Chapter 2
“I have a younger sister who’s been diagnosed with a serious illness. The doctor has already issued a critical condition notice and said she has at most one month left to live…”
“Oh…” Upon hearing the elderly woman’s words, Yarrick instantly understood. She wasn’t the one looking for a marriage partner; she was finding one for her dying sister.
“Young man, are you willing to undergo a simple wedding ceremony with my sister?”
“I don’t mind… but I have to charge extra.”
His daily rate for being a temporary boyfriend started from 500 dollars. Since he was now being asked to be a temporary husband, surely, he was justified in asking for more? Especially since his partner would soon part from this world!
Under these circumstances, asking for a thousand dollars a day wasn’t too much, right?
“As long as you agree, money isn’t a problem. How about this? Once the wedding ceremony is over, I’ll give you a lump sum of half a million dollars.”
“What! Half a million?”
“Yes. Half a million dollars, paid after the ceremony.” The elderly woman nodded, her expression serious. She didn’t look like she was joking.
“So… All I need to do is have a wedding ceremony with her, right? Nothing else?”
If Yarrick could earn half a million dollars just like that, it was no different than having that money just drop into his lap! After all, a wedding ceremony wouldn’t take long—maybe half a day. There was no way it could be that simple, could it?
“Since you’ll be having a wedding ceremony, you must first get a marriage certificate with her. But that won’t be too hard. All you need to do is bring your ID and social security number.”
“Huh? I have to get a marriage certificate with her too?” Yarrick was taken aback when he heard that. As he suspected, things weren’t as simple as he thought. In other words, to get that half a million dollars, he had to first be legally married to this lady’s younger sister.
However, since that woman only had a month left to live, that meant this marriage wouldn’t last any longer than that. Earning half a million dollars within such a short time frame was still a huge win for him.
After all, that was half a million dollars they were talking about!
“Yes. Since you’re getting married, you need to make it official by getting a marriage certificate too. But I have to remind you that my sister has at most a month left to live, though this shouldn’t affect your future marriage prospects. What do you say, young man?”
Yarrick fell silent as he pondered the matter. Half a million dollars was not an insignificant amount.
Besides, the marriage certificate would lose its purpose within just a month. If he wanted to marry someone else in the future, that only meant he had an extra document to bring along—the lady’s death certificate.
Naturally, this would still affect his marriage prospects in some manner, but that was why the elderly woman had offered him half a million dollars!
“Ma’am, you sought me out to get married to your sister because you’re hoping this will bring good luck to her, didn’t you?”
“You’re quite astute. That’s correct. At this point, I’m desperate for anything. I can only hope the good luck will rub off on her and bring some effect.”
“Then… what if she recovers?”
What if the woman fully recovered from her illness? Or what if the doctor had been wrong about how much time she had left and she went on to live for many more years?
“Don’t worry. If she really does recover, I’m sure she’ll divorce you. And if she lives for longer than three months, I’ll give you another two million dollars.”
“Two million!” Yarrick’s eyes were practically bulging out of their sockets in shock. He had never even seen that much money in his life!
“Yes, two million dollars.” The elderly woman nodded, her expression earnest. There was even a hint of anticipation in her eyes.
“Alright, ma’am. I accept this request.”
Without a doubt, this was the highest-paying job Yarrick had ever received! There was no room for hesitation!
Once he had the money, his mother could finally go to a better hospital to see a doctor. Not only that but with that much money, finding a wife in his village likely wouldn’t be a problem.
But what if his soon-to-be wife lived for yet another three months?
In no time at all, Yarrick reached an agreement with the elderly woman.
…
In the blink of an eye, it was already Monday.
Yarrick rushed to Jillburg’s Mercy Hospital with his social security number and ID.
That elderly woman had said her sister was in the intensive care unit of the hospital. All he needed to do was bring the necessary documents there, and she would bring someone over to handle the marriage certification procedures.
Once he had registered his information for the marriage certificate, he simply needed to change into a groom’s suit before he could enter the ICU. A professional would then conduct a simple wedding ceremony for them.
After that was over, the elderly woman promised to transfer him half a million dollars on the spot.
Yarrick had always been punctual, and this was particularly so when there was half a million dollars on the line. Even before it was 8:00 am, he was already in the waiting area for the ICU visitors. He quickly dialed the elderly woman’s phone.
“Morning, ma’am. It’s me, Yarrick Sutton. I’ve already arrived at the hospital.”
“Please wait a moment. I’ll be there soon with some people. Sorry for making you wait.” As usual, the elderly woman was friendly and polite. Nonetheless, she couldn’t hide the slight hint of excitement in her voice.
“Alright, ma’am.”
Ending the call, Yarrick took a seat on one of the benches, his heart racing with excitement as well. Soon, half a million dollars would be his! He hoped everything would go well and that nothing unexpected would happen.
As for what sort of person his future spouse was, he didn’t really care. After all, she was a dying person, and he was simply someone accepting money in return for hopefully bringing her good luck. There were no real feelings involved.
The seconds ticked by.
Yarrick had been waiting for about 20 minutes before the elevator doors at the end of the corridor opened. The elderly woman came over with six or seven people, consisting of all ages and genders.
“Hello, ma’am.” Seeing her approach, Yarrick stood up to greet her.
The people following behind her immediately focused their gazes on him.
“Good, you’re very punctual. Have you brought the necessary documents?”
“Yeah, I have.”
As he spoke, Yarrick dug out his documents from his backpack.
“Jordan, go ahead with the registration.”
“Alright, Madam Liese,” a young man behind the elderly woman answered before taking out his laptop. He then took the documents from Yarrick.
After checking everything over and confirming nothing was amiss, the young man named Jordan Whittaker said, “Madam Liese, I’ll head back to the office right away and return later with their marriage certificate.”
“Okay.”
With that, Jordan hurried off.
