Chapter 449: Chapter 449
Song Qiao looked up at him, her gaze inexplicably dazed. As she looked at his handsome face, she felt an overwhelming sense of estrangement. It took her a long while to respond, and she said with a cool smile, "What? You want to marry me? Didn’t you hear what that person said earlier? My parents killed your foster parents..."
Before Song Qiao could finish her sentence, she suddenly froze, staring dumbfounded at the man’s actions. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel[f]ire.net
Lu Jingchen disregarded her words, seemingly not paying attention to anyone else’s either, and slipped the ring he had been holding onto Song Qiao’s ring finger. Then he extended his own hand with a slight frown as a reminder, "Help me put it on."
Murong Rui’s face changed drastically upon witnessing this, and she called out sharply, "Brother Jingchen, how could you..."
Song Qiao didn’t move; she seemed to be unable to comprehend Lu Jingchen’s actions. It wasn’t just Song Qiao who didn’t understand; Ning Wan, who had been supporting Song Qiao, didn’t understand either. The two best friends just stood there looking at Lu Jingchen, without any reaction.
Song Qiao simply didn’t understand; logically speaking, as the daughter of the murderers who killed Lu Jingchen’s foster parents, could he truly want to marry her, or did he want to marry her to get something from her?
But she had nothing, not a single thing he could take from her; all she had left was herself.
But hadn’t he already taken her, herself?
Seeing that Song Qiao had no reaction, Lu Jingchen’s brows knitted together, and he spoke again, reminding her, "Help me put on the ring."
Song Qiao’s hand holding the ring clenched tighter, the hard object pressing into her palm causing some pain, which slowly led her to react. She looked down at his distinctively boned hand, and after a long moment, just when everyone thought she wouldn’t put it on, she directly lifted the ring and placed it onto the man’s ring finger.
It was perhaps only at this moment that everyone began to react, and a round of enthusiastic applause erupted from below.
The situation had taken an unexpected turn for everyone present. After Murong Rui spoke those words, everyone, including Song Qiao, thought the wedding would definitely not be able to continue, that the two of them would surely not be able to get married today.
However, this man had made a choice that no one had anticipated.
But there were also those who wondered, what exactly did Lu Jingchen marry Song Qiao for?
As Murong Rui said, Lu Jingchen must have long known that Song Qiao’s parents were the murderers who killed his foster parents. Marrying the daughter of his foster parents’ killers, what was he really after?
Some bold people started to guess, perhaps Lu Jingchen married Song Qiao to torment her?
"Little Rui." After putting on the ring, Lu Jingchen turned his head towards Murong Rui and spoke word by word, each syllable clear, "No matter who killed your parents in the past, you only need to know that Song Qiao is innocent. She didn’t do anything."
Murong Rui’s complexion changed several times, turning pale and then flush; her hand involuntarily clenched into a fist by her side, and she said through clenched teeth, "But if it weren’t for her parents, my parents would never have died..."
Lu Jingchen’s eyebrows furrowed a bit, and after Murong Rui finished speaking, he slightly opened his thin lips. His deep voice, as always, was low and clear, "But Song Qiao is not at fault at all. She never knew about these things, and she couldn’t decide her own identity. She’s married to me now, and if you are willing to call her sister-in-law..."
"Impossible." Murong Rui interrupted Lu Jingchen before he could finish speaking, her tone aggressive, "Brother Jingchen, I would call anyone you marry my sister-in-law, but it will never be her. She doesn’t deserve to be my sister-in-law at all!!"
Song Qiao had no reaction; her face seemed to bear a smile, yet it didn’t seem so. Just standing there, supported by Ning Wan, today she was meant to be the most beautiful and happiest woman at the scene, but because of Murong Rui’s appearance, everything seemed to mock her.
She didn’t speak, just standing there listening to the exchange between Lu Jingchen and Murong Rui.
Lu Jingchen seemed disinclined to continue arguing with Murong Rui. He turned his head to look at Song Qiao, but upon seeing her pale face, he almost imperceptibly frowned and stepped forward to bend down and suddenly picked her up horizontally, his movements seamless. Ning Wan didn’t even have time to react before Song Qiao was being carried away by Lu Jingchen.
"My wife is feeling a little unwell, I apologize, but we must take our leave for now," said Lu Jingchen, maintaining a composed demeanor as he addressed the guests, then his eyes indicated to Assistant Xue, instructing him to handle the rest of the matters.
Assistant Xue, standing among the guests, received his Boss’s instructions and seemed to snap back to reality, as everything that happened today was too unexpected for all. Even he hadn’t reacted in time, but seeing his Boss’s actions, it seemed that the President and his wife must be true love.
Lu Jingchen directly picked up Song Qiao and left, and upon seeing this, Ning Wan wanted to chase after them, but was grabbed by Xi Mohan, who had also stepped onto the stage.
Ning Wan turned around and glared at him, anger evident in her voice, "What are you doing? Let go!"
However, Xi Mohan didn’t reply but instead countered, "Where do you want to go?"
Struggling a few times without freeing herself from the man’s firm grip, Ning Wan hurriedly said, "Didn’t you see Qiaoqiao being taken away by Lu Jingchen? Isn’t it okay for me to follow and check if she’s fine?"
"Do you think it’s appropriate for you to follow them at this moment?" Xi Mohan’s expression remained unchanged, and even though his face still wore an indifferent look, his tone softened slightly, "With this kind of situation arising, they should be left alone to sort it out themselves. Why would you want to add to the chaos?"
Ning Wan was at a loss for words, yet she was still very worried about Song Qiao. What if Lu Jingchen did something to Song Qiao? And Qiaoqiao’s complexion didn’t seem too good, she was really afraid something would happen to her.
But what Xi Mohan said was not without reason. Lu Jingchen currently probably didn’t want to be disturbed, and Qiaoqiao probably also wanted to have a private talk with Lu Jingchen, right?
Seeing Ning Wan’s reaction, Xi Mohan knew his words had taken effect and directly said, "Come back with me."
Ning Wan frowned, extended her other hand to pry his off, and spoke in displeasure, "Xi Mohan, what are you doing? Let me go, I don’t want to go back with you, damn! If you don’t let go soon, I’ll start calling for help..."
However, the man showed no reaction at all, appearing as if he was totally unaffected by her threat, dragging her towards the stairs leading down the stage.
Everyone else was so caught up in Lu Jingchen and Song Qiao’s situation that they didn’t notice these two on stage. However, not far off in a corner, Ning Yan’er was seated, her gaze fixed on Xi Mohan and Ning Wan, her eyes seemingly poisoned.
After leaving the wedding venue, Lu Jingchen carried Song Qiao away from the hotel and back to the villa. Throughout, Song Qiao remained silent, as if she were soulless, her body simply being carried and embraced, and even as Lu Jingchen personally took off her wedding gown and removed her makeup, her face showed no expression.
In the bedroom, Song Qiao sat on the large bed. The bedroom was still the same as in the morning when Lu Jingchen’s wedding procession came to pick her up, with no changes. There were festive red decorations and the bed was scattered with peanuts and red dates. Song Qiao sat on top of those peanuts and red dates as if she didn’t sense any discomfort.
Lu Jingchen, now in home clothes, came out of the bathroom and saw Song Qiao sitting still on the bed, which inadvertently made him furrow his brow. He strode forward, kneeled on one knee on the bed, grasped her chin with his well-defined hand to lift her head, forcing her to meet his gaze, and without much thought, he lowered his head and gave her a light kiss on the lips, stopping as soon as it began.
Just as the man was about to speak, his hand, which was propped on the bed, felt pain as it pressed against the peanuts and red dates, causing him to frown and look down. He then noticed the peanuts and red dates strewn on the bed by the wedding company, which symbolized the wish for early childbirth.
Lu Jingchen’s expression changed, and he immediately picked up Song Qiao, glancing at the spot where she had been sitting and indeed found more of the peanuts and red dates.
Looking down at her with a hint of displeasure in his voice, he asked, "Doesn’t it hurt?"
Song Qiao didn’t speak or show any reaction, as if lost in her own world.
This feeling caused Lu Jingchen to feel an unparalleled panic, as if something was gradually slipping away from his control. He placed her on the tatami mat in the room without leaving immediately, but instead, he embraced her in his arms in a fluid motion.
Looking down quietly at her delicate face, while the bridal makeup made Song Qiao very beautiful, her bare face was no different. On closer inspection, it was as if she were in a daze.
The man’s hand gripped her chin, and then his lips began to kiss her repeatedly, his voice carrying a deep and sexy tone, "Qiaoqiao, could you say something, please?"
It seemed like his words had somehow drawn a reaction from her, as Song Qiao seemingly snapped back to reality all of a sudden, instinctively turning her head to avoid his kiss and pushing him away, her voice filled with rising panic, "Don’t touch me..."
Lu Jingchen raised his hand to restrain hers, his brow furrowing as he spoke, "What were you just thinking about? Hm?"
In truth, he had felt that her mood was off, especially since Murong Rui disclosed those matters, her emotions had been quite disturbed. But now, seeing her react , made him feel as if his initial unease was a mere illusion.