Chapter 2 The Engagement Ceremony Of Her Husband


    It all began in a magnificent vi. The roof was covered with a thinyer of snow, and the gently floating


    snowkes made it look all the more charming and beautiful. This was the main house of the Leng


    Family.


    The Leng Group had been prosperous for over twenty years now. However, ever since they had lost


    two of their family members in a row, they weren''t as sessful as they used to be. Management


    became hard, and for some time they were only making enough to make sure that thepany didn''t


    die out. Despite this, the Leng Family still remained to be one of the most powerful households in J


    City.


    On that snowy day, Kelley was inside the grand vi, kneeling on the ground as she wiped the marble


    floors. There was no way she could use a vacuum cleaner or even a mop to clean the rooms in the


    vi. The only thing she could use was this small piece of cloth. This was a task she had to do every


    single week.


    Almost mechanically, Kelley would rinse off the rag in a bucket of water, lift it up, wring it out, and wipe


    the floor. Since it was wintertime, the water in the bucket was almost as cold as the snow outside.


    During times like this, her hands grew incredibly numb. It was a lot more difficult to do tasks like this as


    she could barely move her fingers from how cold they were. The only thing that was warming her up


    was how much she moved her arms across the floor as she tirelessly tried to clean it.


    As Kelley did this, she couldn''t help but count how many rooms there were left for her to clean up. The


    house was much too big and had way too many rooms. It was her intention to finish this task as soon


    as possible so that she could still work part-time at a store downtown. Since it was almost Christmas,


    most people were doing a lot of shopping. The more items she sold, the more money she would have


    for her expenses.


    An hour before noon, Kelley walked out of the vi and let out a tired sigh. Just when she was about to


    walk to the nearby bus stop, a woman gingerly approached her. She was wearing a fluffy hat on her


    head and had a digital camera in her hand. "Excuse me. Is this the vi of the Leng Family?" she asked


    as she stood on her toes, trying to get a better look in between the grills of the gate.


    "Yes," Kelley replied in a trembling voice as she rubbed her hands together to warm them. "Who are


    you looking for?" A slight breeze blew, but it was enough to send a chill right down to her bone. The


    thin, velvet jacket she was wearing was not enough in this kind of weather.


    The woman smiled politely. "Oh, I''m a reporter from the Daily Newspaper of J City. I''ve heard that Mr.


    Henry of the Leng Group just got engaged today. I''m here to interview him for a special segment."


    Then, she paused to cast another nce inside. "Why is it so quiet in there? Isn''t the engagement


    ceremony being held here?"


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    ''Mr. Henry is getting engaged today?'' Kelley thought in surprise. All of a sudden, she burst into


    laughter. She couldn''t help but feel how silly she was for thinking that she would have a chance with a


    man like him. Henry was like a god high up in the sky, whereas she was a nobody, a mundane girl who


    was struggling to survive. It was impossible to think that she would ever end up with a guy like him.


    It was four years ago when she had first seen and fallen in love with Henry. She had just turned


    eighteen at that time. It was really nothing more than a strong infatuation as she knew in her heart that


    it would never be meant to be.


    Just when the reporter was about to ask why Kelley wasughing, her phone suddenly rang. After


    answering the call, she started to apologize profusely, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment. When


    the call ended, the reporter sighed heavily. "What bad luck! I thought that the engagement ceremony


    was going to be held here. Turns out it''s happening right now at the Imperial Hotel. I don''t know if I''ll


    still be able to make it on time."


    Hearing this, Kelley came back to her senses. "Well, you need to get there even if it''s already a bitte.


    Besides, you have a report to do! I''ll evene with you if you like."


    The reporter took a look at Kelley, and thought for a while. "Okay, my car is over there. Let''s go!"


    The Imperial Hotel was one of the most prestigious ces in J City. Only the highest ranking officials or


    rich businessmen could afford to stay a night there, let alone hold an event.


    Kelley, however, wasn''t in the mood to appreciate the magnificent hotel. All she wanted to do was catch


    a glimpse of Henry.


    He was the only eligible heir to the Leng Group. When he was only two years old, he had been


    completely shut off from the public eye. There had been no news of him for nearly 20 years. And now,


    he had suddenly reappeared, and was engaged to the daughter of the Shen Family. All of the major


    media outlets came to cover his story.


    After a few minutes of aimlessly wandering around, Kelley managed to find a less crowded corner. With


    her back to the wall, she stood on her toes and tried to spot where Henry was. It was easy enough as


    there was a crowd of people surrounding him. On top of that, it was easy enough for Kelley to


    recognize his handsome face.


    As usual, Henry was wearing a dark, silk suit. Even though this was a formal event, he wore his clothes


    casually -- there wasn''t a tie around his neck and the top two buttons of his shirt were opened, slightly


    revealing his strong chest.


    A faint, dismissive smile constantly yed across his lips as he faced the wave of reporters, their


    cameras'' shes shining brightly on his face.


    Kelley was much too far away to hear a word of what he was saying. After some time, her eyes


    wandered to Henry''s side. There, she saw the woman who was standing closely beside him. The


    woman was wearing a red dress, a flock of birds beautifully embroidered at the hem. It was Anne Shen,


    the famous actress. Seeing her, Kelley couldn''t help but think how beautiful she was in person.


    The two of them were a perfect match. With all the guests talking nothing but praise about the engaged


    couple, Kelley couldn''t bear to stay any longer. She turned around angrily, intending to leave. However,


    she unfortunately toppled over the potted nt beside her, and crashed down with a loud bang. Her


    inconspicuous corner suddenly became the focus of the whole party.


    Looking over, Henry managed to catch a glimpse of the embarrassed woman leaving in a hurry. The


    faint smile on his lips slowly faded away, and a sharp coldness surfaced in his eyes.


    As soon as she managed to step out of the hotel, Kelley panted hard, trying to catch her breath. Her


    heart ached at the sight of Henry and Anne Shen together, but at least she got to see him again. That


    day, instead of showing up for her part-time job, Kelley decided toe back to school. Even though


    the school wasn''t that special, it still meant a lot if she could graduate. Besides, she was already a


    senior, and would graduate from the university in June next year.


    After returning to the dormitory, Kelley fell on the bed tiredly. She pulled the thin nket over her to


    warm up her shivering body. There was nothing she could use to warm up her cold heart, however. Out


    of nowhere, Kelley startedughing to herself bitterly. ''Is there anyone else in this world who''s more


    ridiculous than I am right now?'' she thought to herself. Tears started to roll down her eyes as she


    relentlessly bit on her lower lip.


    The year Henry was born, his father and only brother had died. Feeling helpless, the matron of the


    Leng Family went to a fortune teller to seek for any sort of help. The fortune teller then said that the


    child''s life was much too hard, and so his brother and father had to be implicated. If they did not want


    any of the other family members to suffer, he needed to be married to a girl who had a hard life as well.


    More than a yearter, an earthquake urred in a small vige in a hidden mountain area of H


    Country. All the people in the vige died except for a newborn baby girl. The fortune teller found out


    about this, and predicated that this girl was the one Henry was supposed to marry. As it went, their


    marriages had been arranged.


    It was so ridiculous and out of this world that it was hard to believe that it didn''te out of a movie.


    Ever since Kelley was a child, she was taken into the Leng Family. Not long after her arrival, Henry had


    been sent away, and they never saw each other again until she turned eighteen.


    That year, the matron of the Leng Family approached Kelley. "He had an examination," she exined


    to Kelley, not bothering to mention Henry''s name. "If he passed, he just mighte back alive. But if


    he failed, he will be nothing but a box of ashes. Please. Go see him for me."


    Of course, Kelley knew who she was talking about and went to see him willingly. That same night,


    Kelley was sent to an isted ind in the middle of the sea. Just when she was about to hop on a


    boat to get closer to the ind, her chaperone coughed awkwardly. "This is a restricted area," he said.


    "Anyone whoes here without permission will die. Go by yourself if you will."


    There was nothing else Kelley wanted more than to see what kind of person her husband-to-be was.


    And so, she went. Kelley steadily rowed the boat alone. As soon as shended on the ind,


    numerous guns were shooting right at her. In a moment of desperation, she tried to run away. Yet, the


    people shooting at her were all strong and adept foreign men. There was no chance for her to escape.


    At a crucial moment of life and death, she couldn''t help shouting, "Henry, help me! Henry!"


    Coincidentally, a woman in a ck uniform heard her cries for help. Holding her hand up, she ordered


    the men to stop shooting. Then, she walked over to Kelley, her brows raising in interest. "So you''re


    here for Henry," the woman barked coldly. "And who exactly are you?"


    "I''m his wife," Kelley stammered, still feeling rattled from all the gunfire directed towards her. After


    which, she looked closely at the blonde woman in front of her. "What is this ce? Who are you?"


    "I am the instructor in this training base. This is where we hone people who have the most advanced


    and promising talents in the new millennia. Since you''re already here, let''s go see Henry''s final


    examination. Hopefully you''ll still be able to see him alive."