Far away at home, Ji Mingshu had no idea that in her lifetime, her cheap husband could ever utter a word of praise for her.
She had gone to bed early, but forgot to adjust the humidifier mode before sleeping. The room became quite dry, and she woke up thirsty in the middle of the night.
Groggily, she got out of bed, eyes half-closed, pushed open the bedroom door, and walked downstairs barefoot.
When living at Baicui Tianhua, she had a refrigerator right in her bedroom. Drinking water at night was as simple as getting up—extremely convenient.
Thinking of this, she cursed Cen Sen in her heart again. He had shoved her back here without even asking, then went out for social engagements himself—utterly inhuman.
Unfortunately, the very person who was "utterly inhuman" happened to return at that moment.
However, Ji Mingshu was half-asleep and desperately thirsty, so she didn’t notice him standing at the entrance when she went downstairs.
Cen Sen had drunk quite a bit that night and hadn’t felt well since leaving the gathering. But with his strong self-control, even when drunk, he appeared calm and composed, giving no hint of his condition to others.
After changing his shoes in the entryway, Cen Sen tilted his head slightly, gazing at the slender, graceful figure by the central island counter.
He suddenly felt that he had omitted two words earlier when talking about that little star named Shu: figure.
In looks, temperament, education, and background, she couldn’t compare to Ji Mingshu—and neither could her figure.
Since their marriage, it wasn’t the first time a woman had taken the initiative to approach him, nor was it the first time he had firmly rejected them.
They were all just vases. Since he already had the most exquisite and beautiful one, why bother collecting flawed ones? He wasn’t a professional junk collector.
Ji Mingshu had just drunk half a glass of ice water and hadn’t yet turned around when she suddenly felt a pair of hands wrap around her from behind, tightly locking around her waist.
Her mind went blank for three seconds. She put down the glass and turned her head, only to have her lips captured by Cen Sen.
He pressed closer, his lips warm and lingering, his breath carrying the scent of alcohol.
Ji Mingshu tried to struggle, but he reached out, pinned her arms behind her back, and held them firmly with one hand. With his other hand, he gripped her chin, kissing her more deeply and aggressively.
Damn.
Was he drugged or something?
Ji Mingshu kept trying to catch her breath. Her feet were still free at first, but after she kicked him twice, Cen Sen simply lifted her onto the central island counter to sit. His lower body pressed against the counter, firmly trapping her legs as well, as if he intended to have his way with her right there.
"...You pervert! Let go of me!"
After being kissed for about a minute, Ji Mingshu finally found an opening. She kicked hard at his lower body, struggled free with her hands, and pressed them against his face, pushing him away.
Cen Sen was pushed back half a step, while Ji Mingshu, exhausted, sat on the edge of the central island counter, breathing heavily.
The ceiling light on the first floor wasn’t on; only a warm yellow light strip illuminated the space.
In the dim light, her smoky pink silk nightgown and fair skin glowed faintly, while her lips, kissed to a glossy sheen, made her look like a stunning yet innocent ghost, unconsciously alluring and captivating.
Cen Sen was clearly captivated.
He slowly dragged his thumb across his lower lip in the opposite direction, his eyes fixed on Ji Mingshu, and suddenly let out a soft laugh.
Ji Mingshu sensed something was off and shifted backward.
But there was nowhere to hide. She could only watch as Cen Sen stepped forward and effortlessly scooped her up into his arms.
"What are you doing? Put me down! Pervert! I can sue you for marital rape!"
As they went upstairs, Ji Mingshu kicked and struggled violently in Cen Sen’s arms.However, she had always strictly controlled her figure through diet rather than regular exercise, so no matter how fiercely she struggled, to Cen Sen, it was merely the level of a kitten scratching an itch.
"You can go ahead and report it. Your Second Uncle was transferred back to the Jingshi Bureau this year. It’s quite convenient for you to report it to him," Cen Sen said unhurriedly.
He carried the scent of alcohol, his collar disheveled from Ji Mingshu’s tugging. With a careless smile, he exuded the aura of a refined scoundrel.
Ji Mingshu flailed a couple more times. Just before entering the room, she suddenly paused—
Amidst the smell of smoke and alcohol, a faint, familiar sweet and cloying fragrance drifted over.
She quickly recognized which perfume it was.
She sniffed again carefully.
It really was.
In Ji Mingshu’s perception, this perfume belonged to the category of "teenage street scents." If you walked around a shopping mall, the chances of encountering this scent would rank second, with Chanel No. 5 taking the top spot. She had worn it once in high school and was criticized by a friend for smelling "very much like a green tea bitch."
"Have you been fooling around with innocent college girls outside? Where did this perfume smell come from? You go out and mess around with other women, then come back and touch me. Isn’t that disgusting?"
Ji Mingshu’s eyes were filled with unconcealed disgust.
Cen Sen kicked open the slightly ajar door, threw her onto the bed, then leaned over, placing his hands on either side of her waist, trapping her within his embrace.
Ji Mingshu defensively shrank back.
Cen Sen lowered his voice and said, "Haven’t studied math in years, so you can’t even calculate time properly? How long has it been since I brought you back? Am I that short?"
"..."
Such shamelessness, so blatantly displayed, was truly rare in this world.
Ji Mingshu was momentarily speechless, tangled up by his logic.
Cen Sen didn’t take things further. He stood up, took off his shirt, and headed straight to the bathroom.
Ji Mingshu stared in the direction of the bathroom for a few seconds, then tugged at her nightgown and sniffed it, afraid she might have picked up the unpleasant smells of smoke, alcohol, or perfume.
Soon, the sound of running water came from the bathroom. Ji Mingshu slipped under the covers and thought carefully.
In truth, after being married to Cen Sen for so long, they had come to understand each other to some extent.
Cen Sen was the kind of man full of ambition and desire for his career but had little patience for women and emotions.
She thought he might engage in casual flings to satisfy his needs, but keeping a mistress outside was probably beneath him. After all, maintaining an improper relationship would be too draining for him.
At this thought, she let out a self-mocking chuckle and remembered Gu Kaiyang’s exasperated criticism before her marriage:
"Your only requirement for your husband is that he doesn’t keep a mistress outside, and if he does, he shouldn’t cause any trouble that embarrasses you?! As a wealthy, beautiful woman, do you have to be this pathetic???"
Thinking about it carefully, it really was quite pathetic.
The Ji family of Jingbei was a genuine aristocratic family. Born into such a household, she had seen and experienced too much from a young age and knew all too well that the wealthier the place, the more filth it could hide. Truly harmonious marriages and families were exceedingly rare in this social stratum. For a family alliance like hers and Cen Sen’s, maintaining a facade of affection in public was already quite an achievement.
She was generally satisfied with Cen Sen—handsome, skilled in bed, not clingy, and letting her spend money freely.
Before falling asleep, she thought: It would be great if things stayed like this. There’s no need for us to teach each other lessons for the rest of our lives. Let’s just muddle through like this.
Soon, it was time for the annual Paris Autumn/Winter Haute Couture Week. Ji Mingshu had already received invitations from major brands well in advance.She had been attending fashion shows since she was eight, and being raised amidst opulence had cultivated her exquisite taste. Within the socialite circles of Beijing and Shanghai, she was considered a trendsetter at the forefront of fashion.
Before departing for Paris, Ji Mingshu busily made a series of preparations at home.
She believed in matching her attire to the brand of the show she was attending. As a non-celebrity, she could skip the airport looks meant for staged photos, but her afternoon tea looks, dinner party looks, and her favorite high jewelry exhibition looks were non-negotiable.
Within two or three days, Ji Mingshu had packed seven suitcases.
For her, this was considered traveling light. She had custom-made dresses waiting at the haute couture atelier, which she could wear directly to the shows in Paris.
In high spirits about her upcoming extravagant trip, Ji Mingshu had been smiling warmly at Cen Sen these past few days.
Cen Sen didn’t quite understand the pleasures of being a decorative vase. All he knew was that every time Ji Mingshu went abroad to attend fashion shows, glowing with vitality, her luggage would inevitably double upon her return.
Moreover, during this time, his credit card statements would be constantly updated, as if reminding him that the high-maintenance golden canary he had married in his lifetime was likely unrivaled in her talent for squandering wealth.
When Cen Sen graduated from university, Old Master Cen gifted him a Gulfstream jet as a graduation present. He rarely used it, but after marrying Ji Mingshu, she certainly knew how to make the most of it.
Flying to Paris on the private jet late at night, Ji Mingshu slept soundly for eleven hours straight. When she woke up, the Parisian sky was just beginning to brighten.
A private car awaited her at the airport. Upon arriving at the hotel, the suite butler had already brewed coffee and prepared a variety of breakfast options for her. Invitations and gifts from major luxury brands were also arranged in the shape of a heart.
The room had been selected in advance by the butler, fully meeting all her pre-customized requirements. There was even a small surprise—the room number matched her birthday, and the bedding was embroidered with her English initials in a subtle pattern.
After finishing breakfast at the hotel, Ji Mingshu changed into a fresh outfit and prepared to go shopping.
On her way downstairs, she remembered Gu Kaiyang and casually video-called her to check in.
As the deputy editor of a fashion magazine, Gu Kaiyang was naturally a fixture during Fashion Week. However, she traveled with her team and had arrived two days earlier.
When Gu Kaiyang received Ji Mingshu’s video call, she was personally inspecting the details of over a dozen dresses for a photoshoot.
Exhausted and dizzy from two days of non-stop work, she couldn’t help but grumble at the sight of Ji Mingshu on the other end of the screen, radiant in sunglasses and leisurely walking down the stairs to aid digestion. “I swear I’ll never criticize your kind of wealthy arranged marriages again—they’re just too blissful!”
“Do you know? This overworked assistant hasn’t slept a wink in two whole days! Seriously, you can’t even imagine how stingy our company is! It’s so strange—before I became deputy editor, the company was quite generous. Even assistants going to the Big Four fashion weeks got suites. How come when it’s my turn, it’s just a standard room?! The place is piled high with messy clothes—there’s barely any room to walk! If they’re any stingier, they might as well have us sleep under a bridge!”
“I mean it, I don’t want to work hard anymore! Being a beard wife or marrying a memorial tablet wouldn’t even be a big deal!”
Ji Mingshu: “Wait, who are you calling a beard wife marrying a memorial tablet?”
Gu Kaiyang: “Isn’t that what you always say yourself? Don’t blame me for it.”Ji Mingshu was about to retort when, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of a familiar figure.
Across from her, Gu Kaiyang was still chattering away nonstop. Ji Mingshu paused her steps slightly and discreetly switched the camera to the rear lens, aiming it at a man and woman checking in at the hotel lobby.
At the same time, as she had expected, Gu Kaiyang’s shrill scream erupted through the headphones.
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