After a Flash Marriage With the Disabled Tyrant - Chap 54
A month and a half later,
Shi Yunnan arrived at Mia Grand Hotel with the invitation in hand.
He handed the car key to the waiter in charge of reception, and the next second he found his friend, Yuan Rui, waiting.
“Yuan Rui.”
Shi Yunnan hurriedly entered the hotel’s lobby. It was really cold outside in the teeth of winter.
Yuan Rui waved at him and looked at the time on the clock dial in the lobby. “There’s still some time before the banquet officially starts. Why don’t we go to the side hall and sit down first?“
“Okay.”
The reason why the two appeared here was because they received an invitation to Fang Ya and her husband’s 25th wedding anniversary.
Shi Yunnan and Yuan Rui arrived one after the other, as partners who had just finalized their cooperation.
At the end of the auction that day, Fang, headed by Fang Ya, proposed cooperating with their studio. The term was very simple—
Every two months, Yuan will provide Fang with one or two new jade designs, which will be displayed and sold at the auction.The final profit, after deducting various costs, will be distributed according to the proportion of the signed contract. The cooperation period is tentatively set for one year.
After roughly summing up, Shi Yunnan and Yuan Rui agreed to the cooperation.
One reason was that the various auctions under Fang’s can indeed gather many distinguished personages, which is beneficial to the expansion of their design studio in terms of high-end client contacts.
Secondly, achieving a regular and relatively solid financial income is a must for their newly opened design studio in terms of operations.
Yuan Rui has also been busy recently. It wasn’t easy to meet Shi Yunnan, so he simply asked about work, “How are you getting on with the design draft for Mrs. Liu?”
Since the auction ended, YUNAN Design Studio has not only received big business cooperation from Fang Ya but also received many private orders from guests.
Shi Yunnan, as the chief designer who “achieved fame in one single battle” at the auction, naturally received so many private orders that his arms became sore.
He and his new assistant have selected three suitable large orders to take, and have recently been busy designing. “Soon. I will send you the materials list once I have confirmed with Mrs. Liu.“
“Great.”
Shi Yunnan asked back, “How about you?”
Yuan Rui deliberately put on a mourning expression, saying, “You use your brain and I use my physical strength. I’m busy to death.“
After the jewelry charity auction ended, their design studio was also opened, and the recruitment and invitation work were progressing very smoothly.
Yuan Rui divided the designers into two large groups according to Shi Yunnan’s previous plans.
One group of experienced designers was responsible for high-end private-order designs, while another group of new designers with little experience was responsible for the mass market.
Of course, this personnel division wasn’t “fixed.”
As long as designers have better design ideas, they can make adjustments at any time without delaying the normal design schedule.
In addition to that, the factory for subsequent mass production has been negotiated, just waiting for the first batch of designs to be in place.
“Thanks to Mr. Luo’s help, the location of the first offline physical store and the online official website are already being prepared at the same time.”
Yuan Rui finished the recent content in one breath. He was half paralyzed on the sofa while no outsiders were paying attention.
“I wish I could split one day into two days. I only got about six or seven hours of sleep the last two days.“
Yuan Rui didn’t understand until he tried—It turned out that if you want to manage your own business, you really have to put in energy and physical strength. He wondered how Lu Zhao’an managed such a big Yuan family back then.
“Have you recruited any assistants yet? If it’s really overwhelming, I can help you.” Shi Yunnan asked.
To be honest, the other party’s growth these days was unexpected even to him.
“No, we agreed at the beginning. You only need to be at ease and responsible for the design, and I will work hard to handle other trivial matters!”
Yuan Rui approached Shi Yunnan and took the initiative to take his shoulder, “You trust me so much, I certainly can not let you down.”
…He also couldn’t let his dad and brother down.
Shi Yunnan was slightly startled, and then he laughed.
“Why are you laughing?”
Yuan Rui thought that Shi Yunnan was laughing at his childishness and added, “I’m very serious. I know you treat me as a friend with sincerity. So do I.“
“I was laughing at Xie Keyue’s losses.”
Some people place far too much emphasis on money and interests while placing far too little emphasis on the sincerity of their friends.
When Yuan Rui heard the name Xie Keyue after a long absence, his brow furrowed in disgust, “Why do you bring him up?”
His character is such that when he takes someone as a friend, he is willing to give his heart with sincerity; when taking someone as a traitor, their existence is more dirty and smelly than garbage to him.
“It’s nothing, I’m the one who talked too much.” Shi Yunnan decisively admitted his mistake, and got up while pulling Yuan Rui up as well, “Go upstairs and enter the hall.”
“Okay.”
Shi Yunnan added, “By the way, I only came for the sake of formality. I might be leaving early.”
“Is something wrong?” Yuan Rui was puzzled.
Shi Yunnan’s eyes flickered with an irresistible smile. “It’s Luo Lingsheng’s birthday today. I want to go home to accompany him.“
“…..”
Yuan Rui’s mouth was stuffed full of dog food as soon as he asked, and his eyes almost rolled to the sky.
“I see.” He quickly cleared his throat and used the gossip he heard to change the subject, “Last time at the auction we chatted with Mrs. Fang about business and left earlier. Guess what else happened later?“
Shi Yunnan was curious, “How do you still have free time to ask around?”
The two entered the elevator, and the door was closed.
Yuan Rui said, as a matter of fact, “The guy that Gu Jue hired thought he left, so he spilled the beans and shouted loudly. Guess what happened next? Gu Jue didn’t leave at all!“
When Shi Yunnan heard this, he immediately reacted and laughed, “Accident?”
Yuan Rui happily continued sharing the gossip.
After their auction price surpassed Lingyu, Gu Jue turned green with anger at Yuan Rui’s “display of strength” and then fled the auction venue angrily.
But Gu Jue at least had some experience in the business field. He had a heart full of schemes but would not be foolish enough to evade the payment on the spot.
“I heard that Gu Jue was just hiding on the balcony smoking. Then he received a call from someone, which delayed the time. When he returned to the auction venue, the restless trustee had already lost his temper and poked a hole in the sky1.“
In fact, that trustee can’t be blamed for being nervous.
After all, Gu Jue just asked him to play the role of a wealthy guest to bid. He wasn’t actually a wealthy person. This time he unexpectedly “bid” for an item worth nearly 10 million, which made him panic.
“I heard that when Gu Jue went back to the hall and saw things like this, his face was almost as pale as paper because of anger. It’s a pity that he can’t even drill a hole in the ground.“
Even if he was reluctant, he still had to secretly settle the payment for the goods.
But what kind of occasion is a luxury wealthy auction?
This kind of joke spread far and wide and became a topic of conversation among the masses. Gu Jue has lost his reputation this time, and Lingyu’s future is ruined.
The more Yuan Rui thought about it, the more funny it became.
Who let Gu Jue target him and Yuan explicitly and implicitly before? Anyway, the other party is having a bad time. He’s having an exceptionally good time.
Shi Yunnan shook his head and laughed, “Unlucky people can even get water stuck between their teeth.”
“That’s right.”
The elevator doors opened and the two men simultaneously followed the instructions toward the banquet hall on the right.
Yuan Rui took advantage of these few steps to bring up another matter, “By the way, Lingyu had a group of good designers two years ago. I intend to take advantage of this opportunity to send them an invitation for cooperation. What do you think?“
Shi Yunnan raised his eyebrows to look at him and said, “Are you determined to fight Lingyu to the end?”
“Who asked Gu Jue and Xie Keyue to dig our corner first? I heard that those designers couldn’t stand Gu Jue and voluntarily resigned. Now there are still two or three self-employed designers. It’s not like I’m sneaking around behind the scenes. Why should I be afraid?“
“Yes, but first you show me their previous designs to see if they meet our future positioning needs.”
“Okay, you have full control over design matters.”
After this brief conversation, they arrived at the banquet quite on time and more than sufficient heating puffed out.
Shi Yunnan spotted the protagonist of this banquet at the center of the hall.
Fang Ya was still dressed in a cheongsam and a mink fur shawl, showing her exquisite figure. Her hair was carefully combed into a vintage hand-pushed wave, which at first glance has the charm of a beauty in the Republic of China.
Beside Fang Ya stood an elegant man in a three-piece suit, who was her husband, Mo Bo’an.
Yuan Rui brought two glasses of wine and asked his friend, “Do you think Mrs. Fang’s dress looks like a warlord’s wife during the Republic of China?”
Shi Yunnan smiled and said nothing, “Mrs. Fang looks young.”
At first, Shi Yunnan thought that Fang Ya was only in her early thirties, but later during the chat, he found out that the other party had a daughter who was twenty-three years old this year.
Yuan Rui clinked the glass with him and continued to whisper, “Her husband started out studying design and later switched to his own brand of men’s clothing.”
Although it wasn’t as big as Fang’s family, he still had his own stable income.
As the two spoke briefly, Fang Ya noticed them and walked over with her husband. “Mr. Shi, Mr. Yuan, welcome to our wedding anniversary banquet.”
As they got closer, Shi Yunnan naturally noticed the necklace the other party was wearing.
“Mr. Mo, Mrs. Fang, thank you for your invitation. I wish you a happy marriage for a hundred years.”
Shi Yunnan raised his glass in greeting. His gaze fell slightly towards the necklace. “Mrs. Fang has a good eye. Today’s dress and the necklace go well together.“
There is an art to speaking.
Shi Yunnan, in two simple sentences, not only praised Fang Ya but also indirectly brought up his own design.
Fang Ya liked Shi Yunnan’s words very much and took the initiative to reply, “I gave this necklace the name Jin Se.”2
It wasn’t an English name commonly used in jewelry design, but a little classical elegance.
Shi Yunnan immediately guessed what she meant, and immediately smiled, “The shadow of the bright moon in the sea is like a pearl made of tears. On a good warm day, the jade on Lantian mountain produces mist? Mrs. Fang took inspiration from this poem.“
Fang Ya nodded, “Mr. Shi, as the designer of this necklace, what do you think?”
Shi Yunnan’s eyes showed appreciation, “I have no opinion.”
Fang Ya knows more about jewelry than ordinary wealthy ladies. Take the name of this necklace as an example. It was what Shi Yunnan had in mind when designing it.
“The day she got this necklace, she showed it off to me as soon as she came back.” Mo Bai’an gently embraced his wife, with a tone of helplessness and doting.
“Mr. Shi, Mr. Yuan, if possible, can I ask your studio to design a private order for me?”
Shi Yunan and Yuan Rui looked at each other, and the latter answered, “Mr. Mo wants another customized necklace for Mrs. Fang?”
“Why would he give it to me?”
Fang Ya understood her husband’s intentions and said, “He is planning to choose a birthday present for our daughter.”
As soon as the voice fell, a crisp female voice rang out, “Dad, Mom, let me introduce you to someone!”
Mo Bai’an and Fang Ya looked sideways at the same time, and Shi Yunnan also followed suit.
A bright-looking young woman wearing a long dress walked over, and beside her was a tall figure who helped and supported her with extra gentleness.
As Shi Yunnan and the visitor line of sight bumped into each other, the joy in his eyes suddenly solidified.
“Qiqi.” Love and affection immediately bloomed on Fang Ya’s face. She did not forget to introduce them, “This is my daughter Mo Xuanqi.”
“Qiqi, these two are mommy’s business partners, but in fact they’re only a few years older than you.”
Although she wasn’t familiar with Shi Yunnan and Yuan Rui, out of politeness, Mo Xuanqi nodded.
Yuan Rui nodded in response, and took the opportunity to poke his friend’s back with his finger where others could not see it, as a reminder, “Yunnan?”
The next second, Mo Bai’an asked, “Qiqi, who is this?”
Mo Xuanqi immediately introduced, “Mom and dad, this is Luo Yanchuan, who I often tell you about. The last time I came back late and ran into gangsters, he was the one who helped me out.“
1
Spill the beans
2
“Jin Se” is a poem written by Li Shangyin, a well known poet in the Tang Dynasty. It’s a love poem that Li Shangyin wrote in memory of his wife. Some other source said it was written for a maid who work for his mentor.
Shi Yunnan frowned slightly when he heard the words, “Mrs. Fang, you guys talk first.”
After he finished speaking, he took Yuan Rui and stepped outside.
Luo Yanchuan obviously didn’t expect to meet Shi Yunnan here, and the word “coincidence” floated in his heart until Mo Xuanqi’s voice brought him back to attention.
“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Mo, I’m Luo Yanchuan.“
When Fang Ya heard herself being addressed like this, her slender eyebrows furrowed slightly, but Luo Yanchuan’s outpouring of help for her daughter was enough for her to ignore this little awkwardness.
“I’ve long heard Qiqi mention Young Master Luo. Thank you for…”
…
Yuan Rui, who was brought to the side, noticed something was wrong with his friend and asked in a low voice, “Yunnan, what happened to you just now?”
While asking, he turned his eyes back to Fang Ya and the others, “Why does the name Luo Yanchuan sound so familiar? Does he have anything to do with patriarch Luo?“
Shi Yunnan clinked his glass with him and said, “You really don’t know anything at all about these wealthy families in the Imperial Capital, do you?”
Yuan Rui shook his head, “I have nothing to do with them. Why should I know? It’s not like I’m from the Census Bureau1.“
Shi Yunnan helplessly laughed and simply explained, “Luo Yanchuan is the young master of Luo’s side branch. In terms of relationship, he is Luo Lingsheng’s cousin.”
“What?”
Shi Yunnan continued, “Didn’t Xie Keyue tell you before? The Shi family has encountered some liquidity problems, and they plan to marry me into the Luo family.“
Yuan Rui remembered such a thing had happened, then he heard his friend say, “Luo Yanchuan was originally the marriage partner arranged by old man Shi for me.”
“–poof!”
The champagne that Yuan Rui had just drank was spurted out on the spot.
There were several guests around who heard Yuan Rui’s movements and cast funny glances at them.
Seeing that he had the exact same reaction as Fu Ziyu at the beginning, Shi Yunnan’s eyes showed disgust, “Are you alright?”
Yuan Rui was choking until his face turned red, and his suit was also stained with some wine, “I’ll go to the bathroom first. I’ll come back to eat melon later.“
He dropped such a sentence and swiftly ran away.
Shi Yunnan ignored his friend who hurriedly ran to the bathroom. Once again, he looked at Fang Ya and the others who were talking and laughing not far away. His gaze gradually deepened.
Since Xie Keyue and Luo Yanchuan’s behind-the-scenes investment in the cosmetics industry went wrong, Shi Yunnan has not heard from Luo Yanchuan for a long time.
How come, after not seeing him for a long time, he has gotten involved with Miss Mo Xuanqi?
Shi Yunnan took a sip of champagne and used a wine glass to hide his observation.
Mo Xuanqi, a girl in her early twenties, should have grown up loved and spoiled by Mo Bai’an and Fang Ya.
From the moment she entered the venue, her eyes were firmly fixed on Luo Yanchuan. It wasn’t difficult to see the throbbing that belonged to a young girl’s heart.
When Shi Yunnan thought of this, he felt more and more incredulous.
According to the timeline of the plot in his dream, Luo Yanchuan and Xie Keyue were already in love with each other at this time.
Could it be that because he had clashed with Xie Keyue a few times in the past investments and changed the established results, he had indirectly caused the entire world trajectory to follow suit and change?
Just as Shi Yunnan was thinking, Luo Yanchuan walked over.
“Second Young Master Shi, I didn’t expect to meet you here today. Since entering the Luo family, you should have a pretty smooth life.”
Luo Yanchuan had learned the identity of the manipulator behind the scenes after losing a lot of money in the cosmetics industry last time. Since then, his heart still had a trace of stifled anger that had not been eliminated.
“It’s a coincidence. I didn’t expect to meet Young Master Luo here either.“
Shi Yunnan heard the hidden thorn in the second half of his sentence and laughed instead of getting angry, “Should I help you put in some good words with your cousin?”
“…“
Luo Yanchuan’s hand holding the wine glass suddenly tightened.
Seeing his uncontrollable subconscious reaction, his eyes flashed with a teasing smile.
He knew that Luo Yanchuan hated being overpowered by Luo Lingsheng, so he deliberately mentioned Luo Lingsheng just to make the other party upset.
Luo Yanchuan quickly stabilized his heart, “Of course, but why did Second Young Master Shi appear at Mr. Mo and Mrs. Fang’s wedding anniversary party?”
Shi Yunnan continued to enrage the other party and said, “If you really want to talk about relationships and seniority, I can still count as your elder, no? So I don’t need to explain to you, right?“
“…..”
Luo Yanchuan’s expression froze.
Shi Yunnan glanced at Mo Xuanqi in the distance. His sharp eyes seemed to be able to see through everything, “Miss Mo can give you the career boost you want, can’t she?”
He took two steps forward, trying to capture any trace of Luo Yanchuan’s emotional changes.
“Luo Yanchuan, if you want to use Miss Mo to build a relationship with her family and develop the network you want, I can understand it as common sense.”
“But if you want to use this relationship to do something against Luo Lingsheng,”
Shi Yunan paused and warned him word for word, “I’ll make sure you bear all the consequences of your actions.”
Shi Yunnan still remembers what happened to Luo Lingsheng in the original dream book—not only was he forced to give up the position of family head to Luo Yanchuan, but he was also framed by Xie Keyue and sent to prison, completely ruining his legs.
If at the beginning, Shi Yunnan’s sympathy for Luo Lingsheng belonged to the “victim alliance”, then now it was out of absolute protection for his lover.
The silent confrontation continued for three seconds.
Luo Yanchuan suddenly smiled and raised his glass. “Second Young Master Shi worries too much.”
Shi Yunnan took a sip of wine and ignored him.
Not far away came Mo Xuanqi’s call. Luo Yanchuan didn’t want to let himself be humiliated any longer, so he simply took the opportunity to walk over.
Mo Xuanqi met Luo Yanchuan’s incomparably handsome face, and her heart rippled again.
However, her sideways glance at Shi Yunnan already had a trace of dissatisfaction. “Brother Yanchuan, stop chatting with that Shi Yunnan.”
Mo Xuanqi only learned of Shi Yunnan’s true identity from her mother, Fang Ya, not long ago.
Even though Fang Ya admired Shi Yunnan’s personality and design, she still couldn’t hold back her declining impression of him.
Because she liked Luo Yanchuan, Mo Xuanqi has secretly investigated many things, including the marriage between Luo Yanchuan and Shi Yunnan that ended before it started.
On top of that, Wen Wangyu was her best friend, whom she had known since her high school days.
As Shi Yunnan’s cousin, Wen Wanyou also criticized him when chatting privately, which shows that Shi Yunnan’s character wasn’t very good.
Of course, she wouldn’t mention these words in front of Luo Yanchuan. After all, the two had not yet reached the relationship of boyfriend and girlfriend, and she didn’t want Luo Yanchuan to feel that she was too controlling.
“Why did Shi Yunnan come to attend uncle and auntie’s anniversary?”
“My mom said that the design studio under Shi Yunnan and Fang had signed a cooperation contract in jade jewelry.” Mo Xuanqi casually mentioned this matter.
Luo Yanchuan’s eyes narrowed when he heard this.
Mo Xuanqi then asked him about another matter, “Brother Yanchuan, didn’t you say you wanted to talk to my mom about cooperation? How about I help you build a bridge right now?“
“…..”
Luo Yanchuan chose to come here today for the purpose of cooperation. But as soon as he heard that Shi Yunnan had reached an agreement on jade jewelry with Fang, he immediately hesitated—
Luo Yanchuan didn’t want to face Shi Yunnan directly, let alone make Luo Lingsheng behind Shi Yunnan suspicious.
“Brother Yanchuan, why did you stop talking?”
“It’s okay, the cooperation is not urgent at this moment. Today is uncle and auntie’s wedding anniversary. Don’t disturb their mood because of these things.“
Luo Yanchuan stabilized his mind and felt that this matter should not be rushed.
He glanced at Mo Xuanqi, who was still immersed in joy, and his heart contained some calculations.
A simple girl like Mo Xuanqi, who grew up surrounded by love, wasn’t attractive to him.
The reason why he was willing to take off his “playboy” mask for her and “return to the righteous path” was to control Mo Xuanqi with a pinch.
The Mo Fang couple only had one precious daughter. Whether it was in the past, now, or in the future, they should be very willing to make various concessions for their daughter.
…
Yuan Rui, who had dealt with the wine stains, walked back, “Yunnan, what are you looking at?”
Shi Yunnan stared at the distant backs of the two. He remembered Mo Xuanqi’s hurried glance but discontented eyes and dispelled the bit of thought in his heart.
For the sake of Fang Ya’s face, he originally intended to remind Miss Mo to be on guard against Luo Yanchuan, so as not to be deceived and hurt in the future.
But now he doesn’t have to because each person’s emotional development is their own choice.
In the other party’s eyes, he was an “unpleasant” person, so why should he give such a thankless warning?
“It’s nothing.” Shi Yunnan put down his glass, “Yuan Rui, I’ll go first. You will stay here for a while on behalf of our design studio.”
“You’re leaving now? You haven’t told me what happened to your marriage with Luo Yanchuan?“
“It’s nothing but stale sesame seeds and rotten grains2. If you’re really interested, I’ll tell you later.” Shi Yunnan pointed to the couple’s watch on his wrist and said, “But now, I really have to go home and find my husband.”
“…..”
Yuan Rui almost choked on the dog food. He laughed and scolded him, “F*ck off!”
Shi Yunnan patted his friend on the shoulder and left the banquet hall quickly while no one was paying attention.
…
Shi Yunnan drank some wine in the banquet hall, so he called a chauffeur to drive him home.
There have been several heavy snowfalls in the Imperial Capital these past few days, and the snow on the ground was so thick that even Luo’s Manor has only managed to clear a pathway for the car.
When the car was parked at the fountain in front of the main house, Shi Yunnan discovered that there were several figures in the snow in front of the house.
“Little Young Master, look who’s back?“
It was the voice of the butler, Uncle Qin.
Wearing a white down jacket and a white knitted hat, Little Goldfish stuck his head out of the snowman pile and rushed to Shi Yunnan’s thigh.
“Little uncle! I missed you so much!“
“Didn’t we just see each other this morning?”
Little Goldfish raised his head, revealing his cute small face and nose tip that were red from the cold, “But I still miss you very much.”
Shi Yunnan smiled and caught a glimpse of the tall and short snowmen, “You’re building snowmen outside?”
“Uh-huh!”
“This snowman with the glasses frames is uncle,” Little Goldfish boasted as he dragged Shi Yunnan to the front of the snowmen. “The one with long hair is little uncle, and this little snowman is me!”
“I still have to pile up Grandpa Qin and the others. Little uncle, help me pile them up!”
Shi Yunnan barely saw any difference between the three snowmen, and hugged Little Goldfish with a smile, “Aren’t you cold?”
As soon as he finished speaking, Luo Lingsheng, who was sitting firmly at the door, said disapprovingly, “Jin Yu, if you keep playing, you will catch a cold.”
It was already completely dark. Shi Yunnan was also a person who was afraid of the cold.
Luo Lingsheng didn’t want the big and little ones to suffer.
Uncle Qin also persuaded, “Little Young Master, this snow won’t melt. Shall we come out and pile it at noon tomorrow? It’s the patriarch’s birthday today. Don’t you still want to eat cake?“
“Yes!”
Thinking of this, Little Goldfish was a little greedy for the sweet cake in the house.
Shi Yunnan motioned for Luo Lingsheng to enter the house with his eyes. The latter understood his intention and turned the wheelchair into the house, “Uncle Qin, close the door in ten seconds. Whoever doesn’t come in will have no food or sleep tonight.“
Sure enough, Little Goldfish panicked when he heard this, “Little uncle, let’s hurry up!”
“Okay.”
Shi Yunnan only took a few steps inside when he heard Little Goldfish grunt like a know-it-all, “Uncle lied, he was reluctant to close the door!”
“Hm?”
Little Goldfish tightly hugged Shi Yunnan and quietly said, “You haven’t even entered the house, but Uncle has already thought about holding you to sleep tonight.”
“…..”
Shi Yunnan was stunned for half a second. He couldn’t help pinching the tip of his cold nose. “How did you know?”
Little Goldfish laughed heartily twice and asked again, close to Shi Yunnan’s ear, “Little Uncle, did you buy a present for uncle? Grandpa Qin said that he hasn’t had a birthday for a long time.”
Shi Yunnan heard the words and thought of Luo Lingsheng’s pressure and experience in recent years, and a touch of pain appeared in his heart.
“Little Uncle?”
Shi Yunnan regained his senses and showed a meaningful smile, “Don’t worry, my gift has long been prepared. It has to be secretly given to your uncle behind closed doors.”
You’re a little kid; you can neither listen nor watch.
1
A bureau that provides data about the nation’s people and economy.
2
Outdated or irrelevant matter.
