Chapter 8

“Calm down. I was set up. I always thought I was so smart, but it turns out I was just a stupid pig.”

I had to find a way out of this predicament, but the other party had designed it too cleverly. It was normal for Qi Ruochen not to believe me.

The story of “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” is truly a tragedy. Today, I truly understood it.

“Ji Xiaxia, no matter who is in your heart, you’re back. I won’t allow you to think of anyone else, and I won’t allow you to leave me!”

After he finished speaking, he grabbed my hand and half-dragged me upstairs, then threw me into the room and locked the door with a click.

I had just escaped the wolf’s den and fallen into the tiger’s lair. I frantically wiped my tears, telling myself to stay calm.

I’ve read the book. I have a God’s-eye view. I will definitely find a way.

I lay on the bed and thought for a long time. Qi Ruochen no longer believed me. No matter how nicely I spoke, it was useless.

I was completely finished this time.

I slept for a long time. When I woke up, I heard women laughing.

I thought I would be locked up, but I was actually allowed to sit at the dining table for dinner.

Qi Ruochen was doing this on purpose, inviting Ji Xiaochu back from abroad to show off their affection to me.

“Ruochen, darling, you’ve lost weight. This lobster meat is very nourishing. I peeled it for you myself.”

Ji Xiaochu’s crystal nails must have been expensive. When she put the shrimp meat into Qi Ruochen’s mouth, I found it very glaring.

“My darling is so good. Kissy kissy.”

When Ji Xiaochu kissed Qi Ruochen on the cheek, our eyes met. He seemed to be showing off.

Qi Ruochen succeeded. The lobster meat in my mouth had no taste at all.

“Sister, can you pass me a tissue?”

Ji Xiaochu was now favored by Qi Ruochen, and she smiled at me, as if burying the hatchet.

I was like a bullied daughter-in-law, and I handed her a tissue.

“Stop eating and peel shrimp.”

This was said by Qi Ruochen. My heart ached, making it hard to breathe.

Ji Xiaochu was fine; I was merely jealous. But when Qi Ruochen spoke, it almost took half my life.

Chapter 36: Hell on Earth

When I read novels before, I could never immerse myself in such scenes. Today, I finally understood.

The author wasn’t deceiving anyone. This was truly hell on earth.

“Okay, you two enjoy your meal. I’ll serve you.”

Qi Ruochen was deliberately trying to torment me. If I went against him, I would probably suffer even more.

“He who knows the times is a wise man.” Qi Ruochen had already ruined Yan Qingshu’s business empire. I was no match for Qi Ruochen.

This was not an easy task. Qi Ruochen was too rich and bought so much. If he didn’t tell me to stop, I wouldn’t dare to.

My fingers were getting numb. Ji Xiaochu kept laughing and talking with Qi Ruochen, but he didn’t stop looking at me.

“That’s enough. You’re so clumsy. You can go down now.”

Qi Ruochen lost his patience and sent me away. The key was that I hadn’t eaten yet. If I had known, I should have eaten more of the lobster, even if it tasted like chewing wax.

I hadn’t gone far when I heard Ji Xiaochu say, “Are you feeling sorry for her?”

I retorted in my heart, “As if!”

I returned to my room on an empty stomach and lay down for a while, trying to force myself to sleep. However, I couldn’t stop thinking about their intimacy just now, and my jealousy made it impossible to sleep.

Ji Xiaochu suddenly called me to mop the floor. When I went down, I heard a maid report to me that she and Qi Ruochen had argued.

As expected, she took her anger out on me, saying I had to mop the entire villa late at night.

“Ji Xiaxia, do a good job. Don’t be ungrateful.”

I couldn’t possibly stay awake all night. Seeing him supervising me with his arms crossed, coupled with her stealing my man, I couldn’t suppress the anger in my heart.

“Fine, then I’ll mop you up too!”

My mop poked her leg. Ji Xiaochu’s usual composure was gone. She jumped up to avoid me.

The floor was wet and slippery. She fell straight on her backside. She cried out in pain, but I couldn’t help but laugh. I finally got some relief.

Fortunately, she didn’t fall too hard, and the wound from her previous suicide attempt didn’t reopen. However, an ambulance was still called to take her to the hospital.

Qi Ruochen didn’t go with her. Instead, he came to confront me.

“Ji Xiaxia, why are you so wild and willful?”

“Yes, that mop shouldn’t have been aimed at Ji Xiaochu. It should have been aimed at you!”

Seeing that I was arguing with him again, Qi Ruochen already had a grudge against me, and his temper flared up instantly.

“I know you hate me.”

“Yes, didn’t you just invite Ji Xiaochu over to put on a show? You wanted me to be jealous, but then you couldn’t bear it and angered Ji Xiaochu, causing you to argue!”

Seeing that I had exposed him, Qi Ruochen’s expression turned ugly.

“So what? I know you won’t be jealous. I consider myself smart, but I’ve done plenty of stupid things to you!”

“How could I not be jealous? I like you very much. Seeing you two together is like having a knife cut my heart.”

Qi Ruochen’s eyes turned red. “That’s not how you acted. Next time, please improve your acting, or you won’t be believable.”

“You just don’t believe me, so anything I say is nonsense! Since you don’t believe me, why don’t you just let me go? Why do we have to torment each other?!”

I couldn’t take it anymore. If he found another woman to provoke me, I might feel so bad that I’d want to jump off a building.

“You wish. I won’t let you go to be with him.”

“On what grounds do you restrict my freedom?”

“On the grounds that you are mine!”

Perhaps I was arguing too fiercely, and I suddenly couldn’t catch my breath. This had been happening for a while, and I also felt nauseous.

Chapter 37: Playing for Real

His large hand gripped my arm, about to repeat his old trick and drag me upstairs to lock me up.

I struggled desperately, kicking and hitting him. A wave of intense nausea, accompanied by dizzying vertigo, attacked me.

I didn’t faint, but I felt very uncomfortable. My physical condition worsened, and I could only hold onto him tightly.

“Call a doctor.”

Qi Ruochen laid me flat on the bed, his ferocity gone, his tone tinged with concern.

“Are you okay? Your face is paler than paper.”

I clenched my fists tightly, gritting my teeth and enduring the immense pain. “You don’t need to worry about me.”

He held me in his arms and gently patted my arm, wanting to say something but stopping himself.

“Get away!”

With the last of my strength, I tried to push him away. He was too detestable, and staying here would only hurt my heart.

“Okay, I’m leaving. The doctor will be here soon.”

After his presence completely disappeared, my heart felt sour, and I quietly started crying again.

The doctor performed many examinations on me. To feel better, I could only cooperate.

“Am I going to die?”

After the examination, I asked the doctor. My internal organs felt like they were being twisted together. It was definitely not a good illness.

“Madam, I will inform Mr. Qi.”

My status as Mrs. Qi was a mere formality. The doctor left, leaving me bewildered.

My stomach felt terrible, so I ran to the bathroom and vomited violently. Qi Ruochen came in.

“What exactly is wrong with me? The doctor examined me but didn’t tell me or prescribe any medicine. Can you give me some medicine?”

“You can’t take medicine.”

I felt like I was terminally ill, but he refused to treat me. It seemed he really wanted to kill me this time.

“Why!”

“You’re pregnant.”

I was struck by lightning. Did I transmigrate into a book? Wasn’t this a game? It felt like a dream, and I would soon return to reality.

Why was this happening? My pain was real, and now I was pregnant again!

“This, this is wrong. I never intended to get pregnant. How could this happen!”

My cousin had a terrible time during her pregnancy. She suffered from stomach problems, constipation, high blood pressure, and amniotic fluid embolism during childbirth.

“Rest assured and take care of your pregnancy.”

He looked like he wasn’t too happy either. This made me feel uncomfortable again.

“Why the long face? Do you think I wanted this child? It’s all your fault!”

“Let’s wait a few more days.”

I didn’t understand what he meant by waiting a few more days. The bombshell news of my pregnancy had completely stunned me. I couldn’t think about anything else.

Qi Ruochen left again. The more I thought about it, the worse I felt. Before, when I was faking my pregnancy, he was overjoyed. Now that it was real, he was unhappy.

I kept replaying Qi Ruochen’s words, “wait a few more days.” I couldn’t figure it out. But no matter what he was waiting for, I couldn’t wait.

I had to clear my name. I had to find evidence of Ji Xiaochu poisoning me. She wasn’t a professional criminal; she must have left some trace.

I started recalling that day when Qi Ruochen and I had dinner. If he was poisoned, I couldn’t have escaped unscathed.

Right! The red wine. I lied about being allergic to alcohol and didn’t drink it. The problem must have been with that bottle of wine.

Qi Ruochen was a wine lover. He had a wine cellar. I happened to pass by it before and knew where it was.

There were many wines in the cellar. I started trying to recall the original work. Right, the wine he liked was the “Romanee-Conti,” the wine that marked the beginning of Qi Ruochen and Ji Xiaochu’s relationship.

Chapter 38: Confession

In the wine cellar, I found all the Romanee-Conti and opened them all, a wasteful act.

I needed a guinea pig to test if any of them were poisoned, as Ji Xiaochu wouldn’t have poisoned just one bottle.

In my haste to investigate the truth, I could only experiment on myself. I took a small sip from each bottle and waited for the effects.

I drank too much and, feeling dizzy, passed out on the carpet in the wine cellar.

“Wake up.”

When I opened my eyes, I saw Qi Ruochen looking down at me.

“Sorry, I fell asleep.”

I tried to get up from the ground, but my calf went numb. I lost my balance and, reeking of alcohol, stumbled into his arms.

“Ji Xiaxia, don’t you know you’re pregnant? Pregnant women shouldn’t drink alcohol.”

“But I have to find out which bottle was poisoned. I need to prove my innocence. The real culprit must have left a clue.”

He didn’t hug me back, nor did he leave me lying on the ground. He just stood there stiffly.

I knew what he was thinking. Angrily, I pushed his chest, then managed to stand steadily again, looking him in the eye.

“You must be thinking that I’m the killer, so why are you pretending to investigate!”

“You’re drunk.”

He grabbed my hand and was about to lead me out of the wine cellar.

The alcohol had indeed given me some courage. I didn’t want to leave. This was the closest I had ever been to the truth. I didn’t want to give up.

“I’m not leaving. Qi Ruochen, please help me investigate, okay? The wine you drank had a problem. You can check who tampered with the wine cellar. You can also check the surveillance!”

His face was frosty, a stark contrast to my agitation.

“Stop messing around.”

“I’m not messing around. Why is it so hard for you to believe me!”

As a pregnant woman who had been drinking, my emotions were particularly sensitive. Before I finished speaking, tears were already dripping from my chin onto my neck.

He sighed, as if the woman before him was the most unreasonable woman in the world.

“Then do you believe me now?”

My eyelids felt heavy. I forced them open and looked up: “Okay, I believe you. I’ll believe whatever you say.”

“If you believe me, then come back to the wine cellar with me.”

“No! Help me investigate. I want you to see the truth with your own eyes!”

He, a man accustomed to calmness, always showed a helpless expression in front of me.

“Ji Xiaxia, why are you so stubborn?”

I decided to go all out. I pulled off the gauze that had been covering my ear, revealing the hideous scar to Qi Ruochen.

“Before I married you, I was also a pampered daughter of a wealthy family. Since meeting you, look at this scar. And I’m carrying your child now. I’ve become so pathetic. Just pity me, can you stop wrongly accusing me?!”

Accompanied by loud sobs, I poured out my grievances to Qi Ruochen without reservation.

This time, he was truly moved. He sighed and hugged me.

“Okay, I believe you this time too.”

Qi Ruochen hired a professional private investigator, who found the traitor within the Qi family, thus uncovering the mastermind, Ji Xiaochu.

The next time I saw Ji Xiaochu, she was looking down demurely. When she saw me, her eyes filled with tears.

“Sister, I’m sorry. I was foolish and was deceived by Yan Qingshu.”

I should have guessed they were colluding long ago. I looked at Qi Ruochen beside me calmly.

“This is intentional assault. Your apology should be directed to me. Call the police.”

Chapter 39: Getting the Box Lunch

Ji Xiaochu was terrified when she heard I was going to call the police and started crying hysterically. Seeing that pleading with me was useless, she immediately went to pester Qi Ruochen.

“You can leave after you apologize.”

Qi Ruochen showed no intention of pursuing the matter. I thought to myself, it seemed he was still showing some mercy to his white moonlight.

“Don’t go. You pretended to have heart disease and wanted to take my heart. Are you not going to apologize for that?”

I was too lazy to listen to her feigned apology. I just wanted Ji Xiaochu to admit outright that she had been lying from the beginning.

“I do have heart disease. I didn’t lie to you.”

“You’re afraid to admit it, aren’t you? If you admit it, your pitiful persona won’t hold up, and Qi Ruochen probably won’t show you any more mercy.”

We were arguing fiercely, but Qi Ruochen seemed indifferent.

“The truth doesn’t matter. Ji Xiaochu, neither of us should ever see each other again.”

Qi Ruochen’s expression didn’t look like he was joking. Although I’d made a total mess of things myself, at least I’d managed to change the original plot single-handedly, kicking Ji Xiaochu out of the game and sending her off to her “final curtain call.”

“Qi Ruochen, can you not get rid of me?”

“I’ll give you one minute. If you don’t leave, I’m calling the police.”

Ji Xiaochu was clearly reluctant to go; her eyes lingered on Qi Ruochen the entire time before she finally left.

“She’s gone, stop staring. Qi Ruochen, you finally did something right.”

He’d done a good job this time, and while I wanted to praise him, the words came out sounding all weird.

“Ji Xiaxia, I’m going on a business trip for a week.”

He was going to be gone for so long? My mood, which had just brightened up, instantly darkened again.

“Go then, you don’t need to report to me.”

I’m the type who can’t hide my feelings; as soon as I’m in a bad mood, my face just crumples up.

“Do you want to come along?”

He actually invited me? After this whole trust crisis, I guess we could say we’d made up.

“Why would I go with you on a work trip?”

In my heart, I was dying to go. Who likes being cooped up at home? Going on a business trip with Qi Ruochen meant good food, good drinks, and beautiful scenery to look at.

“Oh, then don’t go.”

I hate Qi Ruochen, that dense, straight-laced man! That night, I saw him packing his suitcase, neatly organizing all sorts of high-end items. Being mischievous, I secretly stuffed a doll inside.

“Do you need help?”

He caught me red-handed, so I had to pretend to tidy things up a bit.

“Isn’t this something I should be doing?”

I took on the job but couldn’t do it right—the shirts were folded into a chaotic mess. He started by supervising, then stepped in to guide me personally.

His fingers were long and defined; even just folding a shirt was a feast for the eyes. As he explained things with a serious expression, I looked at the beauty before me and felt that, both in terms of looks and refinement, I really wasn’t a match for him.

“Did you get it?”

I’d been staring at his lips for a while. It wasn’t until he called my name that I snapped back to reality; I hadn’t heard a single word he said.

“Oh, yeah, I got it.”

“Then you try.”

I made another mess of it. He raised his hand, and as I closed my eyes, he flicked my forehead.

“You’re such an idiot.”

When I opened my eyes, I was hit by the full force of his beautiful, smiling face. I’m only human, after all—sometimes, I get tempted.

I cupped his face and kissed his lips.

Qi Ruochen responded, too. He picked me up and pressed me onto the bed.

“I have to wake up early tomorrow.”

At the critical moment, he got up and left. I was left there, completely bewildered.

“Hey, Qi Ruochen, are you impotent or something?!”

I still finished packing his suitcase for him. He came by early to pick it up, and finally, I had some peace and quiet.

Chapter 40: Talking Love

We’d agreed on a seven-day trip, but by the third day, I was already missing him so much my eyes were practically turning green.

I fought the urge with everything I had, refusing to call him just to prove that I hadn’t “fallen” for him.

Luckily, on the fourth day, I was scheduled for a check-up—blood tests, urine tests, ultrasounds—I was poked and prodded for an entire afternoon.

I’m a pregnant woman, so these check-ups were normal; I didn’t suspect a thing.

I slept through the ride back and finally arrived home. When I walked through the door, I found the living room filled with roses.

“What’s going on?”

Amidst my confusion, Qi Ruochen appeared. He was holding an exquisite gift box, which he brought over to me.

Before I transmigrated into this book, I’d been a lifelong solo player. I’d never received flowers, especially not from a man handsome enough to make the gods jealous.

No woman could resist such romance. I cried like a loser; I just called his name, and then I was too choked up to say anything else.

“Qi Ruochen.”

I wasn’t curious about what expensive gift was in the box; I just wanted to rush over and hug him.

He hurriedly handed the box to a servant so he could open his arms and catch me in a steady embrace.