Arrogant Man VS Unyielding Woman

Jean thought for a while before shaking her head, "No, I am afraid I am keeping you from something more important. I don't intend to push you away, but I just......" "Do you want me to stay?"

Upon hearing Zed's question, Jean fell silent. With no clarity about her feelings about Zed and their marriage, Jean had no idea what to say to him. For so long now she had convinced herself that her relationship with Zed could be reckoned as marriage in name only. But,

in fact......

Jean really wanted him to stay.

Instead of answering Zed, Jean turned and left in a hurry.

Zed chased Jean. He grabbed her arm and spun her around to face him. "Do you want him instead of me? Are you wishing someone else were here with you now?"

"Someone else? Who? What are you talking about Zed? This is making no sense!" Jean couldn't understand whom Zed was referring to and she was too tired to try and guess.

"Ethan Lei." Zed spat out bitterly. He had always felt that she was a little absent-minded when he was around Jean. Although her relationship with Ethan ended a long time ago, Ethan still came between them like a thorn.

"Ethan......" Jean stood there in complete amazement. How was it that everything always ended with the mention of Ethan? Jean couldn't help thinking about that night when Zed asked her to leave his villa.

She still remembered clearly the expression on Zed's face, his harsh words, and treatment. Although it was just a misunderstanding, he had overreacted terribly. Remembering that difficult time, upset Jean more.

"I didn't create that Weibo post." She tried defending herself. She didn't know what Zed truly thought about that incident. Since he was so hard to read, Jean didn't even know if he would believe her.

"I know that, but do you still have feelings for him?" Zed was, understandably, also tired of constantly bringing up Ethan Lei. He wanted clarity about Jean's relationship with Ethan. And so he asked directly, and looked at her for an explanation. Jean was a little surprised and said, "I......"

"Answer my question!" Zed hissed.

"I, I............" After hesitating for a long while, Jean didn't know what to say.

"Forget it." Zed sighed in defeat. He couldn't understand why Jean found it so hard to talk about these things. Zed withdrew his hand. A part of him felt relieved as he didn't want to know her answer.

Still, disappointed as he was, Zed turned and walked away. He needed some space and he needed some time to think. Jean's shoulders sagged in defeat. This was all too upsetting for her.

Jean stood still for a long while. She kept her gaze on the ground as she debated over the questions Zed had asked and why she had found it so difficult to answer him. She whispered, "What's wrong with me?"

Now, were her feelings about Zed different from those she had in the past? She knew she had wanted Zed to stay. She even felt a little sad when she watched him leave. Couldn't she have shown greater affection for him over the past few days?

Looking up, Jean saw a bright moon. It seemed to be illuminating every star in the sky. But Jean was so lost in her thoughts and so burdened by the complexities of her feelings that she was in no position to appreciate the beauty of the glittering stars against the backdrop of a dark night.

When a gentle breeze glided over her body, Jean shivered. She had worn only a thin shirt in the morning. Now that it was night and much colder, Jean should have returned to the hotel. Not wanting to face Zed, Jean turned in the opposite direction of the hotel and began walking.

Over an hour had passed before Jean felt like she was ready to go back.

As she arrived at the hotel door, she saw Zed marching toward her. He looked rather serious.

"Where have you been?"

"I...... I was walking." She frowned and asked Zed the same question, "Why are you outside? Did you also go for a walk?"

"I was looking for you! Jean, do you think it is very safe to walk around as you wish this late at night in a strange place?" Zed's voice rose sharply as he admonished Jean. Bystanders looked at the bickering couple in amazement.

Jean hadn't thought that Zed would be so worried about her since she had been gone only for about an hour. Realizing that Zed had been worried about her, Jean gave a little chuckle.

However, his overreaction also annoyed her. "Didn't I carry my cell phone with me? You could have called me if you wanted to find me."

"My cell phone ran out of power."

"Out of power? Coincidentally, I have just borrowed a charger from the hotel owner. Let's go upstairs and charge both cell phones." After saying this, they headed inward.

"Wait!" He held Jean's arm and glanced at the pub beside with an evil and charming smile, "Drink with me."

"Drink?" Jean felt as though she had goosebumps all over. Go for a drink? She acted strange after drinking.

However, she had no choice at all, as Zed guided her toward the pub even before she could refuse. They found a quiet corner and asked the waiter to open a bottle of wine.

Unlike other pubs, this one had a very nice ambience. It was relatively quieter and not as noisy as those in the city. A female singer was performing on stage. Her voice was so melodious that the onlookers were watching silently.

Jean felt lucky as Zed had ordered wine. She wasn't as comfortable with hard liquor. She felt relieved thinking that she wouldn't get drunk so easily if she were having wine. Just then a thought crossed her mind. Zed hadn't fully recovered. Wouldn't it impede his recovery if he drank?

"Won't drinking impact your health? Your fever only reduced this morning." Jean asked with worry.

Zed lifted the wine glass and swayed it. The red liquid formed a swirl. Without answering Jean, Zed took a sip.

He raised his head, looked at her indifferently, and curled his lips, "Are you worried about me?"

"Yes, I worry about you. I will have to look after you again if your fever returns. Furthermore, we have received our bodies from our parents. How can you not take care of yourself......" "Shut up!"

"Am I wrong? Now, your health......"

"Jean Wen! Just be quiet. I don't want to be lectured tonight. If you don't stop, you will find yourself sleeping on street." He took another long sip of the wine. Zed didn't look very happy.

Jean kept her mouth closed in spite of her reluctance. She worried that if she annoyed Zed too much, he really would make her sleep on the street.

She took a tentative sip of her wine. It was bitter and a little odd. This was not the first time that she had tasted wine. She had occasionally engaged in social activities as her father's secretary before she broke her family ties with the Wen family. During business meetings and important occasions, she had often sipped on wine.

She also knew something about wine, but the wine that Zed ordered was like......

"What are you thinking about?" Discerning that Jean looked a little strange, Zed squinted and asked.

Jean spit out the wine. She dabbed at her lips with her napkin before pointing at the bottle and looking around before whispering, "Zed, what we drank is fake wine."

"Fake Wine?" Zed raise his eyebrows and laughed obscurely, "Are you sure?"

After thinking for a while, she nodded. Just as quickly, Jean shook her head. Before she could explain, Zed had called a waiter.

"Waiter." Zed put down his glass and looked at Jean with curiosity.

Jean thought for a while. She didn't believe that Zed would call a waiter. This was beyond her expectation. The expression on her face conveyed that she was startled, perhaps even terrified.

The waiter came over and lowered his head as he asked, "Sir, how may I help you?"

Zed glanced at Jean before turning to the waiter "My wife says this bottle of wine is fake."

"Fake wine?" The waiter frowned and turned his eyes to Jean. "Lady, we don't have fake wine. Did you make a mistake?"

Jean didn't think that Zed would call the waiter and put her in this position. She gritted her teeth in embarrassment and thought, 'Zed, you are an evil man.' Since Zed came from a rich family, he would have learned about wine. His knowledge was probably greater than hers. He could have talked to her about it instead of calling the waiter.

'Well, what should I do now?'

Jean was very uncomfortable with the situation. Although the waiter was smiling at her, she could see that it was just a facade. Perhaps he was thinking that she had come to the pub to cause trouble.

Jean gave the waiter a smile which she thought was seductive. Then in an equally charming tone she said, "My! Aren't you a handsome guy. Listen, I just had a small sip and it smelled and tasted strange."

She was still smiling, but her cheeks were flushed. Unable to meet the waiter's gaze, Jean turned to Zed only to find that he was staring at her as if waiting for something funny to happen.

'Damn it!'

The waiter didn't smile as much as he did a little while ago. He spoke politely though, "Lady, our pub doesn't sell fake wine. There is no problem with the wine. You probably thought the wine tasted and smelled strange as it hasn't been decanted yet." Jean really didn't know what to say. Apparently she wasn't very knowledgeable about wine!

What he said was not unreasonable, but she still felt as though the wine had tasted strange. Since Jean knew little about wine, she didn't want to argue and look silly in case she was wrong. And the waiter glared at her as if daring her to correct him. Both of them just stood there in silence.

Jean glanced at Zed again for help. She was surprised to see that he was looking elsewhere, as though the scene unfolding at their table was of no concern to him.

At this moment, Jean was completely annoyed. She gritted her teeth and smiled reluctantly, before walking over to Zed. She took hold of his arms intimately and sat on his lap. She said, "Honey, didn't you feel that the wine tasted strange and then asked me about that? Now, the waiter is here. Why are you embarrassed to say that?"

The waiter was bewildered. He didn't know what to think. 'Was it the woman or her husband who thought the wine tasted odd?'

Zed was not expecting Jean to behave like this. He was stunned for a moment. Then he grinned at the opportunity that had presented itself. He wrapped his arms around Jean and pulled her closer. Then he looked at the waiter, "Bring us a wine decanter and some ice." "Yes, sir." Relieved that the issue wasn't being escalated, the waiter left with a smile.

After the waiter left, Jean changed her smile to a glare. She tried shaking off Zed's grip. The more distance between them, the better! However, Zed thought otherwise. He simply tightened his arms around Jean. "You did that on purpose! Take your hands off me!"