“Of course I think about it,” Xu Tingyu said seriously. “But it’s always for Youyou, Ruixi. Tell me—if I don’t sue your brother, do you really think I have a decent chance of getting custody?”
She was actually weighing the idea of going to court.
But a public trial would hurt both companies, and it would definitely wound Youyou. The ideal outcome was to settle this quietly, behind closed doors.
Qi Ruixi was stunned. “Custody?”
“You don’t think it’s possible either?” Xu asked, seeing the look on her sister’s face.
Qi Ruixi’s expression softened into something else. “It’s not that I don’t think you could get custody. I just don’t see why you’d want it.”
“What do you mean?” Xu frowned.
“Look,” Qi said, leaning back. “My brother doesn’t stop you from seeing Youyou. You can visit whenever you want. If you’re busy, you can focus on your career. You’ve got freedom. He’s got the money, the connections—Youyou goes to school here in Jingdu. He’ll be in a good position to inherit the Qi Corporation someday.”
“Whether the legal custody is in your name or not, he’s still your son. But men can be unpredictable. What if he remarries?” Qi was younger, but in some matters she had a maturity beyond her years. To her, if Qi Shifeng didn’t forbid visits now, custody papers mattered less than long-term stability.
From material comforts to educational resources, Youyou would be better off with Qi Shifeng. Xu’s life was fine, but her job kept her traveling the world. Was she really going to drag the child back and forth?
Xu fell silent. She understood it—if she had truly wanted custody, she would have fought for it already. But she had other concerns.
“You say he doesn’t stop us from seeing him now,” she said, voice low. “But who can guarantee he’ll still feel that way in the future?”
Her biggest fear was what would happen if Qi Shifeng fell in love again. Legally they were still married, but in her heart the marriage had been over for a long time. They were both young; the future was uncertain.
“We’ll worry about that later,” Qi shrugged. “By the time Youyou’s old enough to decide things, he’ll know my brother loves him. He’ll listen.”
Qi had watched Qi Shifeng doting on Youyou these past years. She’d never realized how fond her brother could be around children. The reassurance drew out a small, rueful smile from Xu.
“Alright. Let time handle it,” she said.
They shared a look and a smile, about to move on to another topic when two men drifted over.
“Hey, ladies—how about a drink?” one said, polite but not much. Before either woman could answer, they sat down.
Xu and Qi exchanged a quick glance. Xu’s reply was cool. “Sorry. We’re waiting for friends. Not a good time.”
The bar was a regular haunt of theirs—safe enough. But the men weren’t taking the hint. “Just one drink. We can go when your friends arrive,” the taller one said, and already reached to pour whisky into their glasses.
“No, we said it’s inconvenient. Can’t you take a hint?” Qi’s temper flared. She had little patience for jerks, especially unattractive ones.
The men grinned wider. “Don’t be mad, beautiful. Even angry you look good. Big brother likes that.”
“Think you’re being disrespectful? I’ll give you one chance—get out. Now.”
Xu had had enough. Her voice cut through the noise. The men, probably drunk, felt insulted. One of them sneered, loud and crude.
“What, you two think you’re too good for this place? Two women out late—they must be gold-diggers.”
“Or maybe you think we’re not rich enough? Don’t worry. We’re not billionaires, but we’ve got enough to—” he fumbled into his pocket and pulled out a wad of bills. “Here. Three thousand to start. Not enough? Two more thousand, no problem.”
He shoved the money toward Xu, then tried to stuff it into her jacket.
In one smooth motion, Xu grabbed his hand, twisted it, and yanked it back. The man screamed, clutching his wrist.
“You bitch, let go!” he howled, half in pain, half in spite.
Xu ignored him. When his companion moved to intervene, she struck first—a vicious kick to his groin. He doubled over, howling.
Qi, seeing Xu take the offensive, grabbed an empty beer bottle and lifted it. “Want to spend the night in a cell?” she warned.
A large man suddenly moved in with calm authority. “Miss, are you all right?” It was Qi Ruixi’s bodyguard.
The two assailants, now staring down both beauty and the muscle beside them, tried to backpedal. “It’s a misunderstanding! We were hired—no, wait, not on purpose. We didn’t mean anything.”
Once they realized who Xu and Qi were—both strikingly beautiful, and not the kind to play along—they had misjudged the situation. They hadn’t counted on Xu’s sudden fierceness or Qi’s security detail. They switched to begging and began naming the person who had sent them.
Xu smashed the bottle on the table, flinging splintered glass aside, and forced the captured man’s hand onto the edge. She pressed the jagged shard to the back of his hand.
“Who sent you?” she demanded.
“He—” the man was white as a sheet. “I don’t know him. It was a woman. On the second floor. I swear—please don’t hurt me.”
Xu glanced up to the mezzanine and saw a figure slipping away.
“Let’s go,” she said, releasing the man and tossing the rest of the bottle aside.
Qi followed, bodyguard in tow. As they walked through the bar, the crowd instinctively made a path; Xu’s presence had a way of cutting through a room.
On the second floor, the person who stepped into view made Xu’s breath hitch. Su Yi. Xu’s frown deepened. She hadn’t given him any reason to target her—why would he send men to trouble her?
Before she could speak, another face appeared beside him.
“Miss Xu, impressive—willing to throw hands in a bar,” Zhao You said, grin dripping sarcasm. “You and your amusement-park antics are quite the contrast, aren’t you?”