Li Yaru froze, her delicate face gradually draining of color.
His meaning was clear and unmistakable. She would never be free from his control for her entire life— in fact, it would be even worse: from girlfriend to mistress.
If she had known this from the start, she never would have provoked this bastard!
“Why?” Li Yaru clenched her fists silently. “This is an unfair clause. I never sold myself.”
“You should have known it was an unfair clause the moment you pitifully came knocking that night,” Zhuang Qiting said gently, his handsome features softened with a tender hue.
But unfortunately, no matter how much this kind of man played up his appearance or sprayed on gentlemanly perfume, it could never cover the dominance buried in his bones.
Pretending to be gentle only made people shiver with both fear and apprehension.
Li Yaru bit her lip and shot him a resentful glance. Seeing his calm demeanor only made her angrier—she knew now that money from the Zhuang family wasn’t easy to come by; it was basically a contract to sell herself.
“I’ll pay you back,” Li Yaru said through the pain.
Zhuang Qiting smirked. This little beast was stubborn— getting her to pay up wouldn’t be easy.
He was already tempted to tease her. “Fine, pay me back. Return the deed to the restaurant as well, and from now on, Wangzhen Restaurant will be a Zhuang family asset. When you come to eat, I’ll give you a 20% discount.”
Li Yaru finally couldn’t hold back. Like a cat with its tail stepped on, she flared up and jumped to her feet. “If you dare touch my restaurant, I’ll fight you! You’re always controlling me, bossing me around, and now you want to eat and take! You ruthless bastard who never leaves the bones after devouring the meat!”
“I’ve told you many times, Arou, don’t swear, and don’t call me names.”
Zhuang Qiting’s aura turned icy as he flipped her over and gave her a slap on the buttocks. The enclosed space made the slap’s force palpable.
She trembled as if frozen, no need to guess that a flush of pink rose over the tender skin.
Usually, he was gentle when spanking her— light taps, playful teasing. But this slap was given with a solid force.
He knew his strength well enough to break a grown man’s wrist with his bare hands.
Li Yaru yelped in pain and indignation. “Bastard—”
“Say one more word, and I’ll keep going. Let’s see if your ass is tougher or my hand.”
“……………”
Her eyes misted over, and since she couldn’t overpower his thick legs, she immediately closed her mouth.
Zhuang Qiting saw her anger and silence and smiled helplessly. He really felt like he was raising a wild daughter, not marrying a wife.
He wondered when this mischievous little thing would finally grow up.
Zhuang Qiting sighed, then thought: if someday he could have a daughter as lively and adorable as her, how happy his life would be.
But such a daughter would have to be well educated— no more calling him a bastard like her mommy.
“Does your butt hurt?” Zhuang Qiting moved her hand aside and touched the spot.
His palm was broad and warm; the massage felt especially soothing.
Li Yaru suppressed a cat-like whimper, still wearing a displeased expression.
After a few quiet moments, she said, “My future wife is also going to have it rough—not only controlled by me but spanked by me too. They say being a Madam of a Wealthy Family is no picnic, and that’s true.”
Her tone was unusually calm, but only she knew the bitter waves swelling deep inside.
He would marry, have other women, buy those women beautiful dresses, jewelry, and bags, share his bed with them in every way, but he would also lean down to kiss his future wife and give her pleasure.
The worst part was, even after marrying, he wouldn’t let her go.
Thinking this, Li Yaru felt he was nothing special. Like other rich men, just a filthy lustful bastard with a handsome golden shell.
Zhuang Qiting paused for a moment but continued rubbing, his thin eyelids lowered, expression unreadable. “Wife and mistress are different. I definitely won’t treat her the same way.”
Li Yaru hesitated, unsure what he meant. “What do you mean?”
“Wife is a treasure. I pamper her, spoil her, love her— I’d never truly spank her hard. Mistress is different. I do whatever I want with her. You don’t really think I’m nice to some outside woman, do you?” His voice was deep and sexy, eyes half-closed as he studied her, not missing a single subtle expression.
Sure enough, a strange emotion flickered across her face so quickly that if he wasn’t extremely perceptive, he’d have missed it.
“…I won’t be your mistress,” she said firmly.
“That’s not up to you. It’s your choice,” he said.
“My future wife won’t allow me to look for women outside. I won’t disrespect her.”
Zhuang Qiting raised an eyebrow disdainfully. “In this world, no one dares be my master.”
Li Yaru’s eyes darkened as she lowered her chin, remaining silent for a long, long time. Zhuang Qiting didn’t know what she was thinking but waited patiently.
He was always a confident and skilled hunter, both in business and in love. If Li Yaru weren’t so stubborn, his pursuit would be much smoother.
After about five minutes, she finally let out a trembling breath, her eyelashes fluttering. “Fine, I’ll marry you. But you can’t control me, bully me, or make me clean up your mess. You have to treat me well, treat my family well, spoil me, spend money on me, and you’re not allowed to have a mistress. Everything has to prioritize me, and no matter how bad our tempers, neither of us can lose our cool.”
The list was too long, as if she was bargaining with him inch by inch, never giving an inch.
Zhuang Qiting pinched her chin with two fingers, lifting her head. Her drooping eyes had a hint of dimness.
That dimness unsettled him. She looked like a little wife forced to submit to a bully.
Marrying him wasn’t a life-or-death ordeal— there was endless money, countless jewels, the most luxurious, comfortable, and leisurely life in the world.
He would spoil her until every socialite and Madam in Hong Kong Island envied her.
He would give her wealth and power, be faithful to her alone, treat her well, love their children. Wasn’t that enough to make her marry him with joy?
Why would she prefer someone skinny, refined, and useless? Judging by looks alone, he thought he was far superior.
Zhuang Qiting couldn’t understand. For the first time in a long while, he felt lost. He instinctively rubbed her soft lips with his finger.
“Baby, who gave—”
Li Yaru was full of resentment. This man was so hard to please!
She pulled her hand away unhappily, forbidding him to touch her. “What’s wrong with making some demands? I already agreed to marry you. What else do you want?”
And yet she still dared to complain about him.
Zhuang Qiting gave her a cold glance, determined to teach her a lesson; otherwise, after marriage, who knew how spoiled she’d get— maybe she’d start bossing him around shamelessly.
“Get down first,” he suddenly ordered.
Li Yaru responded with an “Oh” and slowly climbed down from his lap.
Zhuang Qiting straightened his creased suit pants and pocketed the watch box that had been left in the glove compartment. “Tonight, I’m only eating with you.” He opened the car door and strode out.
Li Yaru quickly opened the other door and hurried after him, not forgetting to say, “Even if we get married, you still have to pay when you come to the restaurant.”
Zhuang Qiting shot her a cold look.
The driver and Housekeeper Li Guanjia, chatting on the street corner, noticed their two masters had gotten out and quickly followed.
The group entered Wangzhen Restaurant.
Li Yaru arranged for a private room. It was the weekend, and guests poured in continuously.
More than thirty tables in the main hall were fully occupied, with men’s loud chatter, women’s laughter, children’s shouting, mingling with the aroma of various dishes and wine, filling the air with a rich, bustling street-market vibe. Waiters hurried back and forth, busy without pause.
The private room was much quieter but couldn’t fully block out the noise. Zhuang Qiting removed his suit jacket, rolled up his shirt sleeves, and sat with impeccable posture— exuding an elegant charm that sharply contrasted with the occasional raucous sounds outside.
His face was undeniably handsome— sharp jawline and features, masculine build even sexier than a movie star’s. Yet his stern aura made people overlook his looks, sensing danger and difficulty instead.
When the new waiter brought the menu, her heart nearly skipped a beat.
Zhuang Qiting flipped through the menu, his long fingers lightly brushing the hard cover’s edge. Li Yaru was getting hungry and urged him to decide faster, mentioning she wanted the crab roe vermicelli casserole.
“I’ll have the Liu Jin Imperial Banquet,” he said, pointing to the last page with his deep, sexy voice.
Li Yaru and the waiter froze.
Restaurants on Hong Kong Island all offer various banquet sets for guests to choose from when entertaining, with prices ending in lucky numbers.
Cheap ones cost 888, expensive ones have no upper limit— 80,000, 180,000 and so forth. Since Wangzhen Restaurant opened, no guest had ever ordered the full banquet.
The price alone— 880,000 per table— was jaw-dropping.
Eight main dishes and eight side dishes, each complex and difficult to make, only Lirongliang could handle it.
Although the 880,000 price tag was tempting, Li Yaru still thought Zhuang Qiting had lost his mind— who eats banquets late at night? It’s just torturing people.
She leaned closer and gently tugged on his suit pants. “What are you doing? There are just two of us. Can we finish this? It’s too expensive, and even if you have money, you can’t waste it like this.”
Zhuang Qiting chuckled, waving away the people standing around. He leisurely explained, “I saw it on the menu, so I ordered it. Arou, isn’t your restaurant for making money? I’m ordering the most expensive banquet to support you. Don’t you like it?”
Li Yaru’s lips parted slightly. “But only my dad can make the dishes in this banquet…”
“I see it says the Li family heir personally cooks. Isn’t that you now, Arou? Why don’t you cook it yourself?”
Her? That would exhaust her! This banquet takes at least four hours to prepare!
It’s hot today, and even with two air conditioners in the kitchen, it’s like a giant steamer full of heavy oil smoke and stinky sweat.
Staying inside is like a sauna, and she hated going into the kitchen the most.
Li Yaru stared at him wide-eyed, finally sensing something odd. “Zhuang Qiting, what do you mean…”
She didn’t call him ‘Zhuang’ anymore— subconsciously thinking since she was about to marry him, she shouldn’t use his surname first.