Engagement Annulled? Now The Husbands Kneel and Beg for Her Favor

Xie Youchen paused.

Out of Jiang Qingli’s sight, the tips of the young man’s ears grew hot. His tone, however, was calm. “I don’t remember.”

Jiang Qingli didn’t believe him. “…Your memory can’t be that bad, can it?”

She was about to press him for more when her terminal rang.

It was a call from Lin Xiyue.

Jiang Qingli answered, and her friend’s voice, still thick from the previous night’s drinking, came through. “Babe, we’re taking off.”

“You’re not staying a little longer?”

“We don’t want to interrupt your honeymoon! We’re going to the beach next door in a bit.” Lin Xiyue giggled. “Qiao Lan said she knows an underwater restaurant over there with lots of cute young waiters who offer… special services!”

“President, don’t get the wrong idea.” Qiao Lan’s voice cut in from the other side. “My exact words were that the underwater restaurant has a special surprise—meaning you can get up close and personal with marine animals. Why does it sound so weird when you say it?”

Lin Xiyue let out an “Oops!” “I was just trying to tease her!”

Jiang Qingli pressed her forehead. “…Wait a minute, I’ll see you off.”

“No, no!” Lin Xiyue quickly stopped her. “You don’t have time for that right now, I get it! You two carry on!” Then she lowered her voice, speaking away from the others, “Let’s… compare notes after you’re done, okay? Oh, right, I hid some supplements in your study. I know you have great stamina, but just in case!”

Jiang Qingli: “…”

The call ended. She glanced at Xie Youchen beside her, momentarily at a loss for words.

It was obvious he had heard the entire conversation.

The young man gave a low cough. “What would you like for breakfast? I’ll go make it.”

After their friends and family left, the servants were also given time off.

Right now, the manor was completely empty.

After breakfast, the two of them went for a walk on the beach.

The wedding decorations had been cleared away, and the beach was back to its pristine state.

Jiang Qingli tilted her head back, feeling the cool, tranquil sea breeze lift her hair.

White-capped waves washed over their feet, smoothing over their two sets of footprints in the sand before slowly receding.

Jiang Qingli stepped on a seashell. “What should we do later?”

“Anything is fine,” Xie Youchen said.

“And here I thought you’d want to spend a passionate night with me,” Jiang Qingli teased him deliberately. “You put so much effort into seducing me last night.”

Xie Youchen paused. “You still remember?”

Jiang Qingli tilted her head, thinking. “It’s a bit fuzzy, but I vaguely recall a certain vision of a handsome man, sopping wet and fresh from a bath… That was completely intentional, wasn’t it?”

The young man’s eyes flickered. He looked away and gave a soft cough. “There’s no rush.”

“We have plenty of time.”

…

After the wedding, Xie Youchen left for the Lower District.

He was still primarily working in the Twelve Cities, but the focus of his work was gradually shifting. It wouldn’t be long before he returned to the First District.

Before Xie Youchen and Jiang Qingli’s relationship was revealed, the matter had been thoroughly analyzed on the Star Network. One post had even dug up numerous details, concluding that Xie Youchen was against marriage.

Many males thought Xie Youchen was ambitious. Combined with the fact that hackers couldn’t find his genes in the gene pool, the male population hailed him as the role model for a new era!

After the wedding, this post was bumped to the top again, but the tone of the replies had completely changed—

[Checking in at the famous ‘male role model’ thread. Our boy is still very happy today (#^.^#)]

[OP, can I repost this to the ‘Li Chen’ Super-Topic? I’ll credit you, thanks!]

[Came over from another thread. I just realized the details OP dug up are perfect proof that our ‘male role model’ has been coveting Sister Jiang for years. Even the whole ‘against marriage’ thing that the single guys praised was just him saving himself for Sister Jiang. The moment she beckoned, he married right into her family. LMAO, it’s hilarious…]

[OP, you still doing okay? Oh, no offense meant by necro-ing this thread, just wanted to let you know someone saw the ‘male role model’ sneaking glances at his female master during a meeting.]

[That’s our man for you, born to be the perfect husband…]

…

「One month later.」 The original poster updated with a new reply: [Dug this stuff up a few years ago when I was bored, didn’t expect so many people to pay attention. Feel free to share, but I just want to say, even though Xie Youchen is married, he’s still my idol. Alright, I’m off to take care of my kid.]

Lin Xiyue laughed at the post for at least an hour before forwarding it to Jiang Qingli.

She called her. “I can’t believe I actually know the original poster. When are you free? I’ve got some juicy gossip for you!”

“The day after tomorrow?” Jiang Qingli thought for a moment. “I’m at home now. I’ll come find you first thing the day after tomorrow!”

Lin Xiyue said, “Oh, I just remembered, it’s Marshal Xie’s birthday, right?”

“Yes.” Jiang Qingli’s lips curved into a smile. “My mother and fathers came back today too.”

“Then I won’t disturb you guys. I’ll save the gossip. You’ll be the first to hear it!”

“Okay, I’ll bring my own snacks.”

After hanging up, Jiang Qingli straightened her hair in the mirror.

It was already the end of July, and it was still a bit hot even in a long dress.

A roaring sound came from downstairs. Jiang Qingli went down to see Xie Youchen already walking through the door, surrounded by the household staff.

Zhou Yanli stood to one side, asking him about his recent activities and nodding from time to time.

The family had a simple dinner and cake in the dining room.

After the meal, the Jiang Family’s mother and fathers returned to their rooms, leaving the young couple some time to themselves.

Jiang Qingli took Xie Youchen’s hand and led him up to the attic.

Just a moment ago, while Xie Youchen was making a wish, Jiang Qingli had raised a Polaroid camera and taken a picture of the whole family, which she then printed out.

Holding the photo, Jiang Qingli stood in front of a bookshelf and pulled out a handmade photo album.

Most people used digital albums these days, but Jiang Qingli was a stickler for tradition in this regard. Every year on his birthday, she would take a photo, print it out, and put it inside.

This tradition had started after Xie Youchen came to the Jiang Family.

When he first arrived at the Jiang Family home, Xie Youchen was always very quiet.

On his birthday, he was still in a withdrawn phase. Xie Qizhen had to coax him to stand in front of the cake while Zhou Yanli took out the Polaroid and the family snapped a group photo.

That was when the little girl had taken out a handmade photo album, explaining that it was her gift to him. It had several hundred pages, enough to hold many family photos.

Recalling the past, Jiang Qingli placed the new photo on the page for his 24th year, then smiled and began flipping through the album from the very beginning.

From childhood, to his teenage years, to the present day.

The boy in the photos grew more and more handsome, and the smiles on his face became more and more frequent.

There was a three-year gap in the middle.

Xie Youchen’s gaze fell on the blank space, and he clearly faltered.

Jiang Qingli said, “It’s okay. There will be many more from now on.”

“Okay.”

Jiang Qingli asked, “By the way, what did you really wish for on your twenty-first birthday?”

Xie Youchen thought for a moment, and this time, he didn’t hide it. “To be with you.”

Not just when he was twenty-one. Before that, after that—it had always been his wish.

Jiang Qingli was slightly taken aback, then her eyes crinkled into a smile. “Well, your wish came true.”

Xie Youchen smiled. “Thank you, Ah Li, for helping me make my wish come true.”

The young man toyed with a strand of her hair, holding her tight.

Moonlight spilled down, outlining their figures.

No longer distant, but within reach.

–

Since they were already looking at the birthday album, they took out the other photo albums as well.

The two of them spent a long time looking through them, reminiscing about when the photos were taken and chatting.

After looking at all the photos, Jiang Qingli suddenly thought of something.

She picked up Xie Youchen’s birthday album again, took out the very first photo, and turned it over. Sure enough, she saw a line of text written in a childish hand—

[I hope all of my big brother’s birthday wishes come true!]

Xie Youchen, hugging Jiang Qingli from behind, took the fountain pen she had given him from his pocket and wrote another line.

Then he turned his head and kissed his beloved’s lips.

In the clear, gentle moonlight, the two lines of text, written years apart, shone together—

[I hope all of my big brother’s birthday wishes come true!]

[With Ah Li here, my birthday wishes will never go unfulfilled.]