Heavy rain blurred the world into gray streaks as An Ruo stood beside her bridal car, her fingers trembling—not from fear, but from excitement.
Today, she would escape the marriage she never wanted.
From the corner of her eye, she spotted another bride—
Lin Xinyi, stepping out of her car, adjusting her veil with innocent calm, unaware that destiny was walking toward her in silk heels.
A slow smile curled on An Ruo's lips.
Perfect timing.
Before anyone could react, An Ruo stumbled forward—
Bang!
Her elbow struck Xinyi's temple with calculated precision.
Xinyi gasped, swaying as pain flashed through her eyes.
Before she collapsed, An Ruo caught her, lowering her gently as if she were helping a stranger.
"Miss, are you alright?" she asked softly—
her voice sweet, her eyes filled with triumph.
In one swift motion, she pulled Xinyi's veil over her own head, concealing her expression, and slipped into Zhen Yu's wedding car with practiced elegance.
"Drive," she whispered.
The driver obeyed without question.
Meanwhile, the injured and confused Xinyi was lifted by bodyguards who assumed she was the bride destined for the powerful, untouchable groom—
Lu Yichen, the CEO feared by the entire city.
The wrong bride was delivered to the wrong man.
No one noticed the exchange.
Not the families.
Not the grooms.
Not even fate itself…
…until the moment Lu Yichen lifted the veil.
And froze.
The room fell silent as Lu Yichen lifted the veil.
He expected to see An Ruo—
sharp-eyed, arrogant, the woman his family had chosen.
Instead, he saw her.
A girl with trembling lashes, rainwater clinging to her cheeks, and a fresh bruise blooming at her temple.
His breath caught.
Just for a second.
Just enough to reveal that this was not the bride he was promised.
But then the CEO in him awakened.
His expression flattened, calm but cold.
His dark eyes scanned her face, memorizing every detail with unsettling intensity.
"You're… not An Ruo."
His voice was low, dangerous, yet astonishingly controlled.
Xinyi blinked, dazed, still trying to steady her breathing.
"I… I don't…" Her voice cracked. "There was—someone bumped into me and after that I—"
She winced, touching her swollen temple.
For the first time, a flicker of something softer crossed Yichen's gaze—
concern he refused to show.
He turned slightly, addressing the bodyguard behind him.
"Who brought her here?"
"Sir, the bride was escorted directly from the road. Everything followed your instructions."
Yichen's jaw tightened.
He was angry—
not at the girl
but at the chaos, the mistake, the insult to his authority.
Yet when he looked back at her, she appeared so lost, so frightened, that the storm inside him shifted.
He stepped closer, his presence overwhelming but not threatening.
"What's your name?" he asked.
"L-Lin Xinyi," she whispered.
Yichen studied her for a long moment, unreadable.
There was a bruise on her face.
Her dress was damp from the rain.
Her eyes were wide with confusion, not deceit.
Slowly, he exhaled.
"Miss Lin," he said quietly, "I don't know how you ended up here…
but I can see you're hurt. Sit down."
His voice softened at the end—barely noticeable, but real.
Xinyi hesitated.
"You're safe," he added, surprising even himself.
He wasn't supposed to care.
He wasn't supposed to feel anything.
But the wrong bride had arrived…
and something inside Lu Yichen had already begun to change.
The moment Xinyi sat down, Lu Yichen turned away.
His calmness cracked.
Not visibly—
but in the sharpness of his footsteps,
in the stiff set of his shoulders,
in the silence that pressed like ice.
He stepped out of the room and the door shut behind him with a soft click.
Instantly, the atmosphere changed.
The bodyguards standing outside straightened nervously.
They had seen Lu Yichen angry before…
but not like this.
"Who," he said, his voice low and controlled,
"ordered you to bring that woman into my house?"
No one spoke.
His eyes darkened dangerously.
"I asked a question."
One bodyguard swallowed. "Sir, w-we followed the protocol. The bride was on the road—"
"Does she look anything like An Ruo?"
His tone was razor-sharp.
"Sir, she was wearing the same bridal veil, and before we could verify—"
Yichen stepped forward, and the guard instinctively froze.
"You brought a fainted woman into my private villa without checking her identity?"
His voice was soft.
Deadly soft.
"That bruise on her head—do you think a bride arrives like that?"
The guards lowered their heads.
"For this mistake," Yichen said coldly,
"each of you will be suspended for one month. Effective immediately."
Their eyes widened in shock.
"And tomorrow," he added, "I want a full report on how a stranger reached my car without a single person noticing. If this happens again, you won't be suspended—
you'll be removed."
"Yes, sir!" they responded quickly, heads bowed.
Yichen didn't look at them again.
His anger was ice, not fire.
Silent, controlled, terrifying.
But then… a faint sound came from the room behind him.
A soft gasp.
Xinyi.
Something twisted in his chest—annoying, unexpected.
He pushed open the door, stepped back inside, and his cold expression softened by a fraction.
Just a fraction.
"Are you still dizzy?" he asked.
Xinyi blinked at him, confused by his tone…
because for the first time since they met,
Lu Yichen sounded almost… gentle.