Chapter 242: Marriage Certificate, Contract of Sale
Halfway through reading, Lian Li’s eyes misted over, her vision blurring.
By the end, her eyes were full of tears, which overflowed continuously, streaming down her fair cheeks.
Large tears dripped onto the letter, soaking the character ‘I’ in ‘I will come for you.’ Her vision unclear, she blinked her eyelashes, and tears like crystal-clear pearls rolled down uncontrollably.
Jin Shi Yue emerged from the study and strolled back to the bedroom, only to find his girlfriend sobbing uncontrollably at the dressing table.
He strode forward and, upon seeing what she held, immediately understood.
As soon as she saw Jin Shi Yue, Lian Li’s eyes welled up with tears, and she looked at him with a choked throat.
She opened her mouth, but before she could utter a sound, Jin Shi Yue clasped her waist and easily lifted her onto the dressing table.
“Don’t cry anymore,” he gently wiped her tears with a handkerchief. “I didn’t tell you those things to make you cry.”
Lian Li’s tear ducts finally ceased their work.
Her eyes still held moisture, and she stared intently at Jin Shi Yue for three seconds before wrapping her arms around his neck and saying with a trembling voice, “What would you do without me?”
Jin Shi Yue gently patted Lian Li’s back to comfort her. Hearing her words, a hint of a smile flickered in his dark eyes.
“Yes, what would I do without you?”
It wasn’t until she saw the contents of the love letter that Lian Li understood what she was truly worried about.
Jin Shi Yue often couldn’t sleep well because of Song Xiao’s death. If she wasn’t there, he wouldn’t be able to sleep, so what then? With insufficient sleep, and his naturally wild nature, what if he had an accident due to poor mental state?
Lian Li never thought she held a particularly important place in anyone’s heart, but Jin Shi Yue always made her feel as though she was incredibly important to him.
Lian Li was accustomed to being alone and had never been so intimate with anyone, which often left her confused and troubled.
She had an inseparable blood relation with Lian Jingcheng and Ji Tan, so having a bond was normal.
However, she and Jin Shi Yue were not related by blood.
They were two completely independent individuals, yet they possessed an unbreakable bond.
Lian Li buried her face in Jin Shi Yue’s shoulder, on the verge of tears again.
Jin Shi Yue’s large hand gripped the back of her neck, pulling her slightly away from him as if he were lifting a small lion.
He gazed at Lian Li’s red eyes, his heart sinking, feeling incredibly soft.
“Have you finished showering?” he asked in a gentle voice.
Lian Li sniffled and nodded, “Mm.”
Jin Shi Yue’s gaze, which had been on her almond eyes, moved upward to the white hair towel wrapped around her head. He reached up, untied the towel, and casually tossed it onto a nearby chair.
He stood before the dressing table, holding the hair dryer in one hand, his eyelids drooping, and slowly began to dry her hair.
The roar of the hair dryer wasn’t too loud. Lian Li watched the man’s focused expression, remaining silent, gazing at him intently, enjoying his care.
Jin Shi Yue lifted her wet, long hair with one hand, brought it to his nose to sniff, and then used her hair ends to tickle her cheek.
Lian Li felt a tickle and dodged to the side, “Stop tickling me.”
Jin Shi Yue chuckled softly, lowered his head to sniff her collar, his breath brushing against her exposed neck. His short hair grazed her sensitive skin, making her feel even more ticklish, and Lian Li couldn’t help but laugh out loud, “Stop rubbing, it tickles so much…”
Jin Shi Yue temporarily let go of her. His long-fingered hand ran through her soft hair to check its dryness. Once it was mostly dry, he turned off the hair dryer and placed it on the dressing table.
Lian Li turned her head and picked up the love letter, wanting to read it again. Before she could finish the first line, Jin Shi Yue snatched it away mercilessly.
“Read it again tomorrow.”
He cupped her waist and lifted her up. As he turned to walk out the door, his large hand grabbed the velvet small square box from the table.
“Where are you taking me?” Lian Li, resting on his broad shoulder, felt lost and bewildered, as if she had fallen into a dense fog.
“The study.”
“What are we going to the study for?” Lian Li asked, confused.
“To sign,” Jin Shi Yue replied concisely.
Sign?
Sign what?
Lian Li was led into the study in a daze. The room was brightly lit, luxuriously decorated, with a cool-toned style that exuded the owner’s cold and ruthless nature.
On the square table, writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone were prepared, along with the documents the man had just received that day.
On the desk was a calligraphy and painting with red background and gold lettering. Lian Li couldn’t clearly make out the content.
She stood before the table and, under the light of the white incandescent lamp, clearly saw the characters. The calligraphy was in regular script, each character beautifully executed.
【Two families, united in marriage, a contract signed in one hall;
May your union be eternal, a perfect match.
Behold this day, like blooming peach blossoms, auspicious for home and family;
May future generations flourish like a vine, your prosperity and brilliance ever-growing.
With this vow of a lifetime, we inscribe it on this parchment, to record our red leaf pledge in the registry of lovebirds.
Witnessed by this.
Groom:
Bride:
Witness: Mei Zhijing 】
Mei Zhijing was Elder Mei’s name.
These three characters were clearly not written by the same person as the others.
The three characters “Mei Zhijing” were personally written by Elder Mei, while the rest were in Jin Shi Yue’s handwriting.
Lian Li stared blankly for a few seconds, then looked from the Groom and Bride on the far right to the left, where the words ‘Marriage Certificate’ were prominently displayed in large characters.
She suddenly remembered the dark blue square box that had been weighing down the love letter.
Her eyelids suddenly lifted, and she sharply turned to look at Jin Shi Yue.
Jin Shi Yue sat on a chair, pulled her onto his lap, and placed the velvet box he had retrieved into her hands.
In front of Lian Li was the expensive desk, and behind her was the man’s chest. She lowered her gaze to the square box, her heart pounding, and asked directly, “Are you proposing to me?”
“Would my proposal be this simple?” Jin Shi Yue retorted, but his fingertip flicked open the exquisite box, revealing a dazzling diamond ring.
Flowers, a love letter, a marriage certificate, a ring.
If not a proposal, then what?
Jin Shi Yue held Lian Li’s hand in one of his and picked up the ring with the other, placing it on her clean, fair middle finger.
Not the ring finger, not a wedding ring.
Lian Li asked, “If the ring is a gift, then what is that marriage certificate?”
“A deed of sale.”
Jin Shi Yue turned her back towards him, looked down at the words on the red paper on the desk, and whispered seductively, “Once you sign the contract, I’ll be yours, and you won’t have to worry about me running away. Junior Sister, will you sign?”
Lian Li understood his intention. After reading the marriage certificate three times, she made her decision: “I’ll sign!”
Jin Shi Yue smiled upon hearing this.
His breath brushed past her ear, like a faint electric current coursing through her, causing Lian Li’s body to tingle.
From behind her, Jin Shi Yue took her hand, guided it to hold the brush pen, dipped it in ink with a golden sheen, and slowly scraped ink along the inkstone.
He wanted to sign his name with her on this marriage certificate.
Lian Li felt inexplicably nervous. She slightly turned her head, her vision falling on the man’s clear, resolute jawline. His neck was long and slender, with a sharp, prominent Adam’s apple that was quite attractive.
The hand that enveloped hers squeezed gently, urging her to be serious.
Lian Li turned back and, under Jin Shi Yue’s hands-on guidance, personally witnessed two names appear in the Groom and Bride sections.
【Groom: Jin Shi Yue
Bride: Lian Li 】
The ink dried.
Jin Shi Yue rested his chin on Lian Li’s left shoulder, tilted his head slightly, and gently bit her earlobe, his voice a seductive whisper, “After the wedding, it’s time for the bridal chamber.”
Lian Li, who was admiring the marriage certificate, heard him and turned to look at him, “Isn’t it a deed of sale?”
The content of the marriage certificate is excerpted from the 《old marriage certificate》 published by China Archives Publishing House.
