"There's less than an hour left until the engagement ceremony, and there's absolutely no sign of the groom. Did he get cold feet?"
It's very likely. Not too long ago, Chu Ci supposedly got word that he was going to be engaged to some backwoods hick who had recently relocated to the city. I'm not surprised that he'd want to get away from there, though. After all, if I were in that situation, I wouldn't be able to accept it, let alone the proud Young Master Chu."
"I'm unable to accept it either. But don't you think that young lady is too slovenly? She has done nothing about the situation and just kept her eyes glued on the computer."
…
The woman inside was unfazed by the whispers coming from the doorway.
Xia Zhi was dressed to the nines in a haute couture gown. Her slender fingers tapped the keyboard from time to time as she looked indifferently at the computer screen.
Zhao Shan appeared worried, but she managed to keep her resentment of Chu Ci in check. "Little Zhi, I just asked a few people to contact Young Master Chu, but he didn't pick up his phone or reply to my messages!" she asked softly. "Did something happen to him? Should we get someone to look for him?"
Xia Zhi slouched lazily on the sofa, in sharp contrast to Zhao Shan's tense posture. "No need," she said slowly and calmly after looking at her phone. "He texted me. Check it out."
Xia Zhi handed the phone to Zhao Shan.
Her junior sister's calm appearance was contagious. Zhao Shan similarly calmed down. However, when she read the message, her blood pressure shot up almost immediately.
Chu Ci had written: "How can a rude woman from the countryside like you be worthy of getting engaged to me? Even if it was a fake marriage, there's absolutely no chance! I'll say this to you now, I'm not showing up. I'll look on as you get humiliated. If nothing goes wrong, you'll become the laughingstock of the entire capital tomorrow. Let this be a lesson for you. Don't try to pluck for fruit beyond your reach!"
Zhao Shan was so angry that her entire body was trembling. She gritted her teeth and said, "Chu Ci is such a snake! When you met him last time, he clearly agreed to a fake marriage."
Zhao Shan's hand tightened around the phone until she realized it belonged to Xia Zhi, at which point she released her grip. At the same time, she had an epiphany and said, "We can show everyone the message."
When Zhao Shan checked on the message again, she was surprised to see that it had vanished. She was taken aback, and a small part of her wondered if she had imagined it. She rubbed her eyes and looked at her phone with widened eyes, but saw nothing.
Zhao Shan dropped her phone on the table in surprise and frantically waved her hands. "I don't even remember deleting it," she cried to Xia Zhi. "It vanished seemingly out of nowhere!"
"Seems right," Xia Zhi responded. She picked up her phone and glanced at it before saying, "Chu Ci got someone with special skills to send that message. I'm not surprised. After all, this is a marriage between the two families. He may be bold, but he's not reckless."
Zhao Shan smacked her head in distress. She regretted not taking a screenshot in time.
"It's okay. I'll recover the data later. Oh right, I found him. Take a look." Xia Zhi moved the laptop aside and gestured for Zhao Shan to take a look.
The computer was playing a surveillance video in high definition.
The surveillance camera showed Chu Ci hugging a woman and kissing her passionately in the elevator. They remained entwined as they stumbled to a hotel room…
Zhao Shan frowned when she saw the woman's face and asked, confused. "That looks like your whore of a sister, Xia Lin."
Xia Zhi nodded lightly and gave an affirmative answer, "It's her."
When Zhao Shan heard this, she was so furious that she slammed the table and sputtered. "I must teach these two horny baboons a lesson!"
Xia was exceptionally calm. She even raised her hand and patted the back of Zhao Shan's hand twice, comforting her, "It's okay. I'll just get married to someone else later. Anyway, it doesn't matter who I get married to. As long as Grandpa sees that I'm married, he'll cooperate and get treated."
Xia Zhi had come to Capital City this time because a sudden illness had struck her grandfather. She had come to treat him. She was taken aback when upon her arrival, instead of cooperating, he flat-out refused and demanded to watch Chu Ci get married before allowing her to treat him.
But now that the engagement ceremony was about to begin, where could she find a man willing to participate in the ceremony?
Xia Zhi didn't need Zhao Shan to vocalize her thoughts. She could tell what she was worried about just by looking at her frown. When she noticed this, she raised her eyebrows, turned to face the door, and smiled, saying, "A candidate has arrived."
At the door of the room, a man stood.
The man's facial features were well defined, and his eyebrows were cool and distant. On the bridge of his prominent nose was a mole. When he looked down, his long, thick eyelashes were on display. His entire expression became icy and uncaring when his lips were pursed. It was an intimidating sight.
He was dressed in a black suit, and his entire body exuded a chilling aura. He was, however, presently seated in a wheelchair, with another man pushing from behind.
After getting a good look at the man, Zhao Shan knew she had a potential candidate. In a daze, she said, "Fifth, Fifth Elder Chu..."
When Zhao Shan realized this, he grabbed Xia Zhi's shirt and whispered, "He's Fifth Elder Chu. Let's change targets. This person is not suitable for marriage!"
Despite Zhao Shan's low voice, the room itself was quite small. Her voice was still audible to those around her.
"Am I frightening?" Chu Nan raised his eyes and asked.
"No, no, no. Not at all." Zhao Shan had not expected to have been heard and rapidly shook her head.
Xia Zhi didn't know much about the capital, but when she noted her sister's behavior, she knew that the man in front of her was not simple. Her interest was piqued.
Xi Zhi met Chu Nan's gaze and asked, "Are you Chu Ci's fifth uncle?"
"Yes," Chu Nan replied.
When Xia Zhi looked on silently, Chu Nan continued, "I happened to pass by just now and heard your plan. What do you think? Am I qualified to be your engagement partner?"
Chen Feng, who was pushing the wheelchair behind Chu Nan, was petrified. He stared at Fifth Master with widened eyes. He had never thought that he would ever hear these words from Fifth Master.
He almost fell over when Chu Nan continued to recommend himself to Xia Zhi. "Choosing me not only gives you a partner to get engaged to, but also forces Chu Ci to call you Fifth Aunt in the future."
"Good!"