"Don't Mess with My Billionaire Husband"

Chapter Three: Our Marriage

An Zhisu had no intention of hiding the truth, so she spoke frankly: “The An Zhisu sitting before you is no longer the young lady of the An family. I now have nothing—no money, no connections, no support. You, Ye Lancheng, have everything. Therefore, I need to use the status of your fiancée to get back what I want.”

The raw honesty from An Zhisu’s lips brought a hint of complexity to Ye Lancheng’s usually expressionless face, his eyebrows furrowing slightly.

If he remembered correctly, An Zhisu was once the pampered daughter of the An family, surrounded by wealth and affection. In just fifteen years, how had she fallen so low? What had happened to her?

“You don’t need to worry about me being unwilling to end the engagement later. The agreement is clear: after one year, you can propose to dissolve the engagement. Just give me one year, and I won’t continue to occupy the position of your fiancée,” An Zhisu added, seeing his silence.

Ye Lancheng remained silent, his indifferent eyes fixed on An Zhisu. This girl was completely different from the one he remembered. He didn’t know what she was like as a child, but it was clear she wasn’t like this now.

Her gaze betrayed a barely perceptible helplessness, and her look at him carried a hope for salvation she might not even recognize herself. It gave Ye Lancheng the illusion that if he refused her, she would truly have nowhere to turn.

As Ye Lancheng continued to stay silent, An Zhisu’s small hands clenched into fists. She had prepared a lot to say, but now, facing such a Ye Lancheng, she forgot her rehearsed lines.

Time ticked by slowly in the large president’s office, the silence palpable. In this silent standoff, An Zhisu was the first to falter. She took a deep breath and slowly stood up.

“Sorry for putting you in this difficult position.”

Although An Zhisu wanted Ye Lancheng to agree, she wasn’t one to force someone into a corner. It was clear that such a thing wasn’t something any man would easily accept.

“It’s not a difficulty.”

Ye Lancheng’s voice finally broke the prolonged silence, making An Zhisu halt her steps.

“You…” An Zhisu wasn’t sure what his words meant—whether he was agreeing or disagreeing.

Ye Lancheng lifted his hand, his long fingers tapping on the chair: “Sit.”

An Zhisu sat back down, her ears straining for Ye Lancheng’s final decision.

Ye Lancheng picked up the engagement agreement and, under her watchful eyes, fed the thick stack of pages into a shredder, slowly destroying the document.

An Zhisu’s heart sank completely, her worst fear confirmed. This was his answer.

Clenching her fists tightly, An Zhisu struggled to control her emotions. She reassured herself that it was fine; she had anticipated this outcome. If this path was blocked, she would simply find another. She had survived the mental asylum; surely she could continue to live outside?

With this self-reassurance, An Zhisu calmed down quickly, accepting the blow of failure. She stood up again and turned toward the door.

“We should get married.”

As An Zhisu’s hand touched the door handle, just about to open the heavy office door, Ye Lancheng threw out those explosive four words.

“We should get married!”

An Zhisu gasped inwardly. Ye Lancheng had rejected her proposal for a fake engagement but had now taken the initiative to propose marriage! Was she hearing things, or had Ye Lancheng lost his mind?

Considering the improbability of either scenario, especially the latter, An Zhisu turned back to Ye Lancheng once more, uncertainly asking, “A real marriage?”