She is pregnant, and it’s a boy.
Before finishing work, Lu Zheng stopped by the Public Security Unit.
Seeing Lu Zheng arrive, the unit’s chief stood up to shake his hand.
“Captain Lu, your Criminal Investigation Division officers are always swamped with work. What brings you to visit us today?”
Lu Zheng pulled out a chair casually and sat down, leaning his tall frame back against the chair. “The White Horse Club in the city center—have you conducted an inspection there?”
The chief paused for a moment, then glanced at the registration and inspection list beside him. “Our recent priority checks have focused on street-side foot massage parlors and casual leisure venues. The White Horse Club is classified as a high-end private establishment, so it hasn’t been added to our list yet.”
Lu Zheng narrowed his dark, sharp eyes. “When you carry out routine inspections against illegal activities, don’t only target low-end venues.”
The chief immediately caught the underlying meaning in Lu Zheng’s words.
“Understood. Any place that needs checking will be checked thoroughly.”
Before heading back to Jingyuan Estate, Wen Qingli stopped at a shopping mall.
She picked out two sets of casual homewear for Lu Zheng that made him look younger, then walked over to a men’s brand counter.
Her eyes landed on a black coat with sharp, structured lines—its style suited Lu Zheng perfectly.
“Excuse me, could you take this one down so I can have a look?”
Just as the sales assistant reached for the hanger, a bright, sharp voice suddenly cut in. “Wait a minute. Give that one to me; I want to see it first.”
Wen Qingli found the voice familiar. She turned around to look.
Two women had just walked in through the door. The first was wearing a tight red dress, with long, wavy hair falling over her shoulders and striking, bold features—it was Bai Chuxue.
Holding Bai Chuxue’s arm was Su Yue, dressed head to toe in designer brands. It was obvious she had had cosmetic work done, yet her appearance could only be described as delicate and unremarkable.
Neither of them was someone Wen Qingli liked.
Especially Su Yue.
Back in the day, Su Yue’s mother had worked as a maid in the Wen family household. Wen Qingli had never looked down on Su Yue; they had grown up playing together and were close friends.
But to everyone’s shock, shortly after graduating from university, Su Yue married Wen Qingli’s own father.
On the day of their wedding, Wen Qingli’s mother was diagnosed with breast cancer.
When Su Yue and her mother visited the hospital, Su Yue spoke to her mother in a deliberately sweet yet mocking tone. “Auntie, please don’t worry. Even if something happens to you, I promise I’ll get along well with Qingli from now on, so you won’t have any regrets.”
Her mother was so furious that her condition nearly worsened.
Thankfully, fortune favored them later—her mother beat cancer and recovered fully.
“Chuxue, Lu Zheng is the tough, masculine type. If you buy this for him, he’s sure to love it.”
Su Yue snatched the black coat straight from the sales assistant’s hands and handed it to Bai Chuxue.
Bai Chuxue pushed the sunglasses resting on the bridge of her nose up onto her head. Her smoky-eyed gaze swept over Wen Qingli from head to toe.
“Yueyue, does she look familiar to you?”
Su Yue seemed to notice Wen Qingli’s presence only at that moment.
“What a coincidence! Isn’t this Wen Qingli?”
A smile spread across Su Yue’s face, but it never reached her eyes.
Bai Chuxue seemed to recall the name, and looked Wen Qingli over carefully.
Her skin was fair and smooth, her almond-shaped eyes dark and bright, like glossy black grapes steeped in water. With long, delicate lashes, she looked pure and breathtakingly beautiful—almost like a college student still in school.
“Goodness, is that really Qingli? I remember she used to be such a chubby little thing. How did she become so gorgeous? Did she go under the knife?”
Su Yue’s lips curled into a faint, mocking smile. “Becoming beautiful always comes at a price, doesn’t it?”
Her tone was loaded with sarcasm, subtly spreading rumors that Wen Qingli had had plastic surgery.
Wen Qingli’s expression remained calm and composed, and she fired back without hesitation. “You, on the other hand, have definitely had work done—yet the more you fix yourself, the uglier you look. You’re already married to my father, so money shouldn’t be an issue. Why didn’t you pick a more natural-looking plastic surgeon?”
The sales assistant and other customers in the shop all turned their attention toward them.
Su Yue’s face flushed with embarrassment and anger. “Qingli, I know you hate me, but I am not your father’s mistress. I started seeing him only after he and your mother got divorced. You can only blame your mother for growing old and losing her charm, and failing to keep a man’s heart.”
Before Wen Qingli could reply, Su Yue added sharply, “I remember back when you were in high school, your father already had other women outside. It wasn’t me who broke up your parents’ marriage, so you have no right to hate me for it.”
Bai Chuxue glanced at Wen Qingli and smiled brightly. “Qingli, by generation, you should actually call Yueyue your stepmother. I heard you work as a university teacher now—how come you’ve become so rude?”
Wen Qingli clenched her hands slightly at her sides. She reminded herself repeatedly not to show any sign of weakness or vulnerability.
She was no longer the timid, helpless girl who could only cry when faced with trouble, as she had been in high school.
“Bai Chuxue, if you’re such a paragon of virtue, I hope one day when your best friend marries your father, you’ll still politely call her ‘stepmother’ too.”
Clearly caught off guard by how sharp and quick-witted Wen Qingli had become, Bai Chuxue froze for a moment.
In her memory, Wen Qingli had always just lowered her head and cried whenever things went wrong.
“Wen Qingli, what did you just say? Apologize to Chuxue this instant!” Su Yue spoke up, putting on the airs of a stepmother.
“If you didn’t hear me clearly the first time, I can have it engraved on your tombstone.”
Su Yue’s eyes widened in shock, her face turning purple with rage. “Wen Qingli, you—!”
Not wanting to argue with someone whose mindset was on a completely different level, Wen Qingli turned back to the sales assistant. “I’ll take this coat.”
“Wen Qingli, Chuxue already has her eye on this. She’s buying it as a gift for Lu Zheng—no one else suits this coat better than he does.”
Bai Chuxue looked at Wen Qingli again. “Surely you still remember Lu Zheng, don’t you? I recall one time when you were having your period, he even stood up for you. For the sake of how he helped you back then, let me have this coat. I just returned from abroad and wanted to pick out something perfect for him.”
Wen Qingli pressed her lips tightly together.
Had Lu Zheng replied to the message Bai Chuxue sent him last night?
He must have replied, right?
Otherwise, why would Bai Chuxue have come all the way to the mall specifically to buy clothes for him?
A surge of indescribable emotion suddenly welled up inside Wen Qingli—tinged with sourness, heaviness, and a faint sense of helplessness.
“Chuxue, I heard Lu Zheng hasn’t gotten married yet, and hasn’t even dated anyone all these years. Could it be he’s been waiting for you this whole time?” Su Yue asked with a bright smile.
Bai Chuxue’s red lips curved upward in a confident, proud smile. “Well, what can I say? I am a beauty after all.”
“And Qingli, word has it you’ve been going on blind dates lately. Did you finally meet someone you like? If you’re buying clothes for a prospective boyfriend, you’d better go look at other styles instead!”
But deep down, Wen Qingli was stubborn and unyielding.
She had set her sights on this coat the moment she saw it—why should she give it up to someone else?
She looked directly at the sales assistant. “Shopping follows the rule of first come, first served. This one is mine.”
“It’s true, this lady did express interest first,” the assistant said, turning to Su Yue and Bai Chuxue. “You two are welcome to look through our other designs—”
Before the assistant could finish speaking, Su Yue pulled out a diamond VIP card.
“Excuse me, but my husband is a shareholder of this mall. I have the authority to clear this section and request that Wen Qingli here be blacklisted from entering.”
She handed the card to the assistant and shot Wen Qingli a triumphant, challenging look.
“Yueyue, I never realized you have so much influence now,” Bai Chuxue remarked.
The sales assistant’s attitude instantly shifted, becoming far more eager to please, and moved to ask Wen Qingli to leave.
In the past, Wen Qingli would have simply dismissed Su Yue’s petty games and walked away without a second thought.
But today, she refused to swallow this insult.
She immediately dialed her father Wen Mingyuan’s number.
When the call connected, she turned on speakerphone. From the other end came Wen Mingyuan’s voice, sounding pleasantly surprised. “Qingli, you finally called me on your own initiative?”
The whole shop fell silent at once.
Every eye turned toward the phone in Wen Qingli’s hand—especially Su Yue, whose expression darkened noticeably.
Ever since Wen Mingyuan had married Su Yue, Wen Qingli had never once called him voluntarily.
Her tone cool and detached, Wen Qingli said, “I’m at the Global Shopping Mall in the city center. I picked out a coat, but your precious wife is using her VIP card to pressure me and trying to get the mall to ban me. Am I not even allowed to buy a piece of clothing anymore?”
The air in the room turned still and heavy.
Su Yue unconsciously tightened her grip on the diamond card in her hand.
After a brief pause, Wen Mingyuan’s voice grew serious. “Is Su Yue there with you?”
“Yes,” Wen Qingli replied calmly. “I have the call on speaker, so you can speak directly.”
The next moment, his stern voice came through the phone clearly. “Su Yue, you are Qingli’s elder now. You should be yielding to her in every matter. She is my only daughter. Don’t you dare take advantage of my affection for you to bully her.”
Su Yue felt as though she could barely contain her anger.
In the end, Wen Qingli bought the coat and took it with her.
As she finished paying and prepared to walk out of the shop, Su Yue hurried over to her and spoke in a low voice.
“Qingli, if you are no longer your father’s only child, he will certainly stop telling me to give way to you.”
With that, she covered her mouth and made a slight gagging sound.
Before Wen Qingli stepped out the door, she heard Su Yue say in a voice brimming with pride, “I’m pregnant. I went to Hong Kong for a checkup, and it’s a boy. I haven’t gotten around to telling your father yet.”