Divorced at fifty, I embarked on my path to success.

“Yusheng,” Xie Mingqi grabbed Mei Yusheng’s hands, looking at her with urgent eyes, “I know I shouldn’t have made such a request, I’m too selfish! But, you know, for so many years, I’ve been hoping for Lao Chen to get promoted. He’s already fifty-three, and if he doesn’t seize this opportunity, his life might just end like this.”

"It wasn't for my own vanity, but for Qianqian!" Xie Mingqi shook Mei Yusheng's hand, her voice choked with sobs. "That child has always been carefree and didn't study hard. She barely managed to get into a school, and in the end, she didn't even take one of her graduation exams. I had no choice but to pull some strings to get her a make-up exam. Actually, she still failed one subject, so it was like she paid for the grade."

“Sigh, I can’t do anything about her. I just hope that after Lao Chen becomes the vice principal, he can let her become a teacher in a couple of years, or find a husband with good conditions. That way I will be at ease and have no other desires in this life.” Xie Mingqi shed tears, which dripped onto their clasped hands. “We are both mothers. We can endure any grievance for our children’s future.”

“Yusheng, I wouldn’t have asked you for help if I hadn’t really had no other choice.” Xie Mingqi panicked when she saw Mei Yusheng’s expressionless face and seemingly indifferent expression. “I understand your anger and your frustration, otherwise I wouldn’t have helped you so much a few days ago. But today I suddenly realized that if you get a divorce now, your father-in-law will definitely take his anger out on me and won’t help Chen’s election anymore.”

“I thought divorce would be a long process, and it was uncertain when we would find any leverage over him, so I didn’t think much about it at first. I got angry when I saw him being too arrogant, but I didn’t expect that we would get his fatal leverage so quickly. He is now like a fish on a chopping board, and you can cut him open whenever you want. He will definitely not dare to hesitate to do anything. He will obediently give you whatever you want.”

"Besides, now that we have him under our control, he won't dare not invest in Lao Chen! He'll live in fear every day, and just thinking about it makes me feel so good! Don't you want to experience the cat-and-mouse game a little more?"

"If you get a divorce and return the accounts, he'll definitely be furious and resentful. Since he can't get revenge on you, he'll take it out on us. Invest in Old Chen? Don't even think about it! You'll be lucky if he doesn't kick you when you're down. Even if things go wrong and both of you lose, if you send him to jail, Old Chen's election will be ruined, won't it?"

“Yusheng, I’m not asking you to forgive that scumbag, I just want you to delay the divorce for a few months.” Xie Mingqi’s mouth was a little dry as she spoke, but Mei Yusheng remained silent. Xie Mingqi couldn’t help but get impatient. “As soon as the election is over at the end of the year, I’ll help you sue him! Okay? Yusheng, please help me this once? I’m rarely asking you for help, how can you bear to leave me alone?”

Mei Yusheng was in a state of turmoil. She understood Xie Mingqi's feelings and sincerely hoped that Chen Juansheng could become the vice principal.

But let her endure for another four months!

She simply couldn't do it; she couldn't accept even four weeks, let alone four months.

Is she going to stay with Qin Chu for the next four months?

Otherwise, how could she possibly go back to that home and live her life as if nothing had happened?

In that case, she would lose all the advantages she currently possesses, and Yue Jiangting would seize the leverage she has gained. The longer she delays, the more time she gives him to come up with a way to deal with her.

Her heart couldn't withstand the test of a long marathon, and she had no doubt that Yue Jiangting would make her disappear silently and completely for his own benefit.

She didn't want to waste another four months. After the divorce, she wanted to start a new life, and she had many things to do.

Life needs to be restarted as soon as possible; she doesn't have the courage or strength to continue wasting her time.

However, she couldn't bring herself to refuse her best friend, with whom she had grown up.

Mei Yusheng's dark eyes flashed with a look of struggle, her lips trembled, but she couldn't utter a single word.

She was afraid that if she agreed, she would immediately regret it.

“Rain Sound,” Xie Mingqi stared intently into her eyes, waiting for a minute that felt like an hour, “If you’re worried about Lao Yue taking the ledger, I’ll keep it for you. I guarantee he won’t find it! Is that okay?”

Seeing that Mei Yusheng remained silent, she grew angry and abruptly shook off Mei Yusheng's hand, her tone full of resentment: "You won't agree, is that it? Fine, I understand."

Her voice was cold and distant: "It was my overestimation of myself that I came to ask you for help! We've been sisters for half my life, and I've never asked you for anything before. But you won't even grant me this one request. I finally understand what friends or besties are compared to my own interests!"

Mei Yusheng's tears slid down her cheeks, her heart frozen by her voice.

"For my sake, you can't even endure it for a while. It's not like I'm asking you not to get a divorce, but you can't even wait four months? You know, many divorces drag on for a year or two just from the process. Do you think it's so easy that you can get a divorce within a week after you bring it up?" Xie Mingqi stood up, looking like she was about to leave. "Besides, Lao Yue won't get the account books, and he's not going to compromise easily. Do you think you can outmaneuver him?"

"If I'd known begging you would be of no use, I wouldn't have come! Humph!" Xie Mingqi angrily shook her hand and walked towards the door.

In reality, she was afraid to say it over the phone, as it would be easier for Mei Yusheng to refuse. When they were face-to-face, Mei Yusheng found it much harder to say no.

Mei Yusheng's silence only fueled her anger and frustration, making it nearly impossible for her to control her emotions.

"Mingqi." Mei Yusheng grabbed her arm, her voice hoarse, "I didn't..."

Xie Mingqi stopped abruptly, her eyes gleaming with surprise: "You, you agreed?"

Mei Yusheng closed her eyes wearily: "Sit down first, let's discuss it slowly, don't rush."

Xie Mingqi's expression suddenly turned somber. She observed Mei Yusheng with a complicated look in her eyes, thought for a moment, then sat down again and began to speak earnestly: "Yusheng, I'm sorry, I was too emotional just now and said things without thinking. This is what I'm thinking: since Lao Yue is unlikely to agree to a divorce in the short term, the more you pressure him, the more desperate he'll become. Rather than that, it's better to stall him for now."

As she spoke, she kept scrutinizing Mei Yusheng's expression: "Did he call you after agreeing to settle the mortgage on the villa?"

Mei Yusheng shook her head and gently bit her lower lip.

"See? I told you, he wouldn't just hand over the villa to you so easily. He's probably up to some dirty tricks. You have no chance against him!" Xie Mingqi seemed to have found a solid reason and clapped her hands excitedly. "I think we should take it slow and keep him calm first."

“Now that we have the ledger, there’s no way we can keep him calm.” Mei Yusheng took a deep breath. “He won’t sleep well until he gets the ledger. How much time do you think he can give me?”

Xie Mingqi paused for a moment, then rolled her eyes: "Anyway, as long as he doesn't get the account books, he won't dare to do anything to you. Just stay here and wait it out!"

Mei Yusheng suddenly laughed, a laugh tinged with desolation: "We can't afford to waste time. This matter can only be resolved quickly. Do you want me to return the ledger to him?"

Xie Mingqi's eyes flickered: "Of course I can't pay it back..."

Mei Yusheng felt there was no perfect option, and she was torn and unable to make a decision.

Just then, the sound of a password being entered came, and Mei Yusheng's eyes lit up.

Qin Chu walked in, looking radiant, wearing a gray-blue suit.

Xie Mingqi stared in shock, pointing at him and saying, "You... how are you here?"

"Hello!" Qin Chu greeted politely, a smile playing on her lips, her deep eyes turning to Mei Yusheng. "Sister, have you introduced me to your best friend?"

Seeing his smile, Mei Yusheng's anxiety dissipated considerably: "I guess that counts as an introduction, but..."

"Yusheng, could he be the younger brother you were talking about?" Xie Mingqi's face was full of disbelief. "No way? What a coincidence!"

Then he turned to Qin Chu and asked, "Aren't you Lawyer Qin's second uncle? You even helped us open the safe. Did you recognize Yu Sheng a long time ago?"

Qin Chu nodded with a smile: "Yes, I recognized my sister the moment I saw her."

"Oh—" Xie Mingqi suddenly realized, "So that's why you're willing to help us, right?"

"What do you do for a living? How come you live in such a nice villa? Do you have other houses elsewhere? Where do your wife and children live?" Xie Mingqi launched into a barrage of questions.

"I'm a writer, this is my only house, and I'm single now," Qin Chu replied succinctly.

Xie Mingqi stared at Qin Chu, trying to process the information, then turned to look at Mei Yusheng with a puzzled expression.

Qin Chu noticed that Mei Yusheng's expression was strange, and looked at them with confusion: "Since you're here, why don't you stay for dinner tonight? My sister said she'd make me some three-delicacy pork buns."

As he spoke, he went to the dressing room to change his clothes.

Xie Mingqi was still in shock and couldn't come to her senses.

After he came out dressed in comfortable casual clothes and chatted for a while, Xie Mingqi returned to normal.

"What did you talk about when I wasn't around?" Qin Chu asked seemingly casually, but his eyes were fixed on Mei Yusheng, noticing the melancholy between her brows.

Xie Mingqi bit her lip and begged Mei Yusheng not to get a divorce for the time being.

Qin Chu's expression grew increasingly solemn as he listened, and finally, a layer of frost settled on his face: "No! My sister's divorce cannot be delayed. I will help her complete the divorce procedures within a week!"