Too Late to Regret, She’s Now With the Big Boss - Chapter 71

“What right does she have to hate you? I was the one originally engaged to you, Song Yuntao. Are you regretting marrying me now?”

Ye Qingyan’s hysterical questioning, driven by overwhelming anger, made her suddenly stand up and rush toward Ye Qianqian.

But Song Yuntao held her back firmly. “Ye Qingyan, where is your dignity? Can’t you see so many people are here? What’s gotten into you?”

“So, this ethereal beauty is actually the Second Miss of the Ye family? It goes without saying, Young Master Song must be regretting his choice!”

“I’ve long heard of Second Miss Ye’s name but never had the chance to meet her. So, this is how stunning she is!”

“Daughter, I’ve told you before… don’t chase after self-important heartthrobs, especially those hailed as ‘national husbands.’ Just look at his taste!”

“…”

Three years ago, after the eldest son of the Song family was in a car accident, the news of the eldest Miss Ye abandoning him and going abroad caused quite a stir.

Some scorned Second Miss Ye for taking advantage of the situation, using the marriage agreement between the Song and Ye families to climb into the Song family.

Those who looked down on her assumed Ye Qianqian was unattractive and uneducated, seizing the chance to marry into the Song family.

But others said Second Miss Ye was not favored in the Ye family and was forced by Mr. Ye to fulfill the marriage agreement between the two families.

Regardless of the truth, anyone who heard the rumors believed Ye Qianqian was surely no match for Ye Qingyan.

Three years later, when those who received the wedding invitations from the Song and Ye families saw Ye Qingyan’s name, they not only didn’t object but felt it was only right.

On the wedding day, those who saw Ye Qianqian were startled to realize they had been mistaken… Second Miss Ye was, in fact, extraordinarily beautiful.

When the wedding guests returned home and spoke to their families and friends, they would express deep regret, leaving those who had never seen Ye Qianqian feeling a sense of loss.

Unaware of what everyone was thinking, Ye Qianqian watched as the people around her pointed at Song Yuntao and Ye Qingyan, hurling sarcastic remarks.

Suddenly, she missed Lu Jingchen intensely… remembering how he would smile while feeding her, calling her to wake up…

Living in a luxurious mansion, sleeping beside a handsome man, being fed by him, Ye Qianqian had never dared to imagine how comfortable such a life could be.

She felt grateful to have married him. With him, she had no worries, only immense happiness and joy.

In the past, Song Yuntao paid her no mind, and those around him naturally showed her no respect, their every word dripping with disdain and disgust.

Now, that same disdain and disgust boomeranged back onto Song Yuntao and Ye Qingyan, and Ye Qianqian found it deeply satisfying.

She noticed Song Yuntao staring at her, stubbornly waiting for her response, so she spoke with utmost sincerity, “Young Master Song, I have never hated you. Back then, when I saw you favoring Ye Qingyan, I only thought it was because I wasn’t good enough. Later, when Ye Qingyan returned to the country, I felt it was a sign from fate that you and I were never meant to be.”

Hearing this, Song Yuntao’s eyelids twitched, and he looked up anxiously, a sense of foreboding washing over him.

Ye Qianqian’s next words might strip away his dignity and plunge him into an abyss.

His eyes filled with panic, almost pleading, he didn’t want her to continue, “Qianqian, it’s all my fault. Please give me another chance, let me…”

Ye Qianqian cut him off, “Young Master Song, if you simply didn’t want to marry me, I would still respect you as a man of principle. I truly wouldn’t hate you for that. Heaven and earth bear witness, I, Ye Qianqian, truly have not wronged you, nor do you have any reason to hate me. It can only be said that you did it for her, handing me over to someone else. Search your conscience and tell me, should I hate you? But what is there to hate? On the contrary, I am grateful that you sent me to Third Master Lu’s bed. Thankfully, it was him, because he is good to me, and for that, I feel a certain gratitude toward you. I am living very well now. Please do not harass me in the future. Though we may meet again, we are not strangers, after all, you are my nominal brother-in-law. I will only say this once: you two should behave yourselves. Do not provoke me. If you do, I cannot control what Third Master Lu might do.”

Ye Qianqian’s clear, crisp voice made Song Yuntao feel as though the fragile branch he had been desperately clinging to at the edge of a cliff had suddenly snapped.

His mind spun in a dizzying haze, and his entire heart seemed to plummet into the abyss.

Watching Song Yuntao’s face contorted with regret and pain, and hearing Ye Qianqian invoke Third Master Lu, Ye Qingyan was overcome with envy, her teeth aching with bitterness. A torrent of sharp, sour insults swirled in her mind, but she dared not utter them, afraid of being ganged up on.

The ladies and young misses present, upon hearing Ye Qianqian mention Third Master Lu, all rushed forward to flatter and curry favor.

Without Ye Qianqian having to say or do anything, countless people naturally flocked to her, eager to please.

Ye Qianqian merely nodded slightly to everyone, appearing relaxed and at ease.

Her calm, indifferent expression only made her seem more inscrutable and in control in the eyes of others.

Had it been anyone else, being surrounded like this would have caused at least unease, if not outright panic.

This only deepened the respect others felt for her, and compliments flowed freely.

Ye Qianqian smiled distantly. “Take your time browsing, everyone. We have matters to attend to and must be on our way.”

Watching Ye Qianqian’s retreating figure and the same people who had once envied her, Ye Qingyan gritted her teeth in resentment.

Having been unsatisfied the night before, she had wheedled and coaxed Song Yuntao into taking her shopping, intending to buy exquisite jewelry and clothes for the banquet three days later.

From the moment they stepped into the shop, all eyes had been on them.

Her vanity had been immensely gratified, and she held her head high.

See? I am now the young mistress of the Song family. All these women must be green with envy.

No matter how much they envied her, they could never take her place, and Ye Qingyan felt supremely proud and satisfied.

But all that beauty was shattered by Ye Qianqian.

Song Yuntao watched as Ye Qingyan viciously cursed Ye Qianqian’s retreating back, finding her behavior utterly disgraceful.

But he had no strength left to say anything and simply turned and walked away, his sleeves fluttering.

His world had always been like a vibrant, colorful painting, starkly different from Ye Qianqian’s dullness.

That was why he had resisted marrying her. Yet, after breaking off the engagement, every encounter with her since had been like a stone dropped into a still lake, sending ripples of disturbance through his heart.

The air was thick with a heavy silence, creating an inexplicable sense of oppression.

Song Yuntao’s steps faltered, as if he had lost the strength to support himself.

Echoes of Ye Qianqian’s earnest reminders and her meticulous care for him in the past reverberated in his ears.

These beautiful memories surged through his heart like a tide, making it ache unbearably. Tears gradually blurred his vision, trickling down his cheeks one by one.

He silently crouched by the roadside, overwhelmed by an indescribable loneliness and solitude. Muttering to himself, he whispered, “Why did it have to be like this?”

“Why else? Blame yourself for being blind!”