It was around 4:00 p.m. when Zhao Xinran returned to the office. She reviewed a few contracts, held a brief meeting, and picked up her bag, ready to head home.
Just as she got into her car, she suddenly realized that no one would be cooking dinner for her tonight.
Although she’d parted on bad terms with Pei Hongwen after their argument yesterday, he hadn’t let Zhao Xinran go to bed hungry. While she was in the shower, he’d whipped up a few dishes—all her favorites.
Now that the divorce was final, there was obviously no dinner waiting for her at home.
After thinking it over, Zhao Xinran decided to treat herself to a high-end meal costing 5,000 per person.
Under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t have been able to bring herself to do it. She’d been so short on money in the past, and even now that she had money, she was still reluctant to spend it. Every time she considered a purchase, she’d first weigh whether it was worth it, then consider whether she could afford it, and only finally decide whether to go through with it.
But since she’d just gotten divorced today, she certainly couldn’t bring herself to eat at the company cafeteria and look like a cheapskate.
As the chairwoman of a publicly traded company, she certainly wasn’t short on people who could cook for her.
Halfway there, Zhao Xinran changed her mind again: “Zhang Nan.”
“Chairwoman Zhao?”
“Turn around. Let’s go home.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Zhang Nan replied. After a moment’s thought, he asked, “Which place?”
“Which one is closer?”
“You own a property nearby, but it was rented out last year. ” Zhang Nan opened the map and tapped it a few times before continuing, “It’s actually closer to Xingyao Bay.”
“Alright, let’s go to Xingyao Bay.” After saying this, Zhao Xinran went back to her work. By the time she was nearly finished, the car had arrived near the villa.
She stuffed her laptop into her bag, opened the door, and stepped out. Her upright silhouette stretched endlessly in the setting sun, looking somewhat desolate.
Opening the door, Zhao Xinran fished the remote out of the entryway drawer and turned on the living room lights. She placed her takeout order, then went upstairs to freshen up.
Just as she finished, the doorbell and her phone rang at the same time.
“Hello, just leave the takeout by the door, thanks.”
“Xinran, what do you mean, takeout? Didn’t your partner cook for you today? Is Dr. Pei still at school?” A cheerful, familiar female voice came from the other end of the line. Zhao Xinran paused for a moment, then held the phone up to get a better look—it was an unknown number.
“Li Yi? Why are you calling me from someone else’s phone?”
“I just finished shooting a commercial. My phone’s still in my bag, so I borrowed a phone from a coworker at the studio to call you.”
“Knock, knock…” The knocking at the door continued, followed by the delivery person’s voice: “Hello, your order has arrived.”
Zhao Xinran held the phone away from her ear and called out to the door, “Okay, just leave the food by the door, thanks.”
“Sure, enjoy your meal. Bye.” The voice outside faded away. Zhao Xinran didn’t rush to get her food; instead, she sat on the couch and continued talking to Li Yi: “Did the shoot go well today?”
“It went pretty smoothly. I happened to be shooting on location near your place today. Since Dr. Pei isn’t home, why don’t you come over and have dinner with us?” Li Yi’s voice was cheerful and full of warmth, making Zhao Xinran’s heart feel all warm inside. She couldn’t help but smile and replied, “Sure, I haven’t eaten yet anyway. Send me the address, and I’ll bring my takeout over to join you.”
“Sure, I’ll send it to you on WeChat in a minute.” Li Yi hung up with a smile.
Zhao Xinran smiled too as she opened the door, brought the takeout inside, set it down in the entryway, and then went upstairs to change into some casual clothes.
Her hair was neatly tied back, and she was wearing a hoodie, sweatpants, and sneakers. This was a dinner with friends—no need to dress up or put on a professional smile; she just needed to be herself.
Carrying the takeout, Zhao Xinnan got out of the car. She’d taken a taxi because she wanted to have a few drinks with Li Yi—and you can’t drive after drinking.
Li Yi had timed it perfectly and was waiting downstairs at the mall. As soon as she saw Zhao Xinnan get out of the car, she immediately rushed over and gave her a big hug, almost taking Zhao Xinnan’s breath away.
“Okay, let go of me. We just saw each other last month—why are you acting like it’s been years?” Zhao Xinran laughed as she gently pushed Li Yi away, then walked side-by-side with her into the mall, still holding the takeout.
Li Yi had reserved a table at a barbecue restaurant on the sixth floor of the mall, where they had a private booth.
As soon as they walked in, they were greeted by familiar faces—people they’d dined with before. After a brief round of pleasantries, Zhao Xinran sat down and placed the takeout order within arm’s reach.
Li Yi unwrapped it and took a curious peek, grinning from ear to ear. “Spicy Hot Pot? Didn’t your Dr. Pei say that spicy hot pot isn’t hygienic? What, are you secretly indulging in ‘meat’ while he’s away?”
“He also says barbecue isn’t healthy. Hmph… it’s none of his business.” Just mentioning Pei Hongwen made Zhao Xinran feel inexplicably irritated.
Pei Hongwen always claimed that spicy hot pot and barbecue were unhealthy and wouldn’t let her eat them, but Zhao Xinran just loved that rich, fragrant, numbing spiciness and the feeling of smoke swirling around her.
She wouldn’t listen to him, and he certainly couldn’t out-argue her, so they had to compromise: whenever Zhao Xinran wanted to eat it, Pei Hongwen would buy the ingredients and cook it for her at home.
To be fair, he’s actually a pretty good cook—it would just be even better if there were a few more people to share the meal with.
Why was she thinking about him again? Zhao Xinran felt like she was losing her mind. Back when they were married, she might not have thought of him even once during a month-long business trip, but now that they’re divorced, she finds herself thinking of him all the time.
It’s as if she can’t let go.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah—who can possibly control our CEO Zhao!” Li Yi wrapped her arm around Zhao Xinran’s shoulder, handed her the digital menu, and laughed heartily. She waved her hand grandly, full of generosity: “Order whatever you want—your Sister Yi’s picking up the tab.”
With Li Yi saying that, Zhao Xinran naturally didn’t hold back. She scanned the menu and ordered everything she wanted in one go, finishing with a dozen beers.
For them right now, this beer was very cheap—a brand that would never appear at a business banquet, and the kind of low-end beer Zhao Xinran had once been too frugal to buy.
The meat skewers were huge; sizzling and oozing oil over the charcoal fire, they burst with rich, savory flavor with every bite. Washing them down with a mouthful of ice-cold beer was incredibly refreshing.
By the time they’d finished most of the beer, Zhao Xinran was slightly tipsy—though this amount of alcohol was nowhere near enough for her. She narrowed her eyes, the corners of her mouth turned up high, and she happily leaned against Li Yi’s shoulder. Leaning close to her ear, she whispered a bombshell with complete nonchalance.
A warm breath carrying a faint whiff of alcohol drifted toward Li Yi’s ear, and she heard the words come slowly: “Li Yi, I’m divorced.”
“What?” Li Yi gasped, her drunkenness instantly vanishing. She stiffly turned to look at her best friend, who was leaning against her. Although Zhao Xinran was smiling, her eyes were clear—she didn’t seem drunk, and she certainly wasn’t rambling.
Li Yi glanced around at the others in the studio, then leaned closer to Zhao Xinran and whispered, “When did this happen?”
“This morning.” Zhao Xinran licked her lips, drawing in the lingering, pungent flavor of the spicy hot pot clinging to them. She frowned, raised her glass, and took another sip, squinting as the ice-cold liquid stung her tongue.
“Why the sudden divorce? Did you file for it?” Li Yi was a bit puzzled. She’d watched Zhao Xinnan work her way up to her current position, so she naturally knew that to Zhao Xinnan, Pei Hongwen represented not only her husband but also the Pei Corporation standing behind “Xinpei.”
No matter how much Zhao Xinnan disliked Pei Hongwen, she would never have acted so impulsively—divorcing him without warning right after “Xinpei” went public.
But could Pei Hongwen have been the one to initiate the divorce?
That man’s heart and eyes are filled with nothing but Zhao Xinran—could he really bring himself to let her go?
“He brought it up. It was very sudden, but I agreed.” That simple sentence summed up the entire story of their divorce.
“Won’t this affect ‘Xinpei’?”
“No.” Zhao Xinran shook her head, curled her lips into a smirk, and her eyes flashed with determination: “‘Xinpei’ is my life. Anyone who dares to touch it—I’ll take their life.”
“That’s good, then.” Li Yi trusted Zhao Xinran’s judgment; since she said it wouldn’t be a problem, there was no need for her to worry too much. Now that Zhao Xinran was single, they actually had more time to meet up and grab meals together—and maybe this year’s annual leave would even give her the chance to travel and gather inspiration with Zhao Xinran.
Li Yi was a natural optimist; no matter how bad things got, she could always see the silver lining. She happily wrapped her arms around Zhao Xinran’s shoulders, raised her glass, and clinked it against Zhao Xinran’s: “Single and free! Long live single life!”
“Shh!” Zhao Xinran gently pushed her away, reminding her to stay calm. “You’re the only one who knows about this for now. Keep your voice down—don’t let it get out.”
Li Yi immediately fell silent, glanced around, and pretended nothing had happened as she continued eating her barbecue.
When it was time to leave, Li Yi clung to Zhao Xinnan, insisting on going home with her: “Now that you’re divorced, I’ll warm your bed for you tonight. It’s been ages since we’ve stayed up all night talking. I’ve got so many things I’ve been wanting to tell you but never had the chance. Besides, tomorrow’s Saturday—you don’t have to work, and you don’t have to get up early. Let me come back with you, okay?”
“Fine, you’re the boss.” Zhao Xinran couldn’t help but give in to Li Yi. Although they’d taken different paths in life, they’d supported each other through their toughest times. Li Yi was a few months older than her, but she was more carefree, so Zhao Xinran had grown accustomed to spoiling her a little extra.
This wasn’t Li Yi’s first time at Starry Bay, but it was her first time staying overnight. With Pei Hongwen away, she naturally took off her shoes, sat cross-legged on the couch, and leaned back lazily. “Zhao Xinran, did you get a new set of couches? This one feels more comfortable than the last one. Do you have a link? I want the same one.”
“……” Had the sofa been replaced? Zhao Xinran didn’t know and didn’t care. Pei Hongwen handled everything in this house; she was too busy with work to get involved. As far as she was concerned, as long as a piece of furniture served its basic function, that was enough. She actually spent less time sitting on the living room sofa than on the chair in her study: “Pei Hongwen bought it. I don’t have a link. Don’t you have his WeChat? You can ask him for it.”
“Um…” Li Yi scratched her head awkwardly. Asking her to talk to Pei Hongwen might as well be a death sentence. “I just remembered—I bought my sofa not too long ago, and since I’m rarely home anyway, I’d rather not waste the money. Hahaha…”
“Mm-hmm,” Zhao Xinran replied, leading Li Yi upstairs and pulling out some clothes she’d never worn, along with a bath towel, from the closet to hand to her. “Here. There’s a bathroom in the guest room next door—you can go wash up there.”
After their shower, the two of them changed into loungewear and sat on the bed, snuggled up close together. They reminisced about their struggles in college, talked about the uncertainty they felt after graduation, and chatted about the hardships of starting a business and their current happiness. Then they looked toward the future, discussing their respective plans.
The more they talked, the more excited they became. Lying in bed, Li Yi’s eyes were wide open; it had been a long time since she’d had such a heartfelt conversation with Zhao Xinran. The joy surging through her chest made her reluctant to end the conversation.
It wasn’t until Zhao Xinnan’s eyes kept closing and opening, drowsiness washing over her, and her speech becoming increasingly slurred that she finally spoke up, trying to bring the conversation to a close: “Li Yi, give me a break. If we keep this up, it’ll be dawn before we know it, and I have to go swimming tomorrow. How about you come with me tomorrow, and I’ll listen to you some more then?”
“No, no, I won’t talk anymore. Let’s sleep. Good night.” ” Li Yi waved her hands repeatedly. She suffered from claustrophobia and profound aquaphobia; she was terrified of water. Even when shooting at the beach, she never went into the water, let alone take swimming lessons on her own initiative.
No sooner had the words left her mouth than Li Yi fell silent for two seconds. Unable to bear the quiet, she propped her head up and asked Zhao Xinran, “ “Hey, Xinran, we’re both thirty now. Do you plan on having kids in the future?”
“No… someone like me couldn’t raise a child.” Zhao Xinran closed her eyes and drifted off into a deep sleep.
With Zhao Xinran’s steady, rhythmic breathing by her ear, Li Yi muttered softly, “I’m not having any either. Whoever wants to have kids, go ahead.”
Li Yi closed her eyes, then opened them again. She tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep. She looked up at the elegant, intricate patterns on the ceiling for a moment, then slowly sat up, pulled back the covers, and tiptoed out of the room. She opened the door to the guest room where she’d just taken a shower, pulled back the covers there, lay down, and finally, content, went back to scrolling on her phone.
After Li Yi left, Zhao Xinran slowly opened her eyes; an inexplicable emotion flashed across her gaze before she slowly closed them again and drifted back to sleep.