Chapter 64 - There Were Millions of People I Could Have Met, But as It Turned Out, You Were Here (2/2)

“I told him to wait for me at home. He’s there right now. If you don’t believe me, you’re free to see for yourself if he’s really at the company.”

Upon seeing Song Yu’s pale face, Qi Chengyue wore a victorious smile. She took out her phone, dialed Jian Yi’s number, and put it on the loudspeaker.

“Chengyue?” Jian Yi’s faintly gentle voice sounded from the phone.

Song Yu froze. Her heart began sinking, and her eyes stared intently at the cell phone Qi Chengyue placed on the table.

“Where are you now?” Qi Chengyue was all smiles as she continuously looked at Song Yu’s face.

“On my way home,” Jian Yi said. The truth to the lie he told Song Yue earlier had been exposed by none other than Jian Yi himself.

Song Yu gasped and felt a sourness in her throat.

He really did lie to her.

By then, she truly believed Qi Chengyue’s words.

What else did Jian Yi lie to her about?

If he already had a girlfriend, why did he not make things clear to her? Why, then, did he still choose to confess to her?

“Have you finished dealing with your client?” Qi Chengyue questioned.

“No. I let a colleague of mine take care of it. Didn’t you want to meet me?” Jian Yi asked in return.

“I’m more important than the client?” Qi Chengyue’s voice became more tender and her face had a pleased smile. It was a provocation for the already depressed Song Yu.

“Of course. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have abandoned the client.” Jian Yi’s gentle chuckle could be heard from the phone.

“Wait for me at home then.” Qi Chengyue hung up after completing her sentence.

“Do you believe me now?” The phone was put away. “No matter how much he sweet talks you, I can take him away from your side with a simple phone call. That’s the extent of your place in his heart. I was never worried to begin with, because no matter what he does outside, he’ll always return to me. That’s why I can forgive him. As for you, know where you stand.”

Song Yu lowered her head. Her heart was going wild and she kept hearing Jian Yi’s words beside her ear.

‘I’m more important than the client?’

‘Of course. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have abandoned the client.’

Client…she was only a client.

Faced with Qi Chengyue, Song Yu was nothing but a client.

The night before, he had told her he was jealous, that he liked her, and his gaze never wavered from her.

They knew each other for twelve years, and because she never heard about him having a girlfriend, she always thought that his heart only had her.

Even during the Song family’s bankruptcy, he never left her side. He supported her, helped her find a job, and took care of her.

If she met a client, he would pick her up at night.

If she worked overtime, he delivered supper to her.

His life seemed to revolve around her and there was no time for him to be in a relationship.

Even her parents thought that they liked each other and that sooner or later, they would end up together.

All of a sudden, she doubted whether there was any truth to the things that Jian Yi had told her previously.

To what extent was he truly sincere with all the care that he gave to her?

Suddenly, a cold splash of water jolted Song Yu back to her senses. The glass in front of her—Jian Yi’s glass—was empty.

Qi Chengyue placed the glass loudly on the table. The ensuing ‘thud’ attracted the attention of all those beside them.

“An educated person who’s willing to become a mistress. Shameless thing!” Qi Chengyue scolded loudly and abruptly, and with a face full of scorn. Her eyes even turned teary, and her pleased expression was no longer present.

Qi Chengyue shouted on purpose so that everyone else’s attention would be directed onto Song Yu.

Looking at her wet body as well as her hair sticking to her scalp and face, voices of disdain were heard.

“So, she’s a mistress, shame on her!”

“She looks pure. Didn’t expect her to be a lowlife deep inside.”

“Nowadays, the purer one looks, the more despicable they are on the inside. It’s trendy to be a green tea b*tch 1 after all.”

“It’s much too kind to have the real partner show up and splash water on her. People like her should just be gangbanged 2 a few times.”

Song Yu did not dare to lift her head up. Droplets of water were on her face, but at the same time, it was sore from a painful heat. Her eyes were incredibly sore and slightly warm too. Hot tears flowed down and mingled with the cold water, making it hard to differentiate the two.

Qi Chengyue went back to her car, which was parked in front of Chengyue, and sat at the back seat. She ordered her driver, “Drive”. Then, she took out her phone and scrolled through the pictures.

There were photographs of Jian Yi sending Song Yu home, Jian Yi opening his car door for Song Yu to enter, and Jian Yi standing by the roadside while touching Song Yu’s hair. There was also a picture from the night before, when Jian Yi and Song Yu were hugging each other.

Qi Chengyue was expressionless when she deleted all those images.

A frenetic Song Yu then grabbed her bag and fled ashamedly out of the restaurant. Someone then stuck out a leg, causing her to trip and fall onto the ground.

She intentionally wore high heels and a skirt that night. Her knees—which were covered only in a pantyhose—knocked against the hard, ice-cold marble floor of the restaurant. The pain caused her to tremble.

Her fall elicited laughter.

There were even praises for whoever it was that stuck their foot out.

Song Yu cut a sorry figure as she got up from the floor. Thankfully, no one else stuck out another foot to trip her, and she eventually made it out of the restaurant.

Once she got out, though, the cold night wind struck her. Her hair, as well as the upper front part of her clothing, was extremely wet, and her soaked sweater was sticking tightly to her skin. The blowing wind brought about a bone-chilling coldness, and it felt like she would freeze up soon.

Song Yu wrapped herself tightly in her overcoat. She walked hurriedly to the side of the road because she wanted to take a cab.

Her head was lowered because she did not want to look at anyone, so she bumped against a buff chest.

“Song Yu?” Hearing the voice, Song Yu looked up and saw Qi Chengzhi’s frowning face.

Other than the frown, there was no other expression on his face. His tall body cast a shadow on her head and shielded her from the cold wind.

He stood before her with his arms around her. He was firm and steady, like a refuge in the middle of a stormy sea.

The heat from his palm seemed to flow steadily through her arms and onto her body. It was like his embrace was slowly making her feel warm again.

For some reason, she felt at peace when she saw him. Whatever fears she had prior to seeing him disappeared in a flash.

At that moment, a sentence inexplicably surfaced within her mind:

‘There were millions of people I could have met, and yet, you were here.’

She tilted her head up and, perhaps because she had someone to lean on, her tears began flowing even more fervently.

Unable to utter a single word, she simply cried.

Qi Chengzhi let out an almost-unnoticeable sigh. “You should get in the car.”

Song Yu was brought to Qi Chengzhi’s Range Rover. He turned on the warm air and took a cloth from the glove box and said, “Wipe your tears.”

She absent-mindedly wiped her hair. Her hands felt incapable of exerting any energy because her brain was filled with Jian Yi lies—lies that landed her in the predicament she was facing then.

No matter how much she liked Jian Yi, she was not willing to go so far as to be his mistress.

Originally, she anticipated the day with all her heart. It was supposed to be a sweet date for them, but she never imagined that it would turn out to be so traumatic.

Sensing a pressure on her head, she was startled back to her senses. She felt a pair of large hands pressing the cloth on her head and rubbing her wet hair.

Song Yu turned to look. Qi Chengzhi must have had seen how she wiped her hair and deduced that it would take hours for it to dry if she continued wiping the way she did. In light of that, he decided to do it for her.

His glasses had been taken off and were placed somewhere on the dashboard. White fog appeared on the lens as a result of the warm air.

“Let me…” The rest of her sentence disappeared under Qi Chengzhi’s gaze. A speechless Song Yu let go of both her hands and lowered her head so he could wipe her hair.

The cloth was thoroughly soaked when her hair was wiped half-dry. Qi Chengzhi threw it to the back seat.

“Where to?” He asked.

Song Yu remembered Qi Chengyue’s words, and by some curious coincidence, she blurted out Jian Yi’s address.

She only noticed her involuntary actions when Qi Chengzhi had started the journey to Jian Yi’s place.

“Jian Yi and Qi Chengyue’s relationship, you knew about it from the start?” Song Yu clutched her bag tightly.

He knew about it but never said anything?

“Jian Yi and Chengyue?” Qi Chengzhi looked at her with reservation. “What about them? Why do you mention the two of them?”

“They’ve been in a relationship for two years. You didn’t know?” Song Yu asked. She did not believe his words entirely.

How could he not know when they were so closely related?

Qi Chengzhi simply frowned and explained in a low voice, “She’s my younger cousin. I’m not close to her. I heard from my second uncle that she had a stable boyfriend, although she never brought him home before, so I don’t really know.”

He turned and looked at her. “Chengyue and Jian Yi are together?”

Song Yu nodded and averted her gaze.

“I’m sorry. I’ve no idea,” Qi Chengzhi replied insipidly.

“It’s nothing. If it was really kept a secret, it’d be impossible for someone to know.” Song Yu laughed in distress. “I’ve known Jian Yi for thirteen years, and I assumed I understood him. I was always with him, but I still didn’t know that he had been in a relationship with Qi Chengyue for two years.”

Qi Chengzhi glanced momentarily at her and kept silent.

…

…

The Range Rover could not park below Jian Yi’s apartment; it could only park beside the building. Song Yu got off the car by herself. Qi Chengzhi did not follow, and she failed to realize that. At that moment, it was impossible for her to pour all her thoughts to Qi Chengzhi.

As soon as Song Yu walked into Jian Yi’s apartment building, Qi Chengzhi turned the car around, enabling him to leave immediately at a moment’s notice.

The building Jian Yi rented his apartment at had an elevator. It was not as old as the one Song Yu rented, where the only way to go up was by climbing the stairs.

When she reached the twelfth floor, the elevator door opened. The first thing she heard was a woman arguing.

“Jian Yi. Four years of university. I’ve supported you financially for four years. Your school fees, your living expenses, I paid for everything. Even going on dates or getting a room, I paid for all that. It’s like I’m paying money to beg you to sleep with me. Yes, of course I’m happy to do all that, I’m happy as long as I’m your girlfriend, but when you entered Qilin and got together with Qi Chengyue, you simply cast me aside. What kind of person are you?”

“I’m no match for Qi Chengyue. I admit it. The Guan family isn’t nearly as good as the Qi family, but why did you get together with Song Yu when you’re still dating Qi Chengyue? I know I’m not better than Qi Chengyue, but how am I not better than Song Yu? In the past when the Song family was still strong, you had eyes only for Song Yu, but the Song family has nothing now. My family background is better than hers by God-knows-how-much and I don’t look any less pretty than her. If you’re really willing to find another woman behind Qi Chengyue’s back, why didn’t you look for me?”

“If you wanted a lover, why didn’t you find me? You know that I can accept being your lover and that the Guan family will still help you. What’s your purpose of getting together with Song Yu? What do you make of everything that I’ve given you the past few years? Jian Yi, you’ve made a fool out of me!”

“Guan Xiaolin, I’ve been together with Qi Chengyue for a long time. Haven’t you accepted that from the beginning? Why the hell are you here now?” Jian Yi asked in irritation.

Song Yu had never heard such an irritated, cold, and emotionless tone from Jian Yi.

“BECAUSE YOU WENT FOR SONG YU!” Guan Xiaolin screamed hysterically. She stretched out her neck and gave him a dissatisfied stare. “I can accept that you went for Qi Chengyue, but after all these years, you still went back to Song Yu! I can’t accept that! If you can be with Song Yu, why can’t I be with you?!”

“There’s nothing for you to remain unaccepting about. Don’t you understand? Why would I be with you back then if it weren’t for your money? I’m simply a man that you bought with your money. Don’t grab me like a madwoman. Why did I look for Song Yu instead of you? Do you really want me to spell it out? Because I like her. You, I used you from the beginning until the end. That’s all there is to it. I used you. Can’t you see that?”

“JIAN YI, YOU B*STARD!” Guan Xiaolin grabbed his fist and shouted. With a face full of tears, she said, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell Qi Chengyue? What do you think she’ll do to Song Yu if she found out? If she can’t bring herself to leave you, she can definitely bring herself to do something to your lady! Why do you think your secretaries keep changing? Even though nothing happened yet, she still harbors doubts about you. What’s gonna happen if I tell her about Song Yu?”

“Heck, I’ll even tell Song Yu all about your true colors!” Guan Xiaolin shouted fiercely.

“Tell her? Then won’t you expose yourself too? You’ve always considered yourself to be her best friend. You know she likes me and yet you seduce me, pretending as though you and I never had any relationship. You listened as she told you how she liked me and you lied to her all those years. On one hand, you treat her as a friend but on the other, you’re scheming against her. How are you gonna tell her all that?” Jian Yi sneered.

“What about it? She has her guard up against me anyways, at most, if worse comes to worst I’ll simply sink into despair! I just can’t stand to see things going well for you! What are you gonna do about that, huh?!” Guan Xiaolin flailed her arms all of a sudden, and her face was flushed with anger.

“You crazy woman, tell her then! Since she’s got her guard up against you, try and see if she believes your words!” Jian Yi held her wrist and screamed, “LEAVE!”

“Don’t pull me, I’m not leaving! Why are you so anxious for me to leave? Qi Chengyue’s coming soon, are you afraid to let her see me? I’m not leaving! I’ll be glad to let her see me!” Guan Xiaolin shouted because she refused to give in.

“Don’t pull me! I’m not gonna leave! I’m not leaving! Jian Yi, you’re hurting me! Let me go! Let…”

Song Yu had long lost the energy to remain standing, so she leaned on the wall. With her own eyes, she saw how Jian Yi and Guan Xiaolin were struggling. Both of them pushed and pulled at each other as they came out, and Song Yu’s gaze met with Guan Xiaolin’s.

Guan Xiaolin restrained her voice and looked straight behind Jian Yi.

Jian Yi turned his head slowly. The instant he saw Song Yu, his brain froze.

“Heh!” Song Yu laughed in distress and did not want to see either of their faces.

In a flash, the two people whom she knew for ten or so years had become complete strangers. It felt like she never truly knew them.

Moments ago, she watched as the two of them tussled with each other. Guan Xiaolin had on a fierce expression due to the anger, and Jian Yi had a frigid expression that Song Yu had never seen until then. Just like that, they became so distant, so ugly, and so cruel.

“Song Song…” Jian Yi froze and unconsciously let go of Guan Xiaolin’s hand. He looked at Song Yu like someone who had lost his head out of fear.

In Song Yu’s eyes, his expression was that of a guilty conscience.

A feeling of loathing suddenly came over Song Yu. He had an expression of helplessness and repentance as if he really was afraid to lose everything he loved, but Song Yu doubted if it was even genuine at all.

Without saying a word, Song Yu turned and pressed the elevator button.

The elevator stopped on that very floor but did not move. She pressed the ‘down’ button and the elevator doors opened.

Song Yu walked in. Jian Yi muttered a soft ‘Song Song’ and intended to go after her, but Guan Xiaolin grabbed his wrist and prevented him from leaving.

“Jian Yi, I want you to explain everything to me today. Don’t you think about going anywhere else!”