"Impossible!" Qin Fugui said angrily. "I will never allow Qin Qing to marry you."
"I will marry no one but Ye Xiu in this lifetime," Qin Qing said firmly. "The household book is in my hands now. No one can stop me from marrying him."
"Check and see if your page is even in there," said Qin Qing's father, Qin Han.
Puzzled, Qin Qing opened the household book only to discover that her page was missing.
"Your mother and I have been preparing for this day," Qin Han said proudly. "We knew you'd try to secretly register your marriage the moment Ye Xiu returned, so we hid your page."
Qin Qing felt as if she'd been struck by lightning. Without her page from the household book, how could she and Ye Xiu possibly register their marriage?
She looked at Ye Xiu. "What do we do?"
"Don't worry," Ye Xiu said, stroking Qin Qing's lovely face. "We can register our marriage without the household book. I only agreed to come back with you to get it because I didn't want to miss out on the ceremony. Since your father won't give it to you, we'll just use my method and register directly."
"Ha! You're quite the braggart, Ye Xiu. I've never heard of anyone being able to register their marriage without a household book," Qin Han taunted.
"Daughter, Ye Xiu is deceiving you! He might be planning to take you to get a fake certificate. You mustn't believe him."
"Qin Qing, he only covets your beauty and your body! His reputation in this country is already ruined, and now he's trying to drag you down with him."
"Getting married without a household book? Do you really think Qin Qing would believe such an outrageous boast, Ye Xiu?"
The Qin family members all voiced their doubts, urging Qin Qing not to trust him.
Ignoring her family, Qin Qing said, "I believe you. Take me to get our marriage registered."
"We don't even need to go in person. The Marriage Registrar will deliver the marriage certificate to us." As he spoke, Ye Xiu took out his phone and sent a text message. "We'll just wait right here."
This almost made the Qin family die laughing.
"Ye Xiu, isn't there a limit to your boasting? How could you possibly get a certificate without going in person?"
"He must be arranging for a fake certificate to fool Qin Qing."
"Getting registered without the household book is already unrealistic, but to do it without even going in person? That's just absurd!"
"And the Marriage Registrar will deliver it to you? Ye Xiu, just who do you think you are?"
The Qin family felt that Ye Xiu had gone mad. His boasting knew no bounds. Registering without a household book was already far-fetched; having the Marriage Registrar personally deliver the certificate to their door was simply impossible.
It wasn't just the Qin family; now even Qin Qing was starting to have doubts. She pulled Ye Xiu aside and asked in a low voice, "Can this really be done?"
"When have I ever lied to you?" Ye Xiu retorted.
Qin Qing considered this and realized he was right—Ye Xiu wasn't the type to grandstand for no reason. At this thought, she began to feel hopeful. She and Ye Xiu might just become the first couple since the nation's founding to get married without a household book, and with the Marriage Registrar personally delivering the certificate to them.
At the same time, the Qin family was overcome with grief, on the verge of tears. Qin Qing was such a clever child; how had she become such an idiot when it came to Ye Xiu?
The Qin family stopped trying to persuade her, having realized that even without a marriage certificate, she and Ye Xiu would live as husband and wife regardless.
"Qin Qing, do you have any idea what kind of disaster you'll bring upon the Qin Family once your relationship with Ye Xiu becomes public?" Qin Fugui asked, his face cold.
Before Qin Qing could answer, Qin Fugui continued, "For all these years, Ye Xiu's enemies have sent people after you, but those have all been minor skirmishes. Once they find out Ye Xiu is back, and once they know you're with him, they won't just send people to kill you—they'll annihilate the entire Qin Family."
This was the true reason the Qin Family so vehemently opposed Qin Qing marrying Ye Xiu: they were terrified of being implicated by him.
"Grandfather Qin, are you all so certain that I'll never have a comeback?" Ye Xiu asked.
"You're already ruined! How could you possibly make a comeback?" Qin Fugui roared.
"Ye Xiu, the entire nation adored and respected you ten years ago. But for the last ten years, they've hated and despised you. Add your enemies to the mix, and you'll never be able to turn things around in this lifetime," Qin Anruo said.
"If people find out you're back, you'll be dead in the streets within a month. Those people will never give you the chance to recover," said Qin Qing's uncle.
"Enough!" Qin Qing shouted, her face as cold as ice. She turned to Qin Fugui. "Grandfather, just say what's on your mind."
"Fine. Since we've come this far, there's no need to hold back," Qin Fugui said, his voice cold as he spoke through clenched teeth. "If you insist on marrying Ye Xiu, then take him and get out of the Qin Family. From this day forward, you have nothing to do with us. Furthermore, you will immediately resign from your position as CEO of the Qin Corporation. Your life and death will no longer have any connection to the Qin Family."
"This..." Qin Qing's eyes widened in disbelief. To avoid being dragged down by Ye Xiu, her own grandfather was ruthless enough to cast her out of the family.
"Dad, please reconsider!" Qin Qing's father, Qin Han, said desperately. "If you drive Qin Qing out of the family, you're pushing her to the Ghost Gate!"
Qin Qing's mother, Wu Meiyu, added, "Her status as a member of the Qin Family and the CEO of Qin Corporation is her protective amulet. Ye Xiu's enemies don't dare to move against her lightly, as it would cause a huge stir. If you cast her out and strip her of her CEO title, his enemies will be able to kill her openly!"
"That's enough!" Qin Fugui said mercilessly. "As long as Qin Qing agrees to sever all ties with Ye Xiu, everything will remain as it is. If she insists on being foolish, then she can go die with him."
Qin Qing's parents rushed to persuade her. "Daughter, quick, agree with your grandfather! Promise him you'll never see Ye Xiu again, hurry..."
"Impossible!" Qin Qing refused decisively. With an expressionless face, she scanned every member of the Qin Family and said, "When Ye Xiu was at his peak, you all did everything you could to latch onto him. When he fell into trouble, you all avoided him like the plague. You know perfectly well that he was framed. I don't expect you to help clear his name, but you should at least have some faith in him."
"If he could achieve so much ten years ago, he can do it again."
"You may not believe he can make a comeback, but I do..."
"Enough!" Qin Fugui cut her off with a roar. "Since you're so determined to follow him to your death, then get out of the Qin Family!"
"Fine, we'll get out!" Qin Qing agreed. "But remember my words today. The day will come when you will beg me and Ye Xiu for help. The day will come when you will come groveling to him, just as you did ten years ago."
"Bah! Me, beg you and Ye Xiu? Dream on," Qin Fugui said, spitting on the ground. "Ye Xiu will never again reach the heights he did ten years ago."
Qin Anruo added, "The Qin Family of today is not the same as it was ten years ago. We won't beg anyone."
Without another word, Qin Qing stormed back to her room to pack her belongings.
Her mother, Wu Meiyu, quietly followed her inside. "I know you won't listen to my advice," she whispered, stuffing a bank card into Qin Qing's hand. "This card has ten million in it. Your father asked me to give it to you. Take Ye Xiu and go abroad, or find a small town and live your lives peacefully. Just don't ever come back to Jin Ye City."
After she finished speaking, she hurried out, afraid the rest of the family would discover she had given Qin Qing money.
Qin Qing stood there holding the bank card, stunned for a long moment. Finally, she wiped away her tears, finished packing, and walked out.
Ye Xiu helped her put the luggage in the car, but he didn't leave right away. Instead, he stood by the car, waiting for the people from the Marriage Registrar to arrive.
The Qin family didn't try to drive them away again. They were waiting to ridicule Ye Xiu after his grand bluff inevitably failed.
「Half an hour later!」
Seven cars pulled up and parked outside the Qin family's residence.
Over a dozen people got out, carrying equipment, and hurried over to Ye Xiu and Qin Qing.
Seeing the leader of the group, Qin Fugui exclaimed in shock, "Supervisor Liu?"
The man in the lead was none other than a supervisor from the Marriage Registrar.