A Marriage in Name Only? My Stepbrother Won't Let Me Go

Mei Wanying was no longer unmoved. Pei Yan felt he had done the right thing.

’She really does like this face of mine.’

He felt a flush of embarrassment, and the tips of his ears grew red-hot.

He brought a fist to his lips and gave a fake cough. "Why didn’t Lingling come?"

’All the better that she didn’t!’ he thought.

It was easy for him to see his daughter, but for Ah Yin to seek him out of her own accord was as rare as the sun rising in the west.

’It’s rare for me to be alone with Ah Yin. I can’t let a child ruin the moment.’

Mei Wanying didn’t beat around the bush with Pei Yan. "Where did you hide Gu Xun?"

The man’s expression froze.

The upward curve of his lips slowly flattened. Jealousy churned in his eyes, and though he did his utmost to restrain it, traces still leaked through.

"You came to find me just for Gu Xun?"

Mei Wanying had other matters to discuss, but she wanted to resolve them one by one.

Right now, the most pressing issue was to find out Gu Xun’s whereabouts.

He had been injured that day and taken away by Pei Yan’s men. She had later sent someone to Gu Xun’s residence, but he had not returned.

The people at the Government Office, on the other hand, said he had been transferred back to the Capital City.

But when Mei Wanying sent people to inquire, they couldn’t find a single trace of him.

Left with no other choice, she could only come and ask Pei Yan where on earth he had hidden the man.

Gu Xun was Pei Yan’s own cousin. In the past, Mei Wanying would have thought that no matter how ruthless Pei Yan was, he would never move against Gu Xun.

After what happened last time, Mei Wanying was no longer so naive.

’Pei Yan is a madman. He would show Gu Xun no mercy at all!’

’I was the one who proposed the marriage, so I share the responsibility. I can’t let Gu Xun face the consequences alone.’

"Let Gu Xun go. Our affairs shouldn’t involve innocent people."

"Innocent?"

Pei Yan mulled over the word, then suddenly laughed. "He dared to swoop in when he saw an opening. How is he innocent?"

Who in the entire Capital City didn’t know about his relationship with Ah Yin?

’I refuse to believe Gu Xun didn’t know.’

’He’s probably been coveting Ah Yin for a long time. That’s why he so shamelessly stuck his nose in our business.’

’He’d even become a live-in husband, just to cling to Ah Yin’s side.’

’Gu Xun was trying to steal my wife, steal my daughter. The nerve of him!’

’And I’m not allowed to strike back?’

Mei Wanying was a great beauty, and back in the Capital City, many Noble Children had wanted to ask for her hand in marriage.

Pei Yan thought to himself that if he hadn’t kept such a tight leash on her, forbidding her from interacting with other men, she might have been deceived and whisked away long ago.

’After taking every possible precaution, I never thought a single trip back to Jiangnan would get her tangled up with Gu Xun.’

’She even thought about marrying him.’

Pei Yan couldn’t bring himself to blame Mei Wanying, so he could only make Gu Xun suffer the consequences.

Mei Wanying was Pei Yan’s Achilles’ heel. No one was allowed to touch her.

As long as Mei Wanying remained untouched, there was room for negotiation on even the gravest of matters.

’But if anyone touches Mei Wanying, I’ll never let them off easy!’

Gu Xun was lucky. He hadn’t actually married Ah Yin. Otherwise...

Pei Yan’s gaze darkened. He wasn’t sure what he might have done.

Not wanting to frighten Mei Wanying, Pei Yan softened his tone. "He’s not innocent. Sending him back to the Capital City was already an act of mercy."

Mei Wanying refused to listen to his twisted logic. She repeated her demand, "Let Gu Xun go."

Gu Xun...

Gu Xun!

Every time she mentioned the name, the gloom in Pei Yan’s eyes deepened.

He sat there with a dark expression, looking for all the world as if he were the one who had been wronged.

This look on his face reminded Mei Wanying of the Pei Yan from before.

Whenever he wore that expression, someone was about to suffer.

Afraid that Pei Yan might suddenly fly into a rage, Mei Wanying could only try to explain things gently.

"I don’t want to drag Gu Xun into this. I don’t want to have to feel guilty toward him."

Pei Yan remained unmoved, ignoring Mei Wanying’s explanation.

The Mei Wanying of the past would have been driven to tears of frustration by his heart of stone.

After so many years of entanglement with Pei Yan, Mei Wanying knew exactly what to do to appease him.

She let out an imperceptible sigh. "I don’t like causing trouble for an outsider."

Mei Wanying enunciated the word "outsider" with particular clarity.

The man’s tense body abruptly relaxed, and the gloom in his eyes dissipated with it.

He leaned back, feigning nonchalance.

A ghost of a smile played on his lips. "Since he’s an outsider, why care about his whereabouts?"

Mei Wanying knew Pei Yan was difficult, but she also knew he was wavering.

Not wanting to see her efforts go to waste, she suppressed her anger and decided to appeal to both his heart and his head.

"When I first returned to Jiangnan, I found out I was pregnant midway through the journey..."

Pei Yan’s body, which had just relaxed, tensed up once more.

’Ah Yin had no choice but to leave the Capital City. Giving birth to our child must have put her under immense pressure.’

’I wasn’t by Ah Yin’s side. She had to bear all that pressure alone.’

’I came to Jiangnan once during that time, but I’d arrogantly assumed Ah Yin was faking the pregnancy.’

’I even bullied her until she cried...’

"If Gu Xun hadn’t helped me, I would have been an unwed mother. The world’s judgment would have driven me to my death!"

"Gu Xun helped me, and he helped Ling. He is a benefactor of the Mei family. And you want me to just stand by and watch what you’re doing to him? Pei Yan, are you even human?"

’Never mind that the marriage was my idea. Gu Xun helped me. I can’t just ignore this.’

’If I acted so heartlessly, I would be a disgrace to everything my parents taught me!’

Pei Yan’s breath quickened. He had to admit that Mei Wanying was telling the truth.

’I was too far away back then. Even if I’d known Ah Yin was carrying my child, I couldn’t have reached her side in time.’

’With no one to protect her, she would have suffered so many hardships.’

’Vicious rumors can be deadly!’

Pei Yan already felt guilty toward Mei Wanying, and now that guilt intensified.

He knew an apology was useless, but he offered one anyway.

"Ah Yin, I’ve wronged you and Lingling."

’Whether in my past life or this one, I’ve wronged them both.’

’I’m just grateful they’re still alive, giving me a chance to atone.’

Pei Yan cast aside his pride and composure. He squatted before Mei Wanying and reached for her hand, but she snatched it away.

With a distant expression, Mei Wanying moved to stand.

"Don’t go."

The man gripped the armrests of her chair, trapping her within his reach.

Although he was the one looking up at her, he had Mei Wanying pinned in place.

Mei Wanying kicked him angrily. "Get lost!"

"I won’t."

Pei Yan didn’t want to anger Mei Wanying, but he didn’t want to let her leave either.

’It took so much for me to see her just this once.’

’If I weren’t worried about her feelings, I would have pulled Ah Yin into my arms the moment I saw her.’

’I miss her so much.’

’Yet I have to force myself to stay away from her.’

’I’m going to lose my mind!’

He was gripping so tightly that the veins on his arm bulged, snaking their way up until they disappeared beneath his sleeve.

Mei Wanying couldn’t leave, but staying felt unbearable. All she could do was tell Pei Yan to keep his distance.

"Men and women should maintain a proper distance."

Pei Yan said, "We performed the wedding ceremony."

Whether Mei Wanying acknowledged it or not, as far as Pei Yan was concerned, they were married.

His gaze fell to the armrests, and he added confidently, "Besides, I’m not touching you."

He was being shameless again. A vein throbbed in Mei Wanying’s temple out of sheer anger at him.

She pressed her slender fingertips to her temple. "What, exactly, do I have to do for you to let Gu Xun go?"

She had mentioned Gu Xun’s name countless times since walking in the door. Pei Yan didn’t want to hear it again.

’Not from her lips.’

His gaze fell upon her lovely lips, and his throat tightened. ’Ah Yin should only be saying my name.’

"I can let him go," the man said. "But you have to agree to my condition."

Mei Wanying’s heart leaped into her throat. She instinctively felt that Pei Yan was about to make an outrageous demand.

She dug her nails into her palm and asked, "What condition?"

Seeing the guarded look on her face, as if she were facing a mortal enemy, a bitter taste filled Pei Yan’s heart.

’I’ve truly brought this upon myself.’

As if all his strength had abandoned him, the man sank to one knee. "Ah Yin, don’t drive me away."