After downing a red bean bun the size of his palm, Qin Guan finally felt alive again.
He slumped back in the rear seat, eyes closed, feigning sleep, but his mind raced nonstop.
Old He had said that before the business trip, someone had personally witnessed Qin Guan and Qi Min arguing, and that Qin Guan had slapped Qi Min across the face.
Naturally, Qin Guan had denied it—apart from the phone as evidence, he wouldn't admit to any other testimony unless Old He produced concrete surveillance footage.
Was there surveillance in that place? Someone saw? Who was it?
Qin Guan's thoughts spun uncontrollably, swift and precise, back to before the business trip—
He had argued with Qi Min, and he had indeed slapped her hard.
Because Qi Min wanted a new bag. She'd wheedled, "It's rare that I get to go out with you this time! What a perfect opportunity. We can really have fun over there. But… my bags are all old. They'd look bad if I carried them out. Dear, won't you buy me one?"
The bag she had her eye on cost seventeen thousand yuan.
Seventeen thousand—that was two thick, solid stacks of cash. Qin Guan couldn't bear to part with it. Besides, he didn't think Qi Min deserved that bag, nor did he think she was worth it.
He made a random excuse: "When we're together, when do we have time to look at bags? I'm only focused on looking at you. The bag you carried last time looked great on you, really matched your vibe."
Usually, when he said things like this, Qi Min would tactfully and obediently drop it.
But that day, Qi Min, for some unknown reason, had gained a backbone. She wasn't tactful at all and insisted: "I want it, okay? Please? I want to dress up beautifully to put you in a good mood, alright? Hmm, dear? Just transfer the money, I'll buy it myself."
Qin Guan was getting impatient, but he was still far from resorting to violence.
What pushed him over the edge was the sentence Qi Min suddenly blurted out: "Why are you being so stingy? With your father-in-law having so much money, isn't it all going to be yours anyway?"
The moment Qi Min said it, without even thinking, Qin Guan slapped her hard across the face.
Only when he saw the fierce red swelling instantly bloom on Qi Min's fair cheek did he realize he had hit her.
"Why did you hit me? Are you crazy?!"
Qi Min was furious—as a mistress, she'd been beyond reproach! She'd been so good to him! All she wanted was a bag, just over ten thousand yuan, and she got hit for it?!
Clutching her face, eyes brimming with aggrieved tears, Qi Min stamped her foot in hatred, turned, and stormed off.
That location really wasn't suitable for a fight or an argument—it was in the corridor outside the law firm. Colleagues passed by in the distance; it was unclear if anyone had seen it.
Moreover, it wasn't a reason to hit her—Qi Min had just been using the chance encounter at work to ask for a gift, to flirt with him.
It was absolutely not the right time or place for violence.
But Qin Guan had still hit her.
That slap wasn't something his rational mind could control. It was instinct.
Like… like suddenly having your underpants yanked down, exposing an embarrassing secret, and instinctively fighting back.
Qi Min shouldn't have said that.
Even as lovers, even as a joke, you couldn't joke like that.
Your father-in-law having so much money, isn't it all going to be yours anyway?
Those words were like gleaming knives, instantly stripping away layers wrapped around a secret deep within Qin Guan's heart.
He stood frozen in place, looking around frantically—hopefully, no one had heard that.
Qi Min probably wouldn't say it again; she was smart.
But precisely because she was smart—
Qin Guan stared blankly at Qi Min's retreating figure. His heart inched upwards, all the way into his throat—precisely because she was smart, whether that sentence was truly a joke or not, was unknowable.
The phone in the front seat rang.
The officer in the passenger seat answered it, reporting Qin Guan's condition to Old He on the other end. He also asked about the traffic situation where Old He was—apparently, Old He was stuck in a jam because someone kept cutting in line, causing an accident. Old He was cursing over the phone.
As they talked, Qin Guan suddenly heard the officer in the passenger seat say, "Wood carving? Li Yang found it? Can we trust that guy? Huh? Xu Ruyi recognized it? Her father's?"
Wood carving? Li Yang? Xu Ruyi's father?
Qin Guan's eyes remained closed, but his ears pricked up high, straining as if trying to burrow into the phone receiver.
Wood carving.
That foolish woman, she actually kept that wood carving?
He'd told her to throw it away ages ago!
The carving was small and delicate—a leaping fish. Its name was beautiful too: "Fish Leaping Over the Dragon Gate." It had been brought back from out of town by a friend of his father-in-law.
Qin Guan had first seen it in Qi Min's hands shortly after his father-in-law was discharged from the hospital.
It was their usual rendezvous day. He'd excused himself as usual, saying he was out on business, and entered the hotel room Qi Min had booked.
After the passion, he lay exhausted on the large hotel bed. Qi Min came out of the bathroom, slipping on a silky camisole nightgown, and lay down on his chest.
In her hand, she toyed with the wood carving.
"Hey, Qin Guan," she asked, "how much do you think this thing is worth? It's so exquisitely made."
Exquisite it was, but it wasn't actually worth much—his father-in-law did collect plenty of valuable wood carvings, but he certainly wouldn't give those to Qi Min.
Yes, Qin Guan had seen that carving long before. He also knew his father-in-law had given it to Qi Min—as a thank-you for her attentive care during his hospital stay.
"Your father-in-law is such a good man, really," Qi Min couldn't help but praise him. "Look, I only took care of him a few times. I even told him it was just colleagues helping out, that you'd already paid me as overtime. He knew all that, yet he still gave me this."
"You know what? He even had someone send fruit and flowers to the firm for me! Said it was to thank me! I was stunned when I got them. He's so polite! So polite it actually made me feel embarrassed!"
It wasn't politeness.
Qin Guan listened silently to Qi Min's chatter, his brow furrowing—it was the most unbecoming trait his father-in-law possessed.
Lack of self-respect.
Qi Min was just an assistant at his firm. Superficially, she was a "friend," a "colleague," but anyone with any discernment could see she was essentially just hired help.
His father-in-law couldn't possibly fail to see that this girl from out of town was of low status and humble origins—he didn't need to put so much thought into her.
But he did put thought into it—his father-in-law was like this with everyone. The poor wretches from the boonies he sponsored, the housekeeper and her son Xiao Zhi, even the cleaners in the residential complex… he was courteous to them all.
He never understood how to treasure his own status.
"Oh, and he included a card! His handwriting is gorgeous!" Qi Min added.
Hearing that, Qin Guan finally jolted upright in bed and took the card from Qi Min's hand.
It was indeed his father-in-law's handwriting—vigorous and forceful, the strokes cool and sharp: "You possess youth as brilliant as flowers. You possess exceptional intelligence and talent. Work hard, take one step at a time, and you will surely leap over the Dragon Gate meant for you."
"'Fish Leaping Over the Dragon Gate'—such a wonderful meaning," Qi Min mused, lying on the pillow, playing with the carving. Her long hair spilled wantonly across the white sheets. "The old man really spoke straight to my heart! I dream of leaping over the Dragon Gate! But… my fate is just no good. What use is exceptional intelligence and talent, youth like flowers? All of it… it's not worth someone else having a good father!"
She rambled on to herself, "I'd swap places with his daughter in a heartbeat. Don't need to be that smart, that capable, that pretty… just be born already having everything. Money, houses, cars, a good man… everything…"
"Oh, Qin Guan," she suddenly rolled onto her side, fixing him with her gaze. "You sure keep things close to your chest! Only when I was taking care of your father-in-law did I find out how many assets he has in his name. That old place of his got demolished, your mother-in-law's hometown too… both got compensation, divided into apartments and shops. Oh my god, do you know how high property prices are now? According to inheritance law, once he dies, aren't you set to strike it rich?"
That day, Qin Guan hadn't uttered a word the entire time.
His back was turned to Qi Min. She couldn't see the storm clouds darkening his face.
Qi Min certainly didn't know that her words were like heavy hammers, pounding relentlessly against his heart.
Yes. The compensation apartments. The shops. His father-in-law's collections. Even the rosewood furniture in his father-in-law's house, the calligraphy and paintings, the jewelry…
All of it. He had long ago weighed their value in his mind.
Well over ten million.
And he'd long known all of it would be his—his father-in-law had only one daughter. Xu Ruyi was devoted to him. These assets would, of course, be shared with him in the future.
It had been a certainty, beyond doubt—after his mother-in-law's death, his only worry had vanished.
But now… Qin Guan no longer dared to be so sure.
The wood carving of the Fish Leaping Over the Dragon Gate. The words on that card… they both proved that his father-in-law saw the nature of his relationship with Qi Min as clearly as in a mirror.
Praising Qi Min's intelligence, her youth, urging her to work hard and build her own career… it was all a subtle hint—to withdraw from this triangle and do what she ought to do.
He knew Qi Min was his son-in-law's mistress!
He knew Qin Guan was cheating!
Why didn't he just tell Xu Ruyi? Why not confront Qin Guan directly?
Was he afraid Xu Ruyi couldn't bear to hear it? Or unwilling to see his daughter divorce? Didn't want Little Pear to grow up in a single-parent home?