Contractual Love: Mistaken for True - Chapter 53 - She Left
After Papa Xu and Mom Xu left, Xu Xiaoyou started putting her plan into action. Recently, Xia Chen had been coming home early every day, and Xu Xiaoyou didn’t dare to make any big moves for fear that Xia Chen would find out and stop her from leaving. She didn’t want to leave, but she couldn’t let the Xia Family end.
In December, Xia Chen was scheduled to go on a business trip, and Xu Xiaoyou felt that the opportunity had finally come. As soon as Xia Chen left, she would leave the city.
The day before Xia Chen’s business trip, Xu Xiaoyou made a lot of dishes for him to enjoy when he got home. Xia Chen returned early that day, as there weren’t many tasks at the company recently. Chen Zihan was now working at the company, so Xia Chen didn’t need to handle everything himself, giving him more time to spend with Xu Xiaoyou.
“Darling, what delicious food did you make today?” Xia Chen exclaimed as he stepped through the door, smelling the aroma of the dishes.
“It’s all your favorite dishes,” Xu Xiaoyou replied, poking her head out.
Xia Chen put down what he was carrying and went to help Xu Xiaoyou in the kitchen, but Xu Xiaoyou pushed him out, saying, “You don’t need to help here. Just go rest. I’ll call you when the dishes are ready.”
Reluctantly, Xia Chen left the kitchen. He genuinely wanted to help Xu Xiaoyou, but he didn’t dare to upset her; after all, that would mean no dinner.
“Okay, okay…” Xu Xiaoyou brought out the last dish. “Ah Xia, it’s time to eat.”
Xia Chen hurried over and took a bite of Xu Xiaoyou’s cooking. “So delicious, really tasty!”
“Then eat more,” Xu Xiaoyou said with a smile. This would be the last time she cooked for him; there wouldn’t be another chance.
The next morning, Xia Chen left home early, while Xu Xiaoyou was still deep in sleep. However, once Xia Chen was gone, Xu Xiaoyou woke up. She had actually not slept at all, having spent the night watching him. She recalled all the moments they had shared over the past year and a half. As she prepared to leave, her heart was heavy with reluctance.
Not long after Xia Chen left, Xu Xiaoyou picked up her packed belongings and left the house. She bid farewell to Xia Chen, hoping he could find happiness in the future.
Xia Chen was away for a week on this trip. He called Xu Xiaoyou several times during that time, but no one picked up. Eventually, her phone was turned off. Feeling that something was off, Xia Chen called Mom Xia, who informed him that Xu Xiaoyou hadn’t returned to the Xia Family in days. Hearing this only increased Xia Chen’s worry that something might have happened to Xu Xiaoyou, so he handed over the meeting responsibilities to Yilin and returned early to City S.
Upon opening the door, Xia Chen found no sign of Xu Xiaoyou. He called Wang Jie, who informed him that Xu Xiaoyou had resigned a few days ago. Coincidentally, she had quit on the very day Xia Chen left. Why? Why did Xiaoyou resign without telling him?
Returning home, Xia Chen surveyed everything around him in the house. Where did you go, Xiaoyou? Why did you leave without a word?
“Son, what happened?” Mom Xia arrived at Xia Chen’s home, noticing the layer of dust that hinted Xiaoyou hadn’t been home for days. Why hadn’t she come back? What could have happened?
“Mom, I don’t know either. Xiaoyou was perfectly fine when I left. Why does it look like this now that I’m back?” Xia Chen closed his eyes, struggling to comprehend the situation.
“Could it be that she found out she can’t get pregnant and is hiding away because of it?” Mom Xia suggested, recalling how Xia Chen had mentioned that Murong Qing knew about Xu Xiaoyou’s condition. Could she have told Xu Xiaoyou?
“Are you saying… that Murong Qing told Xiaoyou about this, and that’s why she left?” Xia Chen asked.
“Yeah.” Mom Xia nodded. “You know our family is small and fragile. If Xiaoyou knows she can’t have children, she must feel guilty about it, thinking it would be better for you to leave so you can find someone else.”
“No…” Xia Chen shouted vehemently. “I don’t want anyone but her.”
“The most important thing right now is to find Xu Xiaoyou. We can discuss everything else once we locate her,” Mom Xia said as she picked up her phone to start making calls.
The next morning, Xia Chen was awoken by the doorbell. He hadn’t slept all night and had finally dozed off around dawn. Looking at the time, he saw it was just past seven. Who could it be, ringing the doorbell so early?
Opening the door, he found a delivery person from the courier company.
“Is this Mr. Xia?” the delivery person asked. “I have a package for you. Please sign here.”
After signing for the package, Xia Chen took it, noticing it was from a law firm. What was this about?
Upon opening the contents, Xia Chen felt an urge to tear the document apart. It was a divorce agreement that Xu Xiaoyou had commissioned a lawyer to prepare. Rubbing his temples, he couldn’t believe Xu Xiaoyou, who he thought was not very clever, had the foresight to authorize such legal documentation. The timestamp showed it had been prepared two weeks ago. She had clearly planned this all along.
Half a month ago, a fragment of memory flashed through Xia Chen’s mind. Murong Qing had come to see him and brought up Xu Xiaoyou. This meant that Murong Qing had also spoken to Xiaoyou back then, which indicated that Xiaoyou knew about her inability to conceive at that time. For the past two weeks, she had been pretending that nothing was wrong, patiently waiting for the opportunity to leave him. It was no wonder that she had been so passionate and proactive that night.
Xia Chen dialed the number he found on the document. “Is this Mr. Li? This is Xia Chen. I’d like to discuss something with you.”
“Miss Xu contacted me about a month ago to arrange this divorce agreement,” Mr. Li replied, wiping sweat from his forehead. He had just graduated and this was his first case, but it involved a significant figure.
“Why didn’t you inform me at that time?” Xia Chen frowned, feeling a strong urge to punch this man.
“According to marriage law, one can file for divorce unilaterally,” Mr. Li said nervously. If he mishandled this situation, it could end his legal career before it even began.
“You…” Xia Chen was at a loss for words, irritated at this lawyer who only spoke in legal jargon. Even if it was a unilateral filing, the other party should have been informed.
“At the time, Miss Xu mentioned she was only considering divorce and wasn’t sure. She said if she hadn’t come to collect the agreement in a month, I should send it to you. A few days ago, she called and asked me to send the agreement to you. I thought at that point you two had already reached an agreement,” Mr. Li said, continuously wiping the sweat from his brow. He was well aware of how formidable Xia Chen’s personal lawyer was, and if Mr. Xia took out his anger on him, he likely wouldn’t see another day.
“You mean she called you a few days ago?” Xia Chen asked. “What day was that, and what was the phone number?”
“It was on Monday, and this is the number she called from,” Mr. Li replied honestly.
“Monday-the day after she left. Xu Xiaoyou, how could you do this?” Xia Chen muttered to himself.
“Mr. Xia, I can try to contact Miss Xu and bring her back. You can have a good talk, can’t you?” Mr. Li suggested, hoping to salvage the situation.
“Do as you wish,” Xia Chen said dismissively before leaving.
After hearing the news, Jingjing was shocked to learn that Xiaoyou couldn’t conceive, and it was caused by Madam Shen’s influence. Now, she had to be extra cautious with her own pregnancy; if Shen Mobai had to go on a business trip, there was a real risk that Madam Shen might come after her, trying to force her to terminate her child.
Shen Mobai never expected that his mother would do something like this. He confronted Madam Shen, but she denied everything. Besides, most of the people involved in that incident had either died or left. She didn’t believe that Xia Chen and the others could find any evidence to accuse her.
Papa Xu and Mom Xu were both shocked when they learned about the situation. They recalled that when Xu Xiaoyou had been kidnapped, she had never considered running away from home. Now, she was willing to divorce Xia Chen for the sake of a child. Did she truly believe that the child was more important than herself?
Xia Chen called Murong Qing to ask her to meet and discuss what she had said to Xu Xiaoyou.
“Honestly, we didn’t talk about much,” Murong Qing replied. “I simply told her the truth. I didn’t expect her to lose faith in you and choose to leave.”
Murong Qing hadn’t anticipated Xu Xiaoyou’s departure. She thought that since both of them were aware of the situation and Xia Chen had stated he wouldn’t abandon Xu Xiaoyou because of a child, there would be no chance for her to win him back. She had decided to leave City S and start anew. Now, hearing that Xu Xiaoyou had left, could it be that fate was giving her another opportunity?
“Why did you tell her? Why?” Xia Chen demanded.
“She has the right to know the truth. Do you want to hide it from her for the rest of her life? Do you know that when I ran into her, she had just come out of the pharmacy? She was buying a pregnancy test. If she keeps finding out she isn’t pregnant, she would definitely go to the hospital for a checkup. At that point, she would learn the truth anyway.”
“Regardless, you shouldn’t have told her,” Xia Chen frowned. “Murong Qing, ever since you said you left because you were misunderstood, I have felt guilty and wanted to make it up to you. But what you’re doing now is just disappointing me further.”
“Ah Xia,” Murong Qing took hold of Xia Chen’s hand. “Have you considered that if Xu Xiaoyou left without telling you about this situation, it means she doesn’t believe in you at all?”
“This isn’t your concern,” Xia Chen pulled his hand away.
“But…”
“No buts,” Xia Chen interrupted. “No matter how Xu Xiaoyou feels about me, it’s not your business. Murong Qing, remember that I won’t allow you to interfere in this matter.”
“Ah Xia, why are you being so heartless? You’re not even willing to give me one chance?” Murong Qing felt a strong sense of unfairness. What did Xu Xiaoyou have that made everyone like her? Why did she deserve it?
“I’m sorry.” Xia Chen stood up. “Forget about me.”
After Xia Chen left, Murong Qing sat alone in the café. Five years had passed. She had thought that this time she could clear up the misunderstandings, and they could be together again. But she hadn’t expected that she was a year late and that everything had changed. She formerly believed that Xia Chen’s heart was only for her; that had changed too. Murong Qing thought, if it’s like this, what am I still doing here?