Chapter 35

They were flying out that evening, and worried about feeling dizzy again, Dou Yiqing still sat in the front passenger seat.

The car drove silently for ten minutes. Besides the soft music playing, there was no other sound in the car. Qin Yun, unable to tolerate it any longer, turned around and said, “Dou Yiqing, I’ve been looking at you for ten minutes, just let it out if you need to.”

“No need,” Dou Yiqing crossed her arms and silently shifted her gaze.

A few seconds later, she shook her head and sighed, “The entertainment world is really messy.”

Qin Yun: “…”

“It’s not like it’s any of my business. If anyone’s causing the mess, it’s those three,” Qin Yun turned the steering wheel and explained, “The way she hugged me earlier, it’s just a habit. Her grandmother’s German, and her family and friends greet each other like that.”

Dou Yiqing nodded, “No wonder she’s so good-looking, turns out she’s mixed.”

Qin Yun glanced at the street, lightly pressed the brake, and said, “We’re about to get on the highway. Do you want to buy some drinks for the road?”

“I don’t want any,” Dou Yiqing turned around and asked, “Wen Ci, do you…?”

Wen Ci was sitting in the backseat, her head resting against the car door, her hair cascading down the side of her face. Her shoulders moved gently as she breathed, and she had already fallen asleep without anyone noticing.

“Not drinking? Go ahead.” Dou Yiqing lowered her voice and continued, “What’s going on between her and Xiang Wenwen? Why does it feel like their relationship is always up and down?”

After spending a few days together, their relationship had changed and became a bit more like friends. Moreover, for some reason, Dou Yiqing always felt a bit more relaxed in front of Qin Yun. She openly raised her curiosity.

Qin Yun: “It’s normal. I said this back then…”

Dou Yiqing slapped his arm and scolded, “Keep your voice down, Wen Ci is sleeping.”

“Ah— That hurts, Dou Yiqing, are your fists made of iron? Is that your attitude toward asking about gossip?” Qin Yun shook his shoulders. “You guys aren’t strangers to them, all of us were high school classmates. Do you think they’re suited for marriage?”

Xiang Wenwen, the class president for all three years of high school, was just as his name suggested: gentle, elegant, well-mannered, and always ranked in the top 20 of his class— a true top student.

Duan Wei, beautiful, youthful, full of energy, average in academics, comes from a wealthy family, loves to have fun, and is interested in activities other than studying.

“Yeah, they’re a perfect match,” Dou Yiqing thought for a moment. “Isn’t that the standard match-up in romance novels?”

“That’s what you get for watching too many of those,” Qin Yun commented.

And then he got slapped again.

“They’re not a match. Duan Wei loved to play around when she was in school, and now even more so. She doesn’t like a routine, always wants to go on a vacation every month, and her clothing store is just a hobby. Anyway, her family is rich, so as long as she’s happy.” Qin Yun analyzed. “On the other hand, Xiang Wenwen, how boring is he? He studied in school, and now works, with very little free time.”

And how should I put it, he’s known Duan Wei since childhood and knows her personality—spoiled, capricious, and extravagant. For the methodical Xiang Wenwen, she’s always been a bit too much.

Before they got married, Xiang Wenwen was fine, patient, and considerate. But within six months of marriage, his attitude started to change. Duan Wei would complain about how he ignored her and was emotionally distant, and for a while, Duan Wei barely complained anymore. Instead, she’d always come over to hang out with him and Zhou Wu.

Of course, Qin Yun thought Duan Wei mostly wanted to be with Zhou Wu.

Qin Yun always felt that Xiang Wenwen’s intentions weren’t pure, but he didn’t want to say that to Duan Wei, especially not in front of others.

“Anyway, I think they’ll divorce sooner or later,” Qin Yun concluded.

Dou Yiqing thought for a moment. “Do you think she and Zhou Wu might have gotten back together?”

“Of course not, Zhou Wu is crazy to have an affair with her. Besides, he’s been busy; he only just came back from abroad, right?”

“Then why are they living together now?” Dou Yiqing asked. “Is it common in Germany to live with your ex?”

“…” Qin Yun was speechless for a moment, then replied, “You know there are more rooms than one in the villa. Zhou Wu is the kind of person who wouldn’t get involved in an affair. You could say Duan Wei’s divorce is more likely.”

“Weren’t they in a long-distance relationship? Didn’t Xiang Wenwen—” Dou Yiqing paused. “And still willing to reconcile with Duan Wei? Is he really that in love?”

“Stop talking nonsense, it wasn’t cheating. Didn’t they have a long-distance relationship at the time? With the time difference, Duan Wei thought Zhou Wu was too cold and didn’t contact her, so they broke up. After breaking up, she started dating Xiang Wenwen.” Qin Yun cleared Zhou Wu’s name.

As for the second part—

Qin Yun sighed, “Who knows? Anyway, when Duan Wei got married last year, Zhou Wu was really annoyed. After breaking up with Duan Wei, he didn’t date anyone else.”

They had talked about it at the supermarket before, and at that time, he thought Zhou Wu had really moved on. But then Duan Wei came back around, and Qin Yun clicked his tongue:

“Seems like he really does like her.”

The car rolled over a small stone, causing a bump. Wen Ci’s head lightly hit the car door. It wasn’t loud, but it was quite heavy.

In the backseat, where no one could see, Wen Ci’s fingers, resting on her lap, twisted together calmly.

All the extra thoughts from earlier had disappeared, and her mind was now empty. She regretted not being able to sleep.

—-

At the airport, after checking in, they began boarding.

Dou Yiqing sent a voice message to Qin Yun saying she had boarded. Qin Yun replied loudly in the cabin, “Dou Yiqing, if you rush off the plane and come with me, you’ll still make it!”

The flight attendant, who had just closed the cabin door, turned her head cautiously: “?”

“Are you crazy?” Dou Yiqing scolded him, a smile tugging at her lips. “Turn off your phone, bye-bye.”

She hung up the phone and then turned to Wen Ci. “Should we tell Zhou Wu?”

Wen Ci spread a blanket over herself, smiled faintly, and replied, “No need. He’s probably busy, he won’t mind.”

Dou Yiqing nodded. “Right, we won’t bother him.”

The plane landed in Jiangcheng close to 10 p.m.

After saying goodbye to Dou Yiqing, Wen Ci got into a taxi.

The tall buildings and trees outside the window passed by quickly as Wen Ci leaned back in the seat, holding her phone, instinctively opening her Moments, scrolling down, then stopping.

She almost went to look at Zhou Wu’s Moments again.

She hadn’t drunk much water on the plane, and her throat felt dry. Wen Ci swallowed, about to close her phone, when her peripheral vision caught the profile picture of Duan Wei.

Unable to resist, she scrolled down—

[Duan Wei: Feeling super lucky, arrived just as the typhoon passed, going diving tomorrow!]

There was a photo below, Duan Wei sitting on a sofa, wearing an oversized T-shirt with a familiar pattern. Wen Ci thought for a moment and realized it was the same one Zhou Wu wore when he came to pick her up for Qin Yun’s birthday party.

It was posted just 10 minutes ago, with the background showing the villa’s living room. Wen Ci had been sitting on that sofa the night before watching a movie, nearly falling asleep.

So sending clothes wasn’t a big deal after all. It was just her overthinking.

It was originally agreed that they would be friends with benefits, a source of comfort, waiting for others to regret. Why would she start overthinking because of something small? It’s just self-inflicted trouble.

The car was dimly lit, and staring at the phone’s bright light for too long made her eyes sting. Wen Ci blinked hard twice and put the phone in her pocket.

When the car stopped, the tired taxi driver turned back and impatiently said, “We’re here. You can handle your luggage, right?”

Wen Ci paid and got out of the car, struggling to pull her 24-inch suitcase out of the trunk.

It was drizzling outside, and Wen Ci walked with her head down. She bumped into someone she knew—her mom’s Mahjong friend. The woman greeted her enthusiastically, “Wen Ci, going on a trip? Why are you back so late? Do you want Auntie to walk with you a bit?”

Wen Ci didn’t respond, lowering her head as she passed under the woman’s umbrella. The woman had never been ignored by her before and froze for a moment. A few seconds later, Wen Ci seemed to realize it and turned around to smile, “No need, Auntie, it’s a short distance, I’ll be fine. See you.”

Wen Ci’s parents wouldn’t be home until tomorrow, and the house was dark and quiet.

Wen Ci took off her shoes at the entrance. When she looked up, the dark staircase in front of her looked like the open mouth of a wild animal.

The familiar smell of home hit her, and Wen Ci heard the faint ticking sound from the living room. It felt lifeless and suffocating.

At that moment, Wen Ci slowly realized that her vacation was over.

Struggling to drag the suitcase upstairs, Wen Ci didn’t even unpack it before heading to take a shower. Afterward, she half-heartedly dried her hair and collapsed onto the bed.

She was so tired.

She hadn’t done anything all day.

Wen Ci’s cheek was against the pillow, and just as her eyelids were about to close, her WeChat pinged.

Her mom had sent her a voice message lasting a few seconds.

She rambled on for a while, then asked, “By the way, did you finish the training notes? I told you before, you need to write everything down to remember it. When I get home tomorrow, bring them to me so I can take a look.”

Wen Ci suddenly thought, “When it rains, it pours.”

But she quickly rationalized it—after having so much fun the past few days, a little compensation was to be expected.

She replied with a simple “Okay,” then messaged her training teacher to ask if they could send her the notes. The teacher quickly replied: “Sorry, Wen Ci, I’m really lazy and didn’t take any notes.”

Wen Ci responded: “No problem, sorry to bother you.”

—–

At midnight, Wen Ci sat in front of her computer, watching past online lessons from the training instructors, slowly crafting her own training notes.

She wasn’t sure if it was from the rain, but Wen Ci felt a faint headache, and the words on her notes occasionally tangled into a mess that was hard to read.

Rubbing her eyes, she was about to get up to make some hot water when her phone rang.

It was a video call from Zhou Wu.

Wen Ci stared at the screen for a while, instinctively adjusting her messy hair before answering.

Zhou Wu looked a bit tired too, her eyes drooping lazily. When the call connected, she raised her phone to look at Wen Ci.

Noticing the background, Wen Ci realized she was at home. Zhou Wu relaxed slightly, “Why didn’t you tell me you arrived, Teacher Wen?”

“I didn’t want to disturb you,” Wen Ci said, feeling a bit down, but hearing Zhou Wu’s voice, her heartbeat quickened involuntarily.

Seeing the desk lamp on, Zhou Wu raised an eyebrow, “Reading right when you get home?”

Wen Ci replied softly, “I…”

“Zhou Wu, is my surfboard still in the seaside shop with yours?” Behind Zhou Wu, the door opened, and Duan Wei leaned in to ask, “The pink couple model we bought together before.”

Realizing what was happening, Duan Wei glanced at the familiar face on the screen and pretended not to know, pouting in a teasing tone, “What time is it? How come you’re still working? Didn’t I say I wanted to go to the beach tonight?”

Wen Ci realized what happened when she had already pressed the hang-up button.

Zhou Wu sent a question mark.

Wen Ci felt out of breath, a bit disappointed and sad, but also somehow expected. She stared at her phone for a while, then replied: “I’m organizing work. I’ve accumulated a lot after going out these days. I’m a bit busy, let’s talk next time.”

Zhou Wu replied: “Okay.”

Zhou Wu added: “I didn’t have time to tell you. Something came up, and I’ll be delayed in returning to Jiangcheng. I’ll contact you when I get back.”

Wen Ci put down her phone, lowered her head, and continued writing her notes. The instructor’s voice came through the headphones, blending into a mix of noise she couldn’t quite make out.

The fine raindrops tapped on the window, and Wen Ci took off her headphones, burying her face in her arm, feeling like she might be getting sick again.