Rose Manor: Tycoon's Relentless Chase-Chapter 340 - 321: Marriage Not Permitted

Returning to their lodging, Shen Jianian was already fast asleep, her cheeks flushed a rosy hue, her body curled up softly in Fu Jichen’s embrace. Even when getting out of the car, she was carried by him.

Fu Jichen tossed the drunkard onto the bed and fetched a basin of water to clean her up. It was late July, the height of summer, and the night was still sweltering. After helping her freshen up, Fu Jichen broke into a sweat himself, but instead of rushing to shower, he stood by the window smoking.

Two days ago, he called Shen Jianian and learned that she would wrap up her shoot today. He hurried through his work progress to carve out some time to come and pick her up.

This place had no airport, so he had to take a car from the provincial capital, traveling for several hours. Yet, his physical fatigue vanished completely upon seeing her.

Seeing her, his heart could find peace.

He vowed never to let her be so far away, to be apart from him for so long again.

Fu Jichen contemplated, and suddenly smiled, realizing his vows were futile. If she truly wanted to continue acting, he couldn’t possibly restrain her from pursuing her adventures.

She’s still young and should experience a vibrant life.

After silently finishing a cigarette, Fu Jichen went to the bathroom to shower, then naturally pulled her into his arms as he lay down on the bed.

Shen Jianian woke up in the middle of the night, feeling hot, suspecting that the air conditioning had broken. She felt like she was lying in a furnace, her fingers moved slightly and they met with the man’s warm and firm chest, suddenly waking her up.

Panic-stricken, she turned on the room’s light, and upon seeing Fu Jichen’s handsome face, she exhaled a deep breath and ruffled her hair, remembering that Fu Jichen had come by during the dinner gathering.

Fu Jichen was awakened by the noise, squinting his eyes and asked, "What’s wrong?"

"Thirsty," Shen Jianian licked her lips.

"Wait a moment."

Fu Jichen got out of bed and fetched a glass of water from the water dispenser, bringing it to the bed for Shen Jianian to drink. She drank more than half the glass in one go, feeling a lot more refreshed.

"Sobered up?" Fu Jichen placed the glass on the bedside table and asked with a smile.

Shen Jianian smiled embarrassedly, aware that she wasn’t good with alcohol, but she never expected to get drunk on just two small cups of plum wine. Fortunately, he came in time, or she would have made a fool of herself in front of other actors.

"I won’t drink recklessly anymore." She promised.

Fu Jichen didn’t comment, lying beside her, turning off the light, plunging the room back into darkness.

Shen Jianian lay on her side, facing towards Fu Jichen, groping about a bit until her lips touched his. In the pitch-black night, Fu Jichen pursed his thin lips, his throat tightened: "What are you doing?"

"I’ve wrapped up the shoot, no need to film tomorrow." Shen Jianian tugged at the hem of his pajama shirt, speaking in a breathy voice.

Hearing this, Fu Jichen paused for a moment, a smile crept up at the corner of his lips, which she couldn’t see, and he deliberately teased her: "Yeah, so?"

Shen Jianian puffed her cheeks. Usually, he wasn’t this dull regarding such matters. Does he really not understand or is he pretending not to?

"Nothing." Shen Jianian turned her back to him, "I’m going to sleep."

In the next second after her words settled, Fu Jichen hooked her slender waist, drawing her into his embrace. Her back was pressed against his chest, and through two thin layers of fabric, she felt the heat of his body, no wonder she woke up from the warmth.

Fu Jichen lowered his head, his slightly heavy breathing all sprayed onto the nape of her neck, causing her to shiver.

"Shen Jianian, why are you so easily teased?" As he spoke, his thin lips brushed against her earlobe, "Just a little tease and you’re quitting, who does that?"

Shen Jianian’s heart raced, not knowing if it was from his teasing words or from anger.

"Is it fun to tease me like this?" She retorted defiantly.

Fu Jichen turned her over and kissed her, speaking unclearly between kisses: "It’s called playfulness, not teasing."

Shen Jianian cocked her head, dodging left and right, not letting him kiss her. Helplessly, Fu Jichen pinched her chin and kissed her fiercely on the lips: "Holding grudges like this?"

"I would call this playfulness, how could it be called holding grudges." Shen Jianian adeptly repurposed his words.

Fu Jichen laughed, his chest vibrating, hugging her tighter to prevent her from moving, their noses touching, tenderly rubbing against each other, his voice low and lazily nasal, yet slightly helpless: "You’re such a brat."

The two of them tussled for a while before finally releasing each other.

With no filming concerns, Shen Jianian was especially cooperative, causing Fu Jichen’s highly-prided self-control to gradually collapse, nearly driving him mad.

*

After a satisfying sleep, Shen Jianian didn’t wake up until nearly noon, her first reaction upon opening her eyes was panic about being late for filming, making her sit up abruptly, pulling at sore muscles, which caused her to gasp in pain, her brows and nose scrunched up.

Realizing afterward, she was finished with filming, no need to go to the set.

Shen Jianian let out a long sigh, relaxed her body, and lay back down on the bed. The feeling of extreme discomfort served as a reminder to her to be moderate in all things.

Not long after, Fu Jichen came in with breakfast—though lunch would have been a more fitting term.

After the two finished eating and rested for a while, Fu Jichen suggested taking a stroll nearby, which Shen Jianian rejected with a shake of her head; she just wanted to lie in bed and sleep.

Fu Jichen lay down with her to pass the time, seizing half a day of leisure in their otherwise busy lives.

The next day, the two took a car to the provincial capital and then flew back to Beicheng.

Qu Mo came to pick them up from the airport. As soon as Shen Jianian got into the car, she started sleeping and only realized after arriving that they were not at her residential area but at Fu Jichen’s villa in Yunding Palace.

"Jixiang is here," Fu Jichen explained the reason for bringing her over.

The car had just come to a stop when several dogs rushed over to greet them, barking and wagging their tails tirelessly, lifting their front paws, wanting to be hugged by their owners.

Shen Jianian calmed them one by one and brought them inside the house.

Fu Jichen received a phone call and lagged a step behind.

The call was from the landline at the old residence; he listened for a few sentences and promised, "I’ll go over right away."

After making sure Shen Jianian was settled in, Fu Jichen went to the old residence. With the lush vegetation of summer, the courtyard seemed even deeper, giving a sense of serenity with its winding paths.

Fu Jichen rushed into the main hall. Surprisingly, his second uncle, third uncle, and aunt were all there despite it not being a holiday, creating a scene reminiscent of a family tribunal.

Fu Jichen never feared not being able to handle a situation. He approached the old master with a calm expression and steady steps, nodding in greeting, "Grandpa, you called me back so urgently, what’s the matter?"

"Sit," the old master gestured with his chin toward a single-seater sofa nearby.

Fu Jichen sat down obediently and instinctively picked up the tea set on the coffee table to brew tea, pouring tea for everyone present.

The last time Fu Jianfang returned to the old residence, she talked about Fu Yuling in front of the old master and got a scolding that humiliated her into remaining quiet for quite some time.

Over a month ago, Fu Jichen held a press conference and publicly revealed his relationship online. Even she was startled when she saw the news. She wanted to embellish the story to tell the old master, but she remembered the last lesson and restrained herself from doing so.

The old master hadn’t known about this at all until today when he heard about it from somewhere and called her spontaneously to ask about Fu Jichen and that Shen Jianian.

Fu Jianfang thought to herself, this time, it’s not my doing; it was the old master who asked.

So she told the old master about the events that had been circulating online for some time.

The old master hadn’t gotten angry in a long time, but once angered, it was earth-shattering. He made several calls to summon everyone back to the old residence.

Fu Jichen had been on a plane earlier and was said to have gone to the place where that woman was filming, making him the last to arrive. This alone was enough to anger the old master.

Fu Jichen picked up the first cup of tea and placed it in front of the old master.

"Is that woman online really Shen Jianian? The same Shen Family’s daughter who used to follow you around?" The old master didn’t touch the tea, instead raising his eyebrow at Fu Jichen. "Tell me the truth in front of your uncles and aunt."

Fu Jichen placed the teapot on a round wicker mat, answering, "It’s her."

The old master spoke with a heart full of grief, "Is she the one you said you wanted to marry in front of me before?"

"Yes." Fu Jichen lowered his eyes, answering without a moment’s hesitation, "It has always been her, no one else. I plan to choose a date and register our marriage."

"Nonsense!" The old master’s expression changed abruptly, "You can marry any woman you want, except her. I do not consent!"

Fu Jichen did not relent, nor did he understand, "Why? You gave in before."

Fu Jianfang sipped her tea with a look of amusement, legs crossed. Fu Da was simply too stubborn, entangled with the same woman for so many years, the typical loss of reason over lust, and he even asked why the old master wouldn’t agree. It would be surprising if he did.

The old master looked at Fu Jichen, full of disappointment, staying silent for a long time.

Fu Jichen had previously mentioned to him that he wanted to marry a woman who was an actress from an ordinary family, but he liked her.

At the time, he didn’t show any obstruction because he took a casual stance on these matters and also because he was wary after losing hope in his own son, but it didn’t mean he would let Fu Jichen act recklessly.

If Fu Jichen had chosen another woman, even if her family conditions were average, he could have accepted it, at least proving Fu Jichen wasn’t walking into a dead end, which was a good thing.

But the fact that the woman was Shen Jianian gave the old master a sense of crisis. His most valued grandson was thoroughly entangled with this woman, acting so emotionally driven; how could he rest easy?

"No matter what you say, I do not consent to your marriage." The old master stubbornly declared, "I’ll leave it here. If you marry her, then today is the marriage, and tomorrow is your grandfather’s funeral!"