Chapter 47: Mistaking Ke Zhongyu for 'Mom

Shen Xun returned to the banquet, his mind elsewhere; Lin Shutong called him several times, but he kept zoning out.

Some are happy, some are sad.

Shen Xun is the latter.

【4> Ke Zhongyu is the former; he received news from his younger sister saying Jiang Lai was already free from misery, had already signed the divorce and was going through the process!

Ke Zhongyu is the former; he received news from his younger sister, saying Jiang Lai is already about to escape the sea of suffering, she has already signed the divorce and is going through the process!

Ke Zhongyu replied: 【You just found out?】

It was like showing off, almost making Ke Zhongying die of anger; she linked arms with Jiang Lai and said, "Jiang Lai sis, we two are the best in the world, right?"

Jiang Lai didn't know why she looked so puffed up with anger, but couldn't resist her coquettishness, quickly nodding: "Yes."

"My brother can never compare to mine, can he?"

Jiang Lai replied without hesitation: "Of course."

What relation does Boss Ke have with her?

For now he's her direct superior; if Ke Clan wins the bid, they'll also be partners.

Upon hearing, Ke Zhongying was pleased, typed a boastful reply, but ultimately got no response.

She must have been angered.

"Jiang Lai sis, are you in a hurry to go back?" Ke Zhongying blinked at her.

Jiang Lai asked: "What's up?"

"Let's go celebrate! Celebrate your divorce from that scumbag!"

Jiang Lai stared blankly for a moment; the autumn wind chilled her cheeks, she nodded: "It's time to celebrate."

At least it's only four years.

If it were ten or twenty years, could she still extricate herself in time like this?

"Then listen to my arrangements; I'll take you to a nice place." Ke Zhongying drove a Ferrari to a bar where live singers perform every night, not too noisy, and the atmosphere is actually great.

She led Jiang Lai to a prime spot on the second floor with an excellent view, which is also her usual seat.

"Let me tell you secretly, this bar is actually mine."

"Huh?" Jiang Lai sounded surprised; Ke Zhongying didn't look like someone who likes drinking.

"I just think it's fun; I have money, so I mess around a bit. Mainly, because the old guy often locks me in the lab, I need a completely different place to get some fresh air. When I'm free I come here to sit and have a little drink." Ke Zhongying poured her a drink: "Try it, our manager-developed fruit wine, sweet and sour, won't get you drunk."

Jiang Lai took a sip and quite liked the sweet‑sour flavor.

The two clinked glasses.

"Wishing Jiang Lai sis a smooth divorce and finding someone better afterward!"

"Thanks." Jiang Lai wasn't just drinking for the first time; it was also the first time she'd drunk with friends, and without realizing it she'd consumed quite a bit.

Ke Zhongying got more energetic the more she drank, running to the bathroom, coming back to keep drinking, and even taking Jiang Lai's hand to clink glasses together.

After a while, Jiang Lai, who hardly drank, started to get drunk.

She felt Ke Zhongying in front of her swaying a bit, then—bang! —Ke Zhongying collapsed drunk onto the table.

"……" Jiang Lai blinked her eyes.

She thought Ke Zhongying could hold her liquor better than she could.

She hadn't expected the first to pass out would be Ke Zhongying.

Jiang Lai herself was also drunk; one person couldn't help Ke Zhongying get home, and the key was that neither of them could drive.

She had no choice but to pull out her phone and make a voice call to Ke Zhongyu.

It rang once and the other side answered.

"Jiang Lai."

A man's voice came through the earpiece, jolting her eardrum.

She rubbed her ears, then heard the man coldly ask: "Where are you? A bar?"

Jiang Lai paused.

The questions from the other side kept coming.

"And Ke Zhongying?"

"She brought you here?"

"Is it a bar or that speakeasy she secretly opened?"

"Speak, Jiang Lai." The man's voice noticeably deepened.

Only then did Jiang Lai speak: "The bar."

"Don't hang up." Ke Zhongyu put on his earpiece, personally drove to the bar, which was fully packed.

He looked up and saw a white silhouette sitting at the edge of the second floor.

It was Jiang Lai.

Ke Zhongyu took three steps in two strides upward; the second floor was quieter, especially where they were—only the two of them.

Ke Zhongying was already slumped over the table.

Jiang Lai was still seated, one hand propping her head, the other still pouring herself a drink; because her head was so dizzy, she spilled quite a bit.

Just as she was about to keep pouring, someone snatched the bottle from above.

Jiang Lai looked up and saw Ke Zhongyu wearing a white shirt with a red tie.

Her mind was sluggish; she just slowly blinked her eyes.

But Ke Zhongyu saw her reddened eye corners and the tear tracks on her face; the reproachful words rose to his throat, then he swallowed them back.

"Let's go."

"Where?"

"Home." Ke Zhongyu reached out and grabbed her wrist; her hand was finer than he imagined, very slender,

Jiang Lai pulled out her hand: "No home."

After speaking, tears rolled down again; she seemed not to know she was crying, just sitting quietly.

Ke Zhongyu helplessly sat beside her, pulled a tissue from the table, pinched her chin with one hand, forcing her to face him.

He used the tissue to wipe her tears.

Jiang Lai looked at him and suddenly shouted, "Dean Mom!"

Ke Zhongyu's hand paused: "……"

"Dean Mom." Tears blurred Jiang Lai's vision; she realized she was crying, stubbornly refusing to let herself cry, she pressed her voice and said, "Shen Xun, Shen Xun brought another woman onto our bed, slept in our bed."

"And, and Shen Xun doesn't love me at all; he married me just to… to…" Grievance burst like a flood released from a gate, unstoppable.

"To provoke Lin Shutong, to see if she'd return to the country because of his marriage."

"In his eyes, my life's major events are just a test."

"He still won't divorce me because he can't do without me, his maid who washes his clothes and cooks his meals."

Jiang Lai's voice choked; before Ke Zhongyu could reach for another tissue, she had already wiped all the tears from her face with her hand.

"But it's fine; if he won't divorce, I'll divorce myself—just think of these four years as feeding a dog."

"Dean Mom, I'll be coming back to spend New Year's again; you won't drive me away, will you?"

Jiang Lai looked at him with tear-filled eyes.

Seeing her like that, Ke Zhongyu's chest tightened; he said softly, "No."

"I want to eat that super spicy chicken; I haven't had spicy food in ages." Jiang Lai pursed her lips, tears bursting forth again.

Ke Zhongyu had never comforted a crying woman; when his mother cried, his father was there; when his sister cried, his parents were there.

He just wanted to first take the two drunks back.

Ke Zhongying had already collapsed on the table asleep; sleeping a bit longer didn't matter.

Ke Zhongyu stood up, bent over, and lifted Jiang Lai into his arms; the long hem of her skirt fell like a flower waterfall across his suit pants.

Jiang Lai in his arms was light.

Just as he had imagined.

I don't know how Shen Xun mistreats her every day.

Thinking of this, the man's gaze sank.

"Dean Mom…" Jiang Lai seemed to return to childhood; when she fell running, Dean Mom would hold her like this, then take out a band‑aid and stick it on her wound.

She jabbed hard at her own chest: "Dean Mom, the band‑aid goes here."

"Mm." Ke Zhongyu nodded, holding her as they walked out of the tavern into the heated car.

They went back into the tavern, hoisted the drunk sister onto a seat.

The contrast was so great that the driver sighed.

The driver then saw Boss Ke head to the pharmacy; when he returned, he was holding a plain box of band‑aids.