After flying to City B, retrieving the goods from the warehouse, and getting the RV, Lanling Yue arranged for Ah Hua and the others to go to the villa district. She also instructed them to capture the target, 'Yán Zihao,' and hold him in the villa until they could reunite.
Of course, this was announced in the group chat, so Shao Ziming was unaware. These individuals were Lanling Yue's confidantes, loyal servants since childhood, who only took orders from her. Therefore, she wasn't worried about her parents or uncle finding out.
She also gave them satellite phones, one for each person.
In this life, she would absolutely not allow anyone she cared about to suffer harm. Ah Hua and the others had died horribly in the previous life while saving her and her uncle. Especially Sister Ā Mǐ, a proud person who was reduced to a sex slave for her sake, eventually sold to an experimental base where she died tragically.
She owed them too much; let her be the one to protect them in this life.
After everything was settled, the two of them hurried back to City H. Shao Ziming was also busy with the tasks Lanling Yue had assigned him.
"Nian Nian, I want to upgrade the space in my watch. Is there any way to do that?"
"No."
"What about using gold to purchase it?"
"You can't. If it's not a growth type space, there's no way to upgrade or expand it."
"Then after the apocalypse, some people awakened spatial abilities. Are they growth type?"
"Master, you think too highly of them. As far as I know, there is only one space administrator in each world and dimension. In other words, there is only one growth type space, which is me, Nian Nian. All others are fixed spaces." Nian Nian said proudly. Otherwise, with so many administrators in one dimension, wouldn't it be chaos?
"Oh, okay." It wasn't her fault for being surprised and ignorant. After all, in her previous life, she was indeed a useless person, a nobody without any abilities. Otherwise, she wouldn't have lived a pathetic and miserable life.
"Yue'er, I've arranged everything. Let's go collect the last batch of goods first, and then we need to go home for the banquet. Our engagement banquet, are you ready?" Shao Ziming held her hand and gently asked her opinion.
"Okay, let's do as you say." Lanling Yue had also thought it through. Since she had to choose a husband in the future, she might as well choose someone she knew thoroughly to be with her. Moreover, her parents genuinely needed Shao Ziming by their side for now to help her look after the elders.
With him around, Lanling Yue was quite at ease. Shao Ziming understood the underlying reasons, and he had influence in City H and the capability to back it up. After all, he wasn't just a businessman; he was also the son of an official. After high school, he joined the army, where his family also held significant prestige. With their protection, she felt truly reassured.
After the Lunar New Year, the pandemic raged, and the government mandated home quarantines. Afterwards, there were natural and man-made disasters, fraught with danger. It wasn't suitable for her parents and uncle to stay by her side. Sending them here was a decision she had made after careful consideration.
"Yue'er, you agree? Am I understanding this correctly?" Shao Ziming couldn't believe it. He had expected the young woman to be angry or refuse. He had even prepared himself for the engagement to be called off and to face the elders' accusations and scolding together with her.
But who could tell him what had happened? His beloved girl had actually agreed to be with him. Did she even understand what an engagement meant?
"Mhm, Ming, the apocalypse is about to descend. Tomorrow night, some ability users will awaken, and from then on, the world will be plunged into chaos. While I may not be as deeply devoted as you, I will try my best. If you are uneasy, we can go to the Civil Affairs Bureau to register our marriage first, and then attend the banquet." Lanling Yue said very seriously to the man in front of her.
"Don't be too quick to say anything. I'm not doing this without ulterior motives either. I hope that after the apocalypse arrives, my family will be guaranteed protection under your name. If you don't like it, I'll find another way. I don't want to put pressure on you." Lanling Yue knew that such a marriage involved too much self-interest, which was unfair and despicable to him, but it was the best solution she could think of.
"I am willing, and it is my honor to take care of my former family and the one I love. It's just that I want to know, do you love me even a little bit?" Shao Ziming was indeed moved when he heard about registering their marriage, but thinking that the young woman was only doing it for her family and didn't actually like him, he still felt a pang of unwillingness and a touch of disappointment.
He wished he could be with her regardless of everything else, to selfishly claim her person and her reputation. However, he loved her too much to force her to marry someone she didn't love.
"I love you, but I don't want you to spend your life with someone you don't love. That wouldn't be fair to you either. Don't worry about my parents; they were my family too, and I could never abandon them."
"I don't dislike your closeness, nor your touch, nor your intimacy.
I like the scent of you, I like the way you look at me with infatuation, I like your domineering attitude.
But I don't feel the heart-fluttering excitement from novels, nor the blushing and racing heart described in books.
So I don't know if this counts as affection. At least I've never been intimate with any other man." Lanling Yue was indeed a bit slow when it came to matters of the heart. She had thought about it carefully, even searching on Baidu, but still found no answers. Who can truly explain matters of love?
"Thank you, Yue'er. I'm very happy you could tell me this. Let's get married." He was so happy his heart couldn't contain itself. So his little woman liked him too. He heard it loud and clear.
This was enough. He didn't ask for much, as long as his woman had him in her heart. He believed she would surely fall in love with him.
"Okay, but did you bring your identification documents?" Lanling Yue had all her documents with her.
"I've had them with me all along. I've waited so long for this day." The man's heart was as excited and thrilled as a parched seedling receiving water.
"Yue'er, come here." The man patted his leg and pulled the woman sitting across from him.
Her petite body was instantly pulled into his embrace. His sturdy physique, combined with his handsome face and light blue eyes, made Lanling Yue blush just a little. Wow, a domineering CEO – that's her type!
"Yue'er, I'm so happy. You're finally mine." The man's dark eyes sparkled like stars, his stern demeanor becoming alluring due to his happiness.
"However, Yueyue, once you marry me, you can never regret it. I only have widows, no divorces."
"Mhm, as long as you don't regret it." Lanling Yue felt a little guilty. After all, she was planning to run away. Running away right after getting married, and to save another man, she wondered if he would be furious if he knew.
Looking at the young woman's bright, smiling eyes, he couldn't resist lowering his head and taking her breath away. The kiss was long, passionate, and no longer gentle. He had suppressed his feelings for a very, very long time. His fair skin was flushed red. He had waited for this day for more than ten years.
Should he be thankful for the arrival of the apocalypse, which brought her and her family to his side?