Zhang Yujun knelt on the floor tiles below, the ground freshly coated with snow that had already melted. The unrelished snow water drilled from his knees straight into his heart, the cold making him shiver uncontrollably, not to mention his upper body was bare.
However, fear not. Endure this bitter deception a bit longer, and once past this ordeal, a limitless future awaited, with a beauty for a bride and a steadily rising career. What couldn’t be earned back?
As Zhang Yujun, shivering, reached for the megaphone again, intending to speak, he saw someone stride quickly out of the building. His eyes lit up, but when he recognized who it was, his brows furrowed slightly.
Having been through two lifetimes, Cheng Su had seen the shameless, but never someone as shameless as this, with deception second to none. No wonder Xiao Ya, that naive girl, had fallen into this trap; innocent and harmless, how could she know the perils of a person’s heart? Truly, if she were to marry such a person, she wouldn’t be enough to even amuse him for a moment.
Scanning the surroundings again, she noted that people had already been drawn to Zhang Yujun’s despicable behavior, pointing at him and at Ying Xiaoya’s home, whispering to each other. She didn’t need to guess to know what they were talking about.
At this rate, Xiao Ya would indeed become someone who couldn’t show her face in public!
With a grim expression, Cheng Su walked over, stood in front of Zhang Yujun, and snatched the megaphone from his hands.
"Miss Cheng, what is the meaning of this?" Zhang Yujun frowned.
Cheng Su sneered, "What’s the meaning? Mr. Zhang, you’ve really put on quite a show. How long did you ponder over this ruse of penance by punishment? How long did you scheme in secret?"
Zhang Yujun’s face slightly changed as he said, "I don’t understand what you’re implying, Miss Cheng. Please return my things. I’ve done wrong and rightfully need to beg for Xiao Ya’s forgiveness."
"Enough of that, let’s not beat around the bush. You’re doing this to back someone into a corner so they’ll have no choice but to marry you to protect their reputation, right? To cling to a powerful tree and avoid thirty years of struggle? It’s crystal clear, so why the pretense?" Cheng Su looked at him with cold sarcasm.
Zhang Yujun’s face turned varying shades of red, white, and blue as he said, "I don’t know what you’re talking about, please step aside!"
"Zhang Yujun, I’d advise you not to block your own path," Cheng Su said from a position of authority. "A woman’s reputation is indeed important, but you’ve forgotten this is the era of reform and opening-up, not the Manchu Qing period. No matter how much you talk, even to the point of blooming flowers with your words, do you think you can really win the beauty? Keep dreaming. Any father who cherishes his daughter wouldn’t choose someone as despicable and shameless as you. And your so-called penance by punishment is nothing but fueling the fire. I’ll give you a piece of advice, go back where you came from, and better not show your face in Qing City again, otherwise you won’t know what hit you."
Zhang Yujun’s face finally took on a grave look: "Are you threatening me?"
"So what if I am? If you can stoop so low to do such things, then what’s a verbal threat? Zhang Yujun, nobody is a fool. You put on a grand farce here, acting crazy and stupid—quite an unseemly sight!" Cheng Su spoke coldly.
"You..."
"One more thing, leave at once and stay far away. Don’t show up here again. In Qing City, you no longer have a place to stand." Cheng Su spoke in a chilling tone, "Do you know why I came down? Initially, it was County Chief Ying who intended to come down—with a knife in hand. Zhang Yujun, do you really think the Ying family would give you their daughter just because you kneel and shed a few crocodile tears? Either you overestimate yourself, or you take the Ying family for fools."