18. Standoff
Will she and Xue Lu...have a child?
After the meal, the parties involved began to review the contents of the property agreement.
Old Master Xue took out a document that he had prepared in advance and handed it to Luo and others.
"If Mr. Xue doesn't mind, I'll explain the contents of these terms."
Old Master Xue nodded, and Luo and others glanced at Song Qinggui before beginning their presentation of the draft.
After listening quietly, Song Qinggui concluded that this was not a harsh agreement; in fact, the Xue family had treated her quite well.
Old Master Xue's requirement was that during the marriage between Song Qinggui and Xue Lu, Xue Lu's property could be considered their joint property. In other words, as long as they were still a couple, he, as their father, would not interfere with how much money Xue Lu gave Song Qinggui or how much he bought for her.
However, once they divorce, regardless of who is at fault, Xue Lu's real estate, vehicles, other fixed assets, shares, cash, etc., will belong to Xue Lu himself, and Song Qinggui will not be able to claim them.
However, the reason for saying "preferential treatment" is that Old Master Xue did indeed prepare a way out for Song Qinggui.
If Song Qinggui was not at fault during the breakdown of their marriage, Ms. Xue would pay her 200,000 yuan per month in living expenses. If she and Mr. Xue had children, Ms. Xue would establish an offshore trust for the children, valued at 500 million US dollars.
After Luo finished reading, Xue Rao immediately said, "Dad, that's not fair!"
Xue Lu's other brothers also said, "A $500 million offshore trust?! Dad, you're really favoring Fourteenth Prince!"
Xue Qielu had many children, but none of his biological children had $500 million in trusts. How could an unborn child not be envious of such a huge fortune?
The room was filled with complaints. Old Master Xue coughed to signal them to be quiet, but people can't be rational when faced with huge conflicts of interest, and the argument only got louder.
"You've gone too far!" Old Master Xue raised his hand and smashed a teacup.
As the white porcelain shattered, the crowd finally quieted down, but each person still wore a look of dissatisfaction.
"Heh..." A soft laugh suddenly came from Xue Tan: "You all have the nerve to take your anger out on your father. Since Xiao Shisi started college, he hasn't spent a single penny of our money. As for how you sponge off your parents, you know it in your hearts. If you had earned your own living, your children would have just as much money, but instead of being ambitious, you squandered all the money yourselves. Who can you blame?"
After these words were spoken, everyone in the room fell silent.
Among the younger generation of the Xue family, only Xue Tan has the confidence to say this.
Like Xue Lu, he also built his own business empire by starting his own business after adulthood, and Xue Tan was much more successful than Xue Lu.
His Tianlan Group is already one of the top five investment banks in China. In recent years, it has also invested in fields such as artificial intelligence, new energy, and extraterrestrial exploration, and its business network has covered the globe.
In the past two years, Xue Qielu has frequently revealed that the Xue family business will eventually be handed over to Xue Tan.
Xue Tan is very likely to be the next generation to take power in the Xue family, so when he said this, no one dared to refute him.
Song Qinggui listened to the whole thing from beginning to end, gradually becoming lost in thought.
Parents' hearts are truly full of love and concern; Old Master Xue even thought of Xue Lu and her child.
child……
Song Qinggui's thoughts lingered on this word.
She is 27 years old this year, has had two relationships, and has been married to Xue Lu for a year. Both in terms of age and emotional experience, she should be considered a mature woman. Moreover, from a medical point of view, she is at the optimal age for childbearing.
But she never imagined that one day she would be able to give birth to a new life.
Song Qinggui never looked down on herself. No matter how much criticism and accusation there was about her past, she never doubted her intelligence and ability. From childhood to adulthood, she lived up to her studies and work. She was a qualified member of society.
Having a child is not a decision that can be made lightly.
Although she has grown up and experienced the ways of the world, she always felt that a part of her soul was trapped at the long-distance island pier when she was five years old, and she could never escape it.
She's like a banana—she looks radiant and smells wonderful, but if you look closely, you'll see that some parts are already rotten…
How can someone like her deserve to have a child?
But if... she meant if, she really would have a child.
So the child's father... is...
"Rules and regulations?"
The overlapping male voices rang out; it was Xue Lu and Luo calling her name simultaneously.
Because of the coincidence of their voices, Xue Lu and Luo Deng exchanged a glance, restraining themselves from offending each other, but it was by no means a friendly exchange.
Song Qinggui suddenly came to his senses.
She laughed self-deprecatingly. Someone like her, struggling to survive and sacrificing her morality, would never have children.
But... since it's all just a dream, why not dream it thoroughly?
Song Qinggui looked at Old Master Xue: "Add one more thing."
"Song Qinggui, don't be too greedy!"
No sooner had Song Qinggui finished speaking than Xue Rao interrupted, and Xue Lu's other brothers were also indignant.
Old Master Xue narrowed his eyes; he hadn't expected Song Qinggui to have such a big appetite.
Song Qinggui found it amusing to see the room full of wealthy people getting angry and hurting their livers over money.
But her eyes held endless sorrow: "I don't care whether my child with Lawyer Xue has a trust or not, but if we divorce, I will have custody of the child."
As Song Qinggui finished speaking, Xue Lu suddenly looked at her, his gaze intense. So what did she mean by this...?
She and him...the child...
"Heh... what kind of good children can a woman like you who sells her body raise?" one of Xue Lu's brothers whispered, which elicited several low, disdainful laughs from the crowd.
A moment later, Xue Lu's voice rang out: "Xue Can, you owe millions in high-interest loans in the United States and are being chased by the local police. You were afraid your father would find out, so you asked me to go to the United States to rescue you. You knelt in front of me with snot and tears streaming down your face, begging me to clean up your mess. Have you forgotten that pitiful look on your face?"
Xue Lu's appearance actually resembled his mother more, but at this moment his eyes had seven parts of Xue Qielu's charm, sharp and ruthless.
Xue Can was so angry that his eyes twitched when he was publicly humiliated.
Xue Lu didn't let him off the hook: "It's none of your business what kind of person my wife is. If you can't speak like a human being, then you should just be a dog in the Xue family."
"Fourteen." Xue Qielu called out Xue Lu's nickname in a deep voice.
This was his most gentle and polite child. From childhood to adulthood, Xue Qielu had never heard Xue Lu utter a single swear word. Even when he was at his most estranged from the third branch of the family because of Wen Shuang, he always maintained the restraint and politeness of a scholar.
But today, this son actually humiliated his own brother to this extent for the sake of a woman.
If Xue Can is a dog, then what is his father?! Yet, he can't criticize Xue Lu, or even Song Qinggui.
Song Qinggui's request for custody was actually unexpected.
A beautiful single woman with a child almost completely loses her value in the marriage market. Song Qinggui had been pursuing marriage since her student days, so she couldn't possibly be unaware of this.
Xue Qielu had many romantic relationships with women throughout his life, and had many illegitimate children, but none of the women chose to take their children with them when their relationships ended.
Therefore, Xue Qielu looked at Song Qinggui with high regard because she was able to make this request.
Since he couldn't be too harsh on his daughter-in-law, he naturally couldn't blame his son for speaking up for her either. No matter how unhappy Xue Qielu was, he had to swallow his anger.
“My Xue family’s children,” Xue Qielu said, suppressing his anger, “have no reason to be left to wander outside.”
"Heh..." Song Qinggui chuckled upon hearing this, then looked at Xue Can: "Hearing your father say this, anyone who doesn't know better would think the Xue family has such good family traditions. The child should stay with me, lest he learn bad things from these uncles and aunts."
Song Qinggui's words silenced the entire banquet hall. She had gone too far; it was tantamount to publicly criticizing Xue Qielu for failing to raise his son properly.
Even Su Yalin, who was usually the best at comforting Old Master Xue, didn't dare to breathe loudly.
Song Qinggui couldn't help but laugh when he saw the "Are you crazy?" expressions on everyone's faces.
She gracefully crossed her legs, her hands resting loosely on her knees, her eyes sweeping over Xue Lu's brothers and sisters with a nonchalant air: "I thought you would know my style of doing things after the Third Aunt's birthday recently. I didn't expect you to still be so stupid."
As soon as she finished speaking, Xue Rao and Xue Can turned green with anger.
"Rules of conduct." Old Master Xue's expression was also very unpleasant: "You must be careful with your words."
"Sense of propriety?" Song Qinggui tilted his head slightly, revealing a hint of naivety: "Grandpa, I heard that on Cangwu Mountain in Lancheng, there is the Xue family ancestral hall, which has stood for more than four hundred years. The ancestral tablets enshrined there include those of the prime minister of the Ming Dynasty, the imperial tutor of the Qing Dynasty, the pioneers of the revolution, the generals who defended the country, and the scientists who contributed to the new China. Anyone who sees it will say that the Xue family is a prestigious family."
What Song Qinggui said was "pleasant to hear," so the crowd didn't react much.
But what Song Qinggui said next really hit a nerve with the Xue family members present.
"However, look at you living members of the Xue family." Song Qinggui's smile was condescending, almost a judgmental gesture: "Old man, you are greedy and lustful, and your children are even more so. This whole house is full of people with the surname Xue, except for Xue Lu and Xue Tan, you could say they are all thieves and prostitutes."
Upon hearing this, the veins on Xue Qielu's forehead bulged.
Xue Rao and Xue Can were dumbfounded by the scolding. They never expected Song Qinggui to be so reckless when she started cursing, even daring to point her finger at Old Master Xue and curse him like that.
Su Yalin squeezed Song Qinggui's arm and used her eyes to advise her to stop.
Song Qinggui ignored her. She looked directly at Xue Qielu, who was suppressing his rage, and spoke gently, as if offering advice: "No matter how unwilling you are to admit it, the Qing Dynasty is gone, you are old, and you know that the Xue family's fortunes may collapse because of your good-for-nothing children. I can tell from this agreement that you haven't treated me unfairly. I suspect that your willingness to make concessions on behalf of the Xue family in the property agreement is due to two reasons. First, it's related to the medical dispute at Jingtian Hospital recently, and you seem satisfied with my performance. Second, you know that I, Song Qinggui, am just a worthless person; at worst, I'll just die. But your wives, concubines, and children have too many bad debts. You're afraid I'll do something rash. Not to mention anything else, the Discipline Inspection Commission, the State Taxation Bureau, or the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission—any one of them could come and make things difficult for the Xue family, even if they don't have any major problems."
Xue Qielu narrowed his eyes. He had to admit that Song Qinggui was really bold. In all his decades in the business world, Song Qinggui was the first person to dare to threaten him like this.
Song Qinggui seemed to see through Xue Qielu's thoughts: "Dad, since we've come this far, let me be a little clearer. My marriage to Xue Lu was indeed for financial reasons. But before this calculation, Xue Lu and I had known each other for ten years. For any woman, marriage is a major event. You know, I have no shortage of wealthy men in my life, but the reason I married Xue Lu was because I admired his character and trusted his integrity as a businessman. As long as he doesn't do anything that crosses my bottom line, I will never betray him. And as his family, I hope you will not cross my bottom line either. Not for my sake, but for his sake, and for the sake of your Xue family."
After Song Qinggui finished speaking, everyone looked at her.
Xue Lu's eyes were deep and calm, but his heart was in turmoil.
She said...
She and his child... She approves of his character... She would never betray him...
In Xue Lu's eyes, this was almost a promise of "growing old together".
Luo and others lowered their heads, seemingly fiddling with the documents in their hands, but in reality, their emotions were churning.
He had witnessed many property agreements being signed, most of them awkward. The party with a lower economic status often fawned over the wealthy, acting as if they were willing to be a slave to the rich for life.
He had never met anyone like Song Qinggui. She made no attempt to hide her baseness, desires, and ambitions. She was ruthless, and... captivating.
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