After Xu Tingyu learned that she had been drugged, she was so shocked that she even forgot she was still in his arms.
Out of panic, she pressed against his chest and looked up at him.
"You mean I was drugged, and you took me to the hospital?"
"Yes. We went to the hospital first. The test result showed it was sleeping pills."
There were also some other less pleasant ingredients, but Qi Shifeng didn't mention them for fear of scaring her.
He lowered his eyes, and his fingertips idly rubbed the soft flesh around her waist.
Strangely enough, they rarely had such a peaceful moment to talk.
The position they were in even made it seem a bit tender.
But Xu Tingyu was still scared and pressed him further. "How could this happen?"
She thought it was because she had been recording a show and acting as a stand - in the day before, and was completely exhausted, which was why she fell asleep in Qi Ye's car.
So she had actually been drugged?
She hadn't noticed anything.
Seeing her pale face and how tightly she was clinging to him, Qi Shifeng's annoyance caused by her recent strange behavior faded a bit.
"You should ask yourself."
What people she had contacted and what she had eaten.
But his voice was so cold that it brought Xu Tingyu back to her senses.
Realizing that she was clinging to his shoulders and huddled in his arms, she immediately backed away.
"I... I'll figure it out."
"However, this is not a reason for you to bring me back here and do such things to me."
"We're already discussing divorce. Some things shouldn't be done anymore."
Wrapped in the quilt, her fair skin and fragrant shoulders were half - hidden, covered with ambiguous red marks that made one's imagination run wild.
But as soon as her rosy lips parted, all that came out were unpleasant words.
Qi Shifeng's mind flashed the image of the torn - up divorce agreement, and the anger he had just managed to suppress flared up again.
"Xu Tingyu, remember your identity."
"Even if we're getting divorced, you're not qualified to sign the agreement first."
This statement was really strange.
An agreement that required the signatures of both parties to take effect, an agreement that neither party had any objections to, did the order really matter?
Xu Tingyu looked at him again, from his cold lips to his cold eyes.
Her heart grew desolate bit by bit.
"You always say I'm not qualified. Fine, then I'm not."
"Please, President Qi, draft the agreement yourself. I'll wait."
After saying that, she got out of bed and didn't give him another chance to humiliate her.
The previous agreement was brought by Liu Ning. She didn't know why he was picking on her again.
But that was a matter between him and his mother.
She was in a crisis right now. Even though her guard was so high, someone still managed to take advantage of her. She didn't have the energy to care why he was being so difficult.
She was familiar with the place. She took a shower, changed into the clothes she had left behind, and left the villa without even looking at Qi Shifeng.
She soon got confirmation from Qi Ye about what had happened the day before.
After she fell into a deep sleep and showed abnormal symptoms, Qi Shifeng did take her to the hospital.
She recalled all her activities from the day before.
She had breakfast at home, so there should be no problem there.
Lunch was at the TV station. It was takeout ordered by the program crew. She randomly picked one, and the takeout bag was intact.
As for dinner, it was a bread she bought casually from a convenience store on the way to the filming set.
Which step had gone wrong?
Finally, after some investigation, she remembered that someone had given her a bottle of water during a filming break.
Although it was late autumn, she was wearing layers of ancient - style costumes and had danced many times, so her forehead was sweating.
When the crew was adjusting the lights and preparing to film again from a side angle, a staff member brought her a bottle of water.
She didn't think much and took a few sips.
Could it be that the water was the problem?
But she had no grudges against the staff member. Why would he drug her with sleeping pills?
What was the motive and purpose?
She couldn't figure it out.
Just as she was holding her head in distress, Zhang Qiu's call came in.
"Tingyu, you still haven't quit that show?"
"You're just rubbing the faces of our Xu family and the Qi family on the ground."
When she answered the phone, she didn't even have a chance to call the other person before the scolding came one after another.
Xu Tingyu was stunned, and pain flashed in her eyes.
"Mom, it's just a job. What does it have to do with the honor of the two families?"
It was okay for others to say such things about her.
But didn't Zhang Qiu know her difficulties?
"You're the second young mistress of the Qi family and the wife of the president of Qi Group. What kind of job do you need?"
"Your father's body is barely cold, and you're acting like nothing's wrong and going on a show. When your identity is revealed, our two families will become a laughingstock."
"People will only think that you're so eager for fame that you don't even care about filial piety."
"They'll also laugh at the Qi family for having such an ignorant daughter - in - law like you."
Zhang Qiu simply wouldn't listen to her explanation.
But Xu Tingyu heard the subtext and was stunned for a moment. Then she suddenly laughed.
"Mom, what on earth did I do that's so heinous?"
"If I don't bring money home, you say I'm an unfilial white - eyed wolf."
"But, Mom, I need to have money first before I can give it to the family."
"So I work, but then you scold me for being eager for fame."
Since the Xu family's downfall, she had never complained to Zhang Qiu even once.
She hadn't even discussed the situation of the external debts with her.
It was because she understood that Zhang Qiu was already sad enough, and she didn't want to trouble her with these things.
Zhang Qiu was silent for a moment but then became even more agitated.
"You're blaming us for dragging you down? Xu Tingyu, you're blaming us?"
Before Xu Tingyu could explain, she continued to scream shrilly.
"You've really become something. Just because you've brought a little money home, you think you're so great, don't you?"
"Back then when your father was still alive and our Xu family hadn't gone bankrupt, why didn't I hear you complaining?"
"You walked on the path paved for you by the Xu family and became the wife of the president of Qi Group. Now you think we're a burden."
From the moment Zhang Qiu's voice started to tremble with sobs, Xu Tingyu knew there was no reasoning with her.
Zhang Qiu didn't want to hear her hardships.
She just needed an outlet for her emotions.
So she stopped talking and let Zhang Qiu scold her.
It wasn't until Zhang Qiu was tired of scolding that she ordered her, "You must quit the competition. Otherwise, you're just trying to kill me."
Xu Tingyu finally picked up the phone again and only asked one question.
"Mom, I can quit the competition. But where will the medical expenses for Jiajia, your living expenses, and the money for Jiajia's future schooling come from?"
Hearing her mention Xu Jiajia, Zhang Qiu hesitated a bit.
But she quickly came to her senses and asked sharply.
"You're sitting on a mountain of gold but don't know how to use it. You still ask me where it comes from?"
"Just coax Shifeng a little and ask him for some pocket money. That'll be enough."
It was the same old story again.
Zhang Qiu knew very well about her awkward situation in the Qi family but still refused to give up. She thought that since she was Qi Shifeng's wife, it was only natural for her to spend his money.
She didn't know that Qi Shifeng had only bought her a 200 - yuan fake ring. How could he spend other money on her?
Moreover, since they were already preparing for divorce, it was even more impossible for him to give her money.
"Don't worry about my work. I know what I'm doing."
"You should care more about Jiajia. He has a lot of study pressure. Don't bother him with other things."