C14 Chapter 14

“Yubai… I’m not going to be mad. Whatever Miss Qiu wants, just give it to her…” Jingya’s voice was weak. In front of Yubai, she always wore that selfless, thinking-of-everyone-else mask. She laid a hand over his arm and said softly, “I’ll wait.”

Yubai’s heart jolted. He thought of Anan’s distant face—like she’d already given up on the marriage. So why couldn’t he just say yes? It was like a voice in his head kept warning him: Don’t.

“I’m fine.” Yubai soothed her gently, then got up and left the hospital room. After he was gone, Jingya’s cousin, Shuangshuang, happened to walk in.

“Didn’t work?” Shuangshuang leaned against the doorway, her eyes full of mockery. Other people might not know, but she knew her cousin’s true colors. “Jingya, he’s already married. Why won’t you let it go?”

“One day, Yubai will be mine.” In front of Shuangshuang, Jingya dropped the act. Her carefully done makeup twisted with anger. “That woman? Sooner or later, she’ll be out on her ass.”

“But Ningying said your Yubai doesn’t want a divorce.” Shuangshuang couldn’t stand Jingya’s smug attitude—only Yubai bought the sweet-and-fragile routine. “Looks like Anan knows exactly how to hold her place in the Luh family.”

“Bullshit. Yubai loves me. It has to be that bitch Anan refusing to divorce him!” Jingya snapped, fury flaring. The vicious look in her eyes was enough to make anyone’s stomach drop.

Shuangshuang had always been wary of her. She blurted out, “I didn’t say it—Ningying did.”

Jingya’s eyes shifted. She knew Shuangshuang wouldn’t lie. After a moment, she curled her lips into a cold smile. “Mrs. Luh can only be me!”

Anan had been doing well these past few days. After finding out she was pregnant, she made sure to eat three solid meals a day, doing her best to keep herself nourished and give the baby a safe, warm place to grow. During that time, she also wondered whether she should sit down and talk to Yubai.

After all, a child isn’t just one person’s responsibility.

Qiu Anan had been trying to find the right moment to sit down and talk with him, but she didn’t expect him to come to her first—

“I’ll agree to the divorce.”

Qiu Anan hadn’t expected Luh Yubai to vanish for so long, only to show up and drop that on her. Her expression tightened. “What did you just say?”

“As you wanted, I’ll agree to the divorce.”

Luh Yubai’s face was dark and unreadable. The finality in his voice left no room for negotiation, as if they’d been dragged back to square one. After a pause, he added, “I’ll give you a sum of money, and I’ll make sure your family is taken care of.”

Qiu Anan’s heart started pounding. Just when she’d decided to talk things through, the man in front of her was the one pushing for a divorce. “I…”

“Qiu Anan, don’t tell me you don’t want it anymore?” Luh Yubai took her hesitation as second thoughts, and the resentment he’d been holding only deepened. “Do I really have to do whatever you say—divorce when you want a divorce?”

“Of course not…” Qiu Anan’s face hardened, exhaustion creeping in. She turned and walked into the room, then set the divorce papers she’d already prepared in front of him. Coldly, she said, “Fine. I’ll do it.”

From bending over to sign to putting his name on the line, Luh Yubai didn’t so much as furrow his brow. His sudden, icy detachment made Qiu Anan uneasy. She looked at him and couldn’t help asking, “Can I ask what made you change so suddenly?”

His confession from last time was still fresh in her mind. Now it felt like a joke.

Luh Yubai was quiet for a moment. He looked at the woman with calm, clear eyes, something dark flickering in his own. “Jingya’s pregnant. The baby needs a legitimate name.”