Xiao Wang quickly raised his hands, "Okay, okay, I was wrong, please continue."
"One day, the girl suddenly realized that continuing like this was meaningless, so she decided to give up. She—"
"Has she found someone new?" Xiao Wang asked, once again behaving like a curious child.
Zhang Jing was taken aback, "No!"
"Impossible!" Xiao Wang scoffed, looking like a seasoned veteran. "How could he suddenly wake up without a new love interest?"
“Maybe she was just infatuated with you at first, but now she’s suddenly come to terms with it!” Zhang Jingzhi argued.
"Did I suddenly do something that made her dislike it?"
Zhang Jingzhi thought for a moment and shook her head.
"That's it! She must have another man in her heart, which is why she so resolutely woke up from a blind infatuation. Without external intervention, and without me doing anything to ruin my image, how could she suddenly wake up? Unless there is a comparison, she will understand what she really wants!"
Zhang Jingzhi was speechless after being refuted by Xiao Wang, and suddenly became somewhat embarrassed and angry, saying, "Why are you talking so much! Did I ask you that?"
Xiao Wang shook his head, feeling wronged.
"What I want to ask you is, if this girl were to confront you, what do you think she should say to make you feel guilty, reluctant to let go, to admire her, or even regret missing out on her?"
Xiao Wang tilted his head and pondered for a long time before finally grasping the gist of Zhang Jingzhi's words. "Sister, you mean that a girl is pursuing me, but I don't like her. However, I shamelessly accepted her affections. Then, the girl realized I didn't like her and came to confront me, saying something that made me suddenly realize how good she was, admire her, feel guilty, and even want to slap myself! Is that what you mean?"
"Yes!" Zhang Jingzhi nodded, her eyes shining.
"Does this girl still want to be with me?"
"Of course I don't want to!"
"Is she crazy?!" Xiao Wang whispered. "If she doesn't want to think about it anymore, why should she care what I think? She should just leave after she's said it! Why does she have to make me regret it? How can she be so vain?"
Zhang Jingzhi's face darkened, and then Xiao Wang regretted saying the wrong thing, chuckling awkwardly twice.
Zhang Jingzhi bit her lower lip and said, "She just wants to vent her anger. Call it saving face or vanity, whatever, she just doesn't want to let that guy get away with it so easily."
Looking at her, Xiao Wang suddenly understood something. He smiled knowingly, put his hand on Zhang Jingzhi's shoulder, and said softly, "Sister, let me put it this way: if I hadn't valued that girl in the first place, I wouldn't care what she said, you understand? If you don't even care about her as a person, why would you care about what she says? So, that girl doesn't need to consider what she's going to say or guess my reaction. She just needs to say frankly, 'I've realized I don't love you anymore, let's break up!' That's enough. I'd admire that girl's decisiveness! There's no need to deliberately embarrass others, because when you try to hurt someone, you're often the one who gets hurt first!"
Zhang Jingzhi, feeling wronged after being exposed, lowered her head and remained silent, her eyes welling up with tears.
Xiao Wang was also a little flustered. He gently patted Zhang Jingzhi's shoulder and said softly, "It's normal to bite into a chicken leg and hurt the bone. Just be more careful next time, hehe, beautiful, don't do that, I've never seen anything like it before—"
The sentence abruptly ended. Zhang Jingzhi looked up in confusion and saw Xiao Wang staring awkwardly at the door. She turned her head and saw Wang Yuhan standing there with a cold face, having been there for an unknown amount of time.
"Mr. Wang..." Xiao Wang began awkwardly.
Zhang Jingzhi
"Mr. Wang..." Xiao Wang began awkwardly.
Wang Yuhan nodded slightly, walked to the water dispenser to make coffee, and instantly, the rich aroma of coffee filled the narrow tea room. It was a very pleasant smell, but for some reason, it made the whole tea room feel cold.
Zhang Jingzhi stared at him blankly, somewhat dumbfounded.
Wang Yuhan didn't look at Zhang Jingzhi the whole time. He made the coffee, carried it out, and paused at the door. He said casually, "Be mindful of your behavior during work hours. After all, this is the workplace."
Zhang Jingzhi felt a bit wronged. She had just said "Huh?" when Wang Yuhan's figure disappeared around the corner without lingering.
"Is it a miscarriage of justice?" Zhang Jingzhi asked, her eyes still fixed on the doorway.
Xiao Wang stared blankly in the direction where Wang Yuhan disappeared, then looked at Zhang Jingzhi's expression, pondered for a moment, and nodded, "It's a bit unfair, and it seems this matter is not easy to explain." He turned around and walked out, but stopped after taking two steps, as if he had suddenly figured something out. He looked back at Zhang Jingzhi and said, "And I'm even more wronged, but I've also gained something. I suddenly understand something."
"What's up?"
Xiao Wang chuckled self-deprecatingly, "First, as a man, the most taboo thing is good news; second, never be overconfident."
Turning away, she muttered under her breath, "And whatever you do, don't even think about playing any ambiguous games..."
Zhang Jing hadn't understood the first two sentences, let alone what he mumbled at the end. She couldn't even hear him clearly, so she could only shout, "Hey, what are you muttering to yourself?"
Without even turning his head, Xiao Wang said irritably, "Sister, you really are a blockhead!" He shook his head and then said self-deprecatingly, "It's not worth exchanging bread for!"
In fact, Zhang Jingzhi should really think carefully about what Xiao Wang meant, and then carefully recall Wang Yuhan's expression and tone. Unfortunately, her brain is not working very well right now. She doesn't know if she is still delirious from the fever, or if she is just focused on how to confront Yang Lei without losing face.
Ultimately, Zhang Jingzhi is just a bit too hypocritical, like Xiao Wang said. Since you don't care about him anymore, why do you care about his reaction? Just tell him directly!
Zhang Jingzhi understood this principle, but she just couldn't grasp it herself. It's true what they say, people are quick to advise others, but when it comes to themselves, they can't really understand much.
After work, Zhang Jingzhi asked Yang Lei out as usual. When she arrived at the meeting place, Zhang Jingzhi realized that although she and Yang Lei had been dating for several months, it seemed that apart from having a few meals and watching a couple of movies, they really didn't have any other activities. Was this what dating was like? If there had ever been love between them.
Yang Lei arrived early today, waiting for Zhang Jingzhi with a gentle smile. He even thoughtfully ordered her favorite dishes, as he always does. However, Zhang Jingzhi felt a little embarrassed to ask. People like Zhang Jingzhi often share certain traits, such as being concerned with appearances, soft-hearted, a little vain, and sometimes infuriatingly unable to distinguish right from wrong. Of course, this type of person often has a degree of hypocrisy; for example, they think things through carefully before acting, fearing that their careless words or actions might harm others. But after thinking it over, feeling guilty, they still end up doing the harmful thing!
"How are you? How are you feeling? Are you still able to manage at work?" Yang Lei asked gently.
Zhang Jingzhi nodded without speaking, pondering how to start her sentence—whether to lay some groundwork first or jump straight into the main point.
Seeing that Zhang Jingzhi looked even more listless today, Yang Lei assumed she hadn't fully recovered and took extra good care of her.
Zhang Jingzhi also regretted her own indecisiveness and the fact that she had made too many promises to Xiao Xiao today. She was afraid that if she didn't handle things properly tonight, she would be ridiculed by Xiao Xiao when she got back.
Just as she was struggling with this, Yang Lei's phone rang. Zhang Jingzhi could tell from Yang Lei's expression when he answered the phone that it was his. Suddenly, she felt relieved, and all her worries disappeared.
Yang Lei hung up the phone nonchalantly, gave Zhang Jingzhi a faint smile, then lowered his head and continued eating without saying a word.
"What's wrong? Is something the matter?" Zhang Jingzhi asked tentatively.
Yang Lei smiled and said, "It's okay, let's eat. I'll take you home early after we eat." Just then, the phone rang again, and Yang Lei's expression changed slightly when he answered it this time.
"You can go ahead if you have something to do. I'll just take a taxi back later."
The woman spoke to Yang Lei on the phone for a while, and Yang Lei, looking worried and somewhat guilty, glanced at Zhang Jingzhi and said, "My friend has an emergency, I have to go first. Can you get home by yourself?"
Zhang Jingzhi nodded hurriedly.
Yang Lei glanced gratefully at Zhang Jingzhi and quickly got up to pay the bill.
Seeing Yang Lei get into a taxi, Zhang Jingzhi quickly got into the one behind him, saying, "Follow that car in front, be careful, don't let anyone see us!"
The driver glanced at her, said nothing, and followed her.
Yang Lei followed her all the way to the riverbank before getting out of the car. Sure enough, he saw a petite woman waiting there. When she saw Yang Lei get out of the car, she stood there wiping away tears and looking at him. Yang Lei quickly took two steps to greet her, and the woman immediately threw herself into his arms and burst into tears.
Zhang Jingzhi couldn't see Yang Lei's expression, but from his back, he seemed somewhat conflicted. He held his hand up for a long time before gently placing it on the woman's shoulder and patting her back.
"Miss? Are you getting off or not?" the taxi driver asked politely.
"Get off, get off! Of course I have to get off!" Zhang Jingzhi said. What did we come here for? How could we not get off? After paying the driver's fare, Zhang Jingzhi got off the bus, took two steps forward confidently, and then stopped, quietly looking at the two people in front of her.
"...He has adopted so many sisters, and when I said something to him, he got angry...and said I was petty..." the woman sobbed in Yang Lei's arms.
She should have been angry, but seeing this scene, Zhang Jingzhi suddenly found it ridiculous and also felt sorry for Yang Lei. She never expected that the woman would come to him to complain about her husband, and to her ex-boyfriend to complain about her current husband. This woman really could do such a tasteless thing!
As the woman cried, she saw Zhang Jingzhi behind Yang Lei, froze, and stopped crying.
Yang Lei turned around and saw Zhang Jingzhi smiling. He froze for a moment, then quickly pushed the woman in his arms away.
Zhang Jingzhi shrugged easily. Actually, she rarely did this gesture before because she always felt it wasn't ladylike enough. "I thought I would be sad, or at least feel down, but I suddenly realized I didn't feel anything at all," she said.
Yang Lei felt somewhat embarrassed and flustered. "Jingzhi—"
"No need to explain!" Zhang Jingzhi raised her hand to stop her. "I don't love you anymore, so seeing this won't hurt me, and naturally I won't hate you. I just think you're a bit pathetic, or rather, a bit pitiful. You keep clinging to things from the past like this. When will you ever stop? If you like someone, you like them; if you don't, you don't. As a man, it's really hard for you to be so indecisive, huh? Of course, you're also somewhat hateful, so I despise you. Okay, I've finished speaking. You guys continue!"
Zhang Jingzhi rattled off a long speech, then turned and walked away with a flourish. Before she had taken two steps, someone caught up with her and grabbed her sleeve. The young woman, with tears in her eyes, pitifully said, "Miss Zhang, please let me explain. There's really nothing between Yang Lei and me. Don't misunderstand. We're just friends now! It's all my fault. Please don't misunderstand him."
Zhang Jingzhi turned around, looked at her with disgust, and stretched out two fingers to pinch her sleeve and pull her hand away. "Miss, did you cry yourself unconscious and come here to be scolded? I can pretend I didn't see you now, please let go."
As she turned to flag down a car, the woman grabbed her sleeve again, saying urgently, "Ms. Zhang, please don't misunderstand. We're really just friends. I don't want to affect your relationship because of me, I—"
Zhang Jingzhi could only turn around helplessly, looking disdainfully at the woman in front of her who was crying like a pear blossom in the rain. Her anger finally erupted. "Don't you think you're disgusting? You've clearly done something shameless, yet you insist on pretending to be innocent. You even have the nerve to come and explain yourself to me? What are you explaining? Huh? Weren't you the one crying in his arms just now? What do you take him for? Huh? Don't tell me you only see him as a friend. Think about it, does he consider you an ordinary friend? What are you playing at? Huh? Yang Lei has no taste, but you're even more tasteless. Stop pretending to be such a good person. Are you a good person? Would a good person cry in someone else's boyfriend's arms? When you're upset and need comfort, you go to him. But what were you doing when he was upset? Sleeping with your husband?"
Zhang Jingzhi felt satisfied with her outburst.
The woman was stunned by the scolding.
"...Alright, I'm too lazy to even call someone like you a scoundrel, because using that to insult you would be an insult to all scoundrels in the world!" Zhang Jingzhi clapped her hands, then looked at the petrified Yang Lei and smiled apologetically, "I'm really sorry, I accidentally revealed my true colors. You'd better watch yourself, bye-bye."
He took a couple of steps, then turned back and chuckled at the dumbfounded Yang Lei, "Oh dear, I forgot to mention, I'm really not like a cat. I'm not a cat at all, I'm a tiger that will eat people if you provoke me!"
Even in the taxi, Zhang Jingzhi's heart was still pounding. She had never cursed anyone like this before. Today was a first. She had originally wanted to leave Yang Lei with the best image when they broke up, but she didn't expect it to end like this. Those two scoundrels must still be dumbfounded!
As she was thinking, Zhang Jingzhi suddenly burst into laughter, shouting "Awesome!" several times. The driver looked at her as if she were crazy, but Zhang Jingzhi didn't care and laughed heartily. As she laughed, her voice gradually lowered and turned into suppressed sobs.
The sadness wasn't because of Yang Lei, but because she suddenly realized that Yang Lei's heart wasn't much more noble than the woman she had just cursed. Holding her phone, the number she most wanted to dial was Wang Yuhan's.
But how could I make such a call? How could I have the nerve to make it?
Zhang Jingzhi hugged her knees tightly, buried her head in her legs, and sobbed uncontrollably.
Zhang Jingzhi
When Xiao Xiao opened the door and saw Zhang Jingzhi, she was startled by her appearance. Her eyes and nose were red, as if she had just been crying, but she was forcing a grin to show off her white teeth.
"Alright, if you can't laugh, then don't! What are you pretending for!" Xiao Xiao pulled Zhang Jingzhi into the house.
Zhang Jingzhi sniffed exaggeratedly, "Wow, what delicious food have you made? Don't hide it, bring it all out for your big sister!"
Jiang Sicheng stood up from the table, blushing, and said apologetically, "We've just started eating, why don't you come and eat with us?"
Zhang Jingzhi didn't expect to run into Jiang Sicheng. Her face flushed slightly, and she walked towards the bathroom with her head down, waving her hands and muttering, "No need, no need, I was just teasing Xiao Xiao. You guys eat. My makeup is ruined, I'm going to wash it off."
Jiang Sicheng also noticed that something was wrong with Zhang Jingzhi. He looked at Xiao Xiao with a questioning look and said softly, "Maybe I should leave first."
Xiao Xiao glanced in the direction of the bathroom, gave him an apologetic smile, and nodded, "Alright, you can go back now."
After seeing Jiang Sicheng to the door, Jiang Sicheng seemed to have forgotten that it was he who suggested going back first, and his face showed a childlike grievance, "I haven't eaten enough yet."
Seeing this burly man playing dirty tricks on her, Xiao Xiao smiled helplessly and asked with a low laugh, "Then what should we do?"
Jiang Sicheng grinned, a mischievous expression he had never shown on the innocent young policewoman's face before. Xiao Xiao was stunned when she saw it. Jiang Sicheng pulled her into his arms with a wicked smile, "It's simple, just make it up to you!"
After a long, lingering kiss, Xiao Xiao struggled out of Jiang Sicheng's arms, panting heavily, her face flushed as she glared at him. He grinned mischievously and whispered in Xiao Xiao's ear, "You weren't wrong, I really have been trained in diving!"
Xiao Xiao paused for a moment, then remembered the time she passionately kissed Jiang Sicheng in front of the traffic police brigade building. At that time, she asked him in a teasing tone: "Brother, are you a scuba diver?"
Xiao Xiao squinted at Jiang Sicheng and asked, "Am I mistaken about you?"
"No, no! I promise!" he laughed.
Xiao Xiao heard Zhang Jingzhi's movements inside the house. Not wanting to argue with him anymore, she simply said in a low voice, "Come over early tomorrow afternoon and come with me to pick up Mom. Don't forget!"