Chapter 26#
Before Liu Shun could finish his first sentence, Zhao Rong already knew the purpose of this call.
He subconsciously lowered his eyes, his gaze wandering aimlessly. His mind was blank; he felt nothing, yet he also felt something.
He felt nothing because hearing even a few words related to Qiao Nanqi didn’t stir a single ripple in his heart.
He felt something because he thought many things in this world were quite strange.
There are always some near misses.
When he most wanted the whole world to know he was with Qiao Nanqi, Qiao Nanqi wouldn’t grant him his wish.
Now, when he most wanted to completely erase the past they shared, the whole world was flocking to inquire about his relationship with Qiao Nanqi. But what else could he answer? Whether it was Chen Ze’s condescending probing or Liu Shun’s current hesitant inquiry, all they could get from him was a simple “we have nothing to do with each other,” wasn’t it?
He leaned back slightly against the chair, tilted his head, and watched the clouds scud across the sky outside the window.
“Liu’er.”
“Ah! Yes, yes, Third Young Master, go ahead.”
Zhao Rong was momentarily amused by Liu Shun’s cowardly manner and didn’t bother to argue with him, asking directly, “Tell me, when and where?”
“Third Young Master… how did you know…?”
Zhao Rong laughed. “Have I known you guys for nothing these past few years?”
On the other end, Liu Shun fell silent for a moment.
He had indeed been friends with Zhao Rong for several years. Two years ago, when the Chen family was at its peak, he was close to Zhao Rong and had benefited quite a bit from the association.
He considered himself to understand Zhao Rong. He made this call because he thought Zhao Rong had a good temper and would be the same as before—not taking offense and not asking many questions.
But after not seeing him for a few days, the Chen family had been turned upside down, and it seemed Zhao Rong’s temperament had also undergone a transformation.
After a moment’s thought, he spoke the truth: “The group does want to invite you…”
“Four days from now, in the evening, the location isn’t set yet. Yu Xian is the one who started it. You should still remember him, right? Honestly, after what happened, we… well, we didn’t want to disturb you. I wasn’t going to say anything, but today Yu Xian somehow got news that you’ve been at Young Master Qiao’s company these past few days. He said you’re doing just fine and don’t look like you’ve been affected by the Chen family’s troubles at all.
“He also said… said he wondered if you’ve hooked up with Young Master Qiao and now look down on them, which is why you’re ignoring them. They were just discussing finding a reason you wouldn’t refuse to invite you out for a bit.”
“Are they inviting me out to play, or to poke around and mock me while they’re at it?”
Upon hearing this, Liu Shun subconsciously pulled the phone away and checked the caller ID—he hadn’t called the wrong person.
The person answering the phone was indeed Zhao Rong.
It was truly the same Zhao Rong who used to smile at everyone and always spoke with tact and euphemism.
These words were indeed spoken by Zhao Rong.
To think these words actually came from Zhao Rong.
He simply stopped beating around the bush.
“They’ll probably send you a message in a while. I was listening earlier and felt uncomfortable all over, so I called to test the waters.”
Liu Shun didn’t think the news was true.
Not only had it been rumored for years that Big Qiao liked Lu Xingping, but even in Zhao Rong’s case, there had always been someone at home. Although they hadn’t seen this person, those closer to Zhao Rong knew better than anyone how well he treated the person at home. They had divorced recently, but wasn’t the one Zhao Rong had his eye on back then also Lu Xingping?
These two were more like love rivals; how could they possibly have that kind of relationship?
As for Zhao Rong being at Qiao Nanqi’s company—Zhao Rong’s name had always been on the company books. It was more believable that Qiao Nanqi simply wasn’t bothering to deal with Zhao Rong.
He just wanted to gauge Zhao Rong’s current state and see if he should tactfully remind Zhao Rong not to accept the invitation from Yu Xian and the others.
He hadn’t expected that instead of testing the waters, he would be completely exposed by Zhao Rong and spill everything. The phrasing he had spent a long time thinking about seemed like a transparent little trick in front of Zhao Rong.
How had he never noticed before that Zhao Rong was this smart?
He wanted to say something more to cover his embarrassment when Zhao Rong, who had been quiet for a while, suddenly said, “Tell them not to send me messages anymore.”
“Well, Third Young Master, they might not necessarily listen to me.”
“Why should they listen to you?” Zhao Rong smiled again. “Tell them you’ve already invited me and I’m coming. The location isn’t set, right? I’ll send you the location later, and you’ll set it for me. Just say you’re the one deciding. That shouldn’t be hard.”
“Huh??”
“Also, thank you. I’m hanging up.”
Zhao Rong ended the call.
Liu Shun heard the sound from the other end suddenly disappear, leaving only the call record on his screen. For a moment, he was in a daze.
He couldn’t understand how Zhao Rong had suddenly changed.
But on second thought, he realized it wasn’t sudden.
From the night Zhao Rong took off his wedding ring, loudly announced he was divorced, and then asked him about Lu Xingping, it seemed the signs were already appearing.
Thinking of this, Liu Shun felt a bit worried again.
He couldn’t manage and didn’t understand the affairs of the Qiao and Chen families. It didn’t matter that Zhao Rong’s family was bankrupt; if Zhao Rong really couldn’t get by, it wasn’t as if he didn’t have the money to help him out.
More than that, he was worried about Zhao Rong’s previous statement about pursuing Lu Xingping.
The Chen family had collapsed overnight, and Zhao Rong had lost his backing. What if Qiao Nanqi discovered his intentions?
Over all these years, who had dared to provoke Qiao Nanqi?
The more Liu Shun thought about it, the more worried he became. He could only hope that the busy Young Master Qiao wouldn’t discover he had an extra love rival.
In the evening, Zhao Rong timed it with the end of the workday to “happen to be going the same way” and drove Lu Xiaoyue back.
These past few days, Lu Xingping always seemed to have consultation appointments right at the end of the workday. With Zhao Rong around, and Lu Xingping unaware that Zhao Rong’s home wasn’t actually on the way, he had asked Zhao Rong to drive Lu Xiaoyue home several days in a row.
He didn’t know what kind of workaholic client would wait until off-duty hours for a consultation.
He had no interest in prying into Lu Xingping’s professional life. He was happy to spend more time for such an opportunity to become better acquainted with his former fiancé.
Through his understanding during this period, Zhao Rong realized that Lu Xingping was invulnerable, with Lu Xiaoyue being his only weakness. No matter how much he chatted with Lu Xingping, it wasn’t as effective as making Lu Xingping owe him a few favors regarding Lu Xiaoyue.
Even if he didn’t need Lu Xingping to fall in love with him, he only needed a sufficient relationship with Lu Xingping to enter a marriage of convenience where both got what they needed. Starting with the former fiancé’s family was never a mistake.
At dusk, amidst the heavy traffic.
Late autumn was merging into early winter, and dusk was arriving earlier and earlier. At just four or five o’clock, a layer of pale gold hung on the horizon. Above the slowly darkening sky, a crescent moon was faintly visible within the brilliant golden river.
In the flow of traffic, Zhao Rong held the steering wheel, glanced at the sky, and turned on the headlights. He then continued his conversation with Lu Xiaoyue: “…You’re saying Senior doesn’t like reading? I always thought all the books on the shelf by the door were his.”
Lu Xiaoyue had her head down, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth, holding her phone with both hands. The screen seemed to be on a chat interface.
She was typing non-stop, momentarily unable to pay attention to her conversation with Zhao Rong.
Zhao Rong wasn’t in a hurry at all and drove in silence.
After a moment, Lu Xiaoyue stopped her movements and said, “He reads occasionally, but not much. Those are all mine.”
Zhao Rong was stunned.
The pressure he exerted on the accelerator subconsciously lightened, and the car’s speed gradually dropped. It wasn’t until he heard an impatient honk from behind that he realized he had been distracted.
He thought back to the two years he spent at the same university as Lu Xingping.
During that time, he worked part-time in the library for Qiao Nanqi’s sake. Besides paying attention to what Qiao Nanqi read, did, and when he came every day, his deepest impression was that Lu Xingping would also come, and they had run into each other several times.
Although he didn’t come as frequently as Qiao Nanqi, compared to the average student, Lu Xingping’s frequency of borrowing books was quite high.
Zhao Rong had always thought that Qiao Nanqi disliked him for being “foul within” and held Lu Xingping as his “white moonlight” because they shared this kind of spiritual resonance.
“But I saw Senior in the library many times.”
“That was all to borrow books for me. When I was in middle and high school, I liked reading all sorts of books. I wouldn’t read them again after the first time, so there was no need to buy them. And I was lazy, so since your university library was large, my brother would go and borrow a few for me every now and then and give them to me when he came home.”
Before she could finish, Lu Xiaoyue lowered her head again, her fingers moving incessantly on the screen. He didn’t know who she was chatting with on the other side, but she kept smiling.
Even while driving, Zhao Rong could occasionally hear Lu Xiaoyue’s accidental giggles.
He didn’t disturb Lu Xiaoyue’s chat with others and stopped talking.
When they reached Lu Xingping’s doorstep, Zhao Rong slowly stepped on the brakes. Seeing Lu Xiaoyue put away her phone, he asked, “Are you in a relationship?”
Embarrassment immediately surfaced in Lu Xiaoyue’s eyes.
Seeing that she was about to object, Zhao Rong said with a smile, “You’re already in your twenties; what’s there to be embarrassed about saying you’re in a relationship?”
“…How did you know?”
“I don’t have many things I’m good at, and I wouldn’t dare assert other things. But just based on the look in your eyes when you were messaging just now—it’s not like I haven’t experienced it—”
He paused and stopped talking.
He lowered his eyes and blinked slowly, concealing all his complex emotions.
Then, Zhao Rong unbuckled his seatbelt, walked around to the passenger side where Lu Xiaoyue was, and opened the door. His eyes curved slightly, and his tone was laced with a smile: “Miss Lu, my job as your driver for today is complete.”
Lu Xiaoyue was amused by him. Her embarrassed expression shifted slightly as she got out and whispered to him, “Don’t tell my brother. He’s very strict, and his tongue can be a bit sharp.”
Zhao Rong’s gaze shifted.
“Um…” He hesitated. “Is your assessment of Senior’s tongue that it’s ‘a bit’ sharp?”
Lu Xiaoyue: “…Extremely sharp.”
Zhao Rong burst out laughing.
On the other side.
Across the path in front of the small villa, inside the music room adjacent to the path.
Qiao Nanqi sat at the piano. At some point, his hands had pressed down hard, creating a discordant major chord. The culprit didn’t let go; instead, the pressure in his fingertips grew stronger.
He turned his head, his gaze passing through the floor-to-ceiling glass window and landing beside the car parked on the path.
Zhao Rong and Lu Xiaoyue were standing opposite each other. Lu Xiaoyue had her back to this side; from here, one could see Zhao Rong’s face clearly.
Qiao Nanqi looked at the distant Zhao Rong, his eyes growing increasingly dark.
It had been five days since the night he waited for Zhao Rong at his doorstep. He shouldn’t have been so clear about the count of time, yet the number surfaced naturally in his mind at this moment.
Five whole days.
After returning that night, he caught a fever the next day. Although he recovered the following day, he had been recuperating these past few days, handling company matters from home. At off-duty time, he would come to Lu Xingping’s place to sit, as before, to alleviate the heavy depression accumulated in his heart.
These past few days, he had been consciously trying to break the habits Zhao Rong had brought.
Perhaps they were emotional habits, perhaps the physiological habits Zhao Rong mentioned, or perhaps the small habits in daily life that he had never noticed but which had popped up one after another after Zhao Rong left.
Since Zhao Rong wanted to leave, he had decided to change these habits.
Yet for some reason, the more he paid attention to them, the more obvious Zhao Rong’s traces became, and the harder they were to eradicate. It was as if his memories and emotions were working against him; the more he felt it didn’t matter, the more suddenly memories related to Zhao Rong would arrive, accompanied by restless emotions.
He had driven He Nan mad, Chen Ze had been taken away for investigation, and everything Qiao Anqing had left him was now completely in his hands. These few days should have been the beginning of his burden-free life, yet they were more excruciating than any day before.
Qiao Nanqi had endured for five days like this.
And then, in the music room of Lu Xingping’s house, he saw Zhao Rong on the path outside the window.
The late autumn path was crowded with yellowing fallen leaves, and the trees on both sides were already bare, looking desolate and lonely.
The young man was wearing dark casual sweatshirt. His hair and eyes were dark, and his light black eyes caught the continuous light under the twilight sky. He looked like a touch of spring in late autumn.
He lowered his head slightly, the slanting golden twilight light spilling onto his hair and hanging on his long eyelashes, burying half his face in the interplay of light and shadow.
He looked at Lu Xiaoyue in front of him and squinted his eyes.
Zhao Rong smiled.
He smiled very happily.