Plunder
Chapter 97 - 97 97 Why Marry Him

Chapter 97: Chapter 97 Why Marry Him? Chapter 97: Chapter 97 Why Marry Him? “Ding Corporation’s heir is soon to wed the slum girl Qiao En!”

When Zhou Jin’an saw the news, he had just seen off a group of stubborn old men from the board meeting.

He was utterly exhausted, leaning back in the leather chair to rest his eyes when his phone “dinged,” signaling the arrival of an email in his work inbox.

Zhou Jin’an snatched up his phone, and all the email contained was a link.

He clicked on it and saw that sensational headline.

Immediately after, a photo of Ding Hao intimately embracing Qiao En jumped out.

In an instant, Zhou Jin’an’s brows furrowed tightly, his fingers clenching the phone grew taut, and on his sharply contoured face, anger spread like wildfire.

“Director Zhou, it’s time for the meeting.”

Chen Yin knocked on the door, appearing at the entrance to Zhou Jin’an’s office.

The temperature in the room was low, as was the air pressure.

Zhou Jin’an grabbed his coat and stood up; Chen Yin quickly stepped aside.

“All the department heads are here, and Mrs. Zhou and the second young master have also arrived. Do you want to…”

Before Chen Yin could finish speaking, Zhou Jin’an started walking in the opposite direction of the meeting room.

“Director Zhou!”

Chen Yin hurried after him. The meeting room was already in chaos, and if Zhou Jin’an didn’t show up, Yao Chuman and Zhou Ziyan could cause all sorts of trouble.

“Tell them, the meeting is canceled.”

Once Zhou Jin’an spoke, he dove into the elevator and pressed the button to go down.

“Director Zhou!”

Chen Yin was scared pale. Zhou Jin’an wasn’t an impulsive person, but now, he was behaving so anomalously.

She didn’t know what to do and quickly phoned Cheng Lu.

In the underground parking lot, Zhou Jin’an was about to get into his car when Cheng Lu caught up with him.

“Director Zhou, you can’t go to see Secretary Qiao now. Ding Hao has already announced the marriage. Going to her now would be of no use. Tonight’s meeting is crucial. Mrs. Zhou and the second young master have made it clear they want to push you out. You’ve worked hard at Nanchen for so many years; how can you let them take advantage so easily?”

Cheng Lu blocked the car door, his eyes as tightly knitted as Zhou Jin’an’s.

He wasn’t a man of many words, but the situation was far from ordinary. As the person closest to Zhou Jin’an, he had to protect Zhou Jin’an’s interests at all costs.

“Move!”

Zhou Jin’an barked fiercely.

His eyes were bloodshot, and all the blood in his body was boiling.

“Director Zhou, you can’t go.”

Cheng Lu refused to budge, but Zhou Jin’an grabbed his arm and forcefully shoved him away with brute strength.

He got into his car, and the vehicle roared out of the underground parking lot.

Cheng Lu didn’t delay; he immediately got into another car and chased after him.

Youhe Western Restaurant.

Qiao En and Ding Hao were dining together.

Ding Hao was in a good mood, ordering a bottle of ’82 Lafite.

He poured a glass for Qiao En and raised his glass, “cheers.”

He was naturally handsome, and with a happy occasion, every pore seemed to exude joy.

Qiao En listlessly clinked glasses with him. Ding Hao gulped down the wine in his glass, but Qiao En didn’t touch hers.

The medium-rare steak was delicious, and Ding Hao couldn’t stop praising it as he ate.

Qiao En had no appetite and only had a little vegetable salad.

Halfway through the meal, her phone buzzed insistently.

The call was from Cheng Lu, but Qiao En didn’t answer; she pressed the mute button instead.

She was a clever person. Having decided to move forward, she was determined to make a clean break from her past.

“En’en, I look forward to the day you fall in love with me.”

Ding Hao raised his glass again.

Qiao En’s acting was good, but her heart wasn’t in it.

After all, people are greedy; having obtained her person, they then long to possess her heart.

“Don’t hold out too much hope for me; I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed.”

Qiao En tapped his glass with hers. She still didn’t drink. Her words were like cold water, dousing directly into Ding Hao’s heart.

“En’en, can’t you sweet-talk me a little? Why must you always speak such blatant truths? Come on, let’s start over. Just say that anything is possible, just one sentence, one sentence, okay?”

Ding Hao pouted like a child, coquettishly urging Qiao En.

“I’m full, I’m leaving.”

Qiao En was uncompromising, picking up her purse and preparing to leave.

In public, she had an obligation to play along with Ding Hao’s act, but in private, she still wanted to be herself.

When she refused to compromise, Ding Hao did.

“Okay, okay, I won’t tease you anymore! Wait for me, let’s go together.”

Qiao En walked toward the entrance of the restaurant, and Ding Hao swiftly followed.

He reached out to drape his arm around Qiao En’s shoulder but then remembered the terms of the agreement and decisively withdrew his hand.

“En’en, why don’t you stay at my place tonight? You’ll have to move there after we get married anyway. Why not start now? My place is big and spacious…”

Ding Hao whispered temptingly into Qiao En’s ear, but she saw right through his sly intentions.

“Doctor Ding, have you considered the possibility of voiding our cooperation agreement?”

Qiao En crossed her arms and looked at Ding Hao disdainfully.

He had already started testing the boundaries as soon as they had signed the cooperation agreement.

Qiao En didn’t intend to indulge him; she wanted to make her stance clear to Ding Hao—even if she had sold herself with a contract, she still wanted to be herself.

“No, no, no, I take back what I just said. En’en, could you not be so fierce? I was just joking with you. I’ll take you home.”

Sure enough, Ding Hao became compliant.

On the way back to Chengnan Apartment, Qiao En felt a bit sleepy. She closed her eyes slightly and curled up in the seat.

Ding Hao glanced over at her several times. As a doctor, he knew that pregnant women often felt drowsy.

The car slowed down considerably, and he turned up the temperature inside a few degrees.

Half an hour later, the car came to a stop in front of Chengnan Apartment.

Qiao En reached to open the car door to get out, but Ding Hao was one step ahead of her and opened the door for her.

“En’en, you’ve also had a long day. Get a good night’s sleep. Tomorrow morning, I’ll come to pick you up to meet my family, and then we’ll visit your parents. The day after tomorrow, we’ll go take our wedding photos and book the hotel for the wedding…”

Ding Hao laid out his plans while Qiao En didn’t actually take in a single word.

But she still responded in agreement, “Okay.”

As he was about to leave, Ding Hao suddenly mustered the courage to hug Qiao En. She struggled to push him away, but Ding Hao held on even tighter.

“En’en, I hope I can bring you happiness, but if it turns out not to be what you want, I still want you to always be happy.”

He lowered his voice by her ear. After speaking, he immediately let go and proudly whistled.

“Yo-ho, lucky me!”

He called out heartlessly, ran a circle around Qiao En, then rushed to his vehicle, got in the car, and kept waving at Qiao En.

Ding Hao always had the carefree happiness of a young man.

Qiao En didn’t know if his happiness was genuine or just a facade.

She and he were people of two extremes, overly precocious, cautious, and contemplative in everything—a lot like Zhou Jin’an.

People like them were doomed to have little affinity with happiness.

Qiao En entered the building and took the elevator up.

The moment the elevator doors opened, Qiao En saw Zhou Jin’an.

He stood tall and straight, leaning against the wall with a chilly aura enveloping him.

The dim light from the corridor spotlight hovered above his head, turning into a trace of melancholy.

Upon seeing Qiao En emerge, Zhou Jin’an turned to look at her, his eyes dark and deep.

“Director Zhou, what brings you here?”

Qiao En walked toward him, dressed beautifully in a cocktail dress he had once personally chosen for her.

It felt like an eternity with a deep chasm between them.

“Why?”

Zhou Jin’an’s thin lips parted slightly, his anger barely contained as he asked, confused.

Qiao En’s cool gaze swept over Zhou Jin’an’s clenched fists, and she suddenly smiled.

“What?”

She understood but chose not to respond.

Zhou Jin’an’s anger flared as he closed in, propping his arm against the wall and cornering Qiao En within it.

He looked down at Qiao En from his height, his gaze confrontational, “Why are you marrying him?”

Qiao En met Zhou Jin’an’s eyes.

She too had once harbored vain hopes that he would firmly hold her hand and defy the world. But vain hopes were just that, and he was the lofty Director Zhou, not his own master, with too many considerations of gain and loss.

She could wait, but she didn’t want to see him lose.

The appearance of Su Nian was indeed a harsh wake-up call for Qiao En. All those obsessions, all those reluctances, turned out to be mere illusions. She was just a stand-in who couldn’t see the light of day, and it was wise to recognize this.

Qiao En laughed again, lifted her chin, and the coldness in her eyes gradually spread.

“Ding Hao can give me what I want, whereas Director Zhou cannot.”