That night, Ru Yin Yue didn't have dinner with auntie Yi and her daughter, Yi He Lan. She already had dinner with her mother-in-law, the latter treating her to mala hotpot earlier that evening after they went shopping.
She did stop by to chat with the Yi mother-daughter pair before she retired to her room early. It had been a long day, and Ru Yin Yue was exhausted after accompanying her mother-in-law to shop for her clothing. The one bright spark of the day was the piano.
Ru Yin Yue had never felt more alive playing the piano. She couldn't wait for her personal compact piano to be moved to her room. The sales assistant said that they would deliver it by Saturday, and even though it was just the next day, it felt like an eternity.
Her fingers itched…she wanted to play something, but she didn't dare to step into the music room. She didn't want to incur Si Zha Nan's wrath again. He was already in a foul mood and disgusted with her. There was little point in aggravating him further.
Why should I care?
The thought came to Ru Yin Yue, unbidden, and she frowned. That was right. Why should she care about Si Zha Nan's mood? Ever since she married him, he had been nothing but cold and abusive to her. He had even raped her on that first night. He had not said a single kind word to her, often berating her harshly and blaming her for breaking him and Zhou Ni Yao apart.
Despite his own mother showing him photographic evidence of Zhou Ni Yao's affair, he refused to believe her. His own mother. The deluded CEO only believed what he wanted to believe, and stubbornly turned a blind eye to whatever truth he deemed inconvenient.
Normally, that wouldn't have bothered Ru Yin Yue, but she had to bear the brunt of his anger. How was that fair? She was innocent. She hadn't done anything wrong. She didn't deserve to be treated in such a manner.
As much as she loved Si Zha Nan, his cold attitude was testing the limits of her patience. At this rate, she was tempted to leave him.
But she couldn't. If she left the Si family, how was she going to take care of her mother?
"Ning Xue, have you found anything for me yet?"
Unable to suppress her impatience, she decided to call her agent. Xia Ning Xue mumbled something incoherently. She sounded exhausted on the other line, and Ru Yin Yue felt her concern flare up. Clearly her friend wasn't getting enough sleep.
"Ning Xue? Are you all right? What happened?"
"No, no. Nothing. Sorry, Yin Yue. I've been looking, but they've shut me out completely. I don't understand." Ru Yin Yue could hear the frustration in Xia Ning Xue's voice. "You're already married to Si Zha Nan. Why are they still boycotting you? Haven't that damned man lifted the ban?"
"I've spoken to my mother-in-law. She'll talk to Zha Nan again." Ru Yin Yue tightened her grip on her smartphone. "Take the weekend off and rest, Ning Xue. Don't worry about it. My mother-in-law will take some time to resolve the matter."
"She had better," Xia Ning Xue grumbled darkly. "I'm on the verge of hiring a lawyer and suing that scumbag husband of yours. The only problem is that we'll lose the case badly. He has resources that are unimaginable to us, and will be able to hire a top lawyer. While we have…nothing."
"My mother-in-law is on my side." Ru Yin Yue tried to sound confident, but inwardly she quaked. Mom Si had promised so many times to speak to her son, but until now she had yet to succeed in convincing him. Were all of those empty promises? She would have to call her again after this. "Don't worry, we'll persevere. And our patience will be rewarded. Now get some sleep. You need it. I'll contact you after the weekend."
"All right." Xia Ning Xue stifled a yawn on the other side of the phone. "You too, Yin Yue, Don't stress yourself out over this."
"I won't. Who do you think I am?" Ru Yin Yue allowed herself a small smile. "I'm the young madam of the Si family. Worst case scenario, I'll use that status to bully someone into giving way to me."
"The problem is your scumbag husband," Xia Ning Xue growled. "If I see him, I'll give him one tight slap. I don't care if he's the heir to the Si family or the CEO of the Si corporation or the ruler of Cheng Shi City. He has no right to do this to you at all!"
"Thank you." Ru Yin Yue felt somewhat unburdened that she had at least one person on her side. Three, if she included auntie Yi and her daughter. Four, if she considered her mother-in-law.
Hanging up, she got ready to go to bed. However, before she could approach the private bathroom to wash up, there was a frantic knock on the door. Ru Yin Yue frowned and hurried over to open it, only to see auntie Yi standing outside with a phone in her hand.
"What's the matter, auntie Yi?"
"It is young master, ma'am." Auntie Yi wore an apologetic smile. She tightened her grip on the phone. "He is asking you to go to Sophia Bar."
"Now?"
Ru Yin Yue frowned and glanced at the clock inside her private bedroom. It was a little after nine at night. That was right…Si Zha Nan came home earlier that day, just to scorn her for no reason. As if she wasn't allowed to go shopping with his mother.
"Yes…he wanted you to go right away."
Looking at auntie Yi's expression, Ru Yin Yue had the impression that Si Zha Nan didn't so much as "asked" as he casually ordered her to go.
Something inside Ru Yin Yue snapped. This man who was supposed to be her husband…just who the hell did he think he was? When she came home, he scolded her and insulted her, treated her with disgust and scorn. And now, just because of a phone call – and mind you, he didn't even call her directly but instead relayed his message through auntie Yi – he expected her to jump to his orders like a…slave? Who did he treat her as?
He clearly did not respect her as a wife. And Ru Yin Yue was getting tired of his bullshit.
"I won't be going."
"…ma'am?"
Auntie Yi looked shocked. Ru Yin Yue realized she might have sounded overly harsh and covered her previous tone up quickly with a smile.
"I'm sorry, auntie Yi. I'm exhausted. I spent the whole day shopping with mom. I don't have the energy to go to a bar this late at night. I'm going to bed."
"If…if ma'am says so." Auntie Yi looked troubled, but she also looked a little determined, as if she approved of Ru Yin Yue's decision.
"I'm sorry, auntie Yi." Ru Yin Yue immediately felt apologetic. "If Zha Nan asks, tell him that I was the one who decided it. Tell him I'm unwell. I'll take responsibility for my own decision. Do not let him scold you. If he has any problem, tell him to talk to me directly. Do not allow him to take it out on you."
"Ma'am, you're too kind." Auntie Yi shook her head and stared at her madam determinedly. "Don't worry. This old lady stands on your side. Whatever you decide, I'll 100% stand by it. I won't let the young master rush you around!"
"Thank you." Smiling, Ru Yin Yue placed a hand on auntie Yi's arm to display her gratitude. Then the housekeeper turned to put away the phone and allow her to rest. Ru Yin Yue quickly washed up and went to bed.
It didn't feel like she had fallen asleep when she was woken up by a knock again. Rising from her bed groggily, Ru Yin Yue rubbed her eyes and climbed out to open the door. A distraught auntie Yi was holding the phone.
"I'm sorry for waking you up, ma'am. But the young master was very insistent in speaking to you."
"That's all right." Ru Yin Yue smiled at her reassuringly. "I told you earlier, didn't I? If he has any problem, tell him to talk to me directly."
"Even so…haiz…" Auntie Yi sighed and shook her head. She then passed the phone to Ru Yin Yue, who accepted it with a nod before raising it to her ear.
"Hello?"
"You're very bold, aren't you, Mrs. Si?"
"What are you talking about?" Ru Yin Yue asked stiffly, trying not to yawn. A quick glance told her that it was now after ten. The bastard wouldn't even let her sleep peacefully. "What's the matter?"
"Didn't I tell you to come to Sophia Bar?"
"And didn't I reply that I'm tired and unwell, and thus will not be able to come?"
"Don't use that as an excuse. You were fine the whole day, accompanying my mom to shop for branded clothing. How did you suddenly fall sick?"
"Did it not occur to you that I'm exhausted precisely because I spent the whole day shopping with mom?" Ru Yin Yue was unable to keep the exasperation from her voice.
"That's just an excuse. Come here now."
Fury billowed inside Ru Yin Yue and her hand that clutched the phone shook violently.
"Zha Nan," she said coldly. "I am not your servant. You do not command me to do anything. I don't care if you don't treat me as your wife, but I will not allow you to treat me like your servant either."
There was a short silence on the other end, and for a moment, all Ru Yin Yue heard was his breathing.
Then he spoke up again.
"You're looking for a job, aren't you?"
"Excuse me?" Ru Yin Yue frowned, puzzled at the sudden change in topic. "What…?"
"If you come to Sophia Bar now, I'll get you a job. I'll make sure you're employed by next Monday. I know you're seeking for work for the last month or so, and I can solve that right away. So how about it?"
Ru Yin Yue tightened her grip on the phone, her mind spinning. She recalled her conversation with Xia Ning Xue earlier that night…how stressed her agent was. How…utterly drained and exhausted. How she sounded as if she was in despair.
She remembered her mother, hospitalized and helpless. How she needed to pay the hospital bills. Right now, the Si family was footing the bill, but she realized she couldn't rely on the Si family forever. Si Zha Nan was like a ticking time bomb. There was no telling when he would just cut her loose and kick her out…divorce her. And when that happened, she wouldn't have the money to pay for her mom's hospitalization fees.
To avoid that problem, she needed a job of her own. She needed her own personal income.
"You know you can't afford to let this offer slip away."
Si Zha Nan's silky voice crawled into her ear. Gritting her teeth, Ru Yin Yue took a deep breath and considered one last time.
Then she made her decision.