When the Male Lead Finds Out I’m the Transmigrator Trying to Win Him Over - Chapter 10

After work, Meng Tingmo received a call from Jiang Yufei, asking if he wanted to have dinner together that evening. He really didn’t want to, but if he refused, it would stir up the past between them.

Jiang Yufei had always believed that it was Yun Ruo’s appearance that ruined the ending she and Meng Tingmo were supposed to have.

What Meng Tingmo himself didn’t realize was that, right now, he didn’t have a trace of affection left for Jiang Yufei. But just as Jiang Yufei said, perhaps the system had twisted his perception. Maybe, in truth, the person he actually loved was Jiang Yufei.

So, Meng Tingmo gave Jiang Yufei an address and told her there was a gathering tonight, and she could come.

And that was how the current scene came to be.

Jiang Yufei naturally knew people like Feng You and the others. They were all from the upper circle. Though they didn’t usually hang out, they’d had some interactions.

If not for the conflicts between their families, she would have already been together with Meng Tingmo.

“Long time no see.” She greeted politely.

No one responded. Feng You especially found her unpleasant. In his view, a person with normal values and morals wouldn’t still cling to their ex after the ex got married.

Of course, it wasn’t only Jiang Yufei’s problem.

Feng You glared at Meng Tingmo. Both of them were in the wrong!

“No wonder you two quarrel. So it’s because of her! Meng Tingmo, you really are a bastard!”

Everyone agreed with Feng You’s words, but in front of Jiang Yufei, they had to give Meng Tingmo some face.

“Tingmo hasn’t said the reason yet. Maybe it’s not because of her… Tingmo, say something!”

“How did Miss Jiang get here? Tingmo invited you? He must’ve been drunk and talking nonsense. Why don’t you head back first?”

“Did you drive here or take a car? I can call a ride for you.”

Jiang Yufei’s smile grew stiff.

She pointed at Meng Tingmo. “Tingmo told me to come and have fun, so I came. Don’t mind me.”

And so, everyone looked to Meng Tingmo.

Meng Tingmo: …

Among them, Han Qi and Feng You’s gazes were the sharpest. Feng You he understood—Feng family had always valued integrity. Though Feng You acted like a playboy at times, he never wavered on important matters. It was only natural he couldn’t stand this behavior.

But Han Qi? What was going on there?

Meng Tingmo guessed it might be because of Han Qi’s background. Han Qi was an orphan—he probably cared about family issues more than most. Just that morning he saw Yun Ruo going alone to her prenatal check-up, and that very evening, he had brought another woman out to play…

Honestly, if it wasn’t himself, even he would think such behavior was scummy.

But what could he do?

“It was me who invited her.” Meng Tingmo admitted, letting Jiang Yufei come sit down. “She just got back from abroad, so I thought she could meet everyone and chat a little. Nothing else.”

“You still—” Feng You started, but when Meng Tingmo shot him a look, he immediately shut up. Compared to Meng Tingmo, he didn’t have that kind of authority. In this group, most people followed Meng Tingmo’s lead.

Fine. If he couldn’t afford to fight, he could at least avoid it. Feng You grabbed his jacket, saying he had to leave: “My mom called me home for dinner.”

Not even bothering to make up a proper excuse.

“Not cool,” someone muttered quietly. “Couldn’t you take me with you?”

Clearly, tonight’s gathering wasn’t one they could continue enjoying.

After Feng You left, the rest stayed for a bit, but the conversation grew fragmented. Jiang Yufei tried to join in, but every attempt ended in awkwardness. Eventually, the others also started making excuses to leave.

“Just remembered I’ve got something to deal with.”

“My car got hit, need to handle it.”

“My girlfriend’s waiting, gotta go.” (In truth, there was no girlfriend.)

Some couldn’t even think of excuses and simply used an alarm call as a reason to exit. In the end, only Meng Tingmo, Jiang Yufei, and Han Qi were left in the private room.

“So quiet,” Jiang Yufei said, looking at Meng Tingmo. “Maybe I really shouldn’t have come.”

Meng Tingmo kept pouring himself drinks.

“There’s still someone here,” he said, pointing at Han Qi. “At least you’re holding it together.”

“It’s not me holding it together,” Han Qi replied, taking a sip. He’d entered this circle when Yun Ruo, Meng Tingmo, and Jiang Yufei’s entanglement was at its peak. He knew a bit of the backstory. “It’s your wife. Not mine.”

Meng Tingmo’s expression froze. Why did that sound so sarcastic?

Han Qi stood as well. “Whatever comes of this, you’ll face it yourself. Just make sure you think it through.”

“Result?” Meng Tingmo pulled at the corner of his mouth. What outcome could possibly be worse than this?

Soon, only two people remained in the room.

“They don’t know the truth,” Jiang Yufei said angrily. “Yun Ruo manipulates their feelings, and they still defend her. Just thinking about it makes me sick.”

“So what do you plan to do now?”

Leaning back in his chair, Meng Tingmo asked faintly, “Do you have an idea?”

“Are you just going to drag this out forever?”

Of course, he couldn’t just drag it out. The stalemate only wasted time.

Yun Ruo had married him for money. If she discovered she couldn’t get anything from him, wouldn’t she willingly release her so-called “control” over him?

“If she leaves you, then she won’t be able to control you anymore, right?” Jiang Yufei suddenly said.

Meng Tingmo lifted his eyes, gaze unreadable. He stayed silent as time ticked by.

“You’re not reluctant, are you?” Jiang Yufei sneered. “Controlled into falling in love with her, then controlled into resigning yourself to her.”

Meng Tingmo hated nothing more than being used and deceived.

“I know what to do,” he said at last, looking away. The bottle was empty. He didn’t linger further.

He had made up his mind.

Two days later, at the Meng family’s old residence.

Yun Ruo, now heavily pregnant, had stopped working and spent her days resting at home. On the day of the banquet, she arrived early at the old house.

Mother Meng had arranged everything already. Yun Ruo only needed to sit, sip water, and chat. Normally, it was easy work, but today it felt exhausting.

“You and Tingmo are still in a cold war?” Mother Meng asked the moment she saw Yun Ruo arrive alone.

Yun Ruo preferred to maintain the appearance of a harmonious marriage. She didn’t want her in-laws, already advanced in years, to worry. Her own family had been gone for a long time—sometimes Mother Meng’s concern felt like the care of a mother she no longer had.

“Give it a little time. He’s busy with work these days. Once he’s done, I’ll sit down and talk with him properly.”

Mother Meng just shook her head. She didn’t believe for a second that if Meng Tingmo stepped away from work, the Meng Corporation would collapse. Clearly, he simply didn’t want to talk.

She couldn’t scold Yun Ruo.

She’d just have to wait until the banquet was over to discipline her son.

At seven, the banquet officially began. After three years as a wealthy family’s young mistress, Yun Ruo knew the etiquette well. Now, with her pregnancy, no one would make things difficult. She followed her in-laws, greeted a few people, then found a seat to rest.

“Why isn’t Tingmo here yet?” Father Meng asked quietly.

Mother Meng lowered her phone. She had already called several times. All Meng Tingmo replied was a text: “I’ll be there soon.” But how long was “soon”?

“I was wrong. I should’ve beaten him more when he was a kid.”

Father Meng pressed his lips together. He thought the same.

Yun Ruo sat quietly in a corner.

She saw He Xitong’s parents, who even came over to greet her—clearly unaware of the falling-out between her and He Xitong.

But He Xitong himself wasn’t there.

Nor was Yun Jia. He had completely stopped answering her calls and had probably already put her on his blocklist.

Meng Tingmo’s friends, however, all came by to greet her.

She smiled and responded politely. Feng You even pounded his chest, declaring, “You’re the only sister-in-law I recognize!”

“Sis-in-law, you’ll always be my sis-in-law!”

Yun Ruo: ?

“Do you know something?” she asked.

Feng You scratched his head. “Huh? I just mean Tingmo’s got great taste. How much good karma did he earn in his past life to meet you—”

Before he could finish, his mother dragged him away. Saying nonsense like that at the Meng family’s banquet, with all these people watching—if you wanted to talk, at least wait until in private.

Once Feng You left, Yun Ruo put away her smile. She had no idea how many times she’d smiled already tonight. She was utterly drained.

“Tingmo still isn’t here?” Han Qi appeared beside her. Noticing her empty glass, he wanted to refill it but then remembered this was the Meng family’s house, so he pulled his hand back. “The banquet’s been going for a while now.”

Yun Ruo thought of answering but realized any excuse would only sound ridiculous.

Feng You clearly knew something, and Han Qi, as Meng Tingmo’s friend, likely knew as well.

Whatever excuse she came up with would be a joke.

“I don’t know.” She answered honestly.

Han Qi shrugged and casually shifted the topic. “I once wanted you to come to my company, but you went to Meng Corporation instead.”

Thinking of that résumé incident, Yun Ruo relaxed a little. “The version you helped me with wasn’t good enough. I later asked someone else to revise it, and only then did I get an interview.”

“But back then, I didn’t realize the company you suggested was yours.”

Han Qi was the same age as Meng Tingmo. He had only told her the company’s name, so she thought he was just a small employee helping recruit.

“Just a small company,” Han Qi said. It wasn’t false modesty. When Yun Ruo was job-hunting, his company wasn’t well-known, with fewer than twenty employees.

Yun Ruo gave him a thumbs-up. “Not a small company anymore.”

In the business world now, everyone knew Han Qi’s name.

The topic ended, and silence fell between them.

Then Han Qi suddenly spoke about the past: “Once, we faced a huge crisis. The company almost went under. For a long time, I couldn’t sleep.”

Yun Ruo thought carefully but hadn’t heard of this. “But you must’ve overcome it.”

“That’s what everyone thought.” Han Qi wasn’t surprised by her response—he rarely mentioned this story. “In reality, I failed.”

Yun Ruo’s eyes widened in shock.

Han Qi said, “It happened the year before I asked you to join the company. We shut down. Couldn’t even pay wages.”

“Then how did you…”

“I just started over.”

Han Qi didn’t look at her, lost in old memories. “Starting over is always hard. Failure drains patience and confidence, makes you timid and self-pitying.

“It was a really tough time.”

“But no matter how big the setback, after enough years pass, you can look back and laugh about it.”

Yun Ruo was dazed. She couldn’t shake the feeling that there was another meaning behind his words.

But Han Qi was only talking about his own experiences.

He raised his glass. “A person’s potential is limitless. When you think you can’t, you actually can.”

It sounded like a motivational story conclusion. Yun Ruo set aside her distracting thoughts and echoed, “Mm-hm. So the moral is: failure helps you grow. As long as you work hard, you’ll succeed.”

That actually made Han Qi laugh. “You’re treating me like a children’s story narrator.”

Yun Ruo laughed too—this time, genuinely.

Han Qi was about to say more when a commotion stirred in the hall. Meng Tingmo had arrived.

He came with Yun Jia, saying they had been delayed on the way.

Across the crowd, Yun Ruo and Meng Tingmo locked eyes for a second before he quickly looked away. She had no choice but to go greet him.

With so many people watching, she couldn’t afford to embarrass them.

Yun Jia, though present, looked sour. Yun Ruo thought it was because he didn’t want to see her, so she didn’t try speaking to him. She went straight to Meng Tingmo’s side. “Why so late?”

Meng Tingmo answered coolly, then turned warmly to converse with the man across from him.

Which left the other man glancing awkwardly at Yun Ruo, clearly uncomfortable.

Her body stiffened, but she quickly adjusted. She reached to hold Meng Tingmo’s arm. “Mom wants us to go over.”

It wasn’t a lie. As hosts, the Mengs had to say a few words. At this point, Meng Tingmo should naturally follow.

“Wait a little,” Meng Tingmo said casually. “I also invited a friend tonight. Once she’s here, I’ll go.

“Or you can go first.”

Yun Ruo didn’t move. “What friend?”

She knew all of Meng Tingmo’s friends. Except for He Xitong, the rest were already here.

“She’s here.” Meng Tingmo didn’t explain. He just tilted his chin toward the doorway.

Yun Ruo looked over.

And saw Jiang Yufei.

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