Chapter 17: Reactions from all parties

The Gu family was engulfed in a heavy, tense atmosphere, a stark contrast to the lively buzz on the internet. 

Grandpa Gu slammed his hand on the table, his eyes sharp and his brows furrowed. “What is going on here?”

Everyone in the family knew a little about Gu Chengze having a woman outside, but they thought it wasn’t a big deal. After all, it wasn’t unusual for a man to keep a well-behaved mistress, as long as he could keep his home life stable. But now, things had spiraled out of control, and repairing the relationship between the two families seemed nearly impossible.

“Grandpa, I’ll handle this,” Gu Chengze said. He hadn’t expected Wen Ya to have so much evidence against him. If he had known, he wouldn’t have acted so rashly. He had underestimated her.

“Handle it? How? The entire internet is calling you a cheater. If Wen Ya decides to call off the engagement now, how will you refuse? Do we, the Gu family, still have any dignity left?” The old man was so angry that he kept thumping his cane on the floor.

Gu Chengze hesitated before speaking. “Wen Ya wanted to break off the engagement a while ago, but I refused. The photos leaked online were taken by someone she hired.”

“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” Grandpa Gu asked, suspicion in his eyes. “If you knew she had those photos, you should’ve been more careful. But instead, you acted recklessly. Why? Were you afraid of hurting that woman?” He wasn’t blind—he knew Gu Chengze had never liked Wen Ya. If he had just tried to appease her, things wouldn’t have escalated this far.

“I had no choice. When we went to investigate in the west of the city, I found out she was close to Ji Ming. She insulted me openly, and I had to act…” Gu Chengze’s expression darkened. “She pretended to care for me before, but now it’s clear she feels nothing for me. Grandpa, after everything she’s done recently, do you still think she’s the same Wen Ya as before?”

Grandpa Gu stayed silent. He had always prided himself on being a good judge of character, but he had misjudged Wen Ya.

“Luckily, those are just old college photos. Send someone to find the person who leaked them and pay them to change their story. Then, make a public statement saying you were young and foolish back then. We need to suppress this. I’ll call Lin Lin later, and we’ll visit the hospital together tonight. You must apologize sincerely. The engagement with Wen Ya cannot be broken off. Do you understand?” No matter what plans Grandpa Gu had, he had to keep them to himself for now.

When Gu Chengze heard this, he thought of Xu Qingqing crying, and his heart ached.

“Grandpa…”

Mr. Gu waved his hand. “A good family leader doesn’t let emotions control them, and certainly doesn’t let personal feelings interfere with duty.”

Gu Chengze left, deep in thought.

At the hospital, Wen’s mother was reading the latest news in the newspaper. When she heard a knock on the door, she said to Wen’s father, “Someone’s here. I’ll check it out and come back to read the newspaper to you later.”

“Alright.”

When Lin Lin saw the visitor, they were very respectful.

“Boss Lin, someone has already taken action before us,” the visitor said.

Hearing this, Lin Lin frowned. She took out her phone and opened it. The news about Gu Chengze and Xu Qingqing caught her eye.

“Have you found out who it is?” Lin Lin asked. She didn’t think it was Xiao Ya.

“We’re still investigating. The other party is very careful, so we might not find them easily,” the visitor replied.

“From the news, it seems they have no bad intentions toward Xiao Ya. It looks like they’re helping her. Stop focusing on them. Use this chance to share the news we found online,” Lin Lin said, narrowing her eyes. If anyone dared to harm Xiao Ya’s reputation, she would make them pay.

“Should we announce the news now?” the visitor asked. He thought it might be better to wait for the other side to act first, then reveal the truth to embarrass them.

“Announce it now,” Lin Lin said firmly. She didn’t have time to play games.

While people online were still waiting for a twist, someone revealed more about Gu Chengze and Xu Qingqing.

The person claimed to know Gu Chengze and Xu Qingqing. They said the two had been together since college, even building a home together. Photos were shared as proof.

Another person added that when Wen Qihua had a car accident, Gu Chengze didn’t return immediately. Instead of visiting his future in-laws that night, he secretly met Xu Qingqing. He only visited Wen Qihua the next afternoon, bringing Xu Qingqing with him. Photos of this were also shared.

At this point, even Gu Chengze’s fans couldn’t defend him anymore.

Though they weren’t married yet, they were engaged. Not only had he cheated, but he also brought his mistress to visit his future father-in-law. This wasn’t just about cheating—it was about his character and morals.

People flooded Gu’s official website and other platforms to discuss the issue. Some even questioned the integrity of Gu’s company.

In the food industry, trust is everything. Gu’s company was now in crisis.

Meanwhile, Ye Qiu Nian made a statement. He admitted he was the young rich man in the rumors and said the scandal had shocked him so much that he dropped out of school.

As a popular idol, Ye Qiu Nian’s biggest flaw was not finishing college. Rumors had spread that he was expelled for fighting or making mistakes. He had never responded until now, when he revealed the truth.

People felt sorry for Ye Qiu Nian and rushed to comfort him. Naturally, Gu Chengze and Xu Qingqing faced even more criticism.

Everything happened so fast. Before Wen Ya could fully understand, Gu Chengze and Xu Qingqing had become the most hated people in the country.

“Are you happy now?” Gu Chengze asked Wen Ya over the phone.

Wen Ya was confused. “I wanted to take action, but it seems you’ve made too many enemies. Someone else acted before me,” she said coldly. She didn’t know who had helped her, but she was grateful.

Far away at Ji’s company, Ji Ming sneezed. He put down his phone and turned to Xiao He. “Who’s behind the leaks?” he asked.

“We’re still looking into it. Our guess is Mrs. Wen, President Wen’s mother,” Xiao He replied.

Ji Ming nodded. Since she had taken action, he didn’t need to do anything else.

Wen Ya had become famous for her stunning looks and her confident appearance at the press conference. Many people admired her style, saying she didn’t need a man and could handle everything herself.

A fan club was even created for her online, which made Wen Ya both laugh and cry.

Wen Ya felt it was time to announce the end of her engagement. She asked someone to prepare a statement, but before it was released, news broke that Xu Qingqing had miscarried due to stress.

The internet exploded.

People were shocked. No one had expected Gu Chengze and Xu Qingqing to have been secretly expecting a child.

Some creative netizens wrote stories about what might have happened next: Gu Chengze would marry Wen Ya, have children with Xu Qingqing, take over the Wen family, and then kill Wen Ya to make Xu Qingqing his official wife, living happily ever after.

Many believed this theory, thinking it was a plot to steal wealth and commit murder.

Wen Ya saw the story and sneered. She thought, People aren’t that patient. They’d just kill me before the wedding.

She was surprised Xu Qingqing was pregnant. In the original story, Xu Qingqing had no children.

Wen Ya tried to recall details from the book. There was no mention of children. In a bossy romance novel, children would be a big deal. The author would have emphasized it, not ignored it. So how could Xu Qingqing be pregnant?

Had history changed because of her, or was the pregnancy fake?

If it was fake, what was Xu Qingqing planning?

Wen Ya wasn’t one to sit and wait. She immediately asked someone to investigate the truth, wanting to act before the other side could make a move.

Meanwhile, online, someone accused netizens of causing Xu Qingqing’s miscarriage, saying they had taken an innocent life.

Others questioned if the revelations were too organized, suggesting they were orchestrated by professionals.

Some argued that even if someone was behind the leaks, it didn’t change the fact that Gu Chengze and Xu Qingqing were together.

Others said that while Gu Chengze and Xu Qingqing were wrong, the child was innocent. Losing the baby because of online abuse was punishment enough.

At this point, Wen Ya finally understood Gu Chengze and Xu Qingqing’s plan.

They wanted to play the victim. But would she let them? No.

She had hired a detective to look into Xu Qingqing’s hospital records earlier. Just now, she received news that they had finally gotten Xu Qingqing’s medical records.

She had been taking medication since her hospital visit for uterine fibroids, so… she wasn’t pregnant at all.

“Find someone to release this news immediately. Also, keep an eye on Gu Chengze, Xu Qingqing, and the internet,” Wen Ya ordered. You want to clean up your image? Not a chance.

Just as the online crowd was growing confused, a pathology report was uploaded. When people saw it, they were instantly energized.

Oh! Even if this was orchestrated by Boss Wen, they didn’t care. The drama was too juicy and satisfying to ignore!

Netizen: Please, Mr. Wen, destroy this scumbag and his mistress!