Volume 1, Chapter 151: Cold-Blooded

Song Qingyu was startled.

Her body stiffened. Her first reaction was to reach into her bag with her other hand for her anti-wolf spray, but her hand was intercepted, and both of her wrists were pinned above her head.

The intruder was tall and strong, holding both her wrists with one hand while sliding the other beneath her sweater to stroke her warm, slender back.

Song Qingyu’s expression shifted dramatically. She bent her knees, intending to deliver a fatal blow to the intruder, but the man had anticipated the move and clamped his legs around hers, trapping her completely.

She was pressed flat against the wall, utterly unable to move.

When he captured her lips and tongue, Song Qingyu opened her mouth to bite him, but he easily evaded her.

Just as she was desperately trying to figure out how to fight him to the death, a low, muffled laugh sounded near her ear: "You won't be able to break free like this."

Recognizing the familiar voice, Song Qingyu’s fright instantly melted into pleasant surprise. "Jingmo?"

"Mhm, I'm back."

Pei Jingmo switched on the light, and Song Qingyu gazed at the face she had been longing for day and night.

Recently, Pei Jingmo had always returned while she was asleep. She could only dimly sense his presence, and by the time she woke up the next morning, he was already gone.

She had missed him too much.

Song Qingyu tightly embraced Pei Jingmo, her heart hammering wildly—half from lingering shock, half from sheer joy.

She pinched his lean waist. "You finally make it back, and all you do is scare me."

Pei Jingmo chuckled softly, lifting her into his arms. "I originally meant to give you a surprise."

Song Qingyu tweaked his ear. "And it turned into a horror show."

"Ah, my fault. I accept my punishment: serving Queen Qingyu as she bathes."

Pei Jingmo leaned in to kiss her, but Song Qingyu dodged him with a laugh. "Save it. Don't think I don't know what you're up to."

"Well, do you want to?"

Pei Jingmo’s dark eyes locked onto Song Qingyu, burning with undisguised affection and desire.

They held each other's gaze for barely three seconds. It was impossible to tell who initiated it, but the moment their lips touched, they could no longer bear to part.

Clothing was scattered all the way from the living room to the entrance of the bathroom. The shower pattered steadily as Pei Jingmo kissed Song Qingyu's neck, leaving her completely supported by his strength.

Fearing she might catch a cold, he had turned on the bathroom heater and set aside a glass of water for whenever she felt thirsty.

Pei Jingmo was always meticulous in these matters, putting Song Qingyu’s comfort above all else.

They tumbled from the bathroom to the bed. Song Qingyu was genuinely exhausted and wanted to rest.

Usually, Pei Jingmo yielded to her in everything, but in bed, his word was absolute.

Yet today, showing rare obedience, he stopped after twice and truly let her go.

Song Qingyu rested against Pei Jingmo’s chest, her fingers tracing his handsome face as if she could never look at him enough.

"Business trips are exhausting; you've lost weight."

Pei Jingmo took her hand in his. "Really?"

"Yes! And you look quite worn out. If it's this bad, you should just change jobs."

Song Qingyu felt a deep pang of sympathy for him. Pei Jingmo had a streak of machismo regarding household expenses, insisting on supporting the family with his own salary without spending a single cent of hers.

In truth, her current salary and various incomes were more than enough to comfortably support them both.

Pei Jingmo kissed her forehead and pulled her tightly into his embrace. "All right, I'll listen to you."

Wait a little longer.

Once he settled everything, he would reveal the whole truth to her.

Waking up in the morning to Pei Jingmo's handsome face put Song Qingyu in an exceptionally wonderful mood.

When she went to work, she radiated high spirits and glowing energy.

Seeing her, Sheng Yuru couldn't help sneering, "Smiling so brightly, did you win the lottery?"

Because her mood was too good, Song Qingyu couldn't be bothered to argue with her.

Sheng Yuru looked terrible; even her exquisite makeup failed to conceal the exhaustion and weariness on her face.

Seeing that Song Qingyu ignored her, Sheng Yuru pursued her. "Aren't you even a little curious about what's going on between Chu Xingzhi, that bitch, and me?"

Her good mood was instantly half-ruined.

As they stepped into the elevator together, Song Qingyu frowned. "Why on earth would I be curious about your affairs?"

"Hmpf, considering you and Chu Xingzhi were together for so many years, you don't care about him at all."

Song Qingyu had never met anyone as unhinged as Sheng Yuru.

If Song Qingyu spoke two words to Chu Xingzhi, Sheng Yuru would accuse her of playing the field.

If Song Qingyu ignored Chu Xingzhi, Sheng Yuru would call her cold-blooded.

"I don't care about him, but I can tell you're having a miserable time lately."

Miserable was an understatement for Sheng Yuru.

Lacking any proof, Chu Xingzhi remained convinced that she had pushed Lin Tiange down the stairs, causing Lin Tiange to lose her baby. He viewed Sheng Yuru as not only malicious but utterly ruthless.

Furious, Sheng Yuru had gotten into a huge fight with Chu Xingzhi, then rushed to the hospital to slap Lin Tiange twice.

Consequently, Chu Xingzhi had backhanded her across the face, and the slap mark had only faded yesterday.

Yet in front of Song Qingyu, she refused to lose face. "Hmpf, what's miserable about me? Chu Xingzhi will be mine sooner or later. He can only belong to me!"

Hopelessly stubborn.

Knowing full well that the man didn't love her, she still insisted on hanging herself from a single dead tree.

"Well, then, keep up the good work."

As soon as Song Qingyu reached her desk, Xie Changhe called her.

"Qingyu, there's a document on my desk. Take it to President Gu for his signature, and then deliver it to the World Trade Center."

"President Gu is out of the hospital?"

"Yes."

"Got it."

Retrieving the document, Song Qingyu headed for the president's office.

"Miss Song, someone is currently with the President. Please wait a moment."

"Alright, thank you, Secretary He."

While waiting, a female employee from the planning department arrived, also there to get President Gu's signature.

Everyone recognized Song Qingyu because of her striking appearance and the rumors linking her to the President.

The girl greeted her warmly. After exchanging a few polite words, the girl leaned in and whispered a complaint, "President Gu's handwriting is so hard to guess. I can't make out what he writes at all. Can you read it?"

Song Qingyu smiled awkwardly. "I haven't actually seen President Gu's handwriting yet."

"Here, take a look. This is what President Gu wrote last time."

Song Qingyu leaned over to look. This handwriting—

Why did it look so much like Pei Jingmo's?

"If you bring me this kind of dog shit again, your entire department can pack up and leave."

The girl looked at Song Qingyu incredulously. "Yes—that's what it means! You're amazing to be able to decipher that."

A strange feeling flashed through Song Qingyu's mind.

Then she shook her head, dismissing the thought. She was overthinking; it was just a similar writing style, nothing more.

The girl kept chattering away. "Our manager is so slick. Whenever there's a scolding to be had, he sends me. But President Gu never yells at me."

"After President Gu wrote something like that last time, our manager didn't dare push his luck anymore and went himself every time. He only made me come today because he genuinely couldn't spare the time."

Song Qingyu nodded, though she hadn't really absorbed most of it.

"Miss Song, you may go in now."

"Thank you."

Waving goodbye to the girl, Song Qingyu entered the president's office.

"President Gu, Manager Xie asked me to have you sign this."

Hearing his wife's voice, the busy Pei Jingmo finally raised his head. He smiled faintly. "Alright, bring it over."

Song Qingyu placed the document on the desk. As Gu Yuandong signed it, she stared fixedly at his hand.

Noticing her gaze, Pei Jingmo kept writing while looking up at her. "What is it?"

"N-nothing..."

Pei Jingmo handed the document back. Song Qingyu quickly took it and looked through it, letting out a slight sigh of relief.

Though the handwriting was scrawled, it definitely didn't look like Pei Jingmo's.

Perhaps she had simply grown so accustomed to Pei Jingmo's messy handwriting that she had developed a universal ability to translate any messy script.

Stepping out of the president's office, Song Qingyu felt a sudden urge to laugh.

Had she been infected by Sheng Yuru and lost her mind?

Otherwise, how could she possibly have connected Pei Jingmo with the President?

After handing the document over to Xie Changhe, she was about to return to her desk when she received a call from Xie Liuzheng.

"Baby Yu, I've fallen in love."

"Huh? With Zhang?"

"Shen Zhou."

Song Qingyu found the name vaguely familiar, but couldn't recall who it belonged to.

"Is he a celebrity?"

"No, not a celebrity. He's the one who saved me at Jiuhuang Mountain before."