"My answer is still the same. I don't have money." Yun Yiyi picked up her handbag. She had already said what she wanted to say so there was no point in staying on any longer.
When Qiao Xi saw Yun Yiyi was about to leave, she stepped forward and grabbed Yun Yiyi's arm tightly. She said firmly, "You can't leave!"
Yun Yiyi furrowed her brows in pain. She struggled to free her hand but her mother only tightened her grip. "Let go, mom. You're hurting me!"
Yun Qiao looked at his sister, distressed, and hurriedly stepped forward to pull his mother away.
Song Zhuang, who was watching from the side, quickly stepped forward to stop him. She tugged him to the side and chided him, "This is between your mother and Yiyi. Stay out of it."
Yun Qiao looked at Song Zhuang with a dark expression and said, "This is our family's matter, how can I stay out of it? Let go of me, Xiao Zhuang!"
Song Zhuang refused to let go. She raised her voice and said, "I won't let go! I won't let you get involved in this matter today! You better stay here!"
Yun Qiao reached out to pry Song Zhuang's fingers open.
Song Zhuang released her grip and hugged him tightly, rendering him immobile.
"Xiao Zhuang!"
"I won't let go!" Song Zhuang said resolutely.
Qiao Xi looked at Yun Qiao and Song Zhuang who were arguing before she shifted her gaze back to Yun Yiyi whose face was contorted in pain. "Yiyi, I know you're rich. Can't you agree to my request?" Although she said it was a request, it sounded more like a demand coming out from her mouth.
Yun Yiyi looked at her mother helplessly. "I really don't have any money. I really don't! How many times do you want me to repeat myself?" Although she could ask her mother to confirm this with Gu Jingyan, she did not want her mother speaking to Gu Jingyan. After all, he would only stir up more trouble for her.
Qiao Xi realized Yun Yiyi was not going to yield. Although she had threatened Yun Yiyi with Yun Qiao's legs, Yun Yiyi remained unmoved. This was the first time such a thing had happened. It seemed like she had to come up with another way.
"Yiyi, I know you're rich. I am not greedy for your money. I will kneel and beg you. I beg you to buy a house for your brother so he can get married. I beg you." As she spoke, she made a move to kneel.
Upon seeing this, Song Zhuang cried out, "Aunt Qiao!" Then, she turned to Yun Yiyi and rebuked her, "Yiyi, how can you let your mother kneel in front of you?"
Yun Yiyi didn't need Song Zhuang's reminder. She would not let her mother kneel in front of her. She quickly held her mother up. She said with reddened eyes, "Mom, why don't you believe me? If I had the money, I would definitely buy it."
Qiao Xi sneered inwardly. How could she really kneel in front of Yun Yiyi? She let Yun Yiyi pull her up and began to sob. Then, she tried to use the same trick again and threatened to kneel. "Yiyi, just agree to mom's request. Just this once, as long as you agree, I won't bother you in the future."
Yun Qiao was so angry that his whole body was trembling. "Mom, why do you have to force Yiyi? She really doesn't have money. If we can't get a new house, then so be it. At most, I just won't get married!"
Song Zhuang looked at Yun Qiao in shock before she burst into tears. "Yun Qiao, what did you say? You won't get married? Yun Qiao, I've been with you for almost five years, and this is how you treat me?"
Yun Yiyi glanced at her brother and Song Zhuang who were arguing before she looked at her mother who was about to kneel. She felt suffocated. She held her mother to prevent her from kneeling as she said, "Mom, don't be like this. Don't force me... I really can't afford to buy a house."
Qiao Xi continued to sob pitifully. "Yiyi, how can you be so heartless? You don't even care about your brother who loves you the most!"
"I don't have any money. What can I do?" Yun Yiyi felt as though her world had gone completely dark at this moment.
Meanwhile, Song Zhuang said, "Yunqiao, you better give me an explanation. What do you mean by you won't get married? After so many years, is this all I am worth to you?"
Yunqiao said, "Xiao Zhuang, calm down."
Qiao Xi wailed miserably and continued to say through tears, "Yiyi, I'm begging you. I'm begging you. Please..."
This went on for more than half an hour before Yun Yiyi finally broke down. She screamed, "Alright, I'll buy it. I'll buy the house, I'll buy it! I'm begging you, can you stop this?"
In an instant, everyone fell silent.
When Song Zhuang regained her senses, she looked at Yun Yiyi with tears in her eyes. She was overjoyed. She would have a new house. It did not matter how Yun Yiyi was going to buy it, it had nothing to do with her. All she had to do was sit back and wait for it.
Qiao Xi who had been crying and begging a moment ago revealed a smile on her face. "Yiyi, I knew you have money. You should've just agreed to my request earlier."
Yun Qiao looked at Yun Yiyi anxiously. "Yiyi, I know you don't have money. I don't need you to buy a house for me. Just take care of yourself."
Song Zhuang glared at Yun Qiao. "Yiyi has already agreed to it. Why are you saying these words? Anyway, she owes you more than she can ever repay. It's just a house. It won't even make a dent in the divorce settlement she received from the Gu family."
"That's right, that's right." Qiao Xi looked at Yun Qiao happily. One could not even tell she was just crying and kicking up a fuss a moment ago. She said, "Yiyi, get it done as soon as possible. Renovate it as well. Then, your brother can get married before the new year."
Yun Yiyi shook off her mother's hand. Her wrist was already bruised. She gritted her teeth, and her mind was blank as she looked at her so-called family.
Qiao Xi wore a smug expression on her face, clearly delighted she was able to force Yun Yiyi to buy a house.
Her brother, Yunqiao, looked at her worriedly, but she could not hear what he was saying.
Song Zhuang's exquisitely made-up face was filled with joy and expectancy as though she could already see her beautiful new life in a new house.
Yun Yiyi felt as though she had been dropped into a frozen lake. She was cold to the bones. They did not care about her the slightest bit.
Her entire body was trembling violently. She did not if it was due to anger or sadness. Her hands were tightly clutching her handbag; her knuckles were white. Her eyes were devoid of emotion as she looked at her mother and tonelessly said, "Mom, I will buy the house! Even if I have to sell myself, I'll make sure my brother has a new house for his wedding..." Then, she inhaled deeply before she continued to say, "However, listen carefully, I didn't take a single cent from the Gu family! I will repay what I owe my brother, but from today onward, I have nothing to do with this family! Our ties are now severed!" After she finished speaking, she turned around and left.
Qiao Xi did not take Yun Yiyi's words to heart. After all, nobody could change the fact that she was Yun Yiyi's mother. "Yiyi, don't worry. As long as you buy your brother a house, I won't bother you anymore."
Yun Qiao's face was as pale as a sheet of paper. He grabbed Yun Yiyi who was about to leave and said pleadingly, "Yiyi, don't be like this. You don't owe me anything. I know you don't have money so there's no need to buy a house. Yiyi, I won't get married..."
Yun Yiyi did not let Yun Qiao finish his words and shook his hand away. She stared at him pointedly.
Yun Qiao felt as though Yun Yiyi's cold gaze was a knife that stabbed his heart. The pain was excruciating.
"Brother, I'll buy you a house. You and Song Zhuang can get married and live a good life after that. You don't have to concern yourself with my matters anymore." Yun Yiyi's face was pale. Although her body is trembling, she tried her best to stand straight and not show any weakness. She had to maintain whatever little self-respect and dignity she had left. She said apathetically, "Brother, you clearly knew when mother betrayed me and sold me to the Gu family for benefits. However, you didn't stop her and acquiesced to her treatment of me. Do you know how I spent my days in the Gu family? Do you know how Gu Jingyan humiliated me? Do you know my days in the Gu family were worse than death? Of course, you don't know. Mom, you, Song Zhuang, all of you only saw money, but I saw pain..."
At this point, tears were threatening to spill out of her eyes. She blinked to hold back her tears. "I've always felt guilty and blamed myself for what happened to you. I didn't care even if mom sold me to the Gu family for benefits. I only care about you. If I had to live through dark days just so you can live a better life, I'm willing. However, what did I get? You totally disregarded me!"
Yun Qiao said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Yiyi. I'm sorry. I wasn't in my right mind at that time… I don't know what I was thinking..."
"Sorry?" Yun Yiyi sneered, "There's no need to apologize. After all, I was willing to endure it at that time since you're my family. However, I came home today to make things clear. We'll go our separate ways after this!"
Qiao Xi's expression darkened. When she saw Yun Yiyi leaving, she hurriedly shouted, "Even if you want to cut ties, make sure you buy the house before the new year!"
Yun Yiyi stopped in her tracks, straightened her back, and left without looking back.
"Yiyi..."Yun Qiao called out. He wanted to chase after her but was stopped by Song Zhuang.
"Your sister's temper is getting worse. Don't worry, she'll return when her anger subsides." Song Zhuang tried to persuade Yun Qiao softly.
"That's right. Where can she go now that she's divorced? She'll come back in a few days when she calms down," Qiao Xi said, agreeing with Song Zhuang.
Yun Qiao was furious. He yelled, "Mom! This is all your fault! If you weren't greedy for the benefits Tian Ya promised, things wouldn't be like this!"
Josie glared at Yun Qiao. "Fine, It's my fault. It's all my fault, okay?" After that, she smiled happily and said, "Now that you and Xiao Zhuang can get married, I feel more at ease. I will go and cook now. Both of you can rest." After she finished speaking, she made her way to the kitchen.
...
When Yun Yiyi entered the car, she could no longer suppress her tears so she let them fall. She felt as though someone had stabbed her heart with a knife before twisting the handle. When she had calmed down considerably, she drove away.
Unbeknownst to her, there was a black Land Rover parked at the corner. From its spot, the people in the car could clearly see Yun Yiyi's expressions.
A handsome man dressed in a navy suit with sharp facial features and short hair frowned slightly. A complicated expression could be seen on his face.
At this moment, a delicate voice rang in the air. "Young Master Gu, who are you waiting for? You've been waiting here for several hours. Didn't you promise you'd accompany me to buy jewelry?"
Gu Jingyan's eyes turned cold. He looked at the coquettish woman with heavy makeup sitting in the passenger seat. Compared to Yun Yiyi, she was simply too vulgar! He said harshly, "Get out!"
The woman's face paled immediately. She could tell Gu Jingyan was incredibly displeased. She could not afford to offend him so she quickly scurried out of the car.
Gu Jingyan stepped on the accelerator, ruthlessly abandoning the woman. His face was extremely gloomy as he reached up to loosen his tie. He was in a terrible mood.
Yun Yiyi had always been calm whenever he saw her. No matter how angry she was, she would not show the slightest bit of weakness. She was such a strong woman. No matter how he ridiculed her or humiliated her, she would always remain calm, as though she did not care about anything at all.
However, earlier, he had witnessed her crying her heart out. He felt very uncomfortable. He felt a weight in his heart, making it difficult to breathe,
He knew she would definitely come home today so he had deliberately waited here. He knew she would definitely be scolded by her vain mother who was blinded by money. Everything was within his expectations. So why did he feel so uncomfortable when he saw her in pain? Was this not the outcome he wanted to see? Why did he feel unhappy then?
'Yun Yiyi. Yun Yiyi. Yun Yiyi,' he silently chanted her name. He grew more and more troubled.
He still had a difficult time believing that they had gotten a divorce. For the first time, his confidence suffered a blow. He was no longer sure of himself. For the first time, he felt regretful of what he had done. He really should not have confidently signed the divorce papers when Yun Yiyi deliberately provoked him.
His black Land Rover trailed after Yun Yiyi's silver Chevrolet. He followed her to a second-hand car dealer and watched her enter the shop.
He waited for a while, but Yun Yiyi still did not come out. A complicated look flashed in his eyes before he took out his mobile phone and dialed a number.
"Check out a second-hand car dealer in Jiayuan for me. There's a customer called Yun Yiyi."
The car was silent. After a while, Gu Jingyan frowned. He said coldly, "What? She's selling her car?"
The person on the other end of the line answered respectfully, "Yes, Young Master Gu. Miss Yun is in a hurry to sell her car. The car dealership has already agreed on a price with her. She bought the car for 160,000 yuan and drove it for 25,000 kilometers for three years. The agreed-upon price is 60,000 yuan."
Gu Jingyan pursed his lips tightly, lost in his thoughts. After a moment, he coldly said, "Inform all the second-hand car dealerships in Jiang City not to buy her car!"