“Jiang Ci?”
Su Yue’s voice carried a hint of surprise as she answered the phone.
“Mhm.” His low, magnetic voice hummed through the receiver, followed by a direct question, “Where are you right now?”
Su Yue glanced at her mother sitting beside her. With the phone in hand, she rose to her feet, and Fang Ru—understanding it was Jiang Ci on the line—gave her a casual nod, motioning for her to take the call.
“What is it?” Su Yue asked as she stepped out onto the balcony, the sunlight casting a golden glow across her delicate features.
“Su Yue, where are you?” Jiang Ci’s voice remained calm, but there was a strange persistence beneath it.
“The weather’s nice today,” Su Yue thought absently as she leaned against the railing. The warm sun wrapped around her body like a comforting blanket. “I’m at home,” she replied honestly, still confused why he’d suddenly called.
“Okay,” came the short reply—then the call abruptly ended.
Su Yue blinked at the phone in disbelief. That was it? He called just to ask where she was… and then hung up?
She had half a mind to coax him a little, maybe lighten his mood so that his anger wouldn’t give her another pounding headache. But before she even got the chance, Jiang Ci had already ended the call.
Back in the room, Fang Ru looked up with a knowing smile. “What happened? That rascal Jiang Ci urging you to go back already?”
Su Yue put on a relaxed expression and walked over, her tone light, “No, he said I should rest at home for a few more days before going back.”
“Oh good,” Fang Ru beamed. “I was hoping you’d stay with us longer anyway, Yueyue.”
After picking out her own dress, Su Yue stayed to help her mother choose hers. She could see how much Fang Ru valued this upcoming wedding banquet. It wasn’t just a social event—it was a moment she had been looking forward to with pride.
Near lunchtime, Su Jindong returned from the company.
To say he doted on his wife was an understatement. Even though he could’ve easily eaten at work or had something brought over by an assistant, he insisted on returning home just to see Fang Ru for a short while.
“What are you two smiling about?” he asked, pulling out a chair for his wife with practiced affection.
“We picked out our dresses for tomorrow’s banquet. Of course we’re happy!” Fang Ru replied, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. Most of all, she was looking forward to seeing the stunned faces of those who once mocked her daughter.
Seeing his wife in such high spirits, Su Jindong leaned in with a grin. “Ruru, you look amazing in anything. Whatever you wear, I’ll love it.”
Fang Ru gave him a side-eye, half amused, half exasperated. “Alright, alright, sit down before your daughter starts laughing at you.”
Su Yue watched the scene play out with a smile tugging at her lips, her heart warmed by their playful banter.
Just then, her phone buzzed again.
The caller ID showed Jiang Ci’s name.
Su Yue looked at her parents across the table and stood up. She pressed the answer button, lowering her voice slightly, “Jiang Ci? What’s wrong this time?”
“I’m at your door. Come out.”
A soft, milky voice followed from the other end of the phone, “Haohao and Daddy came to pick you up and take you home!”
Su Yue’s heart skipped a beat. He… he was here?
“What’s the matter?” Su Jindong noticed her startled expression.
“I’ll be right back,” she said quickly. “You two eat first.” Then she rushed out of the house.
Fang Ru blinked, puzzled. “What’s going on?”
Outside, a sleek black car was parked, exuding power and dominance even while idle.
Su Yue hurried over, knocking on the car window. “Jiang Ci?”
The window slowly rolled down to reveal Jiang Ci’s handsome, sharp features—and the adorable little face of Jiang Haoyan beside him.
“We’re here,” Haohao said seriously, poking his little head out. “It’s been so many days. Why haven’t you come home? Is it that fun out here?”
Trying to look stern, the little guy puffed his cheeks and announced, “Haohao and Daddy came to catch you and bring you back!”
Su Yue couldn’t help but chuckle at his earnest expression. Her gaze shifted to Jiang Ci’s composed face.
“So you’re here to take me home?” she asked the little one.
Haohao nodded enthusiastically.
Su Yue raised an eyebrow. “That can’t be right. Your father won’t let me go home.”
The little guy tilted his head, confused.
“It was your dad who told me to leave in the first place,” she added with a meaningful glance toward Jiang Ci. “I was just doing what he said.”
Haohao’s eyes widened in shock, his tiny mouth forming an ‘O’. “Dad? You didn’t want mango cake anymore? How could you drive her away?”
Jiang Ci’s lips twitched faintly as he looked at her, amused. “I take back what I said earlier. Now get in the car.”
Su Yue folded her arms. “No way!”
Her eyes narrowed as she studied his face. “Jiang Ci, you’re the one who told me to leave. Now you want me back like it’s nothing? Am I some stray cat or dog that comes when you call and leaves when you wave your hand? My parents are still eating inside. I’m going back in. You can go.”
Jiang Ci raised an eyebrow, lips curving in interest. “Oh? Then I guess I’ll go in and greet the two elders myself.”
Su Yue panicked. “No!” she cried out instantly.
She remembered clearly how her parents had opposed her marrying Jiang Ci from the beginning. It was only because they loved her too much, and didn’t want to see her upset, that they begrudgingly agreed. They had never truly accepted him.
If Jiang Ci barged in now, it would only cause trouble.
“Then come back with me,” he said, his voice unyielding.
“I said no!” Su Yue puffed her cheeks, frustrated.
Jiang Ci’s brow furrowed slightly.
Ding! Anger value: 12.
Su Yue: “…?” Why is he angry? I’m the one being threatened here!
“Oh.” Jiang Ci’s expression remained unreadable, his tone calm as ever. “Then I’ll go in and greet my father-in-law and mother-in-law.”
“Jiang Ci!” Su Yue’s brows furrowed in frustration as she glared at him. “You told me to leave before, and now you’re asking me to come back? You’re unbelievable.”
“If you say I’m begging you,” Jiang Ci replied smoothly, “then yes, I’m begging you.”
He really had a way with words—when he wanted to.
Su Yue’s lips pressed into a thin line. “Not even a proper apology… You have no sincerity.”
“I’m sorry.”
The apology came out so abruptly, so easily, that Su Yue blinked in surprise. That simple?
“Not enough?” Jiang Ci raised an eyebrow, his voice still light and casual. “Then I’ll say it again—I’m sorry. I was wrong.”
There wasn’t the slightest hint of guilt or discomfort in his tone. To him, apologizing didn’t seem embarrassing at all.
Su Yue was beginning to realize that Jiang Ci’s logic followed no common path. You couldn’t predict him with ordinary reasoning. She lowered her eyes and said softly, “I can’t go back just yet.”
“Su Yue!” Jiang Ci’s voice sharpened, his brows knitting together.
【Anger value: 20】
The moment the anger value spiked, a dull throb flared behind her temples. The ringing in her ears grew louder and louder, so sharp and persistent that she almost covered her ears to block it out.
“Don’t be mad,” she said quickly, trying to pacify him. “Listen to me. I have something important tomorrow. I’ll come back once I’m done.”
Her tone was gentle, lacking any high-handedness. She knew all too well that, in her current state, she couldn’t live without Jiang Ci’s support. Now that he was the one extending the olive branch, her heart settled a little. She didn’t want to be spineless and return on her own initiative, but if he came to get her… that was different.
“Mm, I understand,” Jiang Ci said simply.
【Anger value: 0】
In that instant, the headache vanished, and the deafening ringing in her ears ceased altogether.
Su Yue’s eyes lit up with a hint of a smile. As petty as Jiang Ci could be, he was surprisingly easy to coax. Perhaps… that was his one redeeming quality.
Just as her heart began to relax, Jiang Ci abruptly pushed open the car door.
Startled, Su Yue stared at him. “What are you doing? Just head back—I’m going inside.”
Little Haohao, eyes wide and innocent, looked confused for a moment. Then, placing his tiny hands on the seat for balance, he hopped down from the car by himself. He turned, carefully carried the coriander Su Yue had bought earlier, and toddled over to Jiang Ci’s side.
“Let’s go,” Jiang Ci said as though it were the most natural thing in the world. “We’re going in together.”
“What?” Su Yue’s newly settled heart instantly began racing again. She looked at him, panicked. “I promised I’d go back after tomorrow. Why are you trying to go inside now?”
Jiang Ci’s dark, unreadable eyes fell on her. A smirk tugged at his lips. “Trying to shake me off, are you? Afraid I’ll meet your family?”
“No, that’s not it.” Su Yue denied it at once, flustered.
“Then let’s go in,” he said easily.
“This…” Su Yue hesitated, torn between protesting and surrendering.
At that very moment, a familiar voice called out from inside the house.
“Yueyue, who’s here?”
It was Fang Ru.
She emerged from the house, walking toward them.
Su Yue stopped struggling altogether. What was the point now?
—
At the dinner table, the once warm and harmonious atmosphere had vanished, replaced by a heavy tension that weighed on the room like a storm about to break. The air felt cold, as if frozen.
Su Jindong’s face was grim, his refined features twisted with visible anger. The rage bubbling in his chest seemed ready to explode at any moment. Across the table, he glared at Jiang Ci with a look that could ignite fire.
The more he looked, the more furious he became. This man was even more hideous than the last time he saw him. Not only was he blind, but the left side of his face was marred by a hideous scar. Worse still, red blotches had erupted across his skin, making him appear even more ghastly.
And his daughter—his beautiful, graceful daughter—had actually married this disfigured, blind man? It was like a flower had been thrown into a pile of cow dung. No… an ugly pile of cow dung.
Then his gaze drifted to the child sitting quietly beside Jiang Ci.
An adopted son, supposedly. But who knew if that was true? What if he was an illegitimate child?
The more Su Jindong thought, the more infuriated he became. He should never have relented. He’d foolishly given in to his daughter’s pleas and allowed her to marry this… this thing. Even picking a man at random off the street would’ve been better than Jiang Ci.
Beside him, Fang Ru’s expression wasn’t much better. She’d met Jiang Ci once, half a year ago, and had regretted the marriage ever since. Now, seeing her daughter thinner than ever, and this frightening son-in-law beside her, her heart ached.
But regrets were useless now.
Su Yue, unable to see her parents’ expressions, sat unaware of the tension in the room. She hadn’t known Jiang Ci would show up out of the blue. No wonder he’d called her earlier to ask where she was.
The silence was finally broken by Su Jindong’s thunderous voice.
“Jiang Ci, what are you doing in my home?”
Unlike others, he wasn’t intimidated by Jiang Ci. He’d disliked him from the very start. Slamming his hand on the table, he snapped, “It’s bad enough that you came—why did you bring your son along too? What are you trying to prove?”
Startled, Haohao shrank slightly, his large eyes darting to Jiang Ci in confusion.
“I’m here to take Su Yue home,” Jiang Ci replied lazily. “And I thought I’d greet my in-laws while I was at it.”
“Don’t you dare call us that!” Su Jindong snapped. “I don’t have an ugly son-in-law like you.”
Su Yue’s heart tensed. She hadn’t realized her father hated Jiang Ci this much. She sneaked a glance at Jiang Ci. His face was blank, unfazed. But she knew—he wasn’t as indifferent as he seemed.
“It’s fine if you don’t want me to call you that,” Jiang Ci replied casually, curling his lips. “I don’t mind using your name. After all, we’re both adults. Same generation, right?”
“You wish!” Su Jindong’s face flushed with rage. “Trying to be on equal footing with me? Dream on!”
“Father-in-law,” Jiang Ci said again with a smile.
Su Jindong’s chest heaved with fury. Just looking at Jiang Ci’s face made him feel ill. He waved his hand irritably and snapped, “Just leave already. Yueyue is staying here for a few days.”
Jiang Ci leaned back in his chair, unhurried. “She should spend some time with her parents. It’s been a while.”
Those few light words carried an unmistakable undertone.
Su Jindong narrowed his eyes. “What are you planning?”
“My wife is staying here for a few days,” Jiang Ci said matter-of-factly, “so of course, I’ll be accompanying her.”
Su Jindong’s face contorted in fury, the veins on his forehead bulging.
And beside him, Su Yue stared at Jiang Ci in disbelief.
He… he was really planning to live here?