Jiang Feng immediately shook his head. “Of course not.”

Xiao Hu seemed to realize his earlier words had been inappropriate, and quickly echoed Jiang Feng’s gesture, shaking his head as he said, “Xixi, I wouldn’t either.”

Lin Xi: …

Ming Yue: …

Ming Yue: “Cut it out—acting like some kind of innocent! If you really ran into someone like her, no matter how shrewd you are, you’d still be beaten. Isn’t there a saying that no one can ever truly escape a ‘pig-slaughtering trap’? It’s just that they haven’t met the right person yet.”

“Hehe!” Jiang Feng let out two faint laughs. “What ‘pig-slaughtering trap’? It’s nothing but an excuse for those men’s greed. If she dares to scheme against me, I’ll kill her first.”

Everyone: …

The world fell silent once again.

No one spoke.

But soon, Liu Qingqing’s voice, trembling with sobs, came through Ming Yue’s computer. She said, “Zhang Yang, I’m really sorry—I lied to you! I’ve wronged you! I owe you so much! You can blame me, you can hate me—it’s all fine! But…”

At this point, Liu Qingqing’s voice choked up again.

After a long pause, she finally continued, “Forget it, forget it. I shouldn’t have been so greedy. I shouldn’t have kept hoping you’d forgive me, nor should I have kept expecting you to treat me the way you used to. Zhang Yang…”

Liu Qingqing choked up twice more, and after another brief pause, she said, “Zhang Yang, no matter what I say, this is just how things are. I can’t keep hiding it anymore, and I can’t keep lying to you either, because my conscience would never be at peace. And I can’t even imagine how I’d go on living each day while deceiving you. So after much deliberation, I’ve decided to come clean with you. Zhang Yang, if you decide to break up with me because of this—if you end our relationship because of it—I won’t blame you! It all started with me. It was my fault. I didn’t fulfill my duties as a fiancée; I didn’t live up to the responsibilities of a fiancée. I’m the one who personally blemished our love. But…”

Liu Qingqing choked up again.

And this time, she sobbed for a very long while.

Ming Yue and the others were growing impatient, but there was still no response from the other side.

Yet just then, just as Ming Yue was about to burst into anger, Liu Qingqing suddenly spoke up once more: “Zhang Yang, I’m sorry! I don’t dare to hope for your forgiveness, and I don’t have the courage to expect your understanding. Whether you want to break up with me or annul our engagement—even if you decide to cut me off because of this—I can understand! But there’s one thing: could you promise me something?”

“Promise what?”

Zhang Yang finally spoke, his words laced with deep conflict.

He seemed to want to distance himself, yet at the same time, he couldn’t quite bring himself to let go.

Liu Qingqing sniffled a few times, then mustered her strength again and said in a low voice, “I hope you’ll promise me: no matter what our final outcome ends up being, could you please refrain from blaming me for this? Zhang Yang, I don’t know if you can really understand my situation, but the truth is, I’m stuck in such a miserable predicament. Ever since I was born, I’ve lived in a family like this. My maternal grandmother, my mother, and even my aunt—all of them were women forced by life to make mistakes. They…”

Liu Qingqing choked up again.

After a long pause, she said, “They took many wrong turns and ended up being seen by outsiders as ‘bad women.’ But what choice did I have? Could I choose where I was born? Could I choose my family? Could I choose my own life? Could I abandon them? After all these years, I can’t comment on how they’ve presented themselves to others—or even if I should. But as far as I’m concerned, as their relative, they truly fulfilled their duties as family members and took excellent care of me. From the very first day I met you, I knew I wasn’t good enough for you! My family certainly wasn’t good enough for yours! Yet I was still greedy. I still wanted to be with you. I still wanted to fight for my own happiness! Back then, I thought: even if I had to lie, I’d still trick you into marrying me! I wanted to be a happy woman, a normal woman! I wanted to build a beautiful life with you, to spend every day together in peace and contentment! So I chose to hide the truth, to deceive you. I figured I’d first get us married, and then, once everything settled down and the dust had finally cleared, I’d tell you everything. But…”

Liu Qingqing’s voice trailed off, choked with emotion.

End of Chapter 243: Counterattack 170