Contract Marriage: The Tycoon's Pampered Wife-Chapter 129 - 122: Easily took out my second cousin-once-removed, that repressed old straight guy_3

Chapter 129: 122: Easily took out my second cousin-once-removed, that repressed old straight guy_3

In high-end stores, mistresses were the primary clientele; they had money to burn and didn’t care about spending it.

The saleslady, well-trained, showed no reaction, as if she hadn’t heard a thing.

Ning Qinghan was unhappy. Her sister, Ning Rongyue, had been dismissed from her position as Vice President by the board, so Ning Qinghan naturally couldn’t return to the company either. For the past few days, whenever she went out, everyone asked about her sister’s dismissal, causing her immense embarrassment.

Being called a mistress in front of her two friends, especially, made her furious. She stood up and rushed over to Lai Yang. "Stop slandering me!"

Lai Yang put her hands on her hips, her stance just as intimidating. "Am I wrong? Chen Qinghan, you know very well what you did in the past. There’s no need to pretend here. Four years ago, if you hadn’t taken advantage of Quan Xiangru when he was drunk at Grandfather He’s birthday banquet and climbed into his bed, do you think he would have gotten engaged to you?"

"If I were you, after doing something so shameful, I’d keep a low profile and avoid provoking others. But look at you, picking a fight every time you see me. Are you afraid no one will spread your shameless deeds around, is that it?"

Ning Qinghan was so angry her face turned pale, and all eyes on her seemed to fill with scorn. Losing her temper, she threw her purse at Lai Yang.

Lai Yang wasn’t about to let herself be hit, and the two quickly started scuffling.

...

"Ouch! It hurts so much!" After giving their statements and leaving the police station, Ning Guiwan took Lai Yang to a nearby hospital.

"So, you do know what pain feels like?" Seeing Lai Yang’s disheveled and pitiful state, Ning Guiwan felt both distressed and annoyed. "You looked so fierce when you were fighting; I thought you weren’t afraid of pain."

"That’s a heartless thing to say! Who do you think I was doing this for?" Lai Yang lifted her pretty face for the nurse to disinfect, glancing sideways at Ning Guiwan. "Wasn’t it for you? Every time I see that Ms. Chen, I remember how she stole your..."

Realizing that wasn’t the right thing to say—a rare moment of awareness for her—she skipped the name and grumbled, "...thinking about how much she hurt you, I just wanted to beat her into a pig’s head!"

Ning Guiwan looked at her, her eyes smiling. "Silly girl!"

Coming out of the emergency room, Lai Yang saw the man waiting for them at the bottom of the steps and immediately wilted, instinctively hiding behind Ning Guiwan. "Why is Second Cousin here?"

The cool night air and dim lighting accentuated the man’s tall, muscular physique, showcased by his neat black windbreaker and smart suit pants.

With his hands in his pockets, he casually turned to look over. His relaxed posture made him a striking, unignorable presence at the emergency room entrance.

"He called to invite us to dinner while you were giving your statement." Actually, he had invited Ning Guiwan to dinner. Ning Guiwan delivered this lie smoothly, her expression unchanging.

"So you told him I got into a fight?" Lai Yang sulked. "Why didn’t you cover for me a little?"

Ning Guiwan turned back and glanced at the scratches on her face. "With your face like this, how could I cover it up?"

Lai Yang huffed. "You two are always in cahoots! And here I am, risking my neck for you!"

Ning Guiwan: "..."

"Oof!" Lai Yang, putting on an act, clutched her stomach as if suddenly weak. She walked down the steps to Quan Yu. "My stomach suddenly hurts really badly. I can’t go to dinner with you. Second Cousin, you take Xiaowan with you."

Quan Yu’s gaze rested on Ning Guiwan’s face, but his words were for Lai Yang. "Let Zhan Yan take you."

Lai Yang nodded with a smile. "Okay, okay."

As she spoke, she suddenly pushed Ning Guiwan toward Quan Yu. "Have a nice date!"

Unprepared, Ning Guiwan stumbled into Quan Yu’s arms.

Quan Yu smoothly wrapped his arms around the girl’s soft waist. Even as Lai Yang walked away with Zhan Yan, he didn’t let go.

Pressed so closely together, Ning Guiwan suddenly found it hard to breathe. This man hadn’t been so bold in a long time. She couldn’t help but struggle slightly. "Let go of me."

Quan Yu’s gaze drifted past the top of Ning Guiwan’s head to some distant point, his eyes growing colder, deeper. But soon, his gaze returned to her. He lowered his head and whispered near her ear, "Didn’t you mention a reward? So, where is it?"

...

Not far away, Quan Xiangru stood stunned, his eyes wide with disbelief at what he was seeing.

The resentment that had filled Ning Qinghan moments ago vanished. She pulled out her phone, intending to capture the scene.

"What are you doing!" Veins bulged on Quan Xiangru’s temples. He knocked Ning Qinghan’s phone from her hand, his strength uncontrolled, causing her to cry out in pain.

Ning Qinghan picked up her phone. When she looked up, Quan Xiangru was still staring towards the emergency room entrance, his expression terrifyingly dark.

But the striking pair at the emergency room entrance was gone.

Ning Qinghan bit her lip, jealous of the place Ning Guiwan held in Quan Xiangru’s heart, yet at the same time, a twisted sense of satisfaction surged within her.

"She’s just that kind of promiscuous woman. Didn’t you know that four years ago? Getting involved with men when she was underage... You’re the only one who’d find a woman like that appealing, always thinking about her!"

Ning Qinghan’s face was also bruised. Quan Xiangru had received her call informing him she was at the police station. He had come to bail her out and was passing by this hospital, intending only to drop her off before leaving.

He hadn’t expected to witness such a scene.

Xiaowan... How could she be with that man... in such an intimate pose.

Hearing Ning Qinghan’s words, Quan Xiangru grew extremely irritable. He turned and looked at her coldly. "Before you slander others, take a good look at yourself!"

"..." Ning Qinghan’s face changed. Her heart ached so intensely she could barely breathe, and tears fell without warning. This was her most guarded secret, the only disgrace of her life, yet the man she deeply loved had just thrown it in her face so coldly and mockingly.

"What am I?" She looked at Quan Xiangru’s devastatingly handsome face and shrieked, "Tell me! What am I?"

But Quan Xiangru turned and walked away, not sparing her another glance.

Back then, at his grandfather’s birthday banquet, he had felt strange after drinking a glass of wine and realized he’d been drugged. He immediately left the scene and locked himself in an upstairs guest room.

But while he was disoriented and in excruciating, gnawing pain, a woman, her scent enveloping him, had slipped into his arms.

The next day, when he awoke, the irrevocable mistake had been made.

...

The Tianchi Group, nominally a subsidiary of the Ruiyin Group, didn’t host its own annual party.

Ruiyin’s annual party was three days before New Year’s Eve.

Although Quan Xiangru wasn’t employed at Ruiyin, he held three percent of its shares—a decision Elder Quan had made years ago to compensate He Yunqing.

The party, held at a hotel owned by Ruiyin, was naturally a grand and lively affair. Various lottery events with expensive prizes pushed the atmosphere to one high point after another.

Lai Yang herself didn’t win anything, but seeing others win still made her blood boil with excitement. After another round of cheers from the crowd, Lai Yang reached for Ning Guiwan’s hand, only to clutch at air.

Turning around, Lai Yang saw Ning Guiwan walking towards the exit. Assuming she was just going to the restroom, Lai Yang didn’t think much of it.

Ning Guiwan just wanted to get some fresh air.

It was simply too noisy inside.

Stepping onto the terrace, the cold winter night’s breeze felt surprisingly refreshing.

Below lay the dazzling neon nightscape of the bustling city, so enchanting it could easily immerse anyone in its glamorous allure. But how many dreamers’ souls were buried beneath this beauty?

Suddenly, warmth enveloped her shoulders. Startled, Ning Guiwan looked down to see a man’s overcoat draped around her.

"It’s really cold out here," came Quan Xiangru’s voice.

Ning Guiwan rested her hands on the black-painted railing. Her long red dress almost swept the floor, and her hair was styled in an updo, revealing a slender, graceful neck. Her makeup was light, save for her vividly red lips.

Even more dazzling than the fiery red of her dress.

She exuded a captivating, almost ethereal allure. Under the hazy lights, she looked like a bewitching sprite, irresistibly drawing one in.

Quan Xiangru looked at her. Only at that moment did he truly realize what this girl had transformed into.

Once, she was like a morning glory, blooming in the misty summer dawn—delicate, serene, and tranquil. Now, she was a rose armed with thorns, captivating all eyes yet warding off any approach.