Mrs. Fu, please be mindful of the appropriate boundaries.

"Madam, I've already scheduled an abortion. I won't cause any trouble for the Fu family. I will definitely keep my promise to you. But I beg you to let me off the hook. The bank says the Fu family is holding the card..."

Similarly, before she could finish speaking, her phone fell into Fu Jingting's hands. Xu Qingcheng clung to his arm and stood on tiptoe to finish what she was saying.

"It's the Fu family that's blocking Shengshi from getting a loan quota."

Fu Jingting clicked his tongue lightly.

After Xu Qingcheng finished speaking, she stood there obediently, without saying a word.

Fu Jingting almost laughed out of anger at her appearance.

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone, then the old man's stern and angry voice suddenly burst out, "This is utter nonsense!"

The voice came through the receiver, piercing straight into her ears. Xu Qingcheng's body stiffened involuntarily, instinctively feeling a slight fear of the old man's authority.

Because of the chaos just now, she was standing beside him, his arm loosely wrapped around her waist, a direct physical reaction conveyed to her.

Fu Jingting looked down at her, his arms tightening unconsciously as he held her tightly with one arm while listening to the phone call.

Fu Shiqing coughed for a moment, then immediately ordered, "You come back here. And bring that girl along too."

The call was abruptly cut off.

The sound of a wire breaking.

Fu Jingting put away his phone.

The two looked at each other in silence, neither of them speaking.

Xu Qingcheng was flustered and confused, fearing something might go wrong. "I'm not going."

"Not going?" Fu Jingting looked at her. "Why?"

"I already said I'm willing to have an abortion. I'm not going." Xu Qingcheng pursed her lips. "Tell me what they're thinking, and I'll cooperate."

Xu Qingcheng instinctively resisted meeting the two elderly people. The last time, even though Jiang Wenyu smiled while talking to her, Xu Qingcheng still had to straighten her back to respond.

She was genuinely terrified of dealing with the older generation, feeling that any lie you told would be exposed in front of them. At the time, she was so confident and unafraid because she had nothing to fear, and everything she said was true.

But this time, it's different.

She rarely ostriches; her neck is almost completely retracted and invisible.

Fu Jingting put on his coat, then took hers and draped it over her shoulders. "We shouldn't have been photographed in the first place. What's the use of shrinking back now?"

"If you had paid attention from the beginning, things wouldn't be like this now," Xu Qingcheng retorted.

That makes sense.

The two came out of the room, where Fu Jingting's driver was waiting. He hurriedly opened the car door when he saw them coming.

Xu Qingcheng got into the car.

When Duan Heng called, Fu Jingting paused as he got into the car. He closed the car door and moved a little further away to answer the call.

"Young Master Fu, the patient was a relative of Miss Xu. We contacted the hospital and checked the relevant examination records, but we couldn't find anything."

The man frowned slightly and replied, "I understand. Keep your mouth shut; if you let anything slip, I'll hold you responsible."

Fu Jingting lowered his eyes, glancing sideways at the car. His expression was grave, yet he still cautioned, "Also, her meaning is my meaning. Do you know what to say if the old man asks you about this?"

Duan Heng paused for a moment, then said, "I know."

Xu Qingcheng sat in the car, her gaze passing through the window as she watched the man standing by the door answering a phone call. The light illuminated his handsome profile.

Such a man would attract countless women. Even if his options are limited by his family's development, he will always find a suitable match.

He deserves a happy and fulfilling marriage.

Xu Qingcheng curled her fingers into her palm and pursed her lips; she didn't have much sympathy right now.

All the debts can only be repaid in the future.

As soon as Fu Jingting got into the car, he saw her staring at him, her gaze following his every move.

Once the man was seated, he turned to look at her, his brow furrowing. "Why are you looking at me?"

Xu Qingcheng looked away, a slight twitch at the corner of her mouth. "I wasn't looking at you."

Fu Jingting stopped talking. His face was tense and not very nice. His jawline tightened and his whole body exuded coldness.

Xu Qingcheng turned her eyes away, feeling a dull ache in her heart. She too had once been innocent and naive, without any guile, loving someone wholeheartedly, and hoping that one day she would marry happily with a beautiful wedding dress and flowers.

Time has changed everything and everyone, and she can never go back to the way things were.

Xu Qingcheng is probably someone who will stop at nothing. Or perhaps, this is simply her true nature.

Her heart ached with bitterness and sorrow. Even if she was forced into this situation, she shouldn't have dragged someone into this bitterness with her.

This discomfort seeped into my bones, rushed to the back of my eyes, and made them ache.

But she couldn't and wouldn't back down. She knew she couldn't hide the fact that she wasn't pregnant for long, so she had to be quick and make sure all her plans were in place before it was exposed.

She needs the Fu family to vouch for her and rely on her.

Between her and Fu Jingting, she really had no improper thoughts about him; it was just that at this stage, there was no more suitable choice than him.

The car stopped in front of the old house. Fu Jingting got out of the car and saw her sitting there in a daze.

"We've arrived, get off the bus."

He reminded her.

Xu Qingcheng then realized what was happening and got out of the car.

The woman's eyes were slightly red, and anyone who didn't know better would think he had bullied her terribly.

Fu Jingting clicked his tongue. Thinking about the situation he would face soon, her attitude would only add fuel to the fire.

He couldn't help but scold her, "What's with that expression? Don't look like I've bullied you."

Being reprimanded so coldly made my already upset mood even worse.

The atmosphere in the living room of the old house was somber; that oppressive feeling hit you as soon as you opened the door.

She paused as she entered, pulled inside by Fu Jingting.

She stood half a step behind him, with the man's body blocking most of her view.

Xu Qingcheng only thought that the old master and old lady were there, but she did not expect that Fu Pinghui and Zhong Wanxiu were also there.

Fu Jingting respectfully greeted her, and Xu Qingcheng, feeling uneasy, lowered her eyes and forgot to greet him, only to have her arm tugged by him.

The man gave her a meaningful look.

Call for help!

Xu Qingcheng then realized what was happening and hurriedly greeted them politely, "Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle, Aunt."

He called out to each of them, but the four of them still looked very serious. Zhong Wanxiu had just made a move to get up when Fu Pinghui pressed her arm down, so she sat back down.

The atmosphere was so oppressive it made one's heart race.

No one offered them seats. Fu Jingting refused to sit, and Xu Qingcheng dared not sit either, so she stood beside him like a timid wife.

This was the first time she had ever seen such a scene, meeting her grandparents and parents at the same time. The four of them were like the Four Heavenly Kings, sitting there without anger or smiles, making you so nervous that your palms would sweat.

The Xu family was small; she only had her maternal grandmother, while her paternal grandparents and maternal grandfather had all passed away when she was very young.

Her maternal grandmother was also a wealthy young lady in the past. She lived a meticulous life and was a bit pretentious, but she basically didn't cause trouble or like to meddle in other people's business. She just liked to listen to operas and bask in the sun.

She has a completely different aura from Jiang Wenyu.

What's more, there's also Fu Shiqing, whose eyes, weathered by time, are powerful and piercing, as if they could penetrate your heart. You'd unconsciously lower your head if he looked at you.

The room was very quiet for a while, and no one spoke.

Xu Qingcheng suddenly had the illusion that she was a little white rabbit surrounded by wolves, and even her breathing became cautious.

She unconsciously hid behind Fu Jingting, and secretly tugged at his sleeve with her fingers.

Almost as soon as Xu Qingcheng's fingers touched his sleeve, Jiang Wenyu suddenly spoke, "Girl, are you pregnant?"

The old lady's gaze pierced straight at her. Xu Qingcheng withdrew her hand as if she had been electrocuted, her heart pounding in her chest. She stammered, "Yes, yes."