Early the next morning, the moment Cheng Yao stepped into Junheng, Qian Heng called her into his office.

“I happen to be free this morning.”

“Hm?”

Qian Heng cleared his throat. “I can take you to the notary office for the phone notarization.” He looked out the window, as if trying to explain himself. “Besides, since it’s a favor from a personal connection at the notary office, it wouldn’t be right for me not to go say hello in person.”

Having Qian Heng come along was, naturally, ideal for Cheng Yao — if anything came up, she could consult him on the spot. And somehow, with Qian Heng there, she felt strangely at ease.

This phone notarization needed to succeed on the first try — it had to be airtight. Otherwise, if it spooked Zhang Hao, there’d be no chance of pulling it off a second time.

“Boss, could we wait a moment — I’d like to stop by where Zhang Hao lives first, to look for something.” Cheng Yao thought it over and decided to voice her plan. “Once I’ve found what I need, I’ll call you, and we can meet at the notary office?”

But apparently Qian Heng really had nothing else going on today. He glanced at her. “I’ll drive you there.” Then, lowering his gaze, he added, “You’re a woman going to someone’s door alone, and he knows you — if there’s a confrontation and you get hurt, that’d count as a workplace injury.”

Cheng Yao looked at Qian Heng’s transparently insincere, cold expression and wanted to shout — boss, how many times are you going to use the workplace injury excuse? It’s worn thin, you know! Even I can see through it! If you’re worried about your subordinate’s safety, why not just say so?!

But Qian Heng, the man in question, remained blissfully unaware, keeping up his aloof composure as he drove her all the way to Zhang Hao’s building like some kind of chauffeur.

Though Cheng Yao insisted she’d be fine on her own, Qian Heng was adamant, and ended up following her upstairs.

“Duck down! Don’t stand so straight!” In the elevator, unable to help herself, Cheng Yao tugged at his sleeve and whispered, “Lower your profile!”

Qian Heng found this baffling, watching with confusion as Cheng Yao crept up the stairs like she was on some covert mission, yet instead of heading toward Zhang Hao’s front door, she went straight for the emergency stairwell door.

It was only when Cheng Yao pulled a pair of disposable gloves from her bag and located the trash bins past the stairwell that Qian Heng finally understood why she’d wanted him to stay low-key.

She was here to dig through the trash!!!

The moment the bin lid came up, Qian Heng felt like he couldn’t breathe. He immediately held his breath, staring at her in disbelief. “What are you doing?!”

Zhang Hao’s building had one floor with two units sharing a trash chute, so this bin held garbage from both households. Undeterred by the filth and stench of household waste, Cheng Yao calmly replied while digging through it, “Digging through the trash, obviously!”

Qian Heng frowned, then said, incredulous, “Cheng Yao, don’t tell me you came here to dig through garbage looking for evidence of Zhang Hao’s affair?”

Cheng Yao nodded. “Of course!” She rummaged around and pulled out one bag. “This one’s got a bunch of used diapers in it, so it’s definitely not Zhang Hao’s trash — it’s the neighbor’s.” Ruling that one out, she focused more intently on the other bag.

Qian Heng had had enough. “Have you been watching too many American TV shows? You actually think real lawyers dig through trash for evidence like on those legal dramas? I strongly advise you to give up this—”

“Found it!”

Before Qian Heng could finish, Cheng Yao let out a triumphant cry and pulled a small torn scrap of paper from one of the bags.

It was a fragment of a wedding photography studio’s promotional brochure. Undeterred, she kept digging until she’d pieced together enough fragments to make out the studio’s name — Aishe Wedding Photography Center.

She dug around further and found an advertisement for another wedding photography studio.

“Since Li Mengting got pregnant, they never got around to taking wedding photos — they’d originally planned to do a full family portrait after the baby was born.” Cheng Yao looked at Qian Heng, her eyes practically sparkling. “Now his trash has all these wedding photography ads. What does that tell you?”

“It tells you that even though Zhang Hao hasn’t gotten a divorce yet, he’s already planning to take wedding photos with his mistress — he’s already visited several studios to check them out!”

Qian Heng said flatly, “Cheng Yao, a few wedding photography ads found in a trash bin aren’t nearly enough to prove infidelity. This evidence carries no weight at all.”

But Cheng Yao was still excited, her bright eyes fixed on him. “It’s enough! Trust me!”

For some inexplicable reason, Qian Heng felt a flicker of unease. As Cheng Yao stared at him, a sly little smile playing at the corners of her mouth, he felt his heart skip in a strange, uneven way.

Could work stress really be wearing his heart down this badly? Qian Heng thought, alarmed, and immediately booked himself a VVIP executive health checkup at the affiliated hospital.

Regardless, having finished digging through the trash, Cheng Yao felt refreshed as she followed Qian Heng to the notary office.

She’d assumed it must take serious connections and favors for Qian Heng to need to show up in person, but once they arrived, the staff greeted him like he was some kind of benefactor bringing them fortune.

“Qian Par, got any big real estate deals that need notarizing lately? Year-end’s coming up and I’m still short on my numbers.”

“Feel free to send other lawyers from your firm our way too.”

…

Cheng Yao glanced at Qian Heng — this was the personal favor that required him to show up himself? Surely a phone call from him would’ve been enough!

“I heard the notary office just got renovated,” Qian Heng said, lips pressed together, explaining with feigned nonchalance. “I wanted to see the new decor style.”

What, was he too embarrassed to just say he’d come along to make sure the notarization didn’t go wrong? Or too embarrassed to admit he had an overprotective, fatherly concern for his subordinate?

Noticing Cheng Yao staring at him, Qian Heng cleared his throat. “For reference.”

“Reference for what? Didn’t the firm just get renovated a year ago? Don’t tell me you’re using this as inspiration for your villa’s decor?” Cheng Yao stared him down, her mischievous streak flaring up, pressing the point relentlessly. “What would this style even have to offer for villa decor???”

“I just happen to like this dignified, minimalist style.”

“…”

Soon, the notary in charge of the phone notarization brought Cheng Yao and Qian Heng over to the notarization phone, went through the procedural notes, and signaled that Cheng Yao could begin.

Qian Heng stopped her first. “Do you know what to say? You need to lead him into revealing information about the affair, you need to—”

Cheng Yao smiled confidently. “I know.” She winked at him. “Just watch my performance!”

With that, she picked up the phone and dialed Zhang Hao’s number.

The moment the call connected, Cheng Yao’s voice instantly transformed, taking on the sweet, polished tone of a customer service professional. “Hello, Mr. Zhang Hao, this is a staff member from Aishe Wedding Photography Center. You and your fiancée, Ms. Liang Qiongqiong, came in for a consultation on our wedding packages before — I wanted to check if you two have decided which studio you’ll be shooting your wedding photos with.”

Qian Heng froze for a moment. It was only then that he understood the point of her digging through the trash — she hadn’t been trying to find hard evidence of Zhang Hao’s affair directly. She’d been trying to find a way to get Zhang Hao to lower his guard and inadvertently, even indirectly, admit to the affair himself.

On the other end, Zhang Hao paused too. Though a bit annoyed by what sounded like a sales call, he didn’t hang up outright. “Your sample photos are nice, but the packages are too pricey.”

Cheng Yao, in her practiced sales-rep tone, replied invitingly, “Actually, I’m calling to let you know about our year-end promotion. If you finalize a package now and come into the store to sign and put down a deposit, I can offer you a thirty percent discount.”

…

Qian Heng watched as Cheng Yao spent a full ten minutes going back and forth with Zhang Hao about the wedding photography package, seriously and professionally, until the two finally reached an agreement, with Zhang Hao agreeing on the spot to come sign the contract in person the next day.

Sensing the mood had warmed up enough, Cheng Yao moved in for the final push. “Thank you so much for choosing Aishe. You and your fiancée, Ms. Liang, are such a great match — you can just tell you two are so in love, like you’ve been dating for seven or eight years, so in sync!”

Zhang Hao, thoroughly relaxed by now, and pleased by the generous discount Cheng Yao had offered, was quite taken with her. He laughed and corrected her. “Not seven or eight years, we’ve only been together six months, but it’s true, we just clicked.”

Cheng Yao feigned surprise. “Only six months?”

“Yeah, haha.” Zhang Hao’s voice was unmistakably cheerful. “Some people know each other for years and still aren’t right for each other, but with some people, it just takes a little time together to realize you fit. I guess you and I have a bit of that fate too — being able to lock in the wedding package this fast really takes a weight off my mind. And you know, your voice sounds really familiar, somehow.”

Even talking to what he thought was just a salesperson, Zhang Hao seemed eager to open up, practically chatty. He was a completely different person from the reticent, taciturn man he’d been with Li Mengting. In his mind, apparently, all these changes were simply because he’d finally found “the right person.”

New love makes people forget old grief — it seemed that to Zhang Hao now, all the best years Li Mengting had given him meant nothing at all, just a mistake in his life story.

Suppressing the anger building inside her, Cheng Yao forced out a laugh. “Ha, yeah, it’s fate. Since you’re in such a rush to finalize the wedding photo package, are you planning the wedding banquet soon too?”

“Not really.” Zhang Hao’s voice remained cheerful and easy. “It’s just that if we wait any longer, I’m worried my girlfriend’s belly will start showing and it won’t look good in the photos.”

Cheng Yao, suppressing her inner turmoil, thought that Zhang Hao was practically handing her the case on a silver platter — not only had he just confirmed on record when his affair with Liang Qiongqiong had started, but he’d let slip an even more crucial detail: Liang Qiongqiong was already pregnant!

This scumbag!!!

Zhang Hao rambled on for a bit longer, but Cheng Yao no longer cared. She knew — this was in the bag.

The information on the recording was more than enough to prove that Zhang Hao’s affair had been going on for six months — meaning he’d been cheating during his marriage to Li Mengting. And Liang Qiongqiong’s pregnancy was ironclad evidence he could never talk his way out of.

Just like that, the evidence was secured.

Once she hung up the phone, Cheng Yao finally relaxed, feeling drained. Only then did she glance over at Qian Heng.

Cheng Yao didn’t say a word, but the look in her eyes said it all — that same damp, puppy-eyed expression, waiting for praise.

For some reason, that look left Qian Heng feeling irritated. He thought of that fiery confession gift box Cheng Yao had given him, and realized that if he opened his mouth to praise her now, she might well misread it as some kind of response to her feelings.

No, he couldn’t do that, Qian Heng thought. Office romances were unprofessional. Not allowed.

So he kept his expression stony, looked away, and said nothing at all.

What Qian Heng didn’t realize was that, from Cheng Yao’s perspective, his behavior looked exactly like a stubborn refusal to admit defeat.

Having successfully secured the phone notarization, Cheng Yao actually felt a small swell of pride. See, the same Qian Heng who’d looked down on her for digging through the trash earlier now had no choice but to applaud her cleverness, didn’t he?

He didn’t have to admit it out loud — it didn’t matter. Whatever trash she’d dug through this time, it had been worth it!

On the drive back, Cheng Yao kept replaying every detail of the phone notarization, thinking about what she could have done better, which lines might have led Zhang Hao to confess his “relationship” even faster — too absorbed to make conversation with Qian Heng. Naturally, he stayed quiet too.

The two of them rode back to the firm in comfortable silence.

The moment Cheng Yao got back to her desk, ready to report the fantastic news to Li Mengting, Qian Heng suddenly appeared at her desk again.

Before she could react, he tossed something onto her desk.

It was a bag of Skittles.

Cheng Yao looked up at him questioningly. That look seemed to set him off entirely — he snapped, “Fine, so I didn’t say congratulations, does that mean you have to give your boss the silent treatment?”

Cheng Yao: ???

“I happened to have a bag of Skittles on me, so, here, as a reward,” Qian Heng said, haughtily. “Keep up the good work.”

Huh???

Happened to?

Cheng Yao thought, I don’t believe that for a second!

Without a second thought, she turned and called over to Bao Rui, who’d just returned from a hearing outside. “Bao Rui, did Qian Par ask you to do anything for him earlier?”

“Oh, yeah!” Bao Rui groaned. “Qian Par called me out of nowhere to ask if I was back at the office yet. I actually thought he was checking in on me out of concern — but when I said I wasn’t back yet, he just told me to pick up a bag of Skittles for him on my way. Talk about a moral and ethical collapse of humanity!”

Even though Qian Heng was as awkward as ever, Cheng Yao found she’d oddly gotten used to it. Back home that evening, munching on the Skittles, she found the whole thing rather satisfying — her mood was great, and she felt sweet all over, inside and out.

She and Qin Qin had their usual phone call, and Cheng Yao couldn’t help but thank her again about it. “Thanks to your gift box, my boss has been so much nicer to me lately!”

After finishing her call with Qin Qin, Cheng Yao was just about to go to sleep when Li Mengting suddenly called.

Having successfully completed the phone notarization that day, Cheng Yao had already updated Li Mengting on the situation earlier — the two of them had been thrilled, and Cheng Yao had worked overtime to prepare the filing materials, ready to head to court and file the case first thing the next morning. As things stood, everything seemed well in hand — while a lawyer could never guarantee a win, Cheng Yao felt quite confident about this case.

Li Mengting had also gotten her emotional state back on track lately. With her parents by her side and the twins in her belly to think about, she’d settled into a regular routine — normally, she’d already be asleep by this hour.

A call at this time had to mean something urgent.

Cheng Yao picked up, a bad feeling already stirring in her chest.

“Yao Yao, something’s happened!” Li Mengting’s words confirmed her fears. “A friend sent me a screenshot — Zhang Hao posted his and Liang Qiongqiong’s marriage certificate on his social media!”

Cheng Yao was stunned. “He found someone to change the marriage record on the household registry? But even if he did that, that would be blatant bigamy — is he really flaunting it that openly? That’s a criminal offense, and he’s posting the marriage certificate publicly? Is he trying to hand us the evidence on a platter?”

“There’s no way he’d be reckless enough to commit outright bigamy.” Li Mengting’s voice trembled. “Yao Yao, I’m starting to think our marriage certificate might be fake.”

Cheng Yao was shocked. “What do you mean?”

“When Zhang Hao and I registered our marriage before, I didn’t go in person myself — he had someone back in his hometown handle it through a connection. At the time, I’d just found out I was pregnant, and right after that I had severe morning sickness, plus some signs of a threatened miscarriage — I could barely manage bed rest, let alone travel. His hometown and mine were both far away, and the trip would have been too rough on me. So Zhang Hao told me his hometown’s civil affairs bureau had a connection — as long as we gave him our household registration and ID information, he could get the marriage certificate processed for us.” Li Mengting paused. “Both our hometowns are small counties, and I know for a fact that kind of arrangement really does happen there — a friend of mine registered her marriage the same way, no problems at all. So I believed him.”

Li Mengting sounded dejected. “No wonder he never seemed in any hurry to bring up divorce. Now, putting it together with what you found — if Zhang Hao and Liang Qiongqiong had already been involved for six months, then by the time he and I ‘registered’ our marriage, he might already have been having second thoughts about staying with me. The ‘registration’ might have just been a stopgap measure while he was still hesitating, to leave himself an out — there was never any real intention of actually marrying me.”

This new information caught Cheng Yao off guard too. “If your marriage certificate is fake, then our entire approach to the case has to change, because without a legal marriage, the loyalty agreement would be void.”

The law recognizes the stability of marital relationships, but not the stability of cohabitation. During a relationship where a couple lives together before marriage, neither party has any legal duty of fidelity to the other. A loyalty agreement within a cohabiting relationship therefore has no legal binding force — at most, it carries moral weight. Even if one party ultimately violates such an agreement, the other party has no legal grounds to claim compensation based on it.

Cheng Yao understood this principle well, and as a fellow law graduate, so did Li Mengting.

Though neither of them had confirmed it yet, they’d essentially arrived at the same conclusion — Li Mengting and Zhang Hao’s marriage certificate was fake. The two of them had never legally been married at all!

Li Mengting was both furious and full of regret. “I shouldn’t have trusted him so blindly. It’s my own fault for being so naive. Those two carried on right under my nose for six months and I never noticed a thing. Thinking back on it now, I finally understand why Zhang Hao hesitated for two days before signing the loyalty agreement I proposed — he was using those two days to consult a lawyer! To check whether he’d actually be liable if he signed it! Once he confirmed the marriage certificate was fake and the agreement had no binding force, he signed it, all fake sincerity!”

Despite this sudden, jarring turn of events, Cheng Yao ultimately managed to stay calm. She comforted Li Mengting for a while before hanging up.

Cheng Yao herself hadn’t even noticed it, but at some point, faced with such a sudden and unexpected complication in a case, she’d stopped panicking and losing her head — she could now calmly and rationally analyze the situation, working to shift her approach and find a new angle to pursue.

This case, it seemed, would have to be scrapped entirely and started over from scratch.