A Proposal
Tuesday, continued…
As Hou Yi realized the two minutes he thought he needed to read the documents was not enough, he determined that he needed to slowly and carefully re-read them to fully understand their contents.
Hou Yi returned to the start of the documents and slowly, deliberately, and carefully read through them again. When he reached the end of the letter, he realized his initial thought— that Lu Jinhu’s name was not mentioned anywhere— was correct. Furthermore, the letter asked that the officials at the Civil Administration Bureau forgive the absence of Anna’s fiancé’s details. It noted that the official had met the fiancé; he was a trusted businessperson, but due to commitments, he could not remain with the official until the paperwork was completed.
As soon as he saw the name on the letter, Hou Yi realized it was someone he knew well from previous dealings and knew their opinion of him. What struck him as interesting was that he had a meeting with this official on the same day.
It was then Hou Yi realized that Anna wasn’t joking— the documents contained something significant, and she could be of assistance. Was she thinking about offering to marry him to thwart the Lu’s and get back at Lu Jinhu for what he did? The only way he would know was to simply ask the question.
“What are you thinking, Anna?” asked Hou Yi softly, hoping that she was considering marriage to him as a way to derail whatever Lu Jinhu and Yang Lin had planned. He knew Anna’s motivations were about revenge, but for him, it was all about protecting the family company and staff.
Hou Yi had always imagined that when he got married, he would be the one to propose. However, given their current situation, he realized that the proposal needed to come from Anna, especially due to what she had just been through. He thought back to their initial meeting six months ago, as she looked so similar to the woman he had fallen for. He really hoped he was right, as since that brief encounter, he had dreamed of making that woman his bride.
“Well…” started Anna, realizing what she was about to say. “The documents are what I need to marry here, even mentioning City T as the place of marriage and today’s date, but not my fiancée’s name. It means that I do not have to marry Lu Jinhu. Some oversight in the paperwork, but it does give me freedom.”
Anna paused for a second and took a deep breath before continuing, “I could marry you instead, without a problem.”
Hou Yi, while having figured out what she was about to say, still responded with surprise, “What!” as he was concerned that she might be joking. He looked into the face of this woman who had just proposed marriage to him and realized that it was a serious proposal.
Despite that, he had to ask, “Are you serious?” so he could be certain about her proposal.
Anna looked Hou Yi in the eye and clearly and firmly said, “Yes. Lu Jinhu made it clear that I never meant anything to him. He clearly set out to ruin my life. While I think I can deal with that in the long term despite appearances to the contrary, he has also messed with your life— trying to ruin the lives of your family company’s employees. I cannot let him get away with that. I will do what I can to stop him.”
Still somewhat in shock, Hou Yi needed to confirm Anna’s proposal and asked, “You are certain?”
“Yes, I am. He is not going to get away with ruining my life, and if that means getting my revenge, I have to look to someone else he is trying to ruin. I will do so,” Anna replied firmly.
Hou Yi looked at her carefully and realized that she was still serious. He, however, did not know what to say.
“Well, what do you say, Mr. Hou— I’m sorry, Yi— will you and I go and get married?”
