Chapter 11

“Yao, we didn’t really get a chance to talk last time.”

Meeting again, Ms. Zheng sat across from me.

Her demeanor was elegant and calm, a stark contrast to the hysterical figure she was eight years ago.

“These years must have been hard on you.”

Ms. Zheng knew better than anyone the cruelty she had once inflicted.

She had tossed a burden, unbearable even to herself, onto the girl before her-

A girl she had supported for over a decade, treated like a bestie, who joined the Jiang Group after graduation with fervor, ready to repay her kindness.

“I know Ye can be a real jerk.”

Ms. Zheng’s words made me shiver with surprise.

She knew?

“When he was seven, the engagement between his father and me fell apart. At ten, I stubbornly took him abroad, starting a long and exhausting divorce battle.”

“Those two years drained me, leaving me no energy to care for him.”

“He suffered a lot, got into fights with local teens, and nearly fell into the worst kinds of drugs…”

“He was like a little hedgehog, bristling at everyone. And you, Yao, the time and effort you spent on him is something I could never match, not even a fraction.”

“So he relies on you immensely, sabotaging your blind dates, I suppose, because he can’t bear to see anyone else take you away.”

No, she doesn’t know.

Ms. Zheng hasn’t discovered Jiang Ye’s most outrageous thoughts, nor the twisted and distorted relationship between us.

She, like the old me, only sees the surface.

After a lengthy explanation, Ms. Zheng finally got to the point.

“This time, I’ve reconnected with Ye’s father.”

“Rest assured, he’s agreed to find the most suitable fiancée for Ye.”

“Once he’s settled down, Yao, you’ll be completely free.”

Completely,

free,

will I be?