Meng Yue's mouth twitched.
Who knew there would be such a despicable man alive?
Just then, the elevator arrived. Seeing Mo Hanchen about to enter the elevator, Meng Yue stepped into the lift ahead of him, waiting for the scolding she thought would come. "Mo Hanchen, I'm giving you face, aren't I?"
"Never mind. It doesn't matter if you don't eat it. I bought it for a dog anyway!" Meng Yue pressed the 'close' button, leaving Mo Hanchen standing by the elevator with a confused look.
What the hell!?
Why were things developing in a different direction from what he had imagined?
How did he end up with such a violent and impatient woman?
He eyed the food box on the ground and squirmed.
"So what if I'm your dog!" Mo Hanchen picked up the breakfast box and went home. He would choose not to be human this morning. He would be Meng Yue's dog!
Meng Yue did not return to the Meng Group after leaving Mo Hanchen's place. Instead, she went to Zhang Shuang's studio.
Zhang Shuang's project was too much for her to handle alone, and she did not have enough time to complete the murals for the museum, so she had no choice but to ask her good friend, Li Zhan, for help.
Li Zhan was her college classmate. He was running a decoration company abroad, and his projects were generally larger than those she undertook. Li Zhan was the person who introduced her to the art industry and the project she was currently working on with Zhang Shuang.
Meng Yue fished out her phone and called him.
"Oh, that's great, " Li Zhan said jokingly, "You finally remembered to call me!"
Meng Yue laughed sheepishly, "I've been very busy recently!"
"You don't call even when you aren't busy," Li Zhan teased.
Meng Yue eventually arrived at the reason for her call, having chatted for a while. "When are you coming back to China? I'll treat you to a meal when you do."
"I won't share a meal with you unless it is to celebrate your divorce," Li Zhan quipped.
Meng Yue was left speechless. "You... What good will my divorce bring?"
Li Zhan hesitated. "Well, I'd be able to date you again. That's a plus!"
Meng Yue giggled. "Don't tell me you still have feelings for me. It's been three years!"
Li Zhan: "..."
Just when Meng Yue thought Li Zhan would not respond out of embarrassment, her old classmate spoke, "I'm not smitten if that's what you're asking; I can't say I liked your persistence. Besides, I already have a girlfriend."
Meng Yue heaved a sigh of relief. "Congratulations!"
Li Zhan chuckled. "I was planning to return soon. How about this? I'll pick you up this weekend, and we can share a meal, like old times."
"It's a date, then!" Meng Yue happily agreed, "Let's go for dinner together."
-
Later that morning, Meng Yue and her father, Meng Zhengde, entered the Xiang Group's headquarters.
The other day, Xiang Shen's press conference created a stir regarding the mysterious 'Mrs Xiang', which forced Meng Yue into the public eye.
Faced with everyone's strange looks, Meng Yue stepped into the elevator.
Once inside, Meny Yue consoled her father. "Dad, it's over. Once it is settled, Xiang Haoyu and I will no longer be married in the eyes of the law."
Meng Zhengde heaved a sigh of relief. "Your Mother and I are at fault for not stopping you..."
Meng Yue shook her head. "I don't blame either of you. These three years have opened my eyes: Marriage is a two-way street."
Meng Zhengde looked fractionally better. "In future, your Mother and I shall vet any boyfriends you have to prevent a mistake like this from happening again."
Meng Yue nodded shyly, answering, "Okay."
It was then that the childish Mo Hanchen flashed through her mind.
She did not know if he had eaten the breakfast she had brought him or fed it to the dogs.
-
In the Xiang Group's reception room...
The deal was brokered without much issue since the Xiang Group had already cleared the initial drafts of the four projects.
Meng Yue was professional throughout the whole process. She discussed the projects in depth, their structure, and forecasts of how they would proceed in a clear, organised manner.
Xiang Haoyu felt his heart fill with warmth. Meng Yue had not made any unreasonable demands of the Xiang Group despite what was happening in the background.
As discussions drew to a close and Meng Yue and Meng Zhengde were about to leave, Xiang Haoyu stopped them.
"Let's have a meal together!"
Meng Yue refused before she could finish processing her thoughts. "No, thank you. There's no need for that."
Xiang Haoyu's face darkened. "Think of it as a farewell treat!"
To Meng Yue's surprise, she bumped into Mo Hanchen at dinner, and he was not alone.
He was with another woman.
Meng Yue nodded at Xiang Haoyu.
Meng Zhengde eyed Xiang Haoyu for a moment before turning to his daughter, "I'll head back first. Call me if anything happens, okay?"
Xiang Haoyu's face darkened further. "Father-in-law, Meng Yue and I aren't divorced yet!"
Meng Zhengde walked out of the meeting room without looking back. "Don't call me that; It's disgusting."
Xiang Haoyu clenched his fists and endured the humiliation.
If it weren't for Meng Yue, the Xiang family would not have needed to seek aid from the Meng family. As it was, they were indebted to the Meng family.
The meal took place at a private restaurant. There weren't any private rooms; everything was laid out in the main hall.
Meng Yue spoke to Li Zhan over WeChat about the exhibition hall project. She also sent him some information and confirmed the flight time.
Xiang Haoyu, on the other hand, rested his chin on his hand and studied Meng Yue intently. The Meng family's daughters were all beautiful, but Meng Yue and Meng Wan's beauty differed.
Where Meng Wan was flamboyant and free, her thoughts wild and radical, Meng Yue was gentle and quiet. She could sit anywhere, doing nothing, and still look like the picture of beauty given flesh.
When Meng Yue finally put down her phone, Xiang Haoyu said, "Yueyue, I'm glad we had you to smooth things over this time."
Meng Yue sipped her tea. "You're welcome. I have my reasons."
"In line with our agreement, I'd like for us to go to the Civil Affairs Bureau this afternoon," Meng Yue said as she stared at Xiang Haoyu over the rim of her teacup.
Xiang Haoyu's eyes narrowed, but he agreed. "I'll do what I promised you."
Even as he confirmed his stance, Xiang Haoyu's expression darkened. "It's not easy for us to have a meal together. Can you not talk about these annoying things?"
Meng Yue smiled. "That's true. This must be the first meal we've had together in three years."
Xiang Haoyu's dark eyes flickered, and guilt overcame him.
"Yueyue, it was all my fault. Can't we start all over again? "
Meng Yue shook her head. "We can't."
Meeting those eyes so filled with hope, she said, "Three years... that's long enough."
Xiang Haoyu's face instantly darkened.
He suddenly stood up. "I'm going to the washroom!"
He was afraid that if he did not leave to calm down, he would not be able to resist doing something he should not do to her.
At this moment, the waiter's voice came from the restaurant's entrance, "President Mo, welcome!"
Mo Hanchen appeared at the entrance of the restaurant.
Xiang Haoyu's sarcastic voice rang out, "Hey, where's President Mo? "
Mo Hanchen looked at Xiang Haoyu and then at Meng Yue.
Meng Yue met Mo Hanchen's gaze.
He was dressed in a grey suit accentuating his height and raising his appeal.
Meng Yue's heart beat wildly, her chest suddenly feeling stuffy.
The wound on his forehead seemed to have been treated but was still without a band-aid. It was around two centimetres long.
Xiang Haoyu clenched his fists when he saw Mo Hanchen's gaze land on Meng Yue.
"President Mo, you should keep your sights off things that don't belong to you."
Mo Hanchen raised an eyebrow. "She's not an object. She is a demon who devours people without spitting out their bones."
Meng Yue's eyebrows twitched as she cursed, "You two are nothing. Neither one of you are any good!"