Volume 1 Chapter 165: Greed

Pei Jingmo handled all the household matters, leaving Song Qingyu practically as a hands-off manager who cared about nothing. Pei Jingmo never let her worry about such things either.

She completely forgot that it was time for Dingding to get its vaccination.

Feeling a twinge of guilt and a complicated mix of emotions, she thought she couldn't keep troubling Pei Jingmo in the future, so she said, "I'll go with you."

Pei Jingmo smiled faintly, "Alright."

The two of them went downstairs together. Seeing Song Qingyu press the button for the basement level, Pei Jingmo gently spoke up, "Let's take my car; Dingding needs someone to hold it."

Song Qingyu didn't refuse. She felt a bit unwell from skipping breakfast and didn't feel like driving herself anyway.

Once inside the car, neither of them spoke a single word.

Holding Dingding, Song Qingyu looked out the window. Her complexion was as pale as paper; she felt physically unwell, and emotionally even worse.

The car suddenly stopped at an intersection.

Song Qingyu subconsciously glanced at Pei Jingmo, who said, "Wait for me a moment."

Song Qingyu felt too annoyed to care about what he was stepping out to do.

Before long, Pei Jingmo returned holding a cup of hot milk and some steamed buns.

He handed them to Song Qingyu, "Your complexion is terrible. Have something to eat."

Song Qingyu quietly looked at him, feeling increasingly aggrieved and distressed the longer she stared.

They were about to divorce; why was he still treating her so well?

She averted her gaze, suppressing her chaotic emotions, "Thank you, but I don't need it."

Pei Jingmo took her hand and pressed the buns and milk into her palm, "Even if you hate me, don't take it out on your own body."

Feeling a bit dizzy, Song Qingyu knew her hypoglycemia was acting up and stopped being stubborn, picking up a bun to take a bite.

It was a custard bun—

Whenever she felt physically unwell, she only ever wanted custard buns. To think he still remembered.

After eating the bun and drinking the milk, her stomach felt a little better, and a trace of color returned to her cheeks.

Seeing how much weight she had lost all over, Pei Jingmo felt a pang of heartache and self-reproach.

However, since she was still in the heat of anger, he couldn't rush things and had to take it one step at a time.

There were quite a few people bringing cats and dogs for vaccinations today. Pei Jingmo held Dingding in one arm while shielding Song Qingyu with the other.

After standing in line for a while, Pei Jingmo spotted a seat and took Song Qingyu's hand.

Before she could react, Pei Jingmo gently pressed her down onto a chair, "Sit here and wait for me."

He then poured a cup of hot water and placed it in her hands, "You don't have to drink it if you don't want to, just use it to warm your hands."

Song Qingyu looked at the cup in her hands, then down at the hand Pei Jingmo had just been holding. His actions were so natural, as if divorce didn't even exist between them.

Were other people's cooling-off periods for divorce like this too?

"Say, is that man your husband? He really loves you."

The middle-aged woman sitting next to Song Qingyu smiled and spoke up. Song Qingyu's expression turned slightly awkward, "We won't be for much longer."

"What? Are you getting a divorce?"

Song Qingyu nodded.

"Why? He's so handsome, in such great shape, and so attentive to you. Why get a divorce?"

Song Qingyu felt a deep ache in her heart. Afraid of making Zhengzheng worry, there were many things she didn't know how to tell her. Bottling them up inside was driving her nearly crazy.

Facing a stranger, however, she had no such reservations.

"Because he lied to me."

"What did he lie about?"

"When we... when we got married, he told me he was just a construction worker. Later on, I found out he was my direct superior."

"Just that?"

"His family wanted him to marry another woman."

"And what was his attitude?"

"He didn't like that woman and refused her."

"Then does he love you?"

Song Qingyu fell silent. Previously, she could say with absolute certainty that Pei Jingmo loved her. She wasn't a fool; how could she possibly fail to feel such intense affection?

Yet now, she was no longer sure.

"When I brought up the divorce to her, he didn't object."

The woman seemed to see right through Song Qingyu's heart, "Were you deeply betrayed by someone in the past?"

Song Qingyu bit her lip and nodded.

"No wonder..."

The woman smiled and patted Song Qingyu's back, "Child, I can understand once bitten, twice shy. Lying is certainly wrong, but I can also sense that you still have feelings for him."

"I..."

"Don't be in such a hurry to deny it. Whether you love him or not is something only you know in your heart. Conflicts are normal between a married couple. As long as it's not a matter of principle, if it can be resolved, don't rush into a divorce. Don't do something you'll regret."

The woman picked up her dog and went to get its shot.

Song Qingyu sat there in a daze, a single question echoing in her mind.

After divorcing Pei Jingmo, would she regret it?

If a marriage was built on a foundation of deception, could there be any happiness in the future?

If she forgave him now, would he lie to her again later?

With all this deception back and forth, what meaning was left in such a marriage?

Pei Jingmo had been keeping a close eye on Song Qingyu. Seeing her pale expression and wondering what she was deep in thought about, he assumed she was feeling unwell again.

After Dingding finished its shot, he didn't even have time to soothe the whining puppy before hurrying over to Song Qingyu with it in his arms, "What's wrong? Do you feel sick somewhere?"

Hearing his voice, Song Qingyu just raised her gaze when Pei Jingmo's handsome face suddenly drew close, pressing his forehead directly against hers.

The distance between them closed instantly, and she could even feel his crisp, clean breath.

Her heart began to beat wildly out of control, and her cheeks grew hot. Never expected to still feel a flutter of a heartbeat at his proximity, she panicked and pushed him away.

Pei Jingmo stood up straight, "Sorry—it was just a reflex."

Normally, such intimate gestures were as simple as breathing for the two of them.

Under their current circumstances, however, it was undeniably awkward.

Song Qingyu's face felt as though it were burning up. She abruptly stood up and bolted out the door.

On the way back, Song Qingyu didn't dare look at Pei Jingmo once, terrified that her turbulent emotions would betray her and be discovered by him.

Arriving at their doorstep, Song Qingyu unlocked the door and went inside.

Pei Jingmo let Dingding down, and the puppy trotted off happily to eat its kibble.

Just as Song Qingyu opened her mouth, intending to say, "I already know where to get the vaccinations and when to go, so you won't need to be troubled anymore,"

Pei Jingmo's voice spoke first, "I have a few clothes and documents in the bedroom. May I go in and get them?"

Pei Jingmo asked with careful hesitation. Even now, Song Qingyu still couldn't connect him with that high-and-mighty young master of a wealthy family.

In her mind, they felt like two completely different people.

"Come in."

Pei Jingmo stepped inside. Just as he headed toward the bedroom to retrieve his documents, a thought struck Song Qingyu.

"Wait a minute—"

She dashed into the bedroom, grabbed Pei Jingmo's T-shirt off the bed, and frantically shoved it into the closet.

She certainly didn't want Pei Jingmo to find out that she had been sleeping while hugging his T-shirt all this time.

Then, she tossed Pei Jingmo's pillow away onto the bay window ledge.

Having finished all this, she took a deep breath and was about to head out when she saw that Pei Jingmo was already standing at the doorway, watching her deeply with his dark, fathomless eyes.

Song Qingyu felt the awkwardness of someone caught red-handed. Before she could speak, Pei Jingmo suddenly strode toward her, moving very fast.

Before she could even register his expression, he was already right in front of her. Wrapping an arm around her waist, he lifted her chin and pressed his lips to hers in a deep kiss.

Song Qingyu's eyes widened. She reached out to push against his chest, but he caught her hand, pinning it against the wall by her ear with their fingers intertwined in a tight clasp.

Her body was trapped within his powerful embrace. A cool tongue slipped past her lips, greedily plundering her breath and thoroughly exploring every corner.

Knowing that what they were doing was wrong, Song Qingyu tried to push his tongue away, but he intertwined with hers relentlessly, leaving her completely powerless over her own body.

Unable to resist, after struggling for a while and realizing the futility of her defiance, Song Qingyu simply gave in to despair.

After what felt like an eternity, when Song Qingyu was nearly out of breath, Pei Jingmo finally eased up and released her.

A delicate, ambiguous silver thread stretched between their lips. Pei Jingmo reached out to gently wipe the corner of Song Qingyu's mouth, his gaze dark and low, "We aren't officially divorced yet. I'm still your husband. If you want to... you can do anything to me, you don't need to cuddle my clothes."