On the Wedding Night, I Transmigrated to After the Divorce – Chapter 3
by Little PandaA Woman’s Licking Dog
I miss you so much.
Three years ago, in 2022, twenty-year-old Yu Yan was still in university, holding hands and getting cozy with the heavenly dish1 senior she was crushing on. She was completely oblivious to the fact that she was about to be married off, a commercial sacrifice for her mercenary mother. She’d thrown a fit, unwilling to go along with it, but Yu Lan had frozen her credit cards and cut off her allowance. Ignoring her daughter’s opinion entirely, Yu Lan had already proceeded to the point of negotiating the engagement banquet with the Fu family. Only at the last minute did she finally say to Yu Yan, “Go meet her. Three million for one meeting. Sign the agreement, and I’ll buy you a single-story flat on the Bund. Your monthly allowance will go up by fifty percent from now on. Otherwise, don’t even think about getting another cent from me. Let’s see how long that little bit of money you have lasts.”
Fine, fine, fine…
Yu Lan knew exactly what kind of person her daughter was and how to control her. Yu Yan was a spendthrift, a useless rich second-generation kid. She could lose anything except money to spend. A meeting was just a meeting.
That day, she and Fu Yunqing arranged to meet at a coffee shop.
Yu Yan followed the address and reluctantly went up to the second floor, a miserable look on her face as she scanned her surroundings. Her gaze quickly landed on a woman sitting by the window.
It was the cusp of spring and summer. The woman wore an apricot-colored knit bodycon dress, a thin cardigan of the same shade draped over her shoulders. She sat with her legs crossed, leaning back in her chair, her neck slightly bent as she read a book with a yellowed cover that she’d taken from a nearby shelf. On her left wrist was a deep green floating flower jade bracelet2. Her undyed, ink-black hair fell smooth and straight over her shoulders and back, reaching her waist. As the sunlight streamed in, she happened to glance over at Yu Yan.
Yu Yan froze. She quickly looked down at her phone, searching for the photo Yu Lan had sent her.
She often ignored Yu Lan’s messages, letting the red notification dots pile up into the double digits before tapping in to glance at the latest one. Her resistance to the arranged marriage was so strong she hadn’t even bothered to look at the picture of Fu Yunqing her mother had sent.
She scrolled up two pages before she found the photo, tapped it, and zoomed in.
Yu Yan’s eyes widened. In an instant, her heart was bursting with joy.
It really was her!
Yu Yan looked toward the woman by the window again. She could tell at a glance that Fu-jiejie had classic auspicious phoenix eyes3, the upward-tilting corners faintly pink beneath her makeup. But she didn’t look foxy at all. Instead, she possessed an air of refined nobility, radiating the gentle consideration of someone older.
What a jiejie! What a jiejie! Just one look from afar was enough to completely captivate Yu Yan.
Yu Yan cleared her throat twice, eager and ready to walk over, but someone had already approached the woman’s table.
Confused, Yu Yan wondered if she’d mistaken the person. It was only when she got closer that she understood.
“I was noticing you from over there for a while. Jiejie, you’re really beautiful. Can I add you on WeChat?” The girl hitting on her looked to be around Yu Yan’s age, her face red as she stumbled through her words. The woman smiled and politely declined, but the girl wouldn’t give up. “I don’t mean anything by it. I just want to be friends…”
Honestly. Yu Yan, who had been shy and nervous about facing the beautiful jiejie, couldn’t be shy for a second longer when faced with someone trying to snatch her wife. Her possessiveness went through the roof. She strode forward boldly and, with a smile, said to the girl in the gentlest, most tactful tone she could manage, “Pardon me, but I’m her fiancée.”
This coffee shop was located in the most prosperous CBD of Yuncheng. From the second-floor window, one could see the Yun River, which cut through the entire city. The river’s surface sparkled, and on the opposite bank stood a forest of skyscrapers, including many of Yuncheng’s, and indeed the entire country’s, landmark buildings. The highly developed, cold city seemed to soften in the warm spring sun, leisurely watching as Yu Yan, one of the countless souls within it, took the initiative to sit down opposite Fu Yunqing.
Yu Yan was very pretty. She had a delicate, straight nose, fair skin, and a healthy complexion. Beneath her straight-cut bangs, her eyebrows were long and elegant, and her peach blossom eyes4 were clear and lively. Both her eyes and lips were curved into a smile. She was dressed in a school-style uniform with a short skirt, looking incredibly youthful and energetic.
Her voice was sweet, too, a lovely tone Fu Yunqing had never heard before. The first thing she did upon meeting her was to call herself her fiancée. Then, with sparkling eyes, she introduced herself: “I’m Yu Yan.”
Fu Yunqing studied the girl before her for a moment, then gently set down her book. “What would you like to drink?”
“A latte is fine,” Yu Yan said.
Fu Yunqing called a waiter over and ordered a latte for her. It was their first meeting, and Fu Yunqing wasn’t the type to liven up the atmosphere. In the presence of such a great beauty, Yu Yan couldn’t help but feel a little shy, especially after doing something so audacious.
Nothing was even set in stone yet5, and she’d gone right ahead and called herself her fiancée. Would Fu-jiejie find it offensive?
After staring at her for a good while, Yu Yan finally spoke shyly. “Fu-jiejie, you’re so beautiful. So fair, and your skin is perfect.”
It was the first time anyone had addressed her like that. Fu Yunqing gave a polite smile and said softly, “You’re very pretty, too.”
So gentle.
“Um… what book are you reading?” All of a sudden, Yu Yan couldn’t think of a topic and blurted out something she knew nothing about. Fu Yunqing turned the book’s cover toward her. Yu Yan’s heart, which had been in her throat, finally sank. She’d never heard of it.
“I just grabbed it from the shelf to flip through.” Fu Yunqing seemed to notice her predicament and casually placed the book back on the adjacent shelf.
So awkward!
The waiter brought the latte, and Yu Yan quickly ducked her head to take a sip. Fu Yunqing watched her and spoke. “Your mother said you seemed a bit unwilling.”
Yu Yan, of course, knew what she meant.
Before this, Yu Lan had already taken it upon herself to arrange a meeting with the Fu family, but Yu Yan hadn’t cooperated. She’d stood them up and vanished without a trace. Yu Lan had nearly died of anger that time. The Fu family members weren’t fools; no matter how much she tried to hide it, she couldn’t conceal the fact that her daughter was unwilling to go through with the marriage alliance.
At that time, Yu Yan had run off to go skiing in the mountains with her friends. Thinking back on it now, she had been so incredibly ungrateful.
“I’m willing now,” Yu Yan said, spineless as ever.
“I didn’t know before how beautiful and charming Fu-jiejie was. I was wrong…” Her bright eyes sparkled with life6. She looked so well-behaved, yet she could fire off her mouth cannon7 so brazenly, displaying an infatuation that was like love at first sight. “So, so, so full of regret. But now… I’m so on board~”
“Oh?”
Fu Yunqing’s voice was clear and gentle, possessing a steadiness that was the polar opposite of Yu Yan’s liveliness. She smiled at the girl’s words but also found it strange. “You hadn’t seen a photo of me before?”
Ah, to not even look at a picture of your blind date beforehand. Thinking of how she’d stood her up last time, Yu Yan readily admitted her mistake. “I was being a total jerk. I’m sorry, jiejie.”
Fu Yunqing raised an eyebrow slightly. “And what if you were mistaken? What if I wasn’t Fu Yunqing?”
Yu Yan mused, “In that case…”
“Then I wouldn’t want Fu Yunqing,” she said, tilting her head. A hint of slyness hid beneath her pretty eyeliner as she looked straight at Fu Yunqing, speaking without a care in the world. “I’d elope with you, jiejie~”
“Heh…” Fu Yunqing lowered her head and chuckled.
Yu Yan thought her smile was so beautiful.
“Shall we discuss the prenuptial agreement next, then?”
“Mhm.”
Whatever the great beauty wanted her to do, she would do, of course.
Fu Yunqing was a little skeptical. She confirmed, “Are you serious?”
“Mhm, super serious,” she answered without hesitation, all but pounding her chest to guarantee it.
And just like that, because of that one distant glance, Yu Yan’s stubborn resistance was sacrificed.
After her date with Fu Yunqing, she went home with a tiny bit of regret. It seemed she’d been a little too impulsive in selling herself out. But she completely understood her past self. To make the pretty jiejie happy, she would say anything; it was inevitable that she’d have to sacrifice herself a little.
Of course, she didn’t forget the more important matter, reminding Yu Lan, “The meeting is done, we talked about everything we needed to. You have to keep your word. You have to transfer me the money, and I want to pick the apartment myself.”
Truthfully, although she didn’t want to admit it, Yu Yan had long had some faint mental preparation for something like an arranged marriage.
And for Yu Yan now, Fu-jiejie was perfect.
Only after she got back did Yu Yan look her up and learn that not only was Fu-jiejie one of the heirs to the Fu Corporation, but she also taught at the music academy of the Yuncheng Drama Academy. The Fu family’s ancestors had been in the antiques business, a family of scholars and aesthetes. Fu Yunqing had been immersed in that environment since childhood, studying classical instruments.
Gentle, polite, rich, talented, and erudite—she was literally the jiejie of her dreams.
Even if there was no affection in their marriage, that beautiful face was still very pleasing to the eye.
Besides, she had no other choice. She was a good-for-nothing who relied on her family. Without them, she was nothing. Yu Yan was at least self-aware enough to know that.
She had to compromise in the end. Sigh.
The engagement banquet followed soon after. Fortunately, it wasn’t one of those large-scale socialite networking events where she’d have to put on a fake smile for a lot of people. It just required Yu Yan and Yu Lan to have a meal with the Fu family.
She was actually quite happy to go. The second time she met Fu Yunqing, she was even bolder and more audacious than the first. After greeting the elders, she sat down beside her and grinned at her openly.
“Hi, Fu-jiejie~”
“Good evening.” Fu Yunqing looked at her, her response still soft. Granny Fu and her aunt were overjoyed to see Yu Yan’s enthusiasm.
The matriarch of the Fu family was Granny Fu, an elegant and proper old lady nearly seventy years old, with graying hair at her temples. Besides Granny, Fu Yunqing had another elder, her maternal aunt. Fu Yunqing’s mother had passed away early, so her aunt had filled the motherly role. Fu Yunqing also had a younger cousin, who also had the surname Fu. She was the aunt’s daughter, only a year younger than Fu Yunqing. The moment Yu Yan walked in, she had been complimenting how pretty Yu Yan was.
The aunt, sitting next to Granny Fu, said, “They seem to get along quite well. Yanyan is so well-behaved. Look how sweetly she’s smiling at Yunqing. She must like her Fu-jiejie, right?”
Yu Yan was an expert at pleasing elders. “I like her a lot.”
Yu Lan added with a placating smile, “This child… she was unwilling to even meet at first, but after one meeting, she came back telling me ‘yes, yes,’ and going on about how wonderful Fu-jiejie is. Really…” Yu Lan was so full of it. Yu Yan had only asked her for money.
Granny Fu said cheerfully, “Isn’t that just how it is? You have to meet at least once, spend some time together. Otherwise, how would you know if you’re a good match?”
The elders were chatting happily, and Yu Yan was in a good mood too. She turned her head to look at Fu Yunqing and, feeling playful, asked in a low voice, “So, does Fu-jiejie like me?”
Yu Yan’s voice wasn’t loud. No one but Fu Yunqing could hear her ambiguous question. But the ever-proper Fu Yunqing didn’t answer her, remaining very reserved.
She was being ignored.
Hmph.
Yu Yan wasn’t annoyed or embarrassed. She calmly averted her gaze and went back to dealing with the elders.
The dishes had all been served. After Granny Fu picked up her chopsticks, Yu Yan followed suit and began to eat gracefully. The Fu family’s banquet was undoubtedly filled with expensive delicacies from the mountains and seas, but she’d barely had a few bites before Yu Lan shot her a look.
Fine, fine.
Using the serving chopsticks, Yu Yan picked up a piece of Roast Goose she had just tried and found delicious, placing it in Fu Yunqing’s bowl. She was the very picture of a well-behaved and considerate girl. “Fu-jiejie, this is especially good.”
Fu Yunqing said, “Thank you. You should eat more, too.”
Seeing that she wasn’t averse to it, Yu Yan’s interest was piqued again. Perhaps it was her fate to be a woman’s licking dog8. She hadn’t even eaten her fill before she started peeling shrimp and shelling scallops for Fu Yunqing. One, two, three… she peeled a whole plateful, then, under Yu Lan’s gratified gaze, slid it toward Fu Yunqing. “Fu-jiejie, have some shrimp.”
Such a considerate young lady. Granny Fu’s heart melted. She quickly said, “Yunqing, you should serve your meimei some food too. She’s barely had a few bites of her meal, she’s been so busy taking care of you. You need to take care of your meimei too.”
Yu Lan quickly demurred, “No, no, Yanyan is just like that. She wants to please her jiejie.”
Her desire to please her jiejie really was obvious.
Anyone could see it. Fu-jiejie could definitely see it too.
Amidst the elders’ jumble of pleasantries, Yu Yan heard Fu Yunqing ask, in a voice only the two of them could hear, “Do you like crab?”
Yu Yan blinked. “I do.”
Fu Yunqing said no more.
But Yu Yan was smart enough to understand something. She waited quietly. Sure enough, not long after, Fu Yunqing placed a large, hand-peeled crab leg on her plate. A moment later, a small bowl of crab roe was passed over.
Yu Yan turned her head to look at her, but she had already averted her gaze. All Yu Yan could see was her reserved profile.
Yu Yan didn’t mind at all. “Thank you, jiejie,” she said.
Yu Yan was a fast eater. She was full while the elders were still dining. She sat there quietly, listening attentively, and of course, occasionally stealing glances at Fu Yunqing’s profile as she ate. She’s so, so beautiful.
Sometimes she’d zone out. Her phone was buzzing with so many notifications that she couldn’t resist picking it up, only to be immediately glared at by Yu Lan.
Granny Fu saw this and smiled magnanimously. “Don’t be so strict with the child.”
“See?” Yu Yan added.
Granny Fu, coaxed into a good mood, said, “If you’re bored, why don’t you ask your Yunqing-jiejie or Mingya-jiejie to take you for a walk? There’s a garden outside with nice scenery.”
Fu Mingya was Fu Yunqing’s cousin. Compared to Fu Yunqing, she was dressed much more brightly and flamboyantly, and her personality was more outgoing. Hearing this, she quickly waved her hands. “Let Yunqing go. She’s her fiancée. I wouldn’t dare.”
“Want to go?” Fu Yunqing turned her head and asked her softly.
Her gaze, her tone… it was so doting. Yu Yan feigned reservation and shook her head. “No need~ Fu-jiejie hasn’t finished eating. I’ll just sit here and keep you company.”
Who could possibly be more well-behaved than Yu Yan? A subtle change crossed Fu Yunqing’s expression. She gave her a reassuring look, then turned back to her meal. Across the table, Granny was smiling so hard her eyes had disappeared.
Before leaving, she sat next to Granny Fu and chatted with her for a while. Granny stuffed a huge red envelope9 into her hands, along with various priceless engagement gifts.
Yu Yan was overjoyed.
“Goodbye, Fu-jiejie.” As she left, she shared this joyful mood with Fu Yunqing, waving at her sweetly.
Fu Yunqing, still so gentle, said goodbye back and told her to be careful on the road.
The two of them had exchanged WeChat information on the day they first met. Yu Yan hadn’t restricted her Moments, leaving her entire feed open for Fu Yunqing to see. But a cold, commercial marriage alliance was just that. After the engagement banquet, Fu Yunqing immediately went out of town on a business trip. When she returned, there was little contact between her and Yu Yan.
They met again a few months later. By then, it was almost summer vacation. The wedding preparations were nearly complete, the prenuptial agreement was signed, and she had to go with Fu Yunqing to register their marriage. A few days after that, once Yu Yan’s vacation started, they would fly abroad for the wedding ceremony.
These few months—were they perhaps Yu Yan’s last taste of freedom? Yu Yan thought so, mournfully, but she also held a sliver of hope that Fu Yunqing wouldn’t meddle in her life later on.
During those months, Yu Yan’s life was no different than usual. She had classes to attend, but playtime still took up the majority of her time. Every few days, her Moments would be updated with photos of her checking in at bars and restaurants in other cities. Drinking, jumping disco10, escape rooms, mahjong, yacht parties. Leaning on a girlfriend’s shoulder, talking nonsense. Riding in the passenger seat of a girlfriend’s sports car, going for a drive. She still hadn’t gotten her driver’s license, mainly because she was too lazy to learn. Anyway, she had tons of beautiful drivers.
Occasionally, she’d post a few selfies late at night with funny, nonsensical captions—the very image of a useless, pretty, second-generation rich girl.
There were also a few common little episodes. She’d given the cold shoulder to the senior she’d been ambiguous with. The dates stopped, and her chat replies became monosyllabic. After a period of mutual coldness, the senior, probably unable to forget her, took the initiative to find her and confess her feelings, wanting to define their relationship. The two of them stood in a corner of the school’s athletic field. Yu Yan looked down, kicking at a small pebble, feeling a little guilty. She sighed. “I’m getting married. My mom arranged a business marriage for me.”
“You know my mom is awful to me. If I don’t get married, she’ll kick me out and cut me off. She really did freeze my card last time. Being broke is worse than being dead for me. Can you support me, xuejie? I’m super expensive.”
Yu Yan was speaking the truth.
She wouldn’t change for love. She couldn’t. She was just a heartless person, she admitted it. She had flirted with countless girls since she was little. It was her fate to be born a lover of women. She’d awakened to it in elementary school, never giving boys a second glance, spending all her allowance on the pretty girls in her class. One day she’d be the follow-fart-bug11 for the cool, top student; the next, she’d be the loyal little sister to the blonde delinquent boss.
In a flash, she forgot all about the heavenly dish senior. In truth, she hadn’t been thinking about Fu Yunqing either.
It was only when Yu Lan told her to bring her documents to register her marriage with Fu Yunqing the next day that she remembered. Crap. She was about to be a married woman. Did this mean she could never be this wild again? Her Moments was updated daily with photos of her having fun with beautiful women. Fu Yunqing must have seen them. She was just a fickle woman who was never home; one couldn’t ask too much of her.
A business marriage, after all. A marriage of form12 would be fine.
That’s what she thought, and that’s what she grumbled about. But when she saw Fu Yunqing in person again, her heart once more burst with joy and she changed her mind.
For a momentous occasion like registering a marriage, Fu Yunqing, as her jiejie, had to take care of her and show the importance of the event. Naturally, she drove to pick her up.
A black Maybach was parked in front of the villa. Fu Yunqing was dressed in an all-black women’s suit with a white shirt underneath. Her waterfall of straight, black hair was tied back, her makeup was understated, and her phoenix eyes were calm. Yu Yan knew she was gentle, yet she also radiated a sense of aloof detachment. So contradictory. So captivating.
She just sat there in the driver’s seat, waiting for Yu Yan, and once again, Yu Yan was completely mesmerized.
Yu Yan got in the car and snuck glances at her out of the corner of her eye for a good part of the drive. When they stopped at a red light, she couldn’t help but speak. “Fu-jiejie, I miss you so much.”
“You miss me?”
After a two-second pause, Fu Yunqing tapped her fingers on the steering wheel, her gaze fixed ahead. Her tone was neutral. “You seem to have had a lot of fun these past two months.”
She missed her, yet she hadn’t found the time to send her a single message. What a deceptive mouth.
Yu Yan paused for a second, understanding what Fu Yunqing was referring to. Her smile deepened, and she playfully turned the tables on her13. “Whose fault is that? Fu-jiejie doesn’t post any selfies on her Moments.”
“Hm?” Fu Yunqing looked at her. Post selfies?
“If you don’t post selfies, how are you supposed to bait me?” Yu Yan said. “Jiejie, just bait me a little, and I’ll be your best-behaved little fish, thinking of you every day. I’ll like your posts, comment, send you flowers, and say, ‘Wife14, let’s get married~'”
Footnotes
- 'Tiāncài,' literally 'heavenly dish,' is modern slang for a person who is perfectly your type, as if they were a delicacy served up by the heavens.
- Piaohua (piāo huā), or 'floating flower,' refers to a type of high-quality jadeite characterized by wispy, flower-like inclusions of color, typically green or blue, that appear to float within the translucent stone.
- 'Ruì fèng yǎn' or 'auspicious phoenix eyes' are a traditionally prized eye shape in Chinese aesthetics. They are long and narrow with inner double eyelids and outer corners that sweep upwards, considered a mark of classic beauty and intelligence.
- 'Táohuā yǎn' or 'peach blossom eyes' are another coveted eye shape in Chinese aesthetics. They are large and almond-shaped with double eyelids and outer corners that curve upwards, said to be exceptionally charming and alluring.
- An idiom, bāzì dōu méi yī piě ne, literally 'not even the first stroke of the character for eight is written.' It means that something is far from being settled or realized, as the character 八 (bā) begins with a simple downward-left stroke (撇 piě).
- An idiom, gù pàn shēng huī, describing eyes that sparkle with life and intelligence with every glance.
- 'Zuǐpào,' literally 'mouth cannon,' is slang for someone who is all talk, who can fire off impressive-sounding words or boasts without any substance.
- 'Tiǎngǒu,' literally 'licking dog,' is a popular and rather harsh slang term for a 'simp' — someone who debases themselves to win another's affection, often with little to no reciprocation.
- A hóngbāo is a red paper packet containing a monetary gift. It is a traditional gift given on special occasions like weddings, birthdays, and holidays to express good wishes.
- 'Bèngdí,' literally 'jumping disco,' is Chinese slang for going clubbing or dancing at a nightclub.
- 'Gēnpìchóng,' literally 'follow-fart-bug,' is a childish but common term for a tagalong or a sycophant, someone who follows another person around like a shadow.
- 'Xínghūn,' literally 'marriage of form,' refers to a marriage of convenience, often undertaken for social or financial reasons, where the partners do not have a genuine romantic relationship.
- An idiom, dàodǎyīpá, which literally means 'to strike back with a rake.' It describes turning the tables on someone by making a false counter-accusation, essentially blaming the victim.
- Lǎopó is a common, affectionate term for 'wife.' Yu Yan uses it here flirtatiously before they are even officially married.
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