Chapter 141

Zoya's car was parked in the farthest corner. Leopold opened the passenger door and got in. The smell of smoke drifted in with the wind. Zoya was in the back seat, expecting him to join her there as he always had before.

"Zoya, stop this."

Leopold had come out because Zoya had just sent him a message:

"I have something to say to you. If you don't come out, I'll tell Wang Niannian about us."

Leopold had been thinking a lot over the past few days. There was no future between him and Zoya, so he decided to face reality. He would marry Wang Niannian and have his parents find a good man for Zoya. Once they were both married, they could go their separate ways and forget the past. If Zoya married and didn't come back often, Lily wouldn't cause any more trouble, and his parents would be at peace. The Jian family could finally have some quiet days.

Zoya felt uneasy hearing him say, "Stop this." She leaned forward, grabbing his arm, and softened her voice.

"Didn't you say you wanted to be with me? I'll transfer my household registration, I'll change back to Zhao Zoya, or we can go abroad. Don't marry Wang Niannian, please?"

She offered him a solution.

"Lily is here today, and Wang Niannian is her classmate. I saw them chatting pretty well earlier. Talk to Lily, get her to help ruin this marriage. She knows a bit about us; she surely wouldn't want Wang Niannian to marry you."

Leopold was silent for a moment before gently removing her hand.

"I do want to marry her. Today I suddenly realized that Wang Niannian is a lot like Yang Xi—sweet and timid. I was a jerk back then, and I owe Yang Xi. I want to make it up to Wang Niannian. We'll have a good life together."

He had been gone too long, and there was a room full of people waiting for him. He had to go back.

Leopold got out of the car, pausing only to say to Zoya, "If you're uncomfortable staying, just go home. I'll find an excuse for my parents."

Zoya couldn't believe that even after everything she had said, he still left. On impulse, she opened the door and ran after him.

It was nearly 8 p.m., and there weren't many people in the parking lot. Zoya ran up behind Leopold and hugged his waist. She knew how to make him soft-hearted.

"If you marry her, I'll never marry anyone. If you can bear to let me live alone for the rest of my life, then go ahead and marry her."

...

The parking lot was filled with neatly parked cars. Not far away, behind a black sedan, Wang Niannian withdrew her gaze and looked at Lily, who was holding up her phone and recording. She whispered, "My dad and your dad are determined to make this marriage happen. Will this really work?"

Half an hour earlier, Lily had sent her a message, asking her to go to the bathroom. Once outside, Lily had asked her if she wanted to marry Leopold.

"Tell me the truth, how do you really feel? Do you want to marry him or not?"

The truth? Of course she didn't want to. She barely knew Leopold; she didn't want to marry him.

Lily said that was enough, then led her to secretly follow Leopold. They watched him smoke and then followed him to the parking lot.

Wang Niannian hadn't expected that Leopold and Zoya were involved.

"Why wouldn't it work?" Lily was still recording and signaled her to keep watching. "You'll see if it works."

Wang Niannian looked again, eyes wide. If the hug earlier wasn't enough, now Leopold was pushing Zoya's hands away, turning to say something, and Zoya leaned in and kissed him.

She was about to say something when out of the corner of her eye, she noticed someone approaching and quickly said, "Lily, something's wrong. Is that your mom?"

Lily glanced over, her excited tone unsurprised. "Yeah, I called her over to catch them in the act."

Wang Niannian: "..."

Was this really okay? Lily: "You get ready too. After Ms. Mei finishes with Zoya, you rush over, make a scene, and scream about how you saw them kissing."

Wang Niannian: "..."

Why did she have to play a role too? Wang Niannian was just about to say she couldn't act when things suddenly escalated ahead.

Layla yanked Leopold aside and slapped Zoya hard across the face. Her trembling hand pointed at her, filled with disbelief, her eyes red as if she were looking at a monstrous snake.

"Zoya! You ungrateful wretch! How dare you? How could you? He's your brother! How dare you seduce your brother!"

The term "ungrateful wretch" took on a new meaning for Layla for the first time, thanks to her sister, Mei Yu.

The Mei family had three children. Layla was the eldest, Mei Yu the second, and they had a younger brother. Mei Yu always claimed that their parents favored Layla and their brother. Layla didn't see it that way; she thought their parents treated all three children equally, even avoiding the typical preference for sons. In fact, they might have treated their daughters even better than their son.

Layla believed their parents were the best. But Mei Yu didn't. Mei Yu was narrow-minded, always holding grudges over the smallest things. Their parents had such high hopes for her, yet she refused to follow the path they had carefully laid out for her, choosing instead to pursue a lousy film career. She wouldn't come home even for holidays, and when her parents cut off her allowance, she stubbornly continued on her own.

She was so poor she wouldn't even buy a cup of instant noodles, surviving on steamed buns and pickles, becoming so malnourished she was skin and bones, yet she still refused to come home and admit she was wrong. When her boyfriend cheated on her, she beat him until his head was dented, preferring to go to jail rather than let the family bail her out.

Later, she brought a child home, knelt down, and begged for money to treat the child's illness. Their parents only asked her to apologize first; they didn't say they wouldn't give her the money. But she was too proud, picked up her child, and left without taking any money. She never came back.

When their mother fell ill, she didn't come back. When their father's dying wish was to see her one last time, she didn't come back. When their brother was brainwashed by his wife and their family business was taken over by her, she didn't come back.

Their father had built that company with his life's work. Layla begged her to help, but she didn't care. By then, Mei Yu was already a famous director, the smartest of the three siblings. If she had wanted, she could have easily taken the company back.

But she didn't help. Instead, she mocked Layla.

"Sis, if Mom and Dad had given me even one-tenth of the love they gave you, I'd have protected that company with my life."

"I'm telling you, just live your life and stop meddling. That woman is much smarter than your stupid brother. The company is better off in her hands than in yours."

"And sis, here's a piece of advice: I don't care why you're favoring that Zoya, but remember this—Lily is your real daughter."

"Don't let Lily end up like me, disappointed in you. You'll regret it."

Layla didn't listen at the time. All she knew was that her sister Mei Yu was a complete ingrate, a traitor to the Mei family.

Later, as her relationship with Lily grew more distant, and when she fell ill, it was Zoya, her adopted daughter, who cared for her. If she scolded Lily, Lily would talk back.

One day, in a fit of rage, Layla yelled "ingrate" at Lily and suddenly recalled Mei Yu's warning.

"Don't let Lily end up like me, disappointed in you. You'll regret it."

She regretted it then. But at that time, her regret was for having been too lenient. She should never have allowed Lily to spend so much time with her aunt.

After Mei Yu left home, she and Layla didn't keep in touch much. They only saw each other a few times later when Mei Yu was filming in Jiangyu. Strangely enough, Mei Yu especially liked Lily, and Lily always wanted to see her aunt.

During those eight months Mei Yu spent filming in Jiangyu, she took Lily out whenever she had free time, buying her things and treating her like her own daughter. Layla was busy at the time, so she was glad someone was helping her take care of her child and didn't pay much attention.

As a result, when she shouted "ungrateful wretch", she suddenly realized that Lily had been led astray by her aunt and was just as selfish, unreasonable and headstrong as her. Until tonight. In Layla's heart, Mei Yu was a big ungrateful wretch and Lily was a small one. Although the adopted daughter Zoya had made her a little unhappy recently, she was still like a warm cotton-padded jacket. After all, over the years, when she was sick, it was Zoya who cared about her. It was Zoya who made her proud. It was Zoya who was obedient, well-behaved and put her first in everything. As a result, unexpectedly, the biggest ungrateful wretch turned out to be Zoya! She was even more vicious than Mei Yu and Lily. ... In the parking lot under the moonlight, rows of cars, and the luster on their bodies was all cold. Layla was so angry that she was about to faint. Her trembling hand raised again and landed a second slap with all her strength on Zoya's face.