Outside the Civil Affairs Bureau, Sophia Caldwell clutched the household register so hard her palms were damp. Nervous as hell, she kept nudging a little pebble with the toe of her white sneaker.

More than once, she almost bailed.

But then she remembered she’d already made plans with that man to come get the marriage certificate. If she backed out now, wouldn’t that make her look way too spineless?

Wait... what was his name again?

Han... something Ting?

Or Han... something Tian?

Why on earth couldn’t she remember it now, of all times?

Just as she was spiraling, a black business van stopped right in front of her. The door slid open, and a man in his early thirties stepped out. He was dressed in a white casual suit, tall, steady, and gave off that super composed vibe.

And somehow, at that exact moment, Sophia accurately called out his name.

"Ethan Mercer... Brother Ethan."

The second the words left her mouth, she felt a powerful presence pressing straight toward her.

Ethan Mercer was seriously tall, close to six-three. He was also nine years older than her. When he didn’t smile, he looked especially stern. Standing there in front of her, he was like a mountain, all weight and pressure.

She instinctively took half a step back, and that little voice in her head started screaming retreat again.

Was this marriage thing... a bit too rushed?

"Um... Brother Ethan, are you really sure you want to register with me today?" Sophia lowered her head, her voice tiny, almost like a mosquito buzzing.

But Ethan heard her clearly.

"I’m sure."

"Actually... even though our families had an engagement, that was arranged by my grandfather and yours. My grandfather already... already passed away. And now it’s a time of free marriage, right? You really don’t have to marry me."

Sophia’s head dropped lower and lower, and her face was burning red.

Ethan took another step closer. Then, with two fingers, he gently lifted her chin.

She had no choice but to look up at him with wide, uneasy eyes.

That handsome face of his was still serious, not a trace of joking there.

"The Mercer family has always valued honesty and keeping promises," he said. "If I don’t marry you today, wouldn’t that make me someone who betrays my roots and forgets my ancestors? When I go below someday, how am I supposed to face them?"

Sophia: "..."

...

Getting the marriage certificate went insanely smoothly. Half an hour later, Sophia Caldwell and Ethan Mercer were each holding a little red booklet of their own.

When they walked out of the Civil Affairs Bureau, Sophia looked at the sky outside and felt weirdly dazed.

The sky hadn’t changed.

The street hadn’t changed.

But her whole world had flipped upside down.

She wasn’t even twenty-two yet, and somehow she was already a married woman.

"Ruoruo."

When Ethan called her that, she blanked out for a second.

They’d only just gotten the certificate, and he was already calling her that so naturally?

She glanced at him timidly and let out a soft, confused, "Hm?"

Ethan’s face was still as serious as ever, but his voice had softened a little. It was low and rich, like he came with built-in surround sound, ridiculously nice to listen to.

"You still haven’t graduated from college. The wedding can wait, just like you said. We don’t have to hold it for now. But you should move in with me. I’m currently living at Sunshine Garden, Building 6, unit 1601. Do you want me to help you pack?"

"N-no, it’s okay. I can go back and pack myself." Sophia refused right away. She had always been used to handling her own stuff on her own.

"Then do you need me to drive you home?" he asked again.

"No, that’s okay too. I can just take a taxi back."

"Alright then. Move over as soon as you can. If anything comes up, message me on WeChat."

Ethan didn’t push her. He handed her the access card and the key. After saying goodbye, he got back into the van.

Only then did Sophia quietly let out a breath of relief.

She stood there in a daze, watching the black van disappear around the street corner. After that, she got on the bus home herself.

...

Sophia Caldwell’s home was in an old villa on the east side of Fengcheng.

At present, the old villa housed her, her stepmother Wendy Caldwell, and her younger half-brother. There had originally also been an older sister, Natalie Caldwell, who was six years older than she was, but Natalie had moved out after starting work.

The moment Sophia reached the front door, Wendy hurried out to ask, "Ruoruo, did you get the certificate?"

Sophia pulled the bright red marriage certificate out of her crossbody bag and waved it in front of Wendy.

The second Wendy saw it, she smiled so hard the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes folded up like a blooming chrysanthemum.

"Good, good, that’s great. Now that you’ve married into such a good family, your father down below must feel so relieved. Oh right, when are you moving to the Mercer family’s place?"

Sophia gave a bitter little smile.

There it was.

That last sentence was the real point, huh.

Ever since Sophia turned eighteen, Wendy had been trying, openly and subtly, to set her up with people. The goal was obvious: get the two sisters married off and moved out of this old villa as early as possible, so the house could be saved for the younger brother to marry in the future.

Sophia and her sister had never really had much choice in the matter.

Back then, after their father went bankrupt, he also got seriously ill. She and Natalie were still in school. During those years, it was Wendy who stayed by his side in the hospital the whole time, taking care of everything, even the dirty work, for a full three years.

Their father had felt indebted to Wendy, so before he died, he left a will saying that this old villa under their grandfather’s name should be left to the younger brother, and that the two sisters were not to think about claiming it.

If Wendy hadn’t been nagging her into marriage so relentlessly, and if the Mercer family hadn’t looked sincere enough, Sophia wouldn’t have agreed to go register this quickly.

"Auntie Wendy, I’ll pack up and move out today," Sophia said.

The moment Wendy heard that, her smile widened even more.

While Sophia was upstairs packing, Wendy came over again, looking nosy and excited.

"Ruoruo, the Mercer family... are they rich? Like, really loaded?"

Sophia paused, then said helplessly, "How would I know? Weren’t you all the ones saying before that the Mercer family was good? I thought you’d looked into it."

She had only met Ethan Mercer twice in total.

One time, supposedly, was when she was little. She had zero memory of it.

The other time was half a month ago, when the Mercer family came to propose. Wendy had pushed her to marry, and Natalie had also said Ethan was a good man and that she should seize the chance. Natalie said a family their grandfather had approved of couldn’t be wrong.

She’d also heard that Ethan had stepped in before and helped Natalie resolve a workplace crisis. Natalie had even said that with all the men she’d met, Ethan was definitely reliable, the kind worth marrying.

Of course Wendy had no clue how deep the Mercer family’s pockets really were. But worried Sophia might suddenly regret it, she quickly added, "The Mercer family must be doing very well. They’ve been building their life in Beishi for so many years. They’ve definitely saved up a lot. No matter what, they’ve got to be better off than our family. Didn’t Old Master Mercer buy a villa in Fengcheng too? In the riverside area. That place is worth tens of millions. You won’t be losing out marrying into them."

Sophia said, "But Brother Ethan lives in an apartment complex. He probably isn’t that rich."

"That’s obviously because you two are newly married, and he wants to enjoy the world of just the two of you," Wendy said instantly. "After you marry in, you have to make him happy, okay? And hurry up and give birth to a big healthy boy. Once you have a son, your place in the Mercer family will be solid."

After saying that, Wendy noticed Sophia’s suitcase was stuffed too full. The zipper just would not close. So Wendy plopped herself right down on top of the suitcase. The whole case sank under her weight, and the zipper slid shut at once.

Sophia stared, completely dumbfounded.

"This thing’s way too heavy. I’ll carry it downstairs for you." Wendy was so enthusiastic today it was honestly a little over the top.

She even personally paid for a taxi for Sophia once they reached the door.

After Sophia disappeared from sight, Wendy spun happily in place three or four times and called out, "Ruoruo, happy newlywed life!"

...

Sophia dragged her heavy suitcase all the way to Sunshine Garden.

It was a high-end residential complex. The buildings were spaced far apart, every floor had only one household, and security was super strict. You had to swipe a card to get in.

Luckily, she had both the access card and Ethan Mercer’s key in hand.

When she arrived outside unit 1601, she hesitated.

Was Ethan home?

If he was home... how exactly were they supposed to get along?

He was already thirty-one.

Would he... have needs in that area?

He probably would, right?

The more she thought about it, the more nervous she got.

Ever since they were little, Natalie had loved scaring her, always saying that doing that kind of thing hurt like crazy. Once Sophia had asked, "How painful?"

Natalie had pointed at a childbirth scene on TV and told her, dead serious, "Worse than that."

Looking at those women on screen, drenched in sweat, faces twisted in pain as they screamed, Sophia instinctively clamped her legs tightly together.