My Queen, My Rules - Chapter 28

Chapter 28

The air was silent, and it was a long, enduring silence.

Ji Mingshu froze, staring at the group chat conversation on the screen just as Cen Sen was, so stunned that she even forgot to snatch her phone back.

Fortunately, thirty seconds later, the phone automatically entered its lock-screen state.

Cen Sen’s gaze moved slowly from the phone screen to Ji Mingshu’s exquisite yet bewildered face. He even examined her inch by inch, quite minutely, as if he wanted to study this bright, vivid face up close to see exactly what on earth it had to do with a "pure female college student."

Ji Mingshu: Speechless : )

They stood in a silent confrontation for a full minute. Just as Ji Mingshu thought her beautiful life would end right here, dying of pure awkwardness inside a luxury car, the hotel finally arrived.

The moment the car stopped, Ji Mingshu couldn't even wait for the valet to come and open the door; she scrambled out of the car in a flash.

She lowered her head, hurriedly put on her sunglasses, and walked quickly toward the hotel. Her hands were trembling uncontrollably, yet she didn't forget to open WeChat, clear the group chat history, and obediently change the group name to "The Three Little Fairies."

God is my witness, she would never again follow online trends to give her group chats random names, and she would absolutely never again talk behind people’s backs while doing underhanded things in front of them : )

And God is a further witness, Ji-family Shushu is a little canary who loves money from the bottom of her heart.

It was just that for those two or three seconds, her dignity had triumphed over material concerns, and a thought had flashed through her mind: "As long as I never lose face in front of that dog-man, I am willing to be left with nothing in a divorce."

To avoid and alleviate the ultimate awkwardness of being speechless with Cen Sen, Ji Mingshu didn't return to the room but went straight to the revolving restaurant to eat.

Estimating the time, she quickly flashed to the spa center before Cen Sen could come to the restaurant. After that, she requested a mini-room at the hotel’s KTV, where she held a two-hour solo concert all by herself.

Only when the time hit Cen Sen’s usual bedtime did Ji Mingshu sneak back to the suite upstairs.

In the room, only the floor lamp was on, making the light somewhat dim.

On the large bed in the bedroom, the pillows and covers were laid out neatly, clean and flat.

Where was Cen Sen? Was he not asleep yet?

She changed into her slippers at the door and crept into the study.

The study was empty, too.

She pushed open the door leading to the living room.

The air in the living room seemed to have a faint scent of vodka. Ji Mingshu followed the scent of alcohol, only to see several empty bottles arranged on the coffee table.

Cen Sen was leaning back in the sofa, his head tilted slightly upward, his eyes tightly closed.

He smelled strongly of alcohol, but in his quiet state of rest, there were no obvious signs of drunkenness.

Ji Mingshu stepped forward, extended a finger to poke his cheek, and probed softly, "Are you asleep?"

There was no response.

She stood up straight, feeling a slight sense of relief in her heart, but also a desire to sigh.

In truth, people like them, who had many work-related social obligations, had developed a physiological aversion to alcohol. If it wasn't necessary, they wouldn't touch it in their daily lives.

Like her uncles, they never drank a drop of alcohol when they came home for dinner on weekdays, and at family gatherings for holidays, they would have at most a small sip.

To drink so much today, he must be feeling very sad.

After standing by the sofa for a while, Ji Mingshu’s kindness flared up, and she covered him with a blanket with light, nimble movements.

But just as she was about to sneak away, Cen Sen suddenly gripped her wrist and slowly opened his eyes.

"..."

Ji Mingshu was a bit bewildered. Once she reacted, she hurriedly explained, "I was just covering you with a blanket. Just covering you, I didn't do anything else."

She added, "Do you... want to go back to bed to sleep?"

Cen Sen didn't answer. With a slight pull, he dragged her into his arms.

He held Ji Mingshu, buried his face in her soft hair, breathed deeply, and closed his eyes again.

Ji Mingshu didn't know what kind of stunt he was pulling. Her body was held so tightly that she had no room to struggle, so she could only keep muttering in his ear.

"Hey, let go of me."

"Don't pretend to be asleep, speak!"

"Can you even handle this? If you can't drink, don't drink so much. If you’re going to throw up, tell me first—don't you dare throw up on me."

"...Have you hugged me enough? My arm is going numb!"

"Don't be noisy, just one more minute."

Cen Sen murmured, loosening his grip slightly.

Ji Mingshu didn't know what spell she was under, but she actually closed her mouth obediently.

The surroundings were silent. The two of them were pressed very close; their breathing brushed against their ears, and their heartbeats seemed to be within reach.

When it’s late at night and everything is quiet, one tends to like reminiscing about the past.

She remembered that when they were in middle school, the junior high and high school sections of their affiliated school were combined. She had spent four years in the same school as Cen Sen.

She wasn't a model student in the typical sense; she was often criticized for violating school rules and discipline, but in all fairness, her grades were quite decent—otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to get into a prestigious university later on.

Back then, every time the monthly exams or midterms ended, the school would post the honor roll of grade rankings. After looking at her own grade’s rankings, she always loved to run over and check Cen Sen’s grade’s list.

But Cen Sen’s grade ranking was as steady as Mount Tai, just like his "fox friend" Jiang Che; the two were always swapping back and forth between first and second place.

Once, when Cen Sen dropped out of the top ten, she was so happy she didn't know what to do with herself. After school, she ran to the Cen family home for a free meal and, by the way, tattled to the old matriarch, implying that "Cen Sen has slipped so much this time, maybe he’s addicted to online games or has secretly gotten a girlfriend—Grandma, you must really discipline him."

She tattled with such enthusiasm, and the old matriarch played along, laughing and saying that she would definitely give Cen Sen a strict interrogation later.

As it turned out, when she ran over to Cen Sen to gloat, she found out that he had dropped out of the top ten because he had represented the school at a youth environmental forum and had missed one of the exams. Her entire fiery spirit was extinguished completely.

Thinking back on it now, when she was in school, it seemed she always hated seeing Cen Sen do well.

Later, when he started dating that "little white lotus" Li Wen-yin, she didn't know why, but she was extremely annoyed.

It took a long time for her to realize that this was actually a good thing; the two pests should be bundled together, packed off, thrown into a crematorium, and turned into microbes to contribute to the well-being of this beautiful world.

At that time, she had never imagined that there would come a day when she would be married to her former "enemy," and now, holding him so intimately like this.

Thinking of this, Ji Mingshu felt her ears turn red uncontrollably.

As luck would have it, the next second, Cen Sen kissed her on the ear.

His breath was warm, moist, and carried the scent of alcohol. His voice was low, like a murmur of someone not quite sober.

"Let me ask you, if I had nothing left, would you abandon me?"

"...?"

This sudden sentimentality shocked Ji Mingshu out of her memories, and her scalp tingled with the intensity.

This was so unlike Cen Sen’s style. Even if he were drunk into a puddle of mud, Cen Sen should be murmuring things like, "The probability of A-shares rebounding sharply tomorrow is high," or "The XX project has a funding gap; tell the person in charge to figure it out themselves," like a typical capitalist dictator.

Ji Mingshu got goosebumps, but upon second thought, she felt that perhaps Cen Sen was only a hard nut to crack in front of her. Perhaps in front of other women, he was rich, romantic, and gentle? Was this semi-drunken state because he had mistaken her for someone else and suddenly started acting like a sentimental "overbearing CEO"?

She felt a bit sour inside, but in order to avoid hearing more things that would make her want to dismember him while he was drunk, she emphasized, "Are you asking me? I am Ji Mingshu, Ji Mingshu!"

"Mm, Ji Mingshu, I am indeed asking you."

"..."

He really was asking her.

Ji Mingshu’s heartbeat skipped a beat, and for some reason, she felt softened by three parts. Even her cheeks began to burn.

She braced herself and said stiffly, "You, what kind of dream are you having? Do you think I’d follow you through hardship if you had nothing? Look at yourself—if it weren't for your money, who would want to marry you?"

Seeing Cen Sen didn't react, she continued to mutter softly to herself, bolstering her own position, "I’m telling you, it’s just because I’m kindhearted; what other woman would put up with this kind of petty grievance? You really deserve to be single for the rest of your life, you know. You should be nicer to me." Like buying me an aircraft carrier.

Cen Sen laughed softly. Whether he was too drunk to hear her or whatever the case, he didn't refute her; he only held her a little tighter.

In this world, everyone compromises for the sake of reality.

When he was a child, his father and mother said a thousand times in private that they would never compromise, but in the end, because they needed the Cen family’s money to treat An Ning’s illness, they sent him away.

The Cen family had also been very firm about keeping Cen Yang, but in the end, because he possessed the true Cen bloodline, his return meant more than Cen Yang staying, so they chose to send Cen Yang away.

The Ji family was even worse; he had known for a long time that the Ji family already had arranged marriage plans in private. It was only because he had inserted himself into the picture that the Ji family decided the Cen family’s power was more profitable, so they secretly cut off their original choice and married Ji Mingshu to him.

Whatever family ties or "no other choice," in the end, it was all just a matter of weighing one side against the other. Yet they always had to find some high-sounding excuses to absolve themselves, never admitting it.

Before, he only thought Ji Mingshu was superficial, but after spending more time with her, he felt she lived more clearly and knowingly than he did.

If she could say it, she would always speak her mind.

If she couldn't say it—for example, whether the Ji family truly loved her so dearly—she knew that better than anyone else, yet she would never voice it.

If you think about it, family affection was never really there, and perhaps life would be freer without it. Once you have possessed it and then lost it, no matter how many years pass, you are never truly at peace.

If Ji Mingshu would abandon him if he had nothing, then he only needed to ensure he always had money to keep a familiar canary by his side to keep him company. Thinking about it this way, it wasn't so bad; at least she belonged to him, living and real.

Two in the morning, the city was silent.

Cen Sen’s grip slowly loosened, and he gradually fell asleep.

Ji Mingshu carefully detached herself from his embrace and laid him flat on the sofa.

After finishing all this, Ji Mingshu was a little tired.

She sat down by the edge of the sofa and looked at Cen Sen’s sleeping face again, her fingers tracing his eyebrows and contours, stroke by stroke, gently downward.

His skin was cool and fair; his brows were sharp, his eyes bright, his nose straight, and his lips thin. He was the kind of person you wouldn't forget after just one glance.

When they were in school, he had the clarity and purity of a youth; after growing up, he had the stillness and aloofness of an adult man. It seemed one wouldn't get tired of looking at him. Mmm... as long as he wasn't speaking.

Ji Mingshu propped her chin in her hands and recalled his question from earlier. For the first time, she felt he was also yearning for some warmth he refused to voice.

A strange thought suddenly popped into her head.

If Cen Sen went bankrupt one day, as long as he was obedient, given his face, she might—possibly, perhaps—still be willing to sell her bags to support him, right?