The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 747 - 746: Best Friend’s Jealousy

Chapter 747: Chapter 746: Best Friend’s Jealousy

She Zheming cast a meaningful glance towards the Ginkgo Building’s third floor and teased, "With all your classmates watching, I can’t let you lose face."

Pei Qiuxia looked towards the private dining room, and sure enough, Qian Rong and a few others were crowding in front of the window, looking over here.

After getting into the car and watching the man stride briskly around the front of the vehicle, Pei Qiuxia felt warm inside.

"Did you have lunch?"

"I did. My mom made buns. I ate five but didn’t feel full."

Just as Pei Qiuxia was about to curiously ask why he wasn’t full, she heard She Zheming say, "I packed a box of them and have already delivered it to your cousin’s fridge. Try it when you get home, so my mom stops complaining that I don’t bring you over for a meal."

Pei Qiuxia blushed and nodded, the feeling of being cared for and held in someone’s thoughts unable to keep her from feeling delighted.

...

Inside the Ginkgo Building.

A group of classmates were animatedly discussing Pei Qiuxia and She Zheming.

"That Qiuxia girl is so lucky, always finding such handsome fellas."

"It’s not just about being handsome; the guy’s background is impressive too—his grandfather was a war hero, and his father’s a military officer, blood red of the third generation."

While they envied Pei Qiuxia’s good fortune, some joked about Jiang Xinsheng, who was at the same dining table.

"Xinsheng, the person Qiuxia should be most thankful to is you, right? If you two hadn’t split, she wouldn’t have met her current guy."

Seeing Jiang Xinsheng’s face turn sour, someone teased, seeking to smooth things over, "Ah, who can make sense of fate, right? But Xinsheng didn’t lose out; after all, he got to sleep for free for so many years, haha..."

The other male classmates at the table understood the hint and laughed heartily together.

The girls rolled their eyes in contempt and disdain.

On the surface, Qian Rong stood united with the other female classmates, showing disdain for the boys’ sleazy thoughts, yet inside she was secretly thinking—if these words reached She Zheming’s ears, the couple’s marriage might be doomed, right?

Many times, she felt that fate was unjust.

Her grades were better than Pei Qiuxia’s, and she was prettier too, but whether in her career or in finding a partner, she always seemed to come up short.

Back in high school, Jiang Xinsheng was considered a handsome guy, and he even got into a decent college; he was quite sought-after, yet, in the end, Pei Qiuxia snagged him.

Her husband, Wang Shi, was only a teacher with a vocational school degree; despite years of self-study, he had never managed to earn a higher one.

When Pei Qiuxia got dumped by Jiang Xinsheng, she felt secretly pleased—as if karma had finally balanced the scales.

But to her surprise, Pei Qiuxia then turned around and found a man even better than Jiang Xinsheng.

How come Pei Qiuxia’s luck was always so good?

...

She Zheming drove the jeep towards the furniture city, his right index finger tapping rhythmically on the steering wheel, a habit when he mulled things over.

"Was the class reunion lively today?"

"It was okay."

That answer clearly wasn’t what She Zheming wanted to hear.

He glanced at the passenger seat, where Pei Qiuxia was intently touching up her lipstick in a small mirror.

After she finished, he spoke up again, "Comrade Qiuxia, don’t you have anything else to report to your future fiancé?"

Pei Qiuxia looked at him, perplexed, "Report what?"

"Don’t forget what I do for a living. I wouldn’t come asking you without conclusive evidence."

Pei Qiuxia huffed, "What do you mean, are you interrogating me like I’m one of your criminals?"

She Zheming smiled, "I wouldn’t be so gentle if I were interrogating a criminal."

"So what do you want me to confess?"

"Here’s a hint for you. Who did you see at the reunion?"

Pei Qiuxia suddenly understood something and feigned annoyance, "Are you investigating me?"

"I have my sources. Don’t try to change the subject."

Pei Qiuxia rolled her eyes but still told him about Jiang Xinsheng’s presence at the reunion.

It was supposed to be a small get-together for a few female classmates who were close in high school, but somehow the news reached a male classmate, who then invited several other male classmates to join, including Jiang Xinsheng.

"If I had known he’d be there, I wouldn’t have gone."

It must be said that Pei Qiuxia’s apparent disdain and disgust for her ex-boyfriend was secretly very satisfying to Shen Zheming, but outwardly he maintained his composure,

"After all, you were classmates. There’s nothing wrong with having a meal together. There’s no need to act as if you’re archenemies."

Pei Qiuxia looked at him, "How did you know?"

"Take a guess."

"I won’t guess. It’s up to you to tell me or not."

Shen Zheming’s fingers began rhythmically tapping on the steering wheel again, "When I was leaving the dorm, I ran into Qian Rong; she told me."

"She’s a bit manipulative. Coming all the way to stir up trouble in front of me. You should avoid getting too close to her."

Pei Qiuxia was stunned for two seconds before realizing Shen Zheming was talking about Qian Rong and instinctively retorted, "Rong isn’t like that."

Shen Zheming glanced at her.

Seeing her lips purse in an annoyed manner, he couldn’t help saying, "This is just my personal opinion and advice, take it just for reference. Whether to continue your interactions or not is up to you."

After hearing this, Pei Qiuxia also felt compelled to defend, "I’ve known Rong for almost ten years, and you’ve only seen her a few times. You don’t know her as well as I do."

"That’s true."

Shen Zheming smartly chose not to continue discussing the topic.

Whether someone is genuine or fake, it will eventually come to light.

...

Leaving aside the minor disagreement about Qian Rong, the date between Pei Qiuxia and Shen Zheming was overall very successful.

They found suitable furniture and bedding and even tried on wedding dresses and suits.

After walking all day, Pei Qiuxia’s legs were so sore they hardly felt like her own, yet her heart was filled with immense contentment and happiness.

However, Shen Zheming’s view of Qian Rong did cause a hint of irritation within her.

On the one hand was a close friend, on the other, a lover; she did not want to choose between them.

But she also knew that not wanting to choose between them actually meant she was leaning towards Qian Rong’s side.

Shen Zheming probably understood this too, but he hadn’t shown any resentment because of it.

He really was a very good person.

After the incident, Pei Qiuxia hadn’t been in touch with Qian Rong for a few days.

On one hand, she was too busy—with work during the day, and with decorating and arranging her wedding house after work.

On the other hand, she was somewhat annoyed with Qian Rong for mentioning Jiang Xinsheng to Shen Zheming.

She hadn’t reached out to Qian Rong, but Qian Rong took the initiative to come over.

After touring the wedding house she would share with Shen Zheming, Qian Rong’s envy and jealousy were almost indescribable in words.

"Qiuxia, you’re living a happy life now, meeting a good man like Shen Zheming. Jiang Xinsheng, on the other hand, is living quite miserably now."

Pei Qiuxia kept her composure, "How is he miserable?"

"After being fired from his company, he’s struggled to find a suitable job, finally ending up at a small advertising agency as a salesperson, barely scraping by. Remember how he borrowed money to cover his last company’s losses? Now people are pressing him to pay it back every day, but he can’t come up with the money and just drowns his sorrows in alcohol every day."

As Pei Qiuxia was reveling in what she heard, Qian Rong suddenly changed tack—