Volume One, Chapter 118: Emptiness

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Sheng Yuru’s ability to win people over was no exaggeration.

She was not short of money, and there were not many genuine friendships in the workplace. To her, anything that could be settled with money was a trivial matter.

Sure enough, in just three days, everyone except Lu Yuan had isolated Song Qingyu.

Song Qingyu had grown accustomed to this sort of thing since high school, so she was not surprised. She focused on her work every day and could not be bothered to fight with Sheng Yuru.

At noon, when Song Qingyu went to eat, Lu Yuan carried his tray over and sat down across from her.

Song Qingyu was somewhat surprised. Lu Yuan had always eaten by himself before.

“What is it?”

“Nothing!”

Lu Yuan lowered his head and concentrated on eating.

Not far away, Sheng Yuru was sitting with several other girls.

Ma Dandan liked Lu Yuan. Seeing him ignore her while eating with Song Qingyu, she was furious. “She’s already married, yet she still refuses to behave herself at work.”

“Lu Yuan is nothing but a dog at Song Qingyu’s side. Apart from being a little handsome and somewhat capable, he is useless in every other way. What do you even like about him?”

Ma Dandan gave a soft snort. “Can’t I just like him because he’s handsome?”

“All right!” After taking a photograph of Lu Yuan and Song Qingyu and sending it to Chu Xing, Sheng Yuru said to the others, “Look at how pathetic you all are. I’ll take you out to broaden your horizons another day.”

The young heirs surrounding Sheng Yuru were all wealthy, and everyone immediately began currying favor with her.

Ma Dandan was still unwilling to let the matter go. She glared furiously at Song Qingyu, gripping her chopsticks so tightly they nearly snapped.

Seeing this, a flicker passed through Sheng Yuru’s eyes. “That Lu Yuan is quite handsome. Qingyu was very popular with boys back in high school, too. She’s very good at handling relationships with the opposite sex. Lu Yuan looks honest and straightforward, so it’s hardly strange that he likes her.”

As she spoke, she sighed. “Lu Yuan is taciturn, a typical engineer. He looks so honest and simple-minded that it’s no wonder Qingyu managed to bewitch him.”

“Hmph!”

Looking at Ma Dandan’s expression, Sheng Yuru’s lips curled into an ill-intentioned smile.

“Hey, President Gu is here!”

Everyone immediately turned toward Gu Yuandong. A man in a black suit was slowly walking toward them.

Zhou Qiqi said to Sheng Yuru, “Miss Sheng, President Gu must have heard that you were here, so he came especially to have lunch with you.”

Sheng Yuru frowned.

Was that really so?

When had her second cousin started caring so much about her?

But everyone was saying it, so she naturally assumed it was true. Perhaps her uncle had instructed her second cousin to look after her at the company.

With that thought, Sheng Yuru straightened her back, a proud expression appearing on her face.

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However, in the very next second, reality slapped her across the face.

Gu Yuandong acted as though he had not seen her at all and walked straight to Song Qingyu.

Ever since Pei Jingmo had laid bare his feelings before Song Qingyu, leaving the two of them in an unbearably awkward state, Song Qingyu had lost much of her appetite.

She had taken only a few bites of her meal before she no longer wanted to eat.

When she saw Gu Yuandong standing before her, she froze. “President Gu?”

The moment Lu Yuan saw Gu Yuandong, he tactfully picked up his tray and left the table.

Pei Jingmo could clearly tell that Song Qingyu had lost weight. He did not regret confessing his feelings.

But the two ounces of flesh she had worked so hard to put on had disappeared again, and it pained him.

Several days had passed. Although she was weighed down by worry, she had not divorced him. Yet she did not seem to have any intention of staying with him, either.

Pei Jingmo placed a box in front of Song Qingyu. “Xiaoxi misses you very much. She knew you were busy and did not want to disturb you, so she begged Aunt Tang to make some pear-blossom cakes and asked me to bring them to you.”

Thinking of Xiaoxi, Song Qingyu smiled. “Thank you, President Gu. Please thank Xiaoxi for me as well.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Have you eaten, President Gu? Shall I get you—”

“I’ve already eaten.”

Pei Jingmo sat down across from Song Qingyu anyway. He had not watched her eat for several days.

“Miss Song, try a pear-blossom cake.”

“All right.”

Song Qingyu picked up a piece and took a bite. It was crisp, delicious, and not at all greasy.

For some reason, she suddenly thought of Pei Jingmo. He would probably like these pear-blossom cakes.

Hearing her sigh, Pei Jingmo asked, “What’s wrong? Don’t you like it?”

“No…”

Song Qingyu quickly gathered her emotions and smiled. “It’s delicious.”

“If you like it, eat a little more. And remember to drink plenty of water.”

“Thank you, President Gu.”

When the people around Sheng Yuru saw how ugly her expression had become, they all turned into mutes and dared not say another word.

After lunch, Song Qingyu had only just returned to the twelfth floor when Sheng Yuru blocked her path.

“Song Qingyu, I really underestimated you. Seducing other men wasn’t enough—you even dared to seduce my second cousin. Are you tired of living?”

Song Qingyu could not be bothered with her. “If there’s something wrong with your head, go to a hospital. Don’t come here looking for attention!”

She was about to leave when Sheng Yuru grabbed her by the arm. “Dare you say you didn’t? What, seeing that your bricklayer husband can’t earn much money, you’ve set your sights on my cousin? But don’t forget that my cousin has a fiancée, and she’s the daughter of the Lu Corporation. Who do you think you are?”

Song Qingyu forcefully shook off Sheng Yuru’s hand. “I may be nobody, but you’re no better. Instead of wasting your time, why don’t you work on improving your professional skills? You can’t even produce a single set of data without paying someone else to do it for you.”

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Watching Song Qingyu walk away, Sheng Yuru shouted after her, “I’ll keep an eye on you for Sister Rongrong!”

What a lunatic!

Song Qingyu cursed inwardly and returned to her workstation in exasperation.

Usually, whenever things went badly at work, seeing the light left on at home would warm Song Qingyu’s heart.

But now, she did not even know what she was supposed to do when she went home.

The lights in the house were off that evening. Clearly, Pei Jingmo had not returned yet.

Without Pei Jingmo, the house felt empty and desolate.

There was no food on the table. Song Qingyu opened the refrigerator, glanced inside, and cooked herself a bowl of noodles.

Yet once the noodles were ready, she had little appetite.

Ten o’clock that night.

After washing up, Song Qingyu climbed into bed when a knock suddenly sounded at the door.

Thinking that Pei Jingmo had returned, the hollow place in her heart seemed to fill in an instant. She hurried out to open the door.

When the door opened, the first thing Song Qingyu saw was not Pei Jingmo, but a girl with her hair tied in two braids.

Only afterward did she see Pei Jingmo, whom the girl was supporting.

The smile on Song Qingyu’s face faded little by little.

Pei Jingmo was drunk, so drunk that he could barely stand. The girl was struggling to hold him up. “Hello. Is this Black Soil Brother’s home?”

Black Soil Brother?

Ordinary people would not call him that. Who was this girl?

“It is.”

Song Qingyu drew a deep breath and helped the girl carry Pei Jingmo into the room.

After laying Pei Jingmo on the bed, Song Qingyu and the girl left the room and went into the living room.

The girl gazed curiously at everything in the house, then smiled enviously. “Black Soil Brother is truly amazing. He has such a beautiful home in Shangjing, and he even married such a beautiful wife.”

Since the visitor was a guest, Song Qingyu greeted her with a smile. “Have a seat. I’ll get you some water.”

“No need. I have somewhere to be, so I should leave. When Black Soil Brother wakes up, please tell him not to forget what he promised me.”

“What promise?”

“Hehe, I’d rather not tell you.”

After the girl left, Song Qingyu stood in the living room for a long while. She raised a hand and touched her chest.

For some reason, she felt terribly uncomfortable.