After the divorce, he went on a motorcycle trip, and his ex-wife and daughter were filled with regre

It's 11:30 p.m.

The phone on the coffee table finally vibrated.

Jiang Ye walked over, picked up his phone, and saw the name "Xia Yu" displayed on the screen.

He pressed the answer button, and before he could speak, Xia Yu's slightly tired and anxious voice came from the other end of the phone, with the sounds of a printer working and employees moving around in the background.

"Hey, Jiang Ye, I'm sorry! I can't make it tonight!"

Xia Yu spoke quickly, with the decisiveness of a strong woman at work. "The Cloud Top Town project was just approved at the board meeting this afternoon, and a whole host of things have piled up. The construction team's arrival time, the selection of building material suppliers, and the preliminary financial budget—I have to stay up all night to oversee them and get the plan done. I have to go to the city for a meeting to report tomorrow morning."

Jiang Ye listened to the voice coming from the phone and remained silent for two seconds.

He glanced at the two cold steaks on the table and said in a flat tone, "No matter how busy you are with work, don't you even have time to reply to a message or make a phone call? I've been waiting for you all night."

Xia Yu on the other end of the phone paused for a moment, seemingly only then realizing that she had stood Jiang Ye up for the whole night.

"I...I've really been too busy. I just left my phone charging in the office during the meeting and didn't even have time to check it," Xia Yu explained somewhat guiltily. "I'm sorry, today is a special case. This project is too important to Blue Ocean Group; I can't afford any mistakes. I won't go today, but tomorrow...I'll make it up to you properly tomorrow, okay?"

"compensate?"

When Jiang Ye heard this word, he suddenly felt a bit uncomfortable.

What he wanted was a warm and cozy time together after get off work, not some kind of "compensation" that felt like completing a task.

"Xia Yu, do you think that as long as you get the project, everything else can wait?" Jiang Ye's voice turned cold. "I asked you to move in so you could come and check in whenever you have time."

Xia Yu was already dizzy and under immense pressure from working overtime continuously. Hearing Jiang Ye's accusatory tone, her CEO-like temper flared up.

"Jiang Ye, can't you be reasonable? I'm the president of Blue Ocean Group, and I manage thousands of people! I can't be like a housewife, going home on time every day to have dinner with you!"

Xia Yu rubbed her temples in frustration, and in her haste, blurted out:

"Besides, we have an agreement! It's clearly stated in the agreement: four times a month! But I didn't say it had to be tonight, did I?! I just need to make up for the missed times within this month, isn't that enough? Why are you making such a big deal out of it?!"

Upon hearing this, a deathly silence fell over both ends of the phone.

Xia Yu regretted her words as soon as they left her mouth.

She wanted to slap herself. That wasn't what she meant at all; she was just too tired and impatient. But in the heat of the moment, she brought up that absurd "sugar daddy agreement" as a shield.

"Jiang Ye, I..." Xia Yu tried to explain.

"you're right."

Jiang Ye interrupted her, his voice devoid of anger or expectation, only a cold indifference remained.

"An agreement is an agreement. Mr. Xia is a businessman, and his sense of contract is truly admirable. Since it's four times a month, Mr. Xia can arrange the time himself and notify me in advance. Anyway, I'll always be clean and ready to wait for you in bed."

"Jiang Ye! Don't say that..."

"Beep—beep—beep—"

Jiang Ye didn't give her a chance to explain and hung up the phone directly.

He tossed his phone onto the sofa, looked at the empty living room, and suddenly felt a sense of emptiness.

Boring.

This is so incredibly boring.

He believed that, apart from the absurd agreement and the exchange of benefits for the project, he and Xia Yu had developed some kind of spiritual resonance.

He thought that after Xia Yu shed her facade as a female CEO, she was a little woman longing for warmth.

But now it seems he was overthinking things.

In Xia Yu's heart, Blue Ocean Group always comes first, and work always comes first. As for Jiang Ye, he is nothing more than a shield she bought for 20,000 yuan, an "employee" who can provide her with emotional value and physical comfort when she needs it.

If there's a conflict with her work, he's the one who can be sacrificed at any time, broken a promise at any time, or even dismissed with an "agreement."

Jiang Ye walked to the dining table, picked up the plate of cold steak, and dumped it into the trash can without hesitation.

Then, he picked up the bottle of red wine, took two gulps straight from the bottle, and turned to walk into the bedroom.

The door slammed shut.

go to bed.

……

Meanwhile, at the Shen family villa on the other side of Hanju.

The atmosphere in the living room, however, went through a dramatic rollercoaster ride from heaven to hell.

After returning from Gu Ziming's place, Shen Qinghan sat alone in her car for a long time. She touched up her makeup to cover her pale face and red eyes from crying, then took a deep breath and pushed open the villa's door.

In the living room, old lady Zhao Yulan was sitting on the sofa sighing, while Shen Zhennan and Ou Yuqin were carefully keeping her company.

Since her divorce from Jiang Ye, the atmosphere in the Shen family has seemed to be shrouded in gloom and despair.

"Grandma, Dad, Mom."

Shen Qinghan walked to the center of the living room, looked at the three elders, bit her lip, and broke the silence with her words.

"Qinghan's back." Ou Yuqin quickly stood up, looking at her daughter's haggard appearance, and said with heartache, "Where have you been, child? I called you but you didn't answer. Come and sit down."

Shen Qinghan didn't sit down. She stood there, her hands instinctively protecting her flat stomach, and took a deep breath, as if to encourage herself.

"Grandma, Dad, Mom, I have something to tell you."

Shen Qinghan's voice wasn't loud, but it could be heard clearly in the quiet living room, "I...I'm pregnant."

"What?!"

These words were like a thunderclap, instantly exploding in the Shen family's living room.

Grandma Zhao Yulan suddenly raised her head, and an incredible light flashed in her cloudy eyes.

Shen Zhennan and Ou Yuqin were also stunned. They looked at each other and it took them several seconds to react.

"Qinghan, you...you're telling the truth? You're really pregnant?" Ou Yuqin's voice trembled with excitement as she rushed forward and grabbed her daughter's hand.

"Yes, I just tested it myself, and it's two bars." Shen Qinghan nodded.

"Oh my god! Thank goodness! Thank goodness!"

Grandma Zhao Yulan was so moved that she threw away her cane, clasped her hands together, and burst into tears.

"I knew it! I knew Ono was a lucky kid! Now everything's alright! Now everyone's saved!"

The old lady was as excited as a child, turning to Shen Zhennan and shouting, "Zhennan! Quick! Call Xiaoye! Tell him this amazing news! If he knew Qinghan was pregnant with his child, he would definitely change his mind! This is his own flesh and blood! With Shen Xinyu as our first child, and now a second one, our Shen family will be perfect!"

Shen Zhennan was also overjoyed, nodding repeatedly: "Yes, yes, yes! I'll call right now! Xiao Ye is the most sentimental person. With this child, their remarriage is absolutely a done deal!"

Ou Yuqin burst into tears of joy, and holding Shen Qinghan's hand, she solemnly said, "Qinghan, you absolutely cannot be willful this time! Xiaoye is now the boss of Kunlun Capital. You'd better get ready quickly, and tomorrow Mom will accompany you to personally apologize to Xiaoye!"

Watching my parents and grandmother ecstatic, calling him "Xiao Ye" and talking about "remarriage" over and over again.

Shen Qinghan's heart felt like it was bleeding.

She bit her lip hard, her face as pale as paper.

She knew that what she was about to say would shatter all their illusions.