Volume 1, Chapter 163: The Engagement

Although Song Qingyu spoke lightly, her heart felt unimaginably heavy.

Walking out to the entrance of the residential complex, she spotted Pei Jingmo standing in front of a Maybach at a single glance.

He was wearing only a black overcoat, his face slightly chilled to a bluish tint, and his bloodshot eyes gazed deeply at her, as if trying to etch her image into the depths of his mind.

The bustling morning traffic and pedestrians seemed to blur into the background. Looking at him, Song Qingyu suddenly felt a stinging sensation in the bridge of her nose.

Her heart felt as though it had been pinned down by a heavy boulder, making every breath ache.

Especially when she saw him walking toward her, she nearly failed to hold back her tears.

"Why didn't you wear gloves?"

Song Qingyu clenched her fists tightly, barely managing to swallow back her tears.

She could not deny that during the days of their marriage, Pei Jingmo had taken extraordinarily good care of her.

She never had to worry about household chores, nor did she need to trouble herself with her own affairs.

Pei Jingmo tended to every minute detail, making sure both the home and she herself were well-cared for.

It had clearly not been like this before, but for some reason over these past two days, away from Pei Jingmo, she seemed to have become completely helpless.

That morning, when Zhengzheng prepared breakfast, she hadn't even known where the items were kept.

When she wanted to put on a slightly thicker base layer, she had no idea where it was stored.

As she left the apartment, she kept forgetting things left and right, and even her scarf had been fetched and wrapped around her by Zhengzheng.

At that exact moment, she came to a profound realization: unconsciously, her reliance on Pei Jingmo had grown this deep.

"It's cold outside. Get in the car first."

Without dwelling on such thoughts, Song Qingyu stepped in as Pei Jingmo opened the front passenger door.

As Pei Jingmo walked around the front of the car to the driver's side, Song Qingyu caught sight of the gauze bandage on his forehead, a sour ache twisting in her chest.

She had noticed the injury yesterday, though she had no idea who might have inflicted it.

Ordinary people barely had the opportunity to even get close to him, so could it be—

Song Qingyu suddenly recalled Pei Jingmo mentioning his strained relationship with his father. Could it have been Gu Chengde who struck him?

Realizing she was still worrying about him, Song Qingyu bit her lip. They were going to part ways from now on anyway; whoever beat him had nothing to do with her.

Upon reaching their destination.

Looking at the three characters of the Civil Affairs Bureau, Song Qingyu's mind flooded with a thousand thoughts.

In the beginning, she and Pei Jingmo were merely contract spouses, anticipating a divorce after a year.

Yet, because they fell in love, she tore up the contract.

Expecting to grow old together hand in hand, she never imagined they would still end up at this stage.

"Qingqing—"

As they stepped inside, Pei Jingmo caught Song Qingyu by the arm.

Song Qingyu looked at him quietly. "What? Do you want to go back on your word?"

Pei Jingmo smiled bitterly and shook his head. "I love you. I will listen to you in everything, but... I just wanted to hold you one last time."

Song Qingyu averted her gaze, refusing to look at him, afraid she would break down first.

"May I?"

Song Qingyu remained silent, offering neither consent nor refusal.

Pei Jingmo pulled her tightly into his embrace, holding her with a force as if he wanted to knead Song Qingyu straight into his own body.

Song Qingyu could no longer hold back; tears streamed down her face.

How did things ever come to this?

How could the gentle Pei Jingmo suddenly turn out to be the young master of the conglomerate, Gu Yuandong?

He clearly had so many opportunities to tell her, yet he chose to keep it hidden.

Gritting her teeth, Song Qingyu shoved him away fiercely. "Enough. President Gu doesn't need to put on this affectionate act anymore, and I won't believe you ever again."

Song Qingyu walked in first, leaving Pei Jingmo with no choice but to follow.

"There is a one-month cooling-off period for divorce. If you still wish to divorce after a month, please return then to process the paperwork."

Immersed entirely in game design day in and day out, Song Qingyu had been completely unaware of such a regulation.

Yet it was evidently impossible for her and Pei Jingmo to finalize their divorce today.

Looking at Pei Jingmo, she briefly suspected that he had known about this rule all along, which was why he had agreed so readily.

An expression of utter innocence was plastered across Pei Jingmo's handsome face, leaving Song Qingyu with nothing to say as she had no choice but to leave.

Upon hearing the news, Xie Liuzheng actually let out a sigh of relief.

She had felt that Song Qingyu's decision to divorce was a bit impulsive, and this one-month buffer period would give her time to think things through properly.

When Chu Xingzhi learned that Song Qingyu and Pei Jingmo had gone to the Civil Affairs Bureau, he could no longer sit still.

Hearing the knock at the door, Song Qingyu instinctively assumed Pei Jingmo had returned.

Unable to name the exact emotion churning inside her, she walked over and pulled the door open. The moment she laid eyes on Chu Xingzhi, her expression darkened. "What are you doing here?"

Chu Xingzhi raised the lunchbox in his hand and smiled at Song Qingyu. "Mother Zhang made your favorite sweet potato porridge and pickled mustard greens stuffed buns. I happened to be passing by and brought them over for you."

"Thank you and Mother Zhang for the kind thought, but it's not necessary. I've already had breakfast."

"Hey, hey, hey! I'll eat it, I'll eat it!"

Xie Liuzheng darted out and snatched the lunchbox from Chu Xingzhi's hands.

Song Qingyu frowned and shot Xie Liuzheng a glare. Xie Liuzheng chuckled. "You shouldn't pick a fight with anyone, but never pick a fight with food. Besides, Mother Zhang's pickled mustard greens buns are something you couldn't trade for even if an immortal elixir came along."

Chu Xingzhi laughed. "Right, right, right. Never go to war with food."

Not in the mood to entertain Chu Xingzhi, Song Qingyu turned to Xie Liuzheng. "I'm heading to work."

Chu Xingzhi immediately chimed in, "Let me drive you."

Song Qingyu came to a halt and looked coldly at Chu Xingzhi. "President Chu, things between us ended long ago. Don't harbor the illusion that my divorce means you can get back together with me. I can tell you right now—it's impossible!"

Chu Xingzhi's expression stiffened. "I... I was just worried about you and wanted to check on you."

"No need! Your appearance won't comfort me; it will only bring me trouble. I hope you won't show up in front of me ever again."

Song Qingyu walked away. Just as Chu Xingzhi moved to chase after her, Xie Liuzheng's voice rang out from behind. "If you knew it would come to this, why did you ever do it in the first place?"

Chu Xingzhi turned to look at Xie Liuzheng, his attitude turning remarkably soft. "Zhengzheng, I was wrong before. Whether it's you or Xiaoyu, I am willing to make amends. Xiaoyu has been deceived by Pei Jingmo, making this the most heartbreaking time when she needs companionship the most. Can you help me?"

"No!"

Xie Liuzheng refused without a second thought.

"Why?"

"Ha—that's right. Pei Jingmo deceived Xiaoyu just like you did, but there is a fundamental difference in your deceptions. You cheated, while his body and soul belong solely to Xiaoyu."

Chu Xingzhi's expression froze as he let out a cold snort. "How do you know Pei Jingmo hasn't cheated? He was clearly already married to Xiaoyu, yet he still kept entangling himself with Lu Rongrong. For all we know, he might have already slept with Lu Rongrong! Playing both sides—he's no better than I am."

Xie Liuzheng: "..."

Good grief, what kind of terrible fate has Xiaoyu been dealt!

Why does she keep running into scumbags?!

"Hmph, Lu Rongrong is so ugly. If Pei Jingmo actually managed to sleep with her, he deserves to be dumped by Xiaoyu."

—

After pondering for a long time, Song Qingyu ultimately decided not to resign just yet.

She knew very well that had it not been for Tianqi Group, The Interpreter might not have achieved its current success, and she could not simply take the benefits and forget where they came from.

Furthermore, with many projects for The Interpreter currently in progress, she could not simply abandon them because of her divorce from Pei Jingmo.

Arriving at the office and noticing that nobody cast any strange glances her way, she realized Pei Jingmo's true identity had not yet been exposed.

Otherwise, the office would have already exploded with gossip.

"Hey, Miss Lu is here to see President Gu again. I heard they're getting engaged soon."

During break time, everyone began gossiping once more, and it was hard for Song Qingyu to ignore their chatter.

Ha—

No wonder Pei Jingmo had agreed to the divorce so readily; it turned out he was in a rush to get engaged to Lu Rongrong.

If she had known sooner, she wouldn't have wasted so much of his time.

Feeling restless, Song Qingyu headed up to the rooftop, intending to catch some fresh air, clear her head, and sort out her emotions.

Suddenly, she overheard Lu Rongrong's voice.

"Gu Yuandong, Lu Corporation has suffered so many setbacks lately—was that your doing?"