Sweetie, don't look at him, kiss me.

As soon as Ji Linzhou finished speaking, it was as if the main hall had been put on pause.

Everyone's expression froze on their faces.

Old Madam Ji tilted her teacup for a moment, spilling scalding tea onto the back of her hand, but she seemed oblivious, staring intently at the two people standing side by side at the door. Old Master Ji frowned, his sharp gaze sweeping over Lin Qingmian before settling on Ji Linzhou's face, finally remaining silent with a somber expression.

Ji Xingye's second uncle and aunt looked at each other, opened their mouths and then closed them again, neither of them knowing what to say.

Su Tingwan sat beside Old Madam Ji, seemingly frozen in place. She still held the teacup in her hand, but her knuckles had turned bluish-white, and the color drained from her face little by little, leaving only a pale, ashen white.

Ji Xingqing was the first to jump up.

"Uncle, what...what did you just say?" Her voice rose eight octaves, her eyes wide and darting back and forth between Ji Linzhou and Lin Qingmian: "Mianmian is your...your wife?"

Ji Linzhou did not answer, but only slightly turned his head to glance at Lin Qingmian beside him.

Lin Qingmian felt his gaze, took a deep breath, then looked up to meet Ji Xingqing's shocked gaze and nodded gently.

"Yes," she said, "we got married a year ago."

Ji Xingqing's mouth dropped open, and she stood frozen in place as if struck by lightning. She stared at Lin Qingmian, then at Ji Linzhou, countless images flashing through her mind—their meal together at the Imperial Cuisine, her uncle taking her to the hospital, and that night in the hospital room when she hugged him…

She even scolded her, saying that she had "that kind of feeling" for her uncle.

Looking back now, they were a married couple, what's wrong with hugging?

"My God..." Ji Xingqing murmured, took a step back, and slumped into a chair, remaining stunned for a long time.

"Nonsense!"

Finally, Madam Ji snapped out of her shock and slammed her teacup down on the coffee table with a sharp, jarring sound.

"Ji Linzhou, what nonsense are you spouting?" Her voice was sharp and angry, her eyes practically spitting fire: "She's your nephew's ex-girlfriend! How dare you marry her? Do you know where the Ji family's reputation will be if word gets out?"

Ji Linzhou held Lin Qingmian's hand without moving.

His expression remained calm, but his gaze turned colder, and his voice, though steady, carried an undeniable weight: "Mother, I don't need anyone's permission to marry."

"You…" Old Madam Ji's chest heaved with anger, her finger trembling as she pointed at him, "How dare you! Don't you even respect me as your mother?"

"Alright," Old Master Ji finally spoke.

His voice, though aged, still carried immense authority, instantly silencing the noise in the main hall.

Old Master Ji raised his head, his gaze shifting from Ji Linzhou to Lin Qingmian, then back to Ji Linzhou. After a long silence, he slowly asked, "When did this happen?"

"One year ago," Ji Linzhou replied calmly.

Why did you hide it from your family?

"Because the circumstances were special at the time."

Old Master Ji stared at him for a long time, his weathered eyes revealing no emotion.

"Does the Lin family know?"

Lin Qingmian clenched her fingers slightly.

Before she could speak, Ji Linzhou answered first, "I know."

"Lin Jianzhong knew when he sold her to me."

Upon hearing this, the air in the main hall froze once again.

Madam Ji's expression shifted several times, her lips moved, but she ultimately refrained from saying anything more hurtful. Old Master Ji closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.

Su Tingwan sat there, not uttering a single word the entire time.

Her face was deathly pale, devoid of any color, and her fingers gripped the teacup so tightly it seemed she would crush it. Her gaze fell on Ji Linzhou and Lin Qingmian's clasped hands, on the way he shielded her behind him, and on the matter-of-fact tone in his voice when he said, "She is my wife."

When he proposed to her a year ago, she thought she was his only choice.

She thought that someone like him would only propose to one person in his entire life.

So she acted coy, she put on airs, she wanted him to chase her all the way to Europe and give her a grand proposal before she would agree to marry him.

But what did she get in return?

He turned around and married someone else.

He married the youngest daughter of the Lin family, whom she had never taken seriously and whom Ji Xingye had rejected.

Su Tingwan's fingers were trembling.

She tried hard to control herself, but the overwhelming anger and resentment surging up from the bottom of her heart seemed to be threatening to devour her.

She remembered Ji Linzhou saying to her at the entrance of the Ji family's old house, "I'm already married," and she remembered asking him, "Who is your wife?" and his indifferent expression and evasive attitude at the time.

It turns out it was because he felt guilty.

Because he married his nephew's wife.

"Linzhou," Su Tingwan finally spoke.

Her voice trembled with suppressed emotion, like the last vestiges of calm on the sea before a storm: "When you proposed to me a year ago, did you already know you would marry her?"

All eyes in the main hall were on her.

Ji Linzhou looked at her, his brows furrowing slightly.

"No," he said. "Proposing to you and marrying her are two different things."

"Then why did you marry her?" Su Tingwan's voice rose an octave, her eyes reddening, her lips trembling: "You clearly said you didn't love anyone, you said marriage was just a transaction for you, why did you…"

"Because she's suitable."

Ji Linzhou interrupted her, his voice calm to the point of cruelty: "She doesn't need my love; she just needs a stable life."

"And that's exactly what she needed at the time."

Lin Qingmian stood beside him, listening to these words, and her heart clenched slightly.

She knew, of course, that he was telling the truth. He had told her the same thing a year ago—he needed marriage to avoid certain troubles, and she needed a place to stay. Each would get what they needed, and neither would interfere with the other's life.

But hearing him say these words again now, a bittersweet feeling welled up in her heart.

She lowered her head, avoiding everyone's gaze.

Su Tingwan stared at Ji Linzhou, and tears finally fell uncontrollably.

"Fine." Her voice was terribly hoarse, carrying a defiant, reckless resolve: "Now that you're married, what am I?"

"You made me act in front of the media, you made me attend various events as your fiancée, you made everyone think we were going to get married..."

"Ji Linzhou, what do you take me for?"

Ji Linzhou remained silent for a moment.

"I owe you this," he said, his voice softening slightly. "You can name your compensation."

Su Tingwan stared at him for a long time, then suddenly smiled.

That smile, tinged with tears, carried a chilling sadness: "Compensation?"

"Ji Linzhou, I only want you."

The main hall was eerily quiet.

Madam Ji remained silent with a sullen face, while Old Master Ji leaned back in his chair with his eyes closed, and Ji Xingqing huddled in the corner, barely daring to breathe.

Ji Linzhou looked at Su Tingwan and remained silent for a long time.

Then he spoke, his voice calm yet clear: "I can't give it to you."

"I already have a wife."

Su Tingwan's body swayed slightly.

She clenched her fists so tightly that her nails almost dug into her palms. Her gaze passed over Ji Linzhou and landed on Lin Qingmian behind him.

The emotions in his eyes were too complex, carrying hatred, resentment, anger, and an almost twisted obsession.

Lin Qingmian met her gaze without flinching.

She simply stood quietly behind Ji Linzhou, holding his hand, her back ramrod straight.