CHAPTER 1166: CHAPTER 1165: LING FEI’S FAMILY BACKGROUND

Ye Qiu saw Ling Fei’s attire and her parents, and he could tell that her family wasn’t doing well. Now that she had to rely on tutoring to make ends meet, it was even more evident that her living standard was much lower than others.

In this situation, how could Ye Qiu possibly let her treat him to something expensive?

However, Ye Qiu still teased her by saying, "I’ve heard that the Imperial Cuisine Restaurant is pretty good. Want to try it?"

Imperial Cuisine?

Hearing this, Ling Fei immediately thought it would be very expensive.

But she was too embarrassed to ask about the price. She had over three thousand now, but was it enough for a meal there?

Seeing Ling Fei hesitate like that, Ye Qiu said, "It’s very expensive there; any dish costs a couple of hundred at least."

"Then, then let’s go eat there!"

Ling Fei felt that her money would still be enough.

However, with the price of a dish equivalent to her earnings for a tutoring session, Ye Qiu definitely wouldn’t go there. Besides, the Imperial Cuisine Restaurant was his family’s restaurant, and he usually wouldn’t take anyone there to eat.

"Forget it; let’s have hot pot instead, it won’t cost much."

For the two of them, it would be at most two or three hundred, and maybe not even that much.

Ye Qiu drove to a Southwest hot pot restaurant and parked the car, then he and Ling Fei went inside.

Just as they entered, a man in a black Volkswagen car that had followed them took out his phone and said, "Young Master Huang, that guy and the beauty just went in."

"Keep an eye on them for me. I want you to bring the two of them here tonight. After it’s done, I’ll give you fifty thousand more."

"Yes, Young Master Huang."

In fact, the man hesitated when he saw Ye Qiu driving a Land Rover, wondering if he should mess with him.

However, since the son of Deputy Director Huang had already given him twenty thousand, and would give another fifty thousand afterwards, he stopped thinking about it.

Ye Qiu and Ling Fei went inside. Now that it was winter, the temperature here, compared to the weather in Paris, France, might be fine during the day, but it was already very cold at night.

So quite a few customers were coming here for hot pot.

Ye Qiu and Ling Fei sat down, and seeing Ling Fei’s demeanor, it was apparent that she seldom went out to eat, as she seemed very tense, quite unlike those who were used to eating out.

"Sir, is it just the two of you?"

The female server asked.

"Just the two of us."

Upon confirming that Ling Fei couldn’t eat spicy food, Ye Qiu ordered a clear broth hot pot and some other assorted dishes, all adding up to just over two hundred.

"That’s all for now. If it’s not enough, we’ll order more later."

After the female server left with the menu, Ye Qiu glanced outside the window, already aware that someone was secretly following them.

Was the person following him or Ling Fei?

At first, he thought someone was tailing Ling Fei, because her expression seemed troubled.

Ling Fei sat there, unsure what to say to Ye Qiu, yet unable to just awkwardly sit in silence.

"What were you thinking when you wanted to jump?"

Ye Qiu asked.

"Maybe it was just a moment of confusion!"

During the senior high school mock exam, Ling Fei’s performance wasn’t consistently high enough to guarantee entry to Jin University. Occasionally, she reached the mark, but most of the time she fell short.

The reason she had to get into Jin University was mainly to prevent her parents from divorcing. She knew that as long as she got in, they wouldn’t split up, even if the love between them was long gone.

So after just finishing the Chinese exam, and feeling like she had wandered off-topic in her essay, she really got lost in the moment and just jumped.

It wasn’t until she jumped down that she realized her regret.

"Just because of an exam?"

"No, because of my parents."

Ling Fei replied helplessly.

In fact, probably only she and her classmate Wang Aili knew about this; no one else did.

But how could she bring herself to say it?

Ye Qiu sat there and didn’t ask any further.

"When I was in elementary school, my parents started having conflicts, and by the time I was in junior high, they wanted a divorce. They held on just because I hadn’t gone to college, dragging it out until now."

"Why do they want a divorce?"

"My mom and dad worked in the same factory, but my dad was in the production department, and my mom was in the finance department. My dad’s job was tougher, and the pay was average. My mom’s work was easier, and her salary was even higher than my dad’s. Mainly, it was because my mom dressed stylishly and looked pretty, so rumors spread around the factory. My dad couldn’t stand it, and that caused conflicts with my mom."

Ye Qiu recalled seeing Ling Fei’s parents at the hospital, especially her father who seemed to resemble Ye Weidong.

If Ye Weidong hadn’t changed because of Ye Qiu, he might be the same: overworked, underpaid, bad-tempered, but proud.

As for Ling Fei’s mother, whom Ye Qiu had also met, although she was in her forties, she dressed far better than Ling Fei’s father.

"Actually, the clothes my mom bought weren’t expensive; they were all bought online and not purchased often. But since she often wore skirts and socialized with factory leaders, rumors began to spread."

Ling Fei said helplessly.

Although she never said it before, she understood it all.

In this situation, she herself didn’t know what to say.

If back then her mother hadn’t gone to work in the factory, perhaps the two of them wouldn’t have divorced. But relying solely on Ling Zhengwei’s income might not have supported the family.

Overall, it was mainly because Ling Zhengwei didn’t make enough money, had too much pride, and didn’t trust his wife.

If he hadn’t believed the rumors outside and had trusted his wife, then these two wouldn’t have had any issues, and Ling Fei’s personality wouldn’t have been affected by the family, leading her to jump.

It could be said that Ling Fei was fortunate; otherwise, if Ye Qiu had taken the test in a different venue, Ling Fei’s jump might have taken her to see King Yanluo.

"Do you hate your parents then?"

"No, at first I was annoyed by their constant arguments, but over time, I came to understand and stopped caring. During junior and senior high school, I stayed in the dormitories and spent very little time at home. But I did envy other people’s parents who were very loving, just the three of them."

At this moment, the female server brought the clear broth hot pot base over. As it continued to boil, Ye Qiu put some meat and vegetables into the hot pot broth. It wouldn’t be long before they could eat.

As for the condiments, they could mix them themselves or have the waitress bring them over.

After preparing the condiments, Ye Qiu and Ling Fei began to eat dinner.

Of course, so that his parents and sister wouldn’t wait for him to return for dinner, Ye Qiu called Chen Fang and said, "Mom, I’m eating out with a friend, so you don’t have to wait for me."