Tuesday, continued …
As Hou Yi thought about making their marriage a success, it struck him that tonight would be their wedding night. With plans to marry Yang Lin, he realized that they would need to consummate their marriage, even though his heart wasn’t fully invested and he didn’t care much about whether their marriage would be successful. But things were different now. He knew he was marrying the love of his life, and while he longed for a true wedding night and the consummation of their union, Anna wasn’t yet ready. He needed to tread carefully to ensure that his marriage to Anna Jones would succeed and be everything he truly desired. Hou Yi knew he had to discuss their expectations regarding marriage with Anna so that he didn’t scare her away.
Watching Anna, Hou Yi realized how crucial this conversation was. He could see the doubt in her eyes—she was having second thoughts about their union. Despite this, he couldn’t let her back out; nothing else mattered to him at that moment but a relationship with Anna. He had to address her concerns now.
Taking a deep breath, Hou Yi spoke quietly to Anna. “We need to talk about a few things before we head into the Civil Administration Bureau. Let’s go back outside to talk rather than do it here.”
“I don’t know if I can now,” Anna responded.
“This isn’t really the place.” With that, Hou Yi thanked the shop assistant and took Anna’s hand in his, leading her out the door. He took her back to the bench where they had been sitting a few minutes earlier and where they had agreed to their marriage.
Once they were sitting, Hou Yi looked directly into Anna’s eyes, hoping his feelings wouldn’t show. “Anna, I realized something while you were tidying up that I think needs to be addressed. I understand that you’re having second thoughts about this marriage.”
Hou Yi paused, gently taking Anna’s chin in his hand and turning her head so she was looking him in the eyes. “Be assured that I won’t insist that our marriage is consummated tonight. If it happens, it will be because we both desire it, not because we feel pressured to. Okay?”
As he spoke the words, Hou Yi saw a look of relief pass over Anna’s face. He continued, “However, there are a few things I think we need to agree to. Let me explain my reasons before you jump to any conclusions. All I’m asking is that we sleep in the same bed, that we both give our relationship a chance to develop into whatever it can be, that neither of us cheats on the other, and that we display affection towards each other in public—gentle gestures of attention, showing the world that we’re committed to our marriage.”
This stunned Anna, and Hou Yi knew he needed to continue before she stood up and ran.
“Before you say anything, sleeping in the same room is about creating an image. While I have servants who generally do not live in, they do stay overnight when I’m entertaining late at night. They are good at their job and paid well, but I can’t be certain they won’t give in to pressure from my family or accept payment from the media to talk about our relationship. They know not to enter a room with a closed door unless told otherwise, but honestly, we can say we slept together. No one needs to know if nothing else happens; what happens behind that closed door is our business alone.”
“The second thing I’m asking is that we’re both open to giving our relationship a chance to develop. We’re entering this marriage with no real relationship, but we need to allow ourselves the opportunity to see if we can make it work, despite how it started. This will protect both our reputations and, in the event that we do end our marriage in the future, protect your career in Australia as a lawyer. It will also protect both of us from the Lu’s, particularly Lu Jinhu, and Yang Lin and her family, from trying to get anything from either of us since they broke off their relationships with us first.”
“Tied to that is the need to not cheat on each other. We’re telling the world that we loved each other enough to end up marrying despite everything. We have to show the world that we’re committed to our marriage and to each other. However, if in the future one of us finds someone else that we love, we can do what’s necessary to end our relationship appropriately so that we can pursue that new relationship.”
“Finally, and it ties everything together, in public, we need to be willing to display affection towards each other. People will wonder why we married so quickly, considering some knew you were to marry Lu Jinhu and I was to marry Yang Lin. Showing affection in public will help to quell rumors and allow us to be comfortable with each other. I’m not talking about over-the-top displays—just simple things like holding hands, hugs, and gentle kisses, hinting at what might happen behind closed doors in a real love match. Can you agree to these conditions?”
Anna was shocked. Hou Yi could see what was troubling her and was ready to address her concerns, but he had thoughts about the future and the image they needed to present to the public about their relationship. The only issue was it didn’t deal with her returning to Australia. She needed to get on with rebuilding her life given what Lu Jinhu had done to her.
“I will, Hou Yi,” she said. “But please be realistic—it’s going to take some time for me to be comfortable with all that you’ve asked. The only thing I need to raise now is about my return to Australia in three and a half weeks, when my leave ends. I have to start rebuilding my life after what Lu Jinhu did to me.”
“Anna, the reality is I have to remain here, with the family company. Your return to Australia at that time, alone, would defeat what we want to achieve. However, I’m not foolish. In today’s technologically driven world, there are options we could look at that would allow you to continue your career in Australia while living here. We’ve agreed to the basics of our relationship, and all the other issues we can resolve from there. Are you okay with that? No second thoughts?”
Anna realized Hou Yi was right. They had established the foundation for their relationship, and everything else could be worked out from there. His reassurances made her confident that despite it being a loveless marriage, it was the right decision for her. “Yes, I’m okay, and I don’t have any second thoughts,” she replied quietly.
