C6 Chapter 6

After leaving the Qiu house, Qiu Anan felt a flicker of uncertainty.

She didn’t know where to go.

The Luh family home felt close enough to see but impossible to reach. No matter how long she lived there, it never truly felt like home. But the Qiu house left her so suffocated she could barely breathe.

After hesitating again and again, Qiu Anan couldn’t help calling Luh Yubai. After a brief ring, his low, steady voice came through.

“What do you need?”

His voice was as cold as ever. The lack of warmth shoved the thanks she’d meant to say back down her throat. She changed course and said, “I’ll pay you back for Qiu Dong’s money.”

A long silence followed before Luh Yubai spoke again, his tone carrying that arrogant chill. “Qiu Anan, Qiu Dong spent over thirty million from the Luh family. Don’t tell me you think you can scrape that kind of money out of the bottom of your bowl.”

Qiu Anan’s face went pale. She was angry, but she couldn’t argue—because she knew he was right. Before she could respond, he spoke again. “And you, like this, still want a divorce from me?”

“Luh Yubai, don’t look down on me!” Qiu Anan clenched her teeth and shot back, “If I said I’ll pay you back, then I will!”

She hung up, jaw tight, running through dozens of ways to come up with the money. But no matter how she turned it over, thirty million felt like an impossible number.

Still, she’d already said it.

For three straight days, Qiu Anan searched online for a job. Back in college, she’d studied human resources so she could be the perfect support at Luh Yubai’s side. She never expected he wouldn’t care at all—leaving her to spend her days in the Luh family home as a kept wife with nothing to do.

“Ugh…”

She looked so drained that even the old man noticed something was off. At dinner, he couldn’t help asking, “Kid, you haven’t had much of an appetite lately. Why doesn’t Yubai take you out for a bit when he’s free?”

Ever since Yubai refused to go through with the divorce after that chance run-in, the old man had been watching the couple’s relationship like a hawk. Seeing Yubai sit there stone-faced, he couldn’t help but lecture him again: “If you want a wife, you’ve got to put in the time. You can’t just talk about it.”

The blunt hint made Mrs. Luh’s expression turn even uglier. She couldn’t help muttering, “Yubai’s swamped at Luh’s every day. Where’s he supposed to find time to cater to anyone?”

“Then don’t have a wife—agree to the divorce!” the old man snapped, eyebrows lifting as his temper flared.

Mrs. Luh fell silent, seething. She secretly cursed Yubai for whatever had short-circuited in his brain last time—why hadn’t he agreed to the divorce? The anger lodged in her chest, her face flushing a dark, ugly red.

“I want to get a job.”

All of a sudden, Qiu Anan spoke up, her gaze steady with determination. “I studied human resources. I want to try stepping into the real world and learn some practical skills.”

“What can you do? Any new college grad is better than you,” Luh Ningying said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Seriously, Qiu Anan, don’t flatter yourself. You don’t know how to do anything. You’ll just end up causing my brother trouble.”

“Did I say I was going to work at Luh’s?” Qiu Anan shot back, so angry she laughed. The sharp look in her eyes made Ningying flinch. “You really think everyone’s dying to work at Luh’s?”

“Nice speech. In the end, you’ll still go running to my brother for money,” Ningying snapped, embarrassed and furious. “I heard Qiu Dong borrowed money again. Do you seriously think the Luh family has bottomless pockets?”

“Enough!”

The old man’s face turned icy. “The Luhs and the Qius are family. I don’t want to hear that kind of talk at the dinner table again!”

The old man was protecting Qiu Anan—protecting the Qiu family.

No one had ever been able to figure out why, not in all these years. Ningying was furious, but she didn’t dare keep pushing at the table. Reading the room, she lowered her head and ate, though the bitterness only grew heavier in her chest.

After dinner, Qiu Anan had just gotten up to head back to her room. She hadn’t even closed the door when Luh Yubai suddenly slipped in, blocking her way.

“So you’re saying you don’t want to go to Luh’s?”

A moment ago, Luh Yubai hadn’t said a word, and Qiu Anan had assumed he’d silently agreed. She hadn’t expected that now, with only the two of them alone, he’d corner her like this. The way he looked at her made it clear he wasn’t here to play nice, and she couldn’t help feeling thrown off.