Chapter 2: Cooperation

Chapter 2: Cooperation

Her strategy was to anticipate the plot. Even after reading only half the book, she had a general idea of the story.

Now that she’d fallen out with the male lead, there was no hope of winning over someone so deeply devoted and loyal. Liang Zeqian’s personality was vague, and she’d only gleaned fragments of his character from the author’s sparse descriptions.

She didn’t even have his phone number and was bored to death.

Fortunately, the first-class cabin on the boat offered plenty of food.

The journey was short, just over an hour. Shen Nanxi tidied her makeup in the mirror.

An overly striking face often wasn’t well-received, so before disembarking, she’d straightened her voluminous waves into sleek hair and swapped her usual crop tops and revealing clothes for simple jeans and a white T-shirt.

She wasn’t sure what type of woman the "wooden man" preferred, but ultimately, his preferences were entirely at the author’s whim.

Being pretty was enough.

After all, the engagement had just been called off; it wouldn’t do to appear too flashy. Even in casual attire, people might assume she was there to pick a fight.

Shen Nanxi specifically instructed Shen Hong to call Liang Furong half an hour after she left. She was to speak earnestly, emphasizing that the circulating rumors about the Liang family calling off the engagement were damaging to their reputation.

A counter-move!

Anyway, no one was saving face anymore.

In short, this son was unremarkable, making it easy to present the facts from both sides. Only Shen Nanxi knew from the book that Shen Hong’s business was on the verge of bankruptcy; no one else was aware.

After all, the male lead had plot armor. No matter how successful the Shen family’s business, it had to yield.

It was all part of the trope.

Liang Furong had several wives and wasn’t particularly concerned about his son marrying for life. After all, what man didn’t have a second or third wife? Since he had business in the gambling city, he agreed to let the two young people decide.

When Liang Zeqian was spoken to by his father, he wore a completely indifferent and unconcerned expression, seemingly unfazed by the broken engagement.

He simply did whatever his father told him to.

The Liang family still valued etiquette and had arranged for a driver to pick her up from the ferry pier in advance.

When the car stopped at the entrance to the house halfway up the mountain, the butler visibly paused. "Miss Shen?"

"I’m here to see Liang Zeqian," Shen Nanxi smiled, asking politely, "Is he home?"

The butler hesitated. "The Third Young Master is in the greenhouse, but..."

"Thank you." Without waiting for him to finish, Shen Nanxi strode through the hall toward the greenhouse, which she remembered from the book.

Behind her, she could hear the butler’s hurried footsteps and calls, but she ignored them.

*NPC, just stick to your line about the young master not having smiled in a long time.*

Pushing open the glass door of the greenhouse, humid air mixed with the scent of flowers rushed toward her.

Sunlight streamed through the glass ceiling, casting dappled light and shadow among the layers of green leaves.

Squinting, Shen Nanxi spotted a slender figure deep among the flowers.

Hearing the noise, the person turned around—it was Liang Zeqian.

He was wearing a simple white shirt today, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing well-defined forearms.

In his hand was a pair of pruning shears, and behind his glasses, his eyes widened slightly, clearly surprised by her appearance.

"Miss Shen?" He looked at her curiously.

It was unclear whether his expression was due to her current plain attire or his shock at her sudden visit amidst the rumors.

Shen Nanxi closed the door behind her, shutting out the pursuing butler. "Liang Zeqian, we need to talk."

Liang Zeqian set down the shears, removed his gloves, his movements graceful and unhurried. "About what?"

"About why you refused to marry me." Shen Nanxi got straight to the point, stepping closer to stand before him.

Up close, Liang Zeqian was even more handsome than she had imagined. The book hadn’t described him much, but she had seen an old newspaper on the ferry—his mother was truly elegant and beautiful.

She had thought the most handsome descriptions were reserved for the male lead, but he was this good-looking too!

His skin looked almost translucent in the sunlight, with a tall nose and thin, well-defined lips.

His eyes were truly captivating—pitch-black like ink, deep and cool.

Perhaps feeling scrutinized by a woman, Liang Zeqian turned his head slightly and said, "I thought you were the one who refused first."

"That was before." Shen Nanxi casually fiddled with a flower beside her. "Now I’ve changed my mind."

"Why?" Liang Zeqian asked, his voice calm.

Shen Nanxi met his gaze. "No particular reason. I just changed my mind. After all, women can’t always control their circumstances."

This answer clearly took Liang Zeqian by surprise. He was silent for a moment, then suddenly let out a soft laugh. "Miss Shen, you’re much smarter than the rumors say."

*Not the kind of foolish female side character, right?*

*Hehe.*

"Call me Nancy," she corrected him seriously. "After all, we’re going to be married."

"Going to be?" Liang Zeqian took off his glasses and wiped the lenses with the hem of his shirt. The casual gesture was inexplicably sexy. "You think there’s still room for negotiation?"

"Of course. Unless you really hate me that much?"

Liang Zeqian put his glasses back on, squinting slightly behind the lenses as if carefully examining her face and figure. He looked troubled. "I don’t hate you. It’s just—"

"Just what?"

"I don’t need a marriage where I’m forced to marry someone." Liang Zeqian turned back to pruning the flowers, his tone indifferent.

*Stop pretending, you little fool.*

*Next time, I’ll definitely dress up prettier.*

Shen Nanxi laughed. "Who said I was forced?"

"Listen," Shen Nanxi stepped closer to him, lowering her voice. "I know your situation in the Liang family. Chen Wenbi wants to find you a wife who will cause chaos in your heart and mind, so you won’t pose a threat to Liang Zefeng’s position."

Liang Zeqian turned sharply, his gaze suddenly keen: "Who told you?"

*I read it in the book—why so tense? There’s way more plot ahead.*

"That's not important." Shen Nanxi met his eyes, speaking with great confidence: "What matters is that we can help each other."

Liang Zeqian asked with a playful expression: "How?"

"You marry me, and I'll cover for you." Shen Nanxi's eyes gleamed slyly: "On the surface, I'll be the troublemaking Shen family heiress, but in reality, we'll be strategic partners."

The corner of Liang Zeqian's mouth lifted slightly: "An interesting proposal. But why should I trust you?"

"Because, like you, I don’t want to be used as a pawn." Shen Nanxi looked directly into his eyes, playing it a little tragically: "And I suspect you’re not as indifferent as you appear, right?"

*In the book, we’re just supporting characters, barely written ones at that, who don’t affect the main couple’s romance—so why not do our own thing?*

For a moment, the greenhouse went quiet, with only the faint sound of the fountain.

Liang Zeqian suddenly reached out and picked a leaf that had somehow landed in Shen Nanxi’s hair. His fingertips brushed her earlobe—whether on purpose or just being polite, it was unclear.

"I accept your proposal." Liang Zeqian took a step back and gave a slight nod: "My fiancée."

For some reason, the term made Shen Nanxi’s ears burn. She cleared her throat: "Alright then, fiancé, shouldn’t we go see your father now?"

Liang Zeqian shook his head: "Not yet. First, tell me why you changed your mind so suddenly. Weren’t you ready to die rather than marry me before?"

Shen Nanxi had her answer ready: "Because I realized Liang Zefeng and Huang Rouer are solid as gold—there’s no room for me to interfere."

Noticing Liang Zeqian’s slight displeasure, she quickly added, "Just kidding. The real reason is I’ve had an epiphany. Rather than marry some old man later with a bad reputation, I might as well choose someone who’s at least good-looking."

Liang Zeqian chuckled: "I can accept that reason."

He extended his hand: "Pleasure doing business with you, fiancée."

Shen Nanxi shook his hand: "Pleasure doing business with you, fiancé."

*Wow, this plot is moving smoothly! In the original story, the main couple hasn’t even kissed yet, while these two are sneakily getting married.*

*Ah well, as long as it doesn’t affect the main storyline, the world shouldn’t break.*

His palm was broad and warm, with slight calluses on his fingertips—quite nice to hold.

Liang Zeqian casually resumed tending to the plants, reverting to his wooden self.

Shen Nanxi suddenly realized that this seemingly harmless man might actually be a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

"By the way," Liang Zeqian suddenly remembered something, "can you play chess?"

"Chinese chess? Go? Or international chess?" Shen Nanxi countered.

"All of them?" A hint of admiration flashed in Liang Zeqian’s eyes.

Shen Nanxi lifted her chin proudly: "I’m an expert."

*Actually, I don’t know a thing—let’s get married first, or the plot might go off the rails, and we’ll pay for it later.*

"Good." Liang Zeqian smiled genially: "I don’t know how to play. You can teach me later."

Shen Nanxi…

She had been planning to sign up for a crash course, but it turns out he doesn’t know either.

Generally, supporting characters are stereotypical, following predictable patterns, all ultimately serving to advance the main couple’s story.

On her way home, Shen Nanxi wondered: Did the original story paint Liang Zeqian too flat, or is he really this naive? How could he trust her offer to help so easily?

Anyway, everything is going off without a hitch.

Thinking it over, she isn’t particularly eager to marry, but as the villainess, calling off the wedding would bring consequences—in both male and female-oriented novels, calling off engagements rarely ends well.

She’s genuinely tired and just wants to eat, play, and chill, not worry about these pointless dramas.

The next day, Shen Hong received a call from Liang Furong, saying his son had agreed to the marriage and that a joint statement would be published in the newspapers, announcing the wedding for next month as planned and warning against spreading rumors.

Shen Nanxi was overjoyed—this should make securing a loan much easier.

With the backing of Asia’s largest financial family, everything becomes easier.

Shen Nanxi checked herself out in the mirror every day, admiring her healthy, fair skin. In real life, she had been bedridden for a long time, unable to eat.

She also browsed magazines and newspapers—gotta say, the press back then was bold, daring to write about any celebrity with sensational headlines.

"Adult film sweeps awards, xxx goes commando"

"xxx vs. xx! Tycoon spends millions at nightclub battling for mic"

It’s actually about wealthy socialites vying for attention—or maybe just generating gossip with magnates.

Shen Nanxi unconsciously flipped through recent news and, sure enough, found articles about her and Liang Zeqian.