Ji Mingshu had the driver take her straight to the Junyi Group headquarters building. The scenery flew past outside the window, but she had no interest in admiring it. Whether her eyes were closed or open, many scenes from her marriage to Cen Sen kept replaying in her mind.
She had originally intended to notify Cen Sen first.
But when she opened WeChat, she remembered she had deleted Cen Sen as a friend, and there were no friend requests from him in the new requests section.
Of course there shouldn’t be any; she didn’t know why she had opened it with a hopeful attitude.
She thought seriously, sometimes there really are things that are destined, like: she and Cen Sen were destined to be incompatible.
She remembered when Cen Sen first moved into the compound as a child, she thought this older brother was really good-looking, so she took the rare initiative to show him kindness a few times, even sharing her favorite snacks with him. But he remained quiet and aloof, paying her little attention.
After repeatedly getting the cold shoulder, she lost her patience, and even at a young age, felt a bit of resentment born from unrequited affection, rallying the other kids in the compound to ostracize him.
However, Cen Sen was a year or two older than her and her group of peers, and he didn’t care about being isolated by these childish kids.
From elementary school through middle school and high school, Cen Sen was always two grades ahead of her. Wherever he went, he was the model student beyond reproach, praised by teachers, and the one giving speeches on stage eight out of ten times.
She found it annoying, growing increasingly disdainful and impatient with his template-like existence. Sometimes when they crossed paths at school, she would walk right past him without a glance, letting out a cold snort, or blowing a bubble with bubble gum and popping it loudly.
Cen Sen was even colder, not even looking at her, completely ignoring her existence.
So later, after they accidentally slept together and naturally got married, Cen Sen still treated her the same as when they were kids, finding fault with her everywhere.
It’s just that the adult world adds a layer of pretense; he would wrap himself in a gentle facade to keep her, a golden canary he didn’t like but was willing to sleep with.
—Usually joking with Gu Kaiyang that she was a golden canary, upon careful thought, it was surprisingly fitting.
On a weekend morning, the CBD of the capital was still bustling with people.
The half-month hotel inspection had just ended. After landing in the capital, he attended a meeting early in the morning. Cen Sen hadn’t even had breakfast yet, and as he walked to his office, he instructed his assistant to brew a cup of black coffee.
“What’s the situation, which media reported it?”
Back in his office, Cen Sen put on his glasses and continued reviewing the new hotel assessment materials in hand, casually asking about the earlier matter.
On the way back, Zhou Jiaheng had briefly summarized it in the car, but the upcoming meeting required his full attention, so he hadn’t been in the mood to listen further.
Zhou Jiaheng explained the whole story in detail, then paused slightly before adding, “During the meeting, Miss Zhang Baoshu and Mr. Zhang both called to apologize. Both sides said it was a misunderstanding and that the news would be taken down immediately.”
“Misunderstanding.” Cen Sen didn’t even shift his gaze, signing the document in the lower right corner as he calmly instructed, “Call Zhang Qi and tell him Junyi has decided to stop pursuing the western suburb project. If personal matters can affect partners, I find it hard to believe they maintain a proper attitude in their work.”
Zhou Jiaheng lowered his eyes. “Yes.”Cen Sen abruptly changed the subject, asking, "Where is my wife?"
But as if something occurred to him, he didn’t wait for an answer and continued on his own, "Never mind. Cancel or postpone tonight’s arrangements. Go retrieve the bracelet Mr. Xie sent last time."
Zhou Jiaheng responded with another "Yes." Seeing that Cen Sen had nothing further to add, he quietly withdrew from the office.
The office fell into silence. Cen Sen rubbed his temples, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes for half a minute to rest, sensing that a tough battle lay ahead tonight.
"Miss, may I ask—"
"Step aside."
Without even glancing at the building security, Ji Mingshu strode forward in her high heels, her demeanor icy and imposing.
The bodyguards, who usually remained invisible in Ji Mingshu’s presence, finally stepped forward to clarify her identity to the security personnel.
Ji Mingshu didn’t bother looking back or acknowledging them. She simply allowed them to clear the way, wearing sunglasses with her arms crossed in front of her, expressionless as she entered Cen Sen’s private elevator.
"Who is that woman? She’s stunning and so fierce—she looks like a celebrity."
"She took the private elevator to the executive office. She must be President Cen’s girlfriend."
"Isn’t President Cen married?"
"Then that’s his wife?"
The receptionists whispered among themselves, and the security personnel promptly confirmed their speculation.
Yes, indeed, she was President Cen’s wife.
In the few minutes it took Ji Mingshu to ride the elevator, news of Mrs. Cen’s grand arrival, storming straight into the executive office, spread like wildfire through the company’s various group chats, as if connected to a 5G network.
"The way the president’s wife barged in, it feels like she’s here to catch someone in the act."
"Catch someone in the act? Is President Cen involved with some beauty from his assistant’s office?"
"That can’t be. Every time he goes out, women keep their distance from him. It’s more likely he’s involved with Assistant Zhou."
"Woman, you’ve caught my attention. Here’s the pen—write the fanfiction, please and thank you."
Although some sensed Ji Mingshu’s "catching someone in the act" aura, the obscure news about the actress had been nipped in the bud long before her arrival, so no one connected the gossip to that particular star.
The company employees were all aware of her arrival, and Cen Sen was hardly blind or deaf to the situation. Moreover, her bodyguards accompanied her, and their clearance for her was a tacit approval from him.
By the time Ji Mingshu reached the sixty-eighth floor, the office doors were already wide open for her. Cen Sen’s imposing row of assistants stood up and lined up to welcome her.
Ji Mingshu remained expressionless, silently psyching herself up before striding directly into Cen Sen’s office without pausing for even half a step.
Cen Sen was seated at his desk, working, wearing a pair of light gold thin-rimmed glasses that gave him the air of a refined scoundrel.
Ji Mingshu stopped in front of his desk, mentally counting down, then flung the printed but unbound divorce papers at his head—
"Divorce."
She had rehearsed her tone several times on the way here, aiming for a blend of disdain and indifference, condescension and finality—a perfectly aloof delivery.
After speaking, she crossed her arms again, looking down at him with a haughty gaze.
"..."
Cen Sen closed his eyes, pressed the papers down, remained silent for three seconds, then flattened them on the desk. He didn’t look up, allowing a brief silence to hang in the air.
In truth, the moment he learned Ji Mingshu was heading to Junyi, he had prepared for this confrontation, even planning how to simplify the explanation and cut down on unnecessary talk.
But he had to admit—
He had never once imagined Ji Mingshu would bring up divorce.Since returning to the country, Ji Mingshu seemed to have been constantly surprising him, and this declaration of "divorce" was the most unexpected of all.
He removed his glasses, gently pinched the bridge of his nose, and then turned on the projection device behind Ji Mingshu.
"Look back."
Ji Mingshu instinctively glanced behind her.
Soon, footage from a dashcam appeared on the screen. Although the device hadn’t captured any faces, Ji Mingshu quickly connected it to the photos she had seen at the magazine office.
The audio from the dashcam was somewhat noisy and not very clear, but the office was quiet. As she listened carefully, she seemed to catch key phrases like "not as good as my wife" and "wash your face to sober up."
Just then, Zhou Jiaheng knocked on the door.
Cen Sen: "Come in."
Zhou Jiaheng walked in and, upon seeing Ji Mingshu, didn’t seem surprised. He nodded politely before turning to Cen Sen and reporting formally, "Mr. Cen, I’ve conveyed your message to Mr. Zhang, but he still wishes to speak with you directly."
"Put the call through."
Zhou Jiaheng acknowledged and placed a red velvet jewelry box on the desk. "This is Mrs. Ji’s bracelet."
With that, he quietly withdrew.
Soon, Zhang Qi’s call was connected to the office, and Cen Sen put it on speakerphone.
Then, Ji Mingshu listened as Zhang Qi, the free narrator, rambled on about the whole story. In Zhang Qi’s words, Cen Sen was a pure, untainted snow lotus from the Tianshan Mountains, unmoved by temptation and unswayed by beauty.
Cen Sen only occasionally responded with an "mm," while toying with the diamond bracelet in his hand. Once Ji Mingshu understood the situation, he hung up the phone directly.
"..."
Ji Mingshu stared intently at the bracelet in his hand.
She recognized it—it was a Van Cleef & Arpels piece auctioned at Christie’s earlier. The final price wasn’t outrageous, vaguely remembered to be over a million dollars, and she had quite liked it.
Wait, that didn’t seem to be the point right now.
She snapped back to attention.
Oh, so all the distress she’d felt since leaving the magazine office, reminiscing about the past, imagining the future, and nearly breaking down in tears over this scoundrel—it had all been a misunderstanding.
...How brilliant.
Her melancholic emotions vanished in an instant, replaced only by a faint sense of embarrassment over the absurd inner drama she had just performed.
"Still want a divorce?"
"..."
Silence was the golden canary’s response at this moment.
Cen Sen loosened his tie, looking at her calmly. "If I haven’t done well enough and you truly can’t bear it, insisting on a divorce, then I respect your opinion."
"But, Mingshu, perhaps I should remind you of the prenuptial agreement. After a divorce, you might not be able to continue collecting rare-skin Birkins, fly private jets to Milan for fashion shows, or casually bid on a 15-carat Sri Lankan Padparadscha sapphire ring without batting an eye..."
"Wait," Ji Mingshu was already sobering up. "I think... I can endure a little longer."
The faint embarrassment deepened slightly.
Ji Mingshu hadn’t expected him, who seemed so disconnected, to be so talkative—knowing she loved collecting Birkins and bidding on various gemstones and diamonds, and even offering a rather pretty bracelet as a bribe at this moment.
Of course, she was deeply moved and gladly accepted.Upon hearing Ji Mingshu's response, Cen Sen didn't know why, but a sudden sense of relief washed over him.
He kept a straight face, stood up, walked over to Ji Mingshu, lifted her wrist, and fastened the diamond bracelet around it.
A faint scent of firwood drifted over, and Ji Mingshu's ears flushed slightly red. She didn't know why, but aside from the awkwardness, a small, uncontrollable joy bubbled up inside her.
She tried to convince herself: It must be because she could continue to spend lavishly in the future. Yes, that was definitely it.
Suppressing the urge to let her lips curl into a smile, she cleared her throat and emphasized, "If you really cheat, I will definitely divorce you. This time, I'll let it slide and forgive you."
"Much obliged."
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