7

Only then did she look at the man. He stood by the window, his back to the light. She couldn’t make out his features, but the sunlight clearly outlined his tall figure.

According to rumors, the new chairman of Beiyue Group, Chu Xiujin, was only 167 centimeters tall. But staring at the tall, commanding man by the window, Meng Yu was completely stunned.

Meng Yu stood at 165 centimeters tall and was wearing five-centimeter heels, yet the man before her still appeared to be half a head taller. By her estimation, his height had to be at least 180 centimeters.

Perhaps the stark difference from the rumors caught her off guard, and she blurted out without thinking, “Are you Mr. Chu?”

He stepped away from the window and replied, “I’m Chu Xiujin. Apologies—I was resting earlier, so I had the curtains drawn. I hope I didn’t startle you, Miss Meng.”

As he reached the sofa, he gestured politely. “Please, have a seat.”

Only then did she get a good look at his face. His short, tousled hair gave him a clean and crisp appearance. He wore a tailored suit, perfectly pressed and wrinkle-free, exuding the same solemn dignity as the entire Beiyue building itself.

What surprised her most was his face. Rumors had claimed he was hideously ugly, covered in red blemishes. But the man in front of her had flawless skin—not a blemish in sight—and his features were strikingly refined. His eyes, in particular, stood out: long, slightly upturned at the corners, carrying a natural, almost dangerous allure. Yet the sharp lines of his face added a masculine strength, keeping his beauty from appearing too delicate.

Snapping back to her senses, Meng Yu sat down on the sofa. On her way here, she had already braced herself for the worst. She had imagined the worst-case scenarios for his appearance and height. The purpose of today’s meeting was simply to get a few things clarified.

But his looks and stature had completely defied her expectations.

It was strange. He was clearly handsome and well-built, so why did the public say otherwise? As the head of Beiyue, did he really allow such damaging rumors about himself to circulate unchecked?

While she was lost in thought, an assistant entered with tea and poured it for both of them. Meng Yu took a sip, and then she heard the man across from her speak:

“Miss Meng, what brings you here today?”

She lifted her gaze to meet his. He was indeed handsome and polite, respectful even. Yet there was something about him—a presence, a depth—that was impossible to ignore. It made one instinctively cautious, as though standing at the edge of a dark, unfathomable abyss. No matter how striking his appearance was, it couldn’t erase the fact that he had emerged victorious from the bloody power struggles of the Xia family.

And the most remarkable part? He was still so young. That alone was enough to command respect.

And soon, he would become her husband.

That thought made Meng Yu feel even more uneasy. She set her teacup down and lowered her gaze, unable to look at his face again.

“I came because I have a few questions for you, Mr. Chu.”

“Please, go ahead, Miss Meng.”

“It’s just… I know that the person you originally intended to marry was my sister. And to be honest, she is a much more suitable wife in many ways… compared to her, I’m lacking in both status and personal accomplishments. So I can’t help but wonder—why did you agree to the switch?”

“You’ve misunderstood something,” he replied calmly. “It wasn’t my decision to marry your sister. It was arranged by the families. And secondly, to me, it doesn’t matter who I marry.”

With that, Meng Yu understood. It wasn’t because there was anything special about her that had made him agree to the change. To him, marriage was just an obligation—something to be done, a task to complete.

Strangely, that answer actually made her feel relieved, and it gave her the courage to bring up what she really wanted to say.

“There’s one more thing I’d like to be upfront about before we get married. I hope, after hearing it, you’ll reconsider whether you truly want to go through with this.”

“Please, go ahead.”

“I… I was in a long-term relationship before. We dated for several years. Of course, we’ve already broken up. But I loved him very deeply and invested a lot of time and emotion into that relationship. I don’t know if I’ll ever have the energy or ability to love someone like that again. I’m telling you this because I want to know—do you mind if your future wife once loved someone else for so many years? Would it bother you that she gave her heart to another man?”

There was a long silence before he finally spoke, his deep voice breaking the stillness.

“I’m not someone who cares about the past.”

If that was truly the case, then it was the best possible outcome.

“Thank you, Mr. Chu,” Meng Yu said. “I appreciate you taking the time to meet with me. That’s all I wanted to say—I’ll be leaving now.”

She stood up. Chu Xiujin called in his assistant and instructed him to escort her home. He was, all in all, quite considerate. After all, this was the man she would be marrying—someone she’d likely be spending many years with. This meeting had gone far better than she expected. Chu Xiujin wasn’t nearly as frightening as the rumors claimed, nor was he an unpleasant person.

Meanwhile, Xiao Qi had originally taken a few days off in hopes of visiting Meng Yu. But unexpectedly, Ai Qing had fallen ill, and he had no choice but to stay back and take care of her for two days. His leave was up, and he had to return to work, so he arranged for a caregiver to look after Ai Qing in his absence.

Mornings were usually when he was at his busiest and most focused. But today, he was clearly distracted. Pulling out his phone, he tried calling Meng Yu again—but his number was still blocked.

He couldn’t get through.

He rubbed his temples, trying to refocus, when he heard a knock at the door. It hadn’t been fully closed, so he responded mildly, “Come in.”

It was Han Moran who stepped inside. “Do we have the latest data analysis yet?”

“Still working on it,” Xiao Qi replied.

Han Moran clapped him lightly on the shoulder. “You’ve been a lot slower lately. Is it because you found out Meng Yu’s getting married? Messing with your head?”

Xiao Qi suddenly turned toward him, eyes wide. “What did you just say? Who’s getting married?”

Han Moran raised an eyebrow. “That look on your face… don’t tell me you didn’t know?”

Xiao Qi shot up from his chair, knocking it back slightly. “You said Meng Yu’s getting married? To who?”

“To my wife’s so-called ‘uncle’—a distant relative, I guess,” Han Moran said, eyeing him carefully. “Seriously, you didn’t know?”

Xiao Qi’s expression shifted rapidly, a storm of emotions crossing his face. He stood frozen, tense all over. And then it hit him—he remembered the last time he went to see her, she had mentioned getting married. But he hadn’t believed her.

At the time, he thought she was just trying to provoke him. She could be childish sometimes—saying things just to get a reaction out of him, to pull his attention back to her. So when she said that, he’d brushed it off as a joke.

Maybe deep down, he had never truly believed she would marry someone else. In his mind, she would always come back to him—sooner or later.

But what if she hadn’t been lying? What if she really was getting married?

After a long moment of silence, he suddenly yanked the USB drive from his computer and shoved it into Han Moran’s hand.

“You handle the evaluation. I need to make a trip to Yancheng.”

Because he used to visit Meng Yu in Yancheng often, Xiao Qi had bought a car and kept it parked at the airport for convenience. He drove straight to her neighborhood, only to see her car pulling out just as he arrived. Quickly, he turned around and began to follow.

Meng Yu was on her way to the mall to pick up some facial masks. Her skin had always been naturally good, but as a self-proclaimed fairy, she never slacked on skincare. Especially now—with the wedding approaching. Even if it was just a formality, it was still her wedding, a once-in-a-lifetime event. She had to show up looking her absolute best. According to her personal creed, there was never a time when Meng Yu was allowed to look anything less than perfect.

She parked her car in the mall’s open-air lot. Xiao Qi’s car pulled in shortly after. As he parked, he spotted her heading toward the entrance and quickly got out to catch up.

Just before entering the mall, Meng Yu heard someone call her name from behind.

“Meng Yu.”

She recognized Xiao Qi’s voice immediately, but this time, it sounded different—urgent, strained.

Turning around, she saw him walking toward her.

“What are you doing here?”

Xiao Qi didn’t answer right away. His eyes were locked on her, tinged red with emotion. His lips were pressed into a tight, tense line. She knew him too well—this expression meant he was angry. Not just annoyed, but truly furious.

Xiao Qi wasn’t the type to lash out. He usually bottled things up, kept them under the surface. But when he reached his limit, even his cold, composed façade couldn’t hold.

Meng Yu was startled by the intensity in his eyes. She had no idea why he was looking at her like that.

His whole demeanor puzzled her. “Did you follow me all the way here?” she asked, frowning slightly. “What do you want, Xiao Qi?”

He finally spoke. “You’re getting married?”

So that’s why he had followed her all the way here?

“Yes,” Meng Yu replied calmly. “I am.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

His voice was tight, strained with emotion—anger simmering just beneath the surface.

“I did tell you,” she said quietly. “You just didn’t believe me.”

His jaw clenched suddenly, the sharp line of it becoming more pronounced. His hands, hanging at his sides, curled into fists. She could see the effort it was taking him to hold himself back—probably trying to control the fury rising in him.

It was rare to see Xiao Qi angry. He was always so calm, distant, composed—as if nothing could ever disturb the still waters of his demeanor.

But now, the anger was obvious. And all because she was getting married?

It felt almost surreal. So he could care—enough to come all the way from Shenzhen, to follow her here, just to question her about this?

Was this really the same Xiao Qi? The one who always seemed so aloof when it came to her? The one who barely blinked at anything she did?

“When’s the wedding?”

“Three months from now.”

“Three months?” he repeated, as if the words physically hurt. He spoke through clenched teeth, his voice low and taut, struggling to stay in control—but the anger in it was unmistakable. “Why?”

“Because it’s normal,” she answered, steady. “Men marry when the time comes, women too. It was always going to happen eventually. There doesn’t need to be a reason.”

He stared straight into her eyes, lips pressed into a thin line, barely contained fury flickering in the depths of his gaze.

For a moment, she was genuinely afraid he might lose control and explode right then and there.

But instead, he suddenly shut his eyes. It took him a long moment to reopen them—and when he did, the fire in them had dimmed, replaced by something quieter, something aching.

Then, unexpectedly, he reached out and grasped her shoulders.

Looking directly into her eyes, his voice dropped to a soft plea.

“Cancel the wedding, please? I know I didn’t do right by you before, but I’ll make it up to you… I swear I will.”

Gone was the cold, angry man from just moments before. Now, he was gentle—comforting, even. There was a tenderness in his tone she had never heard from him before.

When had he ever spoken to her like this? When had he ever humbled himself just to ask something of her?

He had been her dream man once—distant, proud, untouchable. She had loved him so deeply, so recklessly, that the smallest smile from him could send her into freefall. She would’ve done anything for him. Anything.

She remembered the last time he had appeared out of nowhere like this, taking care of her—cleaning her apartment, cooking for her, acting like he cared. She had nearly fallen again.

But then, just one phone call from another woman, and he had dropped everything and left her behind.

She had hated herself for almost giving in. For almost being that girl again.

Not anymore.

She would never let herself become that version of Meng Yu again—the one who loved him so much she forgot how to love herself.

So, she took a step back and pushed his hands off her shoulders. Her expression was cold, her voice devoid of warmth.

“I’m not cancelling anything for you. I will be someone else’s wife. Whatever we had… it’s over. There is no future for us. Not anymore.”

=^_^=