Zhan Bei Jue looked up following the sound and saw Ke Teng and Shen Min Er sitting diagonally opposite him at some point.
They clearly knew he was here and had come intentionally.
Otherwise, with so many seats in the restaurant, how could it be such a coincidence that they appeared directly opposite him?
Thinking about the car accident and his subsequent promise to Jiang Nan Fang that he would never meet Shen Min Er privately, Zhan Bei Jue immediately signaled for a waiter.
"Please get us a private room."
"Certainly, sir."
The waiter promptly went to arrange it.
Across from them, Shen Min Er's face turned red. She had told Ke Teng not to come, but he insisted. He had even hoped to do something extreme in front of Zhan Bei Jue to provoke him.
As a result, Zhan Bei Jue was completely unfazed.
The two watched as Zhan Bei Jue and Lu Ming Zhe stood up, without giving them even an extra glance. Ke Teng decisively grabbed Min Er's hand.
"What happened to your hand? Why is it bandaged? Are you hurt?"
He thought Zhan Bei Jue would at least look over. However, Zhan Bei Jue was truly stone-hearted. He acted as if he hadn't heard them, kept his gaze straight ahead, and walked past them, with an attitude of "do whatever you want, it has nothing to do with me."
Ke Teng was furious. After they left and the waiter came to clear their plates, he childishly bumped into the waiter.
With a crash, the waiter dropped the plates he was holding.
"How do you do your job? Don't you have eyes?"
"I'm very sorry sir! I'm sorry, it was not intentional!"
Ke Teng kicked the food on the floor in dissatisfaction.
"Bad luck!"
Across the way, Shen Min Er was speechless, but she had nothing to say.
---
As soon as Lu Ming Zhe arrived home, he received a call from his father, asking where he had been and what was going on with Chen Jiao Jiao, as he hadn't seen her all day.
Lu Ming Zhe pretended nothing was wrong. "We're in Nancheng."
"I made her angry a couple of days ago, so I brought her back to appease her. It's fine, you guys should discuss your matters, we'll follow your arrangements."
It was good that nothing was wrong. His parents were being respectfully accompanied by Chen's father, and they were very satisfied with the engagement.
"According to our wishes, since your relationship has reached this point, of course, we hope you get married soon. After all, you're at the age for it."
"Do you have any requirements? Should the date be sooner or later? It must be within this year, regardless."
Lu Ming Zhe said, "Sooner."
"Jiao Jiao doesn't want to be separated from me for even a day, we want to get married as soon as possible."
"But… there aren't any good dates next month, or the month after…"
"Isn't this month possible?"
"This month?" Lu Ming Zhe's father hadn't expected him to be so urgent.
"There's only one good date this month, it's the day after tomorrow. You haven't prepared anything…"
Lu Ming Zhe interrupted him.
"There's nothing much to prepare. Young people nowadays don't like formal weddings. We weren't planning to have a wedding at all."
"But for your sake, we'll still have the ceremony."
"As long as you can invite our friends within two days, everything else is my responsibility."
"A Zhe…"
Although marrying a daughter-in-law into the family was a great joy, and Lu Ming Zhe's father wished she would join them sooner, he still had some concerns.
"Won't it be too hasty? All the customary procedures haven't been followed. The Chen family only has this one daughter, won't she feel wronged?"
"We'll give the bride price as it should be, and we won't lack any of the traditional courtesies. If neither party complains, who will feel wronged?" Lu Ming Zhe spoke with an air of righteousness.
"Dad, it's just going to be hard work for you these two days. But this is what you, as an elder, should do, and I can't help you with it."
Seeing that he was determined, Lu Ming Zhe's father didn't say anything more.
"Not at all. It's rare for you to have the intention to settle down, and your mother and I are very pleased with Jiao Jiao. A little hard work is nothing."
"Moreover, this little bit of effort is considered lazy compared to other families."
"Alright. As long as you two have no objections and live well after marriage, I will proceed according to tradition."
"Today, we'll convey our intentions to the Chen family, and tomorrow we'll go out to invite guests. The venue and other matters, leave them to you."
"Okay. Thank you, Dad."
After hanging up, Lu Ming Zhe immediately called a friend to ask for the contact information of the wedding company he had used before. He also collected a round of blessings and invited a wave of friends.
In Jincheng, Lu Ming Zhe's father and mother went to the Chen family's home with 880,000 in bride price and various gifts to formally propose.
Since yesterday, Chen's father had been unable to contact Chen Jiao Jiao, and he was very anxious upon hearing that Chen Jiao Jiao had taken the household registration book.
His daughter's problem had not yet been resolved, and the groom's parents had arrived with sincere intentions. They apologized for the hasty wedding and admitted that the Lu family had let Jiao Jiao down in this matter. They also promised to treat her as their own daughter after marriage and to compensate her.
Chen's father was caught in a dilemma. If he agreed, he didn't know where his daughter was. What if she was rebellious? If he refused, after two days of hospitality and polite conversation, refusing them now would surely anger the Lu family.
It was his younger wife who reminded him.
"Oh dear, young Lu, as the groom, says he's fine and doesn't care if she acts up, what are you afraid of?"
"She definitely hasn't done anything outrageous, otherwise, would young Lu still marry her?"
"Relax, we shouldn't guess the thoughts of young people. Perhaps, as young Lu said, she's just sulking."
While waiting for a reply in the living room, Chen's father, who couldn't stay hidden in the kitchen forever, gritted his teeth.
"Alright, then I'll agree."
"Anyway, I've sent her the message. If she dares to act out and wants to see her father die, let her do it!"
Thus, in Chen Jiao Jiao's absence, everyone decided her marriage for her.
At this time, Chen Jiao Jiao had just returned to the hotel with Hu Jia Sheng.
She was in a bad mood, so Hu Jia Sheng took advantage of the situation and spent the day playing with her outside. Chen Jiao Jiao hadn't turned on her phone all day. Upon returning to the hotel, after showering and changing, she turned on her phone, and a barrage of missed call notifications and WeChat messages flooded in.
She casually scrolled through them, and her expression changed drastically.
"Lu Ming Zhe is such a pervert!"
Hu Jia Sheng, who had just come out of the bathroom, saw her like this and sat beside her.
"What's wrong?"
Chen Jiao Jiao handed him her phone, letting him see for himself, and closed her eyes in frustration.
"In any case, I won't let him have his way. The more he forces me, the less I'll cooperate. I'll never marry him, not even if I die!"
"Through this incident, I've truly seen through my father. 'Precious daughter,' everything he's done his whole life for me, it's all lies!"
"To gain benefits, he's marrying me off without my consent? Is he even my biological father?"
Hu Jia Sheng looked through the messages from his stepmother and the pictures of the bride price and gifts from the Lu family several times. He silently handed the phone back to Chen Jiao Jiao. He closed his eyes, leaning his head back against the sofa, and the atmosphere became stagnant.
Chen Jiao Jiao took the phone and looked at him. Seeing no expression on his handsome face, unable to discern his mood, she felt a pang of sadness in her heart. She leaned into his arms and gently poked his beautiful Adam's apple back and forth with her finger.
"A Sheng."
Hu Jia Sheng wrapped his arms around her and replied softly, "Hmm."
"What are you going to do?"