There was no photo on the marriage certificate only the names of the man and woman. Song Qiaoan gently traced Fu Chen’s name with her fingertip and let out a deep sigh.
Fortunately, she wasn’t alone anymore. There was a child in her belly.
Song Qiaoan placed her hand over her lower abdomen, and a faint light flickered in her eyes. For the sake of the child, she had to be brave this time.
She would find a father for her child!
She would meet him and speak things through clearly. If the man didn’t accept her, then she could always come back.
Of course, Song Qiaoan still hoped that, for the child’s sake, he might forgive her.
At the moment, her lower abdomen was flat, with no sign of pregnancy but in a few months, it wouldn’t be possible to hide it anymore. She had to act quickly and deal with Song Jianren’s family and Wang Shichang before going to the countryside.
After making up her mind, Song Qiaoan put away the marriage certificate and got up to leave.
She was going to her workplace to meet a newly transferred leader.
A few days ago, Song Jianren had made her take a long leave so it wouldn’t interfere with her blind date.
They didn’t want to see Song Qiaoan excel at work they just wanted her to get married as soon as possible and hand over her job to Song Weiwei.
When she arrived at the workplace, she didn’t expect that the new leader would be the same woman she had seen at the bank that morning.
“Hello everyone, my name is Zhang Qing. I’ve just transferred here as the head of the Finance Department. I’ll be working with all of you from now on. Please take good care of me!”
Zhang Qing wore a proper smile, dressed in a neat cadre outfit simple, capable, graceful, and approachable.
The employees applauded, and Song Qiaoan joined in.
She then recalled how, at the bank earlier that day, Song Weiwei had looked at this woman with such a strange, guilty expression.
“What are you thinking about, An’an? Why did you come to work today?” Xiao Man came over, draping an arm around her neck.
Song Qiaoan smiled lightly and asked, “Our new female leader looks really young and easy to get along with. By the way, does she have a partner?”
“What, are you planning to play matchmaker for her?”
Xiao Man grinned mischievously, then leaned in with a gossiping tone. “Give up she has a fiancé. I think his name is Zhang Hao.”
Zhang Hao…
Song Qiaoan murmured to herself. So that man’s name was Zhang Hao. It sounded so familiar like she had heard it somewhere before.
Seeing her lost in thought, Xiao Man interrupted, “You still haven’t answered me. Why did you come today? Aren’t you going on blind dates anymore?”
“I’ll go tomorrow. Today I went with my stepmother to withdraw my dowry. I asked for 20,000 and really squeezed them hard.”
Song Qiaoan blinked at her. Xiao Man had a simple personality she liked the girl and didn’t bother hiding things when she spoke.
But instead of being happy for her, Xiao Man looked troubled and worried. “An’an, are you really going to marry Wang Shichang?”
She instinctively felt Wang Shichang wasn’t a good match, but since Song Qiaoan hadn’t objected, she didn’t feel comfortable saying too much.
“I don’t mean anything else I’m just worried about you. You’re so capable. You can’t let them push you around just because your family background is a bit… you know…”
The current situation was tense, and inspections were strict. Zhou Xiaoman knew Song Qiaoan’s family situation well precisely because she knew, she was worried.
If Song Qiaoan were marrying someone she loved, she wouldn’t interfere at all.
Seeing the genuine concern in the girl’s eyes, Song Qiaoan patted her head and reassured her:
“Don’t worry. I won’t wrong myself, and I won’t marry Wang Shichang.”
“Really?” Zhou Xiaoman was half-convinced.
“Mm. But I can’t fall out with them just yet. I have my own plan. You have to keep this a secret.”
Xiao Man nodded vigorously, feeling relieved. She also had the sense that Song Qiaoan seemed different from before.
She couldn’t quite say how maybe her eyes looked brighter.
When Song Qiaoan returned home, her stepbrother Song Jiabao tossed his army-green shoulder bag onto a chair and called out for their mother.
“Mom, the teacher said we need to pay for books. The school is buying them uniformly.”
“Why buy books again? Didn’t you just get some last week?” Zhang Meilan asked casually.
Seeing his mother’s doubt, Song Jiabao immediately grew irritated. “They’re for college entrance exam review! You wouldn’t understand even if I told you. The exam is in a month if you’re not worried, I am! Everyone else is buying them if I don’t and fall behind, what if I don’t get into university?!”
“Don’t be angry. I was just asking. How much is it?” Zhang Meilan stood up to get her wallet.
“Ten yuan.”
“Why so expensive?”
He threw down his chopsticks. “Then forget it! I don’t even want them anymore. If I don’t get into university, don’t blame me!”
“No, no, I spoke out of turn. My son is so hardworking how could I not be happy?” Zhang Meilan said eagerly, immediately handing him ten yuan.
Song Qiaoan, who had been quietly eating, paused slightly at their conversation.
In her previous life, Song Jiabao’s scores weren’t even enough to get into a junior college. Later, when Zhang Meilan learned that Song Qiaoan had good grades, she begged her to take the exam in his place.
When she refused, Zhang Meilan actually knelt in front of the whole family.
Her father flew into a rage and said that if she didn’t go, he would throw her out of the house. With no other choice, she went and took the exam for Song Jiabao, helping him get into the best university in the country.
Thinking of this, Song Qiaoan’s gaze darkened. It was probably only a matter of time before Song Jiabao’s poor grades were exposed Song Jianren and Zhang Meilan might come looking for her any day.
But this time, she would never repeat the same mistake and let herself be used by this family.
Seeing Song Qiaoan lowering her head and eating plain rice, Zhang Meilan quickly pushed the plate forward, picking up the few pieces of meat and putting them into her son’s bowl.
Yet she said aloud, “Qiao’an, eat more too. You’re going to meet Secretary Wang’s son tomorrow you need to look lively. They said he likes women with fuller figures!”
Having some flesh made one more resistant to beatings even being stabbed twice wouldn’t kill easily. That was what Wang Shichang had said himself in her previous life while holding a knife.
Thinking back on those scenes, Song Qiaoan’s face turned pale. Her hands trembled so badly she couldn’t even hold her chopsticks. “I’m full.”
With that, she could no longer sit still. She ran back to her room. The thought of meeting that pervert tomorrow made her feel sick.
After calming down for a while, Song Qiaoan took out the ring from the drawer and examined it carefully.
In her previous life, Song Weiwei had used this to open a spatial dimension, and from then on her life had been smooth and glorious.
She put on the ring and fiddled with it. Suddenly, the sharp edge scratched her skin, breaking it.
A few drops of blood seeped into the ring.
In an instant, a bright white barrier appeared above the ring. Looking closely, she could vaguely see a small villa and farmland inside.
She reached out and gently touched it and in the blink of an eye, she appeared beside the fields.
She could actually enter the space?!
In the pond, a spiritual spring bubbled, mist rising from it. Nearby was an enclosed area, likely for raising livestock, and several neatly arranged plots of land covered in rich black soil.
Such fertile soil couldn’t go to waste she would need to buy seeds and plant something soon.
She scooped up some of the spring water with her hands and took a sip. It was sweet and refreshing. The fatigue of the entire day vanished instantly, and her body felt light.
So it really was a spiritual spring its effects were immediate.
Suddenly, her lower abdomen moved slightly.