The two of them sat in the private plane, silence stretching like a wall between them. Guo Min fidgeted with the hem of her cardigan, stubbornly avoiding his gaze, while Zihan sat still, his face unreadable as always.
Just when she thought he'd let the awkwardness slide, Zihan moved. In one smooth motion, he tugged her off her seat and onto his lap.
"...Wife." His voice was low, steady, but laced with an edge that made her heartbeat trip. His arms slid around her waist, locking her in place as if daring her to try escaping.
Guo Min's eye twitched. "What do you think you're doing, Zhu Zihan?"
"I was offended by your words during breakfast," he said plainly, as if stating the weather.
Her brows arched, mockery rising like second nature. "Oh? Which part? When I said two years? Or when I remind everyone that I'm ambitious enough not to become a child-making machine?"
His gaze sharpened, dark and calm, but the grip on her waist didn't loosen. "All of it. You spoke as though carrying my child is a burden. As though being my wife is only a convenience to you."
She blinked, caught off guard by the raw honesty buried beneath his usual composure. But her pride refused to back down. "And what's wrong with wanting to secure myself before I think of family? You have your empire. I want mine. What's wrong with that?"
Zihan's lips are curved, faint, and unreadable. He leaned in until his breath brushed her ear. "Nothing. Except you forgot one thing."
Her pulse spiked. "And what's that?"
"That you're mine. And ambitions or not, I don't intend to wait forever, Guo Min."
She froze, the mix of warning and promise in his tone striking harder than she expected. No words came to her lips, pride and fear knotting in her throat.
"Let me go," she whispered at last.
"No." His arms tightened, hands pressing firmly into her hips. Zihan's smirk was faint but dangerous, the kind that warned she was only seeing the surface of him. "Today you'll understand, Guo Min… I'm not as patient as you think."
He pulled her back until her spine pressed flush against his chest, the warmth of him overwhelming. His breath brushed the shell of her ear. "Why do you always run? What more do you need me to prove to you?"
"But my caree..."
"Career?" He cut her off, voice dropping, almost sharp with restrained frustration. "Who do you think you're fooling? You own entire hotel chains, multiple properties under your name, and still you hide behind this excuse as if you're some struggling girl with nothing to her name." His jaw tightened, anger threading into his control. "…And now you say not to touch you? I'm your husband, Guo Min."
Her pulse spiked, but she forced herself to meet his words with steady defiance. "…Zihan, just let me be at the moment...Please. I need space."
The quiet plea slipped through before she could cage it, and it struck him deeper than her unfiltered words ever could. For a heartbeat, his hands lingered at her waist, his pride screaming at him to hold tighter. But slowly, too slowly...he released her, his face unreadable.
The rest of the flight sank into heavy silence, thick with unspoken words neither dared push further.
When the plane landed, the chauffeur drove them to her small rented apartment by the beach, a place that looked almost modest compared to the Zhu family's wealth. Zihan stepped out first, tugging the suitcase behind, his presence cold and steady as always, while Guo Min lingered by the car door, suddenly restless.
She'd begged for space… but now, walking into that little apartment with her new husband trailing just behind, the air between them felt stretched too thin, too quiet. Her chest ached with the thought she hadn't expected, they just got married, so why did it already feel like they were pulling apart?
"Zihan… I..."
"Rest. I'll be out for a minute." His voice was clipped, final. He didn't even glance back before stepping out, leaving her words to wither in her throat.
Guo Min swallowed, the sting pressing deeper than she wanted to admit. Is this how a honeymoon is meant to be?
She forced herself into routine instead, slipped into the bath, let the warm water wash away her frustration, and dressed in a soft pajama set. By the time she stepped out, a knock came at the door. Room service, dinner. She opened the door, tray in hand, then paused. Zihan wasn't there.
Frowning, she peeked outside, only for her eyes to narrow instantly.
Her "clueless" husband was standing just beyond the entrance, tall and aloof, but surrounded. Three women circled him like moths around a flame, their voices shrill with admiration.
"Oh my gosh, he's so cute, so typically Asian," one gushed, pressing far too close.
Another leaned in, eyes practically sparkling. "Hey, mister… are you single?"
One dared to step even closer, practically brushing against him. "You have such perfect skin, are you a model?".
Zhu Zihan's jaw tightened. He opened his mouth to respond, but before a word left him, slender fingers wrapped tightly around his hand.
Guo Min stepped forward, her smile polite but her grip anything but that. "I'm his wife. Nice to meet you."
The women blinked, startled, then giggled. "Oh! Nice to meet you too. You two look so cute together." One waved her hand dismissively, already losing interest. "Don't mind us, my husband will be looking for me soon anyway."
flashed another careless smile before darting off, squealing when a man further down the hall swept her into his arms.
Guo Min watched her disappear, clicking her tongue sharply. "Tch."
Zihan finally glanced down, calm as ever, though a faint smirk tugged at his lips. "…Wife," he drawled lowly, "was that jealousy, just now?"
"…Jealousy? Humph, who's jealous?" She scoffed, tugging her hand free with a huff. Her glare cut through him as she crossed her arms. "You just told me you wanted me to trust you a while ago, and here you are, standing with another woman like you're at some beauty pageant."
"Didn't you say you wanted space?" His voice was mild, but the weight behind it was sharp.
"Space? Yes, I wanted space in the plane. Just the plane. When have I ever stopped you from touching me if not today?" Her words rushed out like arrows, her voice climbing with each syllable. "All men are the same, always twisting words, looking for excuses to cheat...".
Already she was storming back into the suite, her irritation echoing in every step.
But before she could reach the door, strong arms circled her waist, yanking her flush against him. Her breath caught as Zihan's chest pressed into her back, his voice dipping, calm but heavy with something unshakable.
"What do you think of me, Guo Min?" His lips brushed dangerously close to her ear. "You should know by now… I only want you. Always you."
His words seeped into her, steady and sure, making her heartbeat stumble against her chest. She barely had a chance to react before he turned her in his arms and claimed her mouth, his kiss deep and demanding, nothing like the gentle one at the altar.
She staggered back under his weight, each step unsteady until her legs hit the edge of the bed. The door slammed shut with a forceful kick as his hands roamed, slipping under fabric, searing heat against her skin.
For a fleeting second, he pulled back, his breathing ragged, his eyes darkened to something almost dangerous. "If you don't want this… we can stop now." His voice was low, strained, like a rope stretched to its breaking point. "Because if I go any further, Guo Min, I won't be able to control myself."
Her chest rose and fell, her pulse hammering. She shut her eyes, swallowed, then whispered the words that tipped them both over the edge. "…Go ahead."
Zihan froze for a moment, then the restraint he had been clinging to finally snapped. The fire in him surged. In one fluid motion, he stripped away the barriers of clothing between them, every piece falling forgotten to the floor.
Her protest never came. Instead, her hands clutched his shoulders, nails digging lightly as if anchoring herself. She hadn't married him to starve him, after all. This was his right as much as hers, and the moment she admitted it, there was no turning back.