Chapter 2

The engagement party was a grand affair, the kind zhan had only seen in movies. Crystals chandeliers bath the ballroom in golden light, and the air is filled with the murmur of elite guests exchanging pleasantries. Every detail screamed extravagant-something. Zhan had always despised.

He kept his expression neutral, ignoring the stares and whispers as he walked beside yibo. He knew what they were thinking: 'who is this nobody? why him?'

Yibo, on the other hand, exuded his usual cold confidence, nodding politely but never lingering in conversation. Zhan noticed how effortlessly he played his role, how used he was to wearing a mask.

"Smile", yibo murmured under his breath, just loud enough for zhan to hear. "You look like you're ready to strangle someone"

Zhan shot him a sideways glare. "Maybe I am"

Before he could respond, an elegantly dressed woman approached them, her sharp edges gaze ranking over zhan with poorly concealed disdain.

"Yibo, darling" she cooed, placing a possessive hand on his arm.

"I was so surprised when I heard the news. An arrange marriage? I thought you didn't believe in such things"

Zhan stiffened, recognizing the woman as Zoey Meng, one of yibo's rumored former flames.

Yibo remained impassive. "Zoey it was necessary arrangement"

Zoey's red lips formed in to a smirked as she turned her attention to zhan. "And you must be the lucky bride-to-be. Tell me, cutie, what exactly do you do?"

Zhan met her gaze head-on. "I worked at a cafe"

Zoey let out a small laugh, as if the idea was amusing

"How.... quaint"

Zhan felt his blood boil, but before he could retort, yibo spoke. "Zhan is more than capable of handling himself" he said smoothly, his voice carrying a quiet warning, "And I expect every one to treat him with the respect he deserves."

Zoey blinked, momentarily taken aback by his defense, before masking it with a laugh, "Of course yibo, if you say so."

She walked away, leaving zhan glaring at her retreating figure. "I don't need you to defend me", he muttered.

"I wasn't defending you", yibo replied coolly. "I was protecting my reputation. If you make a scene, it reflects badly on me."

Zhan exhaled sharply. "Of course. Wouldn't want to tarnish the great Wang Yibo name."

He didn't reply, and zhan turned his attention back to the party, vowing that no matter what, he wouldn't let them break him. This world might have clipped his wings, but he wasn't going to fall without a fight.

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The day after the engagement party. Zhan was officially moved into the Wang estate.

The mansion with its towering walls and expensive decor, felt less like a home and more like a prison.

Yibo barely acknowledge his arrival. "Your room is at the end of the hall. Stay out of my way, and this arrangement will go smoothly".

Zhan scoffed. "Trust me I have no interest in playing house with you"

The tension between them was palpable, but zhan have no time to dwell on it.

He's mother and brother were safe now, their debts cleared, but he still need to navigate the unfamiliar world she had been trust into.

Days passed, and zhan quickly realized that yibo was a ghost in his own home.

He left early in the morning for work and return late at night, often without a word.

The mansion was eerily quiet, save for the occasional murmuring of the house staff.

One evening, as yibo wondered through the halls, he found himself found drawn to the drawn to the vast library.

The towering shelves, filled with book that looks untouched, yet the air carried the faint scent of old pages.

Zhan runs his fingers, along the spines, stopping when he saw a book that seems well worn.

Curious, zhan pulled it out, surprised to find it was a collection of poetry. "Didn't peg you for a sentimental type" zhan mused aloud not expecting a response.

"I'm not", yibo's voice cut through the quiet library.

Zhan turned sharply, finding him leaning against the doorway his expression unreadable. "Then why does this look like it's been read a hundred times?"

Yibo didn't answer immediately, stepping further into the room. "It belong to my mother. She liked poetry."

Zhan was taken aback by the small admission. It was the first real piece of information he had known about yibo, that wasn't tied to his wealth or business. "I see. You must've been close."

Yibo's jaw tensed. "She died when I was young"

A heavy silence fell between them. Zhan had no love for the rich, but in that moment, he saw something different in him something almost human.

"I'm sorry", zhan said quietly.

Yibo looked at zhan then, as if trying to decipher whether his sympathy was genuine, "Don't be it was a long time ago"

Without another word, he turned and walked away, leaving zhan alone with a book still in zhan's hands.

That night, as zhan lay in bed he found himself thinking about the man he had married a man who, despite his cold exterior, carried a ghost of his own.

And for the first time, zhan wondered if there was more to Wang Yibo than he had assumed.

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