Divorcee O Finds Me Irresistible - Chapter 3

“Why are you asking? It’s so obvious, didn’t you notice?”

On the way home, Min Se’s face was cold, her tone sharp. “I told you their family situation is complicated. Can’t you read the room?”

“They called you ‘Dr. Xu’ as a courtesy. Where’s your manners? Don’t you know how to be humble? You didn’t greet the elders when we arrived, and you didn’t even say goodbye when we left. Who were you trying to impress with your attitude?”

Xu Qing calmly met Madam Min’s gaze, her voice steady. “It seems you only dare vent your anger on me. You were perfectly polite to Boss Fu.”

Min Se: “Are you being sarcastic?”

“How could I dare, Madam Min?” Xu Qing gazed out the window, her expression icy. “I just find that family disgusting. If they disgust me, I can’t just stand there like an idiot. I have to say something.”

“She’s the future mistress of the Fu Family, and she didn’t do anything to deliberately provoke you.”

Madam Min was actually defending the Fu Family.

Xu Qing had simply asked where Fu Shuang was, and the entire room had stammered, unable to give a straight answer. It was clear they were the ones with something to hide.

What was especially infuriating was Fu Hengxi’s mistress, who had the audacity to try to introduce her dim-witted son to Xu Qing at such a formal occasion.

What kind of nonsense is this?

Xu Qing shook her head, still speechless at the memory. She glanced down at her phone and scrolled to the missed message from earlier that afternoon. She froze.

As she read the message while listening to Madam Min’s nagging, the corners of her lips curled upward. She replied dismissively, “You’re right, but I have absolutely no desire to associate with that family anymore.”

“What did you say?!” Min Se slammed on the brakes, the tires screeching against the pavement as she pulled the car to the side of the road. “Say that again!” she demanded fiercely.

“I said, I don’t want to associate with that family,” Xu Qing repeated without looking up, her expression calm as she finished reading the message on her phone.

Anger flashed in Min Se’s eyes. She wanted to scold her headstrong daughter, but she restrained herself, snapping, “You’re marrying their daughter, not marrying into their family! What their relatives are like has nothing to do with you. At worst, we’ll just keep our distance in the future—just enough to maintain appearances. Do you understand?”

Xu Qing raised an eyebrow. “Even after all this, you’re still convinced I can make it work with their daughter?”

“Why wouldn’t it work out? You have a job, a degree, and top-tier looks and gender. You saw how polite the Fu Family was to you earlier. If nothing unexpected happens, we can hold the wedding by the end of the year. Don’t worry about anything else—just focus on preparing for the wedding,” Min Se said, picking up her thermos and taking a large sip of water.

“According to you, I’m top-tier in every aspect. Does that mean they’re allowed to pick me, but I’m not allowed to pick them? The Xu Family has a reputation to uphold. With your current status, Madam Min, why can’t you set your sights on any wealthy and influential family? Why must you marry into that nouveau riche family?” Xu Qing retorted, striking at Min Se’s sore spot.

Min Se drew a sharp breath, her expression hardening. “Xu Qing, what exactly do you want?”

Xu Qing smiled and handed her phone over.

“What’s this?” Min Se asked suspiciously.

“A breakup notice—or rather, a cancellation of the engagement, since I haven’t even held her hand. I can’t exactly call it a breakup,” Xu Qing said with a laugh. “It’s quite amusing. If I’d seen this message earlier, I wouldn’t have bothered coming to the Fu Family tonight. What a pointless trip.”

Min Se adjusted her driving glasses, her head bowed so low that the lenses nearly touched her phone screen. Her brow furrowed deeply as she slowly read aloud: “Dear Madam Xu, I’m writing to you in haste to inform you that our absurd relationship has finally come to an end. Congratulations on your liberation, and I can finally breathe a sigh of relief.”

As Madam Min continued reading, her brow furrowed even more intensely, her expression resembling that of an elderly subway rider squinting at their phone.

“I apologize for notifying you in this manner. If circumstances allowed, I would have preferred to visit you in person to express my regrets. However, my days are currently consumed by studies and work, leaving me no mental bandwidth to address this matter. I trust you understand—bound by your family’s arrangements, you reluctantly agreed to this engagement, now trapped in a dilemma.”

“I’ve known for a long time that this engagement was a mistake. But back then, my mother, lying in her hospital bed, pressured me to swear I would marry you. To ensure she could leave this world without regrets, I feigned agreement to the marriage.”

“In truth, I adhere to anti-marriage, singlehood, and meritocratic principles. The current class divisions and gender inequalities in society fill me with utter disgust. Equally repulsive to me are the Fu Family, the Xu Family, and you.”

“My only family member is already buried. The Fu Family and I have no connection whatsoever. They made this engagement, so they’ll have to deal with the consequences. Who knows what kind of mess they’ll make? But none of it concerns me anymore. I’m going to pursue my love and wander the world with the person I love. Consider this my final notice—farewell forever!”

Min Se’s face grew longer and longer as she read. Xu Qing couldn’t help but chuckle, taking a sip of water to hide her amusement, but she still choked on her laughter.

“Finished reading?” Xu Qing asked, barely suppressing her grin. “Madam Min, congratulations on your plans backfiring.”

“You can’t take this seriously,” Min Se snapped, glaring at her. “What’s so amusing?”

Xu Qing blinked innocently. “I don’t know. Perhaps it’s the joy of regaining my freedom?”

Min Se pressed her temples, a vein throbbing on her forehead. “When was this sent?” she asked weakly.

“It was posted this afternoon, right after I got off work,” Xu Qing replied cheerfully. “I was busy rushing home to complete your tasks, so I didn’t have time to read it then. Quite progressive thinking for a wealthy heiress, don’t you think? What are your thoughts?”

“Absurd,” Min Se retorted.

Xu Qing grinned. “But I find it rather amusing.”

Min Se, flustered and conflicted, hesitated, as if caught between words. After a moment, she simply rolled her eyes at Xu Qing and started the car.

Xu Qing happily scrolled through short videos, carefree and thoroughly enjoying herself.

“Starting tomorrow, you have ten days to find her,” Min Se suddenly declared halfway through the drive.

Xu Qing chuckled. “And why should I?”

“This is your responsibility! If you had taken the initiative to actively counsel her after returning home, things wouldn’t have ended up like this!” Min Se said, slamming her fist against the steering wheel in frustration.

Xu Qing startled and cautioned, “Madam Min, you’re going too far.”

“Am I wrong? Look at what you’ve done since coming back! Your fiancée’s mother was buried yesterday, and you didn’t even know about it! You still don’t even know where she’s gone! You’ve been utterly negligent and deeply disappointed me!”

“Because of your negligence, Fu Shuang ran away from home. You squandered your last chance, and you still had the nerve to ask where she was in front of the entire Fu Family?”

Xu Qing took a deep breath. “Madam Min, do you really have to blame me for this?”

“Then who else should I blame? The Fu Family will hold you responsible too! How am I supposed to explain this to your father? Your sister is already in such a state. If this marriage falls apart too, how will I ever face anyone again?”

Xu Qing retorted, “If you’re too ashamed to face people, then stay home.”

“How dare you!” Min Se fumed, pointing at Xu Qing. “What kind of tone is that? Sending you abroad has only made you more ignorant of proper etiquette!”

The car was still speeding down the road, but Madam Min, the driver, had already lost control of her emotions.

Through the glass, Xu Qing saw a car in the adjacent lane narrowly avoid colliding with them. Terrified, she raised her hands in a gesture of surrender, hoping to appease Madam Min’s anger by conceding defeat.

If anything went wrong on the road, she might never find out where her runaway fiancée had gone.

Min Se continued to rant incessantly, pausing only to remove her glasses and rub her eyes. Seemingly forgetting she was driving, she drifted into the next lane, forcing the car behind them to swerve violently. The driver rolled down his window and shouted, “Fucking idiot! Can’t you drive?”

Min Se ignored him, but Xu Qing’s heart pounded in her chest. Her face pale, she whispered, urging Madam Min to focus on driving and promising to find Fu Shuang.

She refused to argue, accepting whatever Madam Min said.

Madam Min’s behavior today was a stark contrast to Xu Qing’s previous impressions. Though she still maintained a facade of shrewd competence, her actions were riddled with flaws. She relied on empty platitudes, her mind sluggish and her emotions volatile. Her only growing trait was an increasingly suffocating need to control her children. Whenever events slipped beyond her grasp, she would descend into hysteria, resorting to irrational outbursts.

Stripped of her respected status as a retired female leader, Madam Min’s inner refinement was no greater than that of a rural woman.

Perhaps I’ll become like her when I’m old, Xu Qing thought numbly.

Day after day of complacent living will eventually kill me, turning me into someone mediocre and cowardly, unable to even voice dissent, only capable of aiming my gun at the vulnerable.

Madam Min’s voice droned on in her ear:

“Call her, go to her school, talk to her teachers, report her missing—do whatever it takes to find her.”

“An Omega woman running away from home is extremely vulnerable out there.”

“By any means necessary, you must find her!”

But Fu Shuang had finally escaped her family’s control. Was Xu Qing supposed to drag her back into another cage? Would marrying into the Xu Family simply be another fiery hell?

Xu Qing feigned compliance with Madam Min’s instructions, her thoughts drifting far away. She recalled the job offer from a foreign architectural design firm. If I had stayed abroad, would I be spending my days drafting blueprints, working late into the night in a skyscraper with a group of young, talented colleagues?

That evening, upon returning to the Xu Family residence, Madam Min suggested Xu Qing stay overnight and look for Fu Shuang after work the next day.

Xu Qing refused.

She maintained her usual demeanor—sensible and obedient—softly reassuring her elders not to worry.

But the moment she turned to grab her helmet and gripped the handlebars, she finally felt free.

After ten o’clock, the streets gradually shed their daytime bustle and began to cool down, transforming into a night market filled with barbecue stalls and bars.

After riding for an hour, Xu Qing parked her bike in front of a bar, lit a cigarette, and exuded the dangerous aura of a delinquent youth—a clear warning to strangers to keep their distance.

The bar was on the ground floor, and its entrance buzzed with activity. Each time the door opened, Xu Qing could hear the music inside.

She drifted into a daze, her mind blank, fantasizing about wreaking havoc at the Fu Family with a funeral wreath, then returning to the Xu Family to continue her rampage.

Perhaps noticing the faint, beautiful smile playing on her lips, a young man about to enter the bar struck up a conversation. “Is this your bike?”

“Yeah,” Xu Qing replied.

“It’s really cool,” the young man said shyly, giving her a thumbs-up.

The music from inside surged again, and Xu Qing felt like a drowning person finally surfacing, gasping for fresh air.

She stubbed out her half-smoked cigarette, unbuttoned the top few buttons of her shirt, and tossed her black suit—a symbol of respectability and status—into the trash.

Fvck it, she thought. Tonight, I’m drinking until I drop.