Meeting the parents

The boy, who had looked a little displeased a moment ago, heard those words and slowly widened his beautiful, peach-blossom eyes, looking like a dazed Persian cat.

Ji Zhian's expression instantly soured.

What was going on? Wasn't Gu Shang supposed to be hideous? Why... why was this poised, stern man, who commanded respect without so much as raising his voice, Gu Shang?

Why did a little bitch like Ji Mingzhu get to marry such an exceptional man?

Gu Shang said nothing. He simply took out a royal-blue ring box and gently opened it.

Under the ample indoor lighting, the ring inside gave off an enchanting radiance the instant the box opened.

The others could not help craning their necks for a curious peek. A dazzling, flawless pink diamond ring lay nestled inside the jewelry box.

At the sight of it, Ji Zhian's pupils contracted sharply. Was this a joke... giving such a rare pink diamond to an uncultured country bumpkin as a wedding ring? Could he even appreciate it?

It was a cushion-cut fancy vivid pink diamond that looked to be ten carats, surrounded by a halo of smaller diamonds. Its beauty was breathtaking. Even someone who knew nothing about jewelry could tell that, if this ring appeared at an auction, it would surely be the grand finale.

Malice gleamed in Ji Zhian's eyes. He had been swaggering around just a moment ago, but now he looked like a ridiculous, down-and-out nouveau riche. He wished he could snatch that ring and put it on his own finger.

Seeing that the boy had been standing there in a daze ever since realizing who he was, the man said with a hint of helplessness, "Your hand."

Ji Mingzhu looked up blankly and obediently held out his hand. "Oh."

The man's expression was stern, but his movements were gentle.

He took the boy's fair, slender hand and lifted it before his eyes, then slowly slid the dazzling wedding ring onto the boy's ring finger.

Though the pink diamond was vibrantly lovely, it did not make the boy look feminine in the slightest.

Ji Mingzhu had very fair skin and beautifully slender hands. Pale-blue veins showed faintly beneath the delicate skin on the back of his hand, making the pink diamond stand out all the more.

After putting the wedding ring on his fiancé, Gu Shang held his hand up to admire it himself, then courteously opened his palm. "Do you like it?"

Ji Mingzhu knew he meant the ring, yet his face inexplicably grew warm. In all the time since he had arrived here, this was the first time someone had stood up for him, giving him someone to rely on when he was bullied.

Tilting his head up slightly, he intently traced Gu Shang's features with his gaze, then nodded. "I do. Thank you."

Although Gu Shang might have brought out such an expensive wedding ring only for the Gu Family's reputation rather than for Ji Mingzhu himself, he was still grateful. Grateful that Gu Shang had not treated him carelessly, and grateful that he was willing to defend his dignity in front of so many people.

Ji Mingzhu let the man lead him by the hand toward the center of the wedding venue.

The man's tall, broad-shouldered figure gave him a sense of security just to look at.

Ji Mingzhu thought he would take him to greet the guests first, but he did not realize that, with Gu Shang's status, there was no need for him to curry favor with anyone. He only needed to wait for others to come over and congratulate him.

Instead, he led Ji Mingzhu straight toward the place of honor, where an elegantly dressed couple stood.

The man had a stern face with a few wrinkles, though they did nothing to diminish his mature, handsome bearing. His upward-slanting brows made him look somewhat fierce, the very picture of a strict, handsome middle-aged man. The woman beside him had only a few fine lines at the corners of her eyes, and it was still easy to see what an extraordinary beauty she must have been in her youth.

The young man standing on the far left was far less guarded with his emotions, casting a rather hostile look at Ji Mingzhu.

Gu Shang led him over and said calmly, "These are my parents and younger brother. You probably haven't met them yet."

Ji Mingzhu hurried forward to greet them in turn. "Dad, Mom."

He even greeted the young man whose expression had been rather unpleasant a moment earlier.

Gu Shang was taken aback. Hadn't he heard that his fiancé was deeply opposed to this marriage, even going so far as to jump off a building to escape it?

Why did he seem so different from the rumors?

Hearing the boy's obedient greetings, the members of the Gu Family all felt their throats tighten. Why did Ji Mingzhu seem... so unlike the ignorant, ill-mannered person described in the rumors? Or was it simply because this was their first meeting, and the boy had yet to reveal his true nature?

Both sides were quite friendly at their first meeting, and the two elders nodded in response.

The young man beside them, however, refused to reciprocate and deliberately looked away.

He could not understand why his grandfather insisted on making his outstanding older brother marry this nouveau riche family's delinquent son.

Their entire family was baffled by that question.

But the former head of the Gu Family, Gu Shang's grandfather, had grown increasingly frail with age. No matter how many precious medicinal ingredients he took or how many renowned doctors from China and abroad he consulted, his condition showed no sign of improvement.

Moreover, family bonds ran thin in the Gu Family. Members of both the main and collateral branches were eyeing its vast fortune, just waiting for the old man to pass away so they could swarm in like flies scenting blood.

In such a chilling situation, only Gu Shang's immediate family had not given up on finding renowned doctors for the old man and caring for him.

As the old man's physical and mental condition grew steadily worse, one day, Old Master Gu Xuan suddenly invited a supposedly highly virtuous Taoist priest to the main residence, then sent everyone else out. After the priest emerged from the residence, Old Master Gu abruptly declared that Gu Shang was to marry into the Ji Family.

Everyone present was stunned. They did not even know which Ji Family Old Master Gu meant.

And so the matter was settled, just like that, hastily and mysteriously.

Gu Shang had never cared much about his own marriage.

To him, marriage was merely a matter of keeping up appearances. He did not care who occupied the position of his spouse; he would never fall in love with anyone anyway.

Since this marriage would fulfill his grandfather's wish, Gu Shang agreed.

The hand he held was a size smaller than his own, its skin smooth and delicate, quite unlike his. Gu Shang courteously led him into the venue according to the proceedings, his manners and bearing beyond reproach, while his eyes held nothing but indifference.

Yet at some point, the boy beside him had begun to frown, apparently troubled by something.

Of course Ji Mingzhu was troubled!

He was troubled because he had addressed every member of his husband's family, yet had not addressed his husband himself. What was that about?

Since the boy was, after all, his spouse in name, Gu Shang patiently asked, "What's wrong?"

Hearing him, Ji Mingzhu looked up.

A faint blush tinged the corners of the boy's eyes, making him look a little bashful. "N-nothing..."

How could he possibly say those shameless thoughts out loud? Boohoo...