The Heiress's Game

Qian Yuewei stared straight at the entrance of the banquet hall and patted Gu Yunjin's arm.

"Hey, hey, look over there, who's that?"

Gu Yunjin followed her gaze.

At the entrance to the banquet hall, Madam Pei and Pei Yan's father, Pei Xinzhi, were personally leading a lady inside.

Madam Pei had a smile on her face and leaned forward slightly; her posture was clearly one of obsequiousness that anyone with eyes could see.

Pei Xinzhi, who was usually a prominent figure in the business world of Dahai City, walked half a step behind with his body turned to the side, talking to himself as he walked, his expression showing a rare respect.

The woman being flanked by the couple appeared to be in her early fifties.

She wore a minimalist white cheongsam with a plain cashmere shawl draped over her shoulders.

She was wearing a full set of jade jewelry, all a vibrant green, and it looked absolutely beautiful.

"Such a grand reception? Pei Xinzhi personally greeted them?" Qian Yuewei lowered her voice and turned to call out to the other side.

"Mom—Mom, come here for a second."

Mrs. Qian was exchanging pleasantries with a lady at the next table when her daughter called her over, and she came over with her wine glass.

Qian Yuewei grabbed her sleeve and gestured with her chin toward the entrance: "Who's that? Uncle Pei and Aunt Pei are practically bending over at a ninety-degree angle."

Mrs. Qian glanced in that direction, her expression shifting slightly, before sitting down next to her daughter.

"That is Madam Zhuo, Zhuo Shengnan."

Gu Yunjin's gaze lingered on the lady for a moment, but he did not speak.

Qian Yuewei frowned: "Zhuo Shengnan? Never heard of her. Who is she?"

Mrs. Qian picked up her glass, took a sip of champagne, and spoke slowly and deliberately, her tone as if she were giving her daughter an impromptu tutoring session.

"She herself isn't from any particular family, but her identity is far from simple. You know the Yun Jingbai family, right?"

Qian Yuewei nodded vigorously: "I know, I know, I even went to the Bai family's party last week."

"Old Master Bai Lingfeng had a comrade-in-arms named Zhuo back then, and the two had a life-or-death bond."

The Zhuo couple passed away early, unexpectedly, leaving behind a young daughter, who is this Mrs. Zhuo.

Bai Lingfeng took her into his family and raised her as his own daughter, letting her study and grow up alongside the Bai family's children.

Mrs. Qian paused, twirling the wine glass between her fingers, "Later, she married Bai Lingfeng's second son and had a son."

Upon hearing this, Qian Yuewei's eyes instantly lit up like two light bulbs, and she grabbed Gu Yunjin's wrist and shook it vigorously:

"Childhood sweethearts! Innocent childhood friends! What kind of fairytale script is this! Growing up together and then marrying the older brother—wait, the older brother, right? Is Second Master Bai older or younger than her?"

Mrs. Qian rolled her eyes at her daughter, her eyes screaming, "Can't you be a little more dignified?"

"Keep your voice down, this is someone's wedding, not your TV show viewing session."

Qian Yuewei shrank back, but the excitement in her eyes didn't diminish at all. She turned to Gu Yunjin and whispered:

"I'm totally shipping them! This kind of drama is a hundred times better than idol dramas."

Gu Yunjin glanced at her helplessly: "Don't rush to kowtow, let Auntie finish speaking."

Qian Yuewei said "Oh" and obediently shut her mouth.

Mrs. Qian remained silent for a few seconds, her expression becoming somewhat subtle, as if she was hesitating whether to continue speaking.

She looked around to make sure no one was paying attention before speaking again.

However, the two later divorced.

Qian Yuewei was stunned for a moment: "Divorced? Why?"

"That's a long story."

"Master Bai, Bai Jingchuan, went missing more than 30 years ago when he was at sea due to an accident."

The Bai family sent countless people to search, but after more than half a year, they still couldn't find him. Everyone thought he was gone.

"And then?" Qian Yuewei asked anxiously, leaning forward. "Mom, don't breathe so heavily!"

"The person didn't die," Mrs. Qian said.

"Bai Jingchuan was swept by the ocean current to the waters near Taicheng, where he was rescued by local fishermen."

But the person hit their head and suffered amnesia; they couldn't even remember their own name.

Qian Yuewei gasped.

"And then, he stayed in Taicheng for several years, and not only did he not regain his memory, but also—"

As Mrs. Qian finished speaking, she herself felt that what she was about to say was somewhat absurd.

"She even got married locally and had two children."

There was a full three seconds of silence at the dining table.

"Then..." Gu Yunjin began, her voice unusually tinged with uncertainty.

"He's still married to Madam Zhuo in Yunjing, isn't he?"

"Of course not," Mrs. Qian sighed.

"He is missing, not declared dead. Legally, they are still a married couple."

Qian Yuewei's mind finally broke free from the pink bubble of "being hit by a flower" and shifted to another dimension.

"Wait, wait, wait—so, Second Master Bai has a marriage certificate in Yunjing and another one in Taicheng? Both are legal?"

"Taicheng has a different administrative system," Madam Qian said, rubbing her temples.

"Household registration, laws, and archives are all different from what we have here."

He had amnesia at the time, and re-registered using his identity from Taicheng, which, procedurally speaking, was indeed legal and valid.

Qian Yuewei was completely stunned, her expression shifting back and forth between "This is outrageous" and "This is exciting":

"So, Master Bai has two wives? Two marriage certificates? Two sets of children?"

She spoke involuntarily, and two or three people around her turned to look at her.

Madam Qian grabbed her arm, her eyes sharp as if she wanted to kill her on the spot: "Qian Yuewei, shut up."

Qian Yuewei quickly covered her mouth, but the thirst for knowledge in her eyes was practically burning with desire.

"Mom, then what? Did Second Master Bai regain his memory? What happened to his wife in Taicheng? You can't just leave things unsaid!"

Madam Qian glanced at her daughter, then at Gu Yunjin beside her, who, though silent, was clearly waiting for her to continue, and sighed softly.

"It's recovered," she said.

"A few years later, Bai Jingchuan's memory suddenly returned."

It is said that one morning when he woke up, all the broken wires in his brain were reconnected overnight.

He remembered who he was, Yun Jing, the Bai family, and Zhuo Shengnan and Bai Junze.

"Later, he returned to Yunjing. Just imagine the scene—a person that everyone thought had been dead for several years suddenly appeared alive at the gate of the Bai family mansion."

The entire Bai family was stunned. Even the usually tough old man, Bai Lingfeng, was said to have burst into tears on the spot.

The whole family thought this was a great joy, until Bai Jingchuan explained everything that had happened in Taicheng.

He got married in Taicheng and has two children.

Qian Yuewei gasped, leaning back in her chair with an expression as dramatic as if she had just watched a movie with eight plot twists.

"I heard that Old Master Bai said on the spot that he only recognized Sheng Nan as the daughter-in-law of the Bai family."

He never even met Miss Meng from Taicheng. In the old man's eyes, Zhuo Shengnan was the daughter of his comrade-in-arms.

She was the girl he raised himself, the daughter-in-law of the Bai family, and Bai Junze's mother.

This level of importance is something that not just anyone can match.

Qian Yuewei's eyes welled up with tears, but she didn't have time to be moved, because something even more exciting was yet to come.

"However," Madam Qian changed the subject, "that one from Taicheng is not from an ordinary family either."

"There is a family surnamed Meng in Taicheng who have deep roots in the local area."

The businesses they run include both legitimate and illegitimate ventures. They are the kind of local bullies in Taicheng who command respect from everyone and don't need to follow any overt procedures to get things done.

Bai Jingchuan married Meng Wanqing, the daughter of the Meng family.

"Meng Wanqing and Zhuo Shengnan are completely opposite."

Mrs. Qian continued,

"As you just saw, Zhuo Shengnan is assertive, efficient, and decisive."

Meng Wanqing speaks in the soft, sweet tone typical of Taicheng people, her eyes crinkle when she smiles, and she has a gentle personality. It is said that she is completely obedient to Bai Jingchuan and has never raised her voice to anyone in her entire life.

During the years Bai Jingchuan spent in Taicheng, she truly took meticulous care of him.

Qian Yuewei's mind was clearly overloaded. She opened her mouth, then closed it, then opened it again, finally managing to utter a sentence:

"So, Master Bai has both a domineering female CEO wife and a gentle, sweet little wife at the same time?"

Mrs. Qian didn't respond to the question, but she didn't deny it either.

"When Bai Jingchuan first returned to Yunjing, he didn't know what to do either."

She continued, "On one side is my wife, my childhood sweetheart."

On the other side was the woman who saved him when he was at his lowest point, stayed with him for several years, and even bore him two children.

He didn't want to let either side down; he wanted to take responsibility for both.

"He's dreaming!" Qian Yuewei blurted out.

This time, Madam Qian did not scold her, but instead nodded gently: "That's wishful thinking."

He probably thought there was some way to have the best of both worlds—something like running back and forth, or maintaining the status quo. But he forgot one thing.

"He forgot who Zhuo Shengnan is," Gu Yunjin added.

"That's right. Zhuo Shengnan only gave Bai Jingchuan one sentence—'In my life, I, Zhuo Shengnan, will never share anything with anyone, especially my husband.'"

Qian Yuewei held her breath: "And then?"

Mrs. Qian's expression suddenly became somewhat subtle; the corner of her mouth twitched slightly, as if she were suppressing a laugh or hesitating whether she should say what she was about to say.

"Then—then there's a widely circulated rumor in the industry, which hasn't been confirmed by the parties involved, but it's spread with great detail."

"What? What?" Qian Yuewei leaned forward at a 30-degree angle.

"It is said that Zhuo Shengnan beat up Master Bai."

"It's not the kind of slapping that you do, it's a real beating."

"After hitting her, I filed for divorce. It was a clean and decisive decision, leaving no room for negotiation."

Bai Jingchuan tried to stop him, but it was no use.

Old Master Bai slammed his fist on the table, but it was no use.

She said she wanted a divorce and did it right away. She moved out of the Bai family home the day after the paperwork was completed and bought new property in Yunjing.

Gu Yunjin looked past the rim of the cup and into the distance.

Zhuo Shengnan was talking to Madam Pei while holding a wine glass. This was the woman who had returned after her husband came back from the dead with another woman.

There was no crying, no forbearance, no compromise; instead, he beat the person up and left without looking back.

Not all women in this world have this kind of confidence.

She didn't wait to be chosen; she was the one who made the choice. That's true skill.

"After her divorce," Mrs. Qian's voice regained its composure.

"Old Master Bai said that Shengnan is no longer the daughter-in-law of the Bai family, but she will always be the daughter of the Bai family."

Later, when Zhuo Shengnan wanted to remarry, Grandpa Bai appeared as a member of her family.

"Moreover, the scale of the dowry was frighteningly large. Old Master Bai gave her a lot of dowry, and I heard that three percent of Bai's shares were directly transferred to her name."

There were also jewelry, antiques, and cash; no one knew the exact amount, but there was a saying in the circle—even when Old Master Bai married off his own daughter, he wasn't this generous.

The old man personally oversaw all the procedures.

"Oh my god..." Qian Yuewei murmured, her eyes even turning a little red.

"What kind of divine father-in-law is this? No, this isn't a father-in-law anymore, this is my own father!"

"Zhuo Shengnan herself did not disappoint the dowry."

Mrs. Qian's tone was respectful, "She is capable and has her own career."

After the divorce, he focused on his own business, engaging in manufacturing and investment, and his business empire expanded more and more.

Later, she married into a wealthy and well-known family in Yunjing City. Her husband respected her abilities, and the two have had a good marriage all these years.

In the business world of Yunjing, she is neither anyone's wife nor anyone's adopted daughter; she is simply Zhuo Shengnan, and those three names are her brand.

Qian Yuewei slumped in the chair, her face looking as if she had just been dragged along to run a marathon.

Excitement mixed with exhaustion, plus a kind of dazed feeling after being subjected to a dimensional reduction attack:

"So what kind of life script is this—orphaned at a young age, adopted, married to childhood sweetheart and having children."

The husband went missing and she single-handedly managed the household; the husband returned with amnesia and a new wife.

She beat him up, divorced him, and then lived like a true member of a wealthy family.

Her ex-father-in-law treated her like his own daughter, accompanying her to her dowry, and she remarried even better... What kind of wish-fulfillment novel is this?

Even online novel authors wouldn't dare write like this, they'd be criticized for giving the protagonist too much of a cheat code!

"Now you know why Pei Xinzhi was so attentive to her, right?"

Mrs. Qian rolled her eyes at her daughter.

"Zhuo Shengnan is a formidable figure. Behind her stands the Bai family, the business empire she built herself, and her formidable husband."

Throughout the entire circle of wealthy Chinese, who wouldn't respectfully address her as Mrs. Zhuo?