On the other person’s face, Chu Luyu saw anger.
“Don’t think staying silent will get you out of this. Half a year ago at Yeshe Bar, we ran into each other. I bumped into you by accident, but you wouldn’t let it go. You tore my clothes, pulled out several clumps of my hair—if it weren’t for your lawyer brother and his smooth talk, turning your full liability into shared liability, I would never have let you off that time!”
The more she spoke, the more incensed she became, her gaze turning fierce: “Someone with such low character like you—what right do you have to marry my second cousin? You don’t deserve him at all!”
“Whether she deserves me or not isn’t for you to decide!”
A deep male voice came from a distance. Chu Luyu turned around and saw Jiang Hezhou approaching.
His brother Jiang Qiyou was with him. The two brothers walked over one after the other, both striking figures.
Jiang Hezhou looked visibly displeased. He walked up and pulled Chu Luyu to him, checking her over from head to toe. Even after confirming there were no signs of mistreatment, he still asked uneasily: “Did anyone bully you?”
Chu Luyu thought he was making too big a deal out of it. Embarrassed, she glanced toward the other girl and shook her head: “We were just chatting. Don’t talk about bullying—it’s no big deal.”
“Don’t pretend to be nice here!” That side-branch cousin seemed to have thrown caution to the wind. Pointing at Chu Luyu’s nose, she said, “Second Cousin, don’t let this woman fool you! She wasn’t like this before! She has terrible character—she never lets anyone off, she’s vulgar and rude! She’s a complete bad woman! You absolutely cannot marry someone like her!”
Jiang Hezhou’s expression turned completely cold. He ignored her outburst entirely, only staring at her with icy eyes and spitting out two words: “Apologize.”
The other girl hadn’t expected this reaction. In disbelief, she murmured: “Second Cousin, didn’t you hear what I just said? I said this woman’s character—”
“I heard you.” Jiang Hezhou cut her off impatiently. “But that still doesn’t give you the right to be disrespectful to your future cousin-in-law. So—apologize.”
The girl had been spoiled since childhood. The Jiang family had far more male members, so girls were rare and cherished. She’d always been popular and doted on, both at home and at the main residence.
Jiang Hezhou had always indulged her along with everyone else. Now, suddenly treating her so harshly for Chu Luyu’s sake, she couldn’t hold back her tears.
By now, many people in the main hall had heard the commotion. As they rushed over, the girl seemed to find her support system. Eyes red, she ran to the crowd.
“Mom! Aunt!” She called out to her mother and Mother Jiang. Then, riding the wave of emotion, she poured out all her grievances and doubts: “This woman is no good—she really doesn’t deserve Second Cousin! You have no idea how she bullied me before… Back when the family said this engagement was forced on Second Cousin by Great-Grandfather, that the woman’s family had come claiming it after all these years, I wondered what kind of person she’d be. But when I recognized her today, I wasn’t surprised at all! This woman is truly vile! Don’t let her marry Second Cousin!”
Chu Luyu hadn’t reacted strongly at first—after all, this was trouble left behind by the original host. No matter what the other said or accused her of, she didn’t feel it was directed at herself personally.
But seeing the girl make such a scene, she was also speechless.
Fortunately, Jiang Hezhou stepped in before she could react, shielding her from all those pointed looks. He moved half a step in front of her, standing in a posture of absolute protection, guarding her securely behind him.
Chu Luyu looked at his straight, steady back and silently gained an even deeper appreciation for just how reliable the male lead was.
A moment later, his cool voice rang out from ahead: “I don’t care what rumors the family may have heard before. I don’t care about any prejudices you may hold against my fiancée. Right now, there’s only one thing I want to say: she is the one I’ve chosen. No matter what any of you think, it won’t change our relationship. As for the rest…”
He turned to Mother Jiang. “Mom, if you have any doubts too, then we won’t be coming back to the old residence in the future.”
That was a serious statement! Mother Jiang frowned deeply and retorted: “What are you saying!”
Jiang Hezhou paid no one else any attention. He turned to look at Chu Luyu, took her hand, and said softly: “I’m sorry you had to go through that. I didn’t expect today to turn out like this. Let’s go—we’re not eating here.”
Seeing that he really meant to leave, Mother Jiang quickly stopped him: “Everyone’s already here—they all came for you two today. If you take Xiao Yu away now, what kind of message does that send?”
“Under these circumstances, staying would only make her unhappy.” Jiang Hezhou’s tone was flat. He paused, then added, “Nothing is more important than her feelings.”
No one had anticipated that Jiang Hezhou would publicly turn his back on the family—especially in front of so many people—all for Chu Luyu.
Mother Jiang’s expression was now quite sour, but she couldn’t overrule her younger son. He’d always been more headstrong than others, with a stubborn nature. Though he hadn’t caused the family much worry over the years, she knew he had his own principles and bottom lines.
Once someone crossed that line, he wouldn’t hesitate to cut ties.
Just like now.
In the end, Jiang Qiyou chased after them, followed by his assistant carrying several boxes—all the gifts Chu Luyu had received earlier.
“You were too impulsive just now. Xiao Yan has always been like that—if there’s a misunderstanding, we can clear it up slowly. But leaving in front of all those people—how is Mom supposed to face all those relatives afterward?”
Jiang Hezhou knew he’d been rude today, but he couldn’t help it. The moment he’d overheard someone saying such ugly things to Chu Luyu—even going so far as to say she wasn’t good enough for him—he’d snapped.
She was the treasure he’d do anything to keep by his side. He wouldn’t allow anyone to interfere with their relationship. Not even family.
Anyway, he’d never been particularly close to the other branches of the Jiang family. Cutting ties with them was no loss—he didn’t care at all.
Even if his mother’s opinion of Chu Luyu was affected by today’s events, he could simply come back less often—or not at all.
Seeing him remain silent, Jiang Qiyou sighed helplessly and turned to Chu Luyu: “Sister-in-law, I’m sorry you had to go through that today. Mother just told me to explain to you—that child has been spoiled by her family and speaks without thinking. Maybe she had some misunderstanding about you in the past, but it doesn’t matter. Her words won’t affect your relationship with Hezhou. We won’t take her side blindly either, so you don’t need to worry.”
Chu Luyu felt a bit guilty at that moment. She thought to herself that what the girl had said was probably entirely true—judging from the scene she’d described, it was exactly the kind of thing the original host would have done.
But she couldn’t say much right now. Since they’d offered her an out, she had to accept it gracefully.
“You and Auntie are too kind. I wasn’t really bothered by today’s incident—I never expected it to blow up like this…” She tugged at Jiang Hezhou’s hand, putting on her usual coquettish tone. “It’s all your fault.”
“Mm, it’s my fault. I just can’t stand seeing you wronged.”
With that, Jiang Hezhou turned to Jiang Qiyou: “Brother, have someone put the things in my car. I’ll take her and leave now.”
Jiang Qiyou studied him for a long moment, then shook his head helplessly. “It’s rare to see you lose control like this. Fine—I’ll talk to Mother on your behalf when I get back. Otherwise, she’ll definitely call to scold you.”
On the way back, while Jiang Hezhou was driving, Chu Luyu kept discussing this with the system.
Chu Luyu: [I don’t quite understand—should the male lead normally be acting like this toward me? I feel like the way he defended me in front of his family today, even saying such serious things… isn’t that a bit much?]
System Cuihua: [What’s too much? He wasn’t defending you—he was defending his fiancée! Under these circumstances, if it were someone else, he’d protect them just the same. He’s an extremely responsible person. As long as you hold the title of his fiancée, he’ll value you accordingly.]
Chu Luyu sighed and was about to say something more when Jiang Hezhou suddenly spoke beside her.
“I’m sorry—though I already said it once, I want to say it again. You were wronged today.”
Chu Luyu shook her head. After a moment, she hesitated and said: “Actually, what she said earlier—”
“It doesn’t matter.” Jiang Hezhou cut her off. “None of the past matters. You don’t need to explain anything to me.”
He paused, then continued: “If you don’t like it, we can come back to the old residence as little as possible, or not at all. After we’re married, we can just live our own lives, just like we do now.”
Chu Luyu thought to herself—what future did they really have? After all, there was only half a month left until the engagement was supposed to be broken off according to the original plot.
Feeling a sudden pang of sadness, she dropped her gaze and, almost without thinking, blurted out: “Jiang Hezhou, what if we ever separate in the future—”
“There is no such ‘what if.’” Jiang Hezhou cut her off again, his tone even more resolute than before, with a hint of coldness in his voice. “You can be upset, you can be angry—but don’t say things like that out of spite.”
Chu Luyu was taken aback. “I was just saying ‘what if.’”
“Not even ‘what if.’”
It was rare for Jiang Hezhou to be this forceful and unyielding with her. Chu Luyu didn’t quite know what to make of it, and didn’t dare say anything more.
The car fell into an unusually tense silence. Chu Luyu could clearly feel an inexplicable low pressure around them. The man beside her drove in complete silence, not saying a word, all the way until they reached the apartment.
When the car pulled into the underground parking garage and the engine died, Chu Luyu breathed a sigh of relief, thinking she could finally get out. But then, suddenly, her wrist was grabbed.
A rush of movement came over her—her vision went dark for an instant, and when she came to, she’d been pressed back against the passenger seat.
A wild, ruthless kiss came crashing down on her. This time, Jiang Hezhou kissed without any restraint, doing whatever he wanted—sucking hard, biting, and it seemed her lower lip had even been broken. The tip of his tongue tasted blood.
Even so, he wasn’t satisfied. The more he kissed, the fiercer he became, as if he wanted to draw her whole being into himself. All the oxygen between their lips was stolen away. Flashes of white light flickered through her mind. She tried to push him away, but he caught her wrists and pinned them down.
He held her there, taking his fill of her, until both of them were gasping for air. Only then did he pull back, pressing his forehead against hers, breathing raggedly as he spoke in a low voice.
“Take back what you just said.”
Chu Luyu hadn’t caught on. “What?”
“The words about separating.”
Chu Luyu couldn’t understand why he was so fixated on this. He clearly disliked her inside—so why go this far, even if it was just for the sake of maintaining superficial harmony and responsibility?
But at this moment, Jiang Hezhou carried a strong, dangerous aura. She felt that if she didn’t answer or comply, the consequences would be ugly.
The cut on her lip still stung—she didn’t want to be bitten again.
So after a few seconds of hesitation, Chu Luyu mumbled softly: “Alright, I take it back.”
Jiang Hezhou seemed satisfied. The intimidating edge about him gradually faded. He kissed her lips tenderly again, then even licked the spot he’d bitten with the tip of his tongue—gentle and lingering.
“Baby, never think of leaving me—”
He murmured lowly, kissing her as he held her wrists tight. “You can’t run away.”
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