Chapter 1: Playing the Part [1]

A new story begins. Before anything else, Lazy sincerely asks all those reading to please add it to your favorites if you can, recommend it if you can, and comment if you can. In short, every kind of support is appreciated—your encouragement is Lazy’s motivation!

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Spring has come to the villa garden of the Jing family. Red blooms and lush green grass stretch across the grounds, the warm glow of the lights bathing the courtyard in tranquility. The beauty of the scene brings a sense of warmth and happiness, yet within the vast villa, the atmosphere contrasts sharply with the serenity outside. In the dining room, the Jing family sits around the table for dinner, while two maids stand by.

“Rou Rou, you’ve been married to Jing Nuo for two years now. Why is there still no sign from your belly?” At the head of the table, Old Madam Jing, her hair snowy white, once again brings up Wen Xiaorou’s childless state.

“Grandmother, I…” Wen Xiaorou grips her chopsticks tightly, her voice so faint it is barely audible.

More than anyone, Wen Xiaorou longs for a child. Yet her body stubbornly refuses to cooperate. She’s been living in the Jing household for ten years, married to Jing Nuo for two, and if her womb is uncooperative, perhaps it’s she herself who is lacking.

“Mother, why bring this up again? Aren’t you just putting pressure on Rou Rou? Please stop worrying about their children,” Jing’s father says, not needing to look directly at Wen Xiaorou to know how awkward she feels at this moment.

“You all just won’t let me, an old woman on the verge of death, have my wish. You simply don’t want me to hold a great-grandchild,” Old Madam Jing’s emotions rise at her son’s defense of Wen Xiaorou. In this family, she is the eldest—who would dare disobey?

“Mother, that’s not what I meant…” Jing’s father quickly tries to explain.

“Of course it is!” Jing’s wife joins in, fanning the flames.

“If you keep pressuring Rou Rou and Jing Nuo like this, it’ll only make things worse.”

“She’s useless, and now you won’t even let us mention it?”

“……”

Wen Xiaorou sees the familiar scene play out once more, sighs helplessly, and shifts her gaze to Jing Nuo. The man himself sits as if he were a bystander, eating his meal as though the dispute and her embarrassment have nothing to do with him.

This attitude of Jing Nuo, hanging every matter out of reach as if nothing concerns him, is something Wen Xiaorou has encountered many times. Yet every time, she secretly hopes this man will say something to relieve the tension. But he unfailingly finishes eating and leaves, and with his departure, the family war pauses.

Wen Xiaorou knits her brows, staring at Jing Nuo across the table—he sits motionless, like a statue, not even blinking. In her heart, she urges him to finish quickly, finish quickly. Once he’s done, she can follow him back to their room and escape these unwelcome words.

Jing Nuo drinks his soup absent-mindedly. Glancing up, he notices Wen Xiaorou’s anxious gaze, as if she’s trying to communicate something to him. He understands: she wants him to finish and leave. Jing Nuo lifts the corners of his mouth in a faint smile, then turns his head. “Zhang, the soup’s gone cold. Bring me another bowl.”

Wen Xiaorou’s eyes widen at his words. Jing Nuo is going to have more food? Is he deliberately prolonging her discomfort, having seen through her thoughts?

Fuming, Wen Xiaorou puffs out her cheeks and continues to stare at Jing Nuo. Yet as she looks, she can’t tear her gaze away. How can Jing Nuo be so handsome—he rivals her favorite idol. Wen Xiaorou’s adoration turns into a dazed infatuation.

Ever since she moved into the Jing household at thirteen, she was captivated the first time she saw Jing Nuo. He was seventeen then—a beautiful youth. To get closer to him, she chose the same school he attended, the same major, even followed his hobbies. All so she could be a match for him.