Pretending To Be Affectionate [Transmigration] - Chapter 23

The first trial of Jiang Wei’s case was not satisfactory. Although the case was postponed, based on the dramatic reversal in court this morning, Jiang Wei would most likely go to jail after the second trial.

Ling Yu was almost certain that this was a done deal. However, she ran into Jiang Wei again shortly after returning to the law firm. He was following behind Jiang Bochuang. His usual vicious expression was gone. He walked obediently behind his father, like a tamed mongrel, hiding all his viciousness behind a fake mask.

Ling Yu quickly turned sideways and avoided their gaze. She stood in front of the printer in the hallway and breathed a sigh of relief after making sure she was in their blind spot. Soon, a large group of people walked through the lobby on the first floor.

After they had completely disappeared, Meng Xi, an intern in the human resources department, stood in the hallway with her eyes wide open and her hand covering her mouth in shock. “It’s… it’s Jiang… Jiang… the one from the rape case… He, he, he shouldn’t be in detention…”

Before Meng Xi could finish, Wang Cheng covered her mouth. Meng Xi was Wang Cheng’s cousin and had probably gotten into the law firm through her. Seeing that Meng Xi couldn’t keep her mouth shut, Wang Cheng first gave her a warning look, then looked around to make sure no one was there, and frowned. “Don’t ever mention that person again.”

“You’ve already graduated. Can’t you learn from Xiao Ling?” After scolding Meng Xi, Wang Cheng smiled at Ling Yu. “Xiao Ling, don’t let her lead you astray. Don’t even mention things you shouldn’t ask about.”

In Wang Cheng’s eyes, Ling Yu was a sweet and smart girl. She could quickly avoid sensitive topics and respond appropriately to whatever people threw at her. This kind of girl was much smarter than her impulsive cousin. She had expected Ling Yu to nod as usual.

But Ling Yu suddenly tilted her head. Her foxy eyes were filled with a girlish confusion. “Sister Wang, I also think it’s a bit strange… The Jiang family’s case currently has almost no hope of being overturned. Why would the head of the Jiang family come to the law firm now? Is there still room for negotiation?”

Sister Wang was stunned. She didn’t know how to answer. Almost everyone at the law firm, besides Jiang Dong and Director Li, was disgusted by this case. So, everyone avoided talking about Jiang Wei. If it weren’t for these two naive girls staring at her with innocent eyes, Sister Wang wouldn’t have bothered to say anything.

At that moment, ever since the criminal team got back on the bus, all the department heads had gathered on the top floor for a meeting. The hallway was not as lively as usual. Sister Wang was stared at by the two girls’ confused gazes. She hesitated for a moment and sighed. But before she spoke, she still cautiously looked around.

She lowered her voice and said, “It’s hard to say. This morning when I was submitting some documents, I heard from someone at the courthouse that the information about the new witness was submitted and reported to the court by Cai Dong alone. He also pulled some strings and asked the relevant people at the courthouse to keep it a secret…”

Meng Xi, who was standing on the side, gasped in surprise. “Lawyer Gu used to be in charge of all the big and small things at our firm. Can Lawyer Cai just submit a new witness without her?”

“Lower your voice,” Wang Cheng chided her, frustrated. She then sighed. “Not before, but now that Director Li is back from abroad, it’s a different story. From what I’ve observed, Lawyer Gu probably didn’t know that a new witness would appear in court today.”

Ling Yu lowered her eyes, a hint of surprise in her eyes. She had thought it was Gu Qing…

“That’s not right,” Meng Xi said, pulling on Wang Cheng’s sleeve. “Cousin, I heard from the head of our department that Old Director Li personally assigned this case to Lawyer Gu. The Jiang family promised to give her 300 million after the case was over. After all, she’s the only one who can win such a difficult case. Isn’t Lawyer Jiang afraid of being fired for hiding information?”

Wang Cheng shrugged awkwardly. She had heard about the 300 million a long time ago. She smiled awkwardly. “Who knows? Maybe I guessed wrong… I just don’t think Lawyer Gu is that kind of person…”

Ling Yu thought to herself that she also didn’t think Gu Qing was that kind of person. She hoped that the Gu Qing she saw that night was just a nightmare.

Because of her thesis, Ling Yu decided to meet Gu Qing at H University’s food street. She left work two hours early and went to school. She had planned to submit her thesis and then quickly reserve a seat at a popular small restaurant in the food street. But when she went to the office, she found that Professor Wu’s office had an old man sitting in it, his former mentor, and one of the leading figures in the literary world, Mr. Gu Bincheng.

So, by a twist of fate, Ling Yu was guided by Mr. Gu on her writing. After a conversation, the old man clearly showed his fondness for her and even invited Ling Yu to study at the University of Hong Kong. Ling Yu just smiled and politely declined the offer.

The old man had very good manners, the kind that came from being raised in a prominent family. After years of experience, his aged eyes were filled with wisdom. Perhaps it was out of a desire to cherish talent. Before he left, Mr. Gu gave Ling Yu his contact information. Ling Yu’s pale face showed a hint of embarrassment and shame for the first time.

For her, studying at the University of Hong Kong’s Faculty of Arts was not a bad option. But now that the Xu family was divided and Ling Taiguo was in power, her grandfather’s wishes and her own thoughts were to avoid conflict. Studying abroad was definitely the first choice. She saw the undisguised look of wanting her to stay in the old man’s eyes. “Little girl, don’t rush to refuse. I’ll be in Yuncheng for a long time.”

Ling Yu thought the old man was staying for her and felt even more guilty. She quickly waved her hand. “Sir, you don’t have to delay your trip because of me. I’ll definitely bother you if I encounter any academic problems in the future, but regarding my future studies after graduation…”

The young girl’s eyes were very bright. She spoke at a steady pace and was very organized. Her understanding of literature was even more unique than her mentor, Professor Wu. Gu Bincheng looked at Ling Yu with satisfaction. Seeing her so anxious to refuse, he put his hands behind his back and smiled, interrupting her. “Don’t feel pressured. I’m staying in Yuncheng for personal reasons.” Gu Bincheng paused and smiled kindly. “If I can find my niece, she’s about the same age as you. You… are both still children.”

Ling Yu was confused, but since the old man was not staying in Yuncheng for her, she felt relieved and went up to thank Gu Bincheng with a warm expression. Professor Wu, who was standing on the side, had his eyes wide open the entire time. He knew that if his mentor invited her, her future would be limitless. Even he could only barely call Gu Bincheng his teacher, and in fact, the old man had never acknowledged him. Thinking of this, Professor Wu’s gaze towards Ling Yu became even more complex. She had so much talent, yet she didn’t submit her thesis, she failed her exams, and she only had female classmates. What was even more ridiculous was that not long ago, she had been reported for standing in the red-light district. A good talent was going astray under his watch. Professor Wu regretted it.

Ling Yu naturally couldn’t understand the complex look in Professor Wu’s eyes. In fact, it was getting dark, and the time she had arranged to meet with Gu Qing was approaching. Ling Yu quickly finished up, said goodbye to them, and left the academic building quickly.

On her way back to the dorm, she ran into many younger students. Ling Yu was beautiful, though not as stunning as Gu Qing, who could command a room at first glance. But she had a good temper and smiled at everyone. To show her good nature, she intentionally wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, a pink lambskin jacket, and a light-colored knit shirt tucked into her jeans, showing off her slender waist and curvy figure. Her black hair was tied up high, and her graceful swan neck looked even whiter and cleaner in the winter. Ling Yu attracted a lot of attention as she walked. Many people admired her, but no one approached her. This was mainly because when Ling Yu was pursuing Gu Qing, she made her feelings known to everyone.

At the entrance of the food street, Gu Qing was on the phone, arranging things. She was a famous person at the school. As soon as she appeared at the food street, she was surrounded. Gu Qing frowned, found a spot under a large tree with few people, and put on a bucket hat. She lowered her head to answer the phone.

Next to her, two girls were looking timidly at the person walking closer on the tree-lined path. The girl with long hair pulled the short-haired girl’s arm. “Xiao Xue, I’m telling you, don’t go. You’re not from our literature department, so you might not know this, but it’s a known fact in the entire school that Ling Yu loves Gu Qing…”

“A month and a half ago, Ling Yu confessed to Gu Qing in front of the entire school.”

“And then?”

“Gu Qing was so annoyed by her that she couldn’t refuse. So she told her that she would only accept if she came in a Maserati.”

The short-haired girl said, “Huh? Didn’t you say last time that Ling Yu’s family isn’t well-off and that she even went to Kaihe Law Firm to apply for a job as a female security guard?”

The long-haired girl slapped her thigh. “I’m glad you remember that. Ling Yu’s clothes are similar to ours. She definitely doesn’t have money. But for Gu Qing, she didn’t eat at the cafeteria for two months. She worked at three places a day, a bar and a restaurant, just to earn money for Gu Qing’s joke.”

“The result was that after Gu Qing gave her that Maserati promise, Ling Yu became as thin as a stick. And then she really did drive a Maserati over, but that day, I saw with my own eyes in the bathroom that Senior Gu pushed Ling Yu away and left in disgust.”

The long-haired girl sighed. “So I’m telling you, Xiao Xue, don’t waste your time confessing to Ling Yu. I can tell you for a fact that you won’t get a response.”

The long-haired girl pleaded with her, but the short-haired girl still stared at Ling Yu’s face. She retorted, unconvinced. “So what? You also said that Senior Gu is straight and she doesn’t like women…” The short-haired girl’s voice became a little sad as she spoke. “And why can’t I confess? I’m just not resigned. Gu Qing has everything. She has talent, looks, and everyone is always confessing to her. She’s so high and mighty. Every time she appears at school, she’s like a queen surrounded by her subjects. She has so much. I have nothing. All I want to do is confess. Is that not allowed? Is Ling Yu’s name trademarked by Gu Qing?”

The long-haired girl was speechless. She couldn’t convince her friend. The long-haired girl sighed and let go of the short-haired girl’s arm. “Fine, fine. Just don’t come crying to me later.”

Gu Qing hung up the phone. She squinted as she watched the short-haired girl walk towards Ling Yu with a hot cup of milk tea in her hands. The weather today was not very good. It was probably because of the rain last night. There was a layer of ice on the ground, and the sky was gray. As it got closer to night, the temperature dropped a few degrees. Ling Yu’s breath turned into white smoke.

Behind her, a couple was confessing to each other. Fireworks exploded in the sky behind Ling Yu. The colorful silhouettes fell on her face. Gu Qing saw Ling Yu give the girl who gave her the milk tea a gentle smile. Her foxy eyes, which Gu Qing thought were not honest, curved into a crescent shape and were illuminated by the colorful light. Gu Qing’s gaze lingered on her eyes for a while.

Then, she didn’t know what the short-haired girl said, but the smile on Ling Yu’s lips became even more gentle. She lowered her head, scanned the QR code the girl gave her, and then happily accepted the milk tea from her.

She actually agreed?

Gu Qing took off the scarf around her neck and let out an absurd and undignified cold laugh.

T/N: Lawyer Gu is always jealous ~