14: Chapter 14 Xu Mengjie's Past

Xu Mengjie set off from home with high ambitions and the expectations of her family, resolutely embarking on her journey.

What followed was a ruthless beating by society, leaving her feeling entirely self-conscious and insecure.

She no longer dared to brag in front of her parents.

She planned to have a serious talk with her parents next time she returned, telling them that one should remain down-to-earth and not aim too high.

As for her own life over these past few years, not only had she divorced her husband, but her career was also in a shambles, and now, two shareholders were waiting to withdraw their stakes.

One of those shareholders was her former husband, who had pursued her since college, all the way until graduation.

They had founded a company together and spent every day in each other's company.

Additionally, he had taken great care of her at work, constantly checking in on her, which touched her deeply, and she eventually accepted his marriage proposal.

On one hand, she would have someone to rely on; on the other, the controlling stake of the company would remain in their own hands.

They immediately informed their families, though Xu Mengjie's mother was strongly opposed to the marriage at the time.

She said that the "little white face" did not look like marriage material, and it was only after much pestering that she finally agreed to the union.

With the blessing of both sets of parents, the two were successfully wed.

Little did she know that just over a year into the marriage, her husband would frequently come up with various excuses, claiming he had to handle company business.

Because they had a clear division of labor and each handled different tasks, she didn't suspect much.

From then on, he would return home very late every day, often drunk.

At the time, she had naively asked him why he came home so late and in such a drunken state.

Her husband replied that he was preparing to sign a major contract, and since he had been following up on it for some time, he naturally had to wine and dine the clients.

Hearing him say this, she felt quite touched at the time.

When they had first founded the company, both of them had gone out to solicit business, so she knew how difficult it was.

Seeing her husband working so hard, she felt that she hadn't married the wrong man.

That was until one night, when her husband returned home drunk again, and there was a very obvious lipstick mark on his neck.

From that moment on, she sensed that something was wrong; although she was married, she was no fool.

After all, she had majored in Business Administration.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have thought about starting her own business and making a name for herself right out of school.

Of course, that night, she pretended not to know anything and even took the initiative to wipe the lipstick mark off for him.

Afterward, she went to work as usual, while her husband continued to tell her that he was out soliciting business every day.

She, however, began to investigate in secret.

Hard work pays off, and she finally discovered some clues.

One time, while she was in the restroom, she overheard two employees discussing office gossip.

As they chatted, the conversation turned to her husband and another shareholder, a junior named Xiao Meier.

Employee A: "Have you heard? Business Director Zhao Dong and Sales Manager Xiao Meier seem to go out together often. They seem quite intimate."

Employee B: "Really? Isn't Director Zhao Dong married to our General Manager, Xu Mengjie? Who did you hear that from? You can't just say things like that."

Employee A: "How should I know? I just heard others in the company talking about it. Think about it—there's no smoke without fire, right?"

Employee B: "That's true. The General Manager is such a beautiful woman. What is Zhao Dong thinking?"

Employee A: "What is he thinking? Don't men always have their eyes on the bowl while eating from the pot? You know the saying—wild flowers are always more fragrant than the ones at home."

"And then there's Manager Xiao. She might not be as pretty as our General Manager, but look at how she dresses. That style of hers—she's practically exposing everything. How many men could resist that?"

"Exactly. Even I, a woman, wouldn't dare to dress like that at home; I'd feel embarrassed, let alone in public."

"Forget it, let's stop talking. It's got nothing to do with small employees like us. If someone finds out we're gossiping behind their backs, we'll be in big trouble."

With that, the two walked out of the restroom.

Once they were out of earshot, Xu Mengjie finally stepped out.

She knew Xiao Meier; back in college, she had been winking at and fawning over her husband.

A big reason Xu Mengjie had agreed to marry Zhao Dong was his appearance.

Zhao Dong was 1.8 meters tall and quite handsome, with a soft, delicate look like a puppy—what is commonly known as a "little white face."

But since Zhao Dong had been pursuing Xu Mengjie throughout college, Xiao Meier hadn't pestered him further.

Later, after they graduated from college and she heard they wanted to start a business, Xiao Meier had proactively joined them.

At the time, Xu Mengjie hadn't agreed to date Zhao Dong, so it didn't matter to her who joined.

Could they have gotten together?

Xu Mengjie hadn't seen it with her own eyes, so she wouldn't jump to conclusions. After all, seeing is believing, and it was better to remain skeptical about gossip.

As for Xiao Meier's style of dress, she had spoken to her about it privately many times.

After all, she was part of the company's management, so she had asked her to be mindful of her image in front of the employees.

Every time she said something, Xiao Meier would indeed tone it down for a few days, but she couldn't keep it up for long before reverting to her old ways, so Xu Mengjie eventually stopped wasting her breath.

After all, she was also a company shareholder, so it wasn't good to say too much.

She wasn't just an employee; if it were an employee, she could just fire them if they didn't listen.

Things remained peaceful for another week, until one day, when she felt unwell and left work early.

After she went home, took some medicine, and slept, she felt a little better.

She suddenly remembered an important document that needed to be handed over to a partner within the next couple of days.

She searched for it at home but couldn't find it, so she suspected she might have left it at the office and hurried over to check.

When she arrived, the office was pitch black, but there was a light on in the Sales Manager's office.

She didn't think much of it at the time, assuming someone had forgotten to turn off the light after work, and that she would just turn it off herself after she grabbed her documents.

After finding the documents in her own office, she decided to turn off the light in Xiao Meier's office before heading back.

Little did she know, as she walked to the door and prepared to go inside...

She suddenly heard a faint voice from inside. Listening carefully, the sound of rhythmic panting reached her ears, leaving her feeling as if she had been struck by lightning.

"How was it? I wasn't bad, was I?"

"It was alright. Is your Xu Mengjie not good enough for you?"

"Her? She's cold and icy all day long. When I want it, she won't give it to me. She can't provide any emotional value at all, and she even said my 'bird' is too small. Damn it, it pisses me off."

"Hmm, she wasn't wrong about that. It really is small."

"Can you even speak, damn it?"

"Alright, let's not talk about her. Are you doing it or not? If not, I'm going home."

"I'm coming, why wouldn't I? Let me rest for a few minutes, and I'll make you cry in a bit."

"Pfft, hahaha..."

"What are you laughing at?"

"Nothing. You rest. I'll play on my phone, and you can tell me when you're ready."

Looking at the recording on her phone, Xu Mengjie slowly returned home, completely devastated.

Although she had long suspected that something was wrong with Zhao Dong, knowing the truth at that moment was a completely different matter.

After graduation, she had poured all her focus into the company.

She wasn't as cold as Zhao Dong claimed; it was just that the company was in its early stages of development.

Furthermore, Zhao Dong would never wear protection, claiming it was uncomfortable, but Xu Mengjie didn't want to have a child so soon.

Zhao Dong told her it would be fine if she just took the morning-after pill, but Xu Mengjie wasn't an idiot—could that stuff really be taken so casually?

Taking it once or twice might be fine, but taking it too often would cause health problems.

From then on, she had become quite repulsed by the whole thing.