Chapter 7 What exactly did you do to her that night?

Flashbulbs flickered, and several journalists immediately surrounded them as they stepped out the door.

"Did your conscience not ache when you spent the night with Rui Qing at the hotel the night before last and then formed an alliance with the Qiao Family the very next night?"

"Mr. Pei, given Rui Qing is missing, presumed dead, how does that affect you?"

"Do you feel any guilt toward Rui Qing now?"

Such sharp questions, piercing and direct.

Qiao Rui, standing beside Pei Liyan, could feel the malice from the reporters.

It made her somewhat worried for Pei Liyan, unsure how he would respond to these sharp inquiries.

Unexpectedly, Pei Liyan merely narrowed his eyes slightly and calmly said, "I admire your courage, but being aggressive has never been my style, especially when you should not be interviewing me today."

"What day is it today? Mr. Pei, by having Miss Qiao by your side, have you ever thought of Miss Rui Qing, who is missing, presumed dead?" a reporter shot back.

Qiao Rui looked up at the reporter, their cameras pointed directly at her face.

Fang Mo brought a few people over and immediately shielded Pei Liyan and Qiao Rui.

Pei Liyan smiled coldly, "Go back and tell Huo Sinan, if he wants to know something, he should ask me directly."

The journalists all paused.

Pei Liyan, astute at observing people, knew these individuals were sent by Huo Sinan to coerce him.

But if Huo Sinan was genuinely close to Rui Qing, he likely wouldn't let these reporters spread news to slander her.

Thus, he wasn't afraid to be photographed with Qiao Rui because those photos wouldn't be released.

Pei Liyan didn't give them a chance to respond; he pulled Qiao Rui into the car and drove away.

Civil Affairs Bureau.

From the moment they entered until they had their marriage certificate in hand, Qiao Rui didn't speak to Pei Liyan.

Qiao Rui held the red booklet in her hand, her eyebrows tightly knit.

As they left the Civil Affairs Bureau and had not yet boarded the car, a Bentley blocked Pei Liyan's way.

Pei Liyan slightly squinted his eyes towards the man stepping out of the car, the curve of his lips deepening. "You've come faster than I imagined."

The moment Qiao Rui saw the newcomer, she stiffened and instantly tensed up.

The man was Huo Sinan, one of Qingcheng's most extraordinary CEOs, successor to the Huo Family, and along with Pei Liyan of the Pei Family, known as one of the unsurmountable peaks in Qingcheng's business world.

The two men were equally matched in both economic power and personal charisma.

Standing here with these two exceptional men, Qiao Rui felt somewhat pressured.

Huo Sinan was also remarkably handsome, with a distinctively angular face, somewhat Western in appearance, with deep-set eyes and prominent brow bones, narrow double-lidded eyes, and jet-black irises shining like ink, the shimmer in his gaze aqueous and glistening, indeed a beautiful man.

Qiao Rui did appreciate Huo Sinan's looks.

Of course, mainly because his son was cute, a spitting image of him, particularly fun.

Huo Sinan's gaze swept over and fell on Qiao Rui, a hint of hostility in his eyes. With a brief flicker, he indifferently withdrew his look and met Pei Liyan's eyes, his hostility intensifying.

He scoffed lightly, his words laden with disdain and mockery, "I thought you'd chosen a much more beautiful woman. Turns out, she's nothing special."

Qiao Rui pursed her lips and lowered her head.

Pei Liyan stood tall and lean by the car door, his deep, calm eyes briefly flickering with displeasure as he retorted sarcastically, "Is this the level of upbringing in the Huo Family?"

"Pei Liyan, don't give me that," Huo Sinan shouted, "First, explain to me exactly what happened between you and Rui Qing that night."

Pei Liyan's eyes half-narrowed, "Sorry, but I'm not in the habit of sharing personal matters."

Huo Sinan gave a cold laugh and looked towards Qiao Rui, "Miss Qiao Liu, I didn't mean any offense just now, but you cannot marry Pei Liyan."

Qiao Rui, having been called out, raised her head, looking at Huo Sinan in surprise.

Huo Sinan was also looking at her, his gaze sharp.

Qiao Rui turned to Pei Liyan, seeing a cold smirk on the man's lips, "Mr. Huo, you're overstepping. Why don't you ask Miss Qiao if she wants to marry me?"

Caught between the piercing stares of the two men, Qiao Rui softly said, "Does what I want even matter anymore? We're already registered, more words are pointless."

Huo Sinan was taken aback and couldn't help but give Qiao Rui another look.

He had heard that this Miss Qiao from the Qiao Family, recently back from the mountains, was a rough and unsophisticated country girl, but her speech was neither servile nor overbearing, hitting the nail on the head in a few words, and her manner of speaking wasn't too uncouth.

However, her appearance really wasn't much, very rustic, and very ordinary.

Then looking back at Pei Liyan's handsome face, a light smile hung there, and his deep black eyes held a subtle coldness.

Choosing Qiao Rui was something Huo Sinan couldn't understand at all. It was very unusual.

Anyone would have been a more advantageous choice than Qiao Rui, but he uncharacteristically chose a country bumpkin from the countryside, which was bewildering.

Could this unattractive girl be something special?

But no matter who it was, he shouldn't have chosen her.

Because, he and Rui Qing had shared a night of passion, surely unspeakable things had happened, and now with Rui Qing's whereabouts unknown, he needed to seek justice for her.

"Miss Qiao, marrying a man with a chaotic private life is better cut short timely."

"Huo Sinan, someone who fathered a child out of wedlock like you, hardly seems qualified to discuss someone else's chaotic private life," Pei Liyan retorted in a deep voice, full of sarcasm.

Huo Sinan sneered, "Attacking an innocent child—this is the upbringing of the Pei Family."

"It's far better than you demanding someone to get a divorce on their wedding day." Pei Liyan suddenly laughed, his laughter chilling to the bone.

"Pei Liyan, with me here, I won't allow you to toy with her."

That 'her' obviously referred to Rui Qing.

Pei Liyan's thin lips curled up, his tone mocking, "Why don't you go ask her, what exactly her intentions are?"

Huo Sinan was taken aback, probably not expecting Pei Liyan to retort like that.

Even Qiao Rui was startled, could it be that it wasn't he who schemed against her?

"Pei Liyan, if you're a man, don't push the blame onto a woman," Huo Sinan said gravely: "You know very well she's currently missing, unable to defend herself, that's why you smear her this way."

Pei Liyan sneered, "Smear her?"

"That's exactly it."

A chilling smirk flashed across Pei Liyan's lips, "If she's still alive, I swear I'll strangle her myself."

He would never let anyone who schemed against him go unpunished.

Qiao Rui shivered involuntarily.

She lowered her eyes, her beautiful brows tightly furrowed. Could it be that it was not Pei Liyan who schemed against her?

Huo Sinan watched Pei Liyan coldly, and after a while, he suddenly laughed, his laughter carrying an extreme chill.

It was evident, he was very restrained.

Qiao Rui hadn't expected Huo Sinan to stand up for Rui Qing, given that their association wasn't deep.

It was only because his child had mistakenly thought she was his mother.

Huo Sinan probably saw that she treated the child well, therefore he especially looked after her, providing some resources.

That was all.

Yet still, Qiao Rui was moved by Huo Sinan standing up for her.

She didn't want Huo Sinan to continue entangling with Pei Liyan, so she spoke up, "Mr. Huo, you standing up for Miss Rui, if she knew, she would certainly be grateful."