Chapter Forty-Two: When It’s Time to Sever, Sever Completely

Arriving at the property transaction center, the findings startled Ning Shuyi once again.

The apartment that Wang Yuluo’s aunt had paid off was an ordinary residential unit located in a prime area of W City, with a floor space of just over ninety square meters. Though it wasn’t a grand mansion, its location made its price per square meter among the highest in the city’s real estate market.

Originally purchased under the aunt’s name with a mortgage, the apartment was transferred to her daughter, Yu Mengpeng, as a gift once the loan was settled. This sequence of actions forced Ning Shuyi to ponder deeply.

If the property was acquired and mortgaged under the aunt’s name—considering the aunt and uncle already owned a home—this would count as a second property. The price, well above two million, meant the aunt’s down payment couldn’t have been less than half the total value.

But judging by the payments made to the bank, it was clear she hadn’t borrowed over a million. Given her income, even a ten-year repayment would have been unrealistic, let alone clearing the loan in five years.

So where did the massive down payment come from, considering her income and loan amount?

Moreover, the apartment’s ownership was swiftly transferred immediately after the loan was repaid, incurring not insignificant fees. Most people would have avoided such expenses. As the only child, Yu Mengpeng’s inheritance wasn’t in question—so why the urgent need for the transfer?

Then there was Yu Mengpeng’s earlier complaint to Ning Shuyi and the others: she wanted to pursue a master’s in law, but her mother vehemently opposed this, insisting she hurry to obtain accounting qualifications instead. She was told their family couldn’t afford to waste money or time on postgraduate studies.

This was odd. A family capable of paying a huge down payment and clearing a home loan in five years—a family who owned a non-essential property worth over two million—shouldn’t be crying poverty when it came to their daughter’s postgraduate ambitions.

Most intriguing of all, the year the aunt paid off the mortgage was precisely when Wang Yuluo was about to graduate from college. After graduation, Wang Yuluo’s living expenses no longer passed through the aunt’s hands, but went directly to her father. This timing seemed especially significant.

“Earlier you said no one acts without benefit. Now I see it clearly—Wang Yuluo’s aunt must have gotten up very early indeed!” Ning Shuyi remarked to Huo Yan on their way back to the bureau.

Huo Yan murmured in agreement, saying nothing more.

After a day’s work and many discoveries, they returned to the bureau as night was falling. Entering the office, they saw Zhao Dabao gulping water from a cup with his phone wedged at his ear. Spotting them, he quickly put his phone down and waved them over.

“I was just about to call you! You’re back!” Zhao Dabao swallowed his water and hurried over. “I’ve got something! Was about to ask if you had time—if not, I'd tell you over the phone. I found Wu Caimei and learned everything about her. If I don’t tell you right away, I’ll burst!”

“We’re all here now, so take your time. We’ve had quite a productive day ourselves,” Ning Shuyi nodded, seeing Zhao Dabao had rushed back and signaling him to relax.

“No worries! I'll talk as I catch my breath. You know I can’t keep things bottled up—not the first day you’ve known me!” Zhao Dabao couldn’t wait, dragging a chair closer to Ning Shuyi and Huo Yan. “Remember how Wang Yuluo’s aunt and uncle kept hinting that Wu Caimei and Wang Yuluo’s father’s relationship was ruined by Wang Yuluo’s interference, and that’s why there’s so much resentment?

I checked out Wu Caimei’s situation and found her myself. Guess what?!”

“Wu Caimei remarried, and she’s happy with her husband,” Ning Shuyi replied.

Zhao Dabao had been eagerly trying to build suspense, but Ning Shuyi’s straightforward answer deflated him like a punctured balloon. He slumped in his chair. “No fun at all, Comrade Ning Shuyi! Can’t you pretend to guess?”

“Comrade Zhao Dabao, can’t you raise your standard for keeping secrets? You always try this—if I pretend to guess wrongly, wouldn’t that insult your intelligence? I couldn’t do such a thing!” Ning Shuyi laughed.

“Heh, true enough!” Zhao Dabao laughed, waving a hand. “Let’s turn the page and get down to business.

Wu Caimei has remarried—not only that, she’s had a child. She looks genuinely happy, content, and at ease—no way to fake that. I chatted with her; she told me that after breaking up with Wang Yuluo’s father, she initially refused any financial compensation out of spite. But later, after meeting privately and talking things through sincerely, she accepted it.

She said others might sneer that she was selling her youth for money, but refusing it could make people suspect she wanted to keep Wang Yuluo’s father feeling guilty, hoping for a renewed connection. After weighing it up, she decided to take the money—she’d invested years of genuine affection, and it would help both of them move on.”

“So, by her account, Wang Yuluo’s father couldn’t let go of her—it wasn’t that she couldn’t leave him?” Ning Shuyi asked.

Zhao Dabao shook his head. “She said she couldn’t calm down at first, couldn’t accept that they were about to marry but failed at the last hurdle.

But after cooling off and thinking it over, she realized that maybe ending things there was a blessing. Otherwise, she might have fallen into a pit.”