Chapter 3

Fu Nanzhou's expression darkened. “No!” Lu Xi's face fell. “But we got married by mistake.” “You made a mistake. I didn't. I was the one who proposed the marriage. I have no intention of getting a divorce. Being married twice would hurt my prospects. I'm already thirty this year, so finding a partner isn't easy. You're young and beautiful. I know when I've got a good thing.” That was definitely a blatant lie. Never mind the fact that Fu Nanzhou was the head of the Fu family. Just his face alone was enough to attract countless admirers. How could he possibly have trouble finding young, beautiful women willing to throw themselves at him? Lu Xi bit her lip. What was she supposed to do now? She already regretted it. From the way this man talked, it seemed that he had trouble finding a partner. Could it be that he had some kind of illness? “This is my home address. Move in directly. I'll send the password to your phone. I'm in a hurry, so I can't take you there. Take a taxi yourself. Use the money on the card for whatever you need, and buy anything else yourself.” Fu Nanzhou really was in a hurry. After saying that, he handed Lu Xi a bank card, then quickly got into his car and drove away. Lu Xi stood there dumbfounded. A credit card? Wasn't Mr. Fu afraid she'd max it out? Lu Xi suddenly squatted down, pouting in frustration. She had really lost her mind. Not only had she mistaken the wrong person, but she'd even impulsively married an older man. If she told her sister, her sister would definitely be furious with her. Lu Xi took a photo of her marriage certificate and sent it to her best friend, Zhuang Yi, followed by a crying emoji. Zhuang Yi immediately called her. “Lu Xi, have you lost your mind?! Do you know who that man is? That's Fu Nanzhou, my biological uncle! “Damn it! I kindly introduced you to someone, and you actually wanted to become my aunt! How could you do this to me?! “Lu Xi, you're doomed! You're absolutely doomed! Your good days are over!” Lu Xi pouted. “I'm sorry. I didn't realize I'd mistaken the wrong person. He had a fountain pen tucked into his shirt pocket at the time.” Zhuang Yi looked helpless. “My uncle is that old, and you didn't notice?” Lu Xi lowered her voice. “I did notice, but your uncle is too handsome. I was too distracted by his face and completely ignored his age.” “Xixi, do you know what marrying my uncle means?” Lu Xi didn't understand. “What does it mean?” “It means you'll be completely under his control from now on! And girl, you're a substitute! My uncle used to have a girlfriend he dated for six years. You look a lot like her. Get it?” Lu Xi froze for a moment. Then she suddenly understood. “No wonder your uncle wanted to marry me the first time he saw me. “Yiyi, please help me beg your uncle. Ask him to divorce me.” Zhuang Yi looked horrified. “Please spare me! If I dare meddle in his affairs, my uncle might beat me to death! You're on your own.” As soon as she finished speaking, the call ended. Lu Xi: “…” Zhuang Yi was such a terrible friend. What was she supposed to do now? ** Lu Xi didn't have many belongings. When she graduated, she'd sold everything she could. Most of what remained at her sister's house consisted of her clothes and a few miscellaneous items. After what had happened earlier, Lu Xi didn't dare go back alone. Fortunately, her sister's mother-in-law, Li Qian, had gone to the house to pick up some of Guoguo's toys and couldn't find them, so she called Lu Xi. By the time Lu Xi returned home, Li Qian was already sitting on the sofa, cracking sunflower seeds. Not all the shells had made it into the trash can. There were shells scattered everywhere. The moment Li Qian saw her, she said, “Xixi, where have you been? You didn't even clean up the house. I'm in a hurry and don't have time to clean up after you.” Lu Xi thought to herself, You certainly have time to sit around cracking sunflower seeds. But aloud, she remained polite. “Auntie, I just had something to take care of.” Li Qian curled her lips. “You haven't even found a job yet. What could you possibly have to do?” Lu Xi was a little annoyed. “Auntie, I'm starting work at the Fu Group next week.” Li Qian paused. “The Fu Group? NanNan must have pulled some strings for you, right? “Xixi, don't take this the wrong way, but you and your sister must have burned incense for good luck in your previous lives to have married into our family. Our NanNan has really gone all out for the two of you sisters. “But Xixi, you're not a child anymore. You can't keep staying at home and living off us, can you?” Lu Xi pressed her lips together. “Auntie, I've been tutoring students since college. I contribute twenty thousand yuan to the household every year.” Li Qian sneered. “What can twenty thousand even do? Anyway, forget about that. I have a nephew who's forty-two this year. He got divorced recently, and his three children were all left in his care, so he's looking for another wife. “My nephew may be a little ugly, but he's rich. His family probably has eight hundred thousand to a million yuan in assets. I thought I'd introduce you two. He's willing to give sixty-six thousand yuan as the bride price. “Your brother-in-law's house is too small. As his mother, I want to help him get a bigger one. The sixty-six thousand yuan bride price, plus whatever your uncle and I can put together, should be enough to buy your brother-in-law a spacious three-bedroom apartment. Then you'll have somewhere to stay when you come back, and you won't have to squeeze in with Guoguo.” Lu Xi suppressed her anger. “Wouldn't you have to sell this house first?” Li Qian glared at her. “The housing market is declining right now. Wouldn't selling it mean losing money? Just take out a loan directly.” Lu Xi asked again, “Would the loan be under my sister's name or my brother-in-law's?” Li Qian grabbed another handful of sunflower seeds. “Your brother-in-law can't do it. If he buys another property, it'll count as his second home, so the taxes will be higher. Your sister doesn't have a housing fund, and her job isn't stable. “I'm a teacher. Put the house under my name and use my housing fund to take out the loan. That'll save us quite a bit. Your sister can simply give me the monthly loan payments. Everyone will be happy.” Lu Xi finally understood. Wasn't this just trying to get something for nothing? “Auntie, I understand.” Li Qian's face lit up. “You agree?” Lu Xi shook her head. “Auntie, I can't agree because I'm already married.” Li Qian immediately shot to her feet and pointed at Lu Xi, cursing. “You ungrateful, heartless brat! Who are you trying to fool?! “You just graduated. Who could you possibly have married?! “Do you think I wanted to find you a husband? My nephew is rich! If you weren't my daughter-in-law's younger sister, would I give such a huge opportunity to you?! “Forget it. I'm not talking to you anymore. I'll go talk to your sister. I shouldn't have even bothered asking you! “I was only trying to help, and you repay me like this! You think I'm after that little bit of bride price, don't you?!” Furious, Li Qian grabbed Guoguo's toys and stormed out. Lu Xi's expression was just as unpleasant. Every time Li Qian came over in the past, she would accuse Lu Xi of freeloading. She acted concerned about her in front of her sister, but behind her back, she was always nitpicking and finding fault with her. Yes, Lu Xi lived here, but her sister earned plenty of money. Besides, Lu Xi had paid her own tuition since college and usually lived at school, rarely returning home during winter or summer breaks. This year, she had only been staying at home for a month because she had just graduated. And now Li Qian had her in her sights. Lu Xi hurriedly packed her belongings. She couldn't shake the feeling that if she were even a moment too late, Li Qian might really sell her off to that nephew. Just as Lu Xi finished packing and dragged her suitcase out the door, her sister called. “Xixi, what happened between you and my mother-in-law?” Lu Xi sat on her suitcase and thought for a moment before telling her the truth. “Sis, your mother-in-law insisted on introducing me to her nephew. He's forty-two and already has three children. I refused to marry him, and she got angry.” Lu Yao sighed. “Couldn't you have just refused? Why did you have to provoke her?! She just came in and threw the teddy bear at Guoguo's face. Luckily, one of the teddy bear's eyes had already fallen off. Otherwise, wouldn't it have hurt if it hit the child's face?” Lu Yao was worried about her daughter, and her concern naturally made her tone carry a hint of reproach.