Rebirth: Marriage into a Powerful Family

Chapter 6

After finishing her words, Yousijia felt she had eaten her fill. She set down her chopsticks with quiet obedience and remained seated, listening as her parents hastily glossed over the matter she had just stirred.

Her expression betrayed no awareness that she had, in an unguarded moment, ignited a revelation of considerable weight. Outwardly, she appeared as calm and ordinary as ever.

At the table, she drank two bowls of soup and, afterward, a sweet dessert broth. A faint discomfort stirred in her stomach, prompting her to rise and excuse herself to the washroom.

The restaurant, known for its refined private cuisine, was elegantly appointed. Even the restroom carried an air of hushed sophistication, with corridors winding like secluded garden paths.

When she emerged, she caught sight of a figure standing beside a small bamboo grove. He wore a loose, striped shirt with short sleeves, paired with simple trousers, lending him a look of natural ease.

“Jiajia.” Upon seeing her, Gu Yu extinguished the cigarette in his hand. “Shall we talk?”

This—this scene had never existed in her past life.

Suppressing a sigh, Yousijia followed him into the lounge.

“Jiajia, do you have some complaint against me?” he asked bluntly once they were seated.

She shook her head. “Of course not,” she replied with natural ease.

“Then tonight…” He frowned. Truthfully, he bore little opinion on the matter of their two families’ alliance. Yousijia had been his shadow since childhood—always trailing after him, never far. Though he had scarcely considered her seriously, he had to admit she was, objectively, the most suitable partner.

“Wasn’t tonight arranged as your welcome banquet?” Yousijia interjected, unwilling to hear him utter the words “marriage alliance.” She had no desire to listen to such talk now. “Is there a problem?”

Gu Yu fell silent. He studied the earnestness in her delicate face, words circling his lips before sinking back unspoken.

“It’s nothing,” he said at last. “I only wondered how you heard such gossip—that I have a girlfriend.”

“Is it not true?” she countered. “Back in your undergraduate years, you even brought her to Nancheng.”

Realizing she spoke of Tang Yayi, Gu Yu gave a terse explanation. “That ended long ago.”

Though recently he and Tang had exchanged the occasional message, there was no possibility of rekindled affection.

Yousijia smiled faintly. “That hardly matters. Now that you’ve returned home, perhaps fate will give you a second chance.”

“…”

Before he could protest further, she rose gracefully. “I should return to the private room. I promised my sister we’d visit the night market later.”

The promise to Yu Kuiqing was, of course, a fabrication. The desire to leave was real.

Her steps were light as she departed, her spirits lifted by the memory of Gu Yu’s frustrated expression. Her heart seemed buoyant, lighter even than her pace.

At a corner, head bent to message her sister—reminding her to align their excuses—she failed to notice the man approaching from the opposite side.

A sharp gasp escaped her as she collided headlong into a firm chest.

In that instant, her senses were wrapped in a clean, resinous fragrance—pine needles mingled with the faint bitterness of tree sap. It was no cloying scent, but sharp, bracing, almost intoxicating.

Just as she cursed herself for such reckless clumsiness, a strong hand pressed gently against her shoulder, steadying her and pulling her back from the stranger’s embrace.

“Careful.”

The voice above her was low and deep.

Blinking, she touched her reddened forehead. “My apologies.”

Lifting her gaze, she found herself facing a face strikingly cold and severe. The man could not be much older than she, yet the gravity of his composure—calm, assured, unshakable—was not something possessed by ordinary men.

The brief encounter left little mark on her thoughts. Soon she returned to the private room, and not long after, she and Yu Kuiqing made their escape, brushing past Gu Yu as he reentered.

Meanwhile, across the hall in another private room, the man she had collided with now reclined on a sofa. His hands were bare of trinkets—no beads, no ostentatious rings—only a single wristwatch. Its old-fashioned metal band gleamed faintly; its dial was black, unadorned, without a trace of gaudy embellishment.

“President Meng, here is the schedule for tomorrow’s exhibition in Haishi.”

The room held only two men: the tall figure in a charcoal suit, and his secretary, a young man in glasses with hair slicked back, who held out a tablet.

Sang Qi did not truly understand why his employer insisted on making this sudden trip to Nancheng. Though the Meng family of Beijing guarded their intentions tightly, Sang Qi—privy as the president’s closest aide—had heard whispers of a possible alliance with the Yu family.

He even knew that, not long ago, news suggested the Yu family leaned toward Nancheng’s Gu household instead. Yet, despite the ongoing summit and his relentless schedule, Meng Weiyuan had still carved out time to fly south.

Glancing briefly at the tablet, Meng Weiyuan set it aside. His day had been relentless—meetings at headquarters in the morning, a press conference in Haishi by afternoon, and now, an evening flight to Nancheng for the sole purpose of seeing Yu Side.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he closed his eyes. “Did you track down those illustrated volumes I asked for?”

Sang Qi hesitated. The works his employer had requested were first editions by a domestic comic artist—famed for fiery, passionate drawings. After some searching, he had finally found a seller.

“They’ve been purchased and shipped. They should arrive at the office tomorrow.”

Meng Weiyuan gave a short nod. “Good.”

Curiosity gnawed at the secretary. He had followed Meng closely since his entry into the company, yet never had he seen him so particular.

“Are these perhaps for a younger relative?” Sang Qi asked cautiously, baffled—his employer had never shown such indulgence toward any child in the family.

“No.” Meng’s voice was steady, almost indifferent. “The eldest daughter of Chairman Yu is fond of them.”

Sang Qi nearly dropped his tablet. Since when did his boss concern himself with Miss Yu’s personal preferences to such detail?

Meng Weiyuan, however, seemed to consider it no extraordinary act. A marriage alliance required sincerity. If she were to wed into Beijing, leaving her family to join his, was it not natural to take the time to learn her heart?