Tang Yueru stood in the vast dressing room, the silence almost too loud. The gown wrapped around her like a cage of silk — deep navy, sleeveless, elegant, expensive. Too expensive.
Lu Shenyan had left the room a minute ago after saying only three words:
> "You'll wear this."
Not a request. Not a suggestion. A command. Cold and effortless, like everything he did.
She stared at herself in the mirror.
Her makeup was flawless. Her hair styled to perfection. Yet her eyes… they looked like someone else's.
"Do I even recognize myself anymore?" she whispered.
There was a soft knock.
A maid entered and bowed slightly. "Young Madam, the car is ready."
That title again. Young Madam.
Tang Yueru didn't respond, only nodded and followed. Her heels clicked rhythmically against the marble floor, each step echoing the unspoken tension between duty and dignity.
---
The black Bentley purred through the city night. Lu Shenyan sat beside her, staring out the window, fingers loosely clasped, dressed in a crisp black suit. He hadn't said a word since they left.
She finally broke the silence.
"You don't have to come with me. It's only a charity gala."
His gaze flickered to her — sharp and unreadable.
"I'm your husband. Shouldn't I stand by you in public?"
Tang Yueru bit her lip. "We both know this marriage is for convenience."
The corner of his mouth curved. Not quite a smile. More like a calculated expression designed to unsettle.
"Exactly why we must make it look real."
---
The gala was held at the Grand Crystal Hotel — all chandeliers and champagne and people who smiled with knives behind their teeth.
As soon as they entered, whispers began.
"That's Lu Shenyan, right? He actually brought his wife tonight."
"She's pretty… but didn't her father's company nearly collapse?"
Tang Yueru heard every word, but kept her head high.
Lu Shenyan, ever the king in a battlefield of suits, nodded at acquaintances but kept one hand possessively at her lower back — not too intimate, not too distant. Just enough.
To anyone watching, they were perfect.
To her, they were strangers.
---
Midway through the night, she stepped out onto the terrace alone, needing air.
The city lights blinked like stars fallen to earth. She leaned against the railing and sighed.
Then—
"You look beautiful tonight."
The voice froze her.
She turned.
> "Jiang Wei."
Her ex-fiancé. The one who vanished when her family fell.
He stepped closer, uninvited. "I made a mistake… I—"
A shadow fell over them.
Lu Shenyan stood behind her, eyes unreadable, but dangerous.
He took her hand.
"She's Mrs. Lu now. If you have business, schedule a meeting. Otherwise…" He glanced at Jiang Wei like he was beneath notice. "Leave."
Jiang Wei clenched his jaw, but turned and walked away.
Tang Yueru felt her fingers trembling. Lu Shenyan didn't let go.
His voice dropped, low and quiet. "Do I need to remind you who you belong to?"
She looked up at him, heart pounding. "And what if I want to belong to no one?"
His gaze didn't waver.
"You can fight all you want, Tang Yueru. But I don't lose."
---