LUO FAN
At dinner, Jinjing was too embarrassed to sit at the dining table I had to force her to stay still beside me. When Ruan Yanjun came to join us, she finally stopped resisting.
We both stood up and greeted him. After he settled on the chair from across us, we also took our seats.
None of us said a word while a servant poured wine into our cups.
"Have you already set a date for your wedding?" he asked. Compared to earlier, he sounded rather calm.
I shook my head. "We are yet to decide on that matter."
"I suggest you should not rush it. There are more important things that we must prioritize." He nodded at me. "You're still ill and your vision is very poor. If you cannot find a cure for your illness, you'll eventually die and leave a grieving widow behind."
I lowered my head. I hated it whenever he made a point, but he was definitely correct.
Even though I honestly wanted to set the date of the wedding soon, many things had to be considered. I could not make a good husband while I was sick and blind. I did not want to make a widow out of Jinjing very soon either. I also needed to save money to start a family, and right now, I had nothing.
"We'll set the date of our wedding as soon as I find a cure for my illness," I replied.
"That's good, and if you can do that, I'll give you both the grandest wedding right here in my residence. And since you don't have a family, as your guardian, I'll shoulder the expenses."
"Lord Ruan," I said. "I appreciate your generosity, but as a man, I wish to shoulder the expenses myself. It doesn't have to be grand. A simple ceremony will do."
Ruan Yanjun looked at Jinjing. "Are you fine with a simple wedding?"
Jinjing nodded. "Yes, my lord. I don't have many friends to invite anyway so I actually prefer a simple wedding."
He sighed. "Fine. It seems that you are both in agreement. It's not my wedding anyway." He turned to Jinjing again. "But I warn you ahead of time, becoming Luo Fan's wife will entail a lot of responsibilities and adjustments on your part. Your betrothed is not an ordinary man, and I've already emphasized that before. When the time comes, he might become the most influential man in the world. Are you sure you can handle the pressure of becoming his wife?"
She turned to look at me.
I had no idea what grand plans Ruan Yanjun had in store for me, but whatever it was, I smiled at Jinjing to reassure her.
"I'll do whatever it takes, my lord," she replied.
Ruan Yanjun snickered. "In that case, as early as now, I expect you to start studying. I know you can read and write, but I am certain your penmanship needs improvement. I'll hire you a tutor to teach you how to write legibly. You also need to play at least one music instrument, and then you'll have to learn household management. Until you satisfy all those conditions, there will be no wedding."
I frowned. Since when did he have the right to decide for me? Just because my master had asked him to be my guardian?
"Lord Ruan, why must she study all of those?" I asked.
"A-Fan, it's all for you, and for her to improve her reputation. Because of her past, she has so much to make up for to prove to people that she has changed and that she is worthy of a husband like you."
His voice was so tender when he spoke with me, but with Jinjing, he sounded so stern, as if he was trying so hard to be nice to her but could not restrain the bitterness inside him.
RUAN YANJUN
I clenched my fists as I watched Luo Fan put a piece of meat in Jinjing's bowl, and then they smiled at each other.
I had never expected that this priest could be so tender for a lover. We had dined together countless times before, but he'd never even done such a thing for me.
Just what exactly is with this woman that had smitten him? She's not even pretty.
I tried to ignore them and drank my wine. I had no appetite to eat, yet my A-Fan did not even notice that my bowl was still empty. His attention was focused solely on Jinjing. They acted like I was not even there.
I felt so grumpy I fought the urge to splatter soup in their faces to remind them of my presence.
"Is it good?" Luo Fan asked while Jinjing was eating.
She nodded. "It's delicious."
He smiled and put more meat into her bowl.
I sneered as I saw through his little scheme.
This priest was trying to provoke me. He knew I was attracted to him and I had never actually tried to hide that from him, and now he's using this woman to probably dissuade me.
I smirked.
Since he wanted to play a game with me, I'd let him have his way. After this, it would be my turn to play a little game with him.