Chapter 68: Apology

As soon as Qiao Jiu stepped out of the taxi, her phone buzzed twice—a new message had arrived. She opened it and saw that the sender told her they were sitting by the window. Following the cue, Qiao Jiu lifted her gaze toward the café window and spotted a middle-aged woman waving at her.

She put her phone away and entered the café, heading straight for the woman. “Ms. Mu.”

Mu Yun nodded. “Sit down, I just arrived as well.”

Qiao Jiu took a seat and glanced at the approaching waiter. “I’ll be leaving soon, I won’t be ordering, thank you.”

Once the waiter had left, Mu Yun spoke first. “I’m Song Wan’s mother. Tomorrow, I’ll be taking her away with me. Before leaving, I thought I should meet you at least once.”

Qiao Jiu acknowledged with a soft hum. “We met at the hospital last time. If there’s something you want to say, please go ahead.”

Mu Yun could sense her resistance and continued, “I mean no harm. I heard she sought you out twice before, troubling you. As her mother, I feel I owe you an apology. I failed to raise her well. I’m sorry.”

Qiao Jiu’s tone was cool. “As long as she doesn’t come flaunting herself before me again, it’s nothing serious. She may have come twice, but she didn’t get what she wanted.”

Mu Yun smiled. “You’re very straightforward.”

After a brief pause, she went on, “I’ve seen your photos before. In fact, I’d always wanted to meet you, but never found the time. By the time I finally could, it was already too late.”

Qiao Jiu raised her brows, uncertain what she meant.

Mu Yun explained, “Ah Zhou grew up around me. When you two got married, I meant to come, but the distance was great and I was caught up with some things at the time, so I missed it. It’s a bit of a regret, thinking back.”

Qiao Jiu pondered. “Are you a relative of Lu Fengzhou’s family?”

But that seemed unlikely. With Song Wan and Lu Fengzhou’s ambiguous relationship, it would hardly be a family connection.

Sure enough, Mu Yun replied, “No, we just got along well. His parents were busy back then, so they entrusted him to me.”

Qiao Jiu let out a quiet “I see.”

After a moment, Mu Yun resumed, “Miss Qiao, I know you’ve suffered wrongs in your relationship with Ah Zhou. But some things aren’t as they seem. That child is quite pitiable too.”

Qiao Jiu’s previously relaxed expression tightened instantly at those words. All the earlier pleasant talk had led to this: making excuses for Lu Fengzhou after all.

These people—each one more hypocritical than the last.

Mu Yun continued, “And I’m not sure exactly what Xiao Wan told you, but you can rest assured, there’s nothing between Ah Zhou and her. They simply grew up together, nothing more than friends.”

Qiao Jiu gave a light laugh. “Childhood sweethearts, then.”

She’d once suspected it was a matter of kept lovers, but clearly her own thoughts had been sordid.

Qiao Jiu said, “Ms. Mu, if you only wanted to tell me this, it’s really unnecessary. Lu Fengzhou and I are already divorced. I’m quite open-minded—whatever entanglements there were before, now we’re strangers. Whoever he’s with or loves is none of my concern.”

Mu Yun was taken aback, studying Qiao Jiu for a while before nodding. “You’re more spirited than I imagined.”

She sighed. “But that’s only natural, thinking about it.”

Qiao Jiu took a deep breath, letting her impatience show. She had little desire to face Mu Yun—after all, she was Song Wan’s mother and had watched Lu Fengzhou grow up; no matter how much she claimed to be fair, her heart was always partial.

There was nothing left to say to Lu Fengzhou’s people.

So she said, “I have a lunch engagement today and drank a bit. I’m not feeling well. If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave.”

Mu Yun had noticed—Qiao Jiu’s cheeks were flushed, and even after a shower, a faint scent of alcohol lingered about her.

She seemed to want to say more, but after hesitating, simply changed her words. “Sorry for disturbing you.”

Qiao Jiu stood up. “Then I’ll be going.”

She took out her wallet, placed a bill on the table. “Goodbye.”

Mu Yun was momentarily stunned, about to protest, but Qiao Jiu had already turned and walked away.

Once outside, Qiao Jiu let out a long sigh.

Her temper was never great, but she’d always been respectful to elders—as long as they didn’t provoke her. This time, she truly couldn’t restrain herself. She had her pride, after all—having been wronged so deeply by Lu Fengzhou, and challenged twice by Song Wan, she couldn’t keep up the facade of respect toward Mu Yun.

She flagged down a cab by the roadside and went straight home.

The alcohol she’d suppressed earlier soon surged back. By the time she got home, she hadn’t the energy for wild thoughts—she collapsed into bed and slept.

She slept straight through until evening. When she awoke, she was groggy, staring out the window for a long time before she remembered where and when she was.

Her phone lay beside her. She pressed the screen for the time and noticed a missed call from Liang Xiucheng.

Qiao Jiu exhaled, redialed, and put the phone on speaker.

Clutching the phone, she got out of bed and went to the kitchen, opening the fridge in search of water.

As she twisted open the bottle, Liang Xiucheng picked up, his voice calm and cool. “Were you just sleeping?”

Qiao Jiu murmured, “Just woke up. What is it?”

As she spoke, she tipped back a drink of water. Liang Xiucheng said, “I just heard from my brother. Zhu Shengren’s been found—in an abandoned factory on the outskirts. When they found him, he was covered in blood from the waist down—apparently, everything was sliced off, cleanly.”

Qiao Jiu froze, then spat out a mouthful of water.

Liang Xiucheng couldn’t help laughing. “Surprised?”

Qiao Jiu’s pitch shot up. “So it really was enemies seeking revenge?”

Liang Xiucheng hesitated. “Seems like it. The perpetrator’s already been caught.”

Qiao Jiu blinked in disbelief. So quickly.

She didn’t have to ask further—Liang Xiucheng continued, “From what I heard, the culprit is a young woman. Apparently, Zhu Shengren had assaulted her before.”

Qiao Jiu blinked. “When did that happen?”

Liang Xiucheng said, “I’m not sure. My brother doesn’t know either. He said Zhu Shengren had done this sort of thing more than once, but because he had money and connections, he always got away with it. No matter how outrageous, it never made a stir. If the girl hadn’t sought revenge this time, probably no one would’ve ever known.”

Qiao Jiu thought back to the female hostess at lunch, so timid and evasive—she must have known. She’d seemed anxious when leaving the club later, probably sensing something was wrong.

Qiao Jiu bared her teeth in a grimace, then finally said, “He deserved it.”

Liang Xiucheng recalled how Zhu Shengren had used a toast as an excuse to grope Qiao Jiu’s hand and agreed, “He certainly did.”

But Qiao Jiu was still puzzled. “So the three men who took Zhu Shengren away—were they hired by that girl?”

Liang Xiucheng hissed softly. “Those three haven’t been identified yet. I’ll keep an eye on things, and let you know if there’s any news.”

Qiao Jiu nodded, an image flashing across her mind.

In the business world, everyone more or less knew each other. If something happened to Zhu Shengren, Lu Fengzhou would surely hear of it too.