Me! A high-ranking official!

Zhou Qingyan pointed at Zhao Jianguo's nose, her voice trembling with extreme anger and humiliation: "Zhao Jianguo, don't dream! Let me tell you, once we shut them up with the marriage certificate, if they dare to publicly expose the investigation results, I will, as his legal wife, openly and honestly go to the hospital to get rid of him! I'll tell everyone it was an accident!"

"If they can't find any conclusive evidence and are just spreading rumors within a small circle, then I'll find a trustworthy place and secretly remove him!"

Zhou Qingyan stared intently into Zhao Jianguo's eyes, enunciating each word with absolute resolve: "In short, I absolutely cannot give birth to your child! Never!"

Looking at her eyes filled with utter disgust, Zhao Jianguo silently nodded and did not refute her further.

He turned his head and looked at the somewhat gray sky outside the window, a feeling of indescribable bitterness and self-mockery rising in his heart.

He was about to get married to the county party secretary, but there was no joy between them, only scheming, compromise, disgust, and the impending death of his life.

What the hell is this?!

He sat on the sofa, looking at Zhou Qingyan's resolute and disgusted expression, and felt a strange sense of depression. He smiled bitterly to himself, wondering if he was really that worthless? Did he not even deserve to have a child of his own?

However, when his gaze fell again on Zhou Qingyan's pale and slightly trembling face, the anger in his heart gradually dissipated. He knew that the pressure this young female county party secretary was under was unimaginable. In the treacherous arena of fame and fortune in officialdom, one wrong step leads to another. She had been forced into this point of no return by the mad dogs in that compound and the interests of her family.

He sighed, suppressing his complex emotions, stood up, and said, "Then... I'll go back and wait for your call? Let me know when you're going to do it."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Qingyan suddenly raised her head and glared at him fiercely.

In that instant when their eyes met, he was astonished to find that Zhou Qingyan's usually sharp and cold eyes were faintly moist, a kind of grievance and humiliation that had been forced into a desperate situation and had nowhere to be expressed.

This was the first time he had seen the vulnerability of an ordinary woman in this high-and-mighty, powerful woman. His heart softened inexplicably, and his tone softened as well: "I happened to bring my ID card with me today. These days, getting these documents done is just a matter of the ID card and the household registration book. Since we'll have to get them done sooner or later, if you have your documents with you too, how about... we go over now?"

Zhou Qingyan kept a cold face, forcibly suppressing the slight moisture in her eyes. She remained silent, grabbed her bag from the sofa, and walked straight to the door.

He touched his nose and quickly followed.

Arriving at Zhou Qingyan's private car outside Courtyard No. 3, he very consciously opened the driver's side door and got in. After Zhou Qingyan was settled in the passenger seat, he turned around and asked softly, "Which civil affairs bureau are we going to?"

"Let's find a place where nobody knows us!" Zhou Qingyan stared straight ahead, his voice as cold as ice.

He nodded, having already made up his mind. This county was definitely out of the question; Zhou Qingyan's face was too recognizable within the Linshui County system, and if he were recognized, it would immediately cause a sensation. If no one knew him, then he could only go to other cities or neighboring counties.

"Then let's go to Yong'an County." He stepped on the gas, and the car drove out of the county town, heading straight for the neighboring Yong'an County.

At 2 p.m., the Yong'an County Civil Affairs Bureau had just opened when the two of them walked in one after the other.

Throughout the entire certificate application process, Zhou Qingyan maintained a cold and unsmiling expression, exuding an air of unapproachability and businesslike seriousness, even more so than when inspecting a subordinate unit.

This completely baffled the woman at the service window. Holding the couple's documents, she suspiciously scrutinized their faces, especially Zhou Qingyan's expression, which seemed to suggest she was signing a contract of servitude. The woman frowned and lowered her voice, asking, "Young lady, is there something you're having trouble saying? Marriage is voluntary. If someone is forcing you, just say so now. The police station is right across the street!"

Seeing that the clerk seemed suspicious, Zhao Jianguo quickly stepped forward, smiling broadly as he explained, "Ma'am, you've misunderstood! My wife wasn't forced. She had facial paralysis; her facial nerves aren't very good, so she doesn't usually smile. I just thought she was so beautiful, so I figured facial paralysis is fine, she can just bear with it, right?"

Upon hearing this, the older sister looked more closely at Zhou Qingyan's exquisitely handsome yet icy face, and suddenly realized what she meant. She couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Oh, I see. That's a real pity. But young man, your wife is indeed beautiful; you must treat her well!"

Sitting next to him, Zhou Qingyan listened to Zhao Jianguo's rambling nonsense and got so angry that she stomped on his foot under the table. She then turned around and glared at Zhao Jianguo with a murderous look.

"Snap!"

The photo, taken against a red background, shows Zhou Qingyan with a cold expression and a murderous look in her eyes, while Zhao Jianguo beside her is all smiles.

Holding the two scorching red marriage certificates, he walked out of the Civil Affairs Bureau. Before he could even take a good look at them, Zhou Qingyan had already strode to the car, opened the door, and sat in the driver's seat.

"Hey, you..." Zhao Jianguo was about to get into the car.

"Bang!" Zhou Qingyan locked the car door, stepped on the gas, the car kicked up a cloud of dust, and quickly merged into the traffic, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

He stood blankly at the entrance of the Yong'an County Civil Affairs Bureau, holding a marriage certificate in his hand, his mouth full of dust.

"What kind of mess is this?!" He stared speechlessly at the taillights, a million curses running through his mind.

I'm a respectable man, and you didn't even have a ceremony for my wedding? You just got the marriage certificate and the bride dumped me on the street? Besides, I was divorced once before, and now I'm having a fake marriage with you. If I get divorced again later, and I ever find another wife, that will be my third marriage!

"I'm the complete victim, okay! I've already been so magnanimous in not holding a grudge, so why are you treating me like this?" he muttered indignantly.

But then she sighed, glanced down at Zhou Qingyan's photo on the marriage certificate, and thought, "Oh well, what can I do? He's the county party secretary, I can't afford to offend him. Besides... good-looking people are indeed more likely to be forgiven."

Looking at his own radiant smile and Zhou Qingyan's cold face in the photo, he shook his head self-deprecatingly. This marriage was in name only; he was just a tool used as a shield.

I checked my watch; it was only 2:30 PM.

Since he was already stuck here and had taken the day off from the town, he might as well make the best of it. Yong'an County was famous for its tourism economy in the whole city, and he was an official in the county's Culture and Tourism Bureau, so he might as well take this opportunity to visit and take a look.