Qiao Ci saw that he did not want to acknowledge Zhou Batian, so she gently held his large hand and turned to Zhou Batian, saying, "Excuse me."
Then she took Zhou Ye to her room.
As soon as they entered, Zhou Ye hugged Qiao Ci tightly in his arms, his voice a little choked, "Wife, I don't want to recognize him. My mother didn't wait for him, and now that I've grown up, I don't need him anymore."
Qiao Ci gently patted his back, "Then don't."
Her wife's comfort worked instantly. Zhou Ye was only wronged for a short while before his emotions recovered significantly. He took Qiao Ci's hand, sat on the bed, and told Qiao Ci the past of his mother and Zhou Batian.
"My mother died when I was born, and only my grandmother raised me through hardship. When I grew up and went to school, I found my mother's diary and realized that I had a father."
"My mother was very beautiful when she was young and had even attended high school. She was the most promising girl in our village. Her diary recorded all her memories with a man during high school. She called that man Zhou."
"My mother and he were in the same class in high school. He sat behind my mother and always liked to pull her hair during class. Perhaps because he was handsome, they quickly fell for each other."
"The two of them, just like that, were together when they were in school and also after school. Later, she moved into his house, and they lived together without a name or status... Well, she called it dating."
"Later, she became pregnant, and Zhou told her they would not get married. His marriage was not up to him, but no matter who it was, it definitely wouldn't be someone with no background like her."
"She was truly foolish. She didn't want any compensation, promised to abort the child, then dropped out of school and secretly gave birth to me... Even more ironically, until her death, her diary dared not mention the man's full name, only telling my grandmother that my surname was Zhou."
Qiao Ci listened quietly.
"Was my mother quite foolish?" Zhou Ye looked up at Qiao Ci, the sarcasm at the corner of his mouth unable to hide the sadness in his eyes.
"Indeed, quite foolish," Qiao Ci nodded sincerely.
Zhou Ye asked curiously, "If it were you, what would you do?"
Qiao Ci shook her head, "There are no 'ifs.' I wouldn't be her, and you are not Zhou Tianba. We wouldn't be like them. We can control our own destiny."
The starlight in Zhou Ye's eyes slowly gathered, "Yes, we are different! I will never make you sad or disappointed. I will always love you and stay with you. Nothing but death can separate us."
"Mmm," Qiao Ci patted his head. Sweetheart, be happier.
The two stayed in the room quietly for a while before going downstairs.
Since the two went upstairs, Lu Ming had been distracted. He hadn't paid attention to his good friend's words.
Seeing them come down hand in hand, Lu Ming's expression was still not very good. Seeing that they were not accompanied by any important figures, his discomfort lessened.
He guessed that the two of them had come to ask a favor from the distinguished guests upstairs. He knew that Zhou Ye was currently in the army and perhaps wanted someone to pull some strings to get him a promotion.
However, judging by the situation, it seemed they had been rejected.
Before he could feel happy, Mr. and Mrs. Qiao, the owners of the mansion, walked directly to Qiao Ci. Mrs. Qiao smiled beautifully at Qiao Ci, as if they were very familiar with each other.
Lu Ming: ???
His most impossible assumption was gradually expanding.
Because Mr. Qiao, who had always been stern and unsmiling, actually reached out and patted Qiao Ci's shoulder. That fatherly smile made Lu Ming's heart beat faster and faster.
Didn't the Qiao family announce that their daughter had gone abroad for further studies?
How could Qiao Ci be their daughter?
Impossible, absolutely impossible!
However, the next second, Mrs. Qiao affectionately linked arms with Qiao Ci and walked into the crowd, introducing her to everyone, "This is our daughter, Qiao Ci. She has been keeping a low profile recently, and today I'm bringing her to meet everyone."
Then, she pointed to Zhou Ye beside her and introduced, "This is our son-in-law."
Still recovering from the doll-like beauty of Miss Qiao, everyone was hit by another bombshell and erupted in an uproar.
Many of those present knew that the Qiao family had a daughter who was very well protected and rarely appeared in public. They had been thinking of arranging a marriage alliance for their juniors with her. But as soon as she appeared, she was already married?
The most unacceptable one was Lu Ming.
His close friend also looked at him in disbelief and nudged him with his shoulder, "Brother Lu, what's going on? Your ex-girlfriend is actually Miss Qiao, and you've messed around with her..."
"Shut up!" Lu Ming knew what to say and what not to say, and quickly stopped him.
But it was too late.
Their voices were too loud and had already reached the ears of those around them.
Zhou Ye was furious upon hearing the vulgar words of the two.
Qiao Ci didn't let him step forward. This was the Qiao family's turf, and it was better for her parents to handle it.
"What did you just say? Messed around with what?" Father Qiao glared at Lu Ming and his friend.
"Uncle, Uncle Qiao..." His friend Feng Xian knew he had said the wrong thing. Facing the host's questioning, he was embarrassed and could only look to Lu Ming for help.
Lu Ming could not afford to offend the Qiao family. He forced himself to explain, "We misspoke just now, we apologize."
Father Qiao was not so easily fooled. He asked sharply, "Spreading rumors about my daughter's reputation, and an apology is enough? Feng Xian, tell me, what exactly happened? What does 'messed around' mean? If you don't explain clearly, I'll have a good talk with your father."
Feng Xian dared not hide anything and immediately blurted out everything, "When we saw Miss Qiao just now, Brother Lu said he used to date her. I asked him if he had slept with her, and he didn't say anything, which seemed to be an admission..."
Lu Ming couldn't admit this and retorted directly, "When did I admit that? Don't talk nonsense!"
Damn it, he would break off relations with this dog-like friend as soon as they got home.
Feng Xian dared not say anything more.
"I don't remember you having any relationship with my wife. Weren't you very close with Li Wushuang when you were in the countryside? You were fiddling with her feet and sucking on her 'little love hearts.'
Oh, and if I remember correctly, your brother Wen Zheng even slept with your girlfriend Li Wushuang and cuckolded you," Zhou Ye said sarcastically at Lu Ming, his words like venom, listing all of Lu Ming's past embarrassments.
Lu Ming's face turned red and his neck swelled. However, these were all true facts that anyone who wanted to could easily find out.
Qiao Ci also asked, "Lu Ming, when did I ever date you, hmm?"
Lu Ming's scalp tingled from the question, and he said dryly, "During the time we were in the countryside, you helped me with my work, and you would also give me some food and small gifts in return. I, I thought we were dating at the time."