C15 Divorce Lu Yuan

Lu Yuan felt a mix of sorrow and joy at Su Lianyi's words.

Although Su Lianyi was willing to let him live with them, it was clear that she hadn’t forgiven him yet.

“Since Lianyi insists, we should at least give him a chance,” Su Yecheng said. He knew his daughter well, and could tell that she wouldn’t budge from this decision.

“It’s all right, Mom,” Su Xiaoyu spoke up after joining them. “Just think of it as a favor to Xiaoxiao.”

Suen Xiulian glared at Lu Yuan. She was outnumbered, and couldn’t possibly chase him away now. She had no choice but to let him stay, at least for now.

“Fine! But I’m telling you, our family doesn’t tolerate useless people. If you intend to stay under our roof, you’ll have to pay rent every month. 8,000! If you can’t afford it, then get the hell out of my house right now!” She sported a devious expression, as though she was certain that Lu Yuan would bow out.

But Lu Yuan was far from the man he had been five years ago. To the current him, 80 million was just chump change, let alone 8,000.

He immediately agreed to Suen Xiulian’s condition and happily hugged his daughter. With the matter settled, he followed Su Lianyi upstairs.

He had to sleep on the floor that night, but Xiaoxiao stubbornly lay with him. It was the first time she would be sleeping with her father, after all, and her excitement kept her awake until late into the night.

Lu Yuan gazed down at his sleeping daughter, his heart full. Even so, his guilt toward Su Lianyi never faded.

Meanwhile, Su Lianyi lay staring at the ceiling, her mind filled with incoherent ideas about the collaboration with the Qingyuan Group. She tossed and turned for most of the night, unable to shut her brain off.

“What’s wrong?” came Lu Yuan’s deep, magnetic voice. “Are you worried about the task your grandfather gave you?”

“It has nothing to do with you,” Su Lianyi snapped. “Be quiet or you’ll disturb Xiaoxiao.”

Lu Yuan smiled bitterly in the dark and said nothing else. It was meant to be a sleepless night for the former couple.

When Su Lianyi woke up the next morning, Lu Yuan had already left.

Five years of military life had practically set his daily activities in stone. He had never skipped morning training, and he wasn’t about to do so now.

Xiaoxiao rubbed her eyes and looked around the futon to find her father gone. Her eyes instantly filled with tears.

Su Lianyi tried to coax and comfort her, but the little girl wouldn’t stop crying. It wasn’t until Lu Yuan stepped through the door that she finally sniffled and swallowed her sobs. Su Xiaoxiao ran toward her father and hopped into his arms. She never let him out of her sight again.

After the ordeal, Su Lianyi was compelled to wait until Xiaoxiao was settled into her classroom before she left to do her own business. By then, she was already behind her schedule by half an hour.

The top floor of Tianzheng Group.

It was a crucial day for the company, as they would be signing a contract with the esteemed Gao family. The conference room was already teeming with shareholders.

“Old Master Gao, please take a look at this. This is the abstract we have come up with. We believe that if your company joins hands with ours, success will be guaranteed.”

Su Zheng bowed slightly as he handed over the documents to Old Master Gao, who was seated at the head of the table.

Su Zheng looked all too eager to please. He had already utilized every possible means in order to set up this meeting. As long as this joint venture became successful, he was certain that he would gain further favor with his grandfather.

However, Old Master Gao only glanced at the papers once and then asked casually, “Is this all?”

Su Zheng froze in horror. “Old Master Gao,” he began in an awkward tone. “Please feel free to make amendments. We’ll be sure to satisfy your conditions.” He just needed the old man to sign the agreement.

But Old Master Gao shook his head, a look of discontent on his face. “I can see why the Su family has never risen to the top. The profits you’re looking to bring into this project are insignificant, to say the least. This is unacceptable. If I sign this contract, not only will our Gao family incur financial losses, but we will become a laughingstock in the business world!”

The old man rose from his seat and made for the door, his subordinates following closely behind him.

Su Zheng desperately tried to persuade Old Master Gao to reconsider, but his efforts were in vain.

Old Master Gao had just exited the conference room when he spotted Lu Yuan and Su Lianyi rushing over from the opposite direction.

He stopped in his tracks and whirled around to face Su Zheng. “Tell me, are those two working for your company as well?”

Su Zheng craned his neck to see whom Old Master Gao was referring to. Although bewildered, he nodded and answered truthfully. “Ah, yes. That is my cousin, Su Lianyi, and her husband.”

Old Master Gao’s expression instantly shifted, his face breaking into a smile. “In that case, I don’t see any problem with a collaboration between our companies. Apologies, I was a little confused back there. Why don’t we head back inside and sign the contract?”

“Old Master Gao...” Su Zheng had no idea what to make of this development. The old man had been very frank about his disinterest. Why did he suddenly have a change of heart?

“What’s wrong, Mr. Su? Do you have any misgivings? Would you like to discuss the terms of the agreement further?”

Old Master Gao took the initiative to breach the subject.

In truth, he was only willing to sign the contract because of Lu Yuan. After their encounter the previous day, he had grown to admire the young man’s strength and tact.

If Lu Yuan had such a powerful subordinate, then his true identity must be beyond ordinary.

“Not at all, Old Master Gao. Let’s head inside and sign the contract.” Su Zheng brushed his reservations off. The most important matter at hand was to secure the cooperation.

Once the contract was settled, he happily sent Old Master Gao and his companions off, then went straight to the CEO’s office to report his achievement to Old Master Su.

“Grandpa, look! I convinced Old Master Gao to sign a contract with our company?”

“What did you say? Excellent! Ah, you are indeed my grandson. You’ve done well as my assistant. Now, go and gather the executives in the conference room. I want to commend you for your hard work and set you as an example to everyone.”

Ten minutes later.

Once again, the conference room was filled with people.

This time, it was Old Master Su who sat at the head of the table. “Everyone!” he called out in a booming voice. “I called you here to inform you that Su Zheng has just established a partnership between the Tianzheng Group and the Gao family.”

The room erupted in cheers and discussions.

“Zheng really is amazing! Who would have thought that he would be able to secure a contract with one of the most powerful families in Yun State?”

“But of course! Zheng even managed to tap into the Qingyuan Group. This was probably a walk in the park for him.”

Everyone was praising Su Zheng.

“Quiet down!” Old Master Su spoke again, and the crowd fell silent. “Let’s hear what Zheng has to say about his victory.”

Relishing the spotlight, Su Zheng stood and grinned at his relatives and colleagues. “I just wanted to congratulate everyone as well. I couldn’t have done this through my hard work alone. I thank everyone who has contributed and lent a helping hand to make this possible.

Besides, at the end of the day, this collaboration with the Gao family is but a small stepping stone. Our main goal at present is to secure a contract with the Qingyuan Group, as it is the key to our company’s ultimate development. With that said, I would like to give the floor to Su Lianyi. Sister, please let us know about your progress so far.

Everyone’s attention immediately switched over to Su Lianyi.

“Lianyi,” Old Master Su said, his eyes narrowed. “How is your task going?”

"Grandfather, I..." Su Lianyi didn’t know where to even start to explain her struggles.

“I heard something from the grapevine, Grandpa!” someone suddenly piped up. “Apparently, Su Lianyi spent the better part of yesterday trying to get a meeting with the President of the Qingyuan Group, but she couldn’t even enter the building.”

“Is this how you do your job, Su Lianyi?” another relative asked, his voice laced with disdain. “Your useless husband assured us that you would get the contract, didn’t he?”

“Let me give you a piece of friendly advice,” Su Zheng said, his smirk anything but friendly. “Apologize to Grandpa right now and go along with my plan instead. We’re still family, after all. I can’t bear to see you getting chased out of the Su family.”

Su Lianyi’s nose stung from all the ridicule hurled against her, though she was able to hold back her tears.

Old Master Su curled his lips in disappointment.

“Forget about three days. Given your performance so far, I doubt that you would succeed even if I gave you three months! I shall give you another chance to choose.

You either divorce that piece of trash and follow Su Zheng’s plan, or you might as well discard the Su family name now.”

The air crackled with tension as everyone waited for Su Lianyi’s answer.

“You’re out of time, Su Lianyi,” Su Zheng reminded her. “You’d better make the right choice.”

Su Lianyi closed her eyes and was silent for a while. When she spoke again, her tone was low and somber. “I dare not say that I am a noble person, but over the last five years, I have suffered pain and humiliation without breaking down or bowing out. Even through it all, I have done good by the company and the family. My loyalty is not something to be questioned.

And since I married Lu Yuan, I intend to keep my vows until my death. I will never do anything to let him down. I will not be divorcing him, not in this life!

If the elders want me to choose between the family and my husband, then I can only offer you my regrets and apologies.

I shall withdraw from the Su family.”