Chapter 402: My Finger Will Feel Heavy When I"m Walking
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The store manager smiled and explained. "I"m not sure if you"ve seen the news, but a rich English aristocrat declared bankruptcy and all his jewels were sold at auction. Among them was a blue gem that was bought by our store. It was originally a gift given to the Qing dynasty"s Qianlong Emperor by a foreign delegate. Sometime later, the stone was embedded on a phoenix"s coronet. When the Qing dynasty fell to ruins, the artifact pa.s.sed through many hands, but all that"s left today is the gem itself. Modern coronets don"t have this jewel, with other jewels taking its place.

"This blue gemstone retains the original cutting and workmans.h.i.+p from back then, and has not suffered any damage. In the present day, it can be cla.s.sified as a gem of the highest quality. The cutting may not be on par with the techniques were have now, but it still looks exquisite, and a comparison with the workmans.h.i.+p prevalent during that period shows that it far exceeds the skills known at that time. It is valued much more than the kind of workmans.h.i.+p we have in modern times, which was why we refrained from refining it after it had been acquired. Its natural state is preserved, and we proceeded to set it in a ring and put it up for sale," the manager smiled and said. "Plenty of customers wanted to buy this, including a friend of our company"s director, but Mr. Qi was willing to pay our selling price and even double it, so it"s now his."

Ruan Danchen was so shocked that she could not even say a single word. Judging from the manager"s words, she could not possibly fathom the kind of price they had to pay just to bid successfully for the item. Setting it into a ring would increase the price even more, but Qi Chenglin went and doubled all that. She no longer had the courage to ask how much it costed.

She wanted to kick Qi Chenglin for his unnecessary spending. If she were to wear it, she would be constantly plagued by the worry of losing it.

"Because of its high value, it was specially flown from our headquarters in England, with bodyguards accompanying it through its entire journey. It just arrived yesterday, and for safety reasons the bodyguards are still here to keep watch. But don"t worry, Mrs. Qi, we maintain a strict confidentiality about our clients so one knows the ring is with you," the manager smiled and a.s.sured.

It would have been better if the manager did not tell her that, because her stress levels increased after what he said.

Ruan Danchen poked Qi Chenglin"s arm. "I feel really pressured to wear that ring. What if I accidentally lose it? My finger will feel heavy when I"m walking."

Her voice was soft, but the proximity of her distance with the manager allowed him to her everything. He nearly burst out laughing, but in order to keep it in, the corners of his lips were twitching.

Qi Chenglin spared her no blushes and immediately exploded with laughter.

"…" Ruan Danchen looked at him begrudgingly. It was such an expensive thing, and yet he had the decency to poke fun at her and laugh.

"Then we"ll keep this one at home. Wear it during our wedding ceremony, or if there"s any other important event," Qi Chenglin suggested. Worried that Ruan Danchen still stressed over it, he added, "I already spent the money anyway."

Ruan Danchen scrunched her face up and nodded. That bitter, forced appearance made her look as though she was forced to swallow down the ring.

Qi Chenglin could not help but laugh. He felt that her expression was simple too cute, and his pupils were glimmering with delight too as his eyes resembled a downward crescent-shape that was filled with precious stones. His well-defined fingers pinched her cheek lightly.

He did not exert too much force, but when he retracted his hand, her cheek was already slightly red. Qi Chenglin frowned immediately and pained to see her cheeks redden because of his pinching.

Anxious and worried, he asked, "It is painful?"

"No, it"s not painful." Ruan Danchen smiled in order to try and ease Qi Chenglin"s worry. She kneaded her face, intending to rub the red away, but her actions merely increased the intensity.

"Stop rubbing." Qi Chenglin frowned, holding her hand to stop her from rubbing. "Is it really not painful?"

"Yes, you didn"t pinch me too hard. Don"t you know how much force you were using just now?" Ruan Danchen asked. With their hands holding each other, she took the opportunity to rub his fingertips, tickling the emotions in his heart.

Her fingers were very soft, and were much different from his. It was as if softness was the only thing present in her fingers and she was devoid of bones. He felt as though her finger was a feather that stroked him endlessly.

Unable to resist it anymore, he grabbed her finger and pressed softly on her fingertips. The tenderness was overwhelming, making him dread letting it go. The more he touched, the more aroused he became.

He made a mental note to himself that he would fiddle with her fingers properly when he got home, and kissing them too. He recalled the time he guided her hand to help him rub one out, and the softness of her touch led him to lose himself tremendously.

He s.h.i.+fted his eyes to Ruan Danchen and thought about persuading her to do it again that night.

Ruan Danchen"s hair stood on end after being on the receiving end of his gaze. His luminous eyes gave her the feeling that he was not thinking of anything good.

Just as she was thinking of asking him what kind of thoughts made his gaze so penetrating, he lowered his head and planted a kiss on the redness of her cheek. All Ruan Dancgen could feel was moistness and tenderness on her face. For a brief moment, she felt like she had been jolted with electricity, making her entire body feel numb.

"Not painful anymore?" Qi Chenglin"s tone resembled that of a person coaxing a child, although his voice was magnetic and smoky. His tone suggested that he was trying to cajole children, but his s.e.xy voice suggested otherwise. It was clearly suggestive of his intention to bed her.

"…" The red mark on Ruan Danchen"s face was no longer visible because her entire face turned red, covering the original mark in its entirety.

The manager looked on shyly from one side. From the sky-high price that Qi Chenglin offered for the ring, it could already be discerned that Qi Chenglin placed great importance on his wife. Otherwise, even the richest of the rich would not have bought such a thing to please their wives.

Previously, it was rumored that the others who contacted the company"s director were intending to buy the diamond for collection purposes, rather than letting their wives wear it every day.

From the looks of it, Qi Chenglin would have told Ruan Danchen to wear it, if not her stressing out over it. The manager wondered, if Ruan Danchen really did lose the ring, what would Qi Chenglin do?

Judging by how Qi Chenglin ignored everyone else around him and teased his wife, the manager could not help but feel that Qi Chenglin would just pat her head if she lost it and say, "Be good. If it"s lost, then it"s lost. I"ll buy you a new one."

The manager had no idea why he was so confident about that, but the helpless look Qi Chenglin gave to Ruan Danchen was an ineffable signal that the exact same scenario would happen in real life.

Qi Chenglin held her hand and brought her to look at some of the other rings there. Since she was afraid to wear such a high-priced ring every day, she had no choice but to let Qi Chenglin buy her another one.

As for pricing and value, Ruan Danchen did not think about it anymore. The blue gem ring was too expensive that her head became dizzy.

However, since it was a wedding ring, Ruan Danchen made sure to pick one out carefully. She did not think too much about saving his money, and he did not like it when she was frugal with it. Arguments were bound to occur if that happened.

Qi Chenglin chose a few that he liked, and it turned out that Ruan Danchen liked them too. Amongst the few that Qi Chenglin laid out, she picked one and tried it on.

"How"s this one?" Ruan Danchen asked. She was torn between that and another one that she liked.

"Put them on both hands to compare them," Qi Chenglin said.

Ruan Danchen then put the other ring on her right ring finger. Under her close comparison, each seemed to have its own merits.

"Why not just buy both, then," Qi Chenglin was basically announcing his intention.

"That won"t do. There can only be one wedding ring," Ruan Danchen said.

"One of it can be treated as a wedding ring, while the other can be treated interchangeably," Qi Chenglin answered. He was showcasing his rich man persona right then.

"We"re choosing the wedding ring now, right? Even if you buy both, you still have to choose one as the wedding ring," Ruan Danchen lamented.

Qi Chenglin was not in a hurry. He was happy to accompany her as she chose them, saying, "Don"t worry too much. Look slowly. The more you look at them, the easier you"ll be able to choose the one that"s looks nicer."

All Ruan Danchen could do was stare at them. The manager did not rush them either, since Qi Chenglin was such a huge client, and the buyer of the blue gem no less. He had no complaints even if he was asked to stay with the couple throughout the night.

Ruan Danchen did not let him wait that long, though. All of a sudden, she raised Qi Chenglin"s left hand—he had already chosen his ring and worn it.

She looked at it for a moment before deciding to lift up her hand, remarking, "This ring seems to match yours."

Qi Chenglin looked at it and felt the same way too. He smiled at her and gave her a warm gaze. "Then we"ll get these."

"Mm!" Ruan Danchen answered happily, then took out the one she was wearing on her right hand.

The manager took out the blue gem ring from the gla.s.s box and gave it to Ruan Danchen.

She could feel its weight on her hands.

"Wear it," Qi Chenglin said.

Ruan Danchen kept quiet and looked at him, with her face expressing her worry at losing it.

"If you don"t wear it, we wouldn"t even know if it"s lost," Qi Chenglin said with a c.o.c.ked brow.

Ruan Danchen heard that and wore the ring at once. She then put on the normal ring too. With two big rings s.h.i.+ning brightly on her finger, she felt like a parvenu but was aware that doing so was much safer than keeping it in the bag.

Qi Youxuan scrutinized Ruan Danchen and facepalmed, thinking, "Mom is growing up!"

As they left the shop, Qi Chenglin had already made reservations for a Western restaurant within Dynasty, bringing with him the little boy. Having chosen the rings and worn them, Qi Chenglin was beyond elated, and he suggested for them to eat out because he wanted to celebrate.

The family of three went into Dynasty, with Manager Qian coming over immediately to welcome them. "Young Master Lin, Miss Ruan."

"She"s now my wife," Qi Chenglin appeared to have waited so long for that moment as he proclaimed it very proudly.

Manager Qian was stunned, but came back to his senses quickly. "Hehehe, congratulations Mr. Qi, Mrs. Qi. When did you two get married?"

"We got our marriage certificates yesterday," Qi Chenglin answered Manager Qian"s question very patiently. He then raised Ruan Danchen"s hand and said, "We went to choose our rings tonight and decided to come here and celebrate."

Manager Qian paused for a moment. He was blinded by the glimmer of both rings on her finger, thinking to himself that Qi Chenglin must have bought two rings for her out of sheer happiness with the marriage.

"I wish you both a prosperous, happy marriage." Manager Qian brought Qi Chenglin to the Western restaurant and said, "Tonight"s dinner is one the house. Our sincere treat."

"Thank you, I appreciate the gesture," Qi Chenglin nodded in acceptance without any sign of being modest. "When its time for our wedding ceremony, please do me the honor of attending."

"Of course, of course!" Manager Qian was overwhelmed by the favor. No matter how big a Qi family"s wedding was, and no matter how many guests were there, it was not the kind of even that he would ordinarily be present at. He became even more courteous as Qi Chenglin was kind enough to invite him to the wedding.

The distinguis.h.i.+ng feature of the Western restaurant within Dynasty was its lack of a private room. Everyone dined together in the dining hall, but the innermost part of the hall had a raised platform with three tables. Those three tables were covered by a wooden screen. Unless one was discussing business, most couples who wanted to savor the moment would ordinarily choose not to sit there.

The primary reason for that was because the floor was made out of gla.s.s, resembling the sea. Beneath the gla.s.s was a plethora of colorful fishes, including clownfish, and some aquarium décor of valleys and seagra.s.ses. During the course of the meal, one could just look down and see the beautiful scene under them.

Before the dishes were served, Qi Youxuan sat on the chair and wiggled his b.u.t.tocks from time to time. The myriad of vibrant-looking fishes made him incredibly happy.

After observing for some time, he looked up at Ruan Danchen. His big, grape-like eyes were s.h.i.+mmering brightly, looking particularly handsome under the dim light of the restaurant.

"Mom, would you like to send me to cla.s.s when school reopens?" Qi Youxuan asked eagerly with his sparkling eyes.

School would reopen in about half-month, as the winter holidays were short. As of late, Qi Youxuan was constantly mulling over how he would go to school and show his mother off.

Ruan Danchen understood Qi Youxuan well and caught on to his thinking. She replied without the slightest hesitation, "You bet."

Once dinner was served, Qi Youxuan ate happily.

Returning to Prestige Residences after dinner, she gave the little boy a bath before telling him a bedtime story and coaxing him to sleep. By the time all that was done, two hours had pa.s.sed.

Ruan Danchen hurriedly tidied up her things, and after she finished her bath, Qi Chenglin was already in the bed, watching television. He took his bath much earlier when she was busy coaxing Qi Youxuan to sleep.

The remote was placed not far from him, and the blanket only managed to cover him to his stomach. He was half-naked from the waist up, and even though he was just sitting there, there was no flab at all, only muscles. They were extremely seductive.

"Aren"t you cold?" Ruan Danchen felt cold after the bath, and she hurriedly tucked herself in the blanket. Qi Chenglin then hauled her into his embrace.

Ruan Danchen was no longer feeling cold. Instead, she was getting hotter and hotter, as she could feel Qi Chenglin"s breath on her forehead. She got so nervous that she forgot how to breathe.

Qi Chenglin stopped watching at the television, he embraced Ruan Danchen and rubbed against her. Her body was so soft that he was in a state of bliss. His thin lips moved from her forehead and traveled downward, letting his scalding hot breaths brush against her face. Ruan Danchen"s breathing became more and more erratic.

As he kissed her, he did not neglect to feel her, holding her hand and touching the tips of her tender fingers. A burst of pa.s.sion, followed by him gulping a couple of times, led him to press her hand down.

Ruan Danchen inhaled sharply due to the shock. She wanted to pull back, but he pushed her down. It may not be very forceful, but she could not break free of his grip.

"Help me rub one out," Qi Chenglin kissed her and said shamelessly.

Even if she did not want to, she was unable to evade him, but when it came to that man, she could never say anything. His wish was her command, and she wanted to satisfy him. There was not a single body part of his that she disliked.

Though she was blus.h.i.+ng and trembling, she still jerked him off.

Qi Chenglin closed his eyes in ecstasy and pulled her other hand to his lip. Softly, he began kissing them, as well as his lips. "I"ve been thinking of this ever since we were choosing our rings."

With what little brainpower she had left, she remembered his burning gaze from earlier and understood why he looked so naughty at that time.

Ruan Danchen"s misty eyes stared at him, she pursed her lips and chastised weakly, "Shameless."

Qi Chenglin smiled and finally allowed her hand to break free. He flipped he over, pushed her down, and went in.

Xia Zishan acted in accordance with the instructions from the prior night and contacted Shen Zhijing, saying that she wanted to go out since they had not met for so long. Shen Zhijing did not suspect of his presence, and since she had nothing to do that night, she agreed.

In order to make things look as natural as possible, Xia Zishan invited Chang Jingqiu and another friend to have a meal together.

Due to what happened with Qi Chenglin, Shen Zhijing"s circle of friends no longer kept in touch. Most of those who still kept contact were those who were not on the Shen family"s level, a good example of which was Xia Zishan.

Shen Zhijing however, was aware of her situation and did not make too much a fuss. Xia Zishan did not alienate her, so Shen Zhijing maintained a good relations.h.i.+p with her.

Rumors circulated that the Xia family was busy trying to set Xia Zishan up with Chen Libai. If it turned out to be a success, then the Xia family would be raised to another level—all the more reason for Shen Zhijing to maintain good relations with Xia Zishan. That was one of the reasons why she was so willing to show up after only one phone call from Xia Zishan.

In addition, one of the friends that Xia Zishan also invited was Chen Libai"s sister, Chen Pinyan. Shen Zhijing knew of Chen Pinyan, but was not too familiar with her, although they previously met before when some of the rich families" daughters came out to have fun.

Another one was Chang Jingqiu, whom Shen Zhijing did not now.

After Xia Zishan"s introduction, Shen Zhijing was slightly taken aback. The Chang family was no ordinary family—they had the potential to be related be marriage to any one of the Eight Great Families. It was surprising that she would accompany Xia Zishan there.

Just as those doubts began surfacing, Xia Zishan explained, "Jingqiu is my high school cla.s.smate."

Shen Zhijing immediately understood how two people of different societal hierarchy could become such good friends.

Chang Jingqiu and Xia Zishan were both well-acquainted with Chen Libai, so Chen Pinyan knew them both too. Everyone was in high spirits during the meal. Everyone was laughing and smiling, and their conversations were littered with topics such as makeup, clothes, travel, and non-surgical cosmetic surgery. They all had a blast.

Shen Zhiing held Chang Jingqiu in high regard, as she felt that the latter did not have the mannerisms of a rich daughter and was easy to talk to.

"Zhijing?" a voice called out.

Shen Zhijing"s gleeful laugh disappeared instantly. She turned around coldly and saw Liu Ronghua standing hesitantly behind her, barely two feet away. The woman looked unsure and reluctant.

Shen Zhijing looked at Liu Ronghua briefly and turned back to see Chang Jingqiu and the others. She was worried that she might lay her eyes on looks of disdain from the group of girls.

Their faces did not seem to have any such looks, only suspicion.

Seizing the pause, Liu Ronghua took a couple of steps forward and asked, "Zhijing, are you here to have a meal with your friends? Such a coincidence, so am I."

"You are…" Chang Jingqiu seemed as though she was unable to find a word to describe Liu Ronghua. It took her some time to smile and say, "…Auntie, right?"

"My aunt," Shen Zhijing nodded. She did not dare to address her using her full name in front of the others.

At home, Shen Zhjing usually addressed Liu Ronghua by her full name.

"You"re here alone, Auntie? Why not join us for a meal?" Chang Jingqiu smiled and offered.

Bonus scene:

You Think Having A Wife Makes You So Great!

Han Zhuoli: "I hate this kind of behavior from rich people, buying two wedding rings just to show off."

Qi Chenglin: "I have a wife."

Han Zhuoli: "Flaunting your wealth is soooooooo un-cla.s.sy."

Qi Chenglin: "I have a wife."

Han Zhuoli: "If you have what it takes, don"t use such low-end means to show-off your wealth!"

Qi Chenglin: "I have a wife."

Han Zhuoli: "If you have what it takes, don"t show-off your wife!"

Qi CHenlin: "I have a wife."

Han Zhuoli: "… Someone take this trash away please. I can"t take it anymore. You think having a wife makes you so great!"