Substitute For CEO's Lover

The grand hall was filled soft chatter and laughter.

Today was a special night for Joey Gu, CEO of the Gu Consortium. It was his fifth wedding anniversary with Lois Shen.

It went without saying that Lois Shen was beautiful, and she looked exceptionally stunning in the long evening gown she wore for tonight.

As she went downstairs slowly, her right hand was slightly lifting up the hem of her dress so that she wouldn't trip over. All of the guests stared at her in awe, admiring her beauty and elegance.

In the crowd, Joey Gu had a bitter smile on his face. He gave his glass of wine to a waiter nearby and approached his wife.

Lois Shen was a little surprised when she saw Joey Gu extend his hand out to her.

"Thank you," she said as she took his warm hand in hers.

'Well,' Joey Gu thought in shock, 'When did she learn to be this polite? Normally she would just shy away from me.'

They went through the crowd, Lois Shen walking closely beside Joey Gu. It was customary for him to greet his business partners with her by his side.

The program began shortly after. The host went up on the stage to welcome the guests. Lois Shen took a glass of champagne from one of the waiters going around serving drinks. "Thank you," she said softly with a smile.

The young and shy waiter blushed and left, making her laugh silently.

"Let's welcome our star of the night! The lovely wife of the CEO of the Gu Consortium -- Mrs. Gu!" The host smiled and applauded along with the audience.

There was a slight flush on Lois Shen's face.

It was probably because of the champagne she had drunk. Over the past five years, she had not really drunk much alcohol. And so, a single glass was more than enough to make her face hot.

With a faint smile, Lois Shen went up on stage.

Wherever she was, there was always a bright smile on her face. It was so welcoming and warm, much like the sun in early spring.

The crowd sighed at the sight of her. They were either thinking how beautiful she was or how she and Joey Gu were just so perfect for each other.

"Welcome to tonight's celebration," Lois Shen said. "Thank you all that you were able to celebrate our wedding anniversary with us. So for those who don't know yet, my full name is Lois Shen."

She took a big deep breath in, smiling a bit wider. "The reason why I wanted to introduce myself like this is because Mr. Gu and I are going to get divorced."

The crowd was silent for a moment, completely stunned by the sudden news. Even Joey Gu looked at Lois Shen in disbelief. 'What is she talking about? When did she come up with this idea?' Joey Gu sneered to himself.

After a few seconds, everyone came back to their senses, murmuring to each other and casting quick glances at Joey Gu. Some people knew that their marriage was only a shotgun wedding because Lois Shen got pregnant. "Do you think they're getting divorced because it didn't work out?" one guest whispered.

"I don't know. Maybe they weren't as compatible as they appeared to be," another said.

Even if their relationship wasn't working out, it didn't make sense to a lot of people that Joey Gu wasn't the one to break the news. After all, he was the one who was more well-known and important. It just didn't make sense the Lois Shen would be the one to do it, especially since she had remained in the sidelines for so long.

Everyone's imaginations ran wildly as they started to gossip among themselves, and Joey Gu could do nothing but keep silent. Suppressing his anger, he looked up coldly at Lois Shen. There was still a smile on her face, and her eyes were calm and determined.

'You will pay for this!' he thought.

Forcing a smile, he went over to the general manager of the AH Group. "Mr. Zack! I think we should step up our cooperation a bit longer, don't you think so?" he said as warmly as he could.

Zack Zhao was stunned, but he didn't show it on his face. "There are too many things to do recently. It's not the right time for my company to get involved," he stammered.

The business world was full of ups and downs. A divorce easily brought upon bad press, especially when it wasn't handled that well. The best thing to do in times like this was to take it lightly and pretend that nothing was wrong.

"Anyway, I hope everyone can still enjoy the rest of the night," Lois Shen continued. "I've drunk more than I can handle, so I'll be taking my leave now."

Still smiling, she stepped down the stage, leaving a lot of the guests still wondering the truth behind the new she had just shared.

Walking out of the hall, Lois Shen took out her car keys from her bag. Just when she was about to reach her car, someone suddenly grabbed her from behind. She was about to scream for help until the person's hand went up to cover her mouth. "Shut up! Do you want to cause more embarrassment for yourself?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Lois Shen felt relieved. Although she didn't feel ashamed for what she did, she was worrying that the Gu Consortium might get affected.

After letting her go, Joey Gu took her arm and pulled her towards his car.

"Get in," he sneered at her. Lois Shen hesitated for a second, but then thought that he wouldn't do anything to her since she had just announced their separation. It would be too obvious, and if she went missing, he'd be a primary suspect.

However, when he had drove out of the city center, she started to panic. "Joey, where on earth are we going? Aren't we going back to the villa?"

"Shut up!" Joey Gu scolded. There was so much anger boiling up inside him.

"Just calm down! Can't we talk for a minute?" she retorted.

In a second, Joey stepped on the brakes, making her lunge forward. It was a good thing she was wearing her seat belt. Otherwise, she would gone straight through the windshield. Taking a deep breath to compose herself, Lois looked out the window. It was dark outside, and she couldn't help but feel a bit scared.

"Do you know how much the Gu Consortium will lose because of your reckless actions?" Joey asked, his voice trembling with anger.

Although Lois was surprised, she felt a bit relieved.

'At least he doesn't look like he's going to hurt me,' she thought.

For five whole years, Lois had taken care of Joey, and had stayed by his side. However, now that she was asking for a divorce, he cared about nothing else but his company. How sad.

"I'm not being reckless, Joey." Then, she took out some documents from her bag and handed them over to him. "I was serious when I said that we're getting a divorce."

It was divorce papers. He tried his best to look calm as he took the papers and skimmed through it.

As written on the terms, Lois had emphasized that she didn't want any money or asset from Joey. The only thing she wanted to take with her was their daughter.

"This...this is some kind of joke, right?" he laughed sarcastically. But when he saw her expressionless face, his lips curled up to a sneer. "Are you serious?

Maggie is still so little! How could you bear to let her grow up without her father?! You are a ruthless woman!" There was a flash of fury in Joey's eyes as he glared at Lois.

Lois just lowered her head and smiled pitifully.

"What difference does it make?" she said softly. "We've been together for five years and yet it felt as if Maggie didn't have a father." There was no way she was about to leave their daughter to him. Joey was not capable of taking care of such a small child.

With a scoff, Joey tore up the divorce papers into pieces. "You did everything you could to get in bed with me just so that you could marry into the Gu family. Now, you dare to threaten me like this?"

Lois's face turned pale. Everyone knew who had taken advantage of this marriage. After so many years, she no longer wanted to argue with him.

"Lois Shen! I don't know what tricks you are playing. But just to remind you, you are married to the CEO of one of the most powerful companies in the country!" Joey fumed. "Look, if you want to run your own company or get an affair, so be it. But Maggie stays where I can keep an eye on her."

Lois gritted her teeth as her hands tightly clenched into fists at her side. At this moment, she no longer wanted to be anywhere near him. Without a second thought, she reached for the car door.

However, Joey was much quicker than she was, and locked the door before she could open it.

Afterwards, Joey pulled her arm towards him, making her fall onto his lap. She blushed with embarrassment, and tried to sit up straight. Just then, Joey leaned in and kissed her on her lips.

With all her might, Lois tried to push him away, ever going as far as hitting his shoulder. Unfortunately, he was much stronger than she was.

"You... HMM... Let go of me!"

Joey furrowed his thick eyebrows. 'This woman! How dare she!' Eventually he let her go, making her slump back onto her seat.

Lois straightened out her dress and composed herself, looking at the angry look on Joey's face. There was nothing else she wanted to say -- she had already proposed the divorce, and they were going to get separated sooner or later.

However, her silence made him annoyed even more. "Stay at home and take care of Maggie. That's the end of this discussion," he snapped at her.

Hearing this, Lois shook her head in disbelief. "Fine. Then you can talk to my lawyer," she replied in a sarcastic tone.

"Who do you think you're dealing with?" Joey said with a slight laugh. "What do you think you'll be able to get out of this? Believe it or not, I have the money and power to ban you completely from A City!"

"I don't want anything," she uttered softly, looking out the window. "I just want Maggie..."

Reaching out, Joey grabbed her chin and made her look at him. There was a coldness in his eyes that pierced right through her soul. "What can you possibly give her that I can't? You will have nothing if you leave the Gu Family."

At that moment, Lois's phone rang, breaking the tense atmosphere.

Looking at the screen, Lois's heart fluttered in panic. It was a message from the nanny. Apparently, Maggie Gu had been crying nonstop and calling out for her mommy.

Lois quickly replied, saying that she was on her way.

"What's wrong?" Joey asked, reading the worry on her face.

"Maggie is looking for me. We need to --"

Her sentence was cut short as she thought whether or not it was still appropriate to use the word 'we'.

"Just drive back home," she continued in a low voice.

Without saying anything, Joey started the car and drove.

As soon as the car stopped at the villa, Lois bolted out and quickly went upstairs.

Joey handed the car key to a servant and strode into the villa as well.

The little girl was crying her eyes out. Her aggrieved look was truly pitiful.

Joey wanted to go upstairs to see Maggie, but he suddenly remembered the cooperation case between his company and the AH Group. With this in mind, he hesitated and went directly to his study instead.

It was already ten o'clock after he finished his work. He rubbed the corners of his eyes and leaned back on his chair.

Afterwards, he started to unbutton his suit and slung it over his arm as he walked to the bedroom. Back then, Lois would make him a midnight snack to help him get through the night. But nowadays, she didn't prepare anything for him, even a cup of coffee.

When he opened the door, he saw Lois sleeping soundly with Maggie in her arms. The two were huddled together in a warm embrace, making him feel more like an outsider.

Swallowing down the hurt he was feeling, he slowly closed the door and made his way to the guest room.

On the next day, Joey had a quick breakfast and went straight to the company. Because of the party last night, he had to postpone two meetings, those of which were scheduled today.

Looking at the phone in his hand, Joey frowned in annoyance. "Deal with this," he said to his secretary as he handed his phone to her. It was a message from Lois's lawyer. Apparently, the lawyer wanted to talk to him about the divorce. But right now, Joey had more important matters to attend to.

Having been busy for a whole day, Joey had a bad temper. Therefore, he cancelled his date with Sally Lu and drove home tiredly.

Meanwhile, Lois casually looked around the apartment with a sigh. Although it was a bit small, it had a certain charm about it. There was a bedroom, a living room, kitchen, and even a balcony. Still, there wasn't enough room for her and a small five-year-old girl.

She had only paid for a two-month stay here. By then, she assumed that she and Joey had finally come into terms with the divorce.

'I really need to look for a new place,' she thought. There was no way she was going to let Maggie stay in such a shabby place.

As she sat at the table, Lois started to come up with what her plan would be after she and Joey finally get the divorce.

All of a sudden, her phone rang in her pocket.

"Hello," she greeted.

Joey's frustrated voice came through. "Where have you been?"

Although Lois couldn't see his expression, she knew that he had his face twisted into a mask of anger. Even before, he had always been unfriendly towards her.

"It's late. Where have you ran off to?" he hissed.

Blinking her eyes, Lois forced back her tears. "Has the lawyer contacted you? Since I've already asked for a divorce, there's no need to live together."

There was no reply, and she could only hear Joey's husky breathing. "I've found some place else to stay until this whole thing is over," she continued. "When it's done, I'll go pick up Maggie and that's that."

"That's not for you to decide! You'd better come back right now!"

"Joey, please calm down."

But Joey was burning with so much anger. It turned out that she had already arranged everything. Yesterday, she announced the divorce at a party. Now she had packed her luggage and ran away from home. She also found a lawyer to negotiate with him about the divorce! How dare she!

And she also wanted to take the child away? 'After spending my money and wasting my time, she wants to leave and take my daughter away?! And then what? She'll find some unknown man to act as Maggie's father?! Does she really think that she'll get some kind of happiness ever after?'

At that moment, Joey thought about the midnight snacks Lois used to make for him, the nice, warm breakfasts and even the simple treats she prepared when he was working overtime. Reminiscing these, he gritted his teeth and decided that there was no chance he was going to agree to this divorce. 'Why should I let another man benefit from my wife?'

"It's not up to you to decide the divorce," Joey snarled. "Don't think that you can do whatever you want. More importantly, don't ever think that I'll just let you have Maggie. You chose this life. You married into the Gu family. Whether you're dead or alive, there's no going back from that! Don't even think about it."

Lois looked down at the wedding ring on the coffee table. 'This is just ridiculous,' she thought bitterly. Swallowing the bitterness in her heart, she tried to stay as calm as possible. "What about Sally Lu? Huh?" she finally said.

Joey was shocked and angry. Just when he was about to bark back at her, Lois had already hung up the phone.

Looking down on his phone, Joey got even more infuriated.

With a sigh, Lois looked at the wedding ring in front of her. Joey used to wear the ring all the time, until that woman had thrown it in the trash.

She could still remember it as if it was yesterday -- standing at the street corner, she saw Sally Lu get in Joey's car. Although it was a warm April morning, a chill had ran up her body at the sight of the two.

She wasn't able to move until the car drove away from her sight. There were no tears in her eyes. The last thing she wanted was to be desperate and afraid.

As she stumbled along the street, something shiny caught her eye.

It was Joey's wedding ring, tossed beside a rubbish bin. Holding back her tears, she gritted her teeth and swallowed the bitterness.

She would never forget the feeling of being trampled on for nothing, as if all her efforts and love over the years were in vain. It was much worse than dying a miserable death.

She was determined to take off her wedding ring as well. Before that happened, Lois had a sense of pride in her, and thought that Sally Lu was as irrelevant as an ant. But given the current situation, it was so humiliating for her.

In truth, Lois could bear it that he didn't love her. Actually, she still really loved him. What she couldn't bear was the thought of the possibility that Maggie might get hurt. She would rather divorce him than risk that.

There was no regret in her heart since she was the one who asked for this. For her, there was nothing more important that her daughter. Lois couldn't help but think she owed Maggie a life where there weren't any hardships or heartbreak.

Thinking of the soft little girl, Lois felt a bit sorry. Usually, Joey was busy with work and other social activities, so the child was not close to him. She didn't know if Maggie was sad if she was not around her right now.

Thinking of her daughter's lovely appearance and soft voice, Lois's heart ached as her eyes started to water.

She only hoped that Joey could cooperate with the lawyer she got and end the relationship between the two as soon as possible. The sooner everything got settled, the sooner she could reunite with Maggie.

At the same time, in the villa of the Gu family, Joey's face was ghastly pale.

Maggie held the stuffed toy in her arms and looked at him timidly. She wanted to go upstairs, but she was afraid of angering her father. However, staying down here with him made her afraid as well. If she made him unhappy, she worried that he would surely beat her.

Maggie stood at the corner of the sofa, her eyes wide with fear, as if she was face to face with a big bad wolf.

As Joey looked at her, he remembered how Lois had said that he couldn't take care of their daughter. It was true that the child was not close with him. It went without saying that Maggie was unwilling to live with just Joey.

"Why are you hiding there! Do you think that I'm going to hurt you?"

It never occurred to Joey he should talk to children in a soft voice. Hearing his booming voice, Maggie was even more scared to approach him.

Looking at the little girl's trembling face, Joey got even more infuriated. On one hand, his wife wanted to divorce him and take their child away with her. On the other hand, his daughter couldn't even bear to be around him! He was restless but had no way to vent his anger.

"Is this what your mother taught you? You can't even call me daddy! No one at your school would want to play with someone like you!"

...

Looking at the fierce expression on Joey's face, Maggie was so scared that she burst into tears. The servants around Joey were afraid of him as well, and didn't dare to come forward.

"Mom...I want my mom. Mom..." The little girl held her stuffed toy tightly and sobbed.

Joey opened his mouth and was about to scold her again. But seeing the little girl cry even harder, he sighed and strode forward to pick her up.

"I want my mommy..."