Four years had passed since the last time the "husband - wife" battle of the president of the Qi Corporation made it onto the news, and this time, it caught countless people's attention once again.
"Come on! I only remember that the Qi Corporation once issued a statement saying that the two divorced amicably due to personality differences. How come there's more to this story?"
"I remember that too. But I never heard there was a child back then. Why are they suddenly fighting for custody after so long?"
"This is just too absurd. Could it be that it's not the same ex - wife? After all, so much time has passed. How could she only come to fight for custody now?"
"I think so too. Maybe it's his second wife. But the age of the child doesn't match. If it is his second wife, wouldn't President Qi have had an affair during his first marriage?"
"No, it's the child from his first marriage. And President Qi hasn't remarried. This child is the son of his ex - wife."
"Then why didn't the woman ask for custody when they got divorced? Children during the lactation period are most likely to be awarded to the mother."
"Since the custody was given to the man back then, why is she suddenly fighting for it now? And hiring someone to kill? That's just crazy!"
"I think the woman is being irrational. The Qi family is so rich. That child is like a crown prince! But with this commotion, the property might end up in the hands of outsiders."
"The world is really a huge shoddy production. I thought the fight for custody would be a back - and - forth between lawyers, but I didn't expect it to be solved by force."
"The woman is doing this for the sky - high alimony, right? Keeping the child by her side is like keeping a gold mine."
"I think we should all be rational. These are all just rumors for now. If the truth is not like this, it will be a great harm to both the child and the woman."
...
After the public opinion fermented, even Xu Tingyu, who was imprisoned, got to know about it.
Of course, she didn't find out by looking at the news on her phone. It was Qi Ye who told her.
After finishing his work and adjusting his mood, he came back to see her.
When he saw her wearing a sports suit that covered her up tightly and standing warily by the bed looking at him, he couldn't help but chuckle.
"Don't worry. I won't force you until you divorce Qi Shifeng and marry me."
He still showed full gentlemanly grace.
Maybe due to his physical condition, he was indeed more indifferent to worldly desires than ordinary people and thus pursued more spiritual things.
Xu Tingyu wasn't the least bit embarrassed when he saw through her intention of changing into the sports suit.
She didn't trust him at all now and could only try her best to protect herself.
"I won't marry you. Don't even dream about it."
She still looked at him warily, her tone cold.
Qi Ye didn't seem to care at all. He walked up to her and handed over his phone.
"Tingyu, now you can only rely on me. Qi Shifeng doesn't trust you at all. He thinks you planned all this."
On the phone screen was a trending topic that had gone viral.
Xu Tingyu frowned and took a look. The comment section seemed to be guided, and all the comments were criticizing her.
However, for now, people were criticizing the "ex - wife of the president of the Qi Corporation" rather than "Xu Tingyu", and it hadn't affected her company yet.
Qi Ye had been staring at her expression. Seeing her frown, the smile on his lips grew wider.
"Look, the trust between you two is so fragile. In the end, you're not from the same world. You won't have a good ending."
He was like a teacher, carefully "guiding" his most beloved student, as if he was afraid she would go astray.
Xu Tingyu didn't want to pay any attention to him. She just wanted to find out more from the trending topic.
What did it mean that Qi Shifeng's life or death was uncertain?
"Did you send someone to kill him?"
She looked up, shocked, and the fingers holding the phone turned white from the force.
Qi Ye was a bit angry that the focus of her attention was completely different from what he wanted her to focus on.
"The point now is that he doesn't trust you and thinks you're the one behind all this."
He took a step forward, snatched the phone from her hand, and a hint of cruelty flashed in his eyes.
Maybe Qi Shifeng's existence was the biggest obstacle between him and Xu Tingyu. He shouldn't have been soft - hearted.
Xu Tingyu was even more excited than he had expected. "Do you think I'm a three - year - old? If it weren't for your instigation, how could he think I did this?"
He even dared to show her the news.
Did he think he had done everything so perfectly that he couldn't wait to show off to her? Or did he think she was a stupid fool who couldn't figure out the ins and outs?
"Qi Ye, do you know the biggest difference between you and Qi Shifeng? He's always open and straightforward. He never uses such despicable means to play with people's hearts."
The Qi brothers had both grown up under the high - pressure environment of the Qi family, but they had completely different personalities.
Qi Ye seemed gentle and gentlemanly on the surface, but in fact, he was very calculating and had no bottom - line in his actions.
Qi Shifeng seemed cold on the surface, but in fact, he was soft - hearted, pure, and upright and responsible.
"Have you forgotten how he treated you? And you're still speaking up for him? Xu Tingyu, are you really such a love - struck fool who can't tell right from wrong?"
Qi Ye was angry. He even threw the phone out forcefully.
In his imagination, after seeing the news, Xu Tingyu should have been heart - broken and sworn to fight Qi Shifeng to the end.
If that were the case, he could have smoothly arranged the next step and let them get divorced.
Of course, he could also forcefully arrange the next step, but that would ruin the perfection he wanted.
"How he treated me back then was our business. At least, he never chained me here like a dog."
"Nor did he ever threaten me with the people I care about."
"Even now, I'm starting to wonder if some of the things that made me unhappy were really done by him?"
Xu Tingyu decided to just say whatever came to her mind.
Anyway, even if she pretended to be obedient and nice, this man still wouldn't let her see Youyou.
So she might as well just break the pot and smash it.
"Also, since Qi Shifeng's life or death is uncertain and you won't let me see Youyou to confirm his safety, why don't you just kill our whole family of three."
With red eyes, she no longer hid her disgust for him.
Qi Ye of course couldn't stand this. He took a step back and then said in disbelief, "You actually think so highly of him?"
"Have you forgotten that when your Xu family went bankrupt, he refused to help and even let Cai Lan snatch so many of your businesses?"
"And how many times did he abandon you to see Xie Yu? He even let himself be on the trending topic with Xie Yu just to protect her from being sexually harassed."
"Did he ever think that you were his wife when he did all these things? And now you think he's open and straightforward?"
He seemed unable to accept this. Throwing the phone wasn't enough. He also pushed over the chair beside him.
"Yes, but back then, he clearly told me that he didn't love me. It was me who insisted on hitting the wall. These are all things we can openly admit."
"Unlike you, you're a coward. You're jealous of Qi Shifeng but you don't dare to admit it. You're just a hypocrite who uses love for me as a pretext!"