Looking at herself in the mirror, Xia Lu took a deep breath and composed herself.
Today was her wedding day with Zhou Mingchen—the sky was high, the clouds were light, and the weather was incredibly fine.
Most of the guests outside were Zhou Mingchen's business partners, strangers to her, and she hadn't even seen what the venue looked like.
The wedding venue was adorned in white and fresh green as the main colors. The design team had meticulously planned, designed, purchased, and decorated for two months. Over two hundred thousand freshly air-flowered white hydrangeas made the venue serene and elegant. The bouquets, flower columns, cake, party favors, even the ribbons on the backs of the guest chairs were all designed to echo her wedding dress. This wedding, held on the grassy clearing in the center of a primal forest, had almost reached the highest standard.
Except...
"Are you ready?"
Xia Lu was staring blankly into the mirror when suddenly she saw Jin Meng enter through the door. Having her as the only friend invited to the wedding made Xia Lu feel much more at ease.
"You can invite one person to the wedding."
"What?" Xia Lu looked at Zhou Mingchen in surprise.
"But it cannot be your relative."
"Think about it, and tell me tomorrow."
Eventually, Xia Lu chose Jin Meng.
"Wow, you are so beautiful today~" Jin Meng took Xia Lu's hand, helping her slightly adjust her skirt, "Such a long train, must be heavy, right?"
"Yes." Xia Lu nodded, reaching up to adjust her shoulder strap. If it weren't for her frequent adjustments, deep indentations would probably have already formed on her shoulders.
But this was the wedding dress Zhou Mingchen had chosen; she couldn't refuse it.
Stepping onto the flower-covered pathway, Xia Lu knew that, from this moment on, she would no longer have control over her own life.
"Miss Xia, whether in riches or poverty, in health or in sickness, in sorrow or in joy, are you willing to bear them, support each other, and go through life together with Mr. Zhou?"
"Hey… Lulu, it's your turn!" Jin Meng whispered from below, as the utterly bored Xia Lu finally snapped back to reality.
"What?"
The officiant looked at her, cleared his throat, "Miss Xia, whether in riches or poverty, in health or in sickness, in sorrow or in joy, are you willing to bear them, support each other, and go through life together with Mr. Zhou?"
Xia Lu looked up at Zhou Mingchen across from her and noticed his intense gaze, almost burning into her.
"Dare to say 'no', and I will make you die rhythmically," she thought she heard him mutter in his heart.
"I do…"
"Louder," Zhou Mingchen suddenly said from across her, startling her.
"I do!"
"I now pronounce, Mr. Zhou Mingchen and Miss Xia Lu, as husband and wife from this moment, for life, never to part!"
The guests started applauding.
"Good, now, the groom may kiss the bride."
With a calm statement, before Xia Lu could react, she was pulled into the arms of a stranger as Zhou Mingchen closed his eyes, lowered his head, and precisely landed on Xia Lu's lips.
The shocked Xia Lu was still digesting the situation.
"Open your mouth," he commanded unclearly, intensifying his grip on her.
What the hell? Xia Lu thought, her head filling with black lines, she had just been kissed by him at their wedding? In her entire life, she had only ever kissed one man, Luo Fan!
"No matter how I look at it, I think this bride is being coerced," Ye Shaotang chuckled to Guan Li in the first row of the guest seats.
Guan Li glared at him, "Today is your brother's wedding. If you don't have good words to say, at least don't be a jinx here."
Ye Shaotang didn't stop smiling, and he joined the others in applause, "Okay!"
Xia Lu finally got free, licking her lips which were stinging hot.
"Next time you do this, I won't be so polite to you," Zhou Mingchen whispered in her ear before turning to the guests with a polite smile.
Watching his face change instantly, Xia Lu suddenly felt a chill down her spine.
Oh my God! What kind of pirate ship had she boarded...
***
"Congratulations, you successfully won the beauty's heart~" Indeed, just as the after party started, Lin Xilin couldn't hold back any longer.
Zhou Mingchen put his arm around Xia Lu's waist and raised his glass, "Thank you."
"Won't you introduce us?"
Xia Lu looked at the woman before her, tall and poised, with phoenix eyes slightly upturned at the corners, thick lips painted with a matte burgundy lipstick, looking very healthy. If one were to speak precisely, none of her facial features on their own were stunning, but together on her small oval face, they were extraordinarily harmonious and carried an undeniable, alluring charm.
Such a beauty~ Xia Lu silently exclaimed in her heart.
"This is my friend, Lin Xilin, and Xia Lu, my wife, whom you already know," he said.
"Congratulations," Lin Xilin raised her glass to Xia Lu's. "I hope your marriage is always as joyful as today~" After speaking, she glanced at Zhou Mingchen and sashayed away.
"Wait here for me, don't move."
Xia Lu looked around; the scene was lively, yet she knew no one there.
Jin Meng was there, but right after the wedding ceremony ended, she got dragged back to work overtime by her relentless boss.
Bored, Xia Lu leaned on the bar next to the hotel swimming pool and zoned out.
"Why aren't you with your bride? What are you doing here?" Lin Xilin turned around and noticed that Zhou Mingchen had followed her.
"I'll have plenty of time to be with her, every single day from now on."
Lin Xilin looked at him, said nothing, and continued walking.
"Where's Lu Zuo? Why isn't he here today?"
"Did you want him to come?"
Zhou Mingchen walked up beside Lin Xilin. "You two are engaged. If not him, then who should attend such an occasion?"
"I thought you two didn't get along. If I'd known it would be like this, I would've asked him to come," Lin Xilin put down her glass and straightened Zhou Mingchen's tie. "You're the groom today; you need to look sharp."
Damn! Zhou Mingchen cursed inwardly.
This was supposed to be a perfect act of revenge, and he had carelessly messed it up.
"President Zhou," Qiu Cheng appeared from somewhere and was now standing behind Zhou Mingchen, "You might be needed over there..."
"What's the matter?" Zhou Mingchen frowned.
"An unwelcome guest has made an unwarranted entrance."
"An unwelcome guest?"
The after-party of the wedding was held in the banquet hall of a Five-star hotel owned by Zhou Mingchen's company, where guests needed invitations and were on a list to get in; how could an outsider easily intrude?
"Yes, you should check it out personally."