“Need something?”
There wasn’t a ripple in He Zhinian’s eyes. They were like a thin sheet of ice—cold and unfeeling.
Qi Wenwan’s eyes trembled slightly. They were already red, yet she was trying to act as if she didn’t care.
She forced a smile and held out the handbag she’d been gripping tightly. Her voice softened a little.
“You left your coat in my car last night. I had it dry-cleaned this morning and thought I’d bring it over.”
He Zhinian glanced at it. “Throw it away for me. Thanks.”
He gave a slight nod and started to close the door.
Qi Wenwan hurriedly tried to stop him, but the door caught her hand.
“Ah…”
He Zhinian reflexively reached out, then stopped halfway and pulled his hand back. In the end, without a word, he shut the door.
It didn’t slam. Like He Zhinian himself, the sound was muted and steady. Once he decided to let go, he really did.
Qi Wenwan stood frozen outside, her mind in turmoil.
She shouldn’t have avoided He Zhinian back then.
And who was the person inside?
Inside, He Zhinian gathered his thoughts and reached up to fasten his shirt collar.
By the time He Zhinian returned, Ye Zhenshu had nearly finished eating.
Zhinian sat down and looked at her. “Is that enough?”
Ye Zhenshu’s cheeks were still full. She nodded. “That’s enough.”
After a long while, Ye Zhenshu finished eating and was just about to get up when He Zhinian said, “I’m sorry. I promise this won’t happen again.”
“Hm?”
Ye Zhenshu knew he had someone in his heart, but she didn’t mind. There wasn’t much affection between them to begin with.
She didn’t expect He Zhinian to like her.
He Zhinian spoke frankly. “She’s my ex-girlfriend. We broke up when I married you. Nothing ever really happened between us. Last night…”
What was he doing?
Why was he telling her all this?
Ye Zhenshu quickly cut him off. “You don’t have to tell me. That’s your private business. I won’t interfere in your personal life…”
“Weren’t you just reminding me?”
Reminding him to be a faithful husband?
“…”
Oh my God!
How had he managed to misunderstand her like that?
Ye Zhenshu was afraid that trying to explain would only make things worse.
She really had choked. That wasn’t what she meant!
“I just choked,” she explained.
He Zhinian felt a momentary discomfort at Ye Zhenshu’s answer. He couldn’t say what the feeling was, only that it didn’t sit well with him.
He nodded slightly without a word, his gaze shifting away.
“I… I’ll go back and get some rest.” Ye Zhenshu hurried off.
Back in her room, she closed the door.
For the first time in three months, Ye Zhenshu went to sleep with her door shut.
In the dining room, He Zhinian had lost his appetite. He sat in his chair, lost in thought again.
From last night until now, he’d lost count of how many times he’d drifted off.
That night, Ye Zhenshu slept unusually deeply.
Early the next morning, she stepped barefoot onto the carpet and walked to the balcony. Stretching out both arms, she pulled open the heavy curtains, and sunlight spilled over her.
She stretched. At last, most of the aches in her body had eased.
The snow in Nancheng came quickly and went just as fast, though she guessed it would snow once more before the New Year.
After washing up, she slung her bag over her shoulder and went out.
He Zhinian happened to come out of the master bedroom at the same time. He was wearing an overcoat, with his suit jacket draped over one arm.
He probably had another engagement today.
Ye Zhenshu didn’t think much of it and greeted him. “Morning.”
“Morning.”
They walked to the entryway one after the other.
He Zhinian suddenly said, “I’ll drive you.”
“No need. I can take the subway.”
She’d found a car she liked at the dealership, but hadn’t picked it up yet. She was used to squeezing onto the subway.
Ye Zhenshu found it strange. Usually, He Zhinian had already left by the time she got up, but today, somehow, they’d run into each other on their way out.
It was almost as if he’d been waiting by the door for her.
“If you’re worried about people seeing us, I can drop you near the office,” He Zhinian said evenly.
Ye Zhenshu had no reason to refuse. Since he’d offered, she accepted.
When they’d registered their marriage[1]In modern China, marriage is formally registered with the civil authorities; a private wedding celebration is not required for legal registration. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3733027_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3733027_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });, He Zhinian had told her he didn’t like drawing attention to himself. They could just live quietly together.
Ye Zhenshu took that to mean he wanted to keep their marriage secret.
Ye Zhenshu didn’t mind.
As they stepped outside, she saw the bag in front of the door, the one holding He Zhinian’s black suit jacket.
Ye Zhenshu pretended not to notice.
Ye Zhenshu’s hearing was sharp. She’d heard everything they said to each other last night.
He Zhinian picked up the bag and tossed it into a nearby trash can.
It traced a slight arc through the air, and the faint feminine scent hanging around it began to dissipate.
It was the perfume Qi Wenwan always wore.
When Ye Zhenshu had secretly gone to see Qi Wenwan, Qi Wenwan had once passed right by her. She’d liked the scent very much.
As she stepped into the cramped elevator, Ye Zhenshu took a quiet, deep breath.
A suit worth over a hundred thousand, and he just threw it away. It could still have been worn after a wash.
What a wasteful man…
From the looks of it, the two of them had argued, and quite seriously.
She pressed her lips together, thinking the fight was because she’d come between them.
She had no idea why they’d broken up.
When she reached He Zhinian’s car, her mind was still elsewhere. He opened the door for her.
She got in, and only then did He Zhinian climb in.
“Take us to the café downstairs from Linghang,” He Zhinian told the driver.
The driver acknowledged him and raised the partition.
Ye Zhenshu stared in surprise. He Zhinian even had a driver?
What kind of family had a personal driver?
Only then did she notice that He Zhinian’s car was a limited-edition model!
She’d seen the same car at the dealership a few days ago.
Was he really that rich?
Before she registered her marriage to him, He Changming had come to see her with the marriage contract[2]A private written marriage agreement or family promise is different from official civil marriage registration; its meaning here depends on the characters’ arrangement. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3733027_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3733027_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });.
He’d told her their family ran a small business, and that after He Zhinian came back, he would gradually take over the family business.
If Ye Zhenshu agreed to marry him, the He family could help her keep the Ye family courtyard.
She’d agreed without a second thought.
After her dad and Mom died one after the other, her eldest paternal uncle[3]Chinese kinship terms distinguish relatives by both the father’s or mother’s side and by seniority; this specifically means the father’s eldest older brother. jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3733027_1_3').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3733027_1_3', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });—who was addicted to gambling—had taken the courtyard in the city center, by the riverside ring road.
The old property documents couldn’t be found anywhere, and Ye Zhenshu had no way to get the courtyard back from a deadbeat like him.
Just when she was completely helpless, He Zhinian had come to her with his ID and asked her to marry him.
That very day, he’d also wrested the courtyard back from her eldest paternal uncle.
Ye Zhenshu was grateful to him. That house was the only thing her parents had left her to remember them by.
“Still feeling unwell? Why not take the day off? I’ll have the driver take you home to rest.”
By the time He Zhinian spoke, the car had stopped beside the café.
Only then did Ye Zhenshu come back to herself. “No.”
She was about to get out when He Zhinian stopped her. “Wait.”
Ye Zhenshu’s hand froze on the door handle.
He Zhinian looked away and said quietly, “Remember to put on the ointment.”
“…”
His words jolted the last of Ye Zhenshu’s sleepiness out of her.
She said nothing, scrambled out of the car, and ran off.
This was the earliest she’d ever arrived at work. So this was what it felt like to ride in a private car.
Her mood lifted a little for no particular reason.
But He Zhinian’s words made her blush.
“Morning, Zhenshu!” her passing colleagues greeted her.
“Morning!”
Ye Zhenshu smiled and was just about to swipe her badge when she realized she’d left it in He Zhinian’s car!
She’d rushed out just now, so she’d probably dropped it.
Frowning, she had no choice but to squeeze in with her colleagues.
When she got up to the Linghang Games department, Ye Zhenshu returned to her desk and began the day’s work.
She worked in the game department under Linghang Group as an art designer—or, to put it simply, she designed the appearances of game characters.
But she’d already resigned. After the New Year, she wouldn’t be coming back.
She was going to take over her Mom Su Ruoting’s work and complete the final piece of her mother’s life.
References[+]