The CEO’s Cannon-Fodder Ex-Wife (2)
At exactly seven o’clock the next morning, Ning Xin opened her eyes.
She lay on the unfamiliar bed for three seconds. Once she was fully awake, she sat up.
After Jiang Xiao came out of the bathroom last night, he had taken the initiative to suggest sleeping in the guest room, leaving the master bedroom to Ning Xin.
“Quite the gentleman.”
That had been Ning Xin’s assessment of him at the time.
Now, the morning sunlight filtered through the sheer curtains and spilled into the room. She got out of bed barefoot and stepped onto the soft carpet.
The master bedroom was quite spacious and had an attached bathroom. The interior design matched the rest of the bedroom:
Gray and white tones, clean lines, and the appearance of a luxury hotel suite, but with hardly any sense of warmth or life.
She didn’t like it.
Ning Xin opened the wardrobe. Inside hung several men’s shirts and suits, their tags still attached.
Clearly, the butler or assistant had prepared them.
She changed into the light-gray knitted outfit she had picked out from the dressing room the previous night. The fabric was soft and comfortable.
The apartment was a duplex penthouse, so spacious that it felt almost empty.
Ning Xin stood by the second-floor railing and looked down. The living room had a six-meter-high ceiling, while an entire wall of floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked the city skyline.
The more she looked, the more speechless she became.
It was too clean.
So clean that it looked like a show apartment.
Ning Xin walked down the spiral staircase.
The kitchen was open-plan. Apart from the coffee machine, the kitchen island was completely empty.
She opened the refrigerator.
Inside, there was nothing but bottled water, sparkling water, and several bottles of expensive-looking beer.
【Host, what are you going to do?】 the system asked curiously.
“Establish rules.”
“No matter what, I’m still a wealthy young lady from a family equal in status to his.”
“Why should I live according to his habits?”
“There isn’t a single thing about this place that I’m satisfied with.”
“I have to annoy him a little, at least.”
“And besides…”
Ning Xin closed the refrigerator door and took out some sticky notes and a pen from a drawer.
“For any partnership to last, there must be clear boundaries and expectations.”
She then sat down beside the kitchen island and began writing out the rules.
First, she wrote down her own daily habits.
She was a light sleeper and couldn’t tolerate noise while sleeping.
She also hated the smell of cigarettes, so smoking was not allowed in the house.
…
By the time she finished, the clock showed 7:40.
She attached the sticky notes neatly to the refrigerator door with magnets and then began figuring out how to use the coffee machine.
At exactly eight o’clock, Jiang Xiao came downstairs.
He had changed into a dark-gray set of loungewear. His hair was slightly damp, indicating that he had just showered.
When he saw Ning Xin in the kitchen, his footsteps paused almost imperceptibly for half a second.
“Morning.”
Without turning around, Ning Xin held out the freshly brewed coffee in her hand.
“Americano. No sugar, no milk. If it isn’t to your taste, you can adjust it yourself.”
Jiang Xiao walked over to the kitchen island. He looked at the steaming cup of coffee, then raised his eyes to look at her.
Today, Ning Xin had loosely tied her long hair behind her head, with a few strands falling against the side of her neck.
In the morning light, the lines of her profile looked softer, but her posture still carried that faint sense of distance.
“Thank you.”
Jiang Xiao picked up the coffee and took a sip.
The temperature was just right, and the strength was perfect.
Unexpectedly, it suited his taste.
He really did only drink Americano, without anything added.
“The list on the refrigerator.”
Ning Xin turned around and leaned against the kitchen island, holding her own cup.
“Take a look. If you have any objections, bring them up now. If you don’t, we’ll consider them effective by default.”
Jiang Xiao turned toward the refrigerator.
Three sticky notes were neatly arranged there, the handwriting clean and clear.
He walked over and quickly scanned them.
The more he read, the higher his eyebrows rose.
“‘The common areas must remain quiet after ten at night’?”
He read it aloud, his tone revealing no particular emotion.
“It’s scientifically recommended to ensure good sleep quality.”
Ning Xin answered calmly.
“If you need to work late and review documents, you can go to the study. It’s soundproofed.”
Jiang Xiao continued reading.
“‘Anyone who comes home drunk late at night is responsible for dealing with themselves and must avoid disturbing the other person’s rest’?”
Ning Xin took a sip of coffee.
“Neither of us is the type to cause trouble for the other, right?”
Jiang Xiao turned to look at her.
Her expression was serious. She didn’t seem to be joking.
“Ning Xin,” he said slowly, “we only got married yesterday.”
“Precisely because of that, we need to establish rules as early as possible.”
Ning Xin put down her cup.
“Disorder wastes energy. Clear rules make cooperation more efficient.”
“Or does President Jiang prefer his negotiating partners to leave the terms vague when doing business?”
Jiang Xiao was silent for several seconds before suddenly laughing.
“You seem to be very good at this,” he said.
“At what?”
“Setting rules and controlling the pace.”
Jiang Xiao walked back to the kitchen island, slowly rotating his coffee cup between his fingers.
“The Ning family raised you well.”
Ning Xin met his gaze.
“I imagine the Jiang family raised you well too, President Jiang.”
Their eyes met for three seconds.
Something seemed to move through the air.
It wasn’t flirtation.
It was more like two chess players sizing each other up at the beginning of a game.
“I agree to the list,” Jiang Xiao finally said.
“But I’ll add one thing: my study is private territory. Don’t enter without permission.”
“Then you can define your own boundaries as well. I won’t enter without permission either.”
“Reasonable.”
Ning Xin nodded.
“What about the dressing room in the master bedroom?”
“Shared.”
Jiang Xiao paused.
“After all, we occasionally need to attend events together. It’ll be more convenient to coordinate our outfits if we keep them together.”
“Fine.”
A brief silence followed.
Only the aroma of coffee lingered in the air.
“I had the contract reviewed by my lawyer.”
Jiang Xiao suddenly spoke.
“He suggested changing a few phrases, but there are no problems with the core terms. My assistant will bring the formal version over this afternoon.”
Ning Xin wasn’t surprised.
“Are you signing it?”
Jiang Xiao looked at her. Something flickered in his deep eyes, so quickly that she couldn’t catch it.
“Yes.”
He paused.
“But I want to add one more clause.”
“Go ahead.”
“During the partnership, if either party does anything that could potentially affect the other’s reputation, regardless of whether it is specifically covered by the contract, it must be communicated promptly.”
Jiang Xiao lightly tapped his index finger against the countertop.
“I don’t like surprises.”
Ning Xin gave a slight nod.
“Deal.”
The servants had already prepared breakfast.
The two of them ate a simple meal together.
They didn’t speak throughout the entire meal, but the atmosphere wasn’t awkward.
They didn’t look like a newlywed couple at all.
They were more like two familiar colleagues having breakfast together in a break room.
At half past eight, Jiang Xiao stood up.
“I’m going to the company. I have a dinner engagement tonight, so don’t wait for me.”
“Okay.”
Ning Xin gathered the dishes.
She wasn’t the kind of wealthy young lady who couldn’t lift a finger, and besides, the apartment was fully equipped.
“Should I prepare hangover soup?”
Jiang Xiao paused while fastening his cufflinks.
“What?”
“Hangover soup.”
Ning Xin looked up, her expression still calm.
“My mother taught me a recipe that’s effective for relieving discomfort after drinking.”
“If you need it, I can prepare some.”
Jiang Xiao looked at her as though trying to determine what she meant by those words.
“No need to trouble yourself.”
“It isn’t any trouble. I’d just be doing it while I’m at it.”
Ning Xin opened the dishwasher.
“If you don’t directly refuse, I’ll take that as meaning you need it.”
Jiang Xiao said nothing else.
He picked up his suit jacket and walked toward the entrance.
Before leaving, he glanced back.
Ning Xin stood in front of the dishwasher with her back to him, her figure slender and upright. The morning sunlight streamed through the windows and outlined her in a soft glow.
The door closed, and the apartment returned to silence.
She stopped in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows and watched the black sedan drive out of the garage below and merge into the morning traffic.
She murmured softly,
“The first step in slowly boiling a frog…”
“is to let the water heat up gradually.”
…
At exactly three in the afternoon, Jiang Xiao’s assistant arrived at the apartment.
She was an efficient-looking woman around thirty years old with the surname Chen. She respectfully handed over the folder.
“President Jiang asked me to deliver this for Madam to review.”
“The revisions have been marked in red. If there are no problems, President Jiang will sign it when he returns tonight.”
Ning Xin took the documents and sat on the sofa, carefully reading through them.
The lawyer hadn’t changed much.
Most of the revisions simply standardized several legal terms, while all the core clauses remained intact.
“No problem.”
She signed her name and handed the documents back.
Assistant Chen put the documents away but didn’t leave immediately.
Instead, she hesitated before speaking.
“Madam, President Jiang asked me to tell you that tonight’s engagement is quite important, and he may end up drinking quite a bit.”
“If… if he comes back too late and disturbs you, you don’t need to wait for him.”
“Okay.”
