Yang Chen's face was filled with sincerity and affection.
Such a romantic proposal would likely make any ordinary girl say yes—but the one before him was no ordinary girl.
After a long silence, Qin Xi finally steadied her emotions and looked at him with a complicated expression. "I'm sorry."
Hearing those three words, a flash of disappointment flickered in Yang Chen's eyes before vanishing.
"I understand," Yang Chen said with a bitter smile. At this moment, he felt as though his heart were bleeding. Even on the battlefield, when bullets had pierced his chest, it hadn't hurt as much as this.
Seeing Yang Chen's dejected expression, Qin Xi also felt a pang of sorrow. She stepped forward, slightly bent down, and helped Yang Chen, who was kneeling on one knee, to his feet.
"Yang Chen, I hope you understand that the reason I'm willing to be with you isn't because of love, but because of our daughter," Qin Xi said gently, her gaze soft.
"I can't accept you right now, but that doesn't mean I never will. I hope you can give me some time. Is that okay?"
The first half of Qin Xi's words had plunged Yang Chen into despair, but the latter half filled him with sudden joy.
"Of course!" Yang Chen said excitedly. "I can wait. I'll wait until the day you're willing to accept me."
Qin Xi let out a quiet sigh of relief. Her heart was tangled in contradictions. When she saw Yang Chen kneeling on one knee to propose, her heart had melted. But reason told her this was just momentary emotion—apart from that one night five years ago, they had no real emotional foundation.
Meanwhile, at a café across from the Starlight Garden Hotel.
Su Chengwu stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the grand spectacle outside the hotel's entrance with deep emotion.
"Chairman Su, I've brought them," the driver said before quietly stepping away.
As Su Chengwu turned around, he saw the middle-aged woman hurrying toward him, eagerly extending her hand. "Future in-law, hello!"
"Hello," Su Chengwu replied politely with a nod. Then he asked, "You must be Mrs. Zhou, Qin Xi's mother?"
Zhou Yucui quickly pulled Qin Yi over and said cheerfully, "Yes, I'm Qin Yi's mother, Zhou Yucui."
This was Zhou Yucui's first time meeting Su Chengwu in person. Seeing how courteous he was, she could hardly contain her excitement.
"Future in-law, from now on, we're family. No need to be so formal!" Zhou Yucui said with a grin.
The first time she called him "future in-law," Su Chengwu thought he'd misheard. But when she said it again, he realized he hadn't. Puzzled, he asked, "Mrs. Zhou, why are you calling me 'future in-law'?"
Zhou Yucui assumed Su Chengwu thought it was too early for such a term. She took Qin Yi's hand and said, "Once Qin Yi marries your son, won't we be in-laws? If you think it's too soon to call you that now, I'll just address you as Chairman Su until after their wedding..."
"Wait!"
Before Zhou Yucui could finish, Su Chengwu quickly interrupted, looking baffled. "Mrs. Zhou, have you misunderstood something?"
"Not at all! Didn't you already send the betrothal gifts through someone? My husband and I discussed it, and we're very pleased with this match," Zhou Yucui said with a smile.
Only then did Su Chengwu realize the misunderstanding. He hurriedly explained, "Mrs. Zhou, you've got it all wrong. Those gifts were meant for your eldest daughter, Qin Xi."
"What?" Zhou Yucui exclaimed in shock.
Qin Yi's expression froze. When the Su family had delivered the gifts, she'd been fantasizing about her future life as a wealthy man's wife. Now, she finally understood—those gifts had never been meant for her. A deep sense of disappointment settled in her heart.
Zhou Yucui recovered after a brief moment of surprise and forced an awkward smile. "Oh, well, it's all the same. They're both my daughters, after all. As for Qin Xi's marriage, don't worry—I'll make sure she files for divorce tomorrow."
Su Chengwu paled in alarm. "Mrs. Zhou, absolutely not! I think Mr. Yang and Qin Xi are a perfect match, truly meant for each other. You mustn't separate them."
"Chairman Su, what do you mean? Didn't you just say the gifts were for my eldest daughter? Why shouldn't she divorce? If she doesn't, how can she marry into the Su family?" Zhou Yucui asked, utterly confused.
Su Chengwu wasn't clear on Yang Chen's status within the family. After failing to win Yang Chen's favor at the auction, he'd decided on an indirect approach—starting with Yang Chen's wife and family.
Recalling how close he'd come to exposing Yang Chen's identity, Su Chengwu broke out in a cold sweat.
Wiping his forehead, he quickly explained, "Mrs. Zhou, you've misunderstood. I only have two daughters—no son."
"What?"
Zhou Yucui shot to her feet. She'd been under the impression that Su Chengwu's son had taken a liking to Qin Yi and had been overjoyed for so long. Now, she realized she'd been mistaken—Su Chengwu didn't even have a son.
Her face fell, and she asked in a hollow voice, "Then why did the Su family send those gifts?"
A trace of anger flickered in her heart—she felt played.
Su Chengwu's eyes darted as he quickly replied, "Mrs. Zhou, you must have misunderstood. Those weren't betrothal gifts—they were gifts of gratitude to express the Su family's appreciation for your son-in-law."
"Gratitude for my son-in-law? You mean... Yang Chen?" Zhou Yucui's eyes widened in disbelief.
Su Chengwu nodded. "Exactly—Mr. Yang Chen. He once helped the Su family, so I prepared generous gifts to show our thanks. I apologize for any misunderstanding this may have caused!"
Internally, Su Chengwu thought: *If it weren't for the Yu family's support, the Su family wouldn't be where it is today. Since he's the Yu family's heir, this explanation should work, right?*
Qin Yi's heart ached with disappointment. She gave a bitter smile. "So... it was all in my head."
With that, she turned and walked to the window, gazing at the rose petals fluttering over the hotel and the fireworks illuminating the city. Envy filled her eyes.
That night, as soon as Qin Xi returned home, Zhou Yucui pulled her aside.
"Qin Xi, tonight is your wedding anniversary with Yang Chen. Didn't he give you any gifts?"
Qin Xi's mind flashed back to everything that had happened at the Starlight Garden Hotel, and a faint, tender smile touched her lips.
"What are you smiling about?" Zhou Yucui pressed impatiently when Qin Xi didn't answer.
Qin Xi sighed. "Mom, weren't you the one who wanted me to divorce Yang Chen? Why do you care if he gave me an anniversary gift now?"
Zhou Yucui rolled her eyes. "Do you remember those betrothal gifts the Su family sent over half a month ago?"
Qin Xi frowned. "Didn't you say those were for Qin Yi?"
"No, we were wrong. Turns out, those were actually gifts of thanks for that good-for-nothing Yang Chen. They said he helped the Su family—how is that even possible?" Zhou Yucui scoffed, refusing to believe it.
"Mom, what exactly are you trying to say?" Qin Xi asked.
"If Yang Chen really did help the Su family, he must have gotten a lot of money from them. That's marital property—half of it is yours. You need to talk to him about dividing the assets now, or we'll take him to court," Zhou Yucui said, her eyes gleaming as if she could already see stacks of cash.