Chapter 1: The Wedding
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Usually, in Binjiang City, People’s Avenue was the most crowded road. However, the road was surprisingly quiet today. Not even a car could be spotted. This was abnormal. Any prosperous city should not have a road void of cars at eight in the morning.
At 8: 50 pm, on the wide and flat People’s Avenue, a black Bugatti Veyron sports car suddenly appeared. The front of the car sported a red and shiny “Eternal Love” wedding invitation. Behind the Bugatti was a long row of luxury sports cars, the first few being eight red Pagani sports cars.
The Pagani cars were followed by dozens of bright-colored sports cars.
People standing on both sides of the road turned their heads to look at the sports car in the middle of the road. All kinds of gazes appeared in their eyes.
Some of them became envious and jealous; some even cursed. However, all of them continued staring at those cars, afraid that they would miss a glance. After all, such an exaggerated show of extravagance was rarely seen in decades.
Everyone knew that today was the wedding day of the Fang family’s second son, Fang Mu, and the Qiao family’s second daughter, Qiao Jiusheng. Due to this event, under the arrangement of the rich and overbearing Fang family, Binjiang City had cleared an entire road to limit traffic.
The Fang family was one of the three wealthiest families in Binjiang City. Their business involved all aspects, be it culture, internet, or finance.
On the other hand, the Qiao family was a renowned jewelry family, both domestically and internationally. The top luxury jewelry brand “Crown for Love,” which had been handed down for hundreds of years, was the Qiao family’s business.
A marriage between two such noble families was naturally eye-catching.
Nearly a hundred top sports cars, led by a Bugatti, slowly drove along People’s Avenue. The cars drove past Binjiang City’s municipal building and the financial avenue that was famous all over the world. Finally, the cars stopped at the entrance of Binjiang City’s most famous Empire Hotel.
A hundred-foot-long red carpet stretched from the hotel lobby to the road.
From the Bugatti sports car, a young man stepped out.
His sideburns were neatly trimmed, and his slightly fluffy black hair was combed all the way to the back of his head. A pair of thick black eyebrows hung below his clean forehead, and two ink-like black eyes were embedded on his handsome and flamboyant face. His eye sockets were deep, and his nose was high. Amongst all his perfection, his thin lips were slightly pursed.
This man had a handsome face that could only exist in drawings. Although the expression on his face was faint, due to his wine-red, high-end gown, people felt that he was in a good mood. Fang Mu was indeed in a good mood. After all, he was finally going to marry his lover, Qiao Jiusheng.
The passersby stopped and curiously watched as the handsome man walked to the right of the sports car and took the hand of his bride.
The bride was like a beautiful red rose, tall and elegant.
She was dressed in a luxurious embroidered wedding dress. The long lacy skirt swayed on the red carpet as the bride walked. The young woman was extremely beautiful, and her black hair was tied up high. This way, she could perfectly show the light purple earrings on her earlobes and the dark purple pear-shaped diamond necklace around her neck.
This purple necklace was the most famous masterpiece in the history of “Crown for Love.” It was the proud masterpiece of Qiao Yifi, the founder of “Crown for Love.” If one got married while wearing this necklace, the marriage would be boundlessly glorious.
As Fang Mu and the bride entered the Empire Hotel, rows of beautiful and handsome people walked behind them.
This scene satisfied the eyes of the passersby.
The wedding was being held on the outdoor lawn of the Empire Hotel. As she stood in front of the priest, the bride’s cheeks flushed with shyness. At that moment, her beauty was restrained. She was not as flamboyant as a rose, but more like a pink rose, delicate and lovely.
“Mr. Fang, will you marry Miss Qiao and acknowledge her as your lawful wife? Will you be loyal to her, respect her, and stay by her side forever?”
Fang Mu looked at the woman he loved with tenderness in his eyes. Without any hesitation, he clearly replied in a slightly cold voice, “I will.”
The bride, Qiao Jiusheng, lifted her head a little and looked up at the man she deeply loved. Her beautiful brown eyes rippled with excitement and love, and her hands that were holding the flowers suddenly tightened. Finally, she was going to marry him, the man she had loved for six years.
***
It was a small, damp, and dilapidated house. The house didn’t even have a bed or a sofa, but it did have a toilet and a small television mounted on a wall.
A dirty curtain hung by the window. The window was nailed shut, but the curtain slightly trembled. It was not because of the wind, but rather due to a woman who was sitting under the curtain with her arms wrapped around her knees. If one looked closely, they would see that there was an iron chain on the woman’s right hand and right leg. The chain was about three to four meters long, which allowed her to go to the toilet to solve her physiological problem, but not reach the door.
The woman was wearing a dress of indistinguishable color, and bruises could be seen on her legs.
Her chin weakly rested on her knees. She raised her head, revealing her thin, yellow face and red eyes that were filled with despair. As she looked at the sacred scene on the television, tears welled up in her eyes. She watched as the handsome and noble man on the television said “I will” in front of everyone.
“Miss Qiao, will you marry Mr. Fang and acknowledge him as your lawful husband? Will you love him, respect him, and never leave him?”
At the priest’s words, tears fell from the woman’s eyes, rolling down her sallow, thin face into her neck.
On the television, the beautiful Qiao Jiusheng excitedly said, “I will.”
At the same time, the chained woman opened her mouth. Her lips parted twice. If you could read lips, you could tell that what she said was also—
“I will.”
***
She watched the sun rise and the moon come out. Day after day, the face grew thinner and thinner; the body that should have been sexy and hot became skin and bones.
Gradually, the hope and anticipation in her eyes turned into despair.
After a long time, the door to the tightly locked house finally opened.
Hearing the unlock sound, the woman curled up on the floor weakly opened her eyes. The moonlight shone on the room, and the woman could tell that it was night. In her blurry vision, a beauty clad in a waist-length dress walked in amidst the moonlight. As the beauty got closer, the woman on the floor could tell that she was wearing a champagne-colored embroidered dress and was as beautiful as a pink rose.
This beauty was carrying a box; it was unknown what was inside. As she squatted down, her long fingers brushed away the long hair that fell on her face, revealing a face that could topple cities. This stunning beauty was the Second Young Mistress of the Fang family, Qiao Jiusheng, who had just married into the Fang family a few months ago!
Upon seeing this face, the woman lying on the ground subconsciously shrank back.
She was afraid of her!
“Tsk tsk!” The elegant beauty clicked her tongue. She stretched out her long fingers and hooked the chin of the woman on the ground. “My good sister, I haven’t seen you for half a year. Did you miss me?”
The woman on the ground did not speak, but her body trembled.