Chapter 10: Of course I will cooperate

At the first sight of the ring, the composed smile on Shen Linyan's lips suddenly froze.

He shifted his gaze with an unreadable expression, moving it to the face of the girl standing in front of him.

Under the sunlight, her skin was translucent. Her brown eyes were clear and clean, rippling with a faint, gentle smile. The way they curved like crescent moons made her simply impossible to refuse.

He stared into those beautiful eyes for a moment before looking away. His Adam's apple bobbed slightly. It was hard to tell from his tone whether he was pleased or surprised. "You went home to get these?"

"Yeah!" What else would she go home for?

An Ling raised her eyebrows and hummed softly. She took out a men's wedding band, handed it to the man, and confirmed once more, "Hubby, you'll cooperate with me, right?"

Although their families' union was merely a marriage of convenience, it was still a marriage. Naturally, Shen Linyan wouldn't just go through the motions. He had arranged everything meticulously, ensuring An Ling received every bit of ceremony she deserved.

However, ever since buying the wedding rings, Shen Linyan hadn't seen them again. He had even long forgotten what they looked like.

He never expected to see them again in such a manner.

And brought to him by the wife who loved him the least, no less.

Under the girl's expectant gaze, Shen Linyan imperceptibly tilted his head, a very soft chuckle escaping his lips.

Interesting.

He could no longer guess what she was going to do next.

Before coming to the company, An Ling had already checked online: wedding rings are worn on the ring finger.

She excitedly waited for Shen Linyan to take his ring so she could put hers on.

But the next second, the box was taken from her hand.

An Ling froze. Before she could react, the pad of the man's thumb lightly brushed against her skin. His long fingers supported the palm of her hand, holding it up like a true gentleman.

The cold touch of the metal band spread from her fingertip, the diamond ring sparkling brilliantly under the lights.

The ring was slowly pushed onto her finger, its outer edge seemingly tainted with the lingering warmth of the man's fingertips.

From above came his gentle, low chuckle.

"I said, if my wife needs me, of course I will cooperate."

A shallow smile rippled in the man's eyes. His facial features were as picturesque as a landscape painting, his expression gentle, and the woody scent of pine on him subtly drifted into her nose.

An Ling stared blankly at the diamond ring on her hand.

That was totally unfair...

Her face flushed slightly. She coughed and subtly pulled away, "Thanks..."

She held up the men's wedding band in her hand and asked tentatively, "Should I put yours on for you, too?"

The man's eyes curved as he took the ring. "No need to trouble yourself, Miss An."

Fine then. Calling her 'wife' when putting the ring on her, and now switching back to 'Miss An'. He really had a strong sense of boundaries.

An Ling didn't mind. It was just putting on a ring, not a real wedding ceremony anyway.

After the ring was on, An Ling turned to take out her phone, completely unaware that the man behind her had his eyes fixed on her. His gaze was quietly evaluating, devoid of any trace of the previous tenderness.

Seeing the woman's perfectly normal expression, Shen Linyan casually withdrew his gaze and slowly slid on his own wedding band.

He thoughtfully picked up his porcelain cup and took a sip of tea, only realizing after swallowing that it had long gone cold.

He paused. Just as he was about to pour himself a fresh cup, the girl's earnest voice suddenly rang in his ears.

"Shen Linyan, can you hold my hand?"

"..."

His fingertips stiffened, then he curled his lips into a smile and set the teacup down.

"I can. How do you want me to hold it?"

An Ling obediently extended her hand. "Just hold my wrist and make sure the rings are showing. I'm going to take a picture and post it."

Shen Linyan had never done anything like this before. His movements were uncharacteristically hesitant. His long fingers loosely hovered over her wrist, keeping a slight distance without actually touching her.

Little did he expect that this gentlemanly gesture would only earn his little wife's dissatisfaction.

"Don't do it like that. Just grab it directly. People will be able to tell it's fake. It's fine, just bear with it for a second, it'll be over quickly."

"..."

He should bear with it?

Shen Linyan lifted his eyelids with an unreadable expression, his long fingers slowly wrapping around the woman's slender wrist.

As their warm skin touched, both of them paused.

The woman's skin was delicate and smooth, like a piece of fine, warm mutton-fat jade. It was soft to the touch, feeling as though even the slightest pressure would leave a mark.

He subconsciously loosened his grip, ignoring the strange feeling in his chest. He silently looked away and used his other hand to pick up the cold teacup, taking a few sips.

Meanwhile, An Ling, holding her phone, also felt a bit unnatural.

The man's palm was warm, the pads of his fingers bearing a very faint layer of calluses. His grip was light, and the touch of his palm was neither too hot nor too cold.

She silently raised her phone and took the picture.

"Done."

As soon as she spoke, both withdrew their hands, each lost in their own thoughts. They exchanged a glance before tacitly looking away.

An Ling picked up her bag and stood up, the warmth of the man's palm seeming to linger on the back of her hand. "You get back to work then, I'll head home first. I'll post the photo online along with the clarification in a bit."

Shen Linyan glanced at the empty square box on the desk, then casually looked away, giving a soft "Mm."

After the woman left, he leaned back in his chair and remained silent for a long while. He raised his hand, staring at the wedding band on his finger, his pitch-black eyes hiding whatever he was thinking.

"Knock, knock, knock—"

Secretary Chen's voice sounded from outside the door. "Chairman Shen."

"Come in."

As soon as Secretary Chen pushed the door open, he saw the man leaning against the sofa, staring blankly at his hand.

Before he could figure out what was going on, Shen Linyan had already lowered his hand. "Did you find anything?"

Secretary Chen bowed and handed over the file in his hand, saying hesitantly, "We found out that the young madam borrowed the driver's phone today to call a woman. The other party is an old friend of hers. Besides that, the only other call was from the young madam's brother."

Shen Linyan paused. He took the file and flipped through it. "No Lu Jingshen?"

"No. Today the madam only saw that friend of hers. Chairman Shen, do you think the An family has noticed something..." Secretary Chen's voice came to a sudden halt when he saw the ring on the man's finger.

His eyes widened as he stared at the wedding band in astonishment.

Huh?? Was that ring there before?

But before he could look closer, Shen Linyan set the file down. "Stop the investigation for now. You may leave."

"Yes, sir."

Secretary Chen closed the door on his way out. He returned to the office area, still not recovered from the shock, when a colleague nearby suddenly let out a gasp.

"Holy crap!!"

He jumped, nearly dropping the file. "What are you doing? You scared me half to death yelling like that."

The colleague held up their phone in shock.

"Secretary Chen, did you see the clarification the young madam just posted?"

"What clarification? She already posted it?" Secretary Chen took the phone to look. When he saw the contents clearly, his face instantly froze.

He saw that five minutes ago, An Ling had made a post on social media.

[My husband and I are very much in love. Thank you all for your concern. Please don't believe or spread rumors.]

The accompanying picture showed two hands wearing wedding rings. The man was holding the woman's hand, the veins on the back of his large hand slightly bulging, giving off an invisible sense of security. The intimate posture allowed people to feel the romantic atmosphere even through the screen.

Looking at the comment section, the tide was already beginning to turn.

Everyone's attention was captivated by this photo; who still remembered last night's news?

[I knew it was fake. How could anyone throw away the status of Mrs. Shen just to seduce that second young master.]

[Holy crap! What a massive rock! So sparkly!]

[Is no one going to talk about how gorgeous Chairman Shen and Mrs. Shen's hands are? As someone obsessed with nice hands, I am extremely satisfied!! I am drooling over them!]

Secretary Chen was stunned speechless, looking at the colleague beside him.

"Are these... Chairman Shen's hands? When was this taken?"

A lightbulb suddenly went off in his head. He immediately thought of the wedding ring he had just seen in the office and muttered in disbelief, "Unbelievable."

He had truly underestimated the Young Madam.