Volume 1, Chapter 57: Zhou Yang, I Will Bear Your Child

This single sentence completely blocked Xie Yong's path of retreat.

Xie Yong said helplessly, "Yumei, I know I was wrong. I beg you to forgive the two of us. Do whatever you and Zhou Yang want to do. We won't interfere anymore!"

Zhou Yang sneered, "You'll interfere? What right do you have to interfere?"

Xie Yong exclaimed, "Damn it, you..."

"Xie Yong, I'm asking you where the camera is!" Tang Yumei demanded sternly.

"Yumei! Don't bother looking for the camera. Look, you're flying to America this afternoon, and Zhou Yang has already moved out anyway. I installed the camera just to ensure safety later when the agency helps sell the house," Xie Yong said. "Otherwise, what if we leave the keys with the agency and they end up living inside every other day? Wouldn't the house practically become theirs?"

Upon second thought, Tang Yumei realized it made some sense, so she stopped pressing the issue.

Besides, seeing that Xie Yong and his son had completely surrendered and stopped making a fuss, she didn't want to be overly aggressive either.

"From now on, my affairs have nothing to do with you. I will be with whoever I want to be with!" Tang Yumei declared.

"Yes, yes, yes. We're divorced, I have no right to interfere in your private life!"

Seeing that the other party stopped pursuing the matter of the camera, Xie Yong hurriedly took the opportunity to back down.

Fearing that Tang Yumei might genuinely sever ties with him as mother and son, Xie Feng didn't dare to say anything more and stood by in silence.

At that moment, Zhou Yang felt an unprecedented wave of relief wash over him.

"Zhou Yang, let's go. Drive me to the airport in a bit!"

Tang Yumei generously linked her arm through Zhou Yang's and walked toward the interior of the villa.

Suddenly, Xie Feng cursed, "Bastard, what a cuckold."

Hearing this, Zhou Yang frowned, stopped in his tracks, and suddenly turned around to approach Xie Feng. He asked, "Even now, you still refuse to face reality?"

"What reality?" Xie Feng gritted his teeth and asked.

Zhou Yang leaned close to Xie Feng's ear and whispered, "The reality that I am your father!"

"Damn you!" Unable to hold back any longer, Xie Feng threw a punch straight at Zhou Yang.

However, Zhou Yang anticipated the move, brought his knee up swiftly, and drove it hard into Xie Feng's lower abdomen.

"Ah!"

The excruciating pain caused Xie Feng to collapse onto his knees and wail.

Zhou Yang turned around gracefully and said to Tang Yumei, "Sister Mei, I'm sorry. He cursed at me just now, and I couldn't help myself for a moment."

Looking somewhat worried, Tang Yumei whispered, "Don't cripple Xiao Feng!"

Zhou Yang smiled and replied, "I won't! It's just pain!"

Talking as they walked, the two of them headed back into the villa.

Meanwhile, someone had evidently called the police, and local officers had arrived at the scene.

Since Liu Dafei, Xie Yong, and his son were all harboring guilty consciences, they simply told the police it was an accidental collision, signed a reconciliation agreement, and sent the officers away.

Back inside the villa, Tang Yumei was in a very foul mood.

She hadn't expected such an unpleasant incident to happen on the very day of her departure abroad.

"Sister Mei, don't be upset. Since we've done it, people were bound to find out sooner or later!" Zhou Yang said. "It was only a matter of time before that father and son came to cause a scene!"

Tang Yumei nodded and said, "You're right! But we can't stay in this villa anymore; it's already been bugged with cameras. Come on, drive me to the airport. I'm a VIP at the airport lounge, let's go sit over there!"

"Okay!"

Zhou Yang drove Tang Yumei to the airport, and the two of them took their seats in the cafe.

Watching airplanes take off and land one after another, Tang Yumei felt an increasing reluctance to leave, yet the atmosphere between them grew somewhat silent.

Neither knew what to say, yet it felt as though everything had already been communicated.

"Oh, right," Tang Yumei said suddenly. "I mentioned earlier that I had a secret to tell you. I almost forgot!"

"If Sister Mei hadn't brought it up, I wouldn't have remembered either!" Zhou Yang immediately looked expectant and asked, "What secret?"

Tang Yumei said, "Didn't you once ask me if it was me working behind the scenes that got you into the EPS Group headquarters?"

"Yes!" Zhou Yang instantly perked up.

How he managed to secure a position at the headquarters was a question he had never quite figured out. To be more precise, Zhou Yang had eventually stopped bothering to investigate, figuring that the truth would naturally come to light one day.

And lo and behold, Tang Yumei appeared to know the inside story.

Tang Yumei explained, "Don't you remember the day you told me you were fired, and I took you to meet some of my close girlfriends that very night? I asked them to help you find a job, but what you said to me back then completely changed my perspective—you were a young man with very ambitious aspirations."

Zhou Yang remembered as well that he had indeed shared his grand ambitions and ideals with Tang Yumei at the club that day.

Tang Yumei continued, "I knew you desperately wanted to come to the EPS headquarters to realize your ambitions, so I gave you a helping hand. I asked my connections to step in and have you transferred to the EPS headquarters."

"Ah?" Zhou Yang was astonished. "Your connections?"

Tang Yumei said, "To be exact, it was my father's network. He used to be a government official and had many protégés. One of them was dismissed from official circles due to some misunderstanding, and later joined EPS, eventually rising to the position of vice president. Furthermore, the reason Xie Yong managed to become the HR Director at EPS also relies on our family's connections."

"I never imagined it really was thanks to your help, Sister Mei," Zhou Yang said. "You actually pulled strings with a vice president to promote me!"

"He could accomplish things like that with just a casual word to his subordinates!" Tang Yumei smiled and said, "And since I knew how proud you are—that you always wanted to rely on your own abilities—I never admitted it before, fearing it would make you overthink things."

"But now, you've become a sales manager through your own competence, and no one dares to gossip behind your back anymore."

"I can finally tell you with peace of mind that the reason I recommended you is because I saw you have the talent. All you needed was a platform and an opportunity."

"Sister Mei!" Deeply moved, tears welled up in Zhou Yang's eyes. "You've been so good to me."

"What are you crying for, you big boy?" Tang Yumei reached out to wipe away Zhou Yang's tears, smiling gently. "You've been good to me too! The two of us are just keeping each other warm!"

Forcing a weak smile, Zhou Yang took a deep breath and said, "Sister Mei, I'll wait for you in Shencheng, until you return from America."

Tang Yumei smiled. "Silly boy, what are you waiting for me for? You're so young, with a bright youth ahead of you. When you meet a girl you truly like, cherish her well. For the two of us, having once possessed each other is already the most wonderful thing."

Hearing these words made Zhou Yang feel even more sorrowful.

"Zhou Yang, you should head back now. You still need to find a place to live, and that takes time!" Tang Yumei said. "Let me have some peace and quiet here alone, otherwise, if you stay with me until the very last moment, I won't want to leave!"

Upon hearing this, tears spilled from Zhou Yang's eyes again. "Sister Mei, I..."

"Go back!" Tang Yumei bit her lower lip, fighting hard to keep her tears from falling as she turned her head away.

Knowing he could not insist any further, Zhou Yang stood up and walked out, turning back with every few steps. Just as he stepped through the exit, he shouted toward Tang Yumei, "Sister Mei, take care!"

Tang Yumei waved vigorously. At that moment, her tears could no longer be contained, streaming down her cheeks like a breached river.

However, after a brief wave of sorrow, a look of blissful anticipation flashed in Tang Yumei's eyes.

"Zhou Yang, I never told you, but I actually have a highly fertile constitution! All three times last night, I didn't let you use any contraception. To be honest, I really want to genuinely carry your child for once," Tang Yumei murmured, looking in the direction where Zhou Yang had departed. "Even if I do carry your child, though, I won't burden you. I will protect him well and watch him grow up slowly. Zhou Yang, farewell!"