Marrying My Ex-Wife's Mortal Enemy (GL) - Chapter 26

In Zhao Xi’s office, when he claimed he couldn’t find the draft from yesterday, Dou Huan raised her voice deliberately. “You lost it?”

Even though she knew full well he was doing it on purpose, she still put on a flustered act. “Didn’t you put it in your drawer yesterday? Maybe take another look?”

“I did put it there,” Zhao Xi replied. Seeing how anxious she looked, he was secretly pleased, though on the surface he wore a fake apologetic smile. “Sorry, I just can’t find it. Wasn’t that design for a client in a rush? You’d better go sketch it again.”

“Director Zhao, with the deadline so tight…” Dou Huan looked troubled. “If I bring the draft to you shortly, will you sign off on it right away?”

“Sure.” Zhao Xi clasped his hands, propped his chin up, and looked at her smugly. “If you can get it here in ten minutes, I’ll sign it on the spot.”

As if worried she’d cheat, he added, “But it has to be exactly the same as yesterday’s.”

“You really mean it? No backing out?”

“A man keeps his word. I won’t go back on it.”

“Well, you never know,” Dou Huan said playfully. “We’ve had our share of disagreements, Director Zhao. How about you write it down for me? Just in case?”

“Instead of wasting time on that, maybe focus on drawing your design.”

But just as he said it, Zhao Xi realized something—if she was this confident and even asked for a written promise, she must have a plan.

He couldn’t sign anything.

“Fine then, Director Zhao. But you’d better stick to your word.”

As soon as she walked out, Dou Huan took a recording device from her bag and hit pause. She’d expected Zhao Xi to play tricks, which was exactly why she had a backup plan—she’d recorded their entire exchange.

Less than ten minutes later, she was back in Zhao Xi’s office with the design in her hand.

Zhao Xi stared at the paper she handed over. It was identical to the one from yesterday.

His eyes widened. “!!”

“I’m done,” she said. “Please sign.”

He hadn’t expected her to come back with something so quickly. He frowned as he looked it over, then scoffed, “This is so rough—you’re seriously giving me this to sign?”

“Is it?” Dou Huan pretended to be confused. “But it looks exactly like yesterday’s.”

“Are you messing with me?” Zhao Xi held up the draft. “You’re telling me you redrew this in a few minutes and it turned out identical? If you’re that talented, why do your usual sketches take so long?”

“Sorry, Director Zhao, but this really is yesterday’s design.” Dou Huan smiled sheepishly. “I came by again yesterday afternoon. You weren’t around, so I just took the draft back.”

“Impossible! That can’t be the same one!”

“It is.” Dou Huan feigned urgency. “I admit I was wrong to enter your office without permission, but this is the original from yesterday.”

“Don’t lie to me! That draft was clearly already—”

Zhao Xi caught himself just in time. He’d nearly spilled the truth.

Dou Huan pressed on, deliberately, “It was already what?”

Zhao Xi stared at her, then suddenly let out a smile. “You really are clever, Dou Huan. I admire that. But I’m afraid I still won’t be signing this.”

“I’m not sure what you mean, Director Zhao,” she replied. “But you did promise that if I finished the draft in ten minutes, you’d sign it. Are you going to go back on your word?”

He sneered. “You knew I destroyed the original yesterday. You brought in a fake to trap me into signing. So what if I promised? What can you even do with that?”

Spreading his arms, Zhao Xi leaned back in his chair. “It’s just the two of us here. If I deny it, what can you possibly do?”

“Well, knowing you’re not exactly the most trustworthy person,” Dou Huan replied calmly, “of course I came prepared.”

She pulled out the recorder. “Want to hear what you said?”

Then she hit play.

Zhao Xi’s voice came through clearly: “A man keeps his word. I won’t go back on it.”

His face darkened instantly. He slammed a hand on the desk and shot up. “Dou Huan, you—”

“I wouldn’t try grabbing the recorder if I were you,” she said loudly. “It’s not worth making a scene over something like this. Besides, I’ve already backed it up.”

Zhao Xi clenched his jaw. This polished, sharp-tongued woman in front of him drove him crazy with rage—and yet, he begrudgingly admired her for being thorough and smart.

Some things really were true: the ones you couldn’t get were always the most tempting. Even if they were on opposite sides now, it didn’t stop him from liking her.

Suddenly, he broke into a grin and sat down to sign. Once done, he handed it to her. “You didn’t need to go through all this for my signature. Call me ‘Brother Zhao’ and I would’ve signed it from the start.”

He smiled like a sleazeball. Dou Huan could only respond with a tight-lipped smile and a dramatic eye roll.

Taking the signed draft, she replied, “Director Zhao, with the age gap between us, if I called you ‘brother,’ people might think I lack manners.”

Age gap?

Zhao Xi’s smile froze. “I’m maybe ten years older than you. Isn’t ‘Brother’ just right?”

“Only ten years?” she feigned surprise. “Wow, I wouldn’t have guessed. I thought you were well into your forties.”

She was clearly calling him old.

Zhao Xi seethed at her sharp tongue and pointed at the door. “Get out!”

Dou Huan smiled sweetly, took the signed paper, and made a gracious exit.

Now that she had his signature, she quickly handed the draft over to the craftsmen in production. Fearing Zhao Xi might cause more trouble, she followed up every day to make sure things stayed on track.

Even rushing like this, they barely finished in time—she got the ring the morning of Zhang Hao’s proposal.

He had been calling her constantly to rush the order. Eventually, his tone escalated into full-blown yelling.

But Dou Huan wasn’t the type to back down. When he yelled, she yelled right back, shut him up, then calmly reasoned with him. She even offered backup plans—if the ring wasn’t ready in time, he could grab one from the store for the proposal and save this custom one for a birthday later.

Zhang Hao, who has a wealthy background, was always treated like royalty wherever he went. People usually just apologized when he snapped. But not Dou Huan—she pushed back every time. Oddly enough, though, he felt like her reasoning always made sense.

By the time the big day came, Zhang Hao wasn’t even nervous. His friends teased him, “Hey, Hao, is that giant diamond ring of yours gonna show up? If it doesn’t, Yingying’s gonna throw a fit.”

“It’ll be here.”

He waved them off. “Now go take care of the guests for me. I need to stay here and wait.”

Zhang Hao stood at the hotel entrance for ten minutes before spotting Dou Huan stepping out of a car, running over with a small box in hand.

She was beautiful—tall, elegant, her long hair flowing behind her, leaving a faint trail of perfume as she hurried toward him.

“Mr. Zhang,” she said, handing over the ring, “your custom ring. Sorry—hope I’m not too late?”

“Hmph.” He grinned. “If you were late and my girlfriend ran off, you’d owe me a new one.”

“Can’t afford that,” she laughed.

He checked the ring. Very satisfied. Clapped her on the shoulder. “Since you’re here already, come have lunch. Witness a little love story in the making.”

“Ugh…”

She laughed. After all the times she’d dealt with him, she wasn’t afraid of him anymore. “Mr. Zhang, you really don’t quit.”

The two went upstairs, joking all the way.

Dou Huan had been married before, so things like engagements and weddings didn’t exactly spark any dreams in her. But when the couple stood on stage and exchanged vows, she still found herself drawn into the moment. It reminded her of her own wedding with Chu Li.

Back then, the love had been real—pure and from the heart.

But now, the fact that she no longer loved Chu Li was also just as real.

After the party, she felt strangely light, like something inside had quietly settled. Sometimes when you’re in it, you can’t see things clearly. But the moment you step back, you finally understand yourself.

Back at the office, Dou Huan had just sat down when Zhou Wei grabbed her arm and asked excitedly, “Huanhuan, did you see it?”

“See what?” she blinked.

“The Golden Autumn International Jewelry Design Competition is starting! Hosted by the National Jewelers Association and Jewelry Express magazine!”

Of course she’d heard of it. Held every three years, the competition was meant to encourage design exchange and raise the overall quality of domestic jewelry designers.

It was a great opportunity for anyone in the field—whether from major companies or small studios. Winners’ works would be displayed in exhibitions, with both the designer’s name and their company or school printed beneath each piece. No wonder so many firms encouraged participation.

“You’re not excited at all?” Zhou Wei asked.

“Oh, that,” Dou Huan smiled. “Yeah, I’ve heard of it. Where did you see the notice?”

“Here.” Zhou Wei handed her the phone.

After glancing at the registration dates, Dou Huan asked, “Did you sign up already?”

“Of course I did.”

“Then I’ll sign up too.”

Dou Huan filled in the registration form on her phone, and just as she hit submit, two police officers walked into the office. The entire department fell into a panic the moment they saw the uniforms.

One of the officers approached the nearest person to ask for Zhao Xi’s office, then went straight in. No one knew what was said inside, but not long after, Zhao Xi was escorted out.

“I’m innocent!” Zhao Xi kept trying to explain. “Officers, you need evidence to arrest someone!”

Everyone watched, stunned, as Zhao Xi was taken away.

“What did Director Zhao do?”

“No idea.”

“Could it be because of that cheating scandal?”

“Impossible. Cheating isn’t a criminal offense.”

“Huanhuan, do you know what Director Zhao did?”

Dou Huan shook her head. “Don’t look at me—I have no idea what he did.”

But… someone probably did.

Dou Huan immediately thought of what Jing Yu had said before: “Even if it wasn’t because of you, I was going to make him leave.”

She must’ve done something. That’s why Zhao Xi got taken away by the police.

Unable to hold back her curiosity, Dou Huan messaged her:
“What did Zhao Xi do?”

“You want to know?”
Of course she did—wasn’t that obvious?

Still, she kept her reply brief: “Mm-hmm.”

“If you really want to know, come to my office after work. I’ll tell you.”

The fact that Jing Yu was willing to talk made Dou Huan unexpectedly excited.
“Okay.”

After work, she quickly packed up and waved to Zhou Wei. “I’ve got something to do. Heading out!”

“Hey, slow down. Be careful.”

“Got it!”

She darted off in a flash. When she got upstairs and saw Jiang Shan, she greeted her with a smile and Jiang Shan smiled politely back. “President Jing is waiting for you.”

Dou Huan pushed open the door and found Jing Yu sitting on the sofa, two cups of coffee on the table—it looked like she really had been waiting.

“Come sit,” Jing Yu called out.

Dou Huan didn’t stand on ceremony. She walked over and sat across from her, glancing at the coffee. “This one’s for me?”

“Of course.”

Dou Huan took a sip and jumped straight to the point. “So, what did Zhao Xi do?”

“He added unauthorized materials to the design draft, secretly made deals with suppliers, and pocketed kickbacks. We’ve been collecting evidence for a while. Now that everything’s solid, Legal has handed it over to the police. The amount he took is significant. 

Dou Huan nodded in understanding. “If he had resigned earlier, would the company have had any way to go after him?”

Jing Yu raised a brow and smiled. “Do you think I’d let him walk away before everything was clear?”

Right. Dou Huan had forgotten—Jing Yu wasn’t the type to let things slip. She was far too sharp for that.

So was it really Zhao Xi who insisted on staying, or had Jing Yu deliberately kept him around? That part was harder to say.

Normally, it would’ve made sense for Zhao Xi to resign after the cheating scandal. But maybe he stayed because Jing Yu had asked him to.

The more Dou Huan thought about it, the more complicated it all seemed.

Still, she couldn’t stop herself from wanting an answer. Had all this been orchestrated by Jing Yu, or was it just coincidence?

She followed the thread and asked cautiously, “So… you were the one who asked Zhao Xi to stay, right?”

Jing Yu paused for a second. “Is that really important?”

That hesitation told Dou Huan everything—she’d guessed right.

Is it important?
Of course it was.

Jing Yu had used Zhao Xi’s resignation as leverage to make her agree to pretend to be her fiancée. If Jing Yu had been the one who asked him to stay, then everything that followed had been part of a plan.

And Dou Huan—foolish Dou Huan—had actually thought Jing Yu was doing it for her sake, and that she was worried Zhao Xi might retaliate against her. She thought Jing Yu was protecting her.

Turns out, she was just a convenient side piece in Jing Yu’s masterstroke of a strategy.

Dou Huan stared at her for a long moment. Once it all clicked, she stood up to leave. Jing Yu stood too and grabbed her wrist. “Why are you so upset?”

“Let go!”

Dou Huan tried to shake her off, but Jing Yu held firm. She glared at her. “You must feel really pleased with yourself, huh? Not only did you manage to get Zhao Xi arrested, but you also played me like a fool—made me think I owed you something!”

“You think I kept Zhao Xi just to mess with you?”

“No. But messing with me came as a nice little bonus, didn’t it?”

Jing Yu stayed calm despite her anger and tugged her back. “Sit down.”

Dou Huan resisted, and so Jing Yu stayed standing too. “If I really kept Zhao Xi on purpose, why would I tell you all this?”

“Who knows what goes on in that scheming head of yours?”

Jing Yu laughed, eyeing her up and down. “I just don’t get it—what’s so special about you that I’d bother scheming?”

“Oh, really?” Dou Huan looked up defiantly. “Then why did you ask me to pretend to be your fiancée?”

“Because we’re familiar.”

“Familiar? Says who?!”

“Fine—because we’re not familiar.”

“You—!”

Dou Huan was fuming. “I’m done with this. Let go!”

She struggled so hard that even Jing Yu had trouble holding her. “Why are you still so hot-headed?”

“I’ve always been hot-headed! Miss Jing, is this your first day knowing me?”

“Then what are you mad about?” Jing Yu frowned. “Because I kept Zhao Xi? Or because I used that as leverage to get you to pretend to be my fiancée? We already talked all this through. There’s no reason to be angry.”

Right. They had talked it through.

It was her own fault for getting sentimental, for thinking too much, for putting too much weight on herself.

The more Dou Huan thought about it, the more embarrassed she felt. “Let go!”

“No.” Jing Yu tightened her grip. “Not until you explain clearly.”

“What now?” Dou Huan challenged. “You think you can actually keep me here?”

Jing Yu looked at her, amused by her defiant expression. “Wanna try me?”

Dou Huan raised her foot like she was going to stomp on her—but Jing Yu wasn’t Zhao Xi. She couldn’t go through with it. Instead, she tried to force her hand free, only for Jing Yu to grip even harder.

“Ow, ow, ow…”

The moment she said it hurt, Jing Yu let go. “Are you okay?”

Dou Huan flexed her hand, forced a grin, and waved at her smugly. “Bye, President Jing. No need to walk me out.”

“I’ll walk you anyway.”

Jing Yu followed her to the door. “If you’re mad about me keeping Zhao Xi, I apologize. But asking you to be my fiancée—I never meant to mess with you. If that upset you, I’m sorry for that too.”

Dou Huan cooled down as she thought about it. Honestly, Jing Yu didn’t seem like she had meant to toy with her—it really was just her own overthinking. She’d gotten upset and taken it out on Jing Yu, and the woman hadn’t even gotten mad. She was still trying to smooth things over.

Back then, she’d thought Jing Yu was cold and dull. But now, she was starting to see a different side. Maybe it had just seemed that way because she never really paid attention before.

When they reached the elevator, Dou Huan turned to face her. “Alright. I forgive you.”

“If you’re not mad anymore,” Jing Yu stepped closer, “can I ask you a question?”

“What?”

Jing Yu hesitated, then asked, “When are you going to agree to be my fiancée?”

Dou Huan raised a brow. “In a rush, are you?”

Jing Yu nodded seriously. “Very.”

That serious, almost earnest look in her eyes made Dou Huan’s heart race—like she was really being proposed to. Her chest thudded like crazy.

She stared at Jing Yu’s eyes for a moment, hesitated, and stammered, “Th-then… okay, I guess.”

Jing Yu’s eyes lit up, and she broke into a smile—one so bright it seemed like stars had fallen into her gaze.

Dou Huan was momentarily dazed. When she came back to her senses, she realized Jing Yu was still looking at her.

Her face flushed bright red. She scrambled to pull a pen and notepad from her bag. “S-since we’re just pretending, we should set some ground rules.”

“Sure.” Jing Yu watched her flustered reaction with barely concealed amusement. “Set as many as you like. Think it over tonight and tell me tomorrow.”