The Substitute Bride

"Autumn, why are you so worried about Mr. Lu? He is just away on official business." Leila sneered and went on to add coldly, "Oh, I see. Mr. Lu is such a brilliant man. You may lack of the sense of security to be with a man like him. After all, for most women, he is Mr. Perfect. But you don't have to worry, because I will keep him company to ensure that he would not do things that he shouldn't do. If you know what I mean. So take it easy."

Autumn did not like Leila talking like this. Leila was acting like a presumptuous guest squeezing herself into the host's role. Who did she think she was? 'I am worried because you always cast your covetous eyes on him.' Autumn said in her mind.

"Really? That would be great then. Thank you very much." Indifferently, Autumn said, "Then tell him to call me later when he finishes his work."

Then she hung up the phone. Autumn was getting tired of doing nothing, but soon remembered that she still hadn't had dinner yet. The thought of this made her hungry so she put on her coat and went out.

She should go and explore the area, try out the local culture of Japan since it was her first time to come here. Autumn went to an izakaya not far away from her hotel. An izakaya is a type of informal Japanese pub, where people prefer for after-work drinking. She chose a table and drank alone, enjoying her own casual moment there.

From time to time, some people would come to strike a conversation with her. Autumn would just show a soft smile, waving at them or shrugging her shoulders to tell them she was unable to understand what they were saying. Seeing this, they have no other choices but to walk away.

The izakaya was near the hotel where she lived. Autumn was not much of a drinker and she knew very well her own drinking capacity. She stopped drinking as soon as she felt a little tipsy.

On the way back to hotel, Autumn made a call to Leila again who was in the car with Charles and David. Leila saw on her phone screen that it was Autumn calling. Instead of picking up, Leila hung up the phone. She thought that it was not convenient for her to answer the phone at that time. Actually, Leila hated receiving any phone calls from Autumn.

Charles had just met an important customer earlier and was forced to drink too much during the meeting -- a typical part of meetings with the Japanese. He had fallen asleep in the car when Autumn called Leila. David heard the phone ring and looked over to Leila. "Is that your boyfriend calling you? Why don't you answer the phone?" David asked curiously.

"Haha, you are being funny. How could it be possible? You must know that I even don't have a boyfriend, " replied Leila with a smile. She paused for a while and then continued, "It is just one of my friends. She is hard up recently, so she has been pestering me several times to borrow money." Leila tried to sound convincing.

"Really?" David didn't say anything else and looked ahead. Though it

t go and do what you need to do." Autumn's voice came from behind them. She stepped between Leila and Charles and then held him. Surprised and embarrassed as she was, Leila stepped back. She couldn't look directly at Autumn.

"Mrs. Lu! Why are you here?" David was astonished but asked Autumn cheerfully. "When did you arrive? I am so pleased to see you here! You saved me from a very tight situation." He couldn't hide his relief.

"I am here to attend a meeting and represent our company so I thought of surprising my husband. I didn't expect him to be occupied by work all day, so I waited for him here." Autumn replied with a soft smile.

"Autumn, let me help you, " said Leila. She reached out and was about to hold Charles. Leila was completely shocked at Autumn's unexpected arrival. Now, her plans have been disrupted and her dream of having Charles to herself was shattered.

Autumn gave her a fierce look from head to toe and said, "Thank you. But there is no need for you to help me. I will take care of my husband."

Though Charles was not heavy, he was tall, and it required a lot of strength for her to hold him up. Even so, Autumn declined Leila's help and insisted on doing it herself. Autumn was thankful that she came here today. She couldn't imagine what would have happened if she hadn't.

"Autumn, what's wrong? Are you angry at me?" Embarrassed yet indignant, Leila faced Autumn. She will have to give a good excuse and explain why she didn't answer the phone when Autumn called earlier, but… Try as she could, no ideas were coming to her head. 'What should I do? How could I explain it to her?' Leila was in near panic.

"Be angry with you? Why would I?" Instead of losing her temper, Autumn stayed calm and replied coldly. "I always know that Charles is very busy with his work. But now that he is drunk, I can only ask you to help him manage the rest of his work here." Autumn's voice was polite but her irritation at Leila was evident.