Chapter 23 Men are all big hooves

The word "wife" made Yao Yutong burn with anger. If she had more strength, the wine glass in her hand would have shattered into shards. Her friend, lowering her voice, spoke up for Yao Yutong: "Hmph, men are all the same. No matter how good they are during the relationship, they can turn around and seamlessly marry someone else. Do they really have no feelings? You wouldn't believe how many videos I see on Douyin about relationships. There are so many guys who seem deeply in love, but as soon as the bride price negotiations fall through, they turn around and marry someone else. Is it that any woman will do for them?"

"Stop it!" Yao Yutong was furious, seeing Shen Mofei enjoying the glory that once belonged to her. At that moment, General Manager Liu of Jueli Investment was being polite and attentive to Shen Mofei, pouring out compliments like beans: "Mrs. Huo is truly beautiful! I used to think, Huo is young and promising, handsome and elegant, what kind of girl could match him? Today, seeing Mrs. Huo, you two are a perfect match, truly made for each other."

"You're too kind," Shen Mofei replied with a graceful smile.

Huo Mingze also politely responded, "Thank you, General Manager Liu."

Huo Mingze then took Shen Mofei to meet other business magnates, introducing her as his wife, Shen Mofei, to everyone. Wife? Hah! Who said he would only love her in this lifetime? Who said he wouldn't marry anyone but her? Who said he wanted to give her the best of everything in this world?

The more Yao Yutong thought about it, the angrier she became, downing the wine in her glass in one gulp. Her friend couldn't help but whisper, "Men are all driven by lust. When a woman says break up, it's just an emotional outburst, wanting the man to coax her. But when a man says break up, he immediately finds someone else..."

Seeing Yao Yutong's grim expression, her friend sighed, "Yutong, what are you going to do now? Sigh, you know, you shouldn't have insisted on going abroad back then, you should have coaxed him. How is a competition more important than marriage? You need to curb your career ambitions a bit. A woman's most important career is to find a good man."

Yao Yutong sneered internally. She understood this principle when she was a teenager. Why did she insist on going abroad? Her grandmother analyzed the Huo family situation for her back then, showing that Huo Mingze's chances of becoming the head of the Huo family were very slim. Huo's grandfather had two sons: Huo Zhenye and Huo Zhentong. Huo Zhenye, the eldest, had two sons and a daughter. Huo Zhentong, the second son, had a son and a daughter, with the son being Huo Mingze. Originally, as a grandson from the second branch, Huo Mingze had no right to lead the Huo family. 

Six years ago, when Huo Mingze fell in love with her at first sight, why did she accept him? Because at that time, Huo Mingze's eldest uncle had long been removed from his position as president due to dereliction of duty, and Huo Mingze's father had been the president of Huo Group for over seven years. At that time, the second branch of the Huo family was in the limelight. Therefore, she chose to be Huo Mingze's girlfriend without hesitation.

Afterward, when Huo Mingze studied abroad, she also went abroad. They studied and dated simultaneously. Four years ago, Huo Mingze returned to work at Huo Group. Upon joining Huo Group, he was appointed as the vice president of the headquarters. In addition, Huo Mingze's eldest uncle's eldest son, Huo Zhengqin, was also a vice president. Both held the same position, managing different subsidiaries, naturally creating a competitive environment. Huo Mingze's outstanding work ability and performance overshadowed Huo Zhengqin. With his father being the president of Huo Group, it was almost certain that the future heir of Huo Group would be Huo Mingze.

So, she was just waiting for Huo Mingze to propose and become Mrs. Huo. She even started conditioning her body the year before last. She planned to get pregnant and have children as soon as she got married. In wealthy families, offspring are the most important. For a woman to secure her status in a wealthy family, it's best to have children every year. The more sons she has, the more stable her position. To put it bluntly, even if she grows old and unattractive in the future and her husband is seduced by some vixen, with several sons, the family fortune would still belong to her children. As long as she holds onto the marriage, with money and status, love doesn't matter at all.

But as fate would have it, last year Huo Mingze's father suddenly died of a heart attack. He didn't even make it to the hospital, passing away on the spot. Throughout last year, Huo Mingze was engulfed in sorrow and depression. This year, he finally recovered and proposed to her. She agreed. Huo Mingze began planning the wedding, and she was also preparing for marriage.

However, her grandmother told her that Huo's grandfather planned to reappoint Huo Mingze's uncle, Huo Zhenye. If that happened, the second branch would be out of luck. After all, Huo Zhenye had two sons. Moreover, neither son was a playboy, meaning the main branch of the Huo family was effectively a father-and-sons trio. Meanwhile, the second branch only had Huo Mingze. Additionally, Huo Mingze's aunt managed the family's internal affairs, while his mother was a non-competitive person who couldn't support him.

After hearing her grandmother's analysis, Yao Yutong decisively found an excuse to go abroad without breaking up with Huo Mingze, intending to see how things would unfold. She kept him on the line, ready to break up if he lost his power, but choose to marry him if he succeeded. Unexpectedly, Huo Mingze forced her to make a choice: either marry him or break up. She chose to go abroad, leading to their breakup. She left willfully, thinking he would come back and coax her as he had in past arguments.

Who would have thought he would turn around and marry a stranger? "Yutong, what's wrong?" Her friend noticed Yao Yutong spacing out and waved a hand in front of her face.

Yao Yutong quickly snapped back to reality, sighed, and looked deflated. She felt very confused and conflicted. She did have a way to win Huo Mingze back, but it was a drastic measure. Once she took that step, there would be no turning back.

She and Huo Mingze had been in a relationship for six years, but she had never given herself to him. Huo Mingze had expressed his desires, but she had always turned him down, insisting on saving everything for their wedding night. Huo Mingze had always respected her wishes and restrained himself. If she gave herself to him now, Huo Mingze would feel obligated to take responsibility. At worst, they would give Shen Modi some money as compensation. After all, in terms of feelings, Huo Mingze loved her. She was just worried that if she won him back and he didn't become the heir of the Huo family, all her efforts would be in vain.

"Yutong, it makes me so mad to see them so close!" her friend fumed.

"Tingting, pour me a drink," Yao Yutong said, still looking deflated. Her friend immediately poured her a glass of wine. Yao Yutong picked up the glass and drank it in one gulp.

Beep, beep—her phone rang. She frowned and looked at it impatiently. It was a message from her grandmother: Huo Mingze had acquired the South Suburb King and signed an international project. Huo Jianlin would not be reinstating Huo Zhenye.

Upon reading the message, Yao Yutong perked up and immediately replied: Really?

Grandmother: Yes. After all, the family business ultimately relies on the grandchildren to manage and inherit it.

Yao Yutong replied: Got it, Grandmother.

Putting away her phone, the frown on her face completely disappeared, replaced by a smile.

"Yutong, what's the good news? Did your design win another award?" her friend asked.