LRAPTC Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Wedding (3)

The next day, Shen Jue was awakened by his biological clock. Although he had cleaned up the roses for a long time last night, the bed was surprisingly comfortable. It took him a while to realize where he was now, and he finally got out of bed slowly.

He was indifferent to the decorations scattered everywhere, but he couldn’t deliberately ignore the fact that he had married a person of the same gender.

Actually, it didn’t make much difference who he married. For Shen Jue, he never had any expectations for love. Since he was a child, he had seen the appearance of love in his parents’ relationship: not beautiful, and nothing special.

Shen Hong and Li Ying didn’t spend their days immersed in quarrels. Arguing would make people hysterical and ugly. Li Ying wouldn’t allow herself to have such an expression. She wanted to always appear calm and collected. More than lovers, they might not even be considered friends; “familiar strangers” would be a more apt description. Shen Jue couldn’t imagine what it would be like for two people who resented each other to live under the same roof all day long, probably feeling like they were separated by the greatest distance even when they were in the same small room.

Li Ying only lost her composure in front of Shen Hong once. Shen Wei peeked out through the crack in the door, Shen Jue covered his eyes with one hand and closed the door with the other. They were arguing so intensely that the thin door couldn’t block out the loud noise. Li Ying smashed all the porcelain in the room. The porcelain made a series of crisp sounds as it hit the smooth floor. Shen Wei trembled slightly, so Shen Jue had to hug him tightly and cover his ears with his hands.

The broken porcelain shards were quickly cleaned up by the servants. By the time Shen Jue and Shen Wei came out, they were nowhere to be seen. Except for the missing porcelain, everything else was the same as before, as if no quarrel had ever taken place here.

The room was empty. Shen Jue and Shen Wei stood in the middle of the living room, feeling lost.

A waiter knocked on the door to deliver breakfast. Shen Jue took it and thanked him. He propped his head up with his hand, looking at the breakfast for two, and sighed.

The major apps on his phone were automatically pushing news reports about yesterday’s wedding to him. The headlines were ridiculously exaggerated. Shen Jue casually clicked on one, and at the beginning of the main text, a photo of the wedding scene was posted: Ji Yuanan and Shen Jue, wearing black and white suits respectively, stood in the center. The genius in the media’s eyes rarely showed a hint of a smile, which made Shen Jue’s expression next to him seem indifferent.

Looking at it this way, it really seemed like they were incompatible. Shen Jue had difficulties to express. Although they indeed had no feelings for each other, it wasn’t to the point of incompatibility. Moreover, he was basically smiling for the second half of the ceremony.

The author obviously realized this, so the article didn’t include any more photos, but instead focused on emphasizing Shen Jue’s hesitation during the vows, trying to prove that they were indeed emotionally incompatible. In Shen Jue’s opinion, this was a bit of a fuss, but he couldn’t argue with it.

There was nothing interesting in the comments section. Shen Jue swallowed the last bite of his sandwich. Ji Yuanan finally pushed the door open and came in. Shen Jue heard the sound and turned to look at him.

Ji Yuanan was still wearing yesterday’s clothes. The cuffs of his sleeves were rolled up. Shen Jue guessed that he didn’t sleep well last night. Even with makeup to cover it up, he still looked a little tired.

For a moment, Shen Jue didn’t know whether to say hello first or apologize first. However, Ji Yuanan nodded to him and then walked towards the bathroom. As he passed Shen Jue, Shen Jue smelled a strong smell of alcohol. After a while, the sound of running water came from the bathroom. Shen Jue called the front desk to send some hangover soup.

When Ji Yuanan appeared again, he had changed into clothes similar to Shen Jue’s. Without hairspray to hold it in place, his hair hung down softly. He lowered his head and drank the hangover soup. Shen Jue sat across from him and sincerely apologized, “I’m very sorry about yesterday.”

As if he had heard something shocking, Ji Yuanan raised his head with a confused expression. He said, “Shen Jue, you don’t need to apologize.”

He still should. Shen Jue felt even more guilty. He continued, “Don’t worry, I will cooperate with you in public in the future.”

Ji Yuanan’s expression didn’t improve as a result, and even became worse. Shen Jue guaranteed, “In the future, you can treat me like a roommate…” He didn’t finish speaking before Ji Yuanan interrupted him. Ji Yuanan asked him word by word, “A roommate?”

He didn’t know where Ji Yuanan’s inexplicable anger came from, but he still answered honestly, “Yes.”

Ji Yuanan forced a smile and said softly, “If that’s what you think.”

Shen Jue also smiled. He used to use this trick to pretend to be well-behaved, and it was very effective. “If you have someone you like in the future, I can immediately dissolve the marriage relationship with you.” He thought he had considered everything very carefully, but Ji Yuanan didn’t agree until a while later. Shen Jue was very satisfied with the conversation. Although Ji Yuanan seemed to have some misunderstandings about him in the middle, and he didn’t use many of the lines he had prepared last night, he still managed to convey his thoughts in the end. He got up, not wanting to disturb Ji Yuanan’s meal any longer.

“Do you need my help with moving?” Ji Yuanan suddenly asked him.

Oh, he almost forgot that he still had to move his things over, Shen Jue thought blankly. He originally didn’t plan to move over so soon, but now that Ji Yuanan had brought it up first, he couldn’t delay any longer, so he replied, “No need, I’ve already called a moving company to help.”

Actually, he hadn’t. Shen Jue smiled with forced calmness, and decided to contact the moving company later and start moving in the afternoon.

There weren’t many things that needed to be moved. Shen Wei found a place to sit in the living room and watched Shen Jue lie on the cardboard box, sealing it with transparent tape. He watched Shen Jue busy, feeling a little reluctant, and whispered, “Brother, are you really moving out so soon?”

Shen Jue smiled when he heard this. He stopped working, walked over, rubbed Shen Wei’s head, and comforted him, “It’s good to move over sooner, you can still come to see me in the future.”

“Brother, if Ji Yuanan bullies you, tell me.” Shen Wei paused for a moment, “I’ll help you bully him back.”

“Then I’ll thank you in advance.”

Shen Jue wasn’t worried about such a thing happening. After a few interactions, Shen Jue believed that Ji Yuanan was completely different from the person portrayed by the media. Ji Yuanan was neither cold nor unkind.

Ji Yuanan stood on the stairs and looked down. Shen Jue pulled a black suitcase and stood at the entrance of the stairs, asking, “Where do I live?” Ji Yuanan led Shen Jue to the room. The room had been cleaned and was neat and tidy. Shen Jue thought that he and Ji Yuanan did indeed seem like two roommates.

They sat together for dinner. After dinner, Shen Jue returned to his room to type his resignation letter. After sending it, he used the memo to write down the things he needed to pay attention to at work, just in case.

The next morning, Shen Jue stepped into the company’s door. The subordinates were all surprised. Zeng Qi looked very sad and complained, “Boss, why didn’t you tell us you were getting married?”

Shen Jue was helpless. His situation with Ji Yuanan was a bit complicated, so he didn’t tell too many people, only told his closer friends the ins and outs of the matter. He had to sincerely apologize, “Sorry, I didn’t want too many people to know.”

Zeng Qi didn’t mind very much and waved her hand, “But I really didn’t expect that you would marry Ji Yuanan. If I hadn’t seen the photos online, I wouldn’t have believed it was true.”

…Actually, I didn’t expect it either, Shen Jue silently replied.

“Ah!” Zeng Qi seemed to have discovered a new continent. She stared at Shen Jue’s hand and exclaimed, “Is this a wedding ring? Oh my god! I really believe you’re married now.” She was still chattering.

Shen Jue looked at the ring on his hand. He hadn’t taken it off since he put it on at the wedding. He didn’t speak, which was considered a tacit consent. After a few seconds, he remembered the purpose of coming to the company today and walked towards his workstation.

“But, Boss, shouldn’t you be on vacation now? After getting married, shouldn’t you go on a honeymoon or something… Why are you back so soon?” Zeng Qi was a little confused.

Shen Jue began to organize the items on the table and explained, “I resigned. I’m here to pack my things today.” He said it casually, as if he was just stating a very ordinary thing, but it made everyone present stop what they were doing.

Zeng Qi was obviously stunned for a few seconds. She struggled to digest the facts revealed in Shen Jue’s words, and after a long while, she forced a smile and asked with a hint of hope, “Boss, are you kidding us?” Her voice gradually weakened, “Can you not make this kind of joke… It’s not funny at all.”

Shen Jue had long anticipated this scene, but he didn’t expect everyone to have such a big reaction. But he still had to explain, “Zeng Qi.” This was the first time he had called Zeng Qi’s name today. “I summarized a set of experiences last night and will send it to your email later. Remember to receive it.” Shen Jue looked up at her and smiled, “Your ability is outstanding. I hope you can reach a higher position.”

It would be a lie to say that he wasn’t reluctant. Shen Jue held the cardboard box and stood at the intersection, recalling the first day he met Zeng Qi.

Zeng Qi wore two braids, frameless glasses without prescription, didn’t like to talk much, and looked very shy. Shen Jue could often see Shen Wei’s shadow on her. It wasn’t until later, after working together for a period of time, that Shen Jue realized that she just needed time to adapt. In less than a few days, she successfully blended in with everyone, and her relationship with Shen Jue was particularly good.

But Shen Jue wasn’t sad. This job was just a job for him. He didn’t love his job like some people did. He just needed to do his best within his ability.

Shen Jue suddenly wondered what his mother would think if she knew he had resigned. Maybe she wouldn’t think anything at all, after all, she had long been disappointed in Shen Jue. After leaving his father’s company, Shen Jue felt that his relationship with his family had become even more distant. Once again, he couldn’t find his place.

The taxi arrived. Shen Jue got in and put the box aside. The car started slowly, and the scenery on both sides of the street receded. The trees kept flashing past his eyes. Shen Jue opened the cardboard box. Various office supplies were neatly arranged and categorized. In fact, everyone quickly recovered and helped him pack his things.

Shen Jue slowly closed the box, got out of the car, and slowly walked towards his new home that he had just moved into not long ago. He stopped at the door and said softly, “I’m back.”