Divorced from the Cold CEO Who Lived by the Rules - Chapter 51

Confession? Zhen zhen’s heart skipped a heavy beat. “What?”

“I like you.” Fu Jie’s voice was pleasant, and through the phone, Xu Zhen could almost sense Zhen zhen’s nervous excitement. Zhen zhen had harbored a secret crush on Fu Jie for a long time, and today, Fu Jie finally revealed her feelings, responding to Zhen zhen’s affection.

Zhen zhen bit her lip lightly, struggling to suppress the urge to scream.

She forced herself to calm down, then casually rejected Fu Jie. “I’m sorry.”

Liking someone was one thing, but Zhen zhen wasn’t some naive little girl. Fu Jie, like Xue Long, changed Omegas around her as often as she changed clothes, so there was no way Zhen zhen could entertain anything with her.

Besides, she only wanted to quietly admire Fu Jie from afar, content with the feeling of silently watching her.

Taking it any further? Absolutely not.

Zhen zhen gave Fu Jie a deep look, then solemnly explained herself before turning and striding away without a backward glance. “Zhen Zhen-jie, my heart feels a little heavy.”

She held her phone, even though she had almost gotten what she wanted, yet now she was overwhelmed with an inexplicable sense of loss.

“I really like her, and I’ve always hoped she’d respond to me. But now that this day has finally come, I don’t feel happy at all.”

Zhen zhen couldn’t put this feeling into words. It was as if something was silently slipping through her fingers, never to return.

She was afraid of facing the future, yet filled with inexplicable regret.

“It’s okay. You can give yourself more time,” Xu Zhen comforted softly. “True love can withstand the test of time, right?”

Zhen zhen thought of Pu Shuangquan and Qin Aojun and nodded. “I understand.”

“Thank you, Zhen Zhen-jie. I’ll come see you again after my surgery,” she said with a smile. “Right now, I’m going to secretly make an appointment behind my parents’ backs.”

Zhen zhen didn’t want to tell her parents beforehand, worried they would try to stop or persuade her otherwise.

Once it was a done deal, even if they had a thousand objections, there’d be no turning back.

This time, Zhen zhen wanted to decide her own life.

Summoning immense courage, Zhen zhen listened as Xu Zhen offered words of comfort and encouragement, eventually soothing her restless heart.

Nowadays, as more and more Omegas became ordinary people akin to betas, the social status of betas had risen significantly.

However, very few Alphas were willing to lower themselves to mingle with betas, whom they had always looked down upon. In their minds, they remained noble, the elite of society.

They still wanted to tightly control the vast majority of society’s resources, unwilling to relinquish or distribute them to more ordinary people. And what Xing Yan was striving for now was to break this very structure.

Xing Yan’s popularity was soaring, almost taking on the idol-fan dynamic.

With the support of her fans, Xing Yan’s political career was becoming increasingly smooth. Coupled with her family’s reluctant backing, she had truly made the most of every resource, turning everything around her to her advantage.

To achieve her ambitions, she had schemed against everyone around her, forcing them to comply and support her.

Including Jiang Ruan.

Xu Zhen no longer held much resentment towards Xing Yan. Given how far the other woman had come, what she truly admired were Xing Yan’s cunning, tactics, and wisdom.

For an Omega woman, this path wasn’t easy. To single-handedly overturn the situation, she was truly an alpha among alphas.

Xu Zhen admired strength, so naturally, she admired Xing Yan.

Moreover, because of Xing Yan’s influence, the welfare benefits for betas in society had greatly improved. Over the past year or two, Xu Zhen’s commercial rates had nearly doubled compared to before.

Historically, there had always been a gap between the rates for alphas and betas, but now that gap was slowly narrowing. Xu Zhen’s income had seen a significant increase.

She no longer had to work herself to the bone or take on unnecessary gigs like before. All she needed to do was focus on her primary job, acting.

So now, Xu Zhen gradually carved out more time for herself to enjoy life and spend time with her family.

Xu Tingyuan and Tang Yehe were about to face the most important exams of their lives. Xu Zhen had long since cleared her schedule to stay home and support them.

Xu Tingyuan wasn’t nervous at all. Her grades had always been excellent, and several schools had already extended offers to her.

But she refused to skip the exams, insisting on experiencing the atmosphere. Xu Susu couldn’t persuade her otherwise and had no choice but to agree.

To take care of her daughter, Xu Susu put in even more effort.

Xu Tingyuan’s meals were meticulously planned for optimal nutrition, almost rivaling Bai Zhi’s standards.

Later, when Tang Yehe heard about this, she pestered Xu Tingyuan until she moved in as well, handing Xu Susu a hefty sum for living expenses. Xu Susu tried to give the money to Xu Zhen, but Xu Zhen refused.

Xu Zhen hadn’t lifted a finger, and the house was big enough, one more person didn’t make a difference.

Xu Susu was the one putting in the effort to care for all three of them. That money was rightfully hers.

The moment Xu Zhen stepped through the door, Xu Tingyuan and Tang Yehe rushed over, chirping sweetly, “Sis! Come eat! Mom made something delicious today!”

Before Xu Zhen could respond, Xu Tingyuan frowned and scolded Tang Yehe, “What are you calling her? That’s my mom.”

“I’ll call her whatever I want! Mom, mom, mom!” Tang Yehe teased, probably having picked it up from Qin Liaoxing. “What’re you gonna do? Hit me, Hey! You actually hit me!”

“Xu Tingyuan, you heartless!!”

The two of them chased each other around the house, leaving Xu Zhen speechless but she didn’t stop them.

Before exams, it wasn’t good to be under too much pressure. Letting loose was perfectly fine. Besides, the two of them had grown closer, and mutual encouragement might even lead to better-than-expected results.

“Those two… never a dull moment,” Xu Susu sighed, shaking her head, her eyes full of warmth and indulgence.

Xu Zhen set her things down, and Xu Susu glanced behind her. “Is President Jiang not coming today?”

How unusual. Normally, Jiang Ruan stuck to Xu Zhen like glue.

“Probably busy.” Xu Zhen didn’t pry into Jiang Ruan’s personal affairs. Whether she came or not was up to her. Since the divorce, Xu Zhen had stopped fixating on Jiang Ruan, and she felt lighter and happier for it.

If Jiang Ruan wasn’t around, she enjoyed the peace. If she was, well having someone to dote on her wasn’t bad either.

During this period, the two maintained this state, faintly recapturing some of the sweetness from their whirlwind romance days.

Xu Zhen was enjoying this dynamic.

Hearing this, Xu Susu didn’t ask further and invited Xu Zhen to the table to prepare for dinner. Upon hearing the commotion, Tang Yehe hurried into the kitchen, eagerly helping Xu Susu serve dishes and set the table with great enthusiasm.

Xu Tingyuan kept snorting coldly, “A weasel paying respects to a chicken harboring no good intentions.”

“How could that be?” Tang Yehe denied, “I’m just a kid with no ill intentions.” As she finished speaking, a classic line suddenly popped into her head, and she blurted it out without thinking, “I’m not here to break up this family, I’m here to join it.”

Xu Tingyuan: “…”

“You can shut up now,” she retorted bluntly, rolling her eyes at Tang Yehe, who wasn’t the least bit offended and instead grinned cheerfully, looking utterly pleased.

Xu Tingyuan had no way to deal with her, so she simply ignored her.

After dinner, Bai Zhen called Xu Zhen into her room, “Did you and Jiang Ruan have another fight?”

“No,” Xu Zhen replied, sitting down. “She’s probably busy today.”

“Probably?” Xu Zhen raised an eyebrow, her tone neutral. “She didn’t tell you where she was going? Or do you just not care about her whereabouts at all?”

Xu Zhen shook her head, “I don’t care. We’re already divorced.”

Xu Zhen fell silent for a moment. “So you plan to keep things as they are with her neither fully cutting ties nor moving on to someone new?”

“I don’t have plans to find someone new for now.” After all, Jiang Ruan was already familiar territory. Starting over with someone new would mean not only background checks but also the tedious process of adjusting to each other.

No matter what, things between her and Jiang Ruan were comfortable now.

Besides, Jiang Ruan’s past secrecy and thoughtless actions only proved her lack of emotional intelligence, not that she had truly grown tired of Xu Zhen or felt nothing for her.

Over the past year or two, Xu Zhen had observed Jiang Ruan’s behavior closely.

She had her own way of measuring whether Jiang Ruan’s actions were genuine or just an act.

Xu Zhen had always opposed Xu Zhen’s relationship with Jiang Ruan, but now the circumstances were different, Jiang Ruan wasn’t much different from a beta anymore, so Xu Zhen couldn’t really say much.

Plus, Xu Zhen had also noticed Jiang Ruan’s recent efforts. In the end, she just rubbed her temples and sighed, “Do as you please. It’s not like you ever listen to me anyway.”

Xu Zhen chuckled. “Don’t worry so much. Just focus on taking care of your health.”

“I know what I’m doing.”

“Alright.”

Jiang Ruan remained silent the whole time. After finishing her own tasks, Xu Zhen couldn’t resist asking Assistant Lu for an update.

Once she got the exact location, she hesitated briefly before driving over.

The success of the experiment and the rollout of new technology had brought Jiang Ruan immense profits, multiplying her net worth several times over. But with professional success came even more work, so Jiang Ruan had been pulling overtime at the office all day.

When Xu Zhen arrived at the company, she made her way unimpeded to Jiang Ruan’s floor.

Jiang Ruan was in a meeting, so Xu Zhen didn’t disturb her, quietly waiting in her office instead.

About half an hour later, the meeting ended, and Jiang Ruan immediately rushed in, pulling Xu Zhen  into a tight embrace. “Wife, I’m exhausted.”

The hoarse voice, soft body, and rare hint of coquettish tone made Xu Zhen’s expression turn unnatural. “Let go of me.”

“I want to hold you for a while. I don’t have the strength.”

“You clearly do.” Xu Zhen glanced at the executives outside who all maintained proper appearances while secretly stealing curious glances their way, unable to resist pushing against the other person. “Everyone’s watching you.”

Hearing this, Jiang Ruan turned her head to look back. Just when Xu Zhen thought she would sit up properly, Jiang Ruan picked up the remote control beside her and lowered the blinds with a flick of her wrist.

“There, now they can’t see us.” Having said that, she leaned her weight against Xu Zhen again.

Xu Zhen: “…”

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