Chapter 13 False Shows

"Money, money, money! All you care about is money. Is money really that important to you?"

Seeing that the bank card she had carelessly tossed onto the coffee table had actually been picked up by Chen Yan, Liu Ruyan immediately blew her top.

"What? Money isn't important? If money wasn't important, would you have married me?"

After reading the entire diary left behind by Chen Yan, Chen Yan actually had a general understanding of this woman, Liu Ruyan.

Originally, Liu Ruyan had a man she liked, but for the sake of the CEO position of the Liu Group, she had no choice but to marry Chen Yan.

Because if she wanted to take that position, she had to find a matrilocal son-in-law. This wasn't about favoring men over women; it was just common sense—no one wanted the business they worked so hard to build to be split off by someone with a different surname.

Yet, Liu Ruyan happened to be the most capable and talented individual among the younger generation of the Liu family.

To ensure that the Liu Group would still belong entirely to the Liu family after the elders passed away, having Liu Ruyan take a matrilocal son-in-law was the only option.

"You! What do you know about my business?!"

Having her secrets ruthlessly exposed by Chen Yan, Liu Ruyan's pretty face flushed red, and her eyes flickered with panic. However, to save face, she kept a stiff expression.

"Heh. You have the nerve to lecture me. You talk about benevolence and morality all the time, but I think you really see yourself as some kind of saint, don't you?"

"Liu Ruyan, let me tell you, I am not Chen Yan. Put away that sham of 'unrequited love' of yours; it's honestly pathetic."

However, Chen Yan completely ignored Liu Ruyan's livid expression.

"A sham? You're calling me a sham?!"

At those words, the emotions Liu Ruyan had managed to calm with great difficulty surged like a tidal wave once again; she was losing it.

She didn't even realize that she had lost her cool several times today because of Chen Yan.

"What else would it be? Stop with this bullshit romantic tragedy about unrequited love. You clearly just want the money! Why didn't you choose the person you love? Instead, you registered a marriage with me?"

After buckling his seatbelt, Chen Yan spat out the words with a look of disdain.

"You bastard!!!"

Having her deepest secrets exposed again and again by Chen Yan, Liu Ruyan flew into a rage and swung a slap at him in desperation.

Unsurprisingly, Chen Yan easily caught her wrist.

"What? Embarrassed because I saw through you? Admit it, Liu Ruyan, you're not someone who pursues love. You're here for the money, for the Liu family's massive estate. As for that 'unrequited love,' it's just a persona you created to comfort yourself for giving up love for wealth and the family business."

The more Chen Yan spoke, the brighter the expression on his face became.

"In fact, we're the same kind of person. The only difference is that you gave up the person you love for money, while I'm just here working for money."

Due to vested interests, others might follow the principle of 'seeing the truth but not speaking it' to avoid trouble, but Chen Yan didn't care about any of that.

All that 'unrequited love' and 'having no choice' bullshit was fake.

So what was real? The truth was that you, Liu Ruyan, gave up your beloved man and gave up on love for this massive family estate. If you really liked him, if you really loved him, why didn't you just give up your inheritance and go live with him?

Instead, you brought in a matrilocal son-in-law?

To put it bluntly, it's all for money. Everyone knows how it is, so why act so devoted?

Chen Yan saw through it all clearly and had no intention of coddling her.

As his voice trailed off, Liu Ruyan's beautiful face turned pale and then flushed; she remained silent for a long time.

Seeing this, Chen Yan suddenly had a wicked thought: if he crossed her boundaries even further, would she kick him out of the car?

If that really happened, wouldn't that be great?

Glancing at Liu Ruyan's waist, he noticed she wasn't wearing her seatbelt. An idea immediately popped into his head.

Seizing the moment while Liu Ruyan was distracted, he suddenly exerted force with his right hand and pulled her out of her seat.

"Ah..."

The sudden movement startled Liu Ruyan, and she couldn't help but cry out.

By the time she snapped out of it, she was already being held in Chen Yan's arms.

"Chen Yan, what are you doing?! Let me go!"

Although Liu Ruyan's heart belonged to someone else, she had always maintained a proper distance from him. This was her first time in such close contact with the opposite sex. The strong masculine scent overwhelmed her, making her feel a bit weak in the knees.

Because of this, her originally harsh words now sounded soft and delicate. To Chen Yan's ears, it was no different from flirting.

"I won't. Go ahead and hit me, hit me then."

A wicked grin appeared on Chen Yan's face, and then he made a very bold move.

"You... mmm..."

Hearing this, Liu Ruyan was about to start scolding him, but she didn't expect a heavy breath to approach before her lips were completely sealed.

Liu Ruyan's eyes instantly widened like copper bells; she clearly hadn't expected Chen Yan to be so daring.

Just as she was about to resist, she felt Chen Yan's arms, like iron pincers, firmly pinning her own arms down, leaving her unable to react.

It took a while before Liu Ruyan, feeling like she was about to run out of breath, finally snapped back to reality.

But in the next second, her brow furrowed, and she bit down hard with her teeth.

"Ow, holy shit!"

Stung by the pain, Chen Yan instantly snapped out of it. His hands instinctively let go, but the faint taste of blood appeared on the tip of his tongue.

"You bastard!!!"

Feeling the restraint on her hands vanish, Liu Ruyan shoved Chen Yan away and immediately swung a slap.

"Slap!"

Chen Yan's handsome face took a solid slap. However, Liu Ruyan's hand was soft and delicate; that level of force felt like nothing on Chen Yan's thick-skinned cheek.

"Shit... Liu Ruyan... are you a fucking dog or something?"

As they separated, Chen Yan ran his tongue over his lips. The warm, stinging sensation prompted him to grumble.

"You!!! You deserved it!!! Who told you to stick your tongue out? I should have bitten your tongue right off!"

Liu Ruyan glared fiercely at Chen Yan and quickly sat back in her seat, speaking with indignation.

This bastard, this son of a bitch—it was bad enough that he took advantage of her, but he actually dared to stick his tongue out while she was off guard. She should have bitten down just now and bitten his tongue clean off.

"Oh, so I stuck my tongue out, and that's why I deserved it?"

Chen Yan's mind was sharp, and he immediately caught the loophole in Liu Ruyan's words.

"Does that mean if I didn't stick my tongue out, you would've let me continue... hehehe."

However, in the face of Liu Ruyan's powerless shouting, Chen Yan looked incredibly smug, rubbing his fingers together as he spoke.

Seeing that look, Liu Ruyan wished she could give him a couple of hard slaps.

This son of a bitch was truly despicable.

Liu Ruyan was trembling with rage, her chest heaving violently. Her usually frost-cold eyes now looked as if they were about to spit fire.

"You... you shameless scoundrel!"

She squeezed the words out through gritted teeth, her voice trembling visibly. It was unclear whether it was from anger or from being unsettled by that sudden kiss.

Chen Yan licked the residual blood from the corner of his mouth, his smug grin widening. "Shameless? Eldest Miss Liu, we are a legally married couple. How is it shameless for a husband and wife to do what husbands and wives do?"

"You!!!"

Liu Ruyan was left speechless, able only to glare fiercely at the man before her, who exuded an air of roguishness from head to toe.

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