After leaving the supply and marketing cooperative, Fu Wenzhou didn’t see Ruan Qiaoqiao. So he went straight to the bus station—and sure enough, found her waiting there.
When Ruan Qiaoqiao saw him, she walked over with a bright smile.
“You’re finally out. I’ve been waiting forever.”
Fu Wenzhou glanced at her lazily.
“Who are you? Oh, right. Miss Ruan. Su Mai’s ex-wife.”
Hearing his sarcastic tone, she felt a bit guilty.
“Are you angry?”
Fu Wenzhou snorted coldly, full of arrogance.
“Why would I be? It’s probably embarrassing to be seen with someone like me outside. It’s better if you pretend not to know me.”
Ruan Qiaoqiao immediately became serious.
“That’s not what I meant. I just wanted to get money from him. Think about it—if you knew your ex-wife remarried right after divorce, would you still give her compensation money?”
Fu Wenzhou scoffed.
“Excuses.”
“It’s not an excuse. Tell me—would you rather I hold onto 700 yuan, or let people know we’re married and get nothing?”
“Do I care about your 700 yuan?”
“You don’t, but I do.”
Fu Wenzhou frowned.
“So what, is my money not enough for you? Or is your ex-husband’s money just that good?”
Ruan Qiaoqiao felt he was being overly dramatic.
“It’s not your ex-husband’s money. It’s what I deserve! I was married to him for three years and suffered all kinds of grievances. Why can’t I take some compensation? That’s my money!”
“My money!”
Fu Wenzhou: “…”
To him, her “earned money” still came from Su Mai. And as his woman, spending Su Mai’s money—wasn’t that insulting him?
Meanwhile, in the supply and marketing cooperative, Duan Fangya spoke softly to Su Mai.
“Amai, are you still thinking about Qiaoqiao? I really think you don’t need to feel wronged. She’s already forgotten the past three years, so she doesn’t realize how much you also contributed to the marriage. Marriage can’t be measured in money, and she shouldn’t be asking for compensation like this without memory. That’s…”
She stopped there, leaving the implication hanging.
Su Mai looked at her.
“You don’t need to worry about me and Qiaoqiao. I can handle it.”
Duan Fangya swallowed her words. She couldn’t push too hard yet.
“…Alright. If you need anything, just tell me. We grew up together, like brothers. Don’t be polite with me.”
Afterward, Su Mai returned home in low spirits.
The empty room made him feel even more hollow inside.
After hesitating, he pushed open the door to Ruan Qiaoqiao’s room and walked in.
When they first married, she had been psychologically traumatized and refused contact with men, so they had always slept separately.
Later, when their relationship had slightly improved, Duan Fangya returned from divorce.
Everything became strange again—either they were arguing, or on the verge of arguing. He had become exhausted and rarely entered her room.
But now, standing inside, he realized her room was unexpectedly warm and lived-in, still carrying her scent.
Thinking of what she had said earlier, he felt an inexplicable tightness in his chest.
Was Ruan Qiaoqiao really amnesiac?
Had she truly forgotten everything related to him?
He had always thought she was pretending. But it had already been four days since the divorce—and she hadn’t come looking for him even once.
That didn’t feel like her at all.
He lay down on her bed, feeling suffocated.
A knock came at the door.
He got up to open it. It was his elder sister, Su Yao.
Seeing him at home, she frowned.
“Why are you opening the door? You didn’t go to work?”
“Day off.”
She ignored him and walked inside.
“Where’s Qiaoqiao? Is she home?”
He didn’t answer. She looked around.
No one.
Seeing his expression, she immediately flared up and sat down on the sofa.
“Don’t tell me you fought with Qiaoqiao again over Duan Fangya? How many times have I told you—you’re married! Stop interfering in her affairs and pay more attention to your wife!”
Su Mai felt irritated.
“There’s nothing between me and Xiaoya. Why does everyone insist on linking us together?”
Su Yao picked up her bag and threw it at him.
“Do you even hear yourself? As long as Qiaoqiao loves you, she will never tolerate you constantly helping another woman—even if nothing is going on!”
“Love?”
Su Mai suddenly remembered how Ruan Qiaoqiao used to explode whenever she saw him with Duan Fangya.
But these past two times, she had been calm.
Too calm.
Calm to the point it unsettled him.
He asked casually, almost unconsciously:
“What if… a woman just stays completely calm when she sees it?”
Su Yao sneered immediately.
“Then it only proves one thing—she doesn’t love that man at all. If she doesn’t love him, she won’t care!”
Su Mai fell silent.
His heart tightened inexplicably.
Su Yao looked at him in frustration.
“I can’t stand how confused you are.”
She grabbed her bag back and left angrily.
After she left, Su Mai returned to Ruan Qiaoqiao’s room and sat on the bed again, lost in thought.
They were already divorced.
Did he still have the right to ask her for help?
What if she wasn’t really amnesiac, but just acting differently on purpose?
In the end…
His mother’s health couldn’t take more stress. Whether Ruan Qiaoqiao was pretending or not, he had no choice but to compromise.
Meanwhile, Ruan Qiaoqiao and Fu Wenzhou returned home just in time.
All the way back, Fu Wenzhou had been silent, clearly in a bad mood.
As soon as they entered the house, his expression darkened even further—like a storm ready to break.
Ruan Qiaoqiao suddenly remembered that night in the mountains—the blood on his face under the moonlight.
A chill ran down her spine.
No, no, she couldn’t afford to provoke him.
She quickly forced a smile.
“Oh right, I just remembered I still have something to discuss with Ruyi. I might go back to the county and stay at her place tonight—”
Before she could finish, Fu Wenzhou dropped his luggage, turned sharply, and pinned her against the outer wall in an instant.
His lips curled slightly, his voice calm and slow—but it sent a cold shiver down her spine.
“Ruan Qiaoqiao.”
“Try leaving if you dare.”