Chapter 76: Speculation

Lu Qi'an merely cast a cold glance at Yang Linxue.

Yang Linxue shrank back, knowing he had unwittingly triggered this unexpected situation. Hastily, he instructed the driver to send the guests off.

Yet the driver returned shortly after.
"Young Master, they refused my offer. They said they'd already called a car."

Yang Linxue looked at Lu Qi'an upon hearing this.

Lu Qi'an got into his own car, waited for Qin Miaoyu and Ji Xuan to board their taxi, then ordered his driver to follow at a discreet distance.

Liang Siyuan received a sudden call at his company from Aunt Yang, who told him that Qin Miaoyu had returned home in tears.

He instructed his assistant to handle the remaining matters and drove back to his residence immediately.

"Sir, after Miss Miaoyu came back, she went straight to her room and hasn't come out since," Aunt Yang reported to the hurriedly arriving Liang Siyuan.

Liang Siyuan went to knock on the door. Ji Xuan opened it.

"Mr. Liang," Ji Xuan greeted him.

Liang Siyuan asked, "You're Miaoyu's friend, right? How is she?"

Ji Xuan glanced at Qin Miaoyu, who was hunched over the edge of the bed, refusing to lift her head.

"Not well. I've rarely seen her this heartbroken."

Liang Siyuan stepped into the room and knelt beside Qin Miaoyu.

"Miaoyu, there's no need to grieve over those who aren't worth it. You've only been back with the Liang family for a short time, and you know full well what kind of people they are. Even if their motives for bringing you back weren't pure, there's no reason to be sad. Why not just stay here with your second brother from now on?"

"Shouldn't be sad about the Liang family?" Qin Miaoyu looked up at her second brother.

"Exactly. Though Qi Bin is indeed a pitiable child, and you may have grown fond of him during this time, they could have been honest from the start about wanting you to match for Qi Bin. There was no need for all this..."

"Matching? Matching for what?" Qin Miaoyu's response made Liang Siyuan suddenly realize she wasn't upset about this at all.

He had been too eager, voicing his suspicions without properly confirming them first.

For a moment, he didn't know whether to share his conjectures.

"Second brother, tell me!" Qin Miaoyu clutched Liang Siyuan's sleeve.

Liang Siyuan sighed. "I'm not certain about this yet. Let's wait until Sister Suning gets concrete news, and I'll tell you, alright? For now, why don't you explain why you were crying so much today?"

Qin Miaoyu wiped her tears and remained silent.

Liang Siyuan had no choice but to ask Ji Xuan.

"Mr. Liang, we happened to run into Lu Qi'an at the club today. That's when we learned he's from the Lu family of Jingcheng. Miaoyu had no idea about this before..."

Liang Siyuan hadn't expected the problem to lie here. That brat Lu Qi'an had previously promised to plan his confession to Miaoyu, and now he'd gone and done this!

"Miaoyu, stop crying. Your second brother will stand up for you!"

"Second brother, it's alright. I just want some time alone now. Could you help arrange a ride for Ji Xuan?"

Seeing Qin Miaoyu's swollen, red eyes, Liang Siyuan agreed.

Once everyone had left, Qin Miaoyu's sobs gradually ceased. Remembering what her second brother had mentioned, she began to suspect the true reason the Liang family had sought her out.

She had always felt there was an ulterior motive in the Liang family's sudden acceptance of her—otherwise, why had they at first refused, only to let Liang Sixuan recognize Su Yaqing and Qin Shengyi as godparents?

Now it seemed it might all be because of Liang Qibin's illness...

Thinking this way, Liang Qibin's behavior today finally made sense.

He had abruptly given her an excuse about not wanting to see anything related to painting, forcing her to leave the Liang family. Perhaps he had learned something...

But when had she ever been matched for anything? Today she'd only undergone some routine medical tests.

As Qin Miaoyu pondered these matters, the sting of her earlier sorrow faded considerably.

After seeing off Qin Miaoyu's friend, Liang Siyuan immediately called Lu Qi'an.

"What the hell are you doing?"

Lu Qi'an's voice on the other end was tinged with bitterness. "Second brother, how's Miaoyu?"

"How is she? Her eyes are red from crying! Why did you hide such an important matter from her from the start?" Liang Siyuan was thoroughly baffled.

"Second brother, it's not so simple. I can't explain it all at once. Could you hand the phone to Miaoyu? Let me explain it to her myself."

Liang Siyuan couldn't bear to see Qin Miaoyu so distraught, all the more as he'd noticed her feelings for this young man were quite deep. If the two of them could clear things up now, it would be for the best.

He knocked on Qin Miaoyu's door. Hearing a soft "Come in," he pushed the door open, phone in hand.

"Lu Qi'an's calling. He says he wants to explain, and asks if you'd like to take the call."

Qin Miaoyu reached out, and Liang Siyuan handed her the phone before quietly closing the door behind him.

"Miaoyu..."

Qin Miaoyu listened to Lu Qi'an's anxious voice, saying nothing.

After a long silence, she finally spoke. "Lu Qi'an, from the very first day we met, you were lying to me. You told me you were just an ordinary worker, earning thirty thousand a month, but in reality, that's barely pocket change for you..."

"Miaoyu, I only wanted the chance to marry you. If you had known I was from the Lu family of Jingcheng, you surely wouldn't have considered a flash marriage with me, would you?"

Qin Miaoyu agreed.

Though her decision to marry Lu Qi'an on a whim was impulsive, marrying an ordinary man to appease her family had always been her intention.

Back then, she might have married an ordinary office worker like Lu Qi'an, but never the Lu family scion of Jingcheng...

She had learned from the Jiang family that the gates of high society were not easily entered.

"So I kept my true identity hidden."

"All that time, were you just thinking about how best to keep deceiving me? At this rate, were you planning to fool me into a real relationship, have children, perhaps even lie to me for a lifetime?" Qin Miaoyu asked.

Lu Qi'an denied it. "Of course not. I had always intended to confess everything to you, but accidents kept interfering. I planned to tell you the whole truth once you returned to Jingcheng, but I didn't expect you to find out by accident..."

"Lu Qi'an, I can't even tell which of your words are true anymore."

Lu Qi'an's heart skipped at her remark.

"Miaoyu, I swear, everything I'm saying now is the truth! I'm not lying!"

Qin Miaoyu pressed further, "Is there anything else you've lied to me about?"

Lu Qi'an, thinking she was softening, quickly confessed, "President Qi is me. I used to work at Anhe, but my family told me not to use the Lu name there, so I went by Qi'an instead."

"President Lu, President Qi—blame my poor eyesight for not recognizing you sooner."

Qin Miaoyu's words were laced with self-mockery. She had visited Anhe several times, glimpsing the so-called President Qi from afar, always thinking he merely resembled Lu Qi'an. Never had it occurred to her that Lu Qi'an was actually President Qi!