted them under Qi Chenglin"s instructions — they would not even let Chengs.h.i.+ handle their own houses" renovations. All the clients that came in were merely average Joes.

Thus, seeing Liu Ronghua striding toward the reception desk was like a dream come true.

The receptionist hurriedly presented a genial smile and asked eagerly, "Madam, how can I help you?"

"I"m here to see Ruan Danchen. Is she here?" Liu Ronghua inquired in a gentle voice.

Her voice was soft and tender, like that of a delicate little princess.

The receptionist was stunned — she did not expect that after Ruan Danchen left for so long, there would still be clients coming here to look for her.

Whenever Ruan Danchen was brought up, the receptionist could not help but be reminded of Yang Yunshu.

The receptionist heard that Yang Yunshu was now struggling to find a job within her expertise. She had applied in a few companies, but none dared to employ her. She even applied in small, nameless companies but even they refused to employ her.

The industry was not as big as she thought — the news spread quickly. None of the companies dared to offend Qilin, so Yang Yunshu could only give up.

It was said that she had not become a seller on WeChat, selling random items from maternal and baby products to makeup and cosmetics. Lately, she had even started selling high-quality replicas of branded handbags.

"Ruan Danchen had resigned long ago," the receptionist explained. "Are you an old client of hers?"

Smiling politely, Liu Ronghua shook her head and corrected, "I"m her—"

She wanted to come right out and say she was her mother, but to think that a mother did not know how her daughter was doing, or when she resigned, or even where she lived, the receptionist probably would not have believed her.

Instead, Liu Ronghua claimed, "I"m her mother"s friend. Her mother isn"t in B City, so I"m here to visit her."

The receptionist nodded smilingly. She did not suspect a thing.

"Do you know where she lives now?" Liu Ronghua smiled and clarified, "I"ve always waited for her near the company."

"That…I"m sorry but I don"t know," the receptionist confessed, "Danchen had worked in this company for a long time — the address she filled up for human resources must have been from a long time ago. After so many years, I"m sure she had moved several times."

In the end, Liu Ronghua left empty-handed.

The receptionist reckoned that Ruan Danchen must be living with Qi Chenglin now, but she did not disclose that to Liu Ronghua and let her leave just like that.

Liu Ronghua contemplated her situation as she exited the office building and entered a white BMW. Then, she told the Shen family"s chauffer the address of the Qi family"s old mansion. She ordered him to drive her there.

The Qi family"s Sat.u.r.day gatherings were not much of a secret. Liu Ronghua had found out about it from others.

On Sat.u.r.day morning, Qi Chenglin brought Ruan Danchen and Qi Youxuan to the old mansion. Just as they entered the house, Ruan Danchen was ambushed by Grandmother Qi.

Grandmother Qi grabbed Ruan Danchen"s left hand and caressed the ring on her middle finger as if she had never seen a ring in her life. She then grabbed Qi Chenglin"s hand and stared at the ring on his middle finger. The more she stared at the rings, the more jubilant she became.

"Ah, we were in too much of a rush yesterday. Before I could say a word, this child had dragged you away. I didn"t even get to have a proper conversation with you. I wonder what was he so impatient about." Grandmother Qi glared at Qi Chenglin, then dragged Ruan Danchen to the sofa.

While the adults were not paying attention, Qi Youxuan slipped into the kitchen to see Aunt Liu.

Nonetheless, Qi Chenglin could still vaguely hear the boy"s voice coming from the kitchen. "Nanny Liu, I"m so hungry. Do you have anything tasty for me?"

"…" Qi Chenglin had not sat down yet — he was following behind Ruan Danchen. The moment he heard Qi Youxuan"s voice, he took a detour and entered the kitchen instead. He picked the boy up and scolded, "You just had breakfast less than an hour ago. What do you mean you"re hungry?"

Qi Youxuan"s large, grape-sized eyes were fixed on the kitchen yearnfully. His little chubby hands reached out as if to grasp onto the kitchen door. He appeared terribly pitiful.

Heart aching, Guan Liya swiftly took the boy over from Qi Chenglin and caressed his little face. Qi Youxuan did not style his hair today — the strands of hair laid flat on his tiny round face, making him look exceedingly adorable.

"Youxuan, come and let Grandma look at you." Guan Liya ran her hands along his chubby cheeks. "Yo, I think your little face has become thinner! The diet is working!"

"…" Qi Chenglin glared at Guan Liya speechlessly. "Mom, from which angle exactly does he look thinner?"

"Isn"t it obvious?" Guan Liya asked, turning to Qi Chenglin. "You"ve been looking at him every day, so you won"t notice. We, on the other hand, only see him once a week, so the change is obvious. Sister-in-law, don"t you think so too?"

Xia Wenna, who had been appointed to speak, turned to look at Qi Youxuan. Although she did not notice any changes, she still nodded vigorously. "Youxuan has definitely lost weight."

Grandmother Qi, who was still tugging on Ruan Danchen, took a glimpse at Qi Youxuan and played along too. "She"s right."

Qi Chenglin: "…"

"Come. Grandma bought snowy rice crackers from the supermarket yesterday just for you." Guan Liya took Qi Youxuan"s hand and led him into the kitchen.

A while later, Qi Youxuan waddled out with a small pack snowy rice cracker in each of his plump little hands.

Luckily, even though Guan Liya pampered her grandson, she still had the common sense to not hand him the entire packet.

"Even since Youxuan went on a diet, he doesn"t have many chances to have snacks. He worked so hard to make it till Sat.u.r.day, so at least let him have some," Guan Liya told Qi Chenglin.

After that, Qi Chenglin kept quiet.

Qi Youxuan was afraid that Qi Chenglin would change his mind. He quickly tore open the plastic and chomped down on the snowy rice crackers.

Grandmother Qi s.h.i.+fted her attention back to Ruan Danchen. "We parted too hastily yesterday — I didn"t even get to ask when are you two planning to get married? Have you discussed the wedding date? If you haven"t, we can all discuss it together today. What kind of wedding would you like? Have you told your mother about this?"

"You two are getting married?" Qi Chengyue exclaimed, flabbergasted yet thrilled. She turned to Qi Chenglin. "Brother, you sure move fast!"

"What joyous news! Congratulations! When will the wedding be? When will you register your marriage?" Song Yu was also exuberant. Soon, Ruan Danchen would become her sister-in-law.

"Oh, right. How can I forget something as important as registering your marriage? Ah, clearly my dear Song Yu"s young and active brain is more reliable than mine." Grandmother Qi slapped her thigh and turned to Ruan Danchen expectantly. "When will you register your marriage?"

Ruan Danchen could not utter a word. They were all filled with antic.i.p.ation — she did not have the heart to disappoint Grandmother Qi.

"Aunt Ruan, you"re finally going to marry my dad? That"s awesome!" Qi Youxuan, who was busy devouring the snowy rice crackers, joined in too.

Ruan Danchen was pushed to the edge of a cliff. She had no idea what to reply — especially after seeing the little boy"s exhilarated expression. Gazing into his big, sparkling eyes, Ruan Danchen could never bring herself to disappoint him.

Helpless, she turned to Qi Chenglin.

Qi Chenglin sat on the sofa, sipping his tea casually. He was not even looking at her. After a while, only did he notice her subtle cry for help. He turned to her and raised an eyebrow. "Why are you looking at me?"

Ruan Danchen was so irritated that her face was tinted red. Stealthily, she nipped his thigh.

It did not hurt, but after he felt her tender fingers pinching him, he leaned closer to her ear and whispered, "Your pinching is turning me on."

"…" Ruan Danchen"s face was completely flushed. Although she knew that it was rude to whisper in front of the elders, Ruan Danchen had no choice but to murmur, "Hurry up and explain it to them!"

"You don"t want to marry me?" Qi Chenglin raised his eyebrows. He grabbed her hand which was nipping his leg and pinched her delicate fingers softly. His expression seemed a little glum.

Ruan Danchen was taken aback. She grumbled, "What are you talking about? Is this your proposal?"

Qi Chenglin stared at her for a long while. Finally, his mocking glare softened into a warm gaze. Seeing the two whispering in each other"s ears, Grandmother Qi frowned. She did not know what to say.

Finally, Qi Chenglin turned to Grandmother Qi — his expression was abnormally stern. "Grandma, this is our couple ring. Danchen is starting her job in Qilin soon, but she wants to keep her ident.i.ty a secret. She wants to enter the company modestly and stay a normal employee in the company. She even kept her application a secret from me — if I weren"t the interviewer for her interview, I never would have found out about this. Nonetheless, I promised to keep our relations.h.i.+p a secret. Even so, I"m worried that someone might go after her, thinking she"s single. That"s why I put a ring on her."

Grandmother Qi was content with his explanation. She commented, "A wise move indeed."

She took Ruan Danchen"s hands again. She admired her modesty and appreciated that she did not march out waving the Qi family name like a flag. However, she still advised, "Ah, Xiao Ruan my dear, you are too humble. You were bullied in your old company because you"re too honest and innocent! It"s alright if no one annoys you, but if someone in Qilin bullies you, don"t hesitate to hurl Qi Chenglin"s name at them! Just reveal your ident.i.ty as if it"s nothing big. Don"t let those who bully the weak and fear the strong think you"re an easy target."

Ruan Danchen felt quite ashamed when Grandmother Qi brought that up. "Grandma, I"m sorry that you and Auntie had to go to Chengs.h.i.+ just for me that day."

"Ah, it"s nothing." Grandmother Qi waved it off. "The two of us are always idle anyway. It was like a little outing for us."

Having said that, Grandmother Qi turned to Qi Chenglin expectantly. "Sigh, this child. Why is it so hard for you to propose? When will you finally marry Danchen and make her part of our family?"

Ruan Danchen"s scalp itched, her ears felt aflame and her throat tightened. She was extremely bashful.

She felt that Grandmother Qi was forcing Qi Chenglin to marry her.

Qi Chenglin"s lips curled up into a warm smile. His hand holding hers, she could feel his long, bony fingers sliding between hers, interlacing their fingers. He held her hand tight. "A proposal is a serious matter. If I reveal my plans now, how would I surprise Danchen?"

A numbing sensation surged through Ruan Danchen"s ears. Her head felt as if it was going to explode. She knew that Qi Chenglin was only saying that to please Grandmother Qi.

Just as planned, Grandmother Qi"s eyes sparkled with joy. She leaned in front of Ruan Danchen and inched closer to Qi Chenglin. "You already have a plan?"

"Grandma," Qi Chenglin warned impatiently.

"I know, I know. You want to surprise her. I won"t ask anymore, okay?" Grandmother Qi was ecstatic. Nonetheless, she could not hide her curiosity. She seemed to be having a hard time suppressing it.

"Mom, the fortune drawn from the temple that day is so accurate," Guan Liya pointed out. After the incident Qi Chengzhi went through, those in the Qi family naturally avoided bringing it up. "Didn"t it say that Qi Chenglin will finally meet his match? Look, he met Danchen!"

"Indeed." Grandmother Qi nodded. She felt that the money she donated for oils and incents was not for nothing.

"I think one day we should go there and pray wholeheartedly," Guan Liya joked.

Grandmother Qi slapped her thigh and said, "That "one day" should be today! Since everyone is here today, we can all go pray today. Coincidentally, I wanted to pray for Chengyue to hurry up and get pregnant too. It doesn"t matter if it"s a boy or a girl. I just want another grandchild to hold."

"Grandma…" Qi Chengyue grunted weakly.

Cheng Dongge smiled faintly. He extended his hand and grabbed hers.

Qi Chengyue stared down at the floor, blus.h.i.+ng. Suddenly, Cheng Dongge said out loud, "We didn"t use any contraceptive methods after we got married, so I think if everything goes smoothly, we can have a child in no time."

Qi Chengyue"s hand twitched. Her face reddened. She turned to Cheng Dongge. Angry, she pinched him on the slender back of his hand as hard as she could.

Extra mini-scene:

Qi Chenglin"s Arts and Crafts Workbook 2

Grandmother Qi and Guan Liya were pa.s.sing by. Seeing Qi Chenglin devoting his entire focus onto the craft, Grandmother Qi was delighted.

"Not bad, not bad at all. You"re much more reliable than your big brother." Grandmother Qi nodded happily.

Coincidentally, Qi Chengzhi was pa.s.sing by with a popsicle. He caught a glimpse of the two humps in Qi Chenglin"s hands.

Stay tuned for the part of the story ~