Chapter 1 Married Myself Off

• Hudson Webb was my name, and I came from a mountain village. I’d been staying in Jacinth City ever since I graduated university, but unfortunately, I couldn’t find any good jobs. I was a graduate from a third-tier university with a lousy major. I’d been here for three years, but I hadn’t achieved anything.
• On this day, I was again unemployed. After paying the rent for the following month, I only had 300 on me, but this amount wouldn’t even last a week in Jacinth City even if I were to scrimp and scrape. A feeling of desperation gripped me, and the urge to do something reckless flashed across my mind. After all, one would truly do anything when at the end of one’s tether.
• When I was at the lowest point of my life, an unexpected phone call turned my destiny around.
• Mandy Zorus, the HR manager of my former company, phoned me out of the blue. After answering the call and listening to her explanation, I was entirely stunned. Clutching my cell phone, I fell into a trance and said nothing for a whole minute until she started rushing me, saying, “I need an answer from you, Hudson. I’m only recommending you such a great deal because you seem honest besides meeting the other party’s requirements, so don’t waste such an amazing opportunity.”
• “Let me consider it, Miss Zorus.” My mind was a hazy blur, so I could only defer it.
• “Alright, then, but you must give me an answer by tomorrow morning. It’s actually not a big deal at all, Hudson. The other party has both money and power, so the moment you agree, she’ll give you 200,000 as dowry. You don’t lose anything.” Mandy prattled on and persuaded me for a while before she finally hung up the phone.
• When the call had ended, I spaced out for some time before I suddenly lifted a hand and slapped myself across the face to ascertain whether I was dreaming earlier.
• On the phone, Mandy said that she wanted to recommend me for a marriage deal. The other party’s requirements were extremely strange, for she mandated a live-in son-in-law with a height of 180 and above, possessing average to good looks, and a bachelor’s degree. Most importantly, she wanted someone honest and loyal, preferably an introverted village boy.
• Coincidentally, I met all these requirements, and it was as though this ‘position’ was tailor-made for me. I stood at a height of 183 with good looks besides being honest and introverted to the point of being a tad dull. Although I graduated from a third-tier university, I still had a bachelor’s degree.
• According to Mandy, the other party was a girl named Jessie Levitt. She was 30 years old and worked with the Municipal Bureau of Land and Resources as a senior-level officer. As long as I passed the interview, I’d receive 200,000 as dowry on a single condition—to get married immediately. I’d also be provided with a car and a house that was in a luxurious area in the city center of Jacinth City whereby houses cost at least tens of millions.
• I mulled it over the entire night. To be honest, I was tempted, but I was no fool albeit being an introvert. Why would she spend 200,000 to find an introverted and honest man when she’s such a prize? Plus, she wants to get married right away. There must be an ulterior motive. However, I can’t dwell upon that since 200,000 is definitely a king’s ransom to my impoverished self. Furthermore, I’m still a virgin now at 25 years old due to my destitution, yet to experience the feeling of bedding a woman!
• Early the next morning, I gave Mandy a call and agreed to the interview. That afternoon itself, Mandy took me to Misty Tea House on Zenith Avenue.
• I met Jessie there at the tea house. I initially thought she was going to be an unsightly woman, but when I met her in person, I was thunderstruck. Jessie Levitt is definitely a beauty, very much stunning! She wore a knee-length dress and had on skin-colored silk stockings underneath. She looked like a female officer with her short hair and slight makeup, yet her countenance was exquisite. Such contrast gave her an allure that bewitched men, so I pitched a tent at my first sight of her. It’ll be very gratifying to conquer her!
• Due to my excitement, I started stammering. Conversely, Jessie was extremely indifferent. After talking for about 15 minutes, she then left in a hurry.
• When I returned to my rented place, I felt that I’d definitely bombed it, so I didn’t contact Mandy further. Unexpectedly, I received a call from Jessie three days later, asking me to meet her at Misty Tea House again.
• This time, she was dressed very casually in a T-shirt and jeans. Coupled with her stunning countenance and short hair, she emanated a faint allure that would beguile both men and women. I sat across from her excitedly. We’d just exchanged a few words when she took out an agreement and declared, “This is an NDA. After you sign it, I’ll immediately pay you 200,000 as dowry, and we’ll register our marriage this afternoon itself.”
• “Huh?” My expression froze, for never had I expected to be required to register our marriage so soon. A moment later, I picked up the NDA on the table and scrutinized it carefully.
• There were a total of four items in the NDA. Firstly, we were only to be husband and wife in name but live separate lives, in which neither could interfere in the other’s life. Secondly, I wasn’t allowed to divulge anything about her. Thirdly, I was to maintain our relationship in front of outsiders and even put on public displays of affection. Fourthly, I’d be required to pay ten million in compensation if I were to violate any of the three conditions above.
• Subsequently, I put the agreement down and stared at Jessie before me with curiosity in my eyes.
• “If you agree, you can sign and stamp your thumbprint. Then, give me your account number,” Jessie urged impatiently.
• I turned it over in my mind for about ten seconds before I finally signed the agreement and stamped my thumbprint. After all, it didn’t seem as though I’d be losing anything by doing so; I only needed to get married once to obtain 200,000. Thus, I felt no burden when I signed the agreement.
• After putting away the agreement, Jessie brought me to the bank right away. When we walked out of the bank, there was an additional 200,000 in my account. In the afternoon, the two of us then went to the Civil Affairs Bureau and collected our marriage certificates, officially becoming a lawfully wedded couple.
• That night, Jessie brought me to her parents’ house. Her father had passed away, while her mother was a philosophy professor at Jacinth University. Her mother was an elderly woman in her 50s, yet she maintained her looks well, thus resembled a 40-year-old middle-aged lady.
• She was probably very much concerned about her daughter’s marriage, for the moment she heard that we’d already registered our marriage, she instantly barraged me with questions. I told her everything about myself, upon which her brows creased deeply and disapproval manifested on her face. Actually, I’d already expected her dissatisfaction since a dull and honest village boy like me fell short of her outstanding and beautiful daughter.
• During dinner, Jessie and her mother spoke Jacinthian. As I didn’t quite understand them, I merely kept my head lowered as I stuffed myself, feeling as though I was sitting on pins and needles. While it was a feast, I couldn’t wait for dinner to end. This was the first time I’d felt such torture during a meal.
• Jessie then had a row with her mother. In the end, she asserted that she’d now gotten married as per her wishes, so that was the end of it. Proclaiming that she’d be the master of her own destiny in the future and never again allow her to control her life, she then left with me.
• Half a month later, we had a wedding. Although Jessie wanted to have a low-key wedding, there were still a lot of people from both the political and business circles who attended since she was a senior-level officer with the Municipal Bureau of Land Resources and Housing Management.
• On the day of the wedding, I followed beside her like a puppet, wearing a humble smile on my face the entire time. I drank with one big shot after another, guzzling so much liquor that I became numb. Considering the popularity of real estate nowadays, the Bureau of Land Resources and Housing Management enjoyed the same amount of traction. For that reason, almost all the real estate companies in Jacinth City sent a representative to attend the wedding. Later on, I learned that Jessie was rumored to be promoted in the next year or two to the position of deputy director.
• I was three sheets to the wind, and I couldn’t touch her either, so the wedding night had nothing to do with me. In the middle of the night, I jolted awake from thirst and discovered myself lying on a huge bed. Of course, there was no sign of Jessie beside me. Curling my lips, I left the room and headed to the kitchen for some water.
• When I walked past the master bedroom, I noticed that the door was ajar, and a woman’s panting drifted out from within. Having never had such an experience myself, my heart instantly sped up, and all the blood in my body rushed to my groin. Thus, I mustered my courage and gently pushed open the door slightly before peeking in.
• A yellow table lamp was lit by the bedside, so the first thing that greeted me was the sight of a man and a woman in a compromising position. The passionate scene lit a fire within me and set me ablaze. Damn it! Although Jessie was only my wife in name, I was still extremely chagrined to see this as a man, for it felt as though I’d been insulted.
• About five minutes later, the man finished and collapsed on Jessie like a dead fish, panting.
• “Jackson, I’m now married, so you’ve got to consider me for the position of deputy director next year,” Jessie urged gently as she caressed the man.
• “Don’t worry. You’ve even given me your wedding night, so you’ll definitely be the deputy director as long as I get the position.”
• “Thank you, Jackson.”
• Subsequently, the two of them spoke of some indecent things in bed.
• A while later, the man then climbed off of Jessie. The moment he turned around, I saw his countenance clearly, upon which I broke out in a cold sweat. Going on my tiptoes so that I didn’t make any noise, I slowly returned to my room because Jessie had introduced the man to me while I went around toasting the guests during the day. If I’m not mistaken, he’s the second most powerful person in Jacinth City! When I left, I heard the man saying that he wanted to score a second time…
• Damn it! I’m done for! I’m truly dead, for I’ve gotten myself into a mess this time! Looks like I can’t necessarily get out of this even if I want to do so. When I’d gotten back to my room, worry was written all over my face. I was just thinking about getting a divorce after a year or so, then make some money before going back to the village to marry a maiden and start a family, but that seems to be wishful thinking now. No one else can know about this matter regarding Jessie! Will I be eliminated if I try to escape her clutches? All of a sudden, a sliver of apprehension crept into me.