Zhang Yangning took a drag of his cigarette from her hand. "Want to come to my place?"
"One night is fine." Liang Xinran leaned against the wall. "Do you have condoms?"
"Just buy some, that'll do," Zhang Yangning laughed. "Besides, baby, you don't think I'd stay chaste for you, do you?"
Liang Xinran's expression stiffened for a moment, then she scoffed, "Dirty."
"Where have you gone from being so clean?" Zhang Yangning reached out and slapped her butt. "Isn't it time for you to be sleeping with the CEO of Zuoye Culture?"
Liang Xinran paused and said, "Her skills aren't as good as yours."
Zhang Yangning moved closer to her, "Of course, after all, I'm your first woman."
After a while, he asked again, "Do you still have any money?"
"How much do you want?" Liang Xinran asked.
"Five hundred thousand."
Liang Xinran frowned: "What do you need so much money for?"
"Socializing," Zhang Yangning said. "I'm about to get promoted, and I'll have to spend money on meals and drinks for people."
As Zhang Yangning spoke, her hands began to wander, but Liang Xinran pressed her hand down, saying, "You're not using my money to support your other women, are you?"
Zhang Yangning chuckled, a hint of mischief in his voice, "How could that be? Baby, I only love you."
Liang Xinran felt somewhat comfortable with her, but still didn't budge, "Just 100,000."
“You’re Miss Liang now,” Zhang Yangning said. “What’s there to be stingy about? Before long, the entire Liang family will be yours.”
Not yet.
"Given time."
Zhang Yangning ignored Liang Xinran's trembling voice and coaxed her with a smile, "I will help you."
Liang Xinran stomped out the cigarette butt on the ground.
She said in a slightly soft voice, "I'll do it when I get home."
"What about 500,000?" Zhang Yangning asked.
Liang Xinran: "Let me feel comfortable first, then we'll talk."
//
The next morning, when Liang Shi woke up, his arms were empty.
I touched the bed sheet; it was still warm.
Xu Qingzhu must have been up for a short time.
Liang Shi raised his arm to cover his eyes and stayed in bed a little longer.
He turned to his side, buried his head in the pillow, and smelled the fragrance of Xu Qingzhu's hair.
Liang Shixin was satisfied, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up.
I slept soundly through the night, feeling exceptionally relaxed.
After Liang Shi got up, he folded the quilt and went outside. Rainbow was already sitting at the dining table eating.
Liang Shi slapped his forehead and suddenly asked, "Rainbow, what time do you go to kindergarten?"
Rainbow replied obediently, "Sister, it's still early."
Liang Shi breathed a sigh of relief. "I thought you were going to be late. Go ahead and eat, I'll take you to school after you're done."
Rainbow responded with an "Oh."
Xu Qingzhu ate her meal quietly.
This morning was no different from any other. After washing up, Liang Shi sat down at the dining table and saw the purple rice porridge and steamed buns he had bought downstairs. He asked Xu Qingzhu, "When did you get up?"
"Ten minutes earlier than you," Xu Qingzhu said.
"You went downstairs to buy food so quickly?" Liang Shi asked in surprise.
Xu Qingzhu paused, her tone complicated: "Rainbow bought it."
Liang Shi: "..."
"Honey, why did you go downstairs to buy things all by yourself?" Liang Shi was surprised, and her tone was different from usual. "Aren't you afraid of bad people?"
“It’s right downstairs in the apartment complex,” Rainbow said. “I usually go downstairs to buy things myself.”
Liang Shi: "..."
She and Xu Qingzhu exchanged a glance, both seeing disbelief in each other's eyes.
"That's still best not to," Liang Shi advised her. "There are a lot of cars outside now, and you're still a child. Just enjoy the sacrifices made by adults without feeling guilty."
Rainbow paused for a moment, then said in a mature tone, "These are all minor matters."
Liang Shi didn't know what to say.
While eating the fruits of Rainbow's labor, she felt a little guilty.
As an adult, to sleep in so late that you make a five-year-old run errands to buy breakfast shows a complete lack of self-awareness.
But I was indeed... a bit tired last night.
She didn't do anything too outrageous. She just chatted with Xu Qingzhu about Qi Jiao, Chen Mian, Yang Shuyan, and many other people. She would get touched by something and they would get all entangled and kiss.
...
It is indeed somewhat chaotic.
When Liang Shi was washing up just now, he noticed that the corner of his mouth was cracked.
She didn't want to put any effort into Xu Qingzhu, but Xu Qingzhu put his effort into her.
While eating breakfast, Liang Shi was distracted. His thoughts were originally on buying breakfast in Rainbow, but soon he shifted to something else, which was so outrageous that Liang Shi pinched his ear.
After lunch, Liang Shi took Rainbow to kindergarten early.
Similar to when school lets out, the entrance was crowded with people. Rainbow could walk a distance by herself, but Liang Shi still parked the car a little further out and took her to the kindergarten entrance.
After she entered the school, Liang Shi lingered for a while before leaving.
As she was leaving, she saw Yang Jiani, who had brought Gu Xingyue to school. She hid in the crowd and glanced at her discreetly a few times.
Yang Jianni was still wearing a moon-blue cheongsam, with a jade bracelet on her arm, which made her look elegant and noble.
Gu Xingyue was dressed similarly to yesterday. For her, life had been pretty much the same every day for so many years, so this day was no exception.
Time seems to be moving forward, but in the world of Gu Xingyue...
Yesterday, today, and tomorrow are all the same.
Because Gu Xingyue was in the darkness, Qi Jiao is the one who has appeared now.
Liang Shi saw that Yang Jianni kept staring at Gu Xingyue as she entered the school, and only left after looking around.
After the car drove away, Liang Shi reached for his car, but then saw Cheng Ran smoking not far away.
Cheng Ran was wearing a light-colored casual suit, her glamorous wavy hair casually tied behind her back, and surprisingly, she wasn't wearing makeup, her face looking somewhat pale.
However, due to the distance, Liang Shi could not see very clearly.
She didn't intend to go up and say hello, but after taking a few steps, Cheng Ran called her back.
Cheng Ran extinguished her cigarette and casually tossed the butt into the trash can.
"How did you get here?" Cheng Ran walked up to Liang Shi and asked.
Liang Shi then noticed that she had dark circles under her eyes, making it seem as if she hadn't slept for several nights. Her clothes were also wrinkled, but there were lipstick marks on the crumpled collar of her shirt.
I wonder which woman put it there.
A hint of disgust flashed in Liang Shi's eyes.
“It’s none of your business,” Liang Shi replied coldly.
Cheng Ran pressed the tip of her tongue against her teeth, and after a moment asked, "What's your relationship with Qi Jiao?"
“It’s none of your business,” Liang Shi said.
As soon as she finished speaking, Liang Shi was about to leave when Cheng Ran suddenly grabbed her collar like a madwoman, lifted her up, and demanded at the top of her lungs, "Is she fucking with you?"
Liang Shi: "..."
Liang Shi was a bit taller than her, and although she treated him so roughly, he didn't choke, but it was very hurtful to his dignity.
Seeing the two arguing at the kindergarten gate, many parents who had just dropped off their children turned to look. As a result, the kindergarten security guard shouted, "What are you two doing? Get out of here, don't fight at the kindergarten gate. It sets a bad example for the children. I'll call the police if you're not careful."
"Let go," Liang Shi said coldly, his light brown pupils staring icyly at Cheng Ran. "Look at the state you're in now."
“That was all because of her,” Cheng Ran said through gritted teeth. “She has completely disappeared from my life.”
Liang Shi returned her words to her, "That was because you forced me to do it."
Cheng Ran sneered, "What right do you have to say that?"
Liang Shi removed her hand. "What right do you have to ask that question?"
The two locked eyes, neither willing to give an inch.
A moment later, Cheng Ran sneered, "She's only acting recklessly now that she's with you and found someone else."
"Liang Shi." Cheng Ran stared at her: "Didn't you love Xu Qingzhu to death and were willing to change for her? Why are you doing this kind of scum now? Aren't you shameless?"
When Cheng Ran got so angry that she lost her temper, she didn't hold back at all when she started cursing.
Liang Shi simply looked at her calmly. At first, he felt a little angry, but now he felt nothing and only thought that this person was pathetic.
"What kind of relationship I have with her is none of your business," Liang Shi said. "I also relayed your message for you, and her reply was..."
Liang Shi paused, then returned Gu Xingyue's answer verbatim, "Who cares?"
He even perfectly imitated the tone of voice.
Cheng Ran scoffed, "Of course she doesn't care now, she has you."
"Stop being crazy." Liang Shi glanced at her with disgust. "Cheng Ran, what do you mean now? Regretting it and coming back to pursue me?"
Cheng Ran suddenly stopped: "..."