When Will My Childhood Sweetheart Marry Me?-Chapter 233: The Traitor Goes to Hell

"You told the old man about the company you wanted to start in your sophomore year?" she asked curiously.

"He knew a long time ago," Pei Yan said indifferently, "When they were choosing a manager for the base, I made a wild declaration in the office, and it wasn’t just for fun."

At the mention of that, Jiang Shuyao couldn’t help but laugh.

She still remembered what this guy said back then to refuse the department’s decision to appoint him as the manager.

... I plan to register an IT company in the Technology Park next year and am looking to raise ten million initially. Any of you interested in investing ahead of time...

According to He Shumiao’s description, the department head must have been infuriated at the time.

They had been in the education field for decades and probably had never seen a student as brazen as Pei Yan.

The more Jiang Shuyao thought about raising ten million, the funnier it seemed to her.

She twisted his ear and teased, "Boss Pei, if someone really did sponsor ten million, what would you do with so much money?"

Pei Yan caught her wandering fingers, kissed them, and half-jokingly said, "I want to pull off a big deal, earn enough for a bride price, and marry the Princess home earlier."

A tingling sensation spread from her fingertips, and she held back her pounding heart, staring at him without blinking.

After a few seconds of eye contact, Jiang Shuyao slowly lowered her gaze.

Taking advantage of the light to hide it, a blush quietly crept onto her cheeks.

"It wouldn’t cost that much. If we really were to get married, whether you had money or not, I would accept it."

After she finished speaking, the person in front of her fell silent.

The prolonged silence made Jiang Shuyao lift her eyes to look at him.

But the moment she did, she crashed into his eyes that held a hidden smile.

"Princess."

Pei Yan’s fingertip caressed her flushed cheek, teasingly saying, "I haven’t even proposed yet."

"..."

The warm skin became instantly cooler by a lot due to his jest.

Jiang Shuyao suddenly calmed down, sitting on Pei Yan’s lap with a somewhat rigid back.

Feeling her emotional change, Pei Yan thought he had said the wrong thing and nervously tightened his grip on her waist, "Yaoyao, just now—"

"I am a very traditional person."

She softly interrupted him, looking into his eyes seriously and said, "In this life, once I fall for someone, both physically and mentally, there’s no room for a second person."

As long as Pei Yan loved her, she would never allow herself to betray him in any way.

This was Jiang Shuyao’s loyalty and oath to love.

It was also an indirect way of telling Pei Yan that whether he proposed or not, whether they could end up together, there would never be anyone else in her heart.

He had imagined countless scenarios of the Princess revealing her feelings to him but never thought it would be so heart-wrenchingly pressing.

Her feelings for him had always seemed indifferent; on the night of the hot springs, when passion ran high, no matter how gently he persuaded, he couldn’t coax her into uttering words of affection.

In Pei Yan’s eyes, the girl he watched grow up, dignified and serene, never stepped out of line in her behavior.

Yet, it was precisely because of her temperament that she valued the words "loyalty" more than most girls.

The night grew deeper. Pei Yan looked up, earnestly looking at her, and she earnestly looked back.

After a moment, he reached out and closed the laptop.

He held her as he stood up, placed her on the desk, and crossed his arms to pull at the corners of his shirt before lifting his arms to take it off.

Before him was a clean body.

Pei Yan tossed his shirt aside, lowered his gaze, and said indifferently, "So it’s decided then, the one who betrays goes to hell."

...

Later, she asked him about his confusing behavior over the past few days.

Pei Yan pretended not to understand and countered, "What’s confusing? Could it be that last night wasn’t enjoyable enough for the Princess?"

Alright, by that, he seemed to be back to normal.

It wasn’t until one day while tidying the room that she inadvertently found a DVD in the drawer of the TV stand.

The cover was printed with bold letters—Animal World: Reproduction Edition.

She: "..."

Never had she so despised her own damn kindness.

In the words of a certain beast, achieving victory without battle was still the pinnacle of military strategy.

If three days under the bed could be exchanged for three days on the bed, he considered it a very worthwhile deal.

Turns out her whole-hearted sympathy was misplaced; in the end, the guy was still his old self, tormenting her more than she had ever endured in her nineteen years of life.

Time passed week by week in such a finely carved cohabitation routine. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

That morning, she received a call from her mother and, hearing the news of their imminent return, she finally breathed a sigh of relief as if brought back to life.

Taking advantage of Pei Yan going back to the villa to fetch something, she got up early to tidy up and carefully checked herself in the mirror. That bastard still had a conscience; he didn’t leave any marks on visible parts, saving her from trembling under Ms. Zhu’s penetrating gaze.

Before noon, her parents returned, carrying bags big and small.

The bags were filled with a lot of sausages and cured meats, claiming that on their rare trip back to Minle hometown, their neighbors insisted on they bringing these gifts home with absolutely no room for refusal.

Jiang Shuyao could see that compared to the younger generation, the elderly cared more about affection and origin.

Generations had lived in Minle for dozens, if not hundreds of years, and even as eras changed, and descendants gradually moved away, the roots of blood ties etched in the bones of Minle’s people would never change, no matter how many years passed.

The family talked of hometown customs and affections until Zhu Yun suddenly steered the conversation towards her daughter.

"Yaoyao, you were gone for so long for the competition this time. I saw several schools returned a week earlier. Which district were you competing in, North District or South District?"

Jiang Shuyao was prepared in advance and managed to respond calmly, "Our team won first place, so we stayed behind to receive the award. And my godmother, she treated us to a meal."

Lin Zhen settled in the Capital, and Zhu Yun had long known this.

But what she really wanted to ask about was something else.

Zhu Yun glanced at her husband beside her, and Jiang Tingsong got up and went into the bedroom, pretending not to notice.

Always playing dumb at crucial moments, clearly caring a lot, yet in the end, it’s still up to her as the mother to step in.

Zhu Yun steadied herself, sat next to her daughter, and touching her head asked, "Yaoyao, how are things between you and Yan now?"

Jiang Shuyao was silent for a while before looking at her mother and saying, "It’s pretty good."

Actually, rather than these probing questions, she wished Ms. Zhu would be more direct.

Zhu Yun spoke gently, "As someone who has been through it all, I understand that you young people are passionate, free, and love to be unrestrained. But there’s a saying, everything has its cause and effect, and everything you do should follow natural laws.

For example, in life, you date, get married, have children; the order should not be mistaken. No matter the era, girls are at a disadvantage and must take care of themselves. Don’t get carried away by passion. Yaoyao, you’re an adult now, you should understand what mom means, right?"

How could she not understand?

As soon as her mother asked about the competition, she knew she would have to face the inquisition of the soul.

Jiang Shuyao did not shy away, but instead nodded seriously, "Mom, I understand what you just said."

Zhu Yun showed a relieved smile.

"But there was a time, I heard Old Jiang say that you married him because you were pregnant with me."

Zhu Yun’s smile cracked.