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墨書 Inktalez
After finishing my morning routine, I headed to the mall to buy a sharp-looking outfit.
Wobbling slightly in my unfamiliar high heels, I walked into Zhou Group.
Zhou Bailin greeted me in the president's office:
"Mai Ye, you finally made it."
The comments exploded as they caught sight of the tall, handsome man with a straight, prominent nose and an air of aloof elegance:
"What’s going on? Did I miss some important plot twist? Is there a character even more handsome than the male lead?"
"How does the female lead know him? Ahhh, why does she get to enjoy such good fortune?"
I looked at Zhou Bailin; he was even taller and more striking than he had been twelve years ago, his deep-set eyes sparkling with warmth as he smiled at me.
Zhou Bailin was the older brother of my grandmother's neighbor. He would always come to my aid when my cousin bullied me. After graduating, he started his own company, which initially thrived. However, I later learned from Aunt Zhou that he had been betrayed by his ex-girlfriend, who leaked company secrets, nearly leading to its bankruptcy.
Grateful for the kindness shown to me and his mother back then, I recalled the promising direction mentioned in the comments and shared my insights without holding back.
Zhou Bailin seized the opportunity and, through his own efforts, managed to increase his worth exponentially in a short time. He was very appreciative and wanted me to join him at the company. But I was afraid of disrupting the storyline and hesitated.
Throughout my life, I had never been particularly lucky. I could only contact him in secret, not wanting anyone to discover our hidden connection. Back then, I wasn't ready to marry Lu Yancheng. Yet it felt as if invisible hands had pushed me into marriage, thrusting me into a turbulent current that could alter the plot.
Now, I feared nothing.
Zhou Bailin didn’t mind my lack of experience; he patiently guided me through everything step by step. I had a knack for mathematics. When I returned to live with my parents for high school, I scored higher than Jiang Qinghuan on my first exam.
Seeing her precious daughter upset, Mother Jiang slapped me hard across the face. Jiang Qinghuan quickly intervened, saying it was her fault for being useless and wasting family money on education when she couldn’t learn anything—she would be better off than her sister who grew up in the countryside.
She handed me a newly purchased workbook:
"Mai Ye, study hard for me. In the future, your parents' company will depend on you!"
I hadn't received much love, and for a little sweetness, I was willing to throw myself into the fire like a moth. I took the initiative to tutor Jiang Qinghuan, trailing behind her and Lu Yancheng like a well-behaved little follower.
When it came time to apply for university, she was afraid to go alone and asked me to stay by her side, holding my hand. I remembered that my new clothes and shoes were given to me by my sister, who had defended me many times in front of our parents.
When I met Lu Yancheng's rare look of expectation, I inexplicably agreed.
As I fell into a daze of memories, Zhou Bailin reached out and ruffled my hair, just like when we were kids. I flinched away slightly, feeling shy under his gaze.
Zhou Bailin didn't mind: "Don't be afraid; everything will be alright." He knew I had suffered a lot in my original family and that I had spent several years muddling through my marriage with Lu Yancheng.
"Thank you; I will work hard."
After taking care of Lu Yancheng and his son for five years, I had developed a habit of being busy. However, spending time on myself felt entirely different from spending it on others. The value of being a full-time mother felt lowly.
Putting in the same amount of time yielded a much lower sense of worth. I couldn't even gain recognition from my family.
At the company, it was different; Zhou Bailin personally guided me through projects and taught me how to read reports. In the Lu Family, I had also asked Lu Yancheng if I could go out to work. Each time, he used Lu Siqing's young age as an excuse to deflect my request.
The comments were filled with envy; people thought that the wife of a powerful CEO didn't need to work and should just take care of the household. But I didn't want to be anyone's appendage.
I am who I am. Even if I'm just an inconspicuous ear of wheat, I hope to grow into the person I've always wanted to be.
I was so busy that I hardly had time to pay attention to what was happening in the Lu Family.
After receiving the divorce certificate, Lu Yancheng felt unreal.
Jiang Maiye had been away from home for over a month. The house, once orderly, had turned into a complete mess. He had hired a professional nanny to tidy up, but Lu Siqing was too picky, refusing to eat this and that, and had a particular knack for throwing tantrums. Whenever things didn’t go her way, she would smash dishes.
Lu Yancheng recalled how, from childhood to now, it was always Jiang Maiye who prepared the baby food for Lu Siqing. She even obtained a nutritionist certification. His mother-in-law, while trying to soothe her precious grandson, complained incessantly: “It’s definitely that little brat Jiang Maiye who spoiled the child and left behind this mess without a care! How heartless!”
In Lu Yancheng's mind, he could picture Jiang Maiye’s aggrieved little face. In this household, if she dared to scold Lu Siqing even once, his mother-in-law would immediately unleash a tirade that could last twelve hours. He felt sorry for his son, who had grown up without a mother, and wished she wouldn’t make such a fuss.
The kindergarten teacher frequently reported that Lu Siqing liked to snatch her classmates' crafts and would cry if she didn’t get her way. Lu Yancheng was astonished: “Was he like this before?”
“No! When Siqing’s mother was around, she often made him delicious desserts and intricate crafts, and told him little stories from 'Journey to the West.'”
“Lu Siqing would bring those to class to share; his classmates envied him so much that he enjoyed being the center of attention.”
Lu Yancheng lowered his gaze. His work kept him busy, and almost all the responsibility of caring for their child fell on Jiang Maiye. He had never realized how troublesome it was to raise a child.
Suddenly, loud slapping sounds echoed from the room. Lu Yancheng rushed in to find Lu Siqing crying loudly, pointing at his mother-in-law and shouting: “Wolf Grandma, how dare you hit me?”
Mother Jiang called out his name with concern: “Siqing, Grandma didn’t mean it. But how could you say something like asking me to bring your aunt back?”
Mother Jiang despised how her younger daughter had taken the place of her elder daughter. She was also worried about another woman taking advantage of the situation; not even the nanny was safe. Under the guise of caring for her grandson, she had moved in with her son-in-law and kept a watchful eye at all times.
Half an hour ago,
the little grandson wanted to hear a bedtime story. Mother Jiang sat by the small bed, put on her reading glasses, and began to read the children’s version of "Journey to the West," word by word.
She spoke slowly, her tone monotonous and stiff, unable to bring the story to life like Jiang Maiye could.
Lu Siqing grew impatient.
The closer you are, the more you smell the stench.
Since his grandmother moved in, she had chased away four or five nannies, and the meals had become increasingly unappetizing.
Even the stories he could have boasted about at kindergarten were told in a stammering manner.
When his temper flared, Lu Siqing pouted and complained to his grandmother:
"It’s all your fault for driving away my aunt! You’re making me embarrassed!"
Jiang Maiye was a sensitive topic for Mother Jiang.
She exploded like a bomb:
"Have you forgotten who your real mother is? Do you have any idea how much she suffered to bring you into this world?"
"You ungrateful wretch! How could Qinghuan give birth to such a heartless creature like you!"
After venting her frustration, Mother Jiang acted as if nothing had happened, hugging Lu Siqing and apologizing, showering him with kisses.
Lu Yancheng felt quite annoyed.
They were family; how could Jiang Maiye really consider divorce over such trivial matters?
It disrupted the entire household's order.
Could she really abandon her sister's son and ignore her own mother?
Why couldn’t she be more understanding of his difficulties as a brother-in-law and husband?
Without him, what better options would she have when she didn’t know how to do anything?
At the end of the workday, a black Rolls-Royce stopped at the company entrance.
Lu Yancheng leaned against the car, his eyelids slightly lowered, his facial features strikingly handsome and dazzling.
Unmarried female colleagues gasped:
"Whose boyfriend is that? He looks so handsome and wealthy."
I pretended not to see and turned to leave.
Lu Yancheng raised his hand to stop me:
"Jiang Maiye, are you done causing trouble? The house is a mess without you; do you want Qinghuan to be restless in her grave?"
He didn’t want to speak so harshly.
However, Jiang Maiye had always been understanding. Whenever her sister was mentioned, guilt would wash over her, leading to all kinds of compromises. I had no idea what Lu Yancheng was thinking. Seeing the confident expression on his face, as if he could easily manipulate me, filled me with disgust.
The comments kept reminding me:
"Your sister saved you, yet you slept with the man she loves."
"If you weren't the female lead, Lu Yancheng wouldn't have lost his beloved wife."
They made me feel grateful, urging me not to be ungrateful.
"What’s the female lead doing? The male lead offered her an out; she should take it."
"I don’t know how Jiang Maiye got involved with Zhou Group, but being virtuous is a woman's duty; don’t threaten divorce at every turn."
A wave of bitterness surged in my throat. Over the past five years, I had poured nearly all my youth and emotions into those two. In return, they treated me with indifference, expecting me to compromise every time without question.
I nearly shouted at the comments:
"If I were saved from drowning, does that mean I have to serve that person for life?"
It seemed Lu Yancheng had never considered that the gentle and submissive me also had a breaking point.
"All my life, has my parents' favoritism towards my sister ever equaled her saving me once?"
Lu Yancheng was left speechless. For once, someone in the comments spoke up for me:
"Being indebted to someone is just moral coercion; the female lead has already given five years of her life; isn’t it time to settle that debt?"
"That’s not how it works; without her sister, she would have lost her innocence long ago. What skills does she have? She should be grateful to marry a handsome and wealthy brother-in-law."
"Is someone from the Qing Dynasty commenting here? Just because the female lead lost her innocence doesn’t mean she can’t live! I think living a life with a man who doesn’t love her is even more miserable."
"Who says the male lead doesn’t love her? He’s just afraid of betraying his wife. If the original wife passes away, can he accept his husband being good to another wife?"
"If you can’t accept it, then don’t harm your own sister! What’s with using gratitude to force the female lead to take care of your son?"
For the first time, the comments showed a divide over my relationship with my sister. I thought this could be a good start to changing the direction of the plot.
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