Volume One, Chapter Six: Call Me Husband

Some people date for ten years and never make it to the wedding hall. Others meet just a handful of times, only to find their names and photos side by side in the same little red book.

At ten in the morning, Jiang Ning stood at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau, flipping through her freshly issued, still-warm marriage certificate.

In the photo, the man was handsome and the woman beautiful—a perfect match. Only their outfits were less than ideal: one in a black dress, the other in black clothes, as if they’d just come from a funeral and decided to get married on the way back.

Jiang Ning couldn’t help but grin foolishly at the certificate.

Marriage, after all, was a joyous occasion.

She was a practical person, and her perspective was unfailingly optimistic. Compared to someone like Du Chenghong, a gentleman on the surface but rotten beneath, Lu Cheng was far superior.

At the very least, he knew enough to rescue stray animals. Admittedly, she’d paid the price for his compassion, but the kindness was genuine.

Jiang Ning took a photo and posted it to her social media, visible only to her family group and Han Fang.

Anticipating the coming storm, she promptly set her phone to silent.

Tucking the certificate away, Jiang Ning walked over to Lu Cheng.

She stopped at a polite distance, extended her hand, her pretty eyes narrowing slightly, charm in every gesture and smile. “Hello, comrade-in-arms.”

Lu Cheng regarded her with amusement. The moment he gripped her hand, he pulled her closer. “Call me husband.”

Jiang Ning shot him a sidelong glance. Though she was petite, her presence was unmistakable. She snorted softly, withdrew her hand, and said, “Shall we find a place to sit and talk?”

Since they were allies now, it was only right to have a basic understanding of one another. There were also some details to clarify—better to set things straight now and avoid entanglements later.

Lu Cheng said, “Aren’t you supposed to get your injection?”

Her memory jogged by his reminder, Jiang Ning exclaimed, “Oh, right, I nearly forgot… Let’s go together—we can talk on the way.”

The hospital was about a kilometer from the Civil Affairs Bureau. The weather was fine, the autumn sun warm on their backs.

Jiang Ning broke the silence first. “You run an adult store?”

Lu Cheng turned to her. “What, do you look down on my profession?”

Jiang Ning’s lips said, “All trades are noble,” but her expression clearly read, “Of all the things to sell, why this?”—her duplicity plain as day.

Lu Cheng raised an eyebrow. “So, you’re suggesting I change careers?”

“I’m not that presumptuous,” Jiang Ning replied. “If anyone asks in the future, I’ll just say you run a small business.”

“And if they press further? What kind of business would you say?”

Jiang Ning slung her bag over her shoulder, arms crossed, genuinely pondering the question. After about half a minute, she answered, “The entertainment industry.”

After all, the items sold in an adult store were meant to bring pleasure—whether to others, oneself, or both. Why shouldn’t that count as entertainment?

Lu Cheng had never heard it put that way before and couldn’t help but laugh aloud. “Miss Jiang, your insight is admirable.”

Jiang Ning’s expression remained cool as she turned to look at him, her tone resolute. “But that isn’t your store, is it?”

With his demeanor, she could believe he was some idle scion from a wealthy family, but a small shop owner? Not likely. Even if the adult store belonged to him, it couldn’t be his main source of income. His clothes, unbranded but unmistakably high-quality, were tailored to fit—perhaps even custom-made.

Perhaps the adult store was just a hobby.

The thought made her gaze turn meaningful. What a unique hobby!

Lu Cheng wasn’t a mind reader, but he could tell her thoughts weren’t anything good.

He cleared his throat and steered the conversation back to business. “So you’ve seen through me… That’s right, the store isn’t mine. You saw that day—the register was broken, so I was just helping a friend.”

Jiang Ning arched a brow. “A friend?”

Her tone was full of implication—what kind of person is friends with the owner of an adult store?

Lu Cheng rubbed his forehead with a wry smile, silently wishing he could wring someone’s neck.

They walked on, exchanging brief details about themselves. The atmosphere was easy, and to passersby, they looked for all the world like a perfect couple.

At the hospital, Jiang Ning went straight to outpatient for her shot.

Rabies vaccines stung far more than ordinary injections. When she came out, her face was twisted in pain, fine eyes shimmering with tears, her arm stiff from the jab.

“That damned dog—next time I see it, I’ll have it braised!”

Lu Cheng steadied her gently. “You eat dog meat?”

“No,” Jiang Ning answered at once.

She’d kept dogs before—how could she eat their meat?

Lu Cheng exhaled in relief. “That’s good to know.”

Jiang Ning glanced at him.

He smiled, his strong features softened. “Oh, I forgot to tell you. Its name isn’t Damned Dog—it’s Clumsy. Isn’t that cute?”

Clumsy by nature—Clumsy it was.

Only then did Jiang Ning recall that he’d taken the dog in. She ground her teeth audibly, her smile forced. “Charming name.”

She started toward the exit but stopped abruptly outside the doctor’s office.

Lu Cheng asked, “What is it?”

Jiang Ning’s eyes were blank. “I bit someone yesterday. What if I’m showing symptoms?”

It had been self-defense, but she’d never imagined she’d bite someone. Could it be…?

Seeing her anxiety, Lu Cheng went straight to the doctor’s office and knocked.

As expected, it was a false alarm, but the doctor advised her to relax and let off steam—bottling up negative emotions was unhealthy.

Repressed anger could lead to illness, and if it boiled over, the consequences could be severe.

At the end, Jiang Ning admitted she’d been feeling irritable and asked the doctor for something to cool her temper.

She meant psychological fire, but the doctor took it literally. Seeing no clinical symptoms, he prescribed two bottles of honeysuckle herbal tea—thick glass bottles, heavy in her bag.

Jiang Ning took the doctor’s advice to heart.

Ten minutes later, when she ran into Cao Huixian at the hospital entrance, she followed the instructions to the letter.

Cao Huixian was there to visit Du Chenghong.

Jiang Ning’s bite had been vicious—his wound was bruised, swollen, and broken. The human mouth harbors as many harmful bacteria as a dog’s, so Du Chenghong had also been given the full course of rabies shots.

Technically, he could have left after the injection and wound care, but to make the incident seem more serious, he’d insisted on being admitted.

Cao Huixian came to see him. Du Chenghong seized the chance to posture, slashing the promised bride price from the auspicious “seven sixes” to an even five million.

Before she could feel too pained by the hundred thousand plus loss, she received a call from her husband, Jiang Zhaoyuan, saying the Du family’s joint project with the Jiang family had been shelved. The contract, meant to be signed today, had fallen through, and he’d given her an earful over the phone.

Caught between both sides, Cao Huixian was fuming. Spotting Jiang Ning waiting for a ride outside the hospital, she walked straight over and slapped her hard across the face.

“You jinx! Are you trying to destroy us?”

The entrance was crowded, and the sudden commotion drew every eye.

The slap was heavy; Jiang Ning’s fair skin quickly bloomed with a red handprint.

It happened so fast that Lu Cheng was a beat slow to react. His gaze turned sharp as he strode forward, shielding Jiang Ning behind him. “What kind of madwoman are you?”

Cao Huixian’s voice rose, her eyes red with anger. “Oh, so now you’ve found yourself a lover?”