IMGH Chapter 20

Forced Marriage

Jiang Yi, out in the living room, tossed and turned just the same, unable to fall asleep.

He spent the entire night lost in random thoughts — when he opened his eyes, it was Qiu Rui; when he closed them, it was still Qiu Rui; even in his dreams, it was Qiu Rui.

Jiang Yi, who woke up punctually at seven in the morning, had dark circles under both eyes. He rubbed his throbbing forehead and sat blankly on the sofa, sinking into deep thought for a long while without being able to resolve the emotional problem that had plagued him all night.

A pleasant ringtone sounded, pulling Jiang Yi’s thoughts back to reality. Looking at the large flashing characters on the screen made his head ache even more. The ringtone rang persistently for a long time. Jiang Yi answered helplessly, and before he could even say a word, a deafening woman’s voice exploded through the receiver into his ear.

“You little brat, why did it take you so long to pick up?”

“Mom, why are you calling so early in the morning? I just woke up.”

“The sun is already high in the sky and you’re only just getting up. Oh right, what about that formation? Did it bring you a pretty girl?”

No pretty girl came — just a male ghost.

Jiang Yi glanced toward the bedroom and sighed silently. Under Xiao Wenya’s rapid-fire interrogation, he said helplessly, “Mom, that formation didn’t work at all. I took it down!”

“What!” Xiao Wenya’s voice shot up as she shouted, “You little brat! I told you again and again to wait a few more days — why are you so disobedient?”

If not for that formation, how would Qiu Rui’s soul have been drawn here.

If not for that formation, how would he have fallen for Qiu Rui.

He, a through-and-through straight man, had actually been bent by a formation.

Jiang Yi felt utterly stifled inside, yet couldn’t bring himself to tell his mother the truth. He said vaguely, “It was sitting in the living room getting in the way. I accidentally knocked it apart getting up in the middle of the night, so I just took it down.”

On the other end of the phone, Xiao Wenya was beside herself with frustration. She said through gritted teeth, “I knew you wouldn’t behave. Since the formation’s already gone, forget it — I’ll introduce you to a few good girls later.”

“Since you can’t find anyone on your own, you’d better just accept my arrangements!”

“Mom, you can’t just arrange marriages like that!”

“You’re saying — what? I’m telling you, you must get married by the end of this year at the latest, or I’ll make you regret it.”

“Mom, there’s only half a year left — where am I supposed to find you a daughter-in-law?”

“Since you can’t find one yourself, you’d better obediently go along with my plans!”

“Mom, you can’t just arrange a marriage like this!”

“If you had any drive at all, I wouldn’t want to go down this completely unromantic road of blind dates either. Alright, alright, it’s settled. Xuanxuan said she wants to come over for a meal — she’ll pick you up on the way. Hurry up and get yourself ready; I’d say she’ll be there soon!”

Xiao Wenya hung up without waiting for Jiang Yi to respond.

Jiang Yi had a belly full of grievances but could only keep them bottled up. As he rose from the sofa, he saw Qiu Rui half-leaning against the living room wall, watching him with an expression that was somewhere between a smirk and a smile.

Jiang Yi’s heart inexplicably lurched. He averted his gaze, not daring to look at Qiu Rui again.

Qiu Rui smiled and said, “What’s the matter? Your family is pressuring you into marriage?”

Jiang Yi nodded, his face full of resignation. “Yeah. It’s rough being an older bachelor.”

Qiu Rui rubbed his chin and looked at him. “You may be unreliable, a bit of an idiot, and have a terrible personality — but all things considered you’re not bad. Surely you haven’t been single this long without finding a girlfriend.”

Qiu Rui’s words were laced with teasing. Jiang Yi looked at him with a long face. “I say, Rui’er — what exactly do you mean by that?”

Qiu Rui blinked with an air of innocence. “I was comforting you. And yet you won’t even appreciate it.”

“You call that comforting me? You’re twisting the knife while I’m already down!” Jiang Yi ducked into the bathroom and stopped paying Qiu Rui any attention.

Qiu Rui stood in the living room, gazing at the silhouette printed on the frosted glass, quietly lost in thought.

….

Jiang Yi’s face was still wet — he hadn’t even had time to dry it — when a thunderous pounding on the door sent him rushing out of the bathroom. He pulled open the front door to find a stylish young woman standing outside in a spaghetti-strap top and denim shorts, exposing a large expanse of fair skin. She took off her sunglasses and shot Jiang Yi a sharp look. “What took you so long to open the door — were you jerking off?”