Chapter 7
Chen Fengni's parents' marriage was the product of a commercial alliance. Trapped in a cage of profit, they married and had children, seemingly completing a mission. Mission accomplished, the two tacitly agreed to each go their separate ways, unexpectedly achieving a strange harmony.
As for the unexpected child born in this marriage, no one cared at all.
Her parents were absent and rarely came home, and every time they saw her they only made endless demands on her.
She has to be well-behaved, obedient, work hard, and meet the expectations of others, but is reluctant to give her a little real care and love.
Shen Fengni was used to obeying, and had no choice but to obey.
The reason is simple. If you don’t obey, you won’t have any food to eat, and if you don’t have any food to eat, you will be hungry.
It sounds outrageous, but it's exactly what her parents did. This is the simplest, crudest, and most effective way to control a child who hasn't yet become independent and has no earning power.
When she was young, there was a nanny at home who came to cook. Later, Shen Fengni was alone at home all year round, and the empty house was eerily quiet.
The definition of parents gradually became abstract, reduced to regular phone calls asking about her academic performance and monthly deposits into her bank account. Over time, Shen Fengni couldn't even remember their faces.
Chen Fengni was once distressed for a while, not understanding why her home was different from others. Later, she realized that thinking too much would only add to her troubles, so she simply gave up.
The lack of close relationships in her childhood made her uncomfortable and unwilling to get close to others. She learned to take care of herself and live well alone.
Follow the family's preset track and move forward step by step.
Study hard, get into a prestigious university, have a perfect resume, and marry the person you have already chosen.
It's like a commodity, reserved long ago and displayed in a beautiful glass window. When the agreed time comes and it is delivered to the buyer, it will be considered a happy ending.
Chen Fengni once thought that the worst outcome for her would be to replicate her mother's life, but after actually marrying Yu Qian, she discovered that it was far more than that.
Yu Qian had grown up abroad and was used to a life of freedom, so she had no interest in seeing a puppet doll that had grown up in a shop window. It was rigid and boring, and she had no interest in understanding it.
But due to the conflicting interests of the two families, she had no choice but to cooperate with the performance. Later, she found that there was something profitable to be gained from Shen Fengni, and things began to take a turn for the worse.
The cigarette at the fingertips was almost burned out, and the scorching temperature brought Shen Fengni back to his senses.
She stubbed out her cigarette, lit another and brought it to her lips. Her delicate features were shrouded in smoke, her expression dark and unclear.
Outside the window, leaden clouds gathered, and tiny raindrops pelted the glass. In the distance, the river was covered in mist, blurring the boundary between water and sky.
This can't go on any longer.
Shen Fengni pondered secretly.
She has made up her mind: first, to divorce Yu Qian, and second, to get the live broadcast account back.
The difficulties in achieving these two goals are immeasurable.
First of all, Yu Qian would never agree to divorce.
This wasn't because she cared about Chen Fengni that much. It was just that if their marriage ended, it would inevitably cause a stir in both the Yu and Chen families, and the resulting series of troubles could be imagined.
Yu Qian needs a wife of equal social status for marriage. Shen Fengni is already firmly under her control, so why go to so much trouble to replace her?
Therefore, the only path Shen Fengni could think of was to file for divorce.
In the past six months of marriage, she had accumulated a lot of evidence of Yu Qian's infidelity. Some of it was discovered by her by accident, and some was brought to her by the third party's own provocation.
Yu Qian knew about this but didn't care. The interests of the two families were too intertwined, and she didn't think Shen Fengni had the courage to go against his family.
Now, this evidence will be an effective weapon to help her succeed in the lawsuit.
Secondly, Shen Fengni needs money, a lot of money.
Chen Fengni had a few luxury items to support her business, and she planned to sell them all to pay for hiring a lawyer.
But according to the contract, if she wants to terminate her live broadcast account with the company, she needs to pay a penalty of more than 3 million yuan.
This is undoubtedly an astronomical figure for Shen Fengni.
Shen Fengni thought about it and there was only one way left to try.
Sheng Xinyan.
Sheng Xinyan has been livestreaming on the Moment app for nearly three years, making her a veteran of Shen Fengni's. She's currently signed to a top domestic media company, offering a broad platform and excellent compensation.
The two lived in the same city and had met several times. While chatting with Shen Fengni, Sheng Xinyan had mentioned that according to her contract, the platform took 50% of the livestream gift money, the company took 10%, and she ultimately received 40%. This split was considered high in the industry.
Familiar fans know that Sheng Xinyan's monthly income from live streaming is usually hundreds of thousands of yuan, and sometimes even up to one million yuan. Moreover, she comes from a wealthy family and usually makes some investments with her family to earn some extra money.
Although 3 million would not cause any trouble to Sheng Xinyan, Shen Fengni knew that if she explained the situation, Sheng Xinyan would definitely lend it to her.
But even so, she still bears a huge psychological burden. If she is not desperate, she really does not want to borrow money from her friends, let alone owe her friends.
Shen Fengni pursed her lips lightly and made up her mind secretly.
If she can successfully get her account back, she will definitely increase the length of her live broadcast and pay back the money with interest as soon as possible.
Shen Fengni slowly finished a cigarette, picked up her phone and sent a message to Sheng Xinyan.
"Are you free recently? Come out and sit with me?"
***
Jiang Zhuoyan finished reading the last document on the table and pushed it aside.
She rubbed her sore eyes and looked out the window.
The highest-end office building in the city center has an excellent view. It is high above and proudly takes in the prosperity of the entire Qinglan City.
A few thin clouds floated across the azure sky, and the sun shone brightly, illuminating the bustling traffic below. The pale sunlight fell into the eyes of the person standing by the window, making the dark blue of their pupils even more pronounced.
Jiang Zhuoyan was distracted for a moment.
The first time I met Chen Fengni was on such a sunny afternoon.
It was the end of winter and the chill was still there. The streets and alleys were dotted with remnants of snow that had not yet melted, and the air was chilly and fresh.
Jiang Zhuoyan was waiting for someone in the car when he suddenly heard a faint cat meow.
She followed the source of the sound, and when she caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye, she paused slightly.
Not far from her, on the corner, someone had placed a cardboard box among the discarded debris. It wasn't very noticeable, but the cat's meowing was definitely coming from that direction.
Jiang Zhuoyan's eyes darkened slightly, and she was about to get out of the car to check, but someone got there before her.
A thin figure walked over quickly, bent down, picked up the cat in the box and took it into his arms, looking left and right.
Jiang Zhuoyan stopped and looked at the other person quietly.
She was a beautiful young woman, wrapped in a loose down jacket from head to toe, revealing only her fair, innocent face. Her movements in holding the cat were not very skillful, and she was naive and cautious, but her eyes were filled with a bright smile, unable to hide her love.
There are kind people helping you, so you don't need to pay any more attention to it.
But for some reason, Jiang Zhuoyan didn't look away immediately, but continued to watch. She watched the girl holding the cat pass in front of her car, then turned and walked into a cat cafe on the street.
When I came out again, I had nothing in my hands.
A hint of surprise flashed across Jiang Zhuoyan's eyes, but he soon felt relieved.
Judging from the girl's appearance, she might still be a student. It's normal for her to not have the financial means to keep a cat. At this moment, the person she was waiting for got on the bus and curiously followed her gaze. "What are you looking at? Is that someone you know?"
"I don't know him." Jiang Zhuoyan retracted his gaze. "Let's go."
What Jiang Zhuoyan didn't expect was that two months later, she saw the girl again.
This time it was in the live broadcast room of the "Moments" app. She wore light makeup, a beige knitted skirt, and was singing a gentle little song.
It's the kind of voice that takes your breath away, instantly grabs your attention, and once you hear it, it's hard to forget.
The quality of the audience varies greatly, so it is inevitable that some strange people will sneak in.
Amidst all the praises, some people clamored that today's beauties rely on beauty filters and insisted that the anchor turn off the beauty filters to see what was going on.
Jiang Zhuoyan has always disdained to argue with others, especially low-quality people who are full of malice towards others. She won't even look at them.
But that day she couldn't help herself and posted on the public screen, "I want to be more beautiful."
The girl who was singing caught a glimpse of the comment and smiled faintly, like a flower quietly blooming.
Later, Jiang Zhuoyan often went to listen to her sing. Words couldn't even begin to fully capture the beauty of such a lively and vibrant girl. Especially when she smiled, her distinctly black and white almond-shaped eyes were incredibly lively and alluring, making her heart beat faster than it had in a long time.
The uncontrollable heartbeat is like a raging fire, which cannot be stopped.
Later, Jiang Zhuoyan learned that her real name was Shen Fengni, and that she had a fiancée who was a suitable match for her since childhood. It was said that the two of them were in a good relationship and would be getting married soon.
Perhaps her fate with Shen Fengni ended as it began.
Recalling the scene of his first encounter with Chen Fengni, Jiang Zhuoyan seemed to understand something.
Judging from Shen Fengni's family background and career, she's definitely not short of money, so it's definitely not financial constraints that limit her from owning a cat. Perhaps it's because her fiancée doesn't like cats, or perhaps she already has so many that she can't afford to adopt more.
In a sense, she and the cat were both wanderers in the world.
Jiang Zhuoyan found a free moment and went to the cat cafe. Luckily, the cat that Shen Fengni had rescued hadn't found a suitable adopter yet. She took the cat home and named it Nini.
Things in the world cannot be forced. It seems not bad to take a step back and look at her silently.
As long as she is happy.
The phone vibrated twice, bringing Jiang Zhuoyan back to his senses.
Her screen saver is a photo of Nini. The poor dirty little girl has now grown into a beautiful and round calico cat, quite pretty. Everyone who sees her has to praise her.
The message came from a subordinate: Mr. Xiao Jiang, which gift package option do you think is the most suitable?
The event gift package for the anniversary celebration of "Jiang Hu Nuo" has been a hot topic among players recently. The project team attaches great importance to it, has discussed it repeatedly, and has designed several versions of the plan, just waiting for her to make the final decision.
Jiang Zhuoyan's eyes shook slightly, as if he remembered something.
"Plan C," she typed slowly in the dialog box, "add the cats and pets that will be online next month."
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