Me! A high-ranking official!

"Snapped!"

The man suddenly flew into a rage, slamming his hand on the coffee table in front of him. He stood up and glared at Zhou Qingyan: "Qingyan! You're over thirty, not a three-year-old! Don't you understand the implications of this?!"

His voice echoed in the living room, filled with exasperated anger: "This isn't something you can just walk away from unscathed from now! Before, he was so devoted to you, and you ignored him. And now? You've caused such a huge mess, and someone has a fatal weakness against you!"

The man pointed at the ceiling, his voice deafening: "Do you know that Mom is currently at the most crucial stage of her promotion to vice-ministerial level! It's already incredibly difficult for women in high-ranking official positions; so many eyes are secretly watching, waiting to find fault. If your affair is exposed, it will be a huge scandal! All of Mom's decades of painstaking efforts will have been for nothing!"

He stared intently at Zhou Qingyan: "Once Mom falls, countless hands will reach out. This isn't just about you; it's about the life and death of the entire family. Do you understand?!"

Zhou Qingyan was so shocked by these words that her face turned pale. She bit her lip tightly, her brows furrowed in pain, and she couldn't utter a single word.

Standing at the door, Zhao Jianguo's mind was in turmoil, a storm raging within him! He stared in astonishment at the brother and sister, his mind racing to process the terrifying information revealed in the man's outburst of rage: "What's going on?!"

"What do you mean he used to be so infatuated with you?! The mastermind who's been lurking in the shadows, laying a trap for Zhou Qingyan, is actually someone who once pursued her passionately? He wanted to destroy her completely because he couldn't have her?!"

"And... what do you mean Mom is at a crucial stage in her promotion to vice-ministerial level?!"

He felt his throat go dry. Zhou Qingyan's mother was actually a terrifying figure, a regional official about to enter the vice-ministerial level?!

No wonder! No wonder the forces behind Du Yu dared to interfere in this matter! No wonder this mastermind dared to bypass the city and use provincial-level resources to retrieve the files!

All of this was not a small-scale county-level political struggle, but a breathtaking family and factional infighting that involved the provincial level and even higher! And he himself had inexplicably plunged into the very center of this terrifying vortex!

The air in the living room seemed to freeze, making it hard to breathe.

Zhou Qingyan pursed her lips tightly, her eyes churning with conflicting emotions, yet she remained silent for a long time.

Seeing his sister's reaction, the middle-aged man took a deep breath, softened his tone slightly, and slowly sat back down on the sofa, saying, "Actually, compared to the second option, I prefer the first one."

He looked at Zhou Qingyan with a deep gaze: "Going to get a marriage certificate with him is just a piece of paper, but this piece of paper can not only instantly solve our current fatal problem and turn the illegal into the legal, but it can also send a signal to the outside world, letting those who are watching our family see that the Zhou family is not one to curry favor with the powerful, and that our eldest daughter, even if she marries a poor country boy, will never accept being coerced into an arranged marriage!"

The man paused, then continued, "Moreover, you can explain it to outsiders like this: it was your own impulsive decision. You were afraid your family would object to the marriage because they were materialistic, so you secretly got engaged without telling them. This has nothing to do with your mother or the entire Zhou family. It's just a secret between the two of you."

"Because it's a secret, you don't need to make it public, you don't need to hold a wedding, and you don't even need to notify your relatives. Once this storm has completely subsided, the situation has stabilized, and the time is right, you can quietly get a divorce without anyone knowing."

Zhou Qingyan still bit her lip tightly, her face pale and bloodless, but she remained silent.

Standing to the side, Zhao Jianguo was secretly shocked upon hearing these words.

The idea of ​​marriage did flash through his mind for a moment when the affair was first exposed, but reason told him that it was simply a pipe dream, so he never dared to think about it again.

However, it now seems that in the face of absolute crisis, not only does the mysterious big shot behind Du Yu think so, but even Zhou Qingyan, his brother who holds a high position, believes that this is currently the only and most perfect way to resolve the deadlock.

A marriage certificate in name only can instantly turn all the minefields into a legal safe haven and silence all political enemies and gossip.

Moreover, this brother-in-law's political skills were indeed superb. He even came up with a pretext for the outside world: a private engagement to avoid family opposition. The script was perfect. This not only explained why there was no wedding and why Zhou Qingyan kept her pregnancy a secret, but also completely extricated her mother from this vortex.

"Qingyan." Seeing his sister's hesitation, the man's tone hardened again, urging her on, "There's no time to lose. They've already started. Once they unravel the problems in the file, we'll be doomed! For Mom's sake, for the family's sake, just bear with it. It's just a piece of paper!"

Zhou Qingyan's body trembled slightly. She closed her eyes, and something seemed to glisten at the corner of her eye.

When she opened her eyes again, all her struggles and weakness were forcibly suppressed, and her gaze regained its coldness and determination.

She gritted her teeth and said slowly, word by word, "I understand, brother. Don't worry, I won't be a burden to Mom."

The man's tense nerves finally relaxed, and he slowly nodded: "Since you've made the decision for the sake of the bigger picture, then get on with it."

After speaking, the man abruptly stood up, turned his head, and the slight warmth he had shown when facing his sister instantly turned into an extremely gloomy expression. His sharp eyes stared coldly at Zhao Jianguo, and he said slowly and condescendingly, "Kid, I hope you can always understand your place. This marriage is just a play. Don't have any improper thoughts about Qingyan or our family. After this matter has calmed down and we get divorced, I will give you a chance to move up the social ladder, or at least a sum of money you could never earn in your lifetime, as a reward for you."

The man's eyes turned extremely threatening: "But if you get too caught up in the role and have any inappropriate thoughts... we're all adults, and I don't need to elaborate on the consequences of simply disappearing without a trace!"

Zhao Jianguo glanced at Zhou Qingyan, who stood beside him with a pale face, looking like a puppet on a string. At that moment, his mind was also completely blank.

Are they getting married already?!

That aloof, decisive, and beautiful county party secretary who was practically ready to kill him just a few days ago is about to become his legal wife in name only?!

This feeling... it's so damn unreal, like a dream.