After getting a definite answer from Shen Youjin, Gu Zhiyuan stayed for a while longer before leaving.
At noon, the nutritionist prepared the meals, and a special person delivered them. Shen Youjin planned to have lunch in her office.
Just as she took the first bite, Ling Qiuqiu's voice came from outside the door. She was a bit surprised. "Come in!"
Ling Qiuqiu walked in on her high heels and looked at her. "Oh, you're having a good meal!"
Shen Youjin nodded. "Do you want to try some?"
"No, thanks." Ling Qiuqiu refused without hesitation. "I still prefer something more flavorful. These look so bland."
"Not really?" Shen Youjin took another bite. "They're quite delicious!"
"You're just used to them." Ling Qiuqiu looked at her. "Anyway, why did you suddenly get together with Gu Zhiyuan?"
She really couldn't understand why Shen Youjin had suddenly made this decision. Moreover, that Gu Zhiyuan seemed so calculating. He didn't seem very reliable.
"Do you want to know the reason?" Shen Youjin put down her chopsticks and looked at her seriously.
Ling Qiuqiu felt a bit at a loss under her gaze. Why did it seem like such a serious matter?
"Yeah, if you want to talk, I'm all ears."
Shen Youjin was concise. "I'm pregnant."
"What???" Ling Qiuqiu looked at her in shock. "You're expecting?"
Shen Youjin nodded. "Haven't you noticed that I haven't worn high heels for a long time?"
Ling Qiuqiu thought carefully for a moment. It seemed that was really the case!
"Is it Gu Zhiyuan's? Did you get together with him for the sake of the baby?"
Shen Youjin hesitated for a moment. "Sort of."
Ling Qiuqiu was silent for a few seconds. "Then if there wasn't this baby, would you still choose Gu Zhiyuan?"
Shen Youjin denied it without hesitation. "No."
This time Ling Qiuqiu was silent for even longer. After a long while, she looked at her and said, "Be more cautious. Once bitten, twice shy!"
Shen Youjin couldn't help but be amused by her. It was the first time she'd heard Ling Qiuqiu say such a literary phrase. "After three months, if I really can't regain the old feelings or get over my own mental hurdle, I'll raise this child on my own."
"That's good." Ling Qiuqiu breathed a sigh of relief after hearing her answer. "I thought you were really being so muddle - headed!"
"Not at all." Shen Youjin said seriously. "But what you just said makes me feel like this three - month decision was a wrong one."
"Just pretend I didn't say it then!" Ling Qiuqiu said half - seriously and half - jokingly. "If Gu Zhiyuan finds out, my family's company can't withstand this big shot's tricks."
Shen Youjin didn't say a word. After a long time, she looked at Ling Qiuqiu and said, "Qiuqiu, have you forgiven me?"
During this period of getting along, even though Ling Qiuqiu occasionally avoided her, Shen Youjin really felt as if she'd returned to the days in college when she hung out with Ling Qiuqiu, just not as close as before.
"Sort of." Ling Qiuqiu turned her head away, pretending to be nonchalant. "You've also helped me a lot. I'll reluctantly forgive you for what happened before!"
Shen Youjin instantly stood up in surprise and reached out to hug Ling Qiuqiu.
"Qiuqiu..."
A pleasant fragrance wafted from Shen Youjin, and Ling Qiuqiu seemed to smell an entire summer.
On this day, Shen Youjin was in a great mood. After work, she dragged Ling Qiuqiu out for a shopping spree.
Ling Qiuqiu found it strange. "Aren't you trying to raise money recently?"
"This is an old card." Shen Youjin waved the card in her hand. "There's five million in it. We can eat, drink, have fun, and buy luxury goods, but we can't withdraw cash. It would be a waste not to spend it."
Ling Qiuqiu looked at the special letters on the card. "Did Gu Zhiyuan give this to you?"
Shen Youjin nodded. "He gave it to me when we were together a long time ago. I've never spent a single cent on it."
At that time, she felt that Gu Zhiyuan was keeping her like a canary, so she hadn't touched a single cent on this card. She never thought it would come in handy now.
Fortunately, there were five bodyguards following them. Otherwise, there would be no space for them to carry anything in their hands by now.
It wasn't until evening that the two of them had dinner outside and then went back to their own homes.
Gu Zhiyuan called. Shen Youjin was in a good mood and rarely took the initiative to share what had happened today with him.
"Congratulations, Regained."
Gu Zhiyuan's voice was still gentle, like a spring breeze caressing her face.
Shen Youjin stretched and there was a smile on her lips. She chatted with Gu Zhiyuan for a while longer before hanging up the phone and going to take a bath.
Lying in the warm bathtub, a message suddenly popped up on Shen Youjin's phone: "I've found Xu Jiale."
The smile on Shen Youjin's lips instantly froze, and her heart began to race. "Bai Beichen, are you serious?"
Seeing her reply, Bai Beichen called directly and told her the whole story.
"She just doesn't want to testify. Money doesn't work on her. She seems to be really afraid of Shen Qilin. She starts shaking as soon as she hears this name. What are you going to do about this?"
Shen Youjin's slender fingers tightened. "Send me Xu Jiale's location. Besides you, who else knows where she is?"
"… Jiang Zeshen, maybe? I got there one step earlier than him." Bai Beichen was really reluctant to mention Jiang Zeshen's name and immediately changed the topic. "Sister, can you forgive me for this matter?"
Shen Youjin's expression today had made him feel anxious all day. Fortunately, there was news from that side. He was extremely glad that he'd made this decision at that time.
Shen Youjin didn't say a word. Her mind was full of the three words "Xu Jiale".
It turned out that when a person was really excited, they really couldn't listen to what others were saying. It wasn't until Bai Beichen called her several times that she came to her senses. "We'll talk about our matter later. I have something else to do. I'll hang up first."
She hung up the phone, looked at the address sent by Bai Beichen, and began to wonder if she should go to Baicheng in person.
She immediately contacted the bodyguards to go there first and protect Xu Jiale.
Because of her exposure, the Shen family's stock price had dropped sharply. Coupled with the efforts of her several ex - boyfriends, Shen Guoliang was now extremely busy and frustrated.
As for Shen Qilin, he might use Xu Jiale to threaten her. She couldn't give Shen Qilin this chance.
If he got there first and took Xu Jiale away, there would be no chance for her mother's case to be overturned in this lifetime!
Thinking like this, she got up, dried her body, and began to think about how to persuade Xu Jiale to testify.
Most importantly, did Shen Qilin have some kind of hold on Xu Jiale? Otherwise, why would she be so afraid of him?
She rubbed her swollen temples, pulled the quilt over her body, and just thought and thought until she fell asleep.
It wasn't until dawn the next day that Shen Youjin sat up, looked at the sunlight outside the window, and the things in her mind began to become clear.
She didn't wait for the nutritionist to come and make breakfast. She sorted out all the evidence she'd collected over the years, then drove to a place.