Chapter 318 - In a sorry state

Chapter 318: Chapter 326: In a sorry state"He Fangqing, although we have had a marriage, I wasn’t happy with you during that time. However, I also admit that by leaving you, I wronged you. That’s why I said those words to you, as a way to express my apology. I wanted to offer you some sort of compensation, but I’ve realized that I was wrong. Compensating you would mean being unfaithful to Juan, and would denigrate my true love for Juan. So, I can only say sorry to you, and let’s bring our matters to a close with this. From now on, you should take care of yourself."

Chen Mingsheng puffed out his chest, his words fervent and yet sorrowful, with such a righteous air.

Then he wrapped an arm around Su Juan’s shoulder and said softly, "Juan, I’m sorry, my heart is just too kind. I always feel guilty towards her, that’s why I acted this way. I won’t do it again. I realize that by doing so, I am even more in the wrong to you, even more untrue to your love."

Su Juan was that type of person with a simple mind and a volatile temper – plainly speaking, somewhat dim-witted. Otherwise, Chen Mingsheng would not have been able to fool her with such ease. Now, hearing Chen Mingsheng speak like this in front of He Fangqing, her anger towards him promptly reduced quite a bit.

But a decrease in antipathy towards Chen Mingsheng did not mean lesser animosity towards He Fangqing. In her heart, He Fangqing was a vixen, a constant threat as long as she existed. He Fangqing’s beauty and elegance were beyond her reach, even if she were to chase after it.

"Is that so? Then prove it to me," Su Juan said, glaring venomously at He Fangqing.

Chen Mingsheng’s mouth twitched slightly. This had already happened once before. Last time, at the headquarters’ entrance, Su Juan demanded he hit He Fangqing, but was thwarted by that Pretty Boy, Li Yifei. At the time, he actually felt somewhat relieved. He truly did not have the heart to hit He Fangqing.

But this time was different. If he didn’t actually hit He Fangqing, his death was certain this time, all his efforts would be wasted. As long as he maintained his marriage with Su Juan, he could keep his current status. In time, money and status would be his, and finding a few beautiful women would be an easy task.

Clenching his teeth fiercely, Chen Mingsheng pulled Su Juan aside, moved the chair in front of He Fangqing out of the way, and stepped in front of her. But as soon as he met her gaze, Chen Mingsheng knew his relationship with He Fangqing was utterly over. The last time he was about to hit He Fangqing, her eyes were filled with tears of humiliation, indicating her deep sorrow, sorrow that their marital bond had come to such a pass. But this time, it was different. He Fangqing’s eyes held only disdain, and intense scorn.

This made Chen Mingsheng feel very uncomfortable. After all, He Fangqing was once his wife, and now she felt no affection for him at all – that shouldn’t be!

Such was the selfish side of Chen Mingsheng – he had been so merciless and heartless towards He Fangqing, yet he still expected her to hold affection for him. If a person could be so shameless, even the gods would be at a loss to help.

Since He Fangqing had no affection for him, he had nothing to hold back for. To prove there was nothing between them, he had to hit her. This time, his decision was not as conflicted, nor was it as painfully difficult as the last. He swung his arm back and aimed a blow at He Fangqing’s face.

As Chen Mingsheng made his move, Su Juan felt her heart leap with joy. Her hostility towards He Fangqing stemmed from her knowledge that Chen Mingsheng had never stopped pining for He Fangqing, that he had once been deeply involved with her emotionally. She feared a revival of their relationship, which is why she was so determined to make Chen Mingsheng hit He Fangqing. That way, He Fangqing would no longer be a part of Chen Mingsheng’s life.

The shrew has her own method of dealing with things; though hard to accept and infuriating to witness, it couldn’t be denied that her method was effective. Regardless of the fact that He Fangqing had long since given up on Chen Mingsheng, even if she hadn’t, she would surely come to loathe him profoundly after this.

She waited to hear the sound of Chen Mingsheng’s slap on He Fangqing’s face, waited to see He Fangqing’s anger and hatred, waited to see the fresh bruise on her cheek. All of this excited her immensely.

The onlookers, listening to Chen Mingsheng and Su Juan’s noisy quarrel, had more or less understood the situation and the relationships between the three. It turned out He Fangqing was Chen Mingsheng’s ex-wife, while this woman, Su Juan, was Chen Mingsheng’s current wife.

This revelation left everyone incredibly perplexed. He Fangqing had both beauty and a fine figure, an elegance and dignity that outshone Su Juan by streets. How could a man like Chen Mingsheng leave such a beautiful wife, only to marry such a brutish woman?

Thinking it over, they had more or less guessed why – nowadays, women like to attach themselves to the wealthy, and similarly, some wealthy women like to keep a Pretty Boy. This shrew-like woman, by her dress, was clearly affluent. Evidently, she belonged to those who foster Pretty Boys, and Chen Mingsheng’s abandonment of a beautiful wife could not have been for true love, but surely because the woman was wealthy.

Thus, everyone felt very sympathetic towards He Fangqing. Seeing that Chen Mingsheng still wanted to hit He Fangqing at this time made everyone even more furious. There were even two men who couldn’t stand it anymore and loudly shouted, "Stop!"

But after all, they were just onlookers, only capable of shouting; they couldn’t possibly intervene. However, their reluctance to help didn’t mean He Fangqing was defenseless. Just as Chen Mingsheng’s hand was about to strike He Fangqing’s face, a hand suddenly reached out from behind the booth next to He Fangqing. That hand effortlessly flicked Chen Mingsheng’s arm, causing his hand to slide past He Fangqing’s nose without hitting her.

This isn’t the end of it. With his momentum not yet dissipated, Chen Mingsheng spun half a turn. His swinging arm couldn’t be retracted in time, and soon there was a sharp "smack" – the unmistakable sound of a palm striking a face.

It might seem slow when told, but everything actually happened very quickly. Everyone just saw Chen Mingsheng swing his hand in a hard slap, then as though he put too much strength into it, spun around and ended up with his hand on Su Juan’s face. Nobody could tell whether the sound of the slap was from hitting He Fangqing or Su Juan.

He Fangqing had already resigned herself to the slap, feeling utterly despondent. As a fragile woman, she was no match for Chen Mingsheng and couldn’t avoid being hit. But when Chen Mingsheng’s slap not only missed her face but actually landed on Su Juan’s, she saw the person behind the booth next to her grinning at her – Li Yifei.

At that moment, He Fangqing suddenly felt like crying, not because of Chen Mingsheng, but because of Li Yifei’s timely arrival. It was like a child who had been bullied suddenly seeing their parent.

Nevertheless, He Fangqing held back her tears, distracted by Su Juan’s piercing scream and the continuous barrage of curses that followed.

"Chen Mingsheng, you bastard, how dare you hit me! So it turns out you’re in cahoots with this stinky bitch. I’m going to make you pay!"

"I... I... It was not on purpose... Ah, my Juan, it really wasn’t on purpose. I was aiming for her, I don’t know how... Ouch, I really didn’t mean to hit you."

Chen Mingsheng tried to explain, but Su Juan, in her raging fury, was not listening to any of his excuses. Her chubby hands with long nails scratched violently at Chen Mingsheng, and in the blink of an eye, his face was clawed to shreds.

"Not on purpose? I’ll show you ’not on purpose’! You think I am blind? Or are you just stupid? You couldn’t hit the person in front of you, but me, standing behind you, you could hit perfectly fine? And you still say it wasn’t intentional?" Su Juan continued to curse and scratch Chen Mingsheng mercilessly.

The crowd, seeing the scene turn out this way, began to laugh heartily. Unconsciously, they had come to see these two as villains, and a fight between such characters was naturally entertaining.

Seeing the situation turn against him, Chen Mingsheng knew no explanation would suffice. If things continued, Su Juan might actually kill him. He quickly looked for an opening, squeezed past Su Juan, and ran for the exit.

"Don’t run, stop right there! I swear I’ll skin you alive!" Su Juan, with her short legs, chased after him.

"Ow!" Just a few steps into her pursuit, Su Juan suddenly tripped over something and fell to the ground with a loud thud. Her plump body rolled on the floor like a bouncing ball before coming to a stop.

"Ouch! Ouch! I’m going to die!" Su Juan cried out in agony, calling to the heavens, while the waitstaff hurried over to help her up. However, she brushed the waitstaff’s hands away and sat on the ground, crying and causing a scene.

Chen Mingsheng rushed back, helped Su Juan up, and this time, she stopped hitting him. While still swearing at him, she limped out.

Watching the pair help each other out in such a sorry state, someone in the shop laughed first, followed by a contagious burst of laughter from everyone else. It was rare to witness such an incident in a cafe, especially when two such detestable people ended up with such a fitting comeuppance — true poetic justice.

But nobody noticed that when Su Juan fell, her foot had stumbled upon a cup. No one knew how that cup had ended up beneath her foot.