Chapter 09.2

Jiang Qiaosheng only rushed back from Beijing on the second day of Father Tang’s hospitalization. Tang Yi didn’t notify him, it was Mother Jiang who knew the news and came to the hospital to visit Father Tang, but didn’t see her son, so she realized something was wrong and called Jiang Qiaosheng.

Father Tang’s condition has stabilized.

Jiang Qiaosheng stayed in the ward for a while. During this time, Tang Yi sat silently by the bed, and Tang’s mother noticed something was wrong between the two. She gently said, “Your father is fine for now. You two should go back early and rest today. Come back tomorrow.”

Tang Yi didn’t want to leave, and Mother Tang patted her head: “You haven’t slept well these past few days. Listen to your mother and go back early.”

Tang Yi could only compromise: “But if there’s any problem, remember to call me first.”

Mother Tang waved her hand, “Qiaosheng, drive safely on the way.”

Jiang Qiaosheng stood up, nodded, and said okay.

The two walked out of the ward one after the other, and it wasn’t until they reached the parking lot that Jiang Qiaosheng spoke: “Why didn’t you notify me that Dad was sick?”

“I called you, but no one answered. Later, I was too busy and forgot.” Tang Yi’s tone was a bit tired: “Besides, Dad’s condition has stabilized. I didn’t want to interfere with your work.”

“In your eyes, am I such an insignificant person?” Jiang Qiaosheng looked at her, “Do you think work is more important than family to me?”

“I didn’t mean that.” Tang Yi sighed lightly: “I just felt that since the situation has stabilized, there’s no need for you to come all the way here again.”

“Why is there no need? Tang Yi, aren’t we husband and wife?”

“Yes, we are husband and wife.”

“Then why do I feel like you’ve never really relied on me as your husband?” Jiang Qiaosheng stayed up all night, his eyes red. “Whether it’s work or family matters, I always seem to be the last one to know in your eyes.”

“I just feel…” Tang Yi didn’t know how to continue.

“Feel what? Feel that you telling me wouldn’t matter?”

“I didn’t think that way.” Tang Yi didn’t want to argue about things that had already happened: “Jiang Qiaosheng, I don’t want to fight, I’m very tired now and just want to have a good sleep.”

The two stood facing each other in silence.

In the end, Jiang Qiaosheng gave in first, “Give me the car keys.”

Tang Yi searched in her bag for the keys, but instead of the car keys, the house keys fell out first.

She often likes to lose things, the door lock key in the house is very small, and she lost it three times in the first year of marriage. Later, Jiang Qiaosheng made her several key chains, all hanging on one key, a heavy bunch, and she never lost them again.

The key chains have her favorite anime characters, as well as her and Jiang Qiaosheng’s names, three or four hanging together.

Jiang Qiaosheng bent down to pick it up, a whole bunch of jingling.

Tang Yi handed the car key over, took the house key back from his hand, and seemed to be thinking of the past warm moments, she said softly before getting in the car: “I’m sorry.”

She didn’t know if Jiang Qiaosheng heard it or not, and said nothing.

The project in Beijing has come to an end, and Jiang Qiaosheng stayed here until Father Tang was discharged from the hospital before going back. On the day he left, Tang Yi was in a meeting at the office, so they didn’t meet.

They seemed to be in a cold war, yet not really.

They still exchanged messages, just not calling each other often.

In June, during the summer solstice, Jiang Qiaosheng and his team finished the project and returned from Beijing to Pingcheng.

The studio has three partners, Jiang Qiaosheng and Qin Chuan are the technical support, and the one called Zhou Yang is the source of funding. He has arranged a small celebration in advance for their group in Pingcheng.

“You can bring your family.” Zhou Yang said this mainly to Jiang Qiaosheng, having heard gossip from Qin Chuan, he wanted to help ease the relationship between the two: “Does Tang Yi know you’re back?”

“She knows.”

“Then why don’t you invite her to come as well? We haven’t seen each other in a long time.”

Jiang Qiaosheng had already planned to do so, and he took the car keys and left: “I’ll send you the location later.”

“Where are you going?”

“To pick her up from work.”

Coincidentally, that day Tang Yi got off work on time. The two were stuck in the rush hour traffic, and both felt a sense of being in a different world.

Tang Yi asked: “When will your game go online?”

“Closed beta in July, if all goes well, we should be able to go into open beta by October.” Jiang Qiaosheng turned to look at her: “I’ll get you a closed beta account when the time comes.”

“Okay.”

The two were chatting casually, deliberately ignoring the previous unpleasantness, trying their best to maintain a peaceful atmosphere.

The gathering was set at a hotpot restaurant in the city center.

After a few rounds of drinks, Tang Yi was starting to feel a bit drunk. Jiang Qiaosheng didn’t let her drink more, took her wine glass, and placed it in front of himself.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Tang Yi sighed, “I’m going to the restroom.”

Jiang Qiaosheng was worried, so he asked a female colleague, Xiao Ye, to accompany Tang Yi.

Xiao Ye was Jiang Qiaosheng’s assistant, and Tang Yi later realized that the phone call that day was probably answered by her, but at that moment, who it was no longer mattered.

It was Tang Yi’s suspicion, viewing things with a suspicious mind.

Tang Yi went to the restroom wanting to vomit but couldn’t, she washed her face with cold water, and saw Xiao Ye standing at the door holding a phone, so she casually asked, “What are you looking at?”

“Oh, it’s a group photo of President Jiang and the team at the Beijing project site.” Xiao Ye handed the phone to Tang Yi, unable to help but praise, “President Jiang is so photogenic, and Vice President Qin has been saying he wants to use his face as the prototype for a game character.”

Tang Yi chuckled lightly, lowering her eyes to look.

Among the group, Jiang Qiaosheng did indeed stand out, wearing a neat and clean white shirt, with Qin Chuan’s arm around his shoulder, and a faint smile on his lips.

Further to the left was Wen Jing.

Tang Yi’s expression faded slightly, “Let’s go, let’s head back.”

Back in the private room, Qin Chuan was already a bit drunk, shouting something about “fulfilling a dream” and “it was worth it for me this lifetime.”

Zhou Yang pulled him back into his seat, and laughed, “He’s like this when he’s drunk, don’t mind him, let’s keep drinking.”

That day, everyone drank a bit too much.

When Jiang Qiaosheng carried the unconscious Tang Yi back home and laid her on the bed, he wiped her face with a towel. In the dim light, Tang Yi looked at him without blinking, and tears suddenly fell down her cheeks without warning.

Jiang Qiaosheng was startled, gently brushing his fingertips across her cheek, and asked softly, “What’s wrong, what’s bothering you?”

Tang Yi closed her eyes, tears falling again, her voice tinged with a hint of choking and grievance, “I have liked someone for many years, but he just doesn’t like me.”

Jiang Qiaosheng suddenly fell silent, remembering the name he had heard outside the hotel room on the day of the wedding three years ago.

Li Bochuan.

He knew that was Tang Yi’s ex-boyfriend.

But what Jiang Qiaosheng didn’t know was that his current silence was the heaviest blow to Tang Yi.

The room fell silent.

Tang Yi turned over with her back to Jiang Qiaosheng. In the darkness, her formerly intoxicated eyes were particularly shining brightly from being soaked in tears.

A lifetime is so long, she couldn’t always be a coward.

The author has something to say:

“How much I wanted to get close

To your heart, eyes, mouth, and ears, but fate didn’t allow it

I can’t hold on to any of them

Afraid of tragedies repeating in my destiny

The more beautiful something is, the less I can touch it”

From Wang Fei’s “Undercurrent”

Tl note: 😭 Who dares to put onions in my eyes!