"Yes, I'll attend." Wong Qifu's voice was heavy, each word carefully enunciated.

Xu Ke was astonished. "So that's what this is..." At that moment, knowing Wong Qifu as he did, he finally understood her real reason for agreeing to the press conference.

"What do you mean, 'so that's what this is'?" Wong Qifu laughed, her voice sharp with anger. "Did you really think I was going to issue a clarification?"

"No, I just..." Xu Ke began, defending himself nervously. He knew she was absolutely furious.

But a great weight was lifted from his heart.

Whether it was holding a press conference or immediately bombarding him with calls the moment he missed one... these were all expressions of Wong Qifu's unique brand of tenderness. She was protecting their relationship in her own way.

"What do you mean, 'what do you mean'?" Wong Qifu threw his own words back at him mockingly. "And who was it just yesterday telling me, 'To protect you, I don't think we need to part ways,' and, 'We'll use our own strength to shut everyone up'?"

"You also said, 'You trust me, and I trust you.' You sounded so sure of yourself then. Why the complete change of heart this morning?"

Sweat beaded on Xu Ke's forehead. "I was just afraid that for the sake of the corporation..."

"Corporation this, corporation that! Stop being so fussy," Wong Qifu cut him off. "Dating a younger man is such a hassle."

Xu Ke chuckled dryly, not refuting her. He really had been a bit fussy.

Impatience tinged her tone. "Alright, how are you now?"

She was well and truly infuriated with him.

"I've completely recovered," Xu Ke replied.

"Recovered, recovered..." Wong Qifu took a deep breath. "How could treating someone leave you unconscious and bleeding from your seven orifices?"

Hearing the suppressed anger in her voice, Xu Ke hurriedly explained, "It wasn't that dramatic. I only bled from my mouth and nose."

"Don't split hairs with me," Wong Qifu snapped. "Tell me, did you use that medical technique or not?"

In her mind, bleeding from the seven orifices could only mean one thing: he had used the Heaven-Defying Fate Change Technique. That was why she was so furious. Xu Ke had promised her he would never use it again. What's more, her deepest fear was... what if this time he wasn't as lucky as he was on the mountain? What if instead of amnesia, he ended up paralyzed, or even dead? She had spent the entire night on edge, terrified that the morning would bring news of his death.

Xu Ke shook his head like a rattle drum. "No, no, no! This situation was special. I'll explain everything in detail later. But trust me, I absolutely did not use that medical technique."

Wong Qifu's expression softened slightly. "Fine."

"Oh, by the way, I called your parents and your second uncle last night. You can rest easy. I've temporarily arranged for people to protect them and told them to turn off their phones, leave Jiang City, and take a trip for a while. Your mother is still very worried about you, though. I also told your parents that the slander against you was someone else's doing."

Hearing that Wong Qifu had already taken care of his parents, Xu Ke was filled with gratitude, followed by a pang of guilt. "Thank you. And I'm sorry... I really thought for a moment you wanted to..."

"Don't waste time on that," Wong Qifu interrupted. "After I agreed to the press conference last night, I was planning to find you and talk it over. We would have had all night and this morning to come up with a solid plan. Now we're short on time. Let's meet at Triumph Pavilion to discuss this."

The Wang Family Corporation must be crawling with people watching for him right now, so he couldn't go there. They had to meet somewhere else.

"Okay," Xu Ke nodded.

Then, after a moment of contemplation, Wong Qifu added, "Oh, by the way, Qi Ya cried last night. When you have a moment, could you call and comfort her? She doesn't want to listen to me right now."

Xu Ke was taken aback. "What happened?"

Only then did he remember Wong Qifu mentioning that Wang Qiya was angry not just with her, but with him as well.

"It's all because of you..." Wong Qifu said irritably. "She heard you were at the Zhou Family's residence, coughing up blood while treating someone, and that I immediately turned around and scheduled a press conference to abandon you."

Xu Ke was stunned. He hadn't expected such a strong reaction from Wang Qiya. Rubbing his nose, he said, "Okay, I'll talk to her in a bit."

"Fine." Wong Qifu nodded, then suddenly asked out of the blue, "By the way, Xu Ke, when did you become so important to my sister? She hasn't argued with me once since my father passed away. This is the first time she has ever yelled at me so loudly, and it was for you."

Hearing this, Xu Ke held his breath, a cold chill running down his spine. A wrong answer here could be fatal.

His Adam's apple bobbed. "No... It might seem like it's about me, but it's really about you."

Wong Qifu frowned. "Hmm?"

Xu Ke chose his words with extreme caution. "She was probably afraid that if you drove me away, you wouldn't have a husband anymore."

"...Do you have a death wish?"

"No, I do not."

"Stop spouting nonsense. Get going to Triumph Pavilion, and explain things to her on the way. I'll have Uncle Wu pick you up."

Xu Ke breathed a sigh of relief. "Right! No need, though. I remember Triumph Pavilion is on the way to Jincheng Hotel. I'll ask Brother Duan for a ride."

Wong Qifu was taken aback. "The boss of Dapeng is your chauffeur?" Xu Ke certainly has some serious clout.

"Uh, I can drive myself," Xu Ke said automatically.

Wong Qifu chuckled. "Alright, enough of your wisecracks. Get going, but remember to eat breakfast first. I've already eaten."

"Okay."

Xu Ke had planned to leave the Zhou Family's home immediately. But as soon as he hung up, his phone rang with an unknown number. He knew at a glance they were calling to curse him out. So he declined the call. But the moment he did, his phone started ringing again, repeatedly. Taking a deep breath, Xu Ke removed his SIM card. If he didn't, he'd probably be bombarded with abusive calls twenty-four hours a day.

Afterward, he left the room. Zhou Xiuyun wanted to ask him to stay for a meal, but she didn't insist after he explained it was an emergency. Since Duan Chongfeng was about to return to Jincheng Hotel, they left together.

It wasn't Duan Chongfeng driving, however. He hadn't slept all night and had only just woken from a stupor, so how could he possibly drive? Duan Jia was in the driver's seat instead.

"Thanks for the ride," Xu Ke said.

"No problem, he's driving anyway," Duan Chongfeng yawned. "I'm going to get some sleep. You can use my phone's hotspot."

"Sure!" Xu Ke nodded.

With no SIM card, his only option was to connect to Duan Chongfeng's mobile hotspot. He opened his messages and saw that Wang Qiya had already texted him. The message read: "Brother-in-law, I'm sorry. The announcement from the Wang Family wasn't from my sister; my aunt wanted to publish it."

Xu Ke sighed upon seeing the message. It seemed Wang Qiya was truly afraid he would misunderstand Wong Qifu. He quickly replied, explaining what Wong Qifu had really intended.

Afterward, Xu Ke began to scroll through messages from other people. The first thing that greeted him was a barrage of insults from his WeChat contacts...

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