When Wen Yan was taken away by the Wen family, the villagers were completely unaware.
They still thought she had gone to work in the big city before even graduating from high school.
Now that Wen Yan had returned, having gotten married without a word, Aunt Zhang couldn't help but let her imagination run wild.
Wen Yan was young, beautiful, and glamorous. Could she be someone's mistress in the big city?!
Even if she wasn't a mistress, she must have married some rich old man.
Otherwise, how could such a luxurious car be parked in the courtyard?
Aunt Zhang craned her neck to look into the main room, just in time to see Old Master Si standing up to stretch his waist.
Aunt Zhang's eyes involuntarily widened.
Good heavens, that old man must be in his sixties or seventies, right?
Although he had an extraordinary aura, he was old enough to be Wen Yan's grandfather!
The look Aunt Zhang directed at Wen Yan instantly turned disdainful.
"Xiao Yan, you really have some nerve. Even a white-bearded old man has fallen for you. You really have no standards at all. You'd do anything for money. Don't ever come back to the village, or you'll completely disgrace us all."
Wen Jinglou's expression instantly darkened. "Sister Zhang, what nonsense are you spouting? That is my Yan Yan's husband's grandfather."
At that moment, Si Moyan, having found a Band-Aid in the car, walked over.
Seeing Wen Jinglou's displeased expression, his sharp eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Father-in-law, what happened?"
Wen Jinglou pointed at Si Moyan. "Sister Zhang, look closely. This is my Yan Yan's husband."
Aunt Zhang snapped her head back to look at the man walking toward them. He wore an unbuttoned black woolen overcoat over a crisp white shirt. His attire was elegant, refined, and meticulously ironed.
The man was tall with long legs, broad shoulders, and a narrow waist, looking like a walking clothes hanger. Beneath his short black hair was a sharply contoured, handsome face, as if meticulously carved by a master craftsman—incredibly handsome and perfect.
When he stood beside Wen Yan, the handsome man and beautiful woman made a remarkably perfect match.
Aunt Zhang opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, she heard her son beside her exclaim, "B-Boss?"
"What boss?" Aunt Zhang looked confused.
Zhang Hao didn't answer Aunt Zhang. He walked forward trembling and extended his hand. "Boss, I am Zhang Hao, HR from the real estate company under the Si Group."
Si Moyan looked at Zhang Hao with deep, dark eyes. "Your mother wants my wife to marry you?"
Cold sweat beaded on Zhang Hao's forehead. He said in sheer terror, "My mom didn't know Xiaoyan..."
Before he could finish, seeing his boss's face suddenly darken, Zhang Hao immediately changed his words. "My mom didn't know Mrs. Si was your wife. I am truly sorry. I hope you can be magnanimous, Boss, and not hold it against an ignorant peasant woman."
After speaking, Zhang Hao shot a meaningful look at Aunt Zhang.
Seeing her son pale with fright and hearing him repeatedly call the man 'Boss', Aunt Zhang knew she had caused a massive disaster.
"Haozi's boss, I have a loose tongue and don't know how to speak properly. Please don't mind me." Saying this, she looked at Wen Yan again. "Xiao Yan, Aunt Zhang was just talking nonsense earlier. Can I apologize to you?"
Wen Yan pursed her lips. "I hope Aunt Zhang won't spread rumors in the village."
"Don't worry, don't worry, I promise I won't say any nonsense."
When Zhang Hao supported Aunt Zhang as they left, his legs were trembling.
How could he have ever imagined that he would run into the big boss of his company while taking an annual leave back in his home village?
"Haozi, is your boss very powerful?"
"Of course, he's the heir to the wealthiest family in Ye City."
"Then you won't lose your job, will you?"
"As long as Xiaoyan doesn't hold a grudge, probably not!"
After Aunt Zhang and her son Zhang Hao walked far away, Old Master Si walked out. He looked at Wen Jinglou with a smile. "In-law, this is my first time here. If you have time, could you show me around?"
Wen Jinglou could tell that Old Master Si wanted to leave Wen Yan and Si Moyan alone together, so he nodded hastily. "Alright."
Old Master Si pulled Si Jingyi along, and they left together.
Soon, only Wen Yan and Si Moyan were left in the courtyard of the wooden house.
Wen Yan was about to go inside when Si Moyan reached out his long, slender hand and firmly grasped her wrist.
Domineering and forceful, he pulled her in front of him, then took out the Band-Aid and wrapped it around her injured finger.
Wen Yan looked at him. His thick black eyelashes were lowered, and beneath his tall, straight nose, his thin, crimson lips were tightly pursed.
Although he looked serious, cold, and somewhat unhappy, the movements of his hands were incredibly gentle and meticulous.
After bandaging her finger, he didn't let her go. Instead, he enveloped the rest of her fingers within his palm.
"Baby, let's not fight or give each other the cold shoulder anymore, alright?"
His voice was deep, mellow, and gentle, brushing across Wen Yan's heart like a feather, leaving a tingling sensation and stirring a ripple of emotion.
Wen Yan bit down hard on her lower lip with her fine white teeth, trying to pull her hand back, but he held on so tightly she couldn't break free.
"We have different mindsets. Even if we stop fighting now, we'll still argue about this in the future."
Si Moyan's throat felt a bit hoarse, and he coughed twice. "It was my fault for not taking your original family into account. You were abandoned at birth, and the trauma in your heart has always been there, unhealed. You lack the confidence to be a good mother; you're afraid you won't take good care of a child, and even more afraid of hurting them. Most importantly, you aren't very firm in our relationship yet and haven't completely fallen in love with me. These are all areas where I haven't done well enough, and I shouldn't demand so much from you in such a short period of time."
"Grandpa was right. My family doesn't have a throne to inherit, so there's no need for me to carry on the family line. When I said last night that I couldn't accept us not having children in the future, the fundamental reason was that I was afraid of losing you. I was afraid that one day, if you stopped liking me, you would just walk away freely. If we had a child, maybe you would stay out of a sense of responsibility. In the end, it's just me wanting to keep you by my side and not wanting to lose you!"
He slowly dissected the truest thoughts in his heart, exposing his most authentic self to her.
In front of outsiders, he was cold, powerful, and ascetic.
But in front of her, he was also sensitive, vulnerable, and insecure.
Wen Yan looked at the man before her. This was the longest speech he had ever made to her since they met.
It was so sincere and affectionate.
It was deeply moving.
"Wait here a moment." Wen Yan turned and went into the house.
Si Moyan didn't understand what she was thinking, so he quickly took long strides and chased after her.
"I know we still need a period of adjustment, but you can't just write me off completely because of what happened last night. Even if you want a divorce, I won't divorce you—"
Before Si Moyan could finish his sentence, Wen Yan, who had entered the room, took a bottle of medicine out of her bag and handed it to him.
"I noticed you were coughing a bit. You probably didn't sleep at all last night. Here, take this. It's very effective for coughs."
Si Moyan took the medicine, his narrow, deep eyes turning slightly red.
Wen Yan curled her lips into a slight smile. "We just had a fight; it's not like we stopped liking each other."
After putting the medicine into his overcoat pocket, Si Moyan's long, well-defined fingers firmly gripped Wen Yan's wrist. Without saying another word, he lowered his head and kissed her directly.
