In the living room on the first floor of the Qu Family villa, a man with graying hair sat upright on a leather sofa. He was dressed in a sharp suit, his posture straight and steady.
Though wrinkles had already crept across his once handsome face and his skin no longer held the vitality of youth, the dignified and imposing aura around him had never diminished.
This man was Qu Jing, the patriarch of the Qu Family, one of the four great families of the Magic Capital.
On ordinary days, he dominated the business world. No matter how fierce the storm, he would never even furrow his brows. However, today, he was completely different. His face was filled with worry. In the short time he had been sitting there drinking tea, the maid beside him had already seen him sigh several times.
And the reason for his abnormal state… there was only one.
“Sigh… that girl Mengjun… of all people, she just had to get involved with that scoundrel from the Wei Family. I really can’t understand what she’s thinking. That kid chased her for seven or eight years before, and she never showed the slightest interest.”
As he spoke, Qu Jing drained the cup of hot tea in one gulp, set it back on the coffee table, and raised his hand to signal the maid to refill it.
It was practically like he was drowning his sorrows in alcohol.
If someone didn’t know better, they might think he was drinking wine instead of tea.
Last night, the person who entered Qu Mengjun’s bridal chamber was not Lin Dineng, but Wei Yan. Qu Jing had known about this long ago.
After all, with the Qu Family’s capabilities, it was impossible for Wei Yan to pull off such a switch so easily.
He had simply chosen to let it happen.
However, “letting it happen” was not entirely accurate. It wasn’t that he truly didn’t want to intervene or that he was willing to marry off his only granddaughter to Wei Yan.
The truth was… he simply couldn’t interfere.
“Sigh…”
His voice was filled with helplessness.
Everything had changed starting from one night some time ago.
That night, for reasons unknown, Qu Mengjun suddenly hugged a pillow and began crying in the middle of the night.
Thinking something terrible had happened, Qu Jing rushed to her room in panic. Yet when he asked, he heard something shocking from her mouth.
She said she didn’t want to marry Lin Dineng. The only person she liked was Wei Yan. If she couldn’t marry him, she would rather die.
Qu Jing’s first reaction, of course, was to refuse.
After all, Lin Dineng marrying into the Qu Family and marrying Qu Mengjun had been decided long ago. The wedding invitations had already been sent out a month earlier, and by then, almost everyone in the Magic Capital would attend.
How could such a major matter be changed just like that?
However, simply because Qu Jing had said “no” that night, the next time grandfather and granddaughter met was by the pond in the courtyard the following day.
Qu Mengjun had jumped into the pond that very night. If a passing maid hadn’t discovered her in time, he would have lost his granddaughter forever.
Now, she was the only remaining bloodline of the Qu Family.
Qu Jing had watched her grow up step by step.
He loved this only granddaughter dearly. His wish for her to marry Lin Dineng… or rather, for Lin Dineng to marry into the family, was simply because he didn’t want her to leave home.
But things had already come to this point.
Even though he disliked Wei Yan, even though this matter would severely damage the Qu Family’s reputation if it spread, he had no choice but to agree.
“It’s already 10 a.m., and they’re still not up.”
After Qu Mengjun’s wedding night, Qu Jing seemed to have aged more than ten years overnight.
Even as he drank cup after cup of hot tea, his chest still felt unbearably heavy.
“They’re young, Master. Perhaps the young couple slept late last night… it’s normal for them to wake up later,” the maid said with a polite smile as she refilled his empty cup.
Qu Jing didn’t respond.
His mood was already bad, and hearing this made his expression darken further.
His granddaughter was so beautiful that even across all of China, she would rank among the very best.
Yet she had been taken so easily by that brat.
Not only that, he even had to send people to block Lin Dineng, in case the rightful groom returned and caused trouble.
“I just hope that brat is truly as good as she says…”
Qu Jing lifted his teacup, gently blew away the steam, and sighed again.
At first, he had suspected that Wei Yan might be holding something over his granddaughter, forcing her to act so strangely.
But after observing for some time, he realized that wasn’t the case at all.
Because Qu Jing discovered that her room was filled with Wei Yan’s photos and posters. From proper studio portraits to pictures of him bathing, everything was there.
There were even close-ups… including those parts!
Not only that, Qu Mengjun would often bring back men’s clothing, boxers, razors, and all sorts of strange items from who knew where.
At first, Qu Jing thought she was preparing gifts for someone.
But later, he saw her placing all these items into a display cabinet, arranging them one by one like treasured exhibits.
And when he asked, he learned that all of them had been used by Wei Yan.
Qu Jing couldn’t even begin to imagine how she had managed to obtain these things.
“Don’t worry, Master. Didn’t Miss say it herself? When Young Master Wei comes down later, he’ll deliberately show you a bad attitude. You just need to tolerate it. By then, you’ll be able to judge his character,” another maid said gently while holding a round tray.
Before last night’s wedding, Qu Mengjun had already explained everything that would happen today.
According to her, Wei Yan did what he did because he knew she didn’t like Lin Dineng. He couldn’t accept the woman he loved sacrificing her happiness for the family’s arrangements.
Although it would harm her reputation somewhat, it was the only way to stop the wedding.
And afterward, Wei Yan would take all the blame onto himself.
That way, even if the scandal spread, Qu Mengjun would only be seen as a victim, while the one condemned by the world would be him alone.
That was why, after coming downstairs, the first thing Wei Yan would do was act arrogantly toward Qu Jing, making him believe that everything was orchestrated by him alone, with no involvement from Qu Mengjun.
But Qu Jing didn’t believe Wei Yan would actually do that.
If he were Wei Yan, he would take the opportunity to curry favor with his future father-in-law.
After all, the goal had already been achieved. Their relationship had already crossed the line. If Wei Yan were smart and negotiated properly, he might even persuade Qu Jing to marry Qu Mengjun to him.
But if he took all the blame upon himself, not only would he lose any chance of marrying her, he would also become a target of universal scorn.
As the eldest young master of the Wei Family, such behavior could even implicate his entire family. Anyone with a bit of sense would never make such a choice.
Having lived for so many years, Qu Jing understood the world far too clearly.
But if that boy was truly willing to sacrifice himself for Mengjun…
Then what would be wrong with marrying her to him?
In fact, if he really was such a responsible and upright man, and Mengjun loved him so deeply, Qu Jing would be more than willing to entrust his granddaughter to him.
Knock, knock, knock…
Just as Qu Jing was lost in thought, a series of footsteps echoed from the staircase.
Judging by the sound, Wei Yan and Qu Mengjun were coming down together.
Clearing his throat, Qu Jing straightened his posture even further.
To be honest, he still hoped Wei Yan would try to please him. That way, he would have a legitimate reason to keep his granddaughter by his side.
It would also allow Qu Mengjun to see that boy’s true nature.
However… he was disappointed.
As soon as Wei Yan came downstairs and saw Qu Jing, he immediately put on an arrogant expression. He even wrapped his arm around Qu Mengjun’s slender, soft waist in a deliberately provocative manner.
“Hey, old man, take a good look at who I am. See who just walked out of the bridal chamber holding your granddaughter’s hand. Surprised? Unexpected, huh?”