I Married My Love Rival (GL) - Chapter 2

Ji Ran was right. Luo Simo didn’t try to extort money from her.

Luo Simo asked her to marry her…

Ji Ran was too stunned to speak for a long time. In just two days, first, the girl she secretly liked, Xu Zining, suddenly got engaged. Then, she inexplicably slept with the fiancé—her love rival. And now, the situation was that her love rival wanted to marry her?

Wait, wasn’t she engaged to Xu Zining?

“Are you serious? Are you sure you’re single and can get married?”

“Sure. We can go right now.”

Ji Ran almost blurted out, Then what about Xu Zining? What about your fiancé, my white moonlight?

Speaking of Xu Zining, that was a connection Ji Ran had in her childhood. She was living in a certain compound in Jiangcheng at the time, with the status of a rich young lady. One day, while playing idly in the compound, she encountered a cute little girl who was blocked by a large dog and was so scared she fell to the ground.

She was in the fifth grade then, quite tall, and loved to play, making her somewhat of a ringleader among the kids. Based on the heroic principle that a big sister must protect a little sister, she stepped forward to rescue the little girl. Moreover, that dog belonged to her neighbor’s neighbor, whom she saw often, and the dog generally listened to her.

Taming a big dog in front of a cute little girl was a very proud achievement, especially for Ji Ran, who had liked girls since childhood. The little girl showed an expression of admiration, just as Ji Ran had hoped, which made her even prouder. She played with the little girl and the big dog for the entire afternoon.

The little girl also obediently called her “Jie-jie” (older sister) all afternoon, which delighted Ji Ran. Holding the little girl’s hand and looking at her fair, tender face, Ji Ran inexplicably felt the urge to tease her, and planted a kiss on her cheek.

“You like Jie-jie so much, how about marrying Jie-jie when you grow up? Jie-jie can even design a unique wedding ring for you!”

“Okay!”

But Ji Ran only met her that one time and forgot to ask for her name, only knowing her nickname was A-Ning. Yet, for some reason, she remembered that little girl, remembered that afternoon, for a very long time.

Many years later, during adolescence, when she came out to her friend and talked about her first stirrings of romance, Ji Ran spontaneously recounted the story of that afternoon.

And her friend was very helpful, checking and finding out who the little sister was the very next day.

She was the granddaughter of the Xu family in the compound, Xu Zining. She didn’t live in the compound but occasionally returned with her parents to visit her grandparents. She was particularly cute, afraid of dogs, and her nickname was A-Ning.

From then on, her friend confirmed that Xu Zining was her secret crush. By then, Ji Ran no longer lived in the compound, so her friend would intermittently share news about Xu Zining—a habit that lasted for over a decade.

The title also evolved from “secret crush” to the “white moonlight” she couldn’t reach.

Ji Ran hadn’t dated anyone all these years. Her only genuine emotional spark was from her childhood, so she never refuted the “white moonlight” title for Xu Zining.

After all, it was the truth.

However, she never imagined things would turn out this way: she slept with Xu Zining’s fiancé, and now they had a marriage certificate.

Getting a marriage certificate was easier now than before; all it required was an ID card and fingerprints—no household registration book needed. Thus, she was dragged all the way to the Civil Affairs Bureau by Luo Simo under the pretext of “taking responsibility.”

Ji Ran failed in her attempt to escape and tried to resist during the process, but Luo Simo effortlessly neutralized all her efforts.

Even without this awkward layer of relationship, Ji Ran didn’t want to get married!

But, Luo Simo said she could help her quit her current $15,000 monthly, 996 corporate job and move to the Luo family company, with a $30,000 base salary, an easy-going and leisurely schedule, plus commission and bonuses, and even company shares after a year. Furthermore, as her partner, half of Luo Simo’s assets would eventually belong to her.

Marriage = instant wealth.

Luo Simo also said she was a traditional and conservative person. Since she was with Ji Ran, she was committed to her, and there would only ever be Ji Ran.

…

In short, it was a combination of pressure and persuasion, coercion, bribery, and seduction. As an ordinary person, Ji Ran ultimately couldn’t hold out and surrendered to the power of money. After all, Luo Simo was offering far too much.

Thinking about it, it felt like she had lucked out. Rather than a distant, unattainable white moonlight, it was better to grasp the powerhouse right beside her.

Beautiful, long-legged, and responsible.

She had struggled for years to reach her current $15,000 monthly income. She had finally paid off her family’s debt and started saving money for her dream house, yet she didn’t even have a tenth of the down payment.

But now, encountering Luo Simo, everything suddenly became easy.

“Is this real?”

Staring at the red booklet in her hand, Ji Ran mumbled, then looked up at Luo Simo with a complicated expression.

She really was a sellout…

However, her choice was probably completely normal.

“Why wouldn’t it be real? I’m standing right in front of you, and the certificate is in your hand.” Luo Simo didn’t care, raising her hand to shield her eyes from the sun and squinting slightly.

“Let’s get back to the car. The AC is on.”

Saying that, she very naturally took Ji Ran’s hand and led her away.

“Where do you live? I’ll take you to pack a few things. You’ll live at my place from now on—no, our place.”

In the car, Luo Simo turned her head to look at Ji Ran, her eyes bright.

“What?”

Ji Ran, who had just recovered, was hit by another blow and was dumbfounded again.

“I’m taking you back to pack a few things to move into our home. If you’re too lazy to pack, I have new toiletries there, but we might need to have some clothes sent over, since our sizes…”

Luo Simo answered earnestly, and Ji Ran couldn’t help but interrupt her.

“We’re cohabiting now?”

“We’ve got the certificate; we’re legal partners. Why wouldn’t we live together?”

That was logically true, but… it just felt strange, Ji Ran frowned.

“But we only met yesterday. I forgot to ask you. To you, I’m still a stranger, aren’t I? You’re committing your life to a stranger just like that? And you want to cohabit with me. Aren’t you worried I might be a bad person?”

Hearing the words “a stranger,” Luo Simo’s eyes darkened. Ignoring Ji Ran, she started the car, put on a wireless earphone, and dialed a number.

“Secretary Li, I need a small favor. Have Jessica send a few sets of women’s clothes to my place.”

“Just… innerwear, outerwear, clothes for home, clothes for going out, just grab a few of everything.”

“Style? Anything a person would wear is fine.”

Hearing Luo Simo’s phone call, Ji Ran in the passenger seat felt a momentary flicker of timidity. Surprisingly, this person seemed quite volatile. Judging by her tone and attitude, was she angry?

She didn’t know how she had managed to upset her.

“Around 160 centimeters, quite thin and well-proportioned.”

Answering the call, the subordinate Li, still at the office, jotted down notes in her notebook.

“Does that miss have any specific requests or preferences?”

“Don’t worry about her.”

Who on earth has upset our CEO Luo this time? The last time I saw CEO Luo angry was last week when someone made a huge mistake during a meeting.

“For clothing brands, should it be the usual brands you wear, the same as yours?”

“Mm, yes.”

Luo Simo’s reply was brief, but Li sensitively noticed that her tone had softened considerably.

The call ended. As Li messaged Jessica, she secretly gossiped to herself. Although she had worked with CEO Luo for two years, this was the first time she had heard of her bringing a woman home.

Some older staff members were just discussing CEO Luo’s engagement yesterday. Could this be her fiancé?

Hearing the mention of the same brand of clothes, Luo Simo’s previously rampant anger instantly dissipated and returned to calm, as if some nerve had been hit.

If one looked closely, one could vaguely see a hint of happiness on her face.

“Um, thanks for taking care of the clothes, but I still need to go back to my place to get some things.”

Ji Ran spoke meekly, wondering if her back-and-forth demands would annoy her. After all, going to her place now meant Luo Simo would have to drive a long distance and then turn back.

“Alright. Set the navigation yourself.”

“On your phone?”

“Yes, the password is **…”

To state her phone password so easily! Luo Simo’s phone was on the mount. Ji Ran successfully unlocked it. The first thing that caught her eye was a photo of a large golden retriever as the wallpaper.

Not daring to look at anything else, Ji Ran quickly found the navigation app and entered her address.

“It’s quite close. We can get there in half an hour.”

Luo Simo glanced at the navigation: “Mm, if you’re tired, you can rest for a bit.”

Ji Ran was currently renting a shared apartment after starting her new job. She co-rented with one person. The environment, facilities, and transportation were all good, and the rent wasn’t expensive, so she had signed a one-year contract and paid the money in one lump sum.

The apartment was great in every way, except for one thing: her roommate was also the landlady. She was the same age as Ji Ran and had bought the apartment alone, then rented it out to ease her financial pressure. Since it was her apartment, she had some demanding and annoying conditions for Ji Ran.

Honestly, if she hadn’t already paid the rent, Ji Ran would have moved elsewhere long ago. She could only wait until the contract expired, but now she could suddenly leave. Thinking about it, she felt quite happy.

When they arrived at the rental apartment, it was noon. At this time, the landlady/roommate was usually back from work to cook, take a short nap, and then go back to the office.

“Wait at the door for a minute. I have to tell her first before bringing a stranger in.”

Ji Ran had already messaged her roommate on the way, but she probably hadn’t had time to read it. In this situation, she couldn’t just bring someone in, or she would be violating one of her 25 co-living rules.

“Okay.”

Luo Simo obediently stood by the door. After Ji Ran went inside, she looked around boredly, thinking to herself that Ji Ran would surely love their home when she saw it.

Hearing the door open, the roommate, who was stir-frying vegetables, poked her head out and said, “Why didn’t you let me know you weren’t coming back last night? I didn’t know whether to lock the door.”

“Sorry, I was drunk last night and forgot. A friend of mine is outside now, a woman. I’ll bring her to my room to wait for me.”

“Fine. Remember to tell her to change her shoes, and you know I’m going to rest later, so keep your voices down, okay?”

“Got it.”

Standing in the hallway, Ji Ran waved to Luo Simo outside the door, then took out the slippers she usually kept for visitors.

“Who are these shoes normally for?”

Looking at the slippers by her feet, Luo Simo was unmoved and seemed to have no intention of putting them on. Judging by the look, she even seemed disdainful. Ji Ran put her hands on her hips, speechless.

“Here, wear mine.”

“Okay.”

Ji Ran’s slippers were obviously smaller, but Luo Simo put them on without hesitation, even though a small part of her heel was hanging out.

It was still a short walk to the room. Just then, the landlady came out carrying a dish, her curious gaze constantly scrutinizing Luo Simo.

Luo Simo had overheard the brief exchange between the two women at the door and could sense Ji Ran’s distance from her roommate. Thus, her first impression of this person was very ordinary, even slightly disliked.

Following behind Ji Ran, Luo Simo didn’t spare the landlady a single glance.

“There’s only one chair. You sit. I’ll pack some things.”

Ji Ran’s room had no decorations, clean and simple, but it felt very comfortable at a glance and had a faint scent. Luo Simo leaned on the backrest of the chair, slightly narrowing her eyes. Like a lazy cat in a cozy environment, she quietly watched Ji Ran bustling about.

“Do you need any help?”

“Just sit. I’m only taking a few things now. I’ll come back to move properly when I have time.”

“Alright.”

Judging by this, it seemed she had already accepted living with her in the future.

Under the cover of her arm, Luo Simo quietly allowed a faint smile to appear.