Qin Heye’s ears turned slightly red.
“It was supposed to be a surprise gift for you,” he said softly. “It was for our third wedding anniversary, and I didn’t manage to give it to you that day.”
The third wedding anniversary… that was also the day they had agreed to divorce.
Too much had happened that day—so much so that neither of them had time to give or receive any kind of gifts.
Shi Ning blinked at him, suspicion flickering in her eyes. “Really?”
Qin Heye nodded earnestly. “Yeah.”
Shi Ning studied his handsome, serious face, her mind replaying the timeline in silence.
The gold chain had only been custom-made two days ago. The hacked account that posted the divorce announcement—that had happened barely ten minutes ago.
It took twenty minutes to get from his company to the mall…
Even if he had driven like lightning, or run every red light, there was no way he could’ve arrived in ten minutes.
Shi Ning’s foggy mind suddenly cleared. Her gaze lifted to Qin Heye, sharp now. “How did you get here so quickly?”
Qin Heye met her eyes calmly. “You said you were at the mall. I’d just finished work, so I came to see you.”
They had been married for three years. In all that time, they had never once gone to the mall together, never once had a simple date.
Of course, Qin Heye wouldn’t miss such a rare chance.
Shi Ning frowned. “Then why didn’t you answer my call just now?”
“This shop belongs to a friend of mine,” Qin Heye explained patiently. “He happened to be here today and called to tell me he’d seen you.”
It made sense now.
He hadn’t ignored her call. He hadn’t blocked her number.
Shi Ning’s tension eased, though a small unease still lingered in her chest—especially after seeing all those online comments speculating that someone was pretending to believe her just to expose her.
Her gaze softened slightly as she asked, “Do you really trust me unconditionally?”
Qin Heye looked straight at her. “Yes.”
“Forever?”
“Forever,” he said without hesitation.
Something in Shi Ning’s heart unclenched. A bright, relieved smile spread across her lips. She lifted her phone, holding it out to him with a pleading expression.
“Honey, please help me get my account back,” she said in a small voice. “That status—every minute it stays up, I feel sick a minute longer.”
The word honey melted the last of Qin Heye’s restraint. His chest warmed.
“Don’t worry,” he said gently. “I’ve already hired a hacker. I also have people looking into whoever’s behind those trending searches.”
Of course. Qin Heye was rich—his company had top-tier programmers, and he could easily afford elite hackers.
Shi Ning’s panic faded almost instantly. She tucked her phone away, her tone returning to calm.
“Then I’ll leave it to you. Just make sure they delete all my… dirty laundry.”
She had once posted passionately about Shen Xizhou on every platform she could, desperate to let the world know of their relationship.
“Dirty laundry?” Qin Heye echoed with a soft smile, lowering his gaze affectionately. “My wife doesn’t have any. She’s always been clean.”
Shi Ning grimaced, half-amused, half-exasperated. “Shen Xizhou is my dirty laundry,” she muttered, hitting him right where it hurt.
Qin Heye’s expression stayed steady, his tone low but resolute. “That’s not your dirty laundry. Loving the wrong person isn’t your fault. It’s the fault of the one who didn’t cherish you.”
Shi Ning had once felt ashamed—regretful even—for how deeply she had loved Shen Xizhou.
But Qin Heye’s words washed away that bitterness like sunlight through clouds.
She had loved sincerely, wholeheartedly, with all her warmth and faith. It wasn’t her fault that her trust had been betrayed.
The wrong was his alone—the scumbag who had deceived her.
Shi Ning’s lips curved faintly. “You’re right. But we still need to delete it. Completely.”
Qin Heye’s smile deepened. “Okay.”
“This time, my account was hacked,” she continued. “Focus on investigating Shen Xizhou and Shi Qingyin.”
“Because earlier, they were on the trending search together because of the post about them messing around. But then both of their names vanished.”
Exposing the divorce was just a distraction to shift attention away from their own scandal—the affair between a brother-in-law and sister-in-law.
But the bullet screen didn’t directly accuse them—it only hinted. It might not even have been them.
Recently, Shi Ning had noticed a pattern in those bullet comments—they always appeared during critical moments, especially ones involving her and Shi Qingyin. Of course, there were also some from that “yellow girl,” who popped up disturbingly often.
“Yeah,” Qin Heye murmured in response, gazing down at her.
Shi Ning, no longer in a rush to recover her account, took out the wallet she had been eyeing earlier and was just about to ask if he liked it when she noticed his expression—hesitant, conflicted.
She reached up and pinched his cheek teasingly. “If you have something to say, just say it. Keep hesitating like that, and you won’t get any rewards in the future.”
Encouraged by her words, Qin Heye gathered his courage. “Wife,” he began tentatively, “can you give me a status now?”
Shi Ning blinked. “Hmm?”
“I mean…” He hesitated, then looked at her seriously. “Can we officially announce our relationship as husband and wife?”
From the side, Mu Tiantian couldn’t stand to watch anymore. The almighty Qin Heye—so powerful and untouchable in the business world—was acting so cautious and humble in front of Shi Ning.
Her heart swelled with pride. That’s my sister, she thought. That’s what a queen looks like. Sisters are amazing!
Mu Tiantian reminded, “You two got married in secret, remember?”
Shi Ning froze. “Right… When we agreed to get married, it was on the condition that we keep it secret.”
Qin Heye’s marriage was a huge affair. Very few people in the upper circles even knew about it. Their wedding had only included close relatives and friends—there was no grand banquet, no media coverage.
Shi Ning herself had told him not to publicly reveal their marriage on any platform.
That was why Qin Heye’s Moments (a private social feature like a friends-only post circle) were only visible to her. His personal account included only those few who already knew the truth.
Now, though…
Shi Ning looked up at him.
Qin Heye lowered his gaze, voice soft. “It’s alright if you don’t want to. I—”
“Of course I want to!” Shi Ning interrupted brightly, taking his arm. “You’re so good—of course I have to announce it! Let everyone know you already have a girlfriend!”
It was also the fastest way to drown the trending scandal.
Qin Heye’s eyes lit up instantly—bright as stars. “Really?”
Shi Ning passed her phone to Mu Tiantian. “Take a photo for us. Make it sweet, something official—but don’t show Qin Heye’s face.”
Qin Heye had never revealed his face publicly. At most, he allowed his side profile or back view in media shots.
Now that they were going to make their official announcement, Mu Tiantian was even more thrilled than they were. “No problem! I promise it’ll look super sweet!”
As they adjusted their pose, Mu Zhenrong tried to sneak away quietly—only for Qin Heye’s cold gaze to flicker in her direction.
She froze instantly, rooted to the spot like a frightened rabbit, waiting for her sentence.
Shi Ning stood facing Qin Heye, planning only to take a gentle side-profile photo of them holding hands.
Mu Tiantian counted down, “Ready? Three, two, one—”
And in that instant, as if moved by the same thought—
Shi Ning rose on her toes, her lips brushing his. Qin Heye bent down, meeting her halfway.
The kiss landed softly between them. The photo captured that fleeting, tender moment.
Mu Tiantian pressed the shutter several times, grinning ear to ear. “You two are feeding me so much dog food today!” (Note: “dog food” is Chinese slang for public displays of affection that make single people jealous.)
Shi Ning and Qin Heye chose the photo where their heads tilted together in a kiss, the atmosphere tender and bright. Their faces were blurred just enough to protect their privacy.
Just then, Qin Heye’s phone buzzed. It was Pei Qianhuo.
“Your account password’s been retrieved,” he said.
Shi Ning, still adjusting the lighting filter on the photo, asked absentmindedly, “What’s the password?”
At that, Qin Heye’s composed face suddenly turned pink.
Shi Ning blinked. “???”
It was just a password… why on earth was he blushing?