The hospital room was completely silent.
Li Yundong had already watched the surveillance footage beforehand. Facing Xie Xun’s expression now, he almost wished he could dig a hole and hide in it.
He had been used to working for a gentle and steady boss like Xie Minghe, so deep down, he was truly afraid of the second young master of the Xie family.
After a while, Xie Xun forced out one word.
“Pen.”
Li Yundong quickly handed him a fountain pen and thoughtfully removed the cap for him.
Xie Xun gripped the pen. He held the divorce agreement left behind by Lu Xiaoqiao so tightly that the paper became wrinkled. He turned to the last page of the document and quickly signed his name.
He stopped after writing only the three-dot water radical of the character “Xun.”
Li Yundong did not even dare to breathe loudly.
The pen tip left a small blot of ink on the white paper.
Xie Xun looked up.
“Letting her off this easily… isn’t that too easy for her?”
“…” Sweat appeared on Li Yundong’s forehead. “Madam was probably frightened. She may not have realized what she was doing…”
Xie Xun curled his lips into a smile.
“Does it look like that to you?”
Li Yundong could only keep sweating. He did not dare answer.
Xie Xun’s smile deepened.
“She wanted me dead.”
“…”
Xie Xun tapped the divorce agreement with his pale fingers.
“Could she be the culprit?”
“Ah?” Li Yundong was stunned for half a second before immediately saying, “Absolutely impossible!”
Xie Xun raised an eyebrow.
“Hmm?”
Cold sweat poured down Li Yundong’s back.
“First, it was Madam Xie who asked to switch cars with Madam. Madam didn’t ask to switch herself. Second, she didn’t know that the bridge had collapsed. Madam can’t swim. She wouldn’t risk her own life just to kill you…”
Xie Xun raised an eyebrow.
“How can you be so sure?”
“…It’s true.” Li Yundong did not know how to describe it. “Madam… Madam is a little… well… timid.”
Xie Xun laughed.
“She’s timid?”
Was a timid person brave enough to slap the divorce agreement across his face?
Was a timid person brave enough to shout at him in the hospital room?
Li Yundong really did not know what to say.
He truly could not understand it.
The rumors about Xie Xun and Wan Bao’er had already spread everywhere. Yet from what Li Yundong had seen, his boss seemed to dote on his wife very much.
He really did not understand!!!
He had only been working for Xie Xun for a year!!!
Suddenly, the sound of tearing paper filled the hospital room.
With his eyelashes lowered, Xie Xun casually tore the divorce agreement into pieces, one page after another.
He tore it into tiny pieces.
“There are some things I don’t remember,” Xie Xun said calmly. “Keep this matter secret. We must not give the person behind this a chance to take advantage of the situation.”
Li Yundong finally breathed a sigh of relief.
“Don’t worry.”
The pieces of paper fluttered down like snowflakes.
Xie Xun gave a strange, unreadable smile.
“That bridge… is she staying at her parents’ home?”
“…Huh?”
“That bridge.”
“Who?”
“Lu Xiaoqiao.”
“……”
The Lu family lived in the urban area of Jincheng. The entire neighborhood was made up of villagers who had been relocated there during an old village redevelopment project.
The area was filled with neat garden-style houses. They looked no less impressive than the detached villas in wealthy neighborhoods. However, the villagers had never gotten rid of their habits of growing vegetables and raising chickens, which naturally made the area different from a real luxury villa district.
The moment Lu Xiaoqiao entered the yard, she smelled chicken soup.
Lu Tu quickly waddled over on his little legs.
“Mother, you’re back!”
“……” Lu Xiaoqiao resisted the urge to pinch his cheeks. “Can you please stop watching those short dramas with Grandma?”
He was such a cute little boy, but every time he opened his mouth, he sounded like he had stepped straight out of a cheesy drama.
Lu Tu’s little face turned serious. “You’re late.”
Lu Xiaoqiao sighed. “I almost didn’t get to see you again.”
Thinking about it, no matter whom Xie Xun had wanted to save, she was the one who benefited from it in the end.
For that alone, she should have talked to him properly earlier.
Her mother came out, wiping her hands on her apron.
“Why did you come back so late? Did something go wrong at the memorial service? Tu Tu should have gone too. I’m sure someone from the Xie family will complain.”
“It’s nothing,” Lu Xiaoqiao said, avoiding the important details. “Xie Yu had an allergic reaction, so it took a little longer.”
Her mother looked surprised. “How did he suddenly become allergic?”
“I don’t know. There were plenty of people taking care of him. He’s fine now. I’m starving.”
“Then let’s eat, let’s eat,” her mother said. “Go wash your hands.”
The first floor had an open living and dining area with a high ceiling. Lu Xiaoqiao’s parents loved flashy decorations, so the whole house was decorated with gold and silver accents.
There were two chicken legs in the soup pot.
As usual, one was for Lu Tu and the other was for Lu Xiaoqiao.
“Where’s Dad?” Lu Xiaoqiao asked after taking a sip of soup.
“He went fishing with Uncle Zhang,” her mother said lovingly. “When those two go fishing, they’re actually discussing business. Ever since we had Tu Tu, your father has become much more motivated.”
“What about Big Qiao?”
Her mother glared at her. “Would you dare call your sister that in front of her?”
Lu Xiaoqiao pouted. “She’s not here.”
“Be careful,” her mother scolded. “If she hits you, don’t come crying to me. She went out of town with your brother-in-law. Leave them alone.”
Lu Xiaoqiao stopped asking.
Her mother suddenly noticed something.
“Where’s your car?”
“It broke down,” Lu Xiaoqiao answered casually. “I got a new one. I’ll bring it back tomorrow.”
“Get a better one. Mom will pay for it. It should match Xie Xun’s status…”
Lu Xiaoqiao put down her bowl. Her appetite disappeared instantly.
Her mother immediately stopped talking.
“Fine, fine. Are you going to the dance studio tomorrow?”
Lu Xiaoqiao owned a dance studio. A few years ago, she still had the energy to teach classes herself. Over the past two years, she had mostly handed the classes over to other teachers and focused on private lessons, so she had more free time.
“No.”
She needed to take Lu Tu to the hospital to see his amnesiac father and, more importantly, prove that he really had a son.
Lu Xiaoqiao absolutely refused to take responsibility for the divorce. The blame had to fall on Xie Xun.
Otherwise, considering Xie Xun’s twisted personality and the Xie family’s influence in Jincheng, the Lu family would never have peace.
After dinner came Grandma’s daily routine of watching cheesy TV dramas.
Lu Xiaoqiao taught Lu Tu how to play cat’s cradle a few times, then coaxed him into practicing by himself nearby. She then sank into the sofa and watched TV with her mother without giving it much thought.
She had no idea what was happening in the show. She only saw the female lead leave decisively while the male lead stood outside her building in the pouring rain, crying and begging to see her.
Grandma wiped away her tears along with the drama.
Lu Xiaoqiao glanced at her.
Grandma snapped, “Get lost.”
Lu Xiaoqiao: “……”
Her mother always became especially bad-tempered whenever she cried while watching TV.
“He didn’t like her before,” Lu Xiaoqiao asked sincerely. “So why is he clinging to her now?”
Her mother wiped her eyes.
“You only realize someone’s worth after they leave.”
Lu Xiaoqiao: “?”
“It’s like air,” her mother explained. “Do you normally notice that it’s there? But can you live without it?”
Lu Xiaoqiao thought it through.
“So he didn’t love her when they were together, but only realized he loved her after they separated?”
Her mother nodded. “He thought he didn’t love her, but he actually did. Her leaving was what made him realize his true feelings.”
“……”
Huh?
Wasn’t that a little too shameless?
“Mom…” Lu Xiaoqiao thought for a moment. “As the Queen of Short Dramas, what do you think would happen if she kept clinging to him?”
Her mother thought about it.
“He’d probably throw a divorce agreement at her one day. But in these kinds of dramas, the second male lead usually gets the girl in the end. The male lead regrets everything, but she never goes back to him.”