The person beside him asked, "What's wrong?"
"I think I saw an acquaintance."
They had grown up with Feng Tingshen and were well aware that Rong Ci liked him. To be honest, Rong Ci was beautiful, but she was too quiet a beauty without much character, certainly not the type Feng Tingshen liked.
Feng Tingshen kept her at arm's length, and they didn't think much of her either. They didn't see her often and usually didn't bother greeting her. To be fair, Rong Ci's face had become a bit of a blur to him; he wasn't even sure if he had seen her correctly.
But even if it were her, he wouldn't care. He said no more and turned back into the private booth.
Rong Ci didn't notice Qi Yuming. After leaving the hotel, she took Chu Zilan back to her place and stayed the night to look after her.
When Chu Zilan woke up and saw Rong Ci there, she gave her a grateful hug. "Thanks for last night, it must have been tough! I'll buy you dinner sometime!"
Rong Ci had already prepared breakfast. She patted her friend's head. "Go wash up; breakfast is getting cold."
Chu Zilan clung to her, burying her face in Rong Ci's waist, unwilling to let go. "Xiao Ci, you're so fragrant and soft, hugging you feels so good~"
Rong Ci: "..."
After washing up, Chu Zilan felt incredibly happy seeing the delicious breakfast Rong Ci had prepared. She truly felt that whoever married Rong Ci would be getting a treasure. But then she thought of the marriage between Rong Ci and Feng Tingshen and kept quiet, afraid of hurting her friend's feelings.
She sat down, eating breakfast while scrolling through her phone. Suddenly, her expression shifted. She couldn't help but ask, "Feng Tingshen is back in the country?"
Rong Ci: "Yeah."
Chu Zilan handed the phone over. Rong Ci glanced at it and saw a post on Qi Yuming's Moments. The caption read: Happy birthday to our beautiful birthday girl~
Although it was meant to be a wish for Lin Wu's birthday, four or five photos in the nine-grid layout were of Feng Tingshen and Lin Wu together. One photo in particular showed them holding the same crystal knife to cut the cake.
As for his daughter, Feng Jingxin, she didn't appear in a single shot likely to prevent the people at the Feng Family Ancestral Home from finding out. After all, Old Mrs. Feng was a good friend of Rong Ci's grandmother.
Because of the past between their mothers, the old lady had never liked Lin Wu. If she knew Feng Tingshen was letting Feng Jingxin get close to Lin Wu, she would be furious.
Looking at the photos alone, an outsider would think Feng Tingshen and Lin Wu were a real couple. It was also obvious that this birthday banquet had been specially prepared by Feng Tingshen for Lin Wu.
Thinking of the cold treatment she had received on her own birthday half a month ago, Rong Ci looked away.
Chu Zilan looked at her with concern. "Xiao Ci"
"It's fine. Whatever they do has nothing to do with me anymore." Rong Ci handed the phone back. "I've asked Feng Tingshen for a divorce."
"What?!" Chu Zilan was shocked. "You... you were the one who brought it up?!"
"Yeah."
Chu Zilan hadn't actually hated Feng Tingshen before. On the contrary, she used to admire him, and had even felt a bit of a crush once. It wasn't for anything else other than the fact that Feng Tingshen was simply too exceptional.
Rong Ci had skipped three grades and graduated from the country's top university before she was even eighteen, quickly founding her own tech company and securing several patents. In Chu Zilan's eyes, that was already legendary.
But Feng Tingshen had reportedly graduated from university at thirteen. Not long after, he went abroad for further studies. It was said that by the time he returned, he had already founded several companies, all of which were listed on the stock market. At that time, Feng Tingshen wasn't even twenty!
His companies spanned technology, medicine, entertainment, and tourism. In the years following, while building his own empire, he took over the Feng Group. Over the past few years, he had effortlessly taken the company to new heights.
Who in their circle wouldn't give Feng Tingshen a thumbs up? Moreover, his looks were extraordinary. So, it wasn't surprising to Chu Zilan that a genius like Rong Ci would fall for a genius like Feng Tingshen.
However, Feng Tingshen was indeed ruthless toward those he didn't like. Thinking about how he had misunderstood Rong Ci all these years and callously trampled on her sincerity, Chu Zilan's admiration for him vanished completely.
She had seen how much Rong Ci loved him. Over the years, she had tried to persuade Rong Ci to divorce, but Rong Ci had always just silently shook her head. She really hadn't expected Rong Ci to be the one to initiate it.
Chu Zilan lost her appetite. She looked at her friend with heartache. "What happened?"
For the steadfastly loving Rong Ci to ask for a divorce, something major must have happened that she didn't know about.
Rong Ci thought for a moment and said, "It wasn't really any one big thing. I think I just accumulated enough disappointment and suddenly felt tired. I just want a divorce."
Chu Zilan knew her personality. Once Rong Ci made a decision, even if she hadn't completely let go of him yet, she wouldn't change her mind. She was serious.
Chu Zilan hugged her. "It's fine. A divorce is a good thing."
Rong Ci: "Yeah."
After breakfast, Rong Ci left and went to work. Before she moved out, even though they worked at the same place, they always left the house at different times and never went together. Plus, he guarded himself against her so strictly that they sometimes didn't even run into each other once a month at the company.
Now that she had moved out, they had crossed paths two days in a row.
Today, Feng Tingshen looked as handsome, tall, and steady as ever. And just like in the past, whenever he saw her, the coldness on his face became even more pronounced.
Like yesterday, he merely glanced at her before looking away.
Rong Ci lowered her gaze and, just like yesterday, softly called out, "President Feng." She only walked into the company after he had moved away.
She didn't know if Lin Wu had come to the company today, and she didn't care. She focused silently on her work.
At noon, her grandmother called.
"Xiao Ci, someone sent a sheep over from City X. The weather is turning cold, so come back for dinner tonight. I'll have them prepare a Whole Lamb Feast for you."
Hearing the old lady's kind voice, Rong Ci felt a warmth in her heart. "Okay, I'll head back after work."
Aside from the morning, Rong Ci didn't run into Feng Tingshen again that day.
As she was packing her things and preparing to leave work on time, Cheng Yuan brought a document to her, asking her to handle it urgently.
Rong Ci paused.
He said it was urgent, but one look at the content told her it wasn't needed right away. In the past, she would have accepted it with a smile and promised to finish it as quickly as possible. She hadn't wanted to be seen as needing special treatment.
But today, she didn't want to strive for perfection anymore especially regarding anything involving Feng Tingshen. Besides, she was tired. Now, she just wanted to go home early to be with her grandmother; she didn't want to work overtime.
Previously, she had always wanted to maintain a good relationship with Feng Tingshen's private secretaries. But now, it was no longer necessary.
Furthermore, Cheng Yuan had blindly accused her yesterday. She wasn't magnanimous enough to act as if nothing had happened.
She looked at Cheng Yuan and said coldly, "I won't be doing this work now. I'm leaving."
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