Chapter 10 Marriage Now, Divorce Later
The first document was a marriage contract while the other one was... a divorce paper?
She had never seen such copies together. What was he supposed to mean? Marrying and divorcing her all at once?
"You should have a close look. It is clearly stated that our marriage will last for just one month. After a month, I will submit the divorce paper to the court and it should take effect immediately." Hiram said apathetically. It seemed that marriage and divorce were just as easy as his usual business.
Since they should be married, Hiram would decide the way of their marriage..
Rachel curled her mouth as she read those clearly-listed terms. When she had read about the one-month marriage, she tried very hard to control her impulse of tearing the papers apart.
The divorce paper clearly stated that when they were married, the woman should not interfere the man's private life. The contract would be terminated anytime if the woman did anything beyond the man's permission.
"I won't sign these." Rachel slammed the papers on the table. Her heart was filled with grudge and anger.
Though they had to make an act, a month long would not be enough. Hiram was so impatient.
Hiram slightly raised his eyebrows. He stood up and walked towards her. His tall and perfectly-figured body blocked her way.
"I will give you a chance to think it over. Our lives will be peaceful after you sign these documents. And even if we marry each other, you and I can have lives of our own. We will not bother each other. Everything will be the same as before."
Hiram whispered to Rachel. Hiram bent down to get the pen and put it in her hand.
His alluring voice was like a hook that made Rachel's heart beat rapidly. She felt so nervous after hearing Hiram's blunt voice.
"Think about it carefully. As a reward, you can get anything you want." Hiram took the documents and put Rachel's hand at the signature place.
Hiram's jaw line was so attractive. His smooth chin slightly touched Rachel's cheek. He pinched her tiny chin and said, "Rachel, don't test my patience. Consider yourself lucky if you marry me." Maybe this was the best solution.
This solution would not only fulfill the century-old engagement made by their great-grandfathers, but would also make him free soon.
"I still remember you said you wouldn't allow me to join your family. You said it at the temple." Rachel's beautiful eyebrows raised sensibly. She simply stared at Hiram. She was unwilling to sign.
"I didn't expect these things could go this far. You had better sign these contracts." Hiram explained to Rachel patiently. He had thought that nobody could force him to marry her.
However, now that it all came to this, it would be a waste of time if he argued with his mother.
Rachel pondered and finally said, "Okay. I'll sign them. But I'll draw up another contract and you should agree with my terms!"
Since she had been forced from the beginning, it was time for her to payback.
Hiram didn't ask about the terms of her contract. He stood straight and said quickly, "Okay."
At last, Rachel signed the documents.
She beautifully wrote her name on the papers.
Hiram read the contracts again. He asked his assistant to hide the divorce paper and to open the door.
Fannie saw two copies of their marriage contract as she walked into the room.
Her daughter would finally get married. They would have the wedding ceremony after she recovered from her injury. Everything would be on track. Fannie immediately felt relief. Without the pressure caused by the forced marriage, Rachel's life got a bit of peace.
Maybe Hiram's decision was right.
If they got married and divorced soon because of incompatible personalities, their parents maybe would understand them.
After seeing the signed marriage contracts, Their parents didn't show up again. Maybe they thought they had forced the couple too much. They wanted to give them some space.
Just
When Rachel got out of the hospital, the Rong family's butler came to her apartment and moved all her things into Hiram's villa.
"Mrs. Rong, please don't worry. I will take care of all your things. I will move them into the villa safely!" The butler said with great confidence. Looking at Rachel who seemed embarrassed, the butler thought she was worried that they might lose her things.
After experiencing a lot of troubles, Rachel already learned to confront any situation calmly. She changed her clothes and went to work.
'God has arranged all these things for me, why not enjoy them?' Rachel thought.
The wolf's den was much better than her apartment.
Her friends in the company welcomed her cheerfully as she returned to work.
"Rachel! At last, you're back."
"Our team was defeated by Team B thousands of times because you were not here!" Celine made her a cup of tea and complained to her. "Yes. Our team was always the leading sales team of our company. But we can't make it without your leadership." A male colleague meekly said.
Sitting in the office, Rachel felt blissful. She felt bored during her days inside the hospital.
"Don't worry. Now that I have come back, I will make sure that our team will be the leading team again! Nobody can defeat us!" After she said those words, Rachel clapped her hands twice and asked her workmates to start working. "Celine, please give me the product to be sold this month and your sales plan."
Rachel was really competent. She had been in the company for three years. Moreover, she had been promoted to be the leader of Team A-the best sales team.
"Here you are." Celine handed all the documents that Rachel requested. Celine saw Rachel's covered wound and said, "Rachel, your wound has not been completely healed. Please take care of yourself." "Thank you!" Rachel said. She immediately opened the computer and scanned through the documents.
Before going off duty, Rachel sent the revised sales plan to her teammates. "I hope you can make use of your spare time to study the latest sales plan. There are only few days left for this month. Cheer up, everyone!"
"Rachel, how effective you are!" Celine said and took the revised sales plan. The original plan had been changed a lot; the revised plan was almost new.
They spent several days studying the plan, but Rachel spent just one day. Many fresh ideas had been added. Additionally, every idea was feasible for marketing the product.
"Of course! Our leader is true to her name!" A male colleague said cheerfully.
"But, Rachel... If you had worked as hard as this at seeking a good husband, you could have been married long before." Fiona Zhang, a team member, couldn't help chipping in. The place suddenly became quiet.
Everybody knew Rachel's history of blind date very well. But they immediately thought that Rachel had better not work hard on this matter, or someone might get into trouble.
Rachel looked at her teammates, smiled, and said, "Alright! I'll treat you dinner after work tomorrow. Would that be okay?"
"Excellent!" All of them cheered in excitement.
That was very Rachel. She worked very hard and treated her colleagues well.
As usual, Rachel took a taxi on her way to her apartment. She suddenly realized something as she climbed up the stairs.
All of her things had been moved to Hiram's villa. She also gave her keys to the butler. Going to her apartment would be useless.
She took a taxi to her "new home"-Tulip Palace. It was known as the royal garden of H City.
It was said that the residents there were the rich and super stars. Rachel believed her eyes would pop out when she arrived there. Then, She realized that she had belittled Hiram.
Not everyone could be allowed to get in the palace.
She wanted to get in the gate, but was stopped. She didn't have Hiram's phone number, so she had to call Hiram's secretary to get a pass.
Rachel thought she was dreaming.
The villas were surrounded by green trees and clear streams. Rachel confirmed that people were correct about their perception on the Tulip Palace.
'That jogging woman seems to be latest cover of vogue,' Rachel thought.
Rachel finally arrived at Hiram's villa. Its exterior wall was painted with deep, caramel color. It looked really luxurious. The villa's style was a combination of Chinese and European designs. The villa covered a thousand square meters.
The garage occupied at least 80 to 100 square meters. It went without saying that Hiram loved cars so much.
There were two huge plants in front of the villa. Rachel couldn't tell their names. The blue and white colored bricks were stretched towards the garden behind the villa.
Wait!
She was in awe after seeing the palace. But how could she enter the villa now? ☐☐