Chapter 6: Chapter Four

"Cousin-sister-in-law!"

Bai Bai Ziling neither turned around nor showed any reaction; she continued walking, completely unaware that someone was calling her.

Di Di Zhiwei was absolutely certain he had not mistaken her identity; although she wore a miniskirt, a T-shirt, and a pair of trendy sneakers, he knew she was Jiang Jie's wife—men usually remember such a beautiful woman at a glance, regardless of what clothes she wears.

Taking several large strides, he caught up with her and blocked her path, flashing his most sincere and charming smile.

"Cousin-sister-in-law, you don't recognize me?!"

Bai Bai Ziling looked at him; he seemed familiar, yet she could not recall him immediately.

"You are..." she smiled awkwardly.

"I am Jiang Jie's cousin."

"Right... I remember now!" She smiled even more embarrassedly. "That day... there were so many people, and I was somewhat nervous, so I got a bit confused about who was who; please do not take offense."

"No woman has ever easily forgotten my face; you have struck a blow to my male pride, you know?" Di Di Zhiwei joked with her. "Or is my cousin too charming, leaving no room in your eyes for other men?"

"I do not know how to answer you," Bai Bai Ziling replied sharply. "Because your cousin is not that overwhelmingly charming to me, and I indeed did not memorize your face."

Knowing she was not an introverted or shy woman, Di Di Zhiwei boldly extended an invitation.

"Cousin-sister-in-law, you do not have anything urgent waiting to be done, do you? Let me treat you to a cup of coffee." He was extremely friendly and insistent.

"Call me Bai Ziling or Bai Bai Ziling; never call me 'cousin-sister-in-law'." Bai Bai Ziling emphasized this point first.

"Bai Bai Ziling." He immediately complied.

"I am only in my early twenties; being called 'cousin-sister-in-law'..."

"And I am already thirty; calling you 'cousin-sister-in-law'... I am the one suffering the loss!" Di Di Zhiwei remarked, both witty and humorous.

"I forgot your name..." Bai Bai Ziling smiled apologetically.

"Di Di Zhiwei."

"Di Di Zhiwei..." She committed it to memory. "It should be me treating you to coffee."

"Either way is fine! It does not matter who pays, as long as we drink coffee together. By the way..." Di Di Zhiwei wanted everything to be natural, without deliberate pretense or affectation, so he decided to let her know he was fully aware of the situation. "Bai Bai Ziling, I know what is going on."

"You..." Bai Bai Ziling was slightly stunned.

"Jiang Jie and I are cousins; if he has a five-hundred-million inheritance, so will I, it is just that... I do not need a fake marriage yet." Di Di Zhiwei flashed Bai Bai Ziling his irresistibly sexy smile that no woman could withstand. "Of course, the allure of five hundred million yuan is very tempting."

Bai Bai Ziling also broke into a very relaxed smile. "Di Di Zhiwei, you are easier to get along with than your cousin."

"Does that mean... I have a chance?"

"A chance?!"

"After three months, you two will divorce..." Di Di Zhiwei raised an eyebrow.

"You have ulterior motives!" Bai Bai Ziling glared at him. "At the very least, I am still your 'cousin-sister-in-law'."

"Only for these three months."

"As for what happens afterward..." She returned his gaze with a meaningful smile.

They found a nearby American-style restaurant, ordered coffee, sandwiches, french fries, and pie, whereupon Di Di Zhiwei discovered that Bai Bai Ziling drank her coffee without sugar.

"It is very bitter! Bai Bai Ziling."

"But I am quite used to it; I tried adding sugar, yet I simply could not drink it."

"It seems... you are a girl who can endure bitterness," Di Di Zhiwei said with a double meaning. "Unless it is for weight loss, very few people drink coffee without sugar, yet you are so thin..."

"Di Di Zhiwei, let us talk about your cousin!" Bai Bai Ziling interrupted him.

"What do you want to know?"

"Anything." Bai Bai Ziling sat up straight, her expression serious. "I truly do not understand him as a person at all; I only know he is an upright gentleman and that living with him is not dangerous, but... what kind of man is he, really?"

"You just said it all!"

"But that is only the surface; I am asking about the depths of his heart."

"Bai Bai Ziling, you are now living under the same roof as him; why do you not ask him yourself?" Di Di Zhiwei did not wish to speak ill of Jiang Jie behind his back. "He certainly knows himself better than I do."

"We are living under the same roof, but he leaves early and returns late every day; we do not necessarily see each other."

"Is that not just like roommates?" Di Di Zhiwei mocked.

"We originally are roommates!" Bai Bai Ziling self-deprecatingly remarked. "We have been 'married' for over two weeks, yet we have not even shared a single meal together; does he... truly have endless dinner engagements or social obligations to attend to every day? Are not all industries in a downturn right now?"

"My cousin's business is doing extremely well!"

"Does he not get tired of socializing every day? Or am I so annoying that he does not want to come home and see me?"

"Bai Bai Ziling, if you were truly that annoying, he would not have entered into a fake marriage with you; I think... he simply feels... he does not need to treat you too well or... truly regard you as a wife," Di Di Zhiwei said.

"Was he hurt by some woman?" Bai Bai Ziling asked directly. "Does he hate all women?"

"It is not quite that..." He took a small sip of coffee. "He is just... he simply does not understand women, and he positions women as serving a function that is... not a necessity in life."

"You have talked for so long, yet it is all nonsense!" she said bluntly. "It is not helpful at all."

"Bai Bai Ziling, if you are as ice-smart and snow-wise as I imagine, then simply enjoy these three months; when the time comes, take the money and leave—that would be better for you," he stated even more plainly.

"Are you saying Jiang Jie will not fall in love with me?"

"Probably..." Di Di Zhiwei hesitated for a moment. "If it were me, I would definitely fall in love with you, but my cousin..."

"You are still being ambiguous," she protested.

"Go and understand him yourself!"

"I rarely even encounter him; how can I understand him?"

"What time does he leave home every day?"

"I do not know; I usually wake up after nine o'clock."

"Bai Bai Ziling, your life is truly good; I know they always hold department meetings and executive meetings at exactly eight o'clock, and driving from where you live to the Xinyi District usually takes twenty to thirty minutes; adding the time he needs to get himself ready after waking up... you... must get up by at least seven o'clock!" Di Di Zhiwei calculated it for her with great precision.

"Seven o'clock?!" She had not gotten up at seven o'clock in a very long time.

"You can sleep until the sun is high in the sky; you can also hold out for another two and a half months, and three million will be in your pocket; this is also the simplest and safest method," he said with a smile.

"I need to get up early," she said.

"I thought you would do exactly that!"

As soon as he stepped out of his room, Jiang Jie was drawn by the rich aroma of coffee. Usually, when he left, Bai Bai Ziling was still asleep. What was different today?

Bai Bai Ziling was placing homemade sandwiches on the dining table. She might not know how to cook, but frying a sunny-side-up egg and making a healthy, hearty sandwich was well within her abilities. Seeing Jiang Jie, she smiled.

"Does breakfast require an appointment?" she asked with a charming smile.

"I only drink coffee."

"People who skip breakfast..."

"Bai Bai Ziling, just give me the coffee!" Jiang Jie said while glancing at his watch, acting as if he didn't have time to dawdle with her.

She naturally didn't feel good about it, but Bai Bai Ziling also knew that any woman trying to force herself on a man like Jiang Jie was a fool; he would never let a woman push him around.

Pouring him a cup of coffee, Bai Bai Ziling sat obediently in front of Jiang Jie, behaving with rare docility.

"Do you have something special to do getting up so early today?" he asked.

"Nothing special."

Jiang Jie didn't press further. He picked up the remote, turned on the TV, and started watching the morning news, acting as if Bai Bai Ziling didn't exist in the house, as if he had already forgotten who made the coffee he was drinking; he seemed to think only of himself.

Bai Bai Ziling didn't know if she counted as furniture or a maid; there was no reason for him to treat her so inhumanely.

"Jiang Jie, can you have a little manners?" Bai Bai Ziling couldn't swallow her anger; she decided not to stay silent.

Jiang Jie shifted his gaze to look at her. "What's wrong?"

"I'm sitting right in front of you, and I made breakfast. Even if you don't eat it, at least I tried my best. Shouldn't you at least..."

"Thank you." That was all he said.

"Just that?" she was very disappointed.

"Do you want me to pay you?" he frowned.

"It's not about payment." Bai Bai Ziling couldn't help raising her voice. "This isn't a breakfast shop; this is your home!"

"Right! So what do you want?"

"I just want to talk to you."

"Talk..."

"Jiang Jie, I know we aren't a real couple, but even for your friends or roommates, shouldn't you show a bit more 'humanity'? I'm a living person; you can talk to me, you can interact with me."

"In the morning, I always..."

"Don't say you don't like talking in the morning, don't say you're used to being alone, because for the next two-plus months, we are 'husband and wife,' living under the same roof. Don't treat me like furniture or decoration in your house, okay?" she demanded.

Jiang Jie just wore an innocent expression.

"If someone asks about my 'husband,' I can't know nothing about him!" she argued convincingly.

"Bai Bai Ziling, it's only another sixty or seventy days of being 'husband and wife'; you don't need to be so serious or professional." Jiang Jie teased her.

"So you don't want to get to know me deeply?"

"I know everything I need to know."

"Everything I need to know?"

"Bai Bai Ziling, you didn't finish college, your family background... is middle-class. You have three good friends, all married very well, and you hope to be like them someday. Plus, you love using designer brands. Isn't that enough?" Jiang Jie checked his watch again.

"Then do you know how many siblings I have?" Her expression was indifferent. "What is my birthday? What year was I born?"

Jiang Jie fell silent.

"What is my favorite color? Do I prefer pants or skirts?"

Jiang Jie still didn't answer.

"What is my blood type? What is my zodiac sign?"

"Bai Bai Ziling, do I need to know these things?" he was getting impatient.

"You don't have to know them, but chatting a bit won't cost you anything, right?" Bai Bai Ziling said patiently. "Even if it's fake, we need to fake it so well it looks real, doesn't it?"

"Alright! How many siblings do you have?" he asked, trying to be patient.

"One older brother and one older sister. What about you?"

"I'm an only child."

"My blood type is B, I'm a Gemini, I like wearing skirts, I was born in 1980, and my birthday is June 5th. What about you?" Bai Bai Ziling first stated her basic info, then asked for his.

"Bai Bai Ziling, does this mean anything? Do you think I'll remember?"

"If you have the heart, you will remember."

"My blood type is A, I don't know my zodiac sign, I was born in 1969, and my birthday is October 8th. And then?" Jiang Jie didn't know why he hadn't gotten up and left yet; a bunch of executives were waiting for him for a meeting, yet he was sitting here with Bai Zeling talking about trivialities.

"You're a Libra," she told him.

"And then?"

"What about your favorite color?" She actually asked, not even thinking that every second of his was precious.

"Black." Jiang Jie didn't want to say any more. He finished his coffee in one gulp, then stood up. "Sleep in later tomorrow, please!"

"Are you coming home for dinner tonight?" she asked eagerly; at least there was some progress.

"I bought a cookbook..."

"No need to trouble yourself."

"Then I'll prepare a late-night snack..."

He cut her off, giving her a "save your breath" expression. "I don't eat late-night snacks. Bai Bai Ziling, the three million is money I willingly paid, and it's what you deserve. You don't need to feel you owe me anything. This isn't a real marriage, OK? Just live your own life."

Watching Jiang Jie leave, Bai Bai Ziling didn't say another word, but her gaze carried a heat of defiance.

Sima Sima Xingchen was freer than Xia Zhen and Chang Chang Weiwei. Plus, Lan Bowei hoped she would live a relaxed life, not needing to get involved in the "Accounts Receivable Company" matters; she just needed to take care of her health and prepare to have a baby, so she spent her days killing time waiting to give birth. Today, she met Bai Bai Ziling for coffee, partly to kill time and partly to care for her friend.

The current Bai Bai Ziling was truly different; on her feet were Miu Miu shoes, and in her hand was a peach-colored Prada bag, the trendiest item of the year. She looked fashionable and stylish.

"Bai Bai Ziling, how much of your 1.5 million is left?" Sima Sima Xingchen was partly reminding her, partly mocking her.

"There's still a lot left." Bai Bai Ziling smiled brilliantly.

"Money can run out."

"I'm very frugal, and I keep track."

"Bai Bai Ziling, you can get by without a handbag, but if a heart is scarred with a thousand holes, then..." Sima Sima Xingchen left the sentence hanging.

"Sima Xingchen, I'm fine!"

"Do you still feel like 'roommates'?" Sima Sima Xingchen asked with concern, "You two, a lone man and a lone woman..."

"Jiang Jie isn't home much; he only comes back to sleep. For him, I might not even be as good as his bed." Bai Bai Ziling admitted frankly. "So there's no need to worry about him hurting me. Even if I wanted him to hurt me, he seems uninterested."

"Bai Bai Ziling, he's neither gay nor a Liu Xia Hui. A woman as beautiful as you still can't stir his heart; I really find that hard to believe." Sima Sima Xingchen said skeptically.

"He probably just really doesn't want any entanglement with me." Bai Bai Ziling mocked herself.

"Is he really only after his grandfather's inheritance?"

"It seems so."

Stirring her iced coffee with a straw, Sima Sima Xingchen sincerely hoped Bai Bai Ziling could find happiness too, but she also always believed love was more important than wealth; a man who loves you is more precious than a rich man.

"Sima Xingchen, you really don't need to worry about me. There are still over two months left; the situation could change at any time!" Bai Bai Ziling said confidently.

"You're so optimistic."

"My conditions aren't bad, are they?"

"But this Jiang Da CEO is no ordinary person!"

"Right! But he's still a man, isn't he?" Bai Bai Ziling smiled. "I just don't want to use my feminine assets; otherwise... a man is just a man."

"Bai Bai Ziling, don't go messing around." Sima Sima Xingchen cried out lightly.

"I won't!"

"One must have principles."

"I know! Otherwise, I would have drugged his coffee long ago and created a 'fait accompli'." Bai Bai Ziling spoke nonsense. "Or I could hold a cleaver to him; as long as the raw rice is cooked..."

"Bai Bai Ziling, do you want to make me laugh to death?" Sima Sima Xingchen almost choked. It was the twenty-first century; did anyone still do things like that?

"That's why I say I won't do anything. I won't let him look down on me." She still had that backbone.

"Men are like this: a wife is not as good as a concubine, a concubine is not as good as a stolen one, and a stolen one is not as good as one you can't steal."

"Playing hard to get?!" Sima Sima Xingchen asked.

"Governing by doing nothing." Bai Bai Ziling thought of Laozi's philosophy.

"But you earned this three million easily; in the future... how will you return to simplicity?" Sima Sima Xingchen glanced again at Bai Bai Ziling's designer handbag. "Do you know the feeling of being trapped in quicksand with no way out?"

"It's not that scary!"

"It is easy to go from frugality to luxury, but hard to return from luxury to frugality."

"Sima Xingchen, is this the time for idioms?"

"I'm afraid you won't want to buy cheap things anymore."

Bai Bai Ziling continued drinking her black coffee, but suddenly she seemed to have an epiphany. "Sima Xingchen, I can drink coffee with sugar too; I'm just more used to drinking it without sugar. So if, after two months, I have to carry a pile of credit card debt again, facing days where I don't know where my future lies... I can handle that too!"

"Then the three of us worried for nothing." Sima Sima Xingchen hoped Bai Bai Ziling was truly that free-spirited and open-minded.

"Tell me about this Jiang Da CEO. After your observation for over half a month, what kind of man do you think he is? Is he worth loving?"

"I'm not clear yet!" Bai Bai Ziling answered truthfully. "We haven't spent much time together. He doesn't come back for dinner, and he doesn't have a habit of eating breakfast."

"What about weekends?"

"He doesn't have that two-day weekend routine; he works on Saturdays as usual. As for Sundays... he doesn't get up until noon, plays golf in the afternoon, and spends the evening holed up in his study surfing the internet." Bai Bai Ziling knew his schedule clearly.

"You haven't gone out and done anything together?"

"No!"

"You could accompany him to play golf."

"First, he hasn't invited me. Second, I don't know how to play golf. I don't want to give him the impression that I'm an Octopus. Men are afraid of women clinging to them and following them!" Bai Bai Ziling hadn't been in many relationships, but she could read men's minds.

"So there's basically no interaction between you two."

"We are 'roommates' with a friendship as light as water, like gentlemen."

"If I were you, I'd be bored to death!" Sima Sima Xingchen, a person with a tough temper, especially when facing men, said. "He... might really have no interest in you."

"I'm not ready to give up yet." Bai Bai Ziling, however, was high-spirited.

"If he had any intention, he would have already..."

"Sima Xingchen, some people are 'slow to warm up'. I still have time..." Bai Bai Ziling said with full confidence: "I haven't truly started yet!"

A phone call summoned Bai Bai Ziling to a private obstetrics and gynecology clinic to meet Jiang Jie, because the "time" was about right; they had been married for nearly a month, so they could test for pregnancy.

The doctor, with great seriousness, had her provide a urine sample and draw blood. Even though she was clearly not pregnant, she had to memorize her due date and some prenatal checkup dates. The doctor even told her the exact day she had "conceived". Thinking of this, Bai Bai Ziling found it funny. How much money had Jiang Jie paid this doctor? Or was their friendship really that good, such that he wasn't afraid at all of having his medical license revoked?

While Jiang Jie chatted with the doctor, Bai Bai Ziling came to the nursery. Through a large pane of glass, she looked at the newborns. Although every wrinkled face looked like a little old man or a little old woman, they were so cute and full of vitality. She couldn't help but fill with tears; every little life was a treasure, a perfect gift.

Looking at Xia Zhen, looking at Chang Chang Weiwei... when would it be her turn to be a mother? Suddenly, she really wanted a child of her own.

"We can go now." Jiang Jie's voice sounded by her ear.

Bai Bai Ziling turned around and looked calmly at Jiang Jie, wondering in her mind what kind of father he would be. Was he the kind of strict father, or the kind of doting daddy? She really couldn't tell. And more importantly... did he even want to be a father?

"What's wrong?" Jiang Jie asked, looking into her eyes.

"You're going to be a father." She "congratulated" him.

"Bai Bai Ziling, this is fake!"

"And I'm going to be a mother." She continued speaking.

"Stop fooling around!"

"Do you think our little baby will look more like you or like me?"

"Bai Bai Ziling, what nonsense are you spouting?" Jiang Jie, slightly displeased, grabbed her and pulled her toward the clinic exit. "That five hundred million yuan of mine hasn't truly landed in my hands yet; watch your words!"

"Which sentence did I get wrong?" She suddenly jerked her hand free from his grip. "It is precisely because I am cooperating with you that I asked such a question."

"Your tone and expression..."

"Jiang Jie, you are the one who needs to act happier and more delighted; otherwise, others will think you fundamentally do not wish for your wife to be pregnant, or that you believe the child in your wife's belly belongs to another man." Bai Bai Ziling, overwhelmed by a surge of anger she could not pinpoint, found herself unable to control her tongue.

Jiang Jie stared at her, momentarily unable to retort.

"Exactly! You cannot scold me, because I am currently a 'pregnant woman'." Bai Bai Ziling stared back at him without fear, emboldened by her status.

"You are not," he said lightly yet harshly.

"The diagnosis slip states that I am, and the doctor has issued a certificate, has he not?" Bai Bai Ziling whispered close to his ear.

"What has gotten into you?" He did not understand.

"I am working hard at acting!" She suddenly took the initiative to hook her arm through his, her entire body going limp against him as if struck by soft-bone disease. "Do you want to carry me?"

"Bai Bai Ziling... I do not appreciate your 'humor' in the slightest," Jiang Jie warned her with a sour face.

"You spent three million; surely I must demonstrate my acting skills!" She wore an expression of pure innocence. "Right now I really crave sour plums; can you go buy some for me? Also, I suddenly have a strong desire for roast chicken; I wonder..."

"Will you ever stop!" His gaze turned ice-cold.

"Is this not how pregnancy behaves?"

"You do not look pregnant; you look as though you have suddenly gone mentally unstable." He pushed her away. "Bai Bai Ziling, I need you to act, but I do not need you to immerse yourself to the point of self-forgetfulness; do you understand?"

Bai Bai Ziling pouted her lips, sulking in silence.

"You only need to speak less; leave all external matters for me to handle," Jiang Jie declared with an arrogant demeanor, as if he could manage everything.

"When exactly will I 'miscarry'?" she suddenly asked.

"I will inform you."

"Have you calculated everything?"

"Everything is under my control."

"Can you guarantee no slip-ups?"

"Bai Bai Ziling, I need this five hundred million; this contract in the United States is quite important. If this deal succeeds, we will gain not only profit but also international business reputation; otherwise, I would not bother with such trouble. I have money; what I want is reputation. Do you understand now?" Jiang Jie spoke as if lecturing her.

Bai Bai Ziling nodded, resembling an elementary school student who had done something wrong.

Seeing her in this state, Jiang Jie felt a momentary softening of his heart; had he been too harsh with her? After all, without her assistance, it would be impossible for him to smoothly obtain his maternal grandfather's inheritance. Thus, he pulled his wallet from the back pocket of his suit trousers, drew out a thick stack of banknotes without even counting them, and handed it to her; it was all two-thousand-yuan bills, a considerable sum.

"This is..." Bai Bai Ziling looked at the money clutched in his hand. "Why are you giving this to me? Is this the allowance for the second month?"

"No, it is simply for you."

"For me to spend as I please?"

"The money is already yours."

Bai Bai Ziling ought to have jumped up and danced with joy; it turned out that throwing a tantrum yielded such benefits, and yet... and yet why did her heart sink straight down? She felt this money was a bribe, and also a way to dismiss her.

"I still need to return to the company; you take a taxi home by yourself."

"But it is already past eight o'clock at night; you still intend to return to the company?" Bai Bai Ziling wondered if all successful men were this busy, fighting for every second, that he would not even escort her home.

"I have matters to attend to."

"Do you have matters to attend to, or do you simply not wish to return home early to spend time with me?"

"Bai Bai Ziling, your tone... is beginning to sound like that of my 'real' wife," Jiang Jie mocked her.

"And you... cannot even feign false concern!" she retorted sharply!