Ordinary Friends - Chapter 8

The last time I called Li Nie ‘Dad’ was when I was seven.

Back then, he had just divorced my mother. At the gate of the villa, I tugged at his sleeve, asking over and over, “Dad, Dad, why did Mom divorce you? Say something.”

He said nothing.

As a child, I didn’t understand. It wasn’t until I grew a little older that I learned about the grudges and entanglements between adults.

My father and Li Qingqing’s mother were childhood sweethearts. Li Qingqing’s mother looked down on my father for being poor and married someone else. Later, my father married my mother. My mother supported him from scratch, helping him build up his business bit by bit. After that, Li Qingqing’s mother, now divorced, reappeared in front of my father with Li Qingqing in tow.

At that time, Li Nie was young and proud, and he always held a grudge against his childhood sweetheart for her mercenary choice. The more he brooded, the harder it was to let go. My mother never spoke in detail about the past between the elders; she always maintained my father’s dignity in front of me.

She was a chic and dignified woman, decisive in divorce after being betrayed.

But after divorcing Li Nie, he didn’t marry Li Qingqing’s mother either. He just kept her around, mocking and ridiculing her for her poor judgment back then.

Li Qingqing’s original surname wasn’t Li, but Wang. Probably to please Li Nie, she changed her surname to Li at the age of eight.

She and her mother, who had usurped someone else’s place, were smug and floating on air. They didn’t know about me, but I knew about them.

I found out about all this when I was eight. I sneaked back to the villa behind my mother’s back and saw Li Nie celebrating Li Qingqing’s birthday.

He held ten-year-old Li Qingqing in his arms, her mother stood beside him, and all three had smiles on their faces, as if they were the real family.

After that, I never called Li Nie ‘Dad’ again, and rarely saw him.

Qin Zheng only knew that my parents were divorced, and that I took my mother’s surname, changing my name to Xiao Shiyue.

Later, after graduation, Li Nie wanted me to join his company. His exact words:

“All these years, I’ve had no other children, only you. Doesn’t your mother understand?”

“You’re my biological child. The business your mother and I built-if I don’t give it to you, who else would I give it to?”

“That aunt of yours has always wanted her daughter to join the company and learn, but I’ve blocked her every time. Shiyue, your father knows what’s what.”

My mother is a proud and aloof woman. When she divorced Li Nie, she took only what was rightfully hers, not a penny more. I’m not like her; what belongs to me, why should I give it up?

The more something annoys others, the happier I am.

So, together with Qin Zheng, I joined the company after graduation, starting from the very bottom of the core business department and working my way up bit by bit.

Li Nie knew about Qin Zheng, paid attention to him, praised him as young and promising, saying his future was limitless-only because I had mentioned him to Li Nie before.

My family relationships are complicated. I originally planned to explain everything to Qin Zheng when Li Nie made things public, but he surprised me first.

Li Nie looked at me, and for the first time, I saw fatigue and weariness on his face. He sighed and said, “It’s your father who let you down.”

I chuckled lightly. It’s just a man’s nature.

Suddenly, I remembered what Li Qingqing said to me in the break room when she tried to provoke me. She said Li Nie thought Qin Zheng was very much like his younger self.

I think the two of them are indeed quite alike-especially in their cold-heartedness and tendency to burn bridges.

Oh, and equally poor taste.

I returned to the company three days later. In those three days, even the most explosive news was enough for everyone to digest.

When I came back, everyone acted as usual, no one crowded around to ask questions. They just smiled a bit more warmly than before. All seasoned professionals, they knew exactly how to strike the right balance.

That was a relief for me, so I kept my demeanor as usual.

Only Bella was upset with me, complaining that she’d worried about me for so long, only to find out I was playing dumb.

In the end, I placated her with a seafood feast.

She snapped the claws off a lobster and asked me, “You’re the real heiress, so what is Li Qingqing?”

I didn’t hide anything from her. I briefly explained the situation, and she looked shocked: “Oh my god, there are people so shameless in this world, pretending to be the boss’s daughter to swindle and show off. That’s disgusting.”

“Shiyue, while you were away these past few days, lots of people came to gossip with me. Can I tell them about this? I really can’t stand Li Qingqing’s arrogant attitude.”

“If it were true, fine. But she’s just a cat swapped for the crown prince, I don’t know what she’s so smug about.”

I peeled a piece of lobster leg meat for her, smiled, and said casually, “It’s not a secret. If someone asks, just tell them.”

I didn’t underestimate Bella’s fighting power. By the end of the afternoon, the whole company knew the truth about Li Qingqing.