Chapter 11: Mr. Qi, Can We Get Married?

Qin Zhaoli summarized a few key points and then added, “She’s always liked Gu Yuchen, and the breakup has naturally left her feeling down. She’s already been managing her emotions really well these past few days. Uncle, you and Auntie shouldn’t push her any further. No one feels worse than she does.”

Wen Xingzhi sighed again. On the phone, Qin Zhaoli could hear sobbing from the other side, and she immediately understood: they had already scolded Zhixian.

“Alright, Uncle Wen, I’ll go check on Zhixian tonight. You don’t need to worry.”

“Ah, thank you, Zhaoli.”

After hanging up, Shen Ling spoke up to Wen Xingzhi, “I don’t care about anything else, but my daughter cannot be wronged for no reason.”

Shen Ling immediately dialed Zhao Wan on her phone. This time, Wen Xingzhi, furious after learning the situation, didn’t stop his wife.

As soon as the call connected, without waiting for Zhao Wan to speak, Shen Ling said directly, “How do you raise your son? Just because our daughter accidentally broke one of his cups, he hit her? I’ve never laid a hand on my daughter, and yet Gu Yuchen not only hit her but caused her ears to ring! Our family cannot tolerate someone like him.”

Zhao Wan was stunned and couldn’t believe what Shen Ling was saying about her son. She responded, “There must be some misunderstanding. No matter what, Yuchen would never raise a hand against Zhixian.”

“You can go ask your precious son yourself,” Shen Ling snapped, then hung up the phone.

–

She got out of the elevator, opened the car door, and sat in the driver’s seat. Her eyes stung, her vision blurred, and tears began to fall one by one.

She now felt an extreme disgust toward Gu Yuchen. He pretended to be mature and steady, but inside, he was already rotten to the core.

Her heart was full of bitterness and grievance, feeling misunderstood. She didn’t understand how things had come to this. She hadn’t done anything wrong, yet everyone was blaming her.

Her hands rested on the steering wheel, trembling slightly.

The sound of a car horn came from behind, but she ignored it. After a moment, someone knocked on her car window twice. She turned her head and saw a familiar face.

Qi Yanjing.

She pushed open the car door and threw herself into Qi Yanjing’s arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

Qi Yanjing was momentarily stunned by her tear-streaked face. This was the third time he had seen her cry, and it was as if she was about to shatter, like she might vanish with the slightest breeze.

The moment she hugged him, his whole body stiffened. She buried her face in his chest, quietly sobbing, and her crying tugged at his heart. His hands, hanging by his sides, clenched involuntarily. Slowly, he moved one hand toward her back, wanting to gently comfort her. But then he remembered that they were practically strangers, not even knowing each other’s names, so he hesitated and lowered his hand.

Suddenly, he heard Miss Wen sob through her tears, “Mr. Qi, can we get married?”

Yes, she was acting impulsively, out of revenge. Gu Yuchen always assumed she couldn’t live without him, and her parents were constantly pushing her toward marriage with him. So, she wanted to marry someone else instead.

If her hug had already shocked him, her words now made his eyes widen in disbelief.

Qi Yanjing stood frozen for a long time before he snapped back to reality. Gently, he pulled away from Miss Wen’s embrace. Her large, red eyes were still brimming with tears as she looked at him. He used his thumb to wipe away the tears on her face.

Feeling conflicted, he spoke softly but firmly, “You can’t do this. You can’t just marry a stranger you’ve only met a few times and whose name you don’t even know out of impulse.”

Wen Zhixian’s mind was foggy, unable to process anything else. She only registered that he didn’t agree, which seemed understandable. After all, who would, like her, impulsively propose marriage to a stranger?

“Oh, I’m sorry for bothering you,” she said, retreating and intending to get back into her car, but Qi Yanjing grabbed her arm.

He sighed softly to himself, “In your current state, how can you drive? Let me take you home.”

From Miss Wen’s earlier words, his understanding was: Since you’re not willing, never mind. I’ll just ask another stranger if they want to marry me instead.

“Thank you,” she said, moving to the passenger seat. Qi Yanjing glanced at his own car parked across the street but then got into the driver’s seat of Wen Zhixian’s car and started the engine, driving her home.

He remembered the way from last time when he had dropped off her keys. It wasn’t far from the café.

“My parents really like Gu Yuchen,” she said softly, her voice slow and calm, as though just trying to release the pent-up frustration in her heart. “After we broke up, they didn’t even ask why; they just assumed it was my fault. I don’t think I did anything wrong… I only broke a cup that Gu Yuchen’s ex gave him, and he hit me.”

Qi Yanjing listened to every word, processing what she was saying. This is ridiculous, he thought. So what if you hit me? I lost a cup my ex gave me! How ironic.

After a while, he finally spoke, his voice steady and measured, “But you shouldn’t use your marriage as a way to get back at someone. You need to really understand the person first. To put it bluntly, if you marry someone whose values clash with yours, they might think you’re playing on a swing even if you’re hanging yourself.”

Hearing his words, Wen Zhixian pursed her lips slightly, realizing there might be some truth to what he was saying.

When they arrived at her apartment complex, Qi Yanjing, noticing her weary state, hesitated before offering, “Do you want me to walk you upstairs?”

They walked in together, side by side.

This was his first time being alone in a single woman’s home. It was simple, elegant, and had a comforting layout.

Wen Zhixian changed her shoes and slumped onto the sofa, her voice weak, “Thank you for bringing me home.”

Qi Yanjing’s eyes fell on her face. She had closed her eyes as if she had fallen asleep.

His phone vibrated in his pocket, so he quickly stepped out onto the balcony to answer the call.

A male voice sounded on the other end, “Qi Yanjing, where are you? We were supposed to have dinner together. Where did you go?”

“I have something to deal with. You go ahead without me. My car is parked by the road; you can use it to go to dinner. Afterward, come pick me up tonight.”

“Wait, you—” the other person started, but Qi Yanjing interrupted, “I’ll transfer you the money for whatever you spend on dinner.”

The voice on the other end laughed, “Alright, I’ll call you tonight when I come to pick you up.”

After hanging up, Qi Yanjing glanced at Miss Wen lying on the sofa. He stepped off the balcony and went into the kitchen. Opening the fridge, he looked around and pulled out a few ingredients. He found a bag of ribs in the fresh produce section and took that out as well.

He removed his black trench coat, initially planning to drape it over a chair. But after glancing at the sleeping Miss Wen, he gently laid the coat over her instead.

Then, he rolled up his shirt sleeves and went back into the kitchen.

Wen Zhixian slept for about twenty minutes. The aroma in the air gradually woke her up, and she thought it was Zhaoli and Kairui who had come by.

Rubbing her eyes, she walked into the kitchen and called out, “Zhaoli, Kai—”

Seeing that it wasn’t them, she awkwardly touched her neck, “Mr. Qi, are you cooking?”

“You’re awake,” he replied. He had just finished cooking and was preparing to leave.

He had assumed that, after her parents scolded her, she hadn’t eaten anything, so he figured he’d make her something before leaving. He hadn’t expected her to wake up so soon.

“I’ve made some food for you. I’ll be going now.” He rolled down his sleeves and smoothed out the creases.