Chapter 6 Don't Want to Get Involved

Ching Ching Pan finally recognized me. Her face flushed red and then turned pale, her eyes filled with intense hostility, but she didn't dare to provoke me.

I pulled my mom to sit down with me and started complaining, "I didn't even want to come today, but Hugh Pei insisted I accompany him. It's so boring."

"You child, this is serious business. What do you mean, boring?" My mom took my hand, and though she was scolding me, her tone was doting.

I glanced at Ching Ching Pan out of the corner of my eye and continued to chat nonchalantly. "It just is. By the way, Mom, I had Leo Li hire a few maids for me. I suddenly want to gain some weight. Hugh Pei said I'm too thin, so I need to eat more and sleep more."

Ching Ching Pan bit her bright red lip, looking like she was struggling to hold back.

"You should have hired them long ago. You two live in such a big place, how could you manage it all by yourself?" My mom was very much in favor of my decision.

"Well, I just wanted to have some private time with him, just the two of us. I've had enough of that now," I said ambiguously. Anyway, Ching Ching Pan was just a passerby in Hugh Pei's life, insignificant. She wasn't an important character like Lila Wei, so I didn't need to be so measured.

Ching Ching Pan shot up from her seat and hurried away.

Lulu Chen followed closely behind, probably feeling awkward as well.

When the party ended, I didn't want to go back with Hugh Pei. I wanted to go to my parents' house and spend a few days with them.

"Alright, I'll be leaving then," Hugh Pei said. He never cared where I was, as long as I didn't embarrass him.

My dad was still chatting away with his friends, completely unaware that the party was over. My mom gave me the car keys and told me to wait for her in the parking lot while she went to try and curb my dad's desire to talk.

I took the keys and went to the underground parking lot. After finding my dad's car, I was about to get in when I saw Hugh Pei and Ching Ching Pan in a heated argument.

Ching Ching Pan was clutching Hugh Pei's sleeve pitifully. "You've been so good to me. Was there really no sincerity in it? I don't believe it!"

"Believe what you want. Just don't bother me again," Hugh Pei said, shaking off her hand.

That's just how he was. Once he got tired of someone, he would turn on them without a second thought.

Just a house, and Ching Ching Pan started thinking she was his true love?

Hugh Pei's gaze caught mine. His impatient and disgusted look landed on me, as if I were the woman clinging to him.

I immediately got into the car and locked the doors. If I weren't waiting for my parents, I would have slammed on the gas and disappeared instantly.

Seeing me retreat like that, Hugh Pei, for some inexplicable reason, walked straight towards my dad's car. He knocked on the window, and I could read his lips: "Get out!"

I frowned, shook my head, and mouthed back, "No."

Then my phone rang. It was Hugh Pei. "Zoe Xu, get out here!"

"I don't want to get involved in your business with her," I said, meeting his furious gaze through the car window.

I had thought it through. If I couldn't get a divorce before Hugh Pei met Lila Wei, then I would just have to endure it a little longer. I'd wait until he initiated the divorce, then immediately agree. I'd even get a portion of the Pei Corporation's shares. It wasn't a bad deal for me.

In my past life, Hugh Pei had only proposed divorce after pursuing Lila Wei for a year and finally coming clean with his family.

I refused and fought with him for nearly a year, only to end in failure.

Being reborn and constantly thinking about revenge was a futile obsession. The past life felt more like a dream, and this life was the reality before the tragedy unfolded. I wasn't going to turn into a maniac in reality because of a nightmare.

"Get out!" Hugh Pei was furious, probably having never seen me refuse him before.

Ching Ching Pan, her face streaked with tears, came over and clung to Hugh Pei's sleeve again, refusing to let go.

She was a minor celebrity, after all. Why was she so persistent with Hugh Pei? I felt like I was seeing another version of myself, and I had no right to laugh at her.

Hugh Pei shot me a harsh glare, then grabbed Ching Ching Pan's hand, pulled her into his car, and sped away. I let out a sigh of relief.

By the time my parents got back to the car, I was almost asleep.

"Why were you talking so much? Zoe was getting sleepy waiting for you!" my mom scolded my dad.

"Hey, it was about that project in the south. We need approval, so of course we had to discuss it thoroughly," my dad replied as he fastened his seatbelt.

I sat in the back, drowsy.

In the past, my dreams were always about me chasing after Hugh Pei. Now, they were always about my past life, as if God was afraid I would forget the tragedy I had endured and kept reminding me in my sleep.

"Mom, I want to eat sticky rice chicken," I said, leaning against my mom as she sat in the back with me. I quickly wrapped my arm around hers.

This was the scent of a mother—reassuring and warm.

In my past life, as I lay dying, my parents stood by my bedside, crying their eyes out. They had both turned gray overnight, looking worn and desolate.

"It's so late, and you want me to make you sticky rice chicken?" my mom said, patting my hand with a huff. "What's gotten into you today? Did you fight with Hugh Pei? You haven't been home in weeks."

"I was just blinded by love!" I said with a grin. "From now on, I'm going to be your sweet, caring daughter."

Everyone around me knew about my one-sided love for Hugh Pei, so my mom was quite surprised to hear me say this. My dad almost swerved the car.

"You don't like Hugh Pei anymore?" my dad asked.

I did, but that didn't stop me from letting him go.

In the end, I could never hold on to this man. He didn't belong to me. He belonged to Lila Wei, that beautiful, young girl.

"Dad, we've been married for five years. We're an old married couple, what's love got to do with it? I just think I should be doing other things instead of just revolving around him," I answered cheerfully.

"That makes sense. Look at that kid, Hugh Pei, his scandals are everywhere. I've been fed up with him for a long time!" My dad suddenly found his confidence, his voice filled with clear dissatisfaction when talking about Hugh Pei.

Before, he held back because he knew how much I adored Hugh Pei and was afraid I'd resent him for speaking ill of him.

I chimed in, "Exactly, he's a scumbag!"

With me starting it, my parents both began to vent their frustrations with Hugh Pei. Only then did I realize how much they had endured for my sake.

My heart ached with guilt. I couldn't even lift my head.

When we got home, it was already late. I took a shower and went to bed. I don't know how long I slept before my mom knocked on my door. I asked groggily, "What is it, Mom?"

"Didn't you want sticky rice chicken? I made some for you. Do you want to get up and eat some before going back to sleep?" my mom said.

I was instantly wide awake. I sat up in bed, stunned for a few seconds. My eyes grew hot, and tears started to well up.

I hadn't cried since being reborn. Even when I dreamed of the painful moments from my past life, I would just wake up feeling distressed. I had grown numb to the pain and no longer found it so hard to accept.

But my mom had stayed up late to make me the sticky rice chicken I craved, and I couldn't help but cry.