The news about the head of the Qi family having an affair, ruining his wife's family, and promoting his mistress's cousin to become a new noble in the capital had spread far and wide.
For a while, the aristocratic families that had originally intended to form a marriage alliance with the Qi family all avoided them like the plague.
Marriage alliances were not about love but about interests.
With this example in mind, everyone had to think twice about whether they would end up in the same situation.
Moreover, the turmoil was so great that bringing up the topic of a marriage alliance at this time would easily bring trouble upon themselves.
Those who had achieved their current status were all shrewd.
The Qi family was indeed prestigious, but getting involved with them was likely to bring bad reputations.
This was also one of the reasons why the old man was willing to make concessions.
Eight months would be enough for people to forget about this turmoil.
Xie Yu, who had originally planned to play the victim and gain some popularity during this opportunity, was also arranged by the Qi family to find a second - tier actor to promote a CP relationship.
Although she was extremely reluctant, as this would make it even more impossible for her to be with Qi Shifeng.
But this was Qi Shifeng's own intention, and she had no way to resist.
After she was discharged from the hospital, the bruise on the corner of her mouth was still there, and she was in such a bad mood that she drank all day.
Her assistant and agent both advised her, "This is also a chance for you to make a comeback. If you go public with Mr. Qi now, you'll be the target of public criticism. It's better to market a sibling - like relationship."
"And this also leaves room for the future. If you two get back together in the future, you can market a reunion after a breakup. Anyway, you won't lose out."
Hearing these words, Xie Yu just wanted to laugh.
Get back together? Reunion after a breakup?
She had never been in a relationship with Qi Shifeng. Where was there a reunion?
She had always established an image of being capable and independent, just to let him notice her shining points.
At the same time, she only showed her soft side to him, hoping that he would feel sorry for her occasionally.
Over the years, she had done a great job, but this man had never touched her, yet he had a child with Xu Tingyu.
That bitch Xu Tingyu had always ignored her.
No matter how deliberately she took photos or said ambiguous things, Xu Tingyu remained alarmingly calm.
She didn't love Qi Shifeng at all.
Just as the news said, she had someone else in her heart, but she stubbornly held on to the position of Mrs. Qi.
She was so unwilling that she poured herself another glass of wine.
Finally, the agent couldn't stand it anymore. He came over and took the wine glass from her hand. "Xie Yu, are you defeated like this? If the Qi family doesn't recognize you, then think of a way!"
Xie Yu broke down. "What else can I do?"
The agent poked her head in frustration. "Are you stupid? A mother can gain status through her child. Don't the aristocratic families value descendants?"
These words shocked Xie Yu.
Yes, even though Xu Tingyu and Qi Shifeng had such a bad relationship, she could still stop Qi Shifeng from getting a divorce because of their child.
If she got pregnant too and used public opinion to create momentum, she might also gain a glimmer of hope.
Thinking of this, Xie Yu immediately sat up straight. "Okay, first, admit the relationship according to Shifeng's intention and distance myself from him for now, but don't forget to arrange some anonymous accounts to post some things."
The agent was a bit confused. "Post what?"
"Post that the official announcement of the relationship was all to protect Qi Shifeng. I didn't want him to fall from his pedestal, so I was willing to sacrifice my reputation and act in a play with someone else."
"Also post that this relationship was arranged by Qi Shifeng to protect me. He mainly didn't want me to be at the center of the storm and become the target of public criticism."
Xie Yu played with her phone and showed a smug smile.
She was going to make the official announcement, but she didn't want everyone to believe it was real. She wanted to give some hope to those who firmly believed in her relationship with Qi Shifeng.
Simply put, she wanted it all.
Sure enough, on the day she officially announced her relationship, she was on the hot - search list again.
Some people believed it, while others didn't.
Those who believed it had already sorted out the love timeline between Xie Yu and her official boyfriend Chen Chi.
Those who didn't believe it still insisted that this was just a smokescreen to cover up the dirty secrets of the aristocratic family.
Whether people believed it or not, the Qi family seemed to have gotten out of this mess.
However, less than a week after this incident subsided, Qi Shifeng was photographed drunk late at night and being sent to Xie Yu's house.
Even faster, someone dug out that this property also belonged to Qi Shifeng.
It had been transferred to Xie Yu's name since she debuted.
So, the uproar started again.
When Qi Shifeng was sent to Xie Yu's place, Xu Tingyu also went out.
Recently, perhaps because a new agreement had been reached with the old man, Qi Shifeng no longer restricted her to stay at home.
But one thing was that if she wanted to take Youyou out, there must be someone following.
Xu Tingyu didn't know about the change in the agreement. She just thought he was making a concession.
He was afraid of driving her crazy and causing trouble at this critical moment.
So she just said indifferently that she knew.
This time when she went out, she really didn't take Youyou with her. Instead, she went straight to a mobile - phone store and bought two mobile phones.
Then she went to a party.
This party was organized by Shen Yan. All the people there were Xu Tingyu's childhood playmates, and Chen Chunyao was also there.
Before Xu Tingyu arrived, everyone was teasing Shen Yan.
"Mr. Shen, weren't you on the hot - search list with that Xie Yu before? What's going on? This time your opponent has emerged, and your name wasn't in the official announcement."
"Exactly. We originally thought you were going to snatch a woman from Qi Shifeng. We were almost going to give you a bow for your courage. Why did you back down?"
Shen Yan had many female companions, but recently, apart from Xie Yu, there had been no news of others, which made everyone think that he was really serious.
As a result, Xie Yu turned around and officially announced her relationship with Chen Chi, which really surprised them.
"You don't understand. I will snatch her, but it's not the right time yet."
Facing the teasing, Shen Yan wasn't angry. He still smiled casually.
When Xu Tingyu arrived, she happened to hear this sentence and couldn't help but look up.
There was a dry - ice fruit plate on the table. In the misty water vapor, their eyes met.
His eyes were pure and deep, with a hint of imperceptible grievance.
Xu Tingyu was stunned for a second and then smiled.
This guy. No wonder he had never received a bad review after break - ups. He already had a devilishly handsome face, and his eyes were so deceiving.
If she didn't know that he was getting close to Xie Yu to help her, she might also believe that he was really deeply in love with Xie Yu.
He even dared to think about snatching someone from Qi Shifeng.
When Shen Yan saw her coming, he didn't show any overly intimate behavior. He just smiled at her across the crowd. "Miss Xu, why are you so late?"
Everyone there knew that these two had never gotten along well before. They would always quarrel when they met.
No one expected that even when they were grown - ups, they still spoke to each other rudely when they met.
Someone laughed and advised, "Mr. Shen, be more polite when you speak. Have you forgotten the time when you were so angry with Tingyu when you were a kid that you hid in the attic and cried?"
Everyone burst into laughter, and Xu Tingyu also curved her eyebrows in the laughter.
"What are you guys talking nonsense about? When did I ever have such a disgraceful moment?"
Shen Yan scolded with a smile, but his expression was full of calmness and relaxation.