Xia Chu had only cried briefly on her way home; afterwards, she hadn't shed another tear.
It wasn't that she didn't want to cry; strangely, she just couldn't.
She looked at Jiang Ziyao and said hoarsely, "There's no point in saying anything now. It's precisely because everything was once so good that I can't accept what's happened now. Fortunately, it will all be over soon, and I will definitely start over as quickly as possible. Don't worry about me, Ziyao."
Jiang Ziyao spoke with resentment, "Right, once he's cheated, what does all that past goodness even count for? And who knows if he's got other shady things going on that you just don't know about."
After a pause, "Xia Chu, when it comes to dividing the house and shares, you mustn't act noble or cling to the past. Don't let that bastard and his mistress get away with anything they don't deserve. Even if it's tough, you have to stand your ground!"
Xia Chu nodded, "I definitely won't let them have a penny and I'm prepared for a drawn-out battle."
Having worked side by side with Xu Pei for so many years, although they weren't married, breaking up was almost the same as getting a divorce.
Jiang Ziyao frowned, "But in doing so, you definitely won't be able to stay at the law firm any longer. You'll need to think ahead about what you're going to do."
Xia Chu understood why her friend said she was the one who couldn't stay at the law firm, not Xu Pei.
Xu Pei was three years her senior. When he finished his master's and set up the law firm, she was just starting her first year of graduate studies. Although she also invested 400,000 yuan—using the money she'd luckily earned from selling the film and television rights, which amounted to a 20% share in the firm—
she was busy with her coursework at the time and didn't spend much time at the firm. Even when she was there, she was just helping with some administrative logistics.
The clients and the business were mostly hard-won by Xu Pei and the other two partners and senior classmates, Yang Guangchuan and Zhou Zhenghan.
By the time Xia Chu graduated with her master's degree and joined the firm, the now well-established firm's personnel and administrative tasks were naturally taken over by her.
Such an arrangement was, of course, unproblematic when times were good, exactly fitting the so-called "man outside, woman inside" and "husband and wife team up, half the effort, double the results."
But once the two could no longer walk the same path and desired to split, it was as painful as breaking bones for the dominant party, let alone for the weaker party.
Since Xia Chu had resolutely cut off her own retreat, she had of course thought of this, "Even if I could stay, I won't. I'm a full-grown person with hands and feet; am I going to starve to death?"
Jiang Ziyao, seeing that she was well aware of her situation, said no more, "Anyway, when you need my help, don't be shy about asking. Do you feel like eating now? Should I go make you some noodles?"
Xia Chu shook her head again, "I'm really not hungry right now. I just want to sleep. Go ahead and do what you need to do, Ziyao. I'm really okay; I'll contact you after I wake up tomorrow."
Jiang Ziyao saw that her face was still bloodlessly pale and wanted to insist on staying with her.
After thinking it over, she decided to give Xia Chu some space, "Alright, then I'll leave. Remember to call me if you need anything. Don't bother seeing me out; you should take a bath and change into fresh clothes before sleeping."
Only after Jiang Ziyao had left did Xia Chu close her tired eyes.
But she quickly opened them again and went into the bathroom. Maybe a hot shower would help her fall asleep?
Unfortunately, it was no use. She still couldn't sleep, couldn't control herself from thinking about why Xu Pei had betrayed her, betrayed their love.
Was it because she wasn't pretty enough, didn't have a good enough figure, wasn't smart or capable enough?
Or was there something she hadn't done well?
Or perhaps, was it simply because she had never... given herself to him?
If she had known, she wouldn't have insisted so much.
But at the beginning, it was indeed her shyness and fear, yet later it turned out that both she and he were becoming busier and busier. Even trying to have a meal together required squeezing in the time, not to mention movies and traveling – those were out of the question.
They had their moments when feelings ran deep and things almost naturally progressed to fruition.
It was Xu Pei's phone that suddenly rang, persistently, after being hung up several times. And so, they had to stop halfway.
Moreover, similar situations happened again, so she joked, "It seems heaven is determined that we must wait until our wedding night?"
Just as they were about to reach that moment, Xu Pei had completed ninety-nine steps but collapsed on the very last one!
No, he definitely hadn't fallen at the last step – maybe he had fallen much earlier.
She was just too foolish to notice until someone sent photos to provoke her, snapping her out of her deep slumber...
Xia Chu had no idea how long she tossed and turned in bed before she finally fell into a deep sleep.
What woke her was the sound of knocking on the door again, and two familiar voices: "Xia Chu, open the door for me. I know you're in there, open the door—"
"Panpan, it's Mommy. Open the door... Please, open the door quickly, or your dad is going to break it down... Panpan, Panpan..."
Xia Chu's head was splitting with pain.
She had known that even if she got a marriage certificate with a stranger in front of Xu Pei, he would still pester her and would definitely tell her parents, and she'd have a tough fight ahead.
She just didn't expect her parents to come so soon.
She shouldn't have come home; she should've gone directly to a hotel!
But now that they were outside her door, if she continued to pretend not to hear and didn't open it, the knocking and shouting would inevitably disturb the neighbors and might even alarm her landlord.
So, Xia Chu had no choice but to get out of bed, casually threw on some clothes, and opened the door.
As soon as she opened the door, her father Xia Benjun's palm, whipping through the air, came at her face.
Xia Chu, of course, wasn't foolish enough to let her father hit her, and she caught his hand mid-air, saying coldly, "I remember saying in college that if you ever hit Mom or me again, don't expect a penny from me. What, you have so much money now that you don't need mine?"
Xia Benjun was already furious from the trip over and became even more enraged when his daughter dared to defy and talk back to him right from the start, "Don't pressure me with your damn money. I gave you life and raised you, you're supposed to give it! Did you really think you've grown wings and I can't control you? Let go!"
Though his words were harsh, after Xia Chu let go of his hand, he still didn't dare to hit her again.
After all, his comfortable life now was all thanks to the three thousand yuan Xia Chu gave him every month.
But he was really unhappy inside, so he started to blame Xia Chu's mother, Ye Shuhua, "Look at the daughter you've raised; she's gone almost mad. If you really let Xu Pei, such a good son-in-law, slip through our fingers this time, you'll never hear the end of it from me!"
Ye Shuhua had never been strong in front of her husband in her life, and this time was no exception.
She murmured softly, "She's not just my daughter. Isn't she your daughter too? You too, you promised Xu Pei that you'd talk to Panpan nicely, and instead, the moment you see her, you try to hit someone. How can Panpan not feel aggrieved?"
After speaking, she looked at Xia Chu, "Panpan, don't take it to heart. Your dad is just worried sick. You and Xu Pei have been together for so many years, and all our relatives and friends know we're having a wedding next month. How can you just break up and, in a fit of pique, register with a man you've just met? You're going to drive us to our graves!"