LWGP - Chapter 37

Chapter 37: Can't Afford to Play Anymore?

Xiao Jue, who had played dirty and struck first, gave a deep look at the furious Yan Yanting, who was about to charge over.

"Mr. Yan, allow me to cut in line. After all, based on the chronological order of our romances, I have more right to sit in this chair—of course, if you weren't divorced and had a legally recognized status, I wouldn't be saying this."

Yan Yanting choked.

Then Xiao Jue pulled at the slightly crooked chair. Bang! It was slammed heavily onto the floor, almost making one think its legs would break.

Xiao Jue sat down, smiling as he looked at Wang Jiu.

"Six years ago, in Switzerland, why did Miss Wang leave without a word?"

In fact, when he had hit the man, Wang Jiu had seemed startled. Now, seeing Xiao Jue's aggressive yet feignedly friendly demeanor, she frowned. She put down her coffee and looked at him, seemingly conflicted, but soon replied tactfully, "I went to Switzerland for the skiing, but I didn't know how. I was grateful for Mr. Xiao's seven days of instruction. When the time was up and I had learned, of course I had to leave."

She was being tactful first. Xiao Jue seemed to understand, his expression turning grim, but he played along with her.

Xiao Jue: "Is that so? I thought Miss Wang had been tricked away by some other scumbag instructor. I was even stupid enough to go challenge someone to a duel and almost got beaten to death."

Wang Jiu looked slightly surprised. After a moment's thought, she asked, "Which one?"

Xiao Jue's face instantly darkened. "So there were many?"

Wang Jiu paused, lightly biting her lower lip. She said faintly, "In Mr. Xiao's eyes, am I that fickle and promiscuous?"

Xiao Jue looked away, not answering the hurtful question. He said, "After Miss Wang left, I always thought you had your reasons. I even investigated whether my family had found you and forced you…"

Wang Jiu: "Do you like watching Korean dramas?"

Xiao Jue: "When you're young, you're always a bit of an idiot. Thinking back now, it was purely that Miss Wang had gotten tired of it."

Wang Jiu frowned, gripping the cup with both hands and turning it twice. Her head was lowered, making it impossible to see her expression, but those further away could seemingly see a trace of sorrow on her pale profile. She said helplessly, "I remember you were the one who said we were just having fun."

This sentence was very faint, yet it carried a hint of sadness and confusion.

Xiao Jue's expression was ugly. The forcefulness of his original questioning was now tinged with a sense of grievance. He tugged at his tie. "That's right, it was me. But I was also the one who went to order wedding rings on the fifth day."

Startled for a moment, Wang Jiu quickly recovered her composure and said nothing. She lowered her head and took a sip of coffee, like a wandering ronin drinking wine to drown their sorrows.

The fingers holding the cup were so white, the sorrow in her pursed lips so obvious.

Was she lamenting a lifetime of missed opportunities?

When she put down the coffee, she said, "Sometimes, Korean dramas are based on real life."

Xiao Jue suddenly had an epiphany.

So his family really had found her! It must have been his grandfather, right? Because his special trip to order rings had exposed that he wasn't just playing around, but the family had already arranged a fiancée for him, so they secretly forced her away?

And that's why she had returned to the country in despair and hastily found someone to marry?

Not only did Xiao Jue think this, but everyone else also connected the dots.

A certain ex-husband's face was exceptionally ugly.

A substitute? He was a fucking substitute too?!!

He wanted to go over, but he was blocked.

Wang Peng and Xiao Li stood in front of him like door gods.

Although they felt their big brother was also a total scumbag—treating her like a toy to be tossed aside after playing with her at first, only to get attached himself—when she ran off, who could he blame?

Lao Wang was so pitiful!

Always running into scumbags like this!

Their conversation was quick, and its content was somewhat subtle. Most people needed a moment to process it. After a brief silence…

Seeing her like this, Xiao Jue could no longer be forceful. He could only ask through gritted teeth, "You got married right after returning to the country?"

Wang Jiu: "Not that fast. About half a year later, I guess."

Xiao Jue: "Some piece of trash you only knew for half a year? Shared weal and woe, supported each other, built everything from scratch, cheated, and divorced?"

This remark seemed to confirm his belief that Wang Jiu hadn't been two-timing him when they were together.

Wang Jiu: "Are you mocking me?"

Xiao Jue: "I looked for you after I returned to the country, only to find out you were using a fake name. I couldn't find you at all. But unfortunately for you, I ran into you today."

Wang Jiu: "So you are mocking me."

Xiao Jue suddenly felt this was all meaningless. She had grown up. She was softer and more reasonable than before, tactful in every way, but also more obscure and difficult to understand.

He could no longer be like that year when he went up to save her as she clumsily tried to ski and nearly fell, only to grasp her willow-like waist. She had been shy, struggling slightly, and even asked who he was when she thanked him.

Now, sitting so close, she had already been a wife, been hurt by a man. Beneath her gentle and calm demeanor was an unbreakable fortress.

So he had to be direct.

"I still have the rings. Want to give it another try? The kind where we register our marriage first."

Wang Jiu: "Are you willing to be like him?"

Xiao Jue looked at Yan Yanting, whom she was pointing at.

He thought she was afraid he would also betray her, so he said, "How about we talk basic insurance first? Whoever cheats, their whole family dies."

Xiao Qing and Xiao Li, who had been listening from the beginning and were still processing the massive amount of information, were suddenly hit with the "whole family curse." "…"

Bro, that's a bit much.

Wang Jiu sighed, "You don't understand what I mean. What I mean is…"

"If you knew what kind of trash she is, Brother Xiao, you would definitely not like her anymore!"

Seeing that Xiao Jue was also falling for Wang Jiu's act, Jian Ling couldn't take it anymore. She stood up and roared. Before anyone could react, she took out her phone from her bag, seemed to open some app, and played a recording.

It started with Yan Yanting's voice.

"Ah Jiu, I regret it."

Yan Yanting's face changed drastically. He snapped, "Jian Ling!"

Jian Ling protected her phone and turned the volume up to maximum.

"I want everyone to see your ugly faces!! Especially hers! She's nothing but a scumbag woman!"

Jian Ling felt that all the men in the world were blind to be played by a woman like this!

"Ah Jiu, I regret it."

"Weren't we talking about the Old Lady?"

"The matter between us, isn't it related to the Old Lady?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"After you went to Zeyang, the Old Lady summoned me."

"And?"

"She slapped me and told me to get lost."

"Does her hand hurt?"

"I never slept with Jian Ling."

"I know."

"You know? You knew and you still…"

"Isn't this what you wanted? You were the one who wanted a divorce, deliberately finding a silly little girl like her to make a scene. Once the Old Lady found out, we'd have to divorce even if we didn't want to. Besides, when a man divorces due to infidelity, it makes him seem like the dominant one in the relationship to outsiders. That's all you wanted."

"I don't understand what you mean."

"Do you remember Xiao Qing?"

"Her? I broke up with her long ago. All these years, you're the only one in my heart."

"Hm? I have no intention of bringing up historical emotional baggage with you. What I mean is, you've never really changed. You came from a humble background, smart and capable, but you've always understood one thing—a central figure among C-list people is just a marginal figure among B-listers, not to mention your ambition is for the A-list. This self-awareness, especially after the outside commentary when Xiao Qing chose to study abroad, made you understand the class gap even more clearly. But you weren't willing to let others see you as a pathetic loser who was abandoned, to become a laughingstock. So you needed people to understand two things. One, Xiao Qing's decisive choice wasn't because she didn't love you, but because of family pressure. That's why you had someone post photos of your tearful farewell at the airport on the school forums. Two, you needed to find a partner not much inferior to Xiao Qing to prove your appeal. So you found me, just after I returned to the country. At that time, in many people's eyes, well, it was like in a novel. She was probably the white moonlight, and I was the devoted and virtuous substitute."

"Ah Jiu?! I don't understand why you would think that. I really didn't…"

"The day I returned to the country, at the airport, I saw you meeting with the person who took the secret photos right after Xiao Qing's plane left."

Yan Yanting was silent for a moment, then he spoke again.

"…Then why did you agree to be with me later? Why were you even willing to marry me? I remember quite a few people were pursuing you back then."

"Probably for two reasons. One, I needed a normal marital relationship. Two, I also have normal physiological needs. And your performance was acceptable. Your face looks terrible. Are you angry?"

Yan Yanting, practically grinding his teeth: "Looking at it this way, you don't seem like a good woman either."

Physiological needs? What the hell are physiological needs?!!

And what the fuck does 'performance was acceptable' mean?!!

"Good or bad, what does it matter? Since we chose to get married, we should have done our research and calculated the outcome. Isn't that the most basic skill in your field of economics? I didn't mind you, so you shouldn't mind me. There was nothing wrong with a marriage that was superficial but beneficial to both of us. But you just had to make a fuss."

"What do you mean?"

"Lili, Lulu, Sisi."

"You knew."

"I don't care how many women you're involved with, nor do I care about love. What I need is the marriage itself, it has nothing to do with the person. But you insisted on testing me with one after another. I had to respond somehow."

"You knew it was a test, but what was the result of the test? That you didn't care at all!"

"I did care."

"What?"

"If I didn't care, do you think I would have been afraid of waking you up when that Lili texted at three in the morning asking you to pay her utility bill, and secretly gone to the bathroom to pay the three thousand for her?"

"When did this happen? I don't know."

"Of course you don't know, because these little friends you found all liked to text or call in the middle of the night. At first, they texted you. Later, as if possessed, they all started texting me. But I deleted all of yours, since it would affect our marital relationship."

"Those girls… I never touched any of them. I found them to put on an act. I thought they'd be easy to manage, that I could send them away with a little money. I didn't expect to cause you so much trouble."

"Of course they were easy to send away. Because privately, I spent more money than you did—buying them cars, houses, and jobs."

"???"

"So that's the main reason why they went from calling you over to sleep with them in the middle of the night, to later wanting me to go over and sleep with them."

The two spoke quite quickly in the conversation. At first listen, it sounded like an argument, except Wang Jiu was unilaterally calm and composed, her words gentle.

But every sentence was like a knife, shattering everyone's worldview.

Especially the last sentence. It truly lingered in the air, its demonic aura unending.

Dead silence. There was dead silence in the recording, probably because Yan Yanting had completely broken down at that moment.

Everyone else was breaking down too.

The image of the virtuous, gentle, long-suffering Mrs. Wang—the abandoned wife who was cheated on, divorced, and coerced—was instantly shattered.

The ex-boyfriend and the ex-husband were on the verge of suffocating.

Then they heard faint footsteps, and finally, what were presumably Wang Jiu's parting words.

"Admit it, Ah Ting. We were just playing a game of who could be the bigger scumbag. All this talk of love was just artistic paint you and I used to decorate things with romance and morality. You didn't want to lose, but in the end, I still won."

"But now you still want to pester me. Can't you afford to play anymore?"

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