Married with the Silent Wolf

Chapter 4： Marry — Just One Word

“B*st*rd!” The old man threw the lid of his teacup straight at the third son. The third son dodged quickly, and the lid shattered on the floor, missing a small corner.

The eldest and second sons suppressed their laughter. They clearly knew that no matter how bad Ling Lie was, no matter that he was disabled, he was still the child of the old man’s beloved woman. For years, Ling Lie’s disability had been a taboo in the family—no one dared to speak of it!

But what use was that? A person with a disability is a person with a disability. No matter if he wore a dragon robe, he would never be the heir apparent!

“Dad, I’m sorry, I just—” The third son wanted to explain but was cut down by the old man’s cold glare and dared not speak further.

Seeing the tense atmosphere, Zeng Qian suddenly smiled sweetly and snuggled into the old man’s arms, cooing, “Husband, you scared the third son so much he can’t even speak properly. I heard that when you met Mr. Mu in your office earlier today, you were planning to help Little Fourth find a good marriage, right?”

Everyone was stunned for a moment but quickly relaxed. Though Ling Lie had moved out to live on his own, the old man always sent the best things to his city home. He proudly said, “Little Fourth has suffered more than anyone else. It’s only right to compensate him materially.”

The other sons secretly felt jealous but reminded themselves that Ling Lie was already an outcast, and he had no share in the family inheritance battle. Whatever the old man gave him was only temporary; that made them feel a bit better.

The old man’s anger subsided under his young wife’s coaxing. He took Zeng Qian’s delicate hand in his own slightly withered palm, playing with it casually but keeping his eyes locked on Ling Lie.“Little Fourth, what do you think?”

Ling Lie’s expression was indifferent, but he understood very well: the old man was openly trying to help him find a good marriage, worried that his disability would make it impossible. In truth, the old man had given up on inheriting the family’s headship and wanted to sacrifice his marriage to benefit the family.

He thought back to the sudden kiss on the dam in Qingcheng six months ago. He remembered the bright, clear eyes on the ring road just now. He recalled the little white figure drenched by the rain.

He began to ponder deeply.

The eldest son saw him silent and meaningfully said, “I guess Little Fourth is afraid of hurting the girl.”

No one knew how the old man had managed to leverage the marriage of an eighteen-year-old only daughter. No one knew how much benefit the old man expected from this business alliance. But the rapid rise of the Mu family in M City in the past two years was obvious to all in business circles.

So marrying the Mu family’s daughter was no hot potato at all. It was clearly a way to bring benefits to the family, win the old man’s favor, and gain a powerful and capable wife!

The second son lowered his long lashes and smiled faintly at the old man. “Dad, because I’ve been divorced, I treat marriage more seriously. "I hear girls these days like experienced men—that’s called an ‘uncle and lolita’ pairing.”

“Pfft!” The third son burst out laughing and interrupted. “‘Uncle and Lolita’ has its limits, though. "Brother, with your age next to Mu’s daughter, people might think she’s your illegitimate child from some reckless youth.”

“Heh, if she’s not marrying me, is she marrying you? You’re single, sure, but the Mu family isn’t blind. "With you always appearing in the tabloids—yesterday with a supermodel, today with another celebrity—how could they trust you with their only daughter?”

“You’re an old bull chasing a young grass. Aren’t you afraid you’ll choke on it? Once I marry, I’ll be a reformed prodigal—worth more than gold!”

“Who do you think you’re fooling with that talk? " "Do you think I’m one of those brainless women you fool around with?”

“That’s enough!” The old man frowned and sharply commanded, and the hall instantly fell silent. Softening his gaze, he looked at Ling Lie and repeated the question, “Little Fourth, what do you think?”

Ling Lie closed his eyes. After the earlier discussion, he had already understood the old man’s insistence on him marrying Mu Tianxing: because he was disabled, even if he married a wealthy wife, he wouldn’t be a threat to the old man’s position as head of the family.

But if one of the other sons married Mu Tianxing, the old man might lose control.

Like the eldest son’s wife, whose family was just an ordinary teaching family, the second son’s wife came from a business alliance, with considerable family power, yet the old man ruthlessly forced their divorce after benefiting from it, stripping the second son of leverage; the third son was a notorious womanizer with countless scandals, yet the old man turned a blind eye.

The old man cared too much about power, and his suspicion was too heavy!

A man who was so guarded even against his own sons—how could he expect their love and respect?

At least, Ling Lie wouldn’t give him either. Not a single expression or glance would spare him!

Everyone was waiting for Ling Lie’s answer. The eldest son said leisurely, “A person must know their limits. "Some mountains aren’t meant to be climbed just because you want to.”

The implication was clear: Ling Lie should recognize his true worth and not overestimate himself.

The third son, surprisingly, didn’t argue with the eldest. Instead, he chuckled lowly, full of mockery.

At that moment, Ling Lie slowly opened his eyes. The pen in his hand began to move deftly across the pristine paper.

He tore off the page, waved at Zhuo Xi, who understood and came forward, pushing Ling Lie out of the Ling family mansion.

Throughout the whole process, Ling Lie didn’t look at anyone once.

As he turned to leave, several heads leaned forward to look closely at the paper he’d left on the tea table.

There was still only one word—“Marry.”

“Marry?” The third son’s eyes widened in disbelief, frustratedly shouting, “He actually said he'd marry? Does he even think about why he has the right?”

But the old man chuckled, clearly in a good mood.

Supported by Zeng Qian, he slowly stood up and seriously told her, “Come with me to the storage room and pick out some things to send as betrothal gifts to the Mu family. That girl is still at university—this Saturday, invite her here for dinner. I’ll call Little Fourth too, so they can get to know each other better.”

Zeng Qian smiled and nodded, “I don’t know much about the collectibles, but I can go to the jewelry store and prepare some sets of jewelry for betrothal gifts. I just happened to have an appointment to play cards with Mrs. Mu yesterday. Leave the arrangements for Miss Mu to me.”