Chapter 3

Jiang Yehui changed into pajamas and lay down on the oversized bed in the master bedroom, feeling a little uneasy.

If Gu Jingcheng came in and wanted something to happen, she had no real reason to say no.

But then again, he had said before that he wasn’t interested in her body. Surely he wouldn’t go back on his word so soon?

With that thought, she decisively turned off the light and went to sleep.

It felt like a long time passed. She was already dreaming.

A deep, pleasant male voice whispered something in her ear. Her neck tingled and itched, and she vaguely heard herself hum in response.

Then, the man leaned in close…

The sensation of skin touching was so real that she abruptly opened her eyes. In the dim light by the bed, she saw Gu Jingcheng—fully dressed in a bathrobe.

It wasn’t a dream.

Nervously swallowing, she stared at him. “You… what are you doing?”

“Isn’t it obvious?”

“…”

She inhaled sharply and looked down—his hand was unbuttoning her pajamas.

She gritted her teeth. “Didn’t you say you weren’t interested in me?”

He finally looked up, face expressionless. “Fulfilling a duty.”

“Wh… what duty?”

“To produce an heir.”

As he said this, his expression remained perfectly calm—completely devoid of desire or emotion. It was as if if she said even half a “no,” he would get up and walk away without the slightest reluctance.

The reasoning was dignified and expected. Jiang Yehui couldn’t find any words to argue.

In a business marriage like theirs, having a child was undeniably a crucial part of the deal. After all, their family really did have a fortune that needed to be passed down.

Besides, even if it wasn’t for the purpose of having children, if Gu Jingcheng wanted to fulfill their marital duties right now, she had no reason to refuse.

Seeing his businesslike attitude, Jiang Yehui steeled herself. Sooner or later, it would happen—she was mentally prepared. Might as well get it over with.

Besides, having her first time with a man like Gu Jingcheng wasn’t exactly a loss. His earlier touch didn’t feel bad either. At twenty-three, she might not believe in love anymore, but she was still curious and a little excited about this kind of thing.

Her only concern was the pain. She stared straight into his eyes and boldly said, “Be gentle.”

Gu Jingcheng’s lips pressed into a faint line.

If Jiang Yehui had been paying closer attention, she might’ve noticed the fleeting trace of awkwardness on his face.

Ten minutes later—

“Gu Jingcheng… you sure are experienced, huh?”

“…Mm.”

“Wait… stop! No way!”

Jiang Yehui shoved him away, tears streaming down her face, her expression full of pain and grievance.

Gu Jingcheng’s face darkened. He couldn’t believe he was being rejected like this—especially when her tear-covered face genuinely startled him. He didn’t dare make another move.

Jiang Yehui curled up and rolled to the side, trembling and sobbing, as if she’d just suffered the worst injustice.

Gu Jingcheng was thoroughly frustrated. Though this was his first time, he was sure he’d followed all the steps, and the foreplay had been more than sufficient. Her body had clearly responded to his touch. He had no idea what went wrong to make it seem like he was torturing her.

She was still crying.

The truth was, Jiang Yehui had a peculiar trait—not quite an illness, but enough to be troublesome. Although she had grown up spoiled, she was never the delicate or pampered type like other rich daughters. However, she had a very low pain tolerance, far lower than most people.

She knew the first time would hurt, but she hadn’t expected it to hurt this much. She was holding her breath; that area still throbbed with pain.

She suddenly recalled the time Xin Yan got drunk and told her about the two men she had slept with. The first had been her “white moonlight”—a man she had chased after with all her heart, only to find out once they slept together that he was all show and no substance. She dumped him soon after.

The second was a one-night stand—just a single night left her hooked, unable to forget the experience, and completely uninterested in any other man since.

Thinking of that, Jiang Yehui began to believe her terrible experience tonight must’ve been Gu Jingcheng’s fault. Just because someone looked experienced didn’t mean their skills were actually good.

The more she thought about it, the more disappointed she felt. Her first time, completely wasted.

With that thought, she looked at Gu Jingcheng again—this time with a hint of blame and even disdain in her eyes. She sighed inwardly. Who would’ve thought he was all looks and no performance?

Gu Jingcheng’s face was now pitch black. He hadn’t even gone all the way in before she started panicking. Taking a deep breath, he looked at her—snot, tears, trembling like a bullied kitten—and had no words to defend himself.

The fire inside him had nowhere to go. He could no longer stand being in that bed a second longer. With a cold expression, he grabbed his clothes from the bedside and walked out.

The sound of the door closing brought Jiang Yehui relief. She immediately got up and tiptoed over to lock the door from the inside, then climbed back onto the bed.

She moved her legs. The pain was mostly gone now. It seemed the worst of it had been during the moment he tried to enter.

But after everything that just happened… was she still a virgin? Had it actually… been broken?

Panicked, she turned on the light and looked at the bed—not a single stain on the white sheets.

She’d read before that not every woman bleeds the first time. Still, she went to the attached bathroom to clean up and check, but couldn’t come to any conclusion.

Well, it probably wasn’t that important. She’d ask Xin Yan next time they met.

The next morning, she woke up naturally and checked her phone. It wasn’t even 9 a.m. No need to rush out of bed. She opened WeChat first.

Xin Yan had sent a voice message two hours ago:

[Jiang beauty, I’m boarding now!]

There was also another voice message from a soft, pleasant male voice:

[Little Yehui beauty, sorry I couldn’t attend your wedding. Come get your gift when I’m back in the country.]

She couldn’t help but laugh. These two didn’t even know each other, yet both addressed her with the same flirtatious tone. Maybe she should introduce them someday.

She opened Weibo next—and was surprised to find the trending topic was all about the Gu-Zhou alliance.

Alarmed, Jiang Yehui clicked in. Did they find out who I am?

Turns out that at 8 a.m. sharp, the Yu Zhou Group official account had reposted Mingji’s earlier wedding announcement with the caption: “A hundred years of harmony.”

What shocked everyone even more was that Yu Zhou Group’s CEO Zhou Yanjin, who had a long-standing Weibo account but had never posted a single update, had actually shared it as well.

This was big. After all, the southern Zhou family and northern Gu family had never had any ties. People immediately began speculating.

Soon, media confirmed it: Mingji Group and Yu Zhou Group had officially joined forces through marriage. Gu Jingcheng had married Zhou Yanjin’s sister.

The entire internet was stunned. In terms of wealth and family background, no one was more suited to marry Gu Jingcheng than Miss Zhou.

Moreover, everyone in China knew the phrase: “Southern Zhou, Northern Gu.”
Zhou Yanjin and Gu Jingcheng were both top-tier—not just in status, but in looks. If Zhou Yanjin was that handsome, how unattractive could his sister possibly be?

In other words, the bride had money, looks, and pedigree. No matter how popular a celebrity was, she couldn’t compete.

As a result, the two warring camps of celebrity fans suddenly went quiet, lying flat as other netizens mocked them mercilessly.

Jiang Yehui knew her brother had posted the Weibo just to publicly confirm her identity and show his support. It was also a warning—to Gu Jingcheng and any women thinking about him.

What comforted her was that she had spent most of her life abroad and rarely appeared in domestic circles. Thanks to her brother’s protection, the media still knew nothing about her. No one had managed to dig up a proper photo, and even the press simply referred to her as “Miss Zhou.”

As she was thinking, there were two knocks at the door.

Before she could respond, she heard a key turning in the lock.

Then, the door opened.

It was Gu Jingcheng, wearing a white T-shirt and lounge pants, looking indifferent as he walked straight toward her.

Then, Jiang Yehui watched with wide eyes as he lifted the blanket and lay down beside her.

Wha… what is happening?

Her heart clenched as her thoughts flashed back to last night. Suddenly she remembered the “knowledge” Xin Yan had once shared with her: early mornings were when men typically… awakened with certain reactions.

So—was he here to make up for their unfinished wedding night?

She lay there stiffly, not daring to look at him, but she could smell his clean, refreshing scent—like her brother’s aftershave.

He had already washed up?

Jiang Yehui decided to just close her eyes and pretend to be asleep, waiting to see what he’d do next.

She silently counted to ten, but nothing happened. Then, faint voices came from outside the door—familiar ones.

She strained her ears to hear.

“They haven’t had breakfast yet?”

“No, Madam.”

“They haven’t come out at all?”

“No, Madam.”

It was her mother-in-law.

“And they’re flying out this afternoon for their honeymoon. They should be up by now.”

Her own mother was here too, right outside the door. Then came the sound of knocking, as if they were about to open the door.

“Alright, let’s not worry too much. Let them sleep a little longer. They must’ve been tired from last night.”

Her mother-in-law must’ve stopped her mom from knocking more. The two women laughed together, clearly implying something.

Then she heard her mother-in-law say, “Since you’re more familiar with this area than I am, take me out for a stroll.”

They exchanged a few more words, but Jiang Yehui couldn’t hear them clearly. Then it went quiet. They had left.

Now she understood—Gu Jingcheng must’ve known the two mothers were coming and jumped into her bed at the last minute. After all, it wouldn’t look good for newlyweds to have slept separately on their first night.

She secretly let out a sigh of relief, tucked herself obediently under the blanket, and peeked at him, waiting for him to leave.

But then, Gu Jingcheng suddenly turned toward her, and their eyes met.

After a brief silence, he sat up and asked, “You nervous?”

Jiang Yehui forced herself to remain calm. “Me? What’s there to be nervous about?”

“Last night,” Gu Jingcheng looked down at her, “your first time?”

She already felt like lying down put her at a disadvantage. Gripping the blanket, she closed her eyes and didn’t respond.

Gu Jingcheng’s expression showed a hint of irritation. “It’s normal for the first time to hurt. You were too tense.”

So now he was explaining why their night had failed? And blaming it on her?

Jiang Yehui sneered inwardly, then opened her eyes and said, “Wasn’t my first.”

Then she added provocatively, “Does it matter?”

Gu Jingcheng stared at her face for two seconds before his lips curled slightly. “It doesn’t.”

She held his gaze, studying him. She believed he was telling the truth.

Whether she was a virgin or not meant nothing to him. What mattered to him was whether the alliance with Yu Zhou Group could help Mingji expand into new business territory. He, like her brother, was a businessman through and through.

Jiang Yehui smiled indifferently. “You’re not a virgin, and neither am I. That’s fair.”

Gu Jingcheng looked at her blankly, then threw off the blanket and got out of bed. His tone was cold. “Get ready. After breakfast, we head to the airport.”

Jiang Yehui held up a hand, forming an “OK” gesture with her fingers.

No matter what, the ten-day honeymoon still had to happen. For the sake of future peace, and appearances in front of their mothers, they needed to keep up the act of a loving couple.

On this, they were in complete agreement.

But—about the issue that had been bothering her, she cleared her throat and proposed in a calm tone, “Gu Jingcheng, how about… a sexless marriage?”

Gu Jingcheng, already at the door, paused and slowly turned back. A mocking smile tugged at his lips. “Are you joking?”

“I’m asexual,” she replied with a sincere expression.

“I don’t mind,” Gu Jingcheng gave her a flat glance, “As long as you’re not into women.”

With those words, he opened the door and left.

Jiang Yehui stared at the door that closed with a loud bang, remembering what Xin Yan had once said about him.

Now she was almost certain the rumors were true—

This man held grudges.

He still remembered the extra words she’d added to the supplemental agreement three months ago.