Chapter 33: “The Speed is Impressive, Congratulations, Big Brother and… Sister-in-law.”

“Both families are in a normal marriage arrangement, and Nanzhi and I have already registered our marriage.”

Once these words were spoken, the slightly tipsy Fourth Uncle became much more sober.

He instinctively glanced at Jiang Tingxu, who was unusually silent across the table.

Everyone was momentarily taken aback by the news that the young girl from the Shen family had registered her marriage with Jiang Jinnian.

The entire hall fell silent for a brief moment.

Even Jiang’s father and Jiang’s mother looked surprised.

From the time their eldest son proposed to marry Shen Nanzhi until now, it hadn’t even been a month.

They had originally thought their younger son was being ridiculous.

Now, they realized that their pride, their eldest son, was also acting quite absurdly with this speed.

It was as if they feared that if they didn’t act quickly, the bride would slip away.

The dining table was quiet for a moment.

Then, it was broken by Jiang Tingxu’s half-smiling congratulatory voice.

“The speed is impressive. Congratulations, Big Brother and… Sister-in-law.”

His gaze was dark and bottomless as he fixated on Shen Nanzhi across from him, his eyes holding a sudden flash of sharpness that was strongly suppressed by a layer of calm.

However, no one noticed the way his fingers tightly gripped the wine glass, losing all color.

Shen Nanzhi tightened her grip, pretending she didn’t hear the sarcasm in Jiang Tingxu’s last two words.

The atmosphere at the dining table warmed up again.

The uncles were all surprised by this unexpected engagement switch.

For so many years, the Jiang family had favored a union between Jiang Tingxu and the Shen family. Who would have thought that it would end up being the eldest son, Jiang Jinnian, who took on the engagement?

Third Uncle Jiang was the first to regain his composure.

He smiled at Shen Nanzhi, sitting next to Jiang Jinnian.

“I remember today happens to be Nanzhi’s birthday, right? What a double celebration! I only prepared a birthday gift for you, but I’ll have someone send over a wedding gift on the first morning.”

The other uncles followed suit and congratulated her.

“When is the wedding scheduled?” Fourth Uncle asked. “Have you decided?”

Jiang Jinnian leaned back in his chair, glancing at Shen Nanzhi. “There’s no rush for the wedding. Nanzhi is still young, and she has heavy coursework right now. We can discuss it after the New Year.”

This topic did not linger for long.

After all, for many years, everyone had unanimously assumed that Jiang Tingxu would marry into the Shen family, so suddenly having the young girl from the Shen family register her marriage with Jiang Jinnian caught several of the uncles off guard. They sensed that delving deeper might lead to topics best left unspoken.

They quickly changed the subject.

“The market value of Guangying Media has been soaring lately. Tingxu, you came back so late today; were you busy with work?”

Third Uncle said happily, but before he could finish his remark about “our Jiang family’s younger generation having entrepreneurial talent,” he noticed Jiang Tingxu, who had put down his wine glass and was casually playing with a Tiffany black lacquer lighter.

“Tingxu, you’re joking. I was just trying to win over a girlfriend. It’s the first time I’ve met someone I like, and I’m trying to impress her.”

Shen Nanzhi kept her head down, fiddling with the spoon as she stirred the exquisite dessert in front of her.

Jiang Jinnian appeared indifferent.

It was unclear whether he was listening or not.

After Jiang Jinnian and Shen Nanzhi registered their marriage, Jiang Tingxu casually mentioned “girlfriend” in a family banquet setting. A few uncles were somewhat taken aback.

Before anyone could respond, Mrs. Jiang coldly questioned:

“That little star?”

In such a setting, Mrs. Jiang was unwilling to bring up someone unpleasant, but Jiang Tingxu was simply too reckless. Not only had he caused a stir outside, but now he was even bringing that little star into the family banquet.

If she didn’t put a stop to it, he might dare to bring the person home someday.

“Jiang Tingxu, don’t blame Mom for not warning you in advance. Our Jiang family does not accept just anyone as part of the family.”

Jiang Tingxu’s eyes darkened with a hint of sarcasm.

“So—”

“Only those involved in a marriage arrangement are considered acceptable?”

He raised his eyes to glance at Shen Nanzhi, who was sitting beside his brother, her presence almost nonexistent.

The suppressed anger within him surged, and the words “registered marriage” echoed in his ears like a nightmare, circling endlessly.

“I finally found a girl I like. Why should I be forced into a corner?”

Zhou Lin sent several work-related emails.

Noticing that Shen Nanzhi had been somewhat tense throughout the meal, as the dinner was nearing its end, Jiang Jinnian took her upstairs first.

“Are you full?” he asked as they reached the second floor.

Shen Nanzhi nodded. “I’m full.”

Jiang Jinnian replied, “There’s something at the company I need to handle, but it won’t take long.”

“You can just go do your work, Jinnian.”

Shen Nanzhi didn’t mind this. When they reached the third floor, she habitually started toward her own room, but after taking a couple of steps, Jiang Jinnian, who had been watching her, called out to her.

“Nanzhi.”

“Come with me to the study.”

“Me?” Shen Nanzhi instinctively rejected, “I shouldn’t interrupt your work, so I won’t go. I’ll wait in my room—”

Jiang Jinnian interrupted her refusal with a single sentence:

“Nanzhi, we’ve registered our marriage, but we don’t know each other well enough yet. We need more time to spend together, don’t you think?”

What did she think?

She thought there was no need to rush…

She might, perhaps, still need some time to adjust to her married status.

In the face of Jiang Jinnian’s intense, dark gaze, the timid young lady didn’t dare to say it outright.

Suppressing the struggle in her heart, as she was being stared at by him, she was about to nod weakly and make a move forward when a thought suddenly struck her.

Her eyes brightened like water mist, and she quickly aligned herself with Jiang Jinnian’s words while subtly expressing her reluctance.

“I think so too. What you said makes sense, Jinnian. We’re indeed not very familiar yet, and it’s true that we need to spend more time together to develop our feelings.”

Jiang Jinnian stood at the staircase, watching her set the stage before rejecting it.

After her last sentence fell, Shen Nanzhi quickly glanced at him.

Then she continued, “But—”

“I left my phone downstairs. I need to go get it later, and constantly coming in and out of the study would disturb your work. As for developing feelings, it can only wait until next time—”

Before she could finish her sentence, Jiang Jinnian took out his phone and dialed a number.

Once the call connected, he spoke in a low voice:

“Uncle Li, please bring Nanzhi’s phone up.”

Shen Nanzhi: “…?”

“Is there anything else you need?” He asked her after hanging up.

Shen Nanzhi was momentarily stunned, swallowing the second half of her sentence.

Reluctantly shaking her head, she replied, “No, nothing else.”

Jiang Jinnian: “Then come with me to the study.”