Christmas was approaching, and many merchants took the opportunity to launch holiday promotions.
Lu Yao had also prepared several bouquets, and on the day of the festival, business was booming.
The residents living in the new housing estate were not short of money, and those who wanted a thick festive atmosphere couldn’t do without various decorations.
The coming and going of customers made Li Jing smile with immense joy; she was actually more excited than Lu Yao. Lu Yao watched her with amusement as she escorted a new customer to the door and turned back with a face full of smiles.
Li Jing said, “It looks like there will be quite a bit of commission today.”
Busy until nearly evening, Lu Yao was starting to find it hard to hold on, yet business was even better at night.
She let out a small yawn, and when she opened her eyes, she saw the smiling face of Sister Chen.
“Sister Chen, you’re here,” Lu Yao said, waking herself up.
After receiving Luo Yueming’s courier package, she had remembered to send a message to Sister Chen, telling her that the shop was open and that she could bring Mengmeng over to play anytime.
She had thought it would take a while, as that residential area was quite a distance from here.
Sister Chen brought the child along: “I originally planned to come back during the New Year, but today, as soon as Mengmeng got home, she clamored to come and see her Auntie.”
Lu Yao squatted down and used her hand to touch Mengmeng’s cheek. The child’s skin was delicate, and she was afraid that even a little force might chafe it.
Mengmeng was very happy, waving her small hands: “I like Auntie the best! Auntie gives me candy to eat.”
“You’ve already had candy today,” Sister Chen said, stopping Mengmeng’s attempt to ask for more sweets.
Mengmeng unhappily bit her lower lip: “Mommy is mean.”
Sister Chen had come specifically to see Lu Yao, so she couldn’t focus all her attention on Mengmeng. After greeting her, she let Mengmeng wander around the shop, only warning her a few times not to break anything.
Mengmeng was very well-behaved; she just stood to the side looking at the beautiful flowers without reaching out to pull them.
“This shop of yours is in a good location; the rent must not be cheap,” Sister Chen said, looking at the decorated street outside.
The trees along the road were hung with colored lights, and there were people dressed as Santa Claus handing out gifts from one end of the street to the other. Sister Chen had also taken one; she opened it to find an apple.
Although the complex wasn’t fully occupied yet, in just a few short months, the beginnings of a bustling scene could already be seen.
Lu Yao’s expression was complex as she shook her head: “I arrived early.”
Sister Chen simply assumed she was being modest. How early could she have been? She had only heard Lu Yao say she wanted to open a flower shop a little over a month ago; it was clear she hadn’t chosen a place yet back then, otherwise, she would have mentioned it.
Even if the rent here changed month by month, it wouldn’t be much cheaper.
Lu Yao didn’t explain in detail. Just then, a customer walked in and, seeing Mengmeng in the shop, instinctively began to tease the cute little girl.
Mengmeng didn’t pluck the flowers, so the customer’s hand felt itchy and gave Mengmeng’s little braids a tug.
Seeing this, Lu Yao was about to stand up to prevent Sister Chen from becoming unhappy.
Sister Chen unconcernedly pulled Lu Yao back, letting her sit down to continue chatting, while Li Jing, who was working overtime, handled the customer.
After a moment of hesitation, Lu Yao had no choice but to sit back down.
“Seeing how much you care about Mengmeng, since you like children so much, have you ever considered adopting one?” As soon as Sister Chen finished speaking, Lu Yao looked at her strangely, not quite understanding why Sister Chen would suddenly say such a thing.
Sister Chen spoke tactfully: “I ran into your partner in the elevator before.”
Lu Yao went blank and fell silent for several seconds.
Sister Chen continued: “I couldn’t advise you before because I was afraid you had too many worries. You were always at home without a job, and you were economically dependent on your wife. Now you have your own flower shop and an income.”
Lu Yao’s face was expressionless, but Sister Chen didn’t notice, assuming Lu Yao was just introverted by nature.
“Now, as long as you want to adopt, you don’t have to fear those things. Even if Luo Yueming disagrees, she can’t do anything to you.”
Sister Chen was truly considering Lu Yao’s best interests.
Even Mengmeng knew that Luo Yueming was a “bad auntie”—how could Sister Chen not know?
She could see that Luo Yueming didn’t have much love for Lu Yao. The relationship between them was full of cracks, and Lu Yao was the only one struggling to maintain it.
If Lu Yao was willing to endure it, outsiders couldn’t persuade her otherwise, but Sister Chen viewed Lu Yao like a younger sister and couldn’t help but worry.
In a marriage like this, the one hurt in the end would still be Lu Yao.
It would be better to take the chance to adopt a child; at least then she would have a pillar of support.
Lu Yao had never thought about such a thing. Perhaps she was petty, but even if she wasn’t liked by Luo Yueming, she couldn’t bear to see Luo Yueming like someone else.
Fortunately, Luo Yueming truly had no feelings. It was precisely because Lu Yao had discovered this that she had been stubbornly persistent for three long years.
She probably would have continued to be stubborn…
Thinking that Sister Chen didn’t know yet, Lu Yao spoke in a calm voice: “I have already divorced her.”
Sister Chen was shocked.
“I’ve thought it through. Rather than grinding on like this and leaving both of us bruised and battered, it’s better to break it off early.” Lu Yao’s eyes were dazed.
She saw that Luo Yueming really didn’t like her, and since the elder had passed away, she truly had no excuse to linger.
She knew that if she didn’t speak up, Luo Yueming likely wouldn’t have initiated the divorce, but was that really for the best?
They were like two people forcibly sewn together by a single thread held by the elder, tearing at each other.
Luo Yueming wasn’t afraid of the pain, but she didn’t want Luo Yueming to hurt, so she kept leaning toward the other side. By the time she snapped out of it, the wounds on her body hadn’t scarred; they had begun to fester and give off a foul stench.
It turned out that she had developed greedy thoughts during their time together, and it wasn’t until the elder died that she was slapped awake.
If she dragged it out any longer, she wouldn’t be able to take it, and neither would Luo Yueming. If she waited until then, Luo Yueming might grow to find her more and more loathsome; it was better to leave cleanly.
Lu Yao had spent a month sorting out her feelings. After the divorce, she had immersed herself in her own world for a while, and now she saw things more clearly.
Lu Yao’s voice was so soft it was almost inaudible: “You’re right. I can’t live my life just pointing toward Luo Yueming.”
Once she had the strength to survive on her own, she realized it wasn’t such a big deal after all.
She had a flower shop now. She could always see various flowers at their most beautiful; the fragrance was rich, and her sight and smell were firmly occupied. She didn’t need to adopt a child to be her source of strength.
Mengmeng was still a child, and after a while, she grew tired. Listlessly, she walked to Sister Chen’s side, hugged her, and began to act spoiled.
Lu Yao stood up again: “It’s getting late, and it won’t be convenient to head back too late. Let me see you out.”
Sister Chen snapped back from Lu Yao’s words: “I drove here; I’ll just drive back.”
So, Lu Yao escorted Sister Chen to the door. Sister Chen’s car was parked in a space on the street. Before getting into the car, Mengmeng kept waving at Lu Yao, saying sweetly: “See you next time, Auntie!”
Lu Yao also raised her hand and waved; her smile natural.
After Sister Chen drove away, Lu Yao’s gaze shifted, scanning the gradually busy street, and she soon spotted a familiar car.
She had frequently seen this car downstairs a while ago, including the time Shen Qing sent her back—that car had just happened to drive away then, catching both her and Shen Qing’s attention.
The last time she saw it seemed to be in the underground garage.
Lu Yao’s smile slowly faded.
In the underground garage, she had seen with her own eyes Luo Yueming stepping out of that car.
Her memory was truly poor; how could she have forgotten that this car was bought together with Luo Yueming? She had stood foolishly by the second-floor window guessing for a long time.
Lu Yao didn’t return to the shop. She stared directly at the car. The distance was a bit far, so she couldn’t see if there was anyone inside, but that didn’t stop her from looking.
If it was Luo Yueming, what was she doing here?
A trace of strangeness rose in Lu Yao’s heart. It was hard to describe her current mood—there was the expectation formed by long-term habit, and the lingering admiration and affection for Luo Yueming.
But there was also a sense of… fear, which had arisen at some unknown point after the divorce—a desire to flee.
That bit of fear was very small; perhaps she had felt this way since high school.
The bright moon was clear, but the moonlight had no warmth. Even though one’s eyes would instinctively seek it out, one would feel inferior under its light.
Before, she only dared to hide and watch Luo Yueming. Now, it wasn’t just hiding; she found that she was simultaneously repelled by the idea of seeing her.
That sense of dread was small, yet it was very good at eroding other emotions. As the dread expanded, the look in Lu Yao’s eyes as she watched the car became harder to hide. Her throat trembled uncontrollably, and she kept wishing for that car to disappear quickly.
Inside the car, Luo Yueming had also seen Lu Yao.
It was just Christmas. This holiday happened every year, and there were countless such holidays throughout the year.
She listened to her subordinates laughing, exchanging gifts, and smiling brightly when the gifts reached their hands; even their enthusiasm for work had increased.
Luo Yueming had returned to her office from among them. In the past, she wouldn’t have stopped them. Employees spending their own money to make themselves happy could help them finish all their work before the end of the day, thus avoiding overtime and allowing them to go back and celebrate.
The company wouldn’t have to pay overtime costs, and Luo Yueming’s own work would be easier to handle.
What was there to stop?
Yet today, she just couldn’t stand it.
Watching them discuss where to gather after work, Luo Yueming felt a sense of agitation.
A subordinate noticed her low mood and tremblingly asked if she wanted to go with them.
Luo Yueming coldly refused.
She wasn’t angry because she felt excluded by her subordinates; she didn’t even know what she was angry about. After work, the company was empty. Luo Yueming left early as well, driving all the way to the outside of Lu Yao’s flower shop.
There were many pedestrians on the street, gathered in twos and threes.
The most important part of a festive atmosphere wasn’t those gaudy decorations, but the people you spend the holiday with.